The Novel Tourist Book Club

Sci-Fi Novels That Came True

My dad is one of the original “Trekkies.”  I think I learned the theme to Star Trek before I learned how to spell my name: “These are the voyages of the Star Trek Enterprise….”  Three year old me could recite it as though I were the narrator himself! To me, Star Trek is the standard for all things Sci-Fi. I mean, seriously, Captain Kirk’s communicator was the forerunner to the flip phone! Plus, any show that includes fuzzy creatures wins my heart. Next to the adorable Tribbles, my favorite parts of Star Trek were preceded by one version or another of the infamous phrase, “Beam me up, Scotty!”  How cool would it be to travel like that! The transporter was a teleportation machine that saved the good Captain’s life many a times and for that I will always be grateful!  lol.  Sadly, this fictional brainchild hasn’t yet been recreated in reality, but there are many Sci-Fi movie, tv and literary inventions that have. With my beloved Captain Kirk in mind, I added a Sci-Fi category to the Read & Go Challenge. If you’re stuck on ideas for the challenge or just looking for some Sci-Fi books, here are some Sci-Fi turned Real Life inventions that were dreamed up by authors.

 1. Space Ships and a Trip to the Moon

“How many things have been denied one day, only to become realities the next!” Jules Verne, From the Earth to the Moon.

In 1865, three brave astronauts left Florida and landed on the moon traveling in a giant metal ball called the Columbiad.  Oh, wait…no. Those were the fictional moonwalkers dreamed up by Jules Verne in From the Earth to the Moon, in 1865! That’s right, Jules Verne penned a nearly identical scenario to the historical moon landing that took place over 100 years later in 1969 by Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong and Michael Collins. In a likely nod to Mr. Verne, the Apollo 11 command module was named the Columbia. 

2. Edible Wallpaper, Gravity-free Rooms and Everlasting Gobstoppers

“I’ve heard tell that what you imagine sometimes comes true” – Grandpa Jo. Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Grandpa Joe was onto something, but I bet he didn’t know it. Who knew that Roald Dahl’s fictional lick-able wallpaper and everlasting Gobstobbers would be the imagined things that came true! And, unlike Verne’s space travel, you can make these Sci-Fi novelties yourself.  Head on over to Fun Foods, for the details on making both. Let me know how they turn out!

Once your done making Sci-Fi deserts, you can also enjoy another fictional invention that came to life in Dahl’s imagination: Gravity Free rooms! Remember when Charlie and Grandpa Joe were floating around in the Fizzy Lifting room and almost died?  Yea, I was on pins and needles, too! Luckily, you can experience that same type of simulated zero gravity experience, presumably without the near death moments, through programs like Zero-G.

3. Facetime

“If a certain person talks to me over the wire, I can turn my switch, and get a picture of him here at my apparatus connected with my telephone.” – Tom Swift

Tom Swift and his Photo Telephone, is volume 17 of the Juvenile Fiction series published by Grosset & Dunlap. Tom’s telephone is like a predecessor to Apple’s Facetime.  In fact, Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, cited “Tom Swift” as an inspiration. Unlike Facetime, Swift’s fictional phone didn’t have the ability to transmit video, but it did display a static picture  of the person on the other end. I’d say that in 1914, that was a pretty far out concept and definitely a sci-fi novel that came true!

4. Smart Houses and Virtual Reality

“I don’t want to do anything but look and listen and smell; what else is there to do?” Ray Bradbury, The Veldt

Ray Bradbury’s short story, The Veldt, depicts a family living in a home that is filled with machines that handle nearly every task. The children are entertained in a “nursery” that is really a virtual reality room that can display any image the children imagine. 

Virtual Reality opportunities are one of those sci-fi novel ideas that came true and are readily available. And, they now can include smells! I will admit, I was pretty skeptical of the whole thing, at first. But, on a road trip to Montreal my daughter and some friends and I had the chance to test out these fancy new fangled VR devices at the PHI Center in Montreal. If I say it was amazing, that’s an understatement. It felt so incredibly real! I reached out to touch what my eyes were seeing several times, and each time stunned that I couldn’t actually touch anything. Honestly, however? It was amazing, but frustrating at the same time. The show I watched was about Yosemite National Park. Although I enjoyed every minute of the virtual reality show, I left feeling disappointed that I wasn’t actually there.  20 minutes in Yosemite just isn’t enough!

Do you know of any other Sci-Fi novels that came true? Please do share! Also, if you’re looking for a community of book lovers who like to live a fun life, too,  come on over to the Novel Tourist Facebook page or join The Novel Tourist Facebook Group.  We’d love to hear from you!