Category: science fiction
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Lunacon 2014 (1b): Alternate Technologies in Historical Fiction
Panelists: Russ Handelman, James Cambias, Paul Calhoun And here he is, That Annoying Guy From One Seat Over. This archetype shows up at every con, like a restless spirit. One of the panelists pointed out that, more or less by definition, this would actually have to be about alternate historical fiction. Examples of a missed…
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Review: The Day of the Doctor
So Doctor Who has been bopping around time, space, and the BBC for 50 years now, and the Beeb put on a very special 50th anniversary episode. My thoughts below. And, to quote a certain archeologist: SPOILERS
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The buzz about the loop
So Elon Musk has revealed his great new intercity transit idea, the HyperLoop. It would seem the emphasis should be on the first syllable — to wit, HYPE — but I’ll leave engineering analyses to those far more qualified than I. My impression is that Musk offers vaporware that over-promises and under-delivers, that will…
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The Name of the Doctor
So, that’s a bit of a tease, isn’t it? Lots to think about in the season 7 finale of Doctor Who, but first, as River might say, Spoilers! (There’s a recap available at tv.com.) ==============================================
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Noah Smith on the Rise of the Machines
Here’s a worthwhile read from Noah Smith on the future of an economy where most work is done by robots. I’ve actually thought about this for a long while. How can a democracy survive if all the economic oomph lies in the very few owners of capital? As much as he was (justifiably) derided, President…
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Review: Metatropolis
Metatropolis Edited by Jack Scalzi Rating on an arbitrary 5-point scale: 4 out of 5 Metatropolis is a science fiction anthology exploring, as it claims, the “future of cities”. That’s not strictly accurate. It’s really a collection of stories that explore the question: If we as a species are going to survive the mistakes of…
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Review: Inception
Inception a Christopher Nolan Film Arbitrary 5-Point rating: 5 out of 5 Inception is a weird, ambitious, action-packed sci fi thriller-cum-heist flick. It is, in its own way, as ambitious as The Matrix and suffers from the comparison only in that it didn’t come first. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Tom Dom Cobb, a thief of a…
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Days of miracle and wonder, indeed
For about ten years, I’ve been running a project in my Honors Physics course called Days of Miracle and Wonder (yes, title taken from a Paul Simon song). In it, the students are asked to create a business case for a product or service not available today but likely to be so by 2030. Although…
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I might just be succumbing to the lure of reliving my misspent youth…
… but this looks awesome. Apparently, the release date is 2010 December 17. Just for completeness, the original Comicon 2009 trailer is embedded below the fold.