The Post With That Beat Poem from Minicon In It
I don't own this video, but it is probably the best quality video of that beat poem I did at Minicon, so it's the one I recommend when people ask after it. I do, however, own many other videos on the internet. As far as you can confidently claim to own something you've put on the internent. I hope you enjoy those as well.
Hugo Award Nominees Announced
I was at Minicon over the weekend, which is one of the places where the Hugo Award nominees are announced to the world. There are quite a few nominees on my like list, including Jo Walton, who I previously mentioned in a post about awards. She's nominated for Among Others, which I'm hoping to read for my own personal pleasure at some point in the next month. Also, John Scalzi's joke story, “The Shadow War of The Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue,” is nominated. I'm very happy that it made the list, just as I'm happy to know that Galaxy Quest won a Hugo, because what I do is often more comedy and satire than it is ground-breaking science fiction, and these types of nominations give me hope for my own chance at a spot on the ballot some day.
The Morning Show Live
Just one of the many things I'm planning to do now that my nights are free for the foreseeable future: The Current's Morning Show Live Breakfast Broadcast. (Note that this doesn't actually take place at night, but the ability to turn in early the night before is a big help here.)
The first time I saw Jeremy Messersmith live was at the Red Stag. We'd already met briefly and had the chance to talk about what a great film The Empire Strikes Back is, and I'd heard him here and there on the radio, but I didn't know just how good he is in a small venue until he turned up to play the room one New Year's Eve. So, for those of you who haven't had the opportunity, this is your chance.
Also, notably, the room will have a few other notable Current personalities in it to engage and entertain you. And I'll give you a dollar if you go up and poke Jill Riley.
Where to Find Me This Weekend
I'll be down in Bloomington, where I'll be talking about vanity publishing, marketing Doctor Who to Americans, the science of putting off death and the art of programming for mobile devices. I'm told I'll also be speaking in the opening ceremonies at Minicon, but I know how cramped these schedules can get. So I might get bumped out of that last one.
Still, it's Minicon. I trust I'll see a few of you there.
Your Thursday Afternoon Awesome
Nancy pointed me to this video of a swimming eagle. You have to keep watching, and wait for the end. When it realizes that it can't comfortably lift its prey from the water, it goes down and grips it, floats, and uses its wings like paddles to get to shore.
Eagles are clever predators. It's only their size that seems to keep them from taking us back and vomiting our remains into the mouths of their waiting young. As proof, I offer you video of an eagle that preys on monkeys. If this thing had about two more feet of wingspan, we'd all be doomed.
New Developments in Nanotech
Researchers continue the quest to find the perfect cancer-killer nanotech, by using nanoparticles to deliver chemotherapy drugs in a more accurate, direct manner:
It's hardly the stuff of nanobots, which we've all sort of been promising ourselves for years, but it works. Plus, no robots means no capacity for self-awareness. So, no robot rebellion. At least not yet.