Progress so far on research

I’ve been reading Cyborg Citizen for the past week and a half, and it has a lot of great stuff. I was especially intrigued about how soldiers in the military are becoming cyborgs as "human-weapon systems". That section made me think about war in a different way, particularly modern war. It also made me think about some of the war-themed video games that have become so popular lately: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and the SOCOM series, to name a couple. I just found out from the E3 Expo news that there will be a Medal of Honor video game that will take place in modern times rather than in World War II, which was also a time of technological advances in war for its time.

What really captivated me was the section of the book in which Chris Hables Gray writes about a Cyborg Bill of Rights.  There are ten amendments, but the one that really shouts to me for the fiction I am writing is the fifth amendment, “the right to life”.  I must say this amendment struck a chord for the cyborg novel I am writing.  Here is a sentence of this amendment that I really liked:

 

“Individuals shall retain all rights to modify their bodies, at their own risk and expense, through pyschopharmological, medical, genetic, spiritual, and other practices, insofar as they do not threaten the fundament rights of other individuals and citizens.”         (Gray, 28)

So maybe Gray’s proposed Cyborg Bill of Rights may have been written, but would everyone who becomes an obvious cyborg follow these rules, let alone want to learn about them? Perhaps being a cyborg can make that person feel powerful when they become a tool, or worse, a weapon.

Which brings me to another subject. I watched the first two episodes of Cyborg 009, and in episode 2, the cyborg Albert, or 004, tells Joe (009) that they are supposed to be weapons. The cyborgs, against their will, became enhanced weapons; in other words, they became weapons but still have human feelings. The person behind this, Black Ghost, doesn’t care that this experimental transformation of these nine human beings makes them useful,  as long as he gets results. But if the cyborgs had to be weapons, they would fight for the greater good, rather than increase the power of war. They don’t want to oppress other people just because of their cybernetic enhancements. If they have to use their abilities, they will use them wisely, as a citizen helping other citizens, not as weapons made for war.

I want to talk more about Cyborg 009, but it will have to be later. I want to watch the next episodes, and maybe the first two episodes again if I must.

Another Early Robot Fascination

     My sister and I had this toy computer that spoke and taught words and math. Two games in particular featured a robot that had two antennae on his head.

     “Make the robot move. Press the robot keys. Then press Enter."

     “Follow the robot. Press the robot keys. Bend. Jump! Stretch. Stretch. Jump! Bend. Kick. Jump!  Stretch. Kick.  Bend. Jump!” (Then I’d have to remember the moves and press the corresponding keys. I guess it was a memory game.)

     Eventually I had a dream about that same computer robot that took place in my middle school, and I was very happy and I didn’t want to leave him. The robot was my friend.  I wished it was real.

A Childhood Toy

When I was six or seven years old, I preferred toys that moved or made sounds. One toy in particular was a toy robot. It was gold colored, held a gun, and it moved. There were black propellers on his head.

I will try to find a picture of it I drew in second grade, because I don’t know what name the toy was given, and I believe I don’t have it anymore. But at that age I knew it was a robot.

Android Kikaider collection complete!

It was much cheaper to get these DVDs separately than to buy the entire Android Kikaider the Animation Collection, which is too expensive for me at this time.  Volume 4 of the series arrived Friday.

Also, the box set of Ishinomori's 009-1 arrived too, so I will watch that later, but at least it's here.  I've been reading the book Cyborg Citizen lately, so I want to watch that series after I've read some more of the book.  I've only seen episode 1 of 009-1, and I know I really like it and would like to view the entire series.  The plus is that female cyborgs star in this show, particularly the main character Mylene Hoffman.  She's such a doll, figuratively speaking.   :)

The Japanese Anime DVDs Arrived...

Thursday the first three volumes of Android Kikaider the Animation arrived at my house.  I was so excited and I couldn't wait to watch it.  I ended up watching the first two episodes the following night.  Amazon.com is so cool...

I've known about Android Kikaider for some time, but I never watched it.  In the spring of 2002 I found out it was coming on the Cartoon Network, but I didn't watch it.  I didn't know what it was about, plus it aired at 11:30pm or midnight.  Over a year later I found out what it was about--an android with a human soul--but the show wasn't on Cartoon Network anymore.

However in summer 2003 I had started watching Cyborg 009, another Japanese animated show that was originally created by Shotaro Ishinomori.  This aired on the Cartoon Network also.   I was hooked on that show.  In another anime DVD I found out that Ishinomori also created Android Kikaider.  Little did I know that I was going to be a fan of his.

I am glad I will finally have a chance to enjoy this Android Kikaider series.

Welcome!

Welcome to Cybernetic Dreams, my new blog.


My favorite type of science fiction is stories about robots, androids and cyborgs, and I want to write novels that feature such characters. I haven’t done much research on these topics yet. I haven’t had the right motivation for looking up on artificial intelligence and cybernetic implants (and generally robotics), other than wanting to write science fiction.

I am extremely fascinated with these topics and would still like to research them to expand my knowledge on my favorite futuristic characters. So I decided to write a blog to capture and gather my thoughts on the research process. I will update this blog every one to two weeks. I will mainly be reading some non-fiction books I borrow from libraries, but I’ve also recently bought some Japanese anime DVDs featuring cyborg or android characters. There are also science fiction magazines that I read.

I have issues of two different science-fiction magazines: Science Fiction & Fantasy and Asimov’s Science Fiction. There are two really good stories in these magazines that I read and almost brought me to tears. They are such bittersweet, beautiful tales. I had to stop subscribing to Asimov’s Science Fiction because I meant to only sub to one, but I tried out both of them and liked the bi-monthly SF&F better. One day I’d really like to submit a novelette to one of these magazines.

I’ve read the original I, Robot, which is actually the short story, “Little Lost Robot” in the collection of Asimov’s stories titled I, Robot. I also read another of his collection called Robot Dreams. Maybe I should reread them, now that I am at least eight years older than when I read them the first time. I can read them with a shaper fascination, learning and pondering these stories and speculations, so that I can incorporate what I’ve learned into my own writing.


Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, I’m so excited……!!!!!!