Sci Fi Jungle

Blue moon to shine on New Year's Eve

This image of Earth and moon is a composite of two images sent back by the Galileo spacecraft.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Second full moon in December to light night sky
• Term "blue moon" has been around 400 years, professor says
• Meaning of the phrase has shifted over the years

(CNN) -- It happens only once in a blue moon -- and scientists say a blue moon is exactly what we'll see in the skies this New Year's Eve.

Don't expect an azure glow over our lunar satellite, however. The term "blue moon" simply refers to the second full moon in a calendar month, something that hasn't happened on a New Year's Eve for nearly 20 years, NASA says.

via www.cnn.com

I am going to go right out there are say it - a blue moon (second full moon in a month) on New Years eve is a good omen.

Lets all hope and send good thoughts up to Mother Moon for peace and prosperity for all of Earth's citizens in 2010.

2009 has been a crappy year for many of us, and one we quite frankly would just as soon forget. This Blue Moon is a sign, people! Don't look back - look forward. There is so much that we as a society can accomplish. New fiscal belt tightening can stay, new innovations for living more efficiently can stay, new understanding about what it is like to be on the edge of solvency, that can stay too.

This is a time to cautiously spend money on things that make sense. The key word is going to be EFFICIENT. Waste is the scourge of modern life and it must be cut down.

Be thrifty, reuse old things. When you buy something new buy an item of GREAT quality that will last. Try not to buy throwaway junk, just save up for the good stuff.

We can have a consumer economy based on quality and efficiency. It's a compromise between the good parts of capitalism and the good parts of social responsibility.

We can live a comfortable US lifestyle and also help other people in the world aspire to a comfortable lifestyle as well. Being more efficient means more resources and opportunities to go around for everyone. New innovations can increase productiviuty and help us do more with less. And to do more with more people.

All people all over the world want is a way to make a decent living, a safe and stable place to live, and some basic rights and freedoms. This isn't too hard to achieve. Lets all hope and send good thoughts up to Mother Moon for peace and prosperity for all of Earth's citizens in 2010.

Avatar

I got a rare chance to go to the movies with the hubster on Christmas Day.  His mom watched our kids and my brother in law's daughter while the three of us went to the movies.  We had Christmas dinner when we got back.  What a treat.

Avatar was a wonderful Christmas present all in itself.  What a lovely film.  I can't remember the last time I was so absorbed in a move.  The saturated colors, the beautiful world of Pandora, and the characters just made you suspend your disbelief and really feel like it was a real wonder you were watching.

I think that Avatar is going to be as revolutionary a movie as The Wizard of Oz was in its time.  In fact I think there are some parallels to the two films in terms of the rich color of Oz vs. the black and white of Kansas highlighting the differences in the two worlds.

The plot of Avatar was strong enough to carry the movie along, but clearly not the primary aspect.  The film existst to bring us the world of Pandora, so any weakness in the story line is quite easly forgiven.  The movie is a little bit of "Dances with Wolves" and a lot of scathing commentary on modern life and modern warfare.  The real evil isn't the company manager on Pandora, or the ex-Marine running the security forces.  The real evil is the "shareholders" back home who value profits over scientific exploration, cultural understanding, or  diplomacy.  As other critics have observed, for a movie created with high tech computer generated imagry, it really doesn't glamorize jobs in IT.  Instead it glamorizes the lifestyle of 9 foot tall blue nature dwellers who sleep in hammocks and ride on dragons.

This is escapism at its best.  It does give you something to think about, but the real joy is just in the experience.  I saw the 2D version of the movie, and I think I will try watching the 3D as well.  The hubster had already seen it on opening day, and he said that watching it a second time was fun because you already knew the story so you could pay attention to the graphic details.

Online College Goes Affordable

I happen to know a lot of people who are out of work.  It seems a no-brainer to take the opportunity of a bad job market to go ahead and get that degree that you either never finished, or never started.

But there's one major obstacle for people - the money.  Yes, loans are available and I encourage people to take them!  But what if your credit is shot or you already have a stack of student loans, maybe in default or more than you can pay.  Well, one piece of good news is that if you are unemployed you can defer your student loan payments.  The second piece of good news is that there are actually affordable schools out there.

For example, Western Governors University, an all online University, charges $2,890 per each Six-Month Term.   That's a lot cheaper than most other programs, and as an accredited and well rated program, too.

Their programs range from a really wide assortment of teaching and education online degrees, to IT, business, and health industry degrees.   WGU really was founded by a number of the Governors of Western US states, who wanted to use their combined power to help provide more and easier access to higher education, especially in relation to the geographically widespread citizens of the US West.  Due to some great funding from industry, such as Microsoft, HP, AT&T, Dell, Qwest, and Oracle, they are able to offer a quality education at a lower price tag than most other online universities.

Science Fiction Ain’t Dead (So Shut Up) by Shaun Duke – Grasping for the Wind

Whoever keeps saying it needs to have a giant, Transformer’s robot pop them one in the mouth. SF ain’t dead. It ain’t dying. It ain’t even struggling to breathe. In fact, science fiction is probably doing better today than it ever was before. SF literature isn’t losing its place; it’s just evolving. I’ve shared similar concerns in the past, but the more I look at everything going on in SF right now, the more I think all these arguments about SF dying are pointless.

via www.graspingforthewind.com

I really agree with this just as much as I also agree with the "Sci Fi is deal, long live Fantasy" concept I blogged about a few posts back. Am I sitting on both sides of fence - well yes I am.

