Arthur C. Clarke, writer, visionary, and scientist, born 16 December 1917, passed away on Tuesday 18 March, 2008, at the age of 90. To quote the opening line from one of my favorite books by Clarke - Rendezvous with Rama - “Sooner or later it was bound to happen.”
Arthur C. Clarke wrote so eloquently, so clearly, and so creatively, that while he reached millions with his books and articles, it is a shame that more people haven’t read him, dismissing his works as just “science fiction”. But they’re really about so much more. They capture his hopes and dreams for future progress. His worries of potential catastrophes. He predicted many things that have come true. He conceptualized stationary satellites which provide so many great services today (television, phone, internet, GPS to name 4).
Clarke always kept busy, was always curious about so many things, and relentlessly searched for answers throughout his life. His writings in many ways are his speculations on answers to difficult questions about the future of humankind, whether and how we will venture into space to reach new frontiers, and the inevitable problems we will face.
One other work I must mentioned, is 2001: A Space Odyssey. He wrote this book and collaborated with famous and unique director Stanley Kubrick on the screenplay and movie of the same name. Both were milestones. The movie though made both very famous, and to this day still stands the test of time in its effects, painstakingly created, frame by frame, without the benefit of computer imagery. A story of our first contact with enigmatic alien intelligence and a computer named HAL on a huge spaceship that can’t allow the mission to be jeopardized by error-prone human astronauts.
Goodbye Arthur. You had a magnificent journey, and you will never be forgotten. Thank you.
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