Sylvia Engdahl's Opinion Pages
Engdahl says: "For many years I didn't publicly express any opinions (other than those implicit in my novels) except for my conviction about the vital importance of expanding our civilization into space. I didn't want people to be distracted from the space issue by disagreement with my views on unrelated subjects. But beginning with the publication of Stewards of the Flame in 2007, I began commenting on various other issues that are important to me. I did this mainly on pages discussing the background of the novel, which weren't easily discoverable except though a link on its description page and therefore didn't reach many readers. I have now updated these and made them acessible from the site's navigation bar along with some related essays, to which I'll be adding more."Though some of the topics covered here may seem quite separate from each other, actually they are all concerned with two interrelated themes: first, the powers of the individual human mind, including so-called "paranormal" powers; and second the use, and too often misuse, of technology to directly impact the minds and/or bodies of human individuals. These -- as well as space, which has its own section of the site -- are the topics I feel are of greatest significance in our era, apart from the major world problems that I believe can't be solved as long as we remain confined to one small planet."
Essays in the ebook The Future of Being Human
As some of these essays are quite long you may prefer to read them in the ebook, which is permafree at all ebook retailers (see the links below). However, the ebook doesn't include the images used here as illustrations. Starred essays were added to the book after its initial release. Since it's free you can get a newer copy if you want one -- just delete the book from your account and reorder. However, Amazon will send the version you originally ordererd unless you contact customer service and ask for the newest.
The Impact of Future Technology
The Only Sensible Way to Deal with Climate Change *
Robots WIll Never Replace Humans
The Human Mind and Spirit
The Role of Psi in Human Affairs
The Roots of Disbelief in Human Mind Powers
Existence of Psi in the Living Reveals Nothing About Death *
Christianity as Metaphor (not available online)
Society's Obsession with Healthcare
The Worship of Medical Authority
The Need for a New Outlook on Healthcare
Outlook on the Universe
Humankind's Future in the Cosmos
Does It Matter Whether Humankind Survives?
Why I Don't Read Much Science Fiction
Background Information for my novel Stewards of the Flame
These pages are of interest whether or not you've read, or plan to read, the novel. They include my commentary, links to relevant articles on the Web, book lists, and in some cases videos.
Closer than you may think. . .
Remote Health Monitoring Is Already Here
Microchips Are Already Being Implanted in Humans
Government Control of Health Care Is a Threat to Freedom
Truer than you may realize. . .
The Mind's Influence on Health Is Now Recognized
Neurofeedback Is Already Used to Control Perception of Pain
ESP and Other Psi Powers Are Real
Worse than you may know. . .
Overtreatment in Medicine Is a Serious Problem
Current Treatment of Mental Illness Is Often Harmful
Today Most People's Death Is Painfully Prolonged
Other Essays
The Evolutionary Significance of the Metanormal
(A book review essay)
For Engdahl's essays about space, click the SPACE tab above.
For her essays about her novels and about writing, click the WRITING tab above.
You can download the free ebook The Future of Being Human and Other Essays at Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play (PDF format), and Smashwords). Amazon sometimres prices it at 99 cents without informing me; if this happens you can get the mobi (Kindle) format at Smashwords.
There is no print edition, but if you prefer to see pages rather than flowing text you can get a pdf edition at Google Play that's formatted just like a book (rather than like a manuscript) and you can print it if you want to. (It's called "original pages" rather than "pdf" on the order page.) Also, there is a short sampler paperback containing 12 essays from my essay collections, since the ebooks are too long to be issued in paperback at reasonable prices.
Last updated in January 2023