Episode 4 - I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream

TBD - To Be Determined

Theme: It’s always darkest before the abyss.
Time: 38:44

Episode Connections
Authors, stories. Damon Knight. Ray Bradbury. Harlan Ellison, “Repent, Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman.” Dan Simmons, “Eyes I Dare Not Meet in Dreams,” Hyperion Chronicles. Jack Williamson, “With Folded Hands.” Arthur C. Clarke, “The Sentinel.” Douglas Adams, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Fred Saberhagen, Berserker novels. Keith Laumer, Bolo series.
Films. Saw. Alien. Terminator.
TV episodes, series. Star Trek, the Next Generation. Battlestar Galactica series. Flash Gordon.
Ideas. Darkness and scifi, horror-scifi crossovers. Psychological horror. Authors exorcising their demons. Atmospheric horror. What does it mean to be human? Sentient machines. Military super-computers. Post-apocalyptic futures. Physical horror. Multidimensional torture. Why might computers hate humans? Helplessness, powerlessness at the mercy of an Other. When does physical/mental transformation end all sense of humanity? Is artificial life life? You say buffet, I say buffet. How do we define horror in science fiction? Military-industrial super computers, SkyNet. What happens if the computers succeed in killing off all the humans? Computer nemeses in science fiction. The evolution of AI and CI in science fiction. “What’s my motivation?” asked the Cylon. Cold War computer concepts. High-tech warfare. Why don’t we make supercomputers for greenhouses or koi ponds? Frivolous computer apps.

Previous episode: Jack Williamson, “With Folded Hands”
Next episode: Terry Bisson, “They’re Made Out of Meat,” and Damon Knight, “To Serve Man”

Music Credit: "Ouroboros" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
Link: Creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/