The Crichton Effect

My latest Science Progress column is on a topic that we've already discussed a bit here over the past week--the meaning of Michael Crichton's work. You can read it here. It starts like this:

Anyone who ever met the late Michael Crichton--who died of cancer in Los Angeles last week at the age of 66--was first stunned by his height. Crichton stood a staggering 6â²9â³, and yet by all accounts was a humble giant in person. Certainly that was my impression when the polymathic sci-fi thriller writer, film producer and director, screenwriter, computer programmer, and medical doctor went out of his way to introduce himself to me at a small 2007 scientific gathering at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Whether or not he knew how critically I had written about him, I can't say.

I am not too hard on him in the column, except regarding State of Fear. The guy really was a genius, and his sci-fi was of far higher quality and interest than much of what comes out of Hollywood.

You can read the full column here.