Gravity Lens Weblog

Archive March 1 - March 28

Wednesday, March 28

Assorted Robotic Items: The Mondolithic Image of the Week is Robofit.

Technovelgy introduces us to the Gummi Bot.

The miltary also wants soft robots. (Via Geekpress)

And the headline reads "Michael Jackson Wants to Be a 50 Foot Robot.," something I would approve of if only to see Gigantor kick his ass.

SciFi Tech shows us some future-sexy places to sit and sleep.

Tuesday, March 27

A moment of silence, please, for comic book artist Marshall Rogers.

Monday, March 26

Gloria Goodale of the Christian Science Monitor looks at a problem that affects us all: the utter lack of decent TV theme songs.

The Atomic Clock is fifty years old.

SF Signal links to the winners of the CGSociety's contest to visualaize Greg Bear's Eon.

If you enjoy that book as much as I do, the winning trailer will gove you shivers.

Friday, March 23

A Finnish member of parliament has translated his re-election website into Klingon.

Thursday, March 22

It's been a good week at SciFi Tech. They've given us this comfy little couch/TV combo, a gyrocopter tricycle, a nifty aerodynamic motorcycle, and this footbridge that doubles as a windmill.

Was I a metalhead growing up? Fuck yeah!

Wednesday, March 21

Steven Grant at Comic Book Resources considers the role of God in comics.

Accelerating Future gazes into the largest known region of empty space in the observable universe. Via Reality Carnival, who also links to one of the most complicated mathematical structures known, consisting of 240 vectors in an eight-dimensional space.

This week's Mondolithic illustration is the cover of the latest issue of Fantasy & Science Fiction dedicated to Gene Wolfe.

Tuesday, March 20

At least one scientist thinks robots will need downtime to dream.

Via Boing Boing: Crystalinks gives us proof positive that Superman's Fortress of Solitude is, in fact, buried beneath Mexico.

And let's revisit the layout of the fortress, shall we?

Monday, March 19

Space Stuff: Jeff Foust of The Space Review lists for us the three D's of planetary defense.

Popular Science show us the next space tourism vehicle. Meanwhile, Al Globus at Space.com makes the pragmatic case for building orbital habitats instead of moonbases.

George Dvorsky links to this pre-WWI essay by John Erskine called The Moral Obligation To Be Intelligent.

Over the weekend I finished watching the six episode run of Primeval, an ITV show about time portals, conspiracies, and hungry dinosaurs stalking England. I don't normally recommend TV shows, but this one managed to correctly hit all the notes that Torchwood got so hideously wrong: damaged people, unrequited love, and freaky monsters.

As it's on ITV, I doubt that BBC America would pick it up.

I start my new job today. No idea what my schedule will be like yet. Will blog when I can.

Friday, March 16

The headline reads: "Walking robot makes you even more lazy."

And I'm liking this robot that scoops up injured or unconscious people., although it does invoke SF images of other methods of removing people.

Physorg tell us about Sky Sailor, a "solar-powered, autonomously-controlled microairplane" designed to fly continuously around Mars.

Thursday, March 15

Space.com brings us news of plans for an orbiting fueling station.

Wednesday, March 14

Don't forget, today is Pi Day.

Some people celebrate other things. (NSFW)

In his latest Comic Book Resources column Steven Grant asks: what if Las Vegas ran like the comics industry?

When I was at the NY Comic Con (of which there are now podcasts available) I came across the new book The Future was Fab: The Art of Mike Trim, who provided design work and art for various Gerry Anderson projects, as well as Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds. Eye of the Goof did a post about the book, and links to his latest in-progress project: a futuristic spy thriller called Agent Crush which, of course, will have all manner of spectacular vehicles.

The preview clip looks sweet for fans of miniature work.

Tuesday, March 13

Thrilling Wonder gives us some beautiful futuristic paintings from Russia in 1900.

They also have a great gallery of incredible snow vehicles past and present.

SF Signal links to this Technology Review piece on how science fiction influences the imaginations of technologists.

