The hitchhiker's guide to literary sci-fi: A trivia quiz!

A painting of two figures standing on a cliffside far away from a city in a glass bubble full of tall surroundings in the middle of a desert
Futuristic societies were a common motif in classic literary science fiction. (Image credit: Віщун via Wikimedia Commons)

Science fiction didn't begin with blockbuster films or sleek space operas — it was born in the pages of literature, where bold thinkers and master storytellers pushed the boundaries of imagination.

Long before Hollywood dreamed of warp drives and AI companions, authors like Mary Shelley, H.G. Wells, and Isaac Asimov were crafting worlds that questioned humanity's place in the cosmos and the consequences of its own inventions. Their works laid the foundation for a genre that continues to evolve, provoke, and inspire.

This quiz invites you to journey through the golden age of literary sci-fi, where philosophical depth meets speculative wonder.

Whether you're deciphering Orwell's chilling predictions or marveling at Bradbury's poetic visions of Mars, each question will challenge your grasp of the genre's most iconic texts and the brilliant minds behind them.

Try it out below and see how well you score!

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Kenna Hughes-Castleberry is the Content Manager at Space.com. Formerly, she was the Science Communicator at JILA, a physics research institute. Kenna is also a freelance science journalist. Her beats include quantum technology, AI, animal intelligence, corvids, and cephalopods.

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