Essays & Opinions

AI’s Threat to Humanity is More Mundane Than We Imagine

"Someday, we will build the descendants of humanity and launch them off to colonize the universe." That's the long-term vision of Sam Altman, founder and current CEO of OpenAI, and former leader of the venture ...

Our Winter’s Tales

[Vote for "Our Winter's Tales" in the 1st Annual Utopia Awards. Polls are now open through Aug. 21, 2022.] Today is the Winter Solstice, and the reality of days getting longer and the sun returning ...

How ‘Horta-nomics’ can save Star Trek’s socialist utopia from the horrors of the dilithium mines

This moment — Spock’s mind-meld with the Horta in “Devil in the Dark” -- is the instant when the socialist Federation of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" with all its hope becomes possible.Throughout the original ...

What Poe can teach us about the pandemic

But Prince Prospero was happy and dauntless and sagacious. When his dominions were half depopulated, he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, ...

‘Dark Phoenix’ and the persistence of Jean Grey

She’s a goddess of fire and destruction, dangerous and beautiful, the chosen vessel of an inextinguishable, wildly powerful cosmic life force. But, no mere puppet on a string, she wields that power with purpose and ...