The term science fiction was established in the 1920s by one of the genre’s principal advocates, American publisher Hugo Gernsback. Science fiction, also referenced as SF or sci-fi, refers to speculative fiction. Whether it be super advanced science, technology developments that are years ahead of our time, aliens and other extraterrestrial life, time travel, or spaceflight, sci-fi delves into these topics and takes a look at how they would impact society.

Science fiction has rocked cinemas for a century, creating some of the boldest movies and a number of undisputed classics along the way. With so many great sci-fi movies arriving on the big screen in recent times, we’ve rustled up a few shows and movies available in the Fetch Movie Store and TV Store that will satisfy your sci-fi needs. With so many great titles to choose from, the hard part will be picking which one to watch first!

(more…)

“Podcast” is a word that’s floating around at the moment. So what is a podcast? Basically, regular Broadcast Radio (AM and FM radio) only has so many channels to use. As a result, radio stations attempt to appeal to as broad of an audience as possible, hence the word broadcast. In contrast, podcasting “narrowcasts” specialised content to those who choose to tune in. Podcasts have multiple distribution points such as Spotify, iTunes and Soundcloud, and websites where episodes can be listened to or downloaded.

For those who love a good fun fact, it may interest you to know where the word “podcast” itself originated. The name was first mentioned by Ben Hammersley in a 2004 newspaper article as part of a quick brainstorm of possible names for this growing new platform. The “pod” of podcast is borrowed from Apple’s digital media player the “iPod”; and the “cast” portion of podcast is taken the term “broadcast” used in radio. Despite this, don’t worry – you can still tune in if you don’t have an Apple device or iPod!

(more…)

Back when I was in high school taking Information Technology as an elective in years 10 through 12, we covered topics that seem pretty tame by today’s standards – basic HTML, website design, Flash animation software and of course, the seemingly inescapable Microsoft Excel. If you go back even further to my mum’s day, “Computer Awareness” was only just becoming widespread in secondary schools and you probably had to take a college-level course to pick up the kind of computer skills that many of us take for granted today.

Fast forward to 2018 and Coding is now part of the NSW school curriculum… for kindergarteners. That’s right, no typo – kindy kids are learning coding! While that doesn’t mean these tots are smashing out lines of code on a computer, it does mean that they’re being introduced to the fundamentals of computational thinking at a very early age. That means stuff like problem solving, recognising sequences, and understanding cause and effect.

Even if they don’t wind up employed in the technology sector, these kinds of lessons can do wonders for a child’s analytical and numeracy skills. It also makes them more likely than any other generation before them to develop interests in technology, gadgets and gaming. While this is amazing, it can leave some parents (or grandparents) stumped for things to do with the kids that involve these interests.

Whether you’re a tech-head looking for some fresh ideas or tech just isn’t your thing, here are five fun and parent-friendly activities of the tech-y variety. Give one of these a whirl and not only will you and the little ones enjoy yourselves, you may just learn a thing or two along the way!

(more…)