SIGMA in the News
Links to articles about SIGMA.
Arlan Andrews and six other members of SIGMA , a science fiction think tank providing pro bono futurism insights to government agencies and others, were invited to attend the emerging technology WorldÕs Best Technologies (WBT) showcase in Dallas Texas on March 16-17, 2010. Over the course of the two-day showcase SIGMA members interviewed emerging technology inventors, developers, and supporters and inspected the latest and best technologies being developed. They also sat in on numerous six-minute presentations on the new technologies, their potential markets, and the amount of funding necessary to bring them to market within a two to five-year window.
At the conclusion of the presentations and exhibits, SIGMA members presented their views of what they had observed at a one-hour panel discussion attended by nearly half of the conference attendees. Later, SIGMA founder Arlan Andrews provided the after-dinner keynote speech. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future. During his talk he introduced works by SIGMA members, covered a brief history of science fiction, and explained how the present, which was the future at one time, turned out differently than expected, even if some of the features were accurately predicted. In both cases the SIGMANÕs tried to convey how SF writers think about the future and the results of technological application. The relevance to new entrepreneurs is that imaginative science fictional thinking will help them prepare for whatever events and technologies the future holds.
The WBT Conference is an annual gathering where preselected emerging, but unfunded, technologies and innovations are showcased to venture capitalists, technology transfer organizations, and other sources of both technology support and capital provision. At this yearÕs conference devices employing technologies at the nanometer range (1 to 100nm scales) were prevalent as well as a variety of medical, security, and translation devices.
SIGMA's friend, Colonel Peter Garretson was interviewed by Kalkion, an online SF magazine in India. See his interview at Kalkion.com.
SIGMA was well represented at Reiter's Bookstone in Washington DC by eight members for an evening of discussion and book signing regarding a variety of subjects. Attendees were: Arlan Andrews, Greg Bear, Catherine Asaro, John Hemry (Jack Campbell), Yoji Knodo, Tom Purdom, Tom Ligon, and Bud Sparhawk. The event was covered by the Washington Post.
SIGMA members conducted a panel discussion at the Department of Homeland Security's conference. Greg Bear, a SIGMA member, also was Master of Ceremonies for the conference. Here are a few articles on how SF imagining has shaped thought in relation to the event.
Military Officers Association of America published the article "Thinking Outside the Box" by Don Vaughan. This short article discusses SIGMA's appearance at the Department of Homeland Security Stakeholders conference in Washington DC and presents a few of the panelists' observations.
The November 2008 print issue of SECURITY MANAGEMENT magazine features menacingly appropriate cover art and contains "The Future of Threat Predictions" a two-page article by Susan Mandel. She quotes Greg Bear, Michael Swanwick, Chuck Gannon, and Arlan Andrews, all panelists at the June Homeland Security stakeholders conference.
USA TODAY article of 5-30-07: The first national publicity for SIGMA came in USA Today, where a reporter interviewed SIGMA members attending the Dept. of Homeland Security conference in Washington , D.C. Read this article
ANTI-terror chiefs have turned to authors of time travel, inter-galactic warfare and out-of-this-world gadgetry in the fight against Al Qaeda. Read this article
ANTI-TERRORISM chiefs in the US have hired a team of the country's most original science-fiction authors to dream up techniques to help them combat al-Qaeda. Read this article
NPR radio interview of June 2007: NPRs On the Media interviews SIGMA founder Dr. Arlan Andrews, Sr., on SIGMAs contributions to national security. Read this article
Fox News video clip of May 2, 2008: Fox News video interviews with SIGMA members in Los Angeles , CA , during the DHS West Coast Stakeholders Conference with Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, Walter John Williams, Michael Cassutt, Mark O " Green
Sandia Labs posted an article following the October 1999 Sandia-SIGMA meeting on future national disasters, but we have no copy of that, and it is no longer posted.
Fox News onpne text report of May 2, 2008: Dr. Alpson Barrie, Fox News, interviews Niven, Pournelle and Andrews about SIGMAs futuristic ideas to protect the nation.
Corpus Christi Caller Times Op-Ed article about SIGMA and DHS by Arlan Andrews: What has Sci-Fi ever done for the country? Read this article
Physics Today article: 6. " Science fiction writers bring creativity to DHS " article in Physics Today, August 2007 issue, by James Dawson, about SIGMA; featuring quotes from Beason, Andrews, Kondo, Pournelle