Science (Non)Fiction

Way-out dreams sometimes become reality
不再只是科「幻」 - 遙遠的夢想有時也會成真.

Many technologies that seem commonplace today appeared miraculous when they first appeared on the scene. The creative minds behind these amazing inventions were not only scientists, however. In many cases, they were writers of science fiction . These literary masters conceived of some incredible innovations way before their time.

Examples of current technologies that were once science fiction are not hard to find. Cellphones are now everywhere. Long before they became an indispensable communications device, they were foreshadowed by the "communicator"  (which looked like a flip phone) on the TV show Star Trek in the 1960s.

The Internet was envisioned by Mark Twain in 1898. Credit cards? Predicated by Edward Bellamy in 1888. Satellites? Wtritten about by Arthur C.Clarke in 1945. Military weaponry like submarines, tanks and atomic bombs appeared in novels by Jules Verne (1869) and H.G. Wells (1903, 1014). Lunar exploration was visualized by Johannes Kepler as far back as 1634. So what does this suggest for the future? The bizarre fantasies of today's science-fiction writers may one day be accepted as normal devices. Already we are seeing developments like flying cars, real-time language translation and even thought-controlled computers. The future is becoming "now" faster than ever before!

Grammar Tips:
Credit cards? Predicted by Edward Bellamy in 1888.
Credit card - this sentence has no "verb". (writing grammar: What about credit cards?)
Predicted by Edward Bellamy in 1888. this sentence miss "subject".(grammar: Credit cards were predicted by Edward Bellamy in 1888.)
same thing: Satellites? Written about by Arthur C. Clarke in 1945. 
what's going on?
＊The writer use a style of creative way to write it instead of a traditional way.
＊The writer use a style of way as he is  talking, when you are talking, is very casual, this is the beauty of the creative way in writing.

Vocabulary Tips:
miraculous - miracle, something is very powerful. super-nature, amazed.神奇的，不可思议的。
*The fairy used her miraculous power to save the princess.
miraculous -惊人的。
*The basketball team's miraculous victory made the headline news tonight.
foreshadow -to show or indicate something might happen in future. “之前”的意思，要来之前的预兆。
*The long-term decline of the stock market foreshadowed a serious global depression.　长时间下跌。。是全球严重经济萧条的前兆。
*The lack of rain last winter foreshadowed this year's drought.。。。干旱的前兆。
visualize -see, imaging, can form a picture on your mind, can imagination it.使形象化，想像。。
visual -sense of seeing.　视觉。
*I can visualize myself working as a professional lawyer.
*I can visualize what my dream house would look like.
non - fiction: is real. 'non' -not, 'fiction' - imagination in science, not real.
way-out -something is possible and will happy.
common - happen every day, every where. nothing special.
innovation -something new, very different with the existing thing. creative.
invention - create something new.
indispensable - something we can not live without it.
envision-some thought in mind.
atomic - element is small but very powerful.原子
lunar -moon.
bizarre (adj)- weird.  古怪的，奇异的

Chat Room:
scene -现场。
the scene of an accident -以外出事现场
The police arrived quickly on the scene.。。。当场。。
The scene of the crime -　犯罪现场。
Many technologies that seem commonplace today appeared miraculous when they first appeared on the scene.
"The"定冠词 + (adj)+ scene  , scene - field.界
the music scene -音乐界。
the pop scene -流行音乐界。
the rock scene -摇滚乐界。
a change of scene -改变步调，换个环境。
change of scene - you feel bore with your current life, you would like to have some change.