William Gibson is not one of the authors that spits out novels like a machine – in his long and fruitful career he has only published 11 novels andof short stories and articles in the tens each. Still his impact on modern literature was huge – the “noir prophet” of the cyberpunk subgenre (that he was one of the pioneers of) has predicted the rise of reality television, virtual reality, video games and the internet. He is a Hugo and Nebula award winning science fiction writer, with a special eye for what the future might bring.

A woman takes a picture of a sculpture depicting servant Puck from Shakespeare's comedy “A Midsummer Night's Dream” during a flower festival in Pakruojis, Lithuania on August 14, 2021. (Photo by Ints Kalnins/Reuters)

Graffiti saying “justice” partially seen above flood waters in Asuncion, December 27, 2015. More than 100,000 people have had to evacuate from their homes in the bordering areas of Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina due to severe flooding in the wake of heavy summer rains brought on by El Nino, authorities said on Saturday. (Photo by Jorge Adorno/Reuters)

Sandrine Kerfante has had a fascination with “doubles” ever since meeting her mother’s twin as a child. In 2012, this lifelong captivation inspired her to create a blog called twin-niwt, which celebrates photographs of doubles in all their forms. “I’m fascinated by the idea of the duo, repetition, symmetry, reflection, mirror games and all the symbolism associated with it”, she says. “I think it’s a topic often present in photography, more or less consciously”. (Photo by Sandrine Kerfante/The Guardian)

Residents (R to L) Luiza, Janubie, Leiticia and Lucas sit beneath an overpass near their houses in an impoverished area in the unpacified Complexo da Mare slum complex, one of the largest “favela” complexes in Rio, on March 18, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Brazil's tallest teen is set marry her beau – despite him being over a foot smaller than her. Elisany da Cruz Silva (18) is a staggering 6ft 8ins (206 cm) tall while her compact fiancee Francinaldo da Silva Carvalho is only 5ft 4ins (162 cm). Despite a massive 1ft 4ins between them, Francinaldo had no problem increasing the distance by dropping to one knee after a romantic stroll along the beach. (Photo by Barcroft Media)

Τhe hovering car without wheels, also called the hovercar, is a constant fixture in science fiction films, video games and comic books, and a long-standing dream for car lovers and technology fans alike. This dream is also shared by French photographer Renaud Marion, who creates images depicting hovering cars in everyday urban settings. In his ongoing photographic project titled ‘‘Air Drive’’, Marion combines retro car designs with futuristic technology, a project driven by his childhood visions of how the world was going to look like in the future. (Photo by Renaud Marion)