A model showcases designs by Isola by Megan Gale on the catwalk at the David Jones Spring/Summer 2011 season launch at the Royal Hall of Industries, Moore Park on August 3, 2011 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

Who Left The Tap Running by artist Simon McGrath is seen as part of the Sculpture by the Sea outdoor exhibition along the Bondi to Bronte coastal walk on November 4, 2011 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

Syrian President Bashar Al Assad watches as Pope John Paul II boards his plane at Damascus airport May 8, 2001 at the end of the Pontiff's four-day visit to Syria.

Challenger Deep Submersible is shown for the first time at the Virgin Group Media Announcement by the President & CEO of Virgin Airlines Sir Richard Branson at the Newport Harbor Yacht Club on April 5, 2011 in Balboa, California. (Photo by John M. Heller/Getty Images)

Anne Hathaway arrives for the premiere of Twentieth Century Fox & Blue Sky Studios' “RIO” on April 10, 2011 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by John Sciulli/Getty Images)

Accused Nazi criminal John Demjanjuk wears sunglasses as he arrives for his trial at a court room prior to the assumed verdict on May 12, 2011 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Johannes Simon/Getty Images)

Assistant Manager Jayesh Vaghela brushes a vintage silk top hat at Lock & Co. Hatters on March 22, 2011 in London, England. Founded in St. James's in 1676, when Charles II was on the throne, this family owned business has provided hats for Royalty and the gentry for over 300 years. Staff report that sales of formal hats are booming ahead of the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in Westminster Abbey on April 29, 2011.

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.