"Science fiction these days is only half a step ahead of science. Astrophysicists and scientists are working in the same way as science fiction writers. They’re working things out in their imagination based on the slim scientific facts that they know. Hawking imagines a black hole and then discovers the mathematics that support his theory, and new possibilities come to light. That’s the imaginative flair that scientists have to have. For me as a sci-fi writer, spinning those ideas in your mind brings you to the point where you dream in science fiction. Suddenly you think of something in the middle of the night, and it’s so vivid you don’t need to write it down because you know you’ll remember it in the morning. That’s what these books, Zero G, reflect: a vivid imagination."
React to this quote
More by William Shatner
See allResonant Thoughts
"Unfortunately, the gains for imagination are not free. The protections for imagination are indiscriminate. They shield bad ideas as well as good ones—and there are many more of the former than the lat…"
Explore Further
Related Quotes
"The need for a fundamentally different approach to the study of physical processes at the molecular level m…"
— George Klir"Natural science does not consist in ratifying what others have said, but in seeking the causes of phenomena."
— Albertus Magnus"The pioneer spirit is still vigorous within this nation. Science offers a largely unexplored hinterland for…"
— Vannevar Bush"It is not only the most delightful and scientific, but the most moral of amusements."
— Paul Morphy"This universality of physical laws drives scientific discovery like nothing else."
— Neil deGrasse Tyson"The theory of rational action may therefore fail, because it is unable to produce unique prescriptions and …"
— Jon Elster
