Home | Glossary | Timeline | New

Science Fiction in the News Articles
Related to material in Idoru
by William Gibson

The decadent 21st century seen in Neuromancer is again the main character in this cyber thriller. The novel takes place mostly in a future Tokyo, where various plots (some amusing) unfold, including a search by a 14 year old groupie who tries to determine if the lead singer in her favorite band is really going to marry an artificial celebrity - an idoru.

Science fiction in the News articles describe real-world events that relate to the ideas and inventions in sf novels and movies. Select a news article:

Virtual Reality and Your Spider Sense
   Recent work at the University of Washington has shown that combining tactile input with virtual reality can improve the usefulness of aversion therapy.

LingoPhone Provides Mobile Translation
   LingoPhone now provides mobile, on-the-spot translation services via cellphone. The service works with any mobile phone equipped to send and recieve text messages.

Phraselator P2: Speech Recognition And Translation
   VoxTec is now taking orders for the Phraselator P2, an improved version of its original product. The new device is a complete redesign, with longer battery life, higher-fidelity audio, better speech recognition and improved ergonomics.

Talking Washing Machines Are More Accessible
   New washing machines are starting to look, well, more modern, with LCD displays and smooth, easy-to-clean panels. Unfortunately, that makes appliances much more difficult to use for people with vision problems, who would prefer large knobs.

Calling All Sandbenders - PC Case Mod Contest!
   Liked the idea of sandbenders from William Gibson novels? Check out the extreme case modification contest.

Toshiba Ubiquitous Viewer Lets Phones Control PCs
   Toshiba says it has developed software to let users control computers in their homes or offices from their mobile phones.

Virtual Girlfriends Updated
   Tomb Raider Lara Croft and V-Girl Vivienne, much loved personality-constructs, have both been updated this past week.

Shelter After Katrina
   Readers wrote in suggesting that perhaps science fiction writers had some ideas that could be of practical use.

Emily Lifelike Animation Sets New Standard
   This new technique presents a character that may have made its way successfully across the 'uncanny valley.' Are synthespians far behind?

Webkare - Virtual Boyfriends
   Are men or women more likely to become interested in a virtual friend/lover? Japanese schoolgirls are voting with their fingers on this one.

Love Plus Dating Sim Requires Kissing
   Dating in the virtual world of Love Plus; would you have a relationship with a virtual person?

iPhone To Control Desktop Computer Remotely?
   Nice prediction for William Gibson; he even used a touch screen interface on his 'control-face' device.

James Cameron's Avatar Synthespians
   Updated with comment by Jeff Kleiser and a video. Is the world ready for artificial actors? James Cameron's technology in Avatar may make this long-delayed idea a reality.

Virtual Star Hatsune Miku In 3D Hologram Concert Video
   Amazing HD video of this live concert presented by an idoru, a personality-construct famous in Japan.

Synthespian Wannabe: Tron Legacy's Jeff Bridges
   Jeff Bridges enjoyed being scanned into the movie Tron: Legacy. His original character did not enjoy being scanned into the video-game Tron.

Is Aimi Eguchi Real or Virtual? Updated!
   Japanese audiences are puzzled; is she an idoru?

NSA Data Mining And 'Cybernetic Water Witches'
   'He was an intuitive fisher of patterns of information...'- William Gibson, 1996.

Gatebox Virtual Girlfriend Perfect For Budding Salaryman
   'She is ... a congeries of software agents.' - William Gibson, 1996.

Disney Keeps Backups Of Star Wars Franchise Actors
   'She is a personality-construct, a congeries of software agents...' - William Gibson, 1996.

Xinhua AI Anchor Puts CGI Face To Automated News
   '...a congeries of software agents.' - William Gibson, 1996.

Galaxy Z Fold 3 Perfect For William Gibson's 'Control-Face'
   'Chia recognized the square as the control-face of the computer she'd seen in his room.' William Gibson, 1996.

Man's Marriage To Hologram Ruined By Software Glitch
   Till 'NETWORK ERROR' do us part.

Anna Indiana AI Singer-Songwriter
   'She is a personality-construct, a congeries of software agents' - William Gibson, 1984

Technovelgy.com is devoted to the creative inventions of science fiction authors and movie makers. Look for the Science Fiction Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary of Science Fiction Inventions, the Timeline of Science Fiction Inventions, or see what's New.
Find new authors and technologies - Shop for yourself, your library and your lab.

Science Fiction
in the News

More SF in the News