Transhuman; edited by Mark L. Van Name and T.K.F. Weisskopf (Baen Books, 2007, ISBN 978-14165-5523-0; cover by Dave Sealy).

(Two background items: Vernor Vinge's now-classic paper on the Singularity. I would also recommend a look at Accelerando by Charles Stross, as the themes explored in that book often dovetail nicely with the themes explored in these stories...or diverge dramatically. Either way, you can get it for free at that link.)

(Several stories have introductions and/or afterwords, this bumps up the overall story count.)

more...

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Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! Collected Essays, 1934-1998; Sir Arthur C. Clarke (St. Martin's Press, 1999; ISBN 0-312-19893-0).

I had previously read this collection in 2004, but, given Sir Arthur's passing, I picked it up again to re-read his shorter works (I'll take up the short stories later in the year). more...

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Thanks to an e-mail from the man behind Atomic Rockets, I've found an interesting author. Meet Mike Brotherton. Read about his Hard SF writer's bookshelf, Arthur C. Clarke's predictions, a cheat sheet for space travel and more!

More, you say? How about a free book?

(Free is good. I need to write up a posting showing how many free eBooks have led me to purchase deadtree editions of the same, often in hardcover!)

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There's an old joke (attributed in one instance I've come across to Timothy Krauss) that goes...

A physicist, an engineer, and a psychologist are called in as consultants to a dairy farm whose production has been below par. Each is given time to inspect the details of the operation before making a report.

The first to be called is the engineer, who states: “The size of the stalls for the cattle should be decreased. Efficiency could be improved if the cows were more closely packed, with a net allotment of 275 cubic feet per cow. Also, the diameter of the milking tubes should be increased by 4 percent to allow for a greater average flow rate during the milking periods”.

The next to report is the psychologist, who proposes: “The inside of the barn should be painted green. This is a more mellow color than brown and should help induce greater milk flow. Also, more trees should be planted in the fields to add diversity to the scenery for the cattle during grazing, to reduce boredom”.

Finally, the physicist is called upon. He asks for a blackboard and then draws a circle. He begins: “Assume the cow is a sphere....”.

From the latest issue (online) of Symmetry comes a little more physics humor (yes, physics humor). For example, we can learn about Les Horribles Cernettes at the Hardronic Music Festival, Drug Sniffing Dogs at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and more! Who knew that physicists had a sense of humor?

Well, some at least. In the same issue, Jennifer Ouellette (who blogs at Cocktail Party Physics) talks about how some in the community complain about Big Bang Theory. I've only seen a few episodes, but why complain? How many people before the show was aired even knew what a physicist was? Welcome to the enlightenment of the great unwashed masses!

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"The Lotus Eaters? Let’s see—what did Tennyson say about them—nobody reads him nowadays. 'There is sweet music here that softer falls...' No, it isn’t that bit. Ah, I have it!

"'Is there any peace
In ever climbing up the climbing wave?'

Well, young man, is there?"

"For some people—yes,” said Hassell. "And perhaps when space flight arrives they’ll all rush off to the planets and leave the Lotus Eaters to their dreams. That should satisfy everybody."

"And the meek shall inherit the Earth, eh?" said his companion, who seemed to have a very literary turn of mind.

"You could put it that way." Hassell smiled. He looked automatically at his watch, determined not to become involved in an argument which could have only one result.

"Dear me, I must be going. Thanks for the talk."

He rose to leave, thinking he’d preserved his incognito rather well. The stranger gave him a curious little smile and said quietly: "Good-by." He waited until Hassell had gone twenty feet, then called after him in a louder voice: "And good luck—Ulysses!" (Prelude to Space)

From the Ocean, From the Stars

This afternoon I received some reports that Sir Arthur C. Clarke had died. This was confirmed a short time later by news reports.

It is hard for me to express how much of an influence he was on me. I first started reading his books (either Islands in the Sky or The Sands of Mars) shortly after I started reading science fiction (and that was very shortly after I started reading). I read through everything that was in print, whether aimed at adults or young adults. 2001: A Space Odyssey was read and re-read multiple times before my parents allowed me to see it on the big screen (heck, I didn't even get an allowance at that point, so it was a major treat). The book and the movie blew me away and both have remained favorites to this day. Fiction and non-fiction, if I saw Clarke's name on it (although I must confess that I wish he had held back on some of those "collaborations"), I bought it and read it. Short stories like Saturn Rising led me to amateur astronomy. Imperial Earth led me to an interest in recreational mathematics. In fact, many of Clarke's afterwords led me into other areas of study. more...

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Bad reporting in science writing? Say it ain't so!

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Cats are better than dogs at preventing heart attacks? Say it ain't so!

More studies are needed!

And dog lovers shouldn't feel left out: Although the study found no such benefit from "man's best friend," that's probably because there simply weren't enough dog owners in the study to draw firm conclusions, the researchers said.

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Fred's Reading Report (February 200

Leap Year! An extra day of reading! Nope, just an increased number of hours at work, alas...

Books? 11, year-to-date.

Short works? 74, year-to-date.

Currently being read:

Poul Anderson: The Earth Book of Stormgate. Trader to the Stars. The Trouble Twisters. more...

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The National Science Foundation has announced the (in their view) the fourteen greatest engineering challenges for the 21st century. No space elevators, but some pretty interesting stuff here.

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Mechanical animals and more!

I wonder if future models will allow us to look for giant squid...

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Following up on this posting, how about an atlas of the universe?

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Via Baen Books...Get writing!

Announcing the 2nd annual Jim Baen Memorial Writing Contest!

Since its early days, science fiction has played a unique role in human civilization. It removes the limits of what "is" and shows us a boundless vista of what "might be." Its fearless heroes, spectacular technologies and wondrous futures have inspired many people to make science, technology and space flight a real part of their lives and in doing so, have often transformed these fictions into reality. The National Space Society and Baen Books applaud the role that science fiction plays in advancing real science and have teamed up to sponsor this short fiction contest in memory of Jim Baen. more...

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Astronomers have detected a galaxy with arms that "wind" in the direction opposite of most galaxies. How...inconvenient!

Paging Halton Arp! Paging Halton Arp! Paging Halton Arp! Halton Arp to the white courtesy phone, please. It appears the universe is getting strange again. more...

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This is pretty amazing. Here's a guy who makes his own vacuum tubes.

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Imagine the hue and cry if a kid tried to replicate these experiments today? Given the wimpy nature of chemistry sets, there probably would be a visit from the Department of Homeland Security...

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A pretty nifty short CGI film that shows 2001: A Space Odyssey's Discovery. As the film progresses, you see the EVA pods, the flight deck and other interior details.

In other news...will Russian and the ESA be the first to explore Europa's surface?

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Following up on these postings, it appears that the odds of us seeing a "splash down" on Mars at the end of January have decreased to the point of no return. Oh well!

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"What did you do to the cat? It looks half-dead."

(Schrödinger's Wife)

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Amateur astronomer Sean Walker has produced an animated globe built up of images he has taken during the current close approach of the planet Mars. It is amazing what "amateur" astronomers are producing these days. This could rival shots from Hubble!

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Wil McCarthy has a "wiki" where you can contribute to one of three collaborative tales. Will this be a bold new writing frontier? Or a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth?

Boundary Condition

Plant

Release Notes

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