Science fiction as philosophical writing

The title of a new article in Wired Magazine says it all:  "Clive Thompson on Why Sci-Fi Is the Last Bastion of Philosophical Writing." The reason I read so much science fiction is because these days most other literary genres--both nonfiction and fiction--require little thinking on the part of a reader. As Thompson adds, that might be why so many literary writers are now trying their hand at science fiction.