Category Archives: science fiction

Fox News Admits They Were Wrong; Reviews by Michael Dirda

First, a follow up to my Media Literacy post three days ago. Stop the Presses! Something amazing has happened! Salon, Amanda Marcotte, 23 May 2023: Fox News falls for another hoax, as the Dominion defamation settlement pays off, subtitled “The … Continue reading

Posted in Mathematics, Narrative, Science, science fiction | Leave a comment

Intuitive TV and Movie Physics

Remember this? Remind you of anything? This is the logo that would appear at the end of a Universe Pictures movie in the 1930s.

Posted in Astronomy, Physics, science fiction | Comments Off on Intuitive TV and Movie Physics

About New Books by Phil Plait and Jamie Green

Phil Plait’s Under Alien Skies Jamie Green’s The Possibility of Life And a Facebook cartoon about the cynicism of anti-intellectuals Phil Plait on John Scalzi’s blog today, about his new book Under Alien Skies: A Sightseer’s Guide to the Universe, … Continue reading

Posted in Astronomy, Book Notes, Cosmology, Lunacy, science fiction | Comments Off on About New Books by Phil Plait and Jamie Green

SF and AI in MSM

Items about Isaac Asimov and AI, Adrian Tchaikovsky and octopuses and AI, SF magazines and AI-generated stories. The Atlantic, Jeremy Dauber, 3 Mar 2023: What Isaac Asimov Can Teach Us About AI, subtitled “The science-fiction writer imagined artificial intelligence—and what … Continue reading

Posted in science fiction, Technology | Comments Off on SF and AI in MSM

Two Philosophical Bits

Are you the same person you were last week? How long should you shop?

Posted in Philosophy, science fiction | Comments Off on Two Philosophical Bits

Dacher Keltner, AWE: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life

This is a book about the subjective experience of awe, and how being aware of everyday examples of awe can make your life more meaningful and fulfilling; yet how (in my take) it’s about the emotion, triggered by both the … Continue reading

Posted in Book Notes, Psychology, Science, science fiction | Comments Off on Dacher Keltner, AWE: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life

Feelings vs. Data, Political Items, and Awe

Today Paul Krugman counters feelings with facts, this time about the economy; also, items about DeSantis, red state murders, Truth Social ads. And a new book about awe.

Posted in Economics, Science, science fiction | Comments Off on Feelings vs. Data, Political Items, and Awe

Robert Lanza and Nancy Kress, OBSERVER

(The Story Plant, January 2023, 380pp) This is a hard science fiction thriller that impressed me in many ways, though I’m not a regular reader of thrillers per se and perhaps am not in a position to judge the book … Continue reading

Posted in Book Notes, science fiction | Comments Off on Robert Lanza and Nancy Kress, OBSERVER

Cosmic Websites; Recent Headlines

Let’s begin with an item from December, on a website called Topia: A World of Good, promoted on Facebook today by David Brin since it reproduces a list Brin compiled on his own blog some time ago. 21 COSMIC WEBSITES … Continue reading

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Cosmology, Politics, Science, science fiction | Comments Off on Cosmic Websites; Recent Headlines

Longtermism (and Science Fiction), part 2

More about “longermism,” Effective Altruism, how they relate to science fiction, and whether or not books can be reduced to six-paragraph summaries.

Posted in longtermism, Philosophy, science fiction | Comments Off on Longtermism (and Science Fiction), part 2