Arthur C. Clarke

And so passes one of the great icons of Science Fiction writing.

This is the guy who wrote about satellite's decades before the first one took off, who wrote non-fiction as well as tapping into his vast imagination for the pleasure of those who read his books.

Better yet, he brought science to the average reader; and while some of his works are metaphysical, all provoked conversation and thought.

Sadly, in his latter years, he wasn't as erudite. I saw him at CanCon in 2006 via video link from Sri Lanka. His answers were vague and all credit to the interviewers for holding it together with short monologues before asking the next question.

His legacy is to have encouraged a spectrum of new writers in the genre, to expand the perception of what the future could hold for us, to open closed minds to the concept that we are not alone in the universe.

To be remembered, to be - willing or not - a mentor to generations of sci-fi writers... what better way to impact society than to encourage the breaking of boundaries, to demonstrate there is no limit to what an imagination can create, or what humans can achieve.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Arthur C. Clarke