Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Ideas in Different Blood: Cognitive Diversity in SF/F

Two things about our world particularly stuck in their minds. One was the extraordinary degree to which problems of lifting and carrying things absorbed our energy. The other was the fact that we only had one kind of hnau: they thought this must have far-reaching effects in the narrowing of sympathies and even of thought.

'Your thought must be at the mercy of your blood,' said the old sorn. 'For you cannot compare it with thought that floats on different blood.'
-C.S. Lewis, "Out of the Silent Planet" (1938)
After considerable delay, I am very pleased to offer reading copies from "Ideas in Different Blood", the panel held at Wiscon 39:

"Silence and Bright Flashing Lights: A Brief Look at Irrationality in Earthsea and Valis" by John Lodder

"Right in Other Ways: Hierarchical vs. Radiant Intelligence Models" by Jake Casella

"Neurominorities in Science Fiction" by Jason M. Robertson

This panel was so much fun! I'm really glad that Wiscon is such a great environment for independent scholarship, and hoping to organize another panel next year.

Please note that these are presentation drafts and not necessarily final versions, and are the respective authors' intellectual property. If you'd like to use the work in any fashion, please contact Positron and we'll get you in touch with the authors.

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