Monday, March 12

Mondolithic gives us a glimpse at a neat futuristic Indian city.

And speaking of eye candy, Paleo Future posted this awesome cover to a 1979 book on future cities.

Recommended Readin': Wednesday is 3/14, better known as Pi Day.

Nader Elhefnawy of The Space Review looks at the public's fading interest in space.

David Itzkoff of the New York Times talks to Seth Shostak about SETI and aliens.

Saturday, March 10

Here's something I didn't know: in 1972 the prog band Icarus released a concept album based on the Marvel Universe. Strangely enough, it contained no songs about Ikaris.

(Yes, I know Ikaris wasn't created until 1976.)

Technovelgy gives us a robotic beetle that doctors stick into your body for diagnosis.

Friday, March 9

LiveScience informs us that while you can set your clocks ahead this weekend, you probably cannot travel backwards in time.

Manwhile, BBC tells us researchers are using antimatter to fight cancer.

Thursday, March 8

Assorted Items: South Korea is drafting an ethical code to prevent humans abusing robots, and vice versa. (via GeekPress)

The boys at Mondolithic were interviewed on Canadian Television last week. Cool!

At A.V. Club, Christopher Bahn gives us 13 Sidekicks who are Cooler than their Heroes.

The list doesn't include Kato, an ommission he has rectified.

Wednesday, March 7

NASA announces First Mime in Space!

I just learned that former King Crimson drummer Ian Wallace died last month.

Tuesday, March 6

Modern Mechanix gives us scans of Freak Vehicles for Air, Land & Water from 1933.

We now live in a world where software has been charged with practicing law without a license. (via Geekpress)

A moment of silence, please, for Mr. Herman Brix.

Conspiracy theorist Mark over at the Bar & Grill links to Uncomfortable Questions: Was the Death Star Attack an Inside Job?

Astrobiology looks at the possible role of modular shapeshifting superbots in future space exploration. There are many cool downloadable wmv videos linked at the bottom of the story, but they sorta remind me of Proteus from Demon Seed.

Monday, March 5

Chris Carberry at The Space Review gives us a plea to those who are passionate about human spaceflight.

Scientists are embarking on a mission to explore an "open wound" on the floor of the Atlantic.

Hmmm, where have I heard this before?

Assorted Items: The headline reads "Robot, Get me a Beer."

Geoff Wimmetts at SF Crowsnest ponders SF's role in human advancement.

Jason Margolis of BBC reports on the potential of oceans to provide electricity via wave farms.

Futurismic links to Osmos, a company that is, quite literally, reinventing the wheel.

The future of computing: Technovelgy shows us data storage on a bacterial DNA, while Technology Review looks at foolproof quantum technology.

Friday, March 2

Today is my last day at a job I've held for the last fifth of my life. It's a strange sensation. I'm not particularly bitter, as I'm fully aware of the realities of broadcasting. I've got some solid stuff on the horizon, and a few other things I'm hoping to tease out, so I'll be busy over the next two weeks. Don't know quite how this will affect my blogging, so stay tuned.

Thursday, March 1

A moment of silence, followed by a phase-shifted drum fill, for Mr. Billy Thorpe.

It is March.

The God of the Month is Vãli, Son of Odin and The Frozen Earth.

The Molecule of the Month is speedy Methamphetamine.

Wait a minute. An Asgardian god and meth? This calls for some death metal!

Steven Grant at Comic Book Resources discusses the changing role of comic shops in today's market.

Meanwhile, let's head out to sea with scary looking Interceptor unmanned surface vessel, the Fast Track amphibious vehicle, a sweet-looking speedboat that's fueled by ass fat, and a submarine that can reach over 100 MPH thanks to super-cavitation.

Currently making the rounds: Monstropedia, the "ultimate online encyclopedia of monsters in myth, magick and legend." While we're on the subject, let's revisit Monster Blog's index, as well as the one from Giant Monster Movies.

(If your in the mood for some more pallatable death metal, here's videos for Therion's In The Desert of Set and, on the mellower side, one of my favorite songs ever: Opeth's Harvest.