Science fiction

How you too can nearly, almost, probably become a Jedi Knight

At its core, 'Star Wars' is a classic tale of underdogs taking on a powerful enemy; it's a story of hope and perseverance, of standing up for what's right even when the odds are against you.

Why we can’t get enough of aliens

In the US, an alien is not just an extraterrestrial; it could simply mean someone from a foreign country.

#Perspective / What makes Professor Shonku so special to us?

As Bengalis, we have grown up reading Satyajit Ray. Who does not remember the clever, witty, and adventurous detective, Feluda? Or the highly revered Professor Shonku, an eccentric scientist, inventor, explorer, and polyglot? Today, we celebrate one of these characters, Professor Trilokeshwar Shonku, paying a humble tribute to the Bengali maestro that is Satyajit Ray. For many of us, Ray was the entrance to Bengali literature, and the Shonku series — an influential work of science fiction in the Bengali language.

BOOK REVIEW: FICTION / To be human for the corporation: Olga Ravn’s ‘The Employees’

These characters, human and machine alike, are invited to provide witness statements about their working environment to a commission, which form the entirety of the novel—a design that helps Ravn bring about an atmosphere of tension.

BOOKS THAT CHANGED MY LIFE / How Jules Verne’s ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ got me through typhoid

Jules Verne opened my eyes to the wonderful world of science-fiction, a world where the pinnacle of human imagination meets the beauty of the known. 

The Second Species

A hundred years ago humans welcomed a new species of their kind, Homo debilis-sagax.

‘We want to be writers when we grow up’: New sci-fi novella by sisters, fourth-graders

Cousins Faiza Shabnam and Bibha Habiba Haque, students of Class 4 in Dhaka’s Scholastica school, have written a novella about three space travelling teenagers. 

At long last, a ‘Foundation’

Originally published as a series of short stories in the 1940s, the Foundation series—expanded later with a string of prequels and sequels—became Asimov’s greatest contribution to the genre and remains, to this day, one of the greatest reads for any SF connoisseur. 

Get ready to teleport!

Today is the future that people have been talking about. Hover boards and self-driven cars are beginning to go mainstream, so why should the concept of teleportation still be a part of the distant future?

May 3, 2023
May 3, 2023

How you too can nearly, almost, probably become a Jedi Knight

At its core, 'Star Wars' is a classic tale of underdogs taking on a powerful enemy; it's a story of hope and perseverance, of standing up for what's right even when the odds are against you.

April 27, 2023
April 27, 2023

Why we can’t get enough of aliens

In the US, an alien is not just an extraterrestrial; it could simply mean someone from a foreign country.

February 20, 2023
February 20, 2023

What makes Professor Shonku so special to us?

As Bengalis, we have grown up reading Satyajit Ray. Who does not remember the clever, witty, and adventurous detective, Feluda? Or the highly revered Professor Shonku, an eccentric scientist, inventor, explorer, and polyglot? Today, we celebrate one of these characters, Professor Trilokeshwar Shonku, paying a humble tribute to the Bengali maestro that is Satyajit Ray. For many of us, Ray was the entrance to Bengali literature, and the Shonku series — an influential work of science fiction in the Bengali language.

January 19, 2023
January 19, 2023

To be human for the corporation: Olga Ravn’s ‘The Employees’

These characters, human and machine alike, are invited to provide witness statements about their working environment to a commission, which form the entirety of the novel—a design that helps Ravn bring about an atmosphere of tension.

September 30, 2022
September 30, 2022

How Jules Verne’s ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ got me through typhoid

Jules Verne opened my eyes to the wonderful world of science-fiction, a world where the pinnacle of human imagination meets the beauty of the known. 

June 16, 2022
June 16, 2022

The Second Species

A hundred years ago humans welcomed a new species of their kind, Homo debilis-sagax.

March 16, 2022
March 16, 2022

‘We want to be writers when we grow up’: New sci-fi novella by sisters, fourth-graders

Cousins Faiza Shabnam and Bibha Habiba Haque, students of Class 4 in Dhaka’s Scholastica school, have written a novella about three space travelling teenagers. 

August 30, 2021
August 30, 2021

At long last, a ‘Foundation’

Originally published as a series of short stories in the 1940s, the Foundation series—expanded later with a string of prequels and sequels—became Asimov’s greatest contribution to the genre and remains, to this day, one of the greatest reads for any SF connoisseur. 

October 16, 2015
October 16, 2015

Get ready to teleport!

Today is the future that people have been talking about. Hover boards and self-driven cars are beginning to go mainstream, so why should the concept of teleportation still be a part of the distant future?

March 4, 2015
March 4, 2015

“Chappie” to release in Dhaka on US release date

“Chappie”, a science-fiction film by Neil Blomkamp (“District 9”), is releasing in Dhaka on March 6, the same day as its US release.