Namasté, Sir Arthur
The last of three men who shaped my early understanding of the universe died yesterday. Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, science fiction Grand Master and “inventor” of the geostationary communications satellites that rest in “Clarke orbits” and provide much of our communications, was 90 years old.
Along with Isaac Asimov and Robert A. Heinlein (the other two Grand Masters), Clarke’s writing was prominent in shaping my world view, combining entertainment with hard science and a hint of mysticism that may well have been responsible for spurring me in the direction of Buddhism, many years after first reading his novels.
Namasté, Sir Art; we’ll miss you.
But HAL lives on…
