Gravity Lens Weblog

Gravity Lens Archive December 15 - 30 2005

Friday, December 30

Technovelgy tells us about an unmanned aircraft that's also a submarine, evoking images of SkyDiver and the Flying Sub.

And while we're underwater let's revisit some other fictional submarines: the Nautilus, the Cetacean, Atragon, the Seaquest, the Tigershark, the Ulysses, Blue Submarine no. 6, Thunderbird 4, Stingray, the Aquashuttle, and the Yellow Submarine.

And that about wraps it up for '05. As with most holiday weekends, I'll be working. See you all next year.

Thursday, December 29

The Economist gives us a history of pranks, and invites us to submit our own.

Tim Bowler of the BBC tells us about some Dan Dare comic strip art by Frank Hampson going up for auction.

Wednesday, December 28

Comic Stuff: Steven Grant at Comic Book Resources looks back at the first graphic novel.

Kurt Amacker at Cinescape gives us a Year in Review.

Andy Marchant at Newsarama fondly remembers Strikeforce: Morituri.

Astrobiology reports that astronomers have found the building blocks of life in a solar system that hasn't formed planets yet.

Tuesday, December 27

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is looking to makeover someone attending the upcoming New York Comic-Con.

I'm a little hurt that I didn't make Wired's list of 2005's 10 Sexiest Geeks. Also check out their 50 Best Robots Ever.

Via Geekpress: Sam Dinkin won the first monthly Deep Space Communication Program competition held by The Space Show. He gets to have his message transmitted into space.

Read his winning entry here.

(Anyone who watched Dr. Who: The Christmas Invasion this weekend may appreciate it)

Monday, December 26

A moment of silence ,please, for Mr. Vincent Schiavelli.

Weird Science: In case you were wondering, elves come from Hafnarfjordur, Iceland.

Cryptomundo gives us the Top Cryptozoology Stories of 2005.

BBC Science tells us of a mass grave of dodo birds that's been discovered.

And what will you do with your extra second this year?

Friday, December 23

Dial B For Blog wraps up Christmas Comics Week with an illustrated comparison of the lives of Jesus and Superman called Christ of Two Worlds.

I'll probably do some stray posts over the Holiday weekend, but I want to wish everyone a Happy Solstice, Yule, Mithras, Saturnalia, Chanukah, Christmas, Festivus, or whatever you're into. Eat well, stay safe, and be nice to one another.

A reminder that the new Bad Day Studio Holiday card is online, as are all of the previous years' efforts.

Thursday, December 22

Assorted Items: UGO Comics remembers some Yule Tide Classics.

SF Signal links to The Old Negro Space Program, a mockumentary about "blackstronauts."

The headline reads "Robot Demonstrates Self-Awareness."

I got a chuckle out of McSweeney's Death Metal Publicist Birth Announcement.

Neil Gaiman links to Santarchy!

And here's Mondolithic's excellent Holiday card.

Wednesday, December 21

The Telegraph talks with Robert Fripp.

Steven Grant at Comic Book Resources looks at the creator-owned comics business.

IGN Comics celebrates Christmas week with their list of the Top 25 Vertigo Books, while Fred Hembeck shows us a Randy Riverdale X-Mas, and the many faces of Santa Claus.

Meanwhile Dial B For Blog explains why The Saga of the Silver Surfer is a Christmas story.

Fletch Adams of Broken Frontier gives us his favorite Christmas comics.

Tuesday, December 20

The Scotsman reports on Josef Stalin's plans to create half-man, half-ape super-warriors.

No word if Man-Ape or the Ani-Men were involved. I do love a good Super-Ape, but a Gorilla Man will do in a pinch.

Justin of the Mutant Reviewers from Hell looks at some old G. I. Joe PSAs.

Monday, December 19

Apparently the Internet is broken...

Robert Roy Britt of Space.com gives us an update on the assorted contents of the solar system, while Taylor Dinerman of The Space Review looks forward to the first space honeymoon.

Conspiracies abound at The Chappelle Theory.

Mark Beall of Cinematical reports on a Foundation script penned by a former Bollywood director. Nobody's blamed the Asimov books for Al Qaeda lately...

Technovelgy informs us that holodeck technology is now available...for crickets.

Saturday, December 17

As we hit the Holiday Home Stretch, let's revisit a couple favorites: The Nonist's essay on Applied Humbuggery and Cap'n Wacky's Gallery of Unfortunate Christmas Cards.

And Dial B For Blog gives us Christmas in Comic Book Land.

Retrocrush gives us the history of Ant Man.

Friday, December 16

In case y'all were uncertain, it's official: artists get laid more.

Thursday, December 15

One cannot appreciate Christmas until they've experienced it in the original Klingon...

It was in the misty long-ago Autumn of 1995 that Carolyn and I saw Neil Gaiman's appearence at the Academy of Music in Northampton MA. It was during that talk that Mr. Gaiman said he was so jealous of all the artists he knew sending him beautifully illustrated christmas cards that he decided to write a holiday story to send out. That story was called Nicholas Was (scroll down), and was the inspiration for us to do our own card, in part to work out some creative neurons, but mostly because it was cheaper than presents!

It was on this day ten years ago that the first Bad Day Studio Holiday Card came off the presses. I've continued using the same hand-drawn logo (which has been animated by my friend Doug) ever since. It was four more years before www.baddaystudio.com was born, allowing me to keep an online archive of all the holiday cards.

So I am happy to announce that the Tenth Anniversary Holiday Card is now online, and in the mail. It's called Eating at Joe's. Those on my mailing list should receive them soon.

For the record, the phrase Space Spider in a headline makes me nervous.