he mad scientists and megalomaniacs of planet Earth are probably already well aware of World Domination Toys, a site tailored to the unique needs of anyone seeking to conquer and enslave us all. For those humans who dream on a smaller scale, however, this Web page may be just the place for helping to fund a world coup without having to do all the dirty work.
"Taking over the world, one toy at a time," is the motto of this e-commerce site, which offers high-end products like a remote anti-gravity flying saucer (for $625,000.99 U.S.) as well as smaller items such as a line of Rabies Babies plush toys—they foam at the mouth when squeezed—and world domination video games. The unfortunate catch, of course, is that the site's fictional mastermind, one Doctor Steel, doesn't currently have the funds to build many of the products he is advertising. (Being an up-and-coming world dominator is an expensive prospect, after all.)
In creating a store filled with fictional products, Doctor Steel has tapped into a fundamental truth about shopping: Often, looking is as enjoyable as actually buying. The fun in this Web page is all in the surfing. The product photographs and descriptions are witty, and many an SF fan will wish these items were for real. (Though not every product is simply a gag—the site's best-sellers section includes postcards, a Doctor Steel Propaganda Journal and bumper stickers, among other souvenirs.) What World Domination Toys really offers is a perfect Internet getaway for SF fans, a quick and frivolous source of laughs that provides a spirit-lifting break from the mundane world.
—A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—January 3, 2005
here science meets fiction," reads the banner of the Technovelgy (pronounced tek-novel-gee) Web page, and that is exactly what this site delivers—information on hot new inventions being created around the globe. This is no dry science-news page, though: All the stories are cross-referenced with tantalizing snippets referring to similar technologies created by SF writers, often years and even decades before real-world science caught up with their visions. Readers can thus find a news item about the fastest elevator in the world linked to a short excerpt from Isaac Asimov's Foundation about "gravitic repulsion elevators." Next up—a piece about a man who survived a fall into an industrial garbage compactor, an article that just happens to have a picture of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia caught in a similar fix.
Technovelgy is a unique fusion of practical science and unadulterated dream. Its backbone is its extensive list of SF inventions, each indexed by its creator, be it Douglas Adams or Roger Zelazny. Each entry includes a small snippet of text from the novel it came from—essentially the critical few paragraphs that explain what the gizmo is and how it works. Visitors can also browse inventions through a timeline that dates back to the 1726 "invention" of bio-energy by Jonathan Swift in Gulliver's Travels. If one is looking for
something particular, these fictional technologies are also indexed by category.
Any real-world technology that is at all similar to a Technovelgy item is fair game for this Web page, which cross-references every news item with as many relevant fictional devices as the site owners can find. Movies are not ignored either: A piece about research into computers that can analyze human voice samples and draw conclusions about the speaker's emotions contains references to I, Robot and 2001: A Space Odyssey. The site accepts new entries all the time: If a favorite author has been overlooked, visitors are invited to help Technovelgy add to their store of knowledge.
Technovelgy is one of those sites with unlimited surfing potential—its articles are short and punchy, and each offers links to another item or three just as intriguing. With more than 700 entries in its SF inventions archive—and a fiction sample appended to each—it is also a great place to go to sample new authors, particularly those writing hard SF. Inspiring inventors and engineers to create real versions of imagined technologies is one of SF's greatest spinoff benefits. This site celebrates that ongoing accomplishment with panache and humor.
—A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—December 27, 2004
ince 2002, The Dragon Page radio show has been discussing the SF and fantasy field, focusing more—though never exclusively—on writers and their fiction than on TV or big-budget film projects. Since its inception, the program has grown and mutated into two different shows. "Live Fire" is a live call-in program that talks about terraforming, military SF, appropriate holiday gifts for fans and just about everything else. Meanwhile, "Cover to Cover" continues to put written SF under the microscope, staying true to the Dragon Page team's original vision.
Broadcast on radio stations across America as well as online, The Dragon Page offers literate and insightful discussion of the genre to any reader with a Web connection. Its site provides just a taste of what the show has to offer, allowing visitors to listen to recent programs while reading through reviews and summaries of earlier installments. Fans can also browse through the Dragon Page blog, a congenial grab bag of posts covering scientific discoveries, serious SF news, humorous links and other items of interest, many of which are contributed by the show's regular listeners.
Dragon Page has interviewed many of the best-known authors working in SF today—giants like Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury, hot new stars like Cory Doctorow and award winners from Connie Willis to Spider Robinson. Meanwhile, past media guests have included Lani Tupu of Farscape and Battlestar Galactica's Richard Hatch. The show's guest listings are very much a who's who of SF, and the site provides photos, mini-biographies and a bit of information about each writer's body of work. Readers who may be curious about their favorite authors' lives or who are looking for new books to try out over the holidays will find that The Dragon Page's sincere affection for SF literature makes it a first-rate referral site.
—A.M. Dellamonica
Back to the top.
