What a loss it was when he passed recently! And so damn sudden! No other science fiction writer has ever even come close to his resplendently positive, rationally optimistic ,and intellectually amusing exploration of a host human civilization. (and the Ships that snark all over it!)

Absolutely - so engaging and friendly, really fun to watch/listen to him!

I think we're in an extremely parochial cultural epoch right now (early 21st century). All those science fiction novels and movies that are obsessed with the magical properties of computers (i.e., AI, living in a simulation, Rainbows End style augmented reality, implants, etc) will seem as quaint as old Victorian…

As more and more knowledge is encoded digitally, less and less of it will survive the way texts from the Middle Ages, Rome, and even ancient Greece and Persia has survived today. Digital information is much less robust than its paper and stone counterparts. Not only does the physical media have to survive, but also…

That's just it; Science Fiction doesn't ask for very much suspension of disbelief. It's supposed to take an informed look forward, and it is rightly criticized if it indulges in fantasy.

What about Ian M Banks Culture series. It's definitely a society I would want us to aspire too. Many technologies demonstrated in it we get close too every day. A.I. is coming in leaps and bounds. Wired.co.uk recently had an article on a chip to monitor our bodies and the release of drugs via an internal system…

I don't care about marketing, I care about art.

Personally I don't gauge utopias by their toys, but the psychology involved and goals. Utopias by their very definition are antithetical and impossible. The US is a Utopia... democracy, do we actually have real democracy? Of course not. Truth, Justice and The American Way? These are all ideals about equality, etc.…

You are describing the "Culture" series by Iain M Banks. There's plenty of conflict to be had. Mostly from without.

I've always wanted to read a post-scarcity, optimistic scifi book where the AIs are uber-brilliant, yet they use this brilliance for good, enriching and supporting human society's current goals without having some alternative agenda -plus- humans would not mistrust, undermine, or become envious of the AIs'…

I don't care about marketing, I care about art. Make great art, the audience will follow. The original Trek did not become a phenomenon because of action alone (although it had action). I'm sure they could have shown a hopeful future if Abrams understood Trek, and had a stronger vision as a filmmaker.

To be fair, it's a lot easier to be "a hopeful vision of the future" when you're a TV show rather than a film, which Star Trek currently is not.

I love the old Star Trek because it was a hopeful vision of the future. I think it's sad it's been turned into another action franchise about running and car chases. There's still hope though- I doubt the current incarnation will be remembered nearly as long as the original, or create as devoted a following.