I think there are a number of flavors of Sci Fi out there right now, and the genre is actually overflowing the banks of the traditional Sci Fi book section.

For example...

Movies

Television

Paranormal Romance and Dark Fantasy

Manga and Graphic Novels (thriving both in print and in film)

Anime (see above)

Now, if you don't like what's hot in some of these sub-genres, (like those of us that might be a wee bit tired of the idea of vampires as good boyfriend material) you may be a bit dismayed by what is going on.

I liken it to something my father said to me many years ago when we were discussing whether poetry was dead. He said poetry was not dead, it's modern form was the top 40 song.   I thought this was really deep at the time, and I still do.

Creative media undergoes changes and in fact it must change to stay relevant to new groups of people. At the same time, we always have the classics to refer back to. Such is the joy of art - the thrill of the new, and the soothing power of the familiar.

SF Signal: 55 Free Speculative Fiction Stories by 41 Authors

SF Signal: 55 Free Speculative Fiction Stories by 41 Authors

Hey - I just got my kindle yesterday and look at all the goodies I can read on it! I am so excited.

Star Trek Stops Women From Becoming Computer Scientists | Wired Science | Wired.com

The gender gap in computer science may have been widened by Star Trek, a new study suggests — but it could be bridged with a less geeky image.

via www.wired.com

This study sounds like a load of crap to me. Personally it is stuff like Star Trek that got me in to Computers in the first place.

And let me add, that Computer Science is one of the best fields for women to be in, in my opinion and experience. Although there are some throwbacks of people who will look down on you as a woman, I believe that pay equity and opportunity for advancement are better in technical fields that in others.

My advice - don't change Comp Sci or the Geeky image. Change the way girls are raised to think that "geeky" is anything other than positive. Instead of learning that your looks and how thin you are are the most important things a girl can strive for, why don't we raise our daughters to see the inner beauty of creative thinking. That's why Sci Fi, Geekyness, and High Tech are all about.

New True Blood Hottie

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A sexy new supernatural is joining the cast of HBO’s “True Blood” for the much-anticipated third season.

“One Tree Hill” regular Joe Manganiello has been cast as Alcide Herveaux, the new werewolf in town who will cozy up to telepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse, played by Golden Globe nominee Anna Paquin.

via marquee.blogs.cnn.com

Joe Manganiello will play Werewolf Alcide on next season's True Blood. I'm ahead of the HBO series in my reading of the books, but I won't spoil anything for peeps who haven't read any of the books.

Joe looks about right to me for the rugged, every-man Alcide.

7 Reasons Why I Want a Kindle 2

1.  I love reading, and can have lots of books in one compact package.

2.  I love the idea of being able to instantly download a new book.  So many times I have finished my book and have to run out to Barnes and Noble or even Publix to try to get a new one fast.

3.  My local Goodwill's book selection has been sparse lately!

4. I will be able to download pdf file knitting patterns onto the Kindle and avoid printing patterns.  I wonder if I can put sticky notes on the screen to keep my place in knitting charts?

5.  You can send web pages to the Kindle, as well as setting up news feeds to make your own newspapers to read on the go.

6.  There are lots of free eBooks out there but I need an epaper screen that is easy on the eyes to get the benefit of them.

7.  Great for travel - I can imagine being in a new york discount hotel and being able to carry as many books as will fit on the Kindle all in one package.

Play Online Role Playing Game Age of Conan Free

I am copying the information below from my favorite deals website, slickdeals.net.  If you are not busy playing with your new ping pong table, then this might be a great opportunity to try a new online multi-player role playing game for free.

Unlimited Free Trial of the first 20 levels in Age of Conan now available free.

Funcom is delighted to announce a unique holiday offer for its massively multiplayer online game `Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures'. Anyone who downloads, registers, and starts playing the trial before January 1st 2010 will be able to enjoy all of level one to twenty – the entire Island of Tortage experience – without ever having to upgrade to a full account or pay a subscription fee. This unique Unlimited Free Trial campaign is only available until January 1st.

Go to http://www.ageofconan.com/trial (copy/paste link) to download the client and start your barbaric adventures today. Players can level up as many characters as they want before choosing to move on and explore the rest of the game. Players will be able to enjoy all of what Tortage Island has to offer, complete with player vs. environment and player vs. player gameplay. Users must take advantage of this offer before January 1st, and will need to log in to the game for the offer to take effect.

NASA launches infrared telescope to scan entire sky - CNN.com

(CNN) -- NASA launched a new telescope into space on Monday to scan the cosmos for undiscovered objects, including asteroids and comets that might threaten Earth.

The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, spacecraft will employ an infrared camera to detect light- and heat-emitting objects that other orbiting telescopes, such as the Hubble, might miss.

via www.cnn.com

Great idea, folks. We need to be on the lookout for asteroids. If an asteroid is coming I want to be able to duck or something.