Futurism at JHU

by Nicholas Here’s a list of my all-time favorite sci-fi books, movies and shows   First, the books:  The Martian by Andy Weir* Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir* Artemis by Andy Weir* The Egg (short story) by Andy Weir* The Giver by Lois Lowry  Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller 1984 by George Orwell  Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card    Next, the movies:  Swan Song   The Martian (Matt Damon might be my favorite actor)  Oblivion  Tenet  (John David Washington + cast are fantastic actors)** The Creator (John David Washington is again fantastic)  Inception** Interstellar** In Time   Ready Player One (have watched at least five times)  Arrival  Geostorm (gotta love Gerard Butler)  Star Wars (all the movies - absolutely classic)  Finally, the shows:  The Brain with David Eagleman (Dr. Eagleman + his show inspired me to study Neuroscience)  Black Mirror (trippy)  *Clearly,...

by Nicholas Disclaimer : this post discusses a deep topic that may be triggering or overwhelming for some.    I don’t know about you, but death is very scary to me. The idea of not existing is something that is impossible for me to comprehend most days. Once in a while, often late at night as I’m lying in bed, I suddenly get an overwhelming panic attack as I realize how life is not infinite and I will not exist at some point. It’s the worst feeling I’ve ever experienced.    I was baptized and grew up going to church, but I’ve strayed further and further from my faith over the years. Which is unfortunate, since there is relief in believing that there is something beyond this life. As I’ve become more and more interested in science, I simply don’t see the need for a higher being; science explains everything. I wish I could go back to my younger, happier days when I truly believed in God. It would be great if my dog, my grandparents, my relatives, my friends, and every ...

by Nicholas Although Futurism at JHU primarily focuses on science + tech, we also talk about the future of humanity in general. And at the center of humanity (and science + tech) is human nature.  In 7th grade, I wrote an essay on human nature based on the novel Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding. The story revolves around a group of boys whose plane crashes onto an island, where they must work together to survive. The true character of the boys is exposed as they fight over what they should do and who should lead them. The three protagonists of the story each represent different manifestations of human nature through their bad-natured and good-natured actions: Jack represents the aggressive, sadistic and evil side of human nature by bullying and beating up the other boys. Simon represents the good, kind and selfless side of human nature by helping the bullied boys throughout their time on the island, even at the risk of having Jack retaliate. Ralph represents the abilit...

The origin story of Futurism at JHU. [Based on the transcript from Episode #23 ] I’m Nicholas, the Founder, President and Host of the Futurism at JHU podcast. Today, I’ll go into my background; how Futurism was founded; our purpose, goals and the future; and then also go into some tips for any of you out there who are interested in starting a podcast of your own. To start with some background, this actually was an idea that started in 8th grade. I watched this PBS special called “The Brain with David Eagleman” and it absolutely blew my mind and inspired my love for neuroscience. From there, I realized I that I was super interested in science and technology and the scientific developments that would shape humanity in the coming years and decades. When I got to high school, I decided to start a science club. It was called the Future of Science or FOS, which stands for light in Greek. I thought that was very symbolic; science and tech can be the light forward for humanity. The Future...