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Current/Recent News

Friday, January 15th, 2016

I’m streamlining the blog, as I’m not actively blogging any more.  I need to focus my energies on astronomy and science fiction, and social media has largely usurped blogs from my perspective.  I’ll continue to post occasional updates here as they come up, e.g., Launch Pad announcements, story or novel news, perhaps still pieces on […]

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Transformative Science Fiction Movies

Wednesday, November 20th, 2013

A friend and I were talking over beers the other night, and discussing the handful of movies that had transformed the experience of going to the cinema. They contain unique elements not seen before, and influence everything that comes after. Some of the transformation is simply in the realm of special effects, but some of […]

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Probably 1/5 Sun-Like Stars Have Earth-Like Planets in Habitable Zone

Monday, November 4th, 2013

A couple of years ago, following the initial Kepler data release, I thought the numbers indicated it was at least 1/100, and likely much higher. Better statistics/analysis seem to indicate a number like 1/5: “What this means is, when you look up at the thousands of stars in the night sky, the nearest sun-like star […]

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The Geek Test: What’s Your Score?

Friday, August 30th, 2013

To take the 50 question test below, give yourself two points when you answer “yes” to the questions below beginning, “Have you ever…” 1. Attended a small (< 2000 people) science fiction convention? 2. Attended a one of the major science fiction conventions (e.g, Worldcon, Dragon*con)? 3. Attended a Comic-Con or media-oriented Convention (e.g. Shoreleave)? […]

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Ten Totally Illogical Science Fiction Premises on Amazing Stories Blog

Friday, February 22nd, 2013

This is a repeat of a post that just went up earlier today at Amazing Stories.  I encourage you to check out the link and join the conversation over there.  Feel free to comment here, too, of course!  Onward… Recently I wrote about eight science fiction tropes of convenience, mainly about unlikely or impossible technology […]

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Eight Science Fiction Tropes of Convenience

Tuesday, February 19th, 2013

There are a number of tropes that I see popping up over and over in science fiction, even though they are not very scientifically plausible and border on the impossible given our current understanding.  They are used and will continue to be used, especially in movies and tv, because they’re very convenient.  I find it […]

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Ten Classic Hard SF Novels over at the SFWA Blog

Tuesday, November 13th, 2012

I did a list for SFWA, all of which feature physics and/or astronomy.  Without all the introductions and discussion, here’s the list: 1. Mission of Gravity by Hal Clement 2. The Fountains of Paradise by Arthur C. Clarke 3. Ringworld by Larry Niven 4. Dragon’s Egg by Robert Forward 5. Timescape by Gregory Benford 6. The Black Cloud by Fred Hoyle 7. Tau Zero by Poul Anderson 8. The Moon […]

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What If Science Fiction Actually Involved Science?

Thursday, September 20th, 2012

The reason we’ve probably never seen a dramatic TV series involving scientists in the tradition of ER or CSI or Newsroom is that the actual work is usual tedious, boring to most non-experts, with low stakes most of the time (cancer doesn’t get cured every week, or even nearly cured).  This is also the reason […]

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What are the Best Science Fiction Mysteries?

Friday, September 14th, 2012

I’ve read and watched some good ones, but I’m sure I don’t know this interesting subfield as well as I should to be able to come up with a comprehensive list.  Let me list some that I think are good to great, and solicit input from others about some that I may have missed.  I’ve […]

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10 More Classic Mistakes in Science Fiction Movies

Monday, August 13th, 2012

I came across a kindred spirit today, finding an article titled 10 Classic Mistakes in Sci-Fi Movies. His list takes some well deserved but easy potshots at some large targets, and perhaps more tv shows than movies. 1. Aliens Speak English, often without evidence of translators or any previous interaction with modern English-speaking humans.  Let’s […]

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Can You Figure Out What this Science Fiction Novel is Trying to Say?

Tuesday, July 17th, 2012

This is passed on from a friend of a friend, who is a Spanish teacher using a science fiction novel (I don’t know which one) in her class, and had this question:  I’m working on a sci fi novel to use in class and there is a reference to (translated):  the reflection point of the […]

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What Personnel Are Needed on a Spaceship Exploring Strange New Worlds?

Wednesday, July 11th, 2012

I like to write stories set in outer space on space ships, and I think a lot about stupid things like what is the necessary crew size and their expertise.  There are some guides based on long duration seafaring, but those are somewhat imperfect in the space environment. So far, we haven’t had space missions […]

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