“We see things as we are, not as they are…” Isaac Asmiov
Three DVDs.
Out-takes.
Extended scenes.
Extra footage.
Stuff.Bliss.
Bliss on toast.
For my recent birthday (you can work out my age if you really want to…) I asked for and received Spaced, Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson’s comedy with so many allusions to great sci-fi and horror films. What’s more its very, very funny. How did I miss this when it was on’t tele?
Anyway my thanks to Suw Chapman for pointing me at this (whose blog, Choc and Vodka I have been dipping into since Blogwalk)
Just finished reading Gregory Benford’s Timescape - From the blurb on the Masterworks cover it highlights that it is one of the few Sci Fi novels which truely depict a scientist’s work accurately. To this I can’t comment but it does feel real. The writing for some reason feels dated, perhaps the slowness of the narrative is to blame however maybe this is deliberate but I wanted the plot to move on faster. Perhaps that’s why I am not a scientist 
Overall though I enjoyed the book. Its certainly not a fast paced thriller or a space opera but it does convey a sense of doom and discovery as the future doomed through an environmental disaster tries to communicate with the past to change events. There is also a clash of cultures between new and old, East and West coast America and the US and UK, which all add to the interest and background of the story. Probably give this overall a 6 out of 10 which is a little harsh but I would still recommend it as a read to anyone who enjoys sci fi.
The British Society of Science Fiction announced its annual awards over the Easter weekend. Interestingly two of the books I have been reading recently won awards. Felaheen by Jon Courtenay Grimwood and The Cambridge Book of Science Fiction, from which Farah Mendlesohn’s Reading Science Fiction is taken.
Congratulations to the winners, well deserved I think.
Effendi: The Second Arabesk (Arabesk S.)
Grimwood’s Effendi is equally as good as Pashazade (although personally I preferred the first book). Character development continues and the plot never lets up. Futuristic gadgets strange yet familiar world - compelling Sci Fi. Looking forward even more to Felaheen
The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction (Cambridge Companions to Literature)
In between reading Business (Creating Customer Evangelists and Science fiction books I have managed to squeeze this very good collection of critical articles on Science Fiction. The reason I think I have been enjoying the articles is that while they focus on my favourite genre of writing, they also offer a critical, academic approach to the gamut of writing without generally being too heavy in their academic language.
Usually I don’t like analysis of fiction, prefering to enjoy the text for itself, however this book has opened up a realm of different ideas and ways of thinking about science fiction, along with suggesting some interesting stories to read (some of which I have at home gethering dust that I yet to get round to).
If Sci Fi is your thing I would recommend taking a look. It has certainly broadened my mind
Recently been reading Jon Courtney Grimwood’s Arabesk Trilogy.
The first Arabesk, Pashazade is a fast moving slick thriller set in a world were the US didn’t enter WW1 as a combatant. The setting of El Iskandria (which is Alexandria) in Egypt is wonderfully fleshed out with an interesting set of characters acting on differing sets of values that a world with a more Islamic viewpoint would have (although it is more lip service than actuality). The plot itself while little more than an interesting detective novel has intricate twists and turns and the central premise of not knowing one’s background is handled in a slightly different way which holds interest. Thouroughly worth a read!
The Second Arabesk, Effendi is next in line and I’m looking forward to it!
The world’s greatest science fiction show is to return. I am over the moon!!!!!
I have to admit to being absoultely nuts about Dr Who and have a collection of videos, DVDs, Novels, Audio Dramas on CD, Models and Daleks. It was a part of my childhood which I have kept with me and it has seen me through a lot of years, entertaining, inspiring and of course the ubiquitous hiding ‘behind the sofa’.
Russell T Davies is an extremely good writer despite some negative press, and should breathe new life into the format. I hope the BBC will fund the project properly and give it a chance to succeed. After all, its last run was 26 years.
You can also get further info at Outpost Gallifrey, and I expect lots of other places
If you don’t know what I am talking about go here NOW!
Its great news considering this is the 40th Anniversary of its inception.
I am off to play Daleks with my son.
I am back feeling just about better! I’ve added some posts which were outstanding from last week (below somewhere) and hope to catch up with a few further articles today.
In the meantime I’ve finally finished Redemption Ark 
which was a bit different to the Sci-Fi I normally read but still good none the less. Its a large space opera which can sometimes meander here and there but generally hits the mark as it describes characters that seem to have appeared in previous Reynolds novels (but as I haven’t read them I’m not sure). Its main focus is really on human relationships which considerig the setting is quite interesting. While I may sound a little sceptical about the book it has made me buy some other Books by Alastair Reynolds and I would recommend it but I think it would be better to read one of the earlier books like Revelation Space 
first.
f r e e g o r i f e r o | weblog
Typing (Minority) Reports.
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”, Arthur C. Clarke.
A few months ago I tried one of the new virtual keyboards.
The magic-feeling thing about it, I remember, was that you could actually type in mid-air, as the touch-sensitive plane is active whether there’s a solid surface underneath it or not.
I also remember commenting that a 3D projection, instead of a 2D one, would have made Minority Report feel like a book from Jules Verne in the shortest time.
Silly me.
The NY Times just published “A Business Out of Thin Air“, an article on holographic keyboards (might require registration).
If you care to know more: Holotouch.
The future is upon us and we barely even notice.
I like the idea of this but wonder whether there is truely a better interface to use to get information / data into a computer (assume any device with electronics inside it). A virtual keyboard while fantastic does lack the imagination of what we saw in Minority Report. It doesn’t seem as advance as some of the research I’ve seen from Xerox-Parc a while ago either (couldn’t find the reaerch I was looking for a the link).
Now a truely revolutionary input device that would be magic…
Compare the attitude here:
Gladiator Robot Looks to Join Marine Corps
A new unmanned robot with lots of weapons will be used as soon as 2007 by the Marine Corps to control angry crowds, reports the Honolulu Advertiser from Camp Smith, Hawaii.
It looks like something out of Robocop, a mini tank-treaded terror bristling with so many cannon and guns that only a Hollywood screenwriter could have dreamed it up.
It’s designed to be RoboMarine — technically the Gladiator Tactical Unmanned Ground Vehicle — and proponents say it would have come in handy in trouble spots ranging from Somalia, Kosovo and Bosnia to Afghanistan and Iraq.
The 4-foot-tall, 1,600-pound concept vehicle recently was demonstrated at Camp Smith, launching dozens of smoke rounds downrange that could have been tear gas, or stingball and flashbang grenades.
With the attitude here:
I think Issac Asimov would be turning over in his grave.
Three Laws of Robotics:
A robot may not injure a human, or allow a human to be injured.
A robot must follow any order given by a human that doesn’t conflict with the First Law.
A robot must protect itself unless that would conflict with the First or Second Laws.
Recent Comments