Everywhere Science Goes, Science Fiction Got There First
Everywhere science goes, science fiction got there first.
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ArtSunday: Are we seeing more character development in genre fiction?
Not long ago a good friend asked me if I’d take a look at this novel he was working on. He felt it was one of the best things he’d written, but was getting no bites from publishers. He was committed to making it work, and he wondered if I had ideas about what might be missing. So I read
Read moreChanging science fiction, changing the world: Scholars & Rogues honors William Gibson
I have been known to say that William Gibson is arguably the most important author of the past 30 years. That’s a mouthful of an assertion, especially since we’re talking about a genre writer, I know. But even if I’m wrong, I’m not off by much. The man who more or less invented Cyberpunk, then abandoned it as quickly as he
Read morePredicting the 21st Century: Nostraslammy’s ten-year review
Ten years ago, at the turn of the millennium, Nostraslammy took a stab at predicting the 21st Century, with a promise to check back every ten years to see how the prognostications were turning out. Odds are good I won’t be able to do a review every ten years until 2100, but I figure I’m probably good through 2030, at
Read moreDemocracy & Elitism 2: performance elitism vs privilege elitism, and why the difference matters
Part two in a series. “Elite” hasn’t always been an epithet. In fact, if we consider what the dictionary has to say about it, it still signifies something potentially worthy. Potentially. For instance: e·lit·ism or é·lit·ism (-ltzm, -l-) n. 1. The belief that certain persons or members of certain classes or groups deserve favored treatment by virtue of their perceived
Read moreReality is making us sick, and fantasy can’t cure us
You’re honey child to a swarm of bees Gonna blow right through you like a breeze Give me one last dance Well slide down the surface of things You’re the real thing Yeah the real thing You’re the real thing Even better than the real thing – U2 Fantasy stories, myths, legends, tall tales, fairy tales, horror, all these have
Read moreMichael Vick and the problem with forgiveness
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has conditionally reinstated former Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick, who was convicted of running a dogfighting ring in 2007. Vick served 23 months in federal prison, followed by two months of house arrest. Last Thursday the Philadelphia Eagles answered the question as to which team would sign a convicted dog-killer (there were 32 possible answers to the
Read moreJon Stewart, Jim Cramer and the rampaging cowards of journalism
First, just in case you haven’t seen it, please review the video (in three parts). The Daily Show With Jon StewartM – Th 11p / 10c Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 1 Daily Show Full Episodes Important Things w/ Demetri Martin Political Humor Jim Cramer
Read moreArtSunday: the Blade Runner Effect
Last night we watched the Final Cut of Blade Runner again, and if you don’t have this package I can’t recommend it highly enough. 25 years on, Ridley Scott was able to finally re-craft the film as he wanted it originally, and the result is a stunning achievement. Scott has been one of our greatest directors for a very long
Read moreMy god – it’s full of stars: 2001, Frankenstein and autonomous technology
I used to work with a HAL 9000. Back when I was at US West in the late ’90s we had a voice system into which we would record the day’s company news so that employees without Internet access could dial in and keep up with the latest events. As with any such system there was a dial-in sequence, buttons
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lullaby pit 