Imagine a science fiction story written 50 years ago like [url="http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/011336.html#345911"][click through for story – too long for character limit][/url]

Written 50 years ago, this would be radical left-wing speculation, right? As would a straight description of, say, an office party where I work. The research, management, and support staff a wild mix of different races and sexes? Female mathematicians and engineers and scientists doing lots of the research and work? Half the staff East or South Asian or Latin American, and a good fraction of the US-born staff black? C'mon--that crap will never happen, that's like something out of science fiction.