The STEM – Sci-Fi Connection

Let’s cultivate the positive, uplifting science fiction so that we can inspire kids who will go out and create that world we’ve imagined for them.

By Tamara Wilhite

Someone described a classic science fiction novel’s cover as a book cover that launched a thousand engineering careers, and I completely understood the sentiment as an engineer, a science fiction fan and science fiction author. What many don’t seem to understand is the connection between science fiction and STEM.

The engaging imagery on the book cover often sells the book, and it sets the reader’s expectations (or explains the environment, as in the case of “Ringworld” and “Integral Trees”). We talked about how science fiction in general inspired many to go into STEM careers and on to actual inventions. You can find articles listing everything that Star Trek has inspired in real life to date. Yet there are several trends that are inhibiting this trend in the next generation.