vagabondscrawl

Independent Publishers Who Are Reinventing The Future [Indy Giants]

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 23:26:25 -0600

Independent Publishers Who Are Reinventing The Future [Indy Giants]:

Genre publishing has taken some hard hits in recent years — but a slew of independent publishers is still out there, charting the unknown regions of book publishing and keeping your reading lists…

Young Adult Science Fiction: A Reading Guide

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:14:12 -0600

Young Adult Science Fiction: A Reading Guide:

In my last post I offered my recommendations of young adult fantasy novels; now I’d like to share some YA science fiction recs. I think you’ll find there’s something that’ll appeal to just…

Get Excited and Make Things!

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:03:59 -0600

Get Excited and Make Things!:

My friend Ariana works with Warren Ellis to make all kinds of really cool things. Lately, they’ve been experimenting with print on demand technology to take creative risks that…

"You'll put your eye out, kid."

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:15:40 -0600

"You'll put your eye out, kid.":

Librarians have been lucky. For a thousand years we’ve answered questions and suggested further investigation based on a simple, reproducible formula: we find the answer in a book or on other printed…

cyoa

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:59:33 -0600

cyoa:

In scanning over the distribution of colors in this plot, one clear pattern is a the gradual decline in the number of endings. The earliest books (in the top row) are awash in reds and oranges, with…

No more edgy humour? You must be joking

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:59:33 -0600

No more edgy humour? You must be joking:

I didn’t write it so it’s bad form to imply that I did. But I thought it was quite funny. It was in the introduction to the show, which is about truths and lies, and it went: “There’s actually no…

The Best Sub-Light Propulsion System This Side of Luyten 726-8B [Ion Thrusters]

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:59:32 -0600

The Best Sub-Light Propulsion System This Side of Luyten 726-8B [Ion Thrusters]:

Today, we use ion thrusters to correct satellite orbits and visit asteroids. In 100 years, we might be using them to propel massive generation ships that send colonists to a different part…

A Fact More Indigestible than Evolution (Part II)

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:59:32 -0600

A Fact More Indigestible than Evolution (Part II):

For centuries, the human brain has been a kind of black box, a place we could theorize with impunity, which is to say, without fear of scientific contradiction. Well, the box has been cracked…

grouchy sinatra: The cat curled up under blankets in the dark....

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:31:23 -0600

grouchy sinatra:

The cat curled up under blankets in the dark. She enjoys the coming winter as much as I do.

star stuff: An original by Lynette Wiebe. On the back is the...

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:31:13 -0600

star stuff:

An original by Lynette Wiebe. On the back is the Carl Sagan quote “We are all made of star stuff.”

star stuff (detail): An original by Lynette Wiebe. On the back...

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:31:06 -0600

star stuff (detail):

An original by Lynette Wiebe. On the back is the Carl Sagan quote “We are all made of star stuff.”

swallowed by the earth: I got Lynette Wiebe to “do...

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:31:00 -0600

swallowed by the earth:

I got Lynette Wiebe to “do something” with these postcards of portraits of Chinese miners I bought at an art gallery in Beijing. I can’t remember who the photographer is.

swallowed by the earth (detail): I got Lynette Wiebe to...

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 10:30:52 -0600

swallowed by the earth (detail):

I got Lynette Wiebe to “do something” with these postcards of portraits of Chinese miners I bought at an art gallery in Beijing. I can’t remember who the photographer is.

The Revolution Will Not Be Hand-Made: A Quick Sunday-Morning Rant

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:54:20 -0600

The Revolution Will Not Be Hand-Made: A Quick Sunday-Morning Rant:

(A first stab at articulating some ideas. Thoughtful feedback welcome.)

We’re nearing an inflection point in our discussions about sustainability and building a bright green future.

Mainly,…

Introduce Your Child to Lovecraft's Horrors with Lil Cthulhu [Lil Cthulhu]

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:54:20 -0600

Introduce Your Child to Lovecraft's Horrors with Lil Cthulhu [Lil Cthulhu]:

Halloween may be over, but you can still enjoy some child-friendly terrors with the animated short Lil Cthulhu. After all, it’s never too early to introduce a child to Dagon, Nyarlathotep,…

special services tea party: Shot by Antonine’s daughter,...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:35:42 -0500

special services tea party:

Shot by Antonine’s daughter, whose name I don’t know how to spell.

Pulp Fiction Remixed

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:25:38 -0500

Pulp Fiction Remixed:

This is the sort of thing that YouTube was seemingly made for. User knoertz takes the mid-nineties Quentin Tarantino, pop-culture touchstone Pulp Fiction and chops and slices, copies…

How to Convert an Ordinary Suit Coat into a Tail Coat

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:04:14 -0500

How to Convert an Ordinary Suit Coat into a Tail Coat:

Materials:
Suit Coat
Piece of Chalk
Scissors
Pins and/or Safetypins
Needle & Thread or Fabric Glue

[Now we’re ready to get started!]

Step I: Finding a Coat
Finding a suit coat free…

The Academy Produces More PhDs than the Academy Needs, and That's Just the Way the Academy Likes It

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:38:22 -0500

The Academy Produces More PhDs than the Academy Needs, and That's Just the Way the Academy Likes It:

Average time to an MBA: 2 years. Time to a law degree: 3 years. To an MD: 4 years. Average time to a humanities PhD? 11.3 years. Then there’s only a 50% chance you’ll get a job somewhat related to…

How habitable is the Earth?

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:38:22 -0500

How habitable is the Earth?:

(Pay attention at the back: this is a trick question.)

We H. Sapiens Sapiens appear to be an infestation on this planet. After the slow-burning evolution of hominins in Africa, our ancestral…