Folks near San Diego can come see me introduce a screening of DISTRICT 9 on September 23... with vignettes from ALIEN NATION and E.T. for comparison.
In one of my better television interviews - on France24's international English language service - "Eve Jackson speaks to the sci- fi author David Brin about the future, privacy, freedom, technology... and science fiction."
That wildly popular "GeeksOn interview of David Brin" had a bad link, last time. It’s corrected this time. If you care to risk "Brin overdose!"
Or listen as Mari Frank interviews me on KUCI about transparency and privacy. Not a great phone link, I’m afraid but a survey of strong/unusual views about how openness can help us preserve both freedom and privacy.
.
...and more...
.
And here’s an article about my talented young cousin, a speechwriter for President Obama.
I came across a story on wired.com about an opera performed in Klingonese, they sent aninvitation via radio telescope to where they guess Klingons live. Ah, romantics! No attention paid to the hundreds of races inside the Klingon empire that were effectively slaves. So, this is like shouting "Yoohoo, beasties! Come and eat us!" Sigh. ;-)
=== For the Predictions Registry! ===
Both of these are from SUNDIVER. (Someone log them in the registry!)
NASA is sending a probe to dive into the sun. Several of the investigators consulter (mildly) with me.
And "tracking technology will enable us to empty over-crowded prisons of the least dangerous criminals – allowing them to live productive lives, while being monitored for drugs and alcohol, their location checked to ensure they stay away from schools or playgrounds. Our current prison system is an overwhelming failure: expensive, disgraceful and ineffective.’
A perfect Mocumentary.
=== The Special Muse Corner ===
1. The Hugos were announced. There was a tie for Best Novel between China Mieville (The City and the City) and Paolo Bacigalupi (The Windup Girl). Charles Stross won for Best Novella.
2. ChronoZoom, a visual history of life, the universe & everything. Developed by Walter Alvarez at UC Berkeley -- an attempt to portray a timescale of the cosmos, earth and human history, encompassing data from space science, geology, biology, anthropology and human history. Note: this is a first generation design; you need to download a Microsoft application to allow it to function effectively.
3. News from the Helvetian front? International pressure on the Swiss to change their banking practices.
4. Gray instead of black and white: A computer chip based on probability not binary. (Trinary?)
5. Thirty statistics that prove the elite are getting richer, the poor are getting poorer and the middle class is being destroyed.
6. Micro-altruism? It appears that a few mutant, antibiotic-resistant bacteria are sufficient to allow a whole colony of bacteria to survive a dose of antiobiotics. The drug-resistant bacteria produce compounds, indoles, which strengthen the rest of the colony, even though this production takes a toll on the individuals who produce it. Such antibiotic resistant bacteria are a major health concern.
7. A new trend in Science Fiction? Writer Jason Sandford cites hard SF authors breaking the rules, and gives it a name: "SciFi Strangealso flirts with the boundaries of what is scientifically - and therefore realistically--possible, without being bounded by the rigid frames of the world as we know it today. but don't call SciFi Strange fantasy. This is pure science fiction. It's merely an updated version of the literature of ideas. A science fiction for a world where the frontiers of scientific possibility are almost philosophical in nature."
8. In his new book, The Grand Design, Stephen Hawking says there no theory of everything ....
Stephen Hawking: Why God did not create the universe.
9. We are seeing the return of the Commons, as we share ever more information: files, thoughts, photos, videos... Car, bike and book sharing, as well as peer-to-peer lending sites are booming. Termed Collaborative Consumption, it’s about access instead of ownership.
11. Nanotechnology news: Tiny solar cells fix themselves -- using plant proteins, carbon nanotubes and lipids.
12. Octopuses carry coconut shells across the sea floor, then hide underneath. Are they anticipating the need for a hiding place? They have also been observed building rock walls, unscrewing jar lids...
13. Dolphins have been observed carrying heavy conch shells above the water surface -- using the shells to trap fish, then tipping them into their mouths, shaking out a meal
=== ALSO.... ===
A fun map... based on the classic map of the London Underground... showing highlights in the development of science.
Check out SideWiseThinker, blog of Michael Dobson.
He has a wonderful list on how to know if you're being reasonable: Here are a few:
-- You're not being reasonable if you don't acknowledge your own biases and blind spots.
-- You're not being reasonable if you don't take the time to find out what the other person really means.
-- You're not being reasonable if you don't separate emotional outbursts from logical reasoning.
-- You're not being reasonable if you only expose yourself to one type of information.
Yipe! If he continues in that vein, Rupert Murdoch may have to order a hit on the fellow!
He also has a series of blogs on cognitive biases.
More soon....