Bad Science = Bad Fiction.

I read an illiterate ranting somewhere that good science = bad fiction, and I was simply amazed at the level of unabashed ignorant tripe being spouted as 'truth' and 'fact' instead of 'uninformed media-speak opinion'.

The problem isn't that good science makes for bad fiction. The problem is that BAD science makes for terribly uninteresting, contrived and flat fiction (unless you're writing parody or douglas-adams-style-scifi.) If the science fiction writers actually used good science and scientific principles within their stories, then the readers wouldn't be stuck with massive tomes of scientific bunk relayed as 'all you can do' with the genre.

For example, in a discussion area for new writers, I read the following comment:
"Fast-than-light travel is a well-known fact that unless you can be really patient you need some sort of Star Drive go anywhere really interesting in space."

(don't even get me started on the illegibility of the writing...)
I'll just say this right now:
(accelerating to-) Faster than light travel is currently scientific crackpottery bunk, AND it is B O R I N G. Using space ships as just the hottest new way of zooming around to new places is the average travel novel with a plot device. And if you go the slow-way... a long-haul freighter is JUST a long-haul freighter, regardless of the contrivance that it's in space. There is far more interesting going on in your local neighborhood solar system than 'deep space' ... I mean, look at earth... Talk about ALIEN LIFEFORMS! Has anyone ever BEEN to NYC?!

Just say NO to FTL drives!

Speaking of long-haul freighters in space, has anyone ever actually considered the economics of sending X number of earth's best-and-brightest with all of our greatest-and-most-advanced-science to go start a colony on Y planet in Z solar system? No accountant that I've ever known would say, "OOOH! No return on investment for 3 centuries? SNAP! Let's get right on to funding this idea!" Hell, the accountants I've known would have a conniption fit over the idea of sending that much money off the planet even to somewhere like the moon - since there is no economic benefit to the moon (or even Mars for that matter to accountants.)

In order to have something like that happen, it's best to either skip over the actual colonisation-send-off and the reasons for it, or the 'boring' long-haul process.

And for the love of all that's holy out there, please, no more time-travel. Just stop.

Use good science. Write good fiction. Bad science is boring. In fact, if more science fiction writers spent more time reading scientific journals, physics and math books, cosmological research, etc. then I think the science fiction genre could really be outstanding.

Get away from the movies! Get away from the bad science! Do your research! Good Science Always Prevails!