Lighthearted, quirky, and upbeat, this book explores the portrayal of science and technology on both the big and little screen -- and how Hollywood is actually doing a better job of getting it right than ever before. Grounded in the real-word, and often cutting-edge, science and technology that inspires fictional science, the authors survey Hollywood depictions of topics such as quantum mechanics, parallel universes, and alien worlds. Including material from interviews with over two dozen writers, producers, and directors of acclaimed science-themed productions -- as well as scientists, science fiction authors, and science advisors -- Hollyweird Science examines screen science fiction from the sometimes-conflicting vantage points of storytellers, researchers, and viewers. Including a foreword by Eureka co-creator and executive producer Jaime Paglia, and an afterword by astronomer and science fiction author Michael Brotherton, Ph.D., this book is accessible to all readers from the layperson to the armchair expert to the professional scientist, and will delight all of them equally.

Informative, entertaining and upbeat, this book continues Grazier and Cass's exploration of how technology, science, and scientists are portrayed in Hollywood productions. Both big and small-screen productions are featured and their science content illuminated-first by the authors and subsequently by a range of experts from science and the film world. Starring roles in this volume are played by, among other things, computers (human and mechanical), artificial intelligences, robots, and spacecraft. Interviews with writers, producers, and directors of acclaimed science-themed films stand side by side with the perspectives of scientists, science fiction authors, and science advisors. The result is a stimulating and informative reading experience for the layperson and professional scientist or engineer alike. The book begins with a foreword by Zack Stentz, who co-wrote X-Men: First Class and Thor, and is currently a writer/producer on CW's The Flash.

Fringe has always been more than the sum of its parts--but its parts, too, are worth a closer look. The show combines a surfeit of mad science, some old-school sci-fi flair, and a dash of strawberry-milkshake whimsy to create the challenging, fascinating Pattern that keeps us coming back season after season and universe after universe. Now, in Fringe Science, cutting-edge scientists, science writers, and science fiction authors and historians provide a smart, savvy, and accessible look at the world(s) of Fringe. MIT physics professor Max Tegmark illuminates the real-life possibilities of parallel universes Stephen Cass, founding editor of Discover's Science Not Fiction blog and a Senior Editor with Technology Review, unravels Fringe's use of time travel Award-winning science fiction historian Amy H. Sturgis walks us through the show's literary and television ancestors, from the 1800s on Television Without Pity staff writer Jacob Clifton looks at the role of the scientist, and scientific redemption, through the ever-shifting role of Massive Dynamic Garth Sundem, bestselling author of Brain Candy, explores the mysterious way that memory works, from why Walter forgets to how Olivia remembers And more, from lab cow Gene's scientific resume to why the Observers should be wearing white lab coats