The 10 Best Sci-Fi Movies - as chosen by scientists

Published on www.popularmechanics.com on 4 January 2014

What better way to start of the new year than with a 'Best of' list.

Real scientists can be the harshest critics of science fiction. But that doesn't mean they can't enjoy a movie just because it bends the laws of nature. Popular Mechanics polled dozen of scientists and engineers to discover the sci-fi movie they love.

No 10. The War of the Worlds (1953)

This cinematic update of the 1898 H.G. Wells novel about a violent Martian invasion was particularly jarring because of the timing of its debut—namely, when World War II weaponeering prowess and the threat of nuclear attack were very much part of the national consciousness. The idea that humans could be vastly overmatched in battle by aliens terrified viewers and set their imaginations spinning. "I was sick all night long," Seth Shostak, the senior astronomer with the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute, says of his first viewing of the film. "That's the mark of a film that makes a difference."

No 9. Star Wars (1977)
No 8. Blade Runner (1982)
No 7. Jurassic Park (1993)
No 6. WALL-E (2008)

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