David Brin (b.1950) is an American scientist and award-winning author of science fiction. He is the author of several books including Sundiver and Startide Rising —part of his Uplift series. His award-winning novel The Postman was adapted as a feature film and starred Kevin Costner in 1997. Brin's nonfiction book The Transparent Society won the Freedom of Speech Award of the American Library Association and the McGannon Communication Award.