In one corner you have the lovers of science-fiction, and in the other you have the lovers of fantasy. There may be one corner that you lean to, or maybe you like both equally. Or maybe still you don't care for either of these genres of entertainment. I enjoy content from both of these genres and I'm not sure that I could pick a favorite, but it seems that sci-fi authors such as David Brin believe that many people today prefer the possibilities that fantasy offers, rather than the possibilities of science-fiction.
The one main reason why I think that there is this gravitation towards fantasy, is because of its accessibility. It doesn't take much to grasp the concepts that fantasy stories relay. Vampires, zombies, and wizards; its not very hard to understand what these things are and how they came to be. Juxtapose that with the possibilities of time travel and all the physics that come along with that and it would be a little bit more complicated to fully understand. Also I think that the time of introduction plays a critical part in the popularity of fantasy stories. We're introduced to zombies, elves and the wolf man, etc at an early age where our imaginations are much more active. I think the bonds that were built with these creatures then would have been able to persist to the point of prominence that they have reached in some of our lives.
I think your remark about early exposure to fantasy is very on point. Kids usually aren't exposed to science fiction (except in my family) very early in their lives. Every little girl is taught to want the knight that will save her from the scary dragon and every little boy is taught to be that knight to slay the dragon. You don't meat many children who want to be a cyborg or Spock for Halloween.
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