Featured last Tuesday on the front page of The
Wall Street Journal is the collaboration between Tor/Forge Books, an
imprint of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, and NASA to publish a series of
"NASA-Inspired Works of Fiction" in an effort to educate and
encourage math and science education. You can read the article, entitled “NASA
Tries to Rewrite the Book on Science Fiction,” here.
PILLAR TO THE SKY by William Forstchen, the New York Times bestselling author
of One Second After, is the first in the series and was released today.
The new novel takes technology to a whole new level with the introduction of a
space elevator that offers infinite possibilities that could transform the
world. Forstchen’s latest extraordinary story exemplifies the driving force
behind America’s superpower status throughout history - the brilliant and
inquiring minds of its scientists, visionaries, entrepreneurs and leaders in
technology who see the future as a challenge to achieve the impossible.
As a reminder, Forstchen and Dr. John
Panek, an engineer at the NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center who advised Forstchen on the book, will make a
special public appearance at Goddard’s
Visitor Center next Wednesday, Feb. 19th,
from 10:00-11:30 AM. More information
can be found below.
Additional information:
Greenbelt,
MD – Tor Books, an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates,
LLC—the largest publisher of science fiction in the world—and the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, are
excited to announce a special public speaking engagement for local high schools
and universities with Goddard scientist Dr. John Panek and William Forstchen, the New York Times
bestselling author of One Second After and the new release PILLAR TO THE
SKY (February 11, 2014), on Wednesday, Feb. 19th, from 10:00-11:30 AM
at Goddard’s
Visitor Center.
Forstchen will be signing copies of PILLAR
TO THE SKY after the presentation, and attendees will be invited to tour the
center’s breathtaking “Science on a Sphere” room, which is a mesmerizing visualization system developed by the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that uses computers and video
projectors to display animated data of objects in the solar system on the
outside of a suspended, 6-foot diameter, white sphere.
The event celebrates the partnership
forged between Tor and NASA in releasing the new book, which is the first title
in a thrilling new series of “NASA-Inspired Works of Fiction” that are intended to not only
educate, but also encourage young adults to examine the rewarding careers that
science and technology have to offer. With the enormous popularity of science
fiction—countless people who work in the fields of science and technology
credit science fiction as a significant inspiration for their career choice—the
ultimate goal of the series is to raise awareness and inspire the study of the
STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), while educating
the general public on the significant role NASA plays in everyday lives.
In PILLAR TO THE SKY, Forstchen rises to the challenge of creating answers to the very real problems of the 21st century—dwindling oil supplies, increasingly dangerous pollution levels—by building a space elevator that will give us nearly limitless access to space. Using a fast-paced storyline replete with action, adventure, danger, and intrigue, PILLAR TO THE SKY is a remarkable combination of exhilarating thriller and cutting-edge science that vividly illustrates the endless opportunities that a space elevator could create, as well as highlighting some of the invaluable projects NASA is working on.
PILLAR TO THE SKY deftly explores some
of the benefits a space elevator could provide, including:
·
Limitless and pollution-free energy
·
A means to “export” dangerous pollutants and hazardous materials out of our
environment
·
Low gravity environments that offer a return to mobility for the elderly and
handicapped
·
Tourism and recreation
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