Allan Dyen-Shapiro
On the Everglades Part VII: Breaking News
January 1, 2018, Miami, Florida. CDC officials today are reporting a 1,000-fold increase in deaths caused by encephalitis this year...
top of page
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
Science Fiction Author
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Dec 25, 2017
Futurism: Misanalysis of the Recent Tax Bill Exposed
Economics is one area in which Americans don’t need Russians to infiltrate and sow dissent and confusion. We have plenty of dissent and...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Nov 9, 2017
The Science Fictional Middle East Part III/It Just Dawned on Me What Mister Robot is Really About
Last night, on the first televised (rather than webcast) after-show for Mister Robot, the show’s creator, Sam Esmail, obliquely told...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Oct 15, 2017
Where's the Punk in Steampunk?
Early in my attempts to catch up on a lifetime of not reading science fiction, in preparation for writing science fiction, I came across...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Sep 28, 2017
Sciencefictional Economics I: Does capitalist dystopia inexorably progress to societal collapse?
Post-capitalist dystopia has been science fiction’s stock and trade since the 1960s. Whether in the permanently impoverished and violent...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Sep 26, 2017
The Science Fictional Middle East Part II: the uncertain paradigm of Kurdistan
What would you say about a science fiction plot in which the US was providing money and training to a group of former Marxist-Leninists...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Aug 28, 2017
Envisioning a science fictional Middle East
Ever been struck with an idea that won’t leave your head and the gift of time to muse over it? Well, with Hurricane Harvey keeping me...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Jul 23, 2017
Your thriller plot is dumb. ISIS did not almost kill with radioactivity.
Some of us root for the bad guys in the movies. They get to be much more ingenious than the good guys, most of whom are either corrupt or...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Jul 1, 2017
Alternative facts: what we can learn from Holocaust denial
I recently came across a TED talk from historian Deborah Lipstadt, in which she relayed her insights from a study of Holocaust deniers....
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Jun 15, 2017
On the Everglades Part VI: The Sugar Scumbags Strike Back
As I was too low-tech with this website to have credits scrolling that looked like Spielberg’s, you’re going to have to use your...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- May 21, 2017
Doctor Who just updated Descartes
For the last nine years, my day job has been teaching high school science. People outside of education ask how I handle creationist...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- May 8, 2017
Writing about social class in America
This weekend, my wife and I went to see the premiere of a new play being rolled out in four cities, Doublewide. Admittedly, the first act...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Apr 2, 2017
The moments that establish character
A couple weeks ago, I attended the annual Southwest Florida Reading Festival. My wife insists on going every year. As a teacher of...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Apr 1, 2017
On the Everglades Part V: If there is consensus on what needs doing, why isn’t it happening?
I must admit to a bias in writing this post. Back in 2004, when I was being recruited to come to Florida Gulf Coast University as an...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Jan 7, 2017
Why Americans question climate science
Most of the planet looks at the US and wonders how it is that Americans don't "get it" when it comes to climate change. The science is...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Dec 3, 2016
Things are worse than assumed: sensible numbers on carbon fluxes from soil and limits of discourse
Imagine you are appointed to a committee of wizards, meeting in some dingy (and likely dragon-infested) back room in Hogwarts, tasked...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Nov 19, 2016
Tech that matters: those concerned with climate change-induced famine should pay attention to this
I like the New York Times. I like getting their free headlines in my inbox, and I like linking to my ten free articles per month. And my...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Oct 24, 2016
Can you still go "Down to the Twist and Shout"? Should you?
My wife is outstanding at winning radio contests. And all sorts of other contests. As such, much of our entertainment is free. With free...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Sep 25, 2016
Mister Robot, a recollection of Chomsky, and a reflection on Robespierre
And the award for pretension in blog post titles goes to ... yeah, bear with me on this one. I recently binge watched the first two...
Allan Dyen-Shapiro
- Aug 25, 2016
"Everything's up to date in Kansas City," and now my blog will be too.
Yeah, I certainly could have started with a cheesy quotation from Wizard of Oz, but the Rogers and Hammerstein lyrics were running...
bottom of page