After this post, I promise a moratorium on Wil Wheaton-related posts for at least two months. I finally got around to listening to his keynote for PAX, the Penny Arcade Expo. I do not read (or listen to) Penny Arcade, though I know people who do. Wheaton’s keynote, however, is essentially validation of the geek [...]

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(overheard between a drunken John & a drunken xJane at last night’s Abney Park concert) Background: Yesterday, xJane was sitting around, slightly ill, and generally feeling sorry for herself. Whilst innocently watching Emmy consideration DVDs, she received a call from John, who asked if she was busy (she was not) and if she was interested [...]

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By now, many of you will have heard that one of the Vatican’s astronomers has indicated that there might be life on other planets. Even that they might be without sin. Many of my favorite science fiction books involve the intersection of religion and space travel (Dune and Ender’s Game chief among them). But really, [...]

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Liminal states are not happy states. Take zombies. Zombies are transitional, miserable beings–not quite dead, not quite alive. They shuffle about–no standing still or purposeful striding. Instead of killing you with ninja stealth or a mighty barbarian beserker yell, they mumble and moan. “Nnnnnnn ggahhh brrrrrrrrrr aeeeeeeeeee nnnnnnnssss,” they say, and you’re tempted to stop [...]

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I don’t think I’ve ever been quite so busy.  I applied to a prestigious writer’s workshop last night.  I should hear back in the next couple of weeks.  I’ll reveal more details then, for better or for worse. Reading takes time, and since my free reading time is at a premium,  books are investments.  I’d [...]

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Every student should be able to design their own classes.  Think about how many freakin’ Einsteins we’d have if teenage boys could create classes like “The Chemistry of Blowing Stuff Up” and “The Physics of Breast Movement in 3D Gaming Worlds.” I’m not saying that there wouldn’t be some *negative repercussions.  (We desperately need more [...]

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Apologies for all the SF book reviews–in my mad sprint to the end of the month finish line, I’m trying to cram in as many books as I can in an attempt to get close to my New Year’s Resolution. This end of the month clump of reviews is partly the result of my inability [...]

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Carl Marsalis is a Variant Thirteen–the result of a near future project to genetically engineered abnormally strong and quick and hyper-aggressive soldiers. His kind are feared as humanoid monsters, and most are kept in camps or exiled to colonies on Mars. Marsalis has been hired to help track down a virtually untrackable renegade thirteen who [...]

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Sound the trumpets folks! It’s book #2 of the 100 I’m supposed to read for this year. I’ll be the first to admit I’m a little slow coming out of the starting gates. My calculations tell me that I should have completed 7.2 texts thus far. I’ll catch up, I promise. The Tourmaline may be [...]

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I can barely keep my eyelids propped open, but I wanted to share some thoughts before I lie down for some sweet, sweet rest. We live in a stranger universe than anything we could imagine on our own. Recent science news give tiny little snapshots of this crazy reality: Scientists have discovered a black hole [...]

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