Jon Bing is a Norwegian
writerA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and law professor at the
Norwegian Research Center for Computers and LawNorwegian Research Center for Computers and Law at the University of Oslo is the second-oldest academic institution in the world working specifically with the interrelationship of law and information / communication technology...
(NRCCL), and the Faculty of Law at the
University of OsloThe University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
. Bing is considered to be a pioneer in international legal information. He holds honorary doctorates from the University of Stockholm and the
University of CopenhagenThe University of Copenhagen is the oldest and largest university and research institution in Denmark. Founded in 1479, it has more than 37,000 students, the majority of whom are female , and more than 7,000 employees. The university has several campuses located in and around Copenhagen, with the...
, and is Visiting Professor at Kings College,
University of London-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. Bing is leader of The Protection of Privacy Committee. He has been head of Norsk Filmråd 1979–81, head of Europarådet's Committee on Legal Data Processing 1981–82, head of Norsk kassettavgiftsfond 1983–85 and leader of Norsk kulturråd 1993–2000.
He is a member of the
Norwegian Academy of Science and LettersThe Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway.-History:The University of Oslo was established in 1811. The idea of a learned society in Christiania surfaced for the first time in 1841. The city of Throndhjem had no university, but had a learned...
.
Together with
Tor Åge BringsværdTor Åge Bringsværd is an author, playwright, editor and translator. He is perhaps best known for his speculative fiction. Together with long-time partner Jon Bing, he is also considered as the first Norwegian author to write science fiction literature. Bringsværd regards himself as an anarchist,...
and some other students at the University in Oslo, Jon Bing started the society Aniara, a club for those interested in
science fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
, and was often profiled in the media with statements about science fiction. He has brought out several books, both
fictionFiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
and specialist literature. He debuted with Bringsværd in 1967 the short story collection
Around the sun in a circle. Bing has written much fiction, often with good help from his friend Bringsværd.
In recent years Bing has been engaged with many subjects. You can see him on TV when it's the anniversary for the first personal computer in
NorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, read his answers on questions on copyright regarding digital media, and you can also meet him at the annual science fiction festival
ShadowConShadowCon is a science fiction and fantasy convention, held in Oslo, Norway every year in July/August. It is held by The Shadow Project , a SF&F fandom society. ShadowCon is usually arranged at the Blindern campus of the University of Oslo. ShadowCon celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2006....
in
OsloOslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. He is very outspoken in media about cases concerning
ethicsEthics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
in
technologyTechnology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
,
copyrightCopyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
, and
the futureThe Future is a studio album from 1992 by Leonard Cohen. It has come to be recognized as his "film-score" album as nearly every one of the songs on the album has appeared in some notable form in a Hollywood film....
in general. Bing is considered to be one of the
nerdsNerds are a form of candy currently sold by Nestlé under their Willy Wonka Candy Company brand.Nerds were first created and then launched in 1983 by Kevin Ruby Deering, who was Brand Manager, eventually becoming Vice President of Marketing and Technical Services until he left in 1992. Robert Boutin...
in the older generation.
His style of writing is calm, and at times dreamy. He writes about people who stand outside ordinary
societyA society, or a human society, is a group of people related to each other through persistent relations, or a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or virtual territory, subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations...
, but attempt the impossible. In the
short storyA short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
Riestopher Josef from
Around the sun in a circle he writes about a boy who can't leave his house due to his skin disease. The short story is about Riestopher who builds himself a spaceship and goes to the sun to capture a sunbeam.
Fiction
- 1967 – Around the sun in a circle (short stories, with Tor Åge Bringsværd
Tor Åge Bringsværd is an author, playwright, editor and translator. He is perhaps best known for his speculative fiction. Together with long-time partner Jon Bing, he is also considered as the first Norwegian author to write science fiction literature. Bringsværd regards himself as an anarchist,...
)
- 1969 – Komplex (short stories)
- 1969 – To loose a spaceship: a game of chance (play)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1969 – Lunarium: the book of the moon (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1970 – The soft landscape (novel)
- 1970 – Red planet (science fiction anthology)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1972 – Sesam 71 (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1972 – East of the sun" and "West of the moon (science fiction anthologies) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1972 – Scenario (novel)
- 1972 – Electrical Fairytales (editor, short stories for children)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1973 – Me - a machine: cybernetic fables (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1974 – Knotted Writing (short stories)
- 1975 – Azur - Planet of the Captains (children's book, first volume in The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria)
- 1976 – Zalt - Planet of the Steamlords (children's book, second volume in The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria)
- 1976 – The Mad Professor (short stories)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1977 – Backwash: a science fiction anthology(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1980 – The new adventures of Marco Polo (plays, with Tor Åge Bringsværd, later adapted to a three-part television series on NRK)
- 1980 – Shooting Stars (science fiction anthology)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1982 – Mizt - Planet of the Ghosts (children's book, third volume in The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria)
- 1984 – Flood (children's book)
- 1984 – Doppelgangers (novel)
- 1984 – The book is dead! Long live the book! (essays)
- 1985 – Tanz - Planet of Riddles (children's book, fourth and final volume The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria)
- 1986 – Hvadata? Pieces of literature for the information society (short story)
- 1988 – As sure as data (short stories)
- 1988 – Shadows of the moon (children's book)
- 1988 – Dust to dust (play)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1991 – Cases of Doubt (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
- 1992 – The accounts of an old astronaut (novel)
- 1992 – Rosenvy and the corporation who knew too much (crime)
- 1995 – The girl that went missing (children's book)
- 2004 – Oslo 2084: four fables of future crimes (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)