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What is Science Fiction?
Science fiction is a genre of fiction where the stories often deal with elements of science or technology and many of these imaginary elements are largely possible within scientifically-established or scientifically-postulated laws of nature. In many of these stories some of the scientific elements, or most of it, are still pure imaginative speculation. Science fiction is therefore often called speculative fiction.
Science fiction should to some extent be related to science that is in existence at the time of writing, i.e. the science should not be completely unbelievable or implausible, for the reason that it will then venture into the genre of fantasy. Sometimes the boundary between science fiction and fantasy can get fuzzy, but the primary separation between the two genres concerns whether the story is plausible or not. Rod Serling (1924 – 1975), an American screenwriter and television producer, best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his science fiction anthology TV series, The Twilight Zone, differentiated between science fiction and fantasy by saying: “Fantasy is the impossible made probable. Science Fiction is the improbable made possible.”
Tags: extrapolations, fiction anthology, genre of literature, imaginary elements, live television, rod serling, science fiction and fantasy, story elements, television dramas, twilight zoneThe Development of Technology Engineering
Over the past decade Massachusetts has developed academic technology-engineering standards and implemented related programs. The Massachusetts experience has become a reference point for a number of other states and countries looking to support engineering education. This paper outlines the process Massachusetts has undertaken and some of the successes and challenges related to the implementation of engineering concepts in K-12 education. The development of state technology-engineering standards was initially made possible through the Massachusetts 1993 Education Reform Law but was only carried out through the advocacy of technology education educators and engineers with an interest in education.
Massachusetts treats technology engineering as a science discipline, equivalent to physical science, life science, and earth and space science. A number of state policies support the implementation of school and district technology-engineering programs aligned with the technology-engineering standards, such as licensure and assessment expectations. A number of challenges remain, however, before technology-engineering can be considered to have developed to a point equivalent to traditional science disciplines. The development of technology-engineering standards in Massachusetts started with the inclusion of language in the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Law: The board shall develop academic standards for the core subjects of mathematics, science and technology, history and social science, English, foreign languages and the arts. The board may also include in the standards a fundamental knowledge of technology education and computer science and keyboarding skills.
Tags: earth and space, education educators, engineering concepts, massachusetts education, massachusetts experience, mathematics science, science discipline, science disciplines, technology framework, traditional science