Commonplace Cartography » It’s a SciFi World

This video is like a multivitamin for your Sense of Wonder

Mike — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:46:22 +0000

(cross-posted via Posterous)

Before Memory Science, There Was Science Fiction

Mike — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 18:05:01 +0000

Before Memory Science, There Was Science Fiction | Wired Science from Wired.com.

(via Maud)

Vigorous, versatile, zestful

Mike — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:06:21 +0000

Alfred Bester:

Deliver science fiction from any necessity to have purpose and value. Science fiction is far above the utilitarian yardsticks of the technical minds, the agency minds, the teaching minds. Science fiction is not for Squares. It’s for the modern Renaissance Man…vigorous, versatile, zestful…full of romantic curiosity and impractical speculation.

(Via)

Pet AT-AT

Mike — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 12:41:47 +0000

I swear to God I always wanted a pet just exactly like this.

The first one’s free, kid

Mike — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 12:48:35 +0000

As discovered on Friday’s Kindle Daily post, Random House is offering some free scifi Kindle love until May 31. Of particular note is the free availability of Kim Stanley Robinson’s Red Mars and Naomi Novik’s His Majesty’s Dragon. There’s also some T.A. Pratt and Harry Turtledove up for grabs.

As you might have guessed, the books on offer are first volumes of popular series. The first one’s free, as they say…

The Force is strong in this one

Mike — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 16:07:13 +0000

I think we’ve found the theme for the reelection campaign in 2012 (unless we are, in fact, battling the Mayan end of the world that year).

And if Shepard Fairey gets a hold of it:

(Image via the Official Star Wars Blog, via BB)

Gene Wolfe book club

Mike — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:05:26 +0000

Because I’m a glutton for punishment, and for grandiose resolutions, and for Gene Wolfe’s fiction…

I’m going to try to read all 12 books in Wolfe’s Sun series this year. I already had written “read a bunch of Gene Wolfe” on my list for 2009, then ran across John Klima’s introductory post of The Gene Wolfe Book Club over at Tor this afternoon, and so here I go.

The Gene Wolfe Book Club.

I’d better start reading.

Now that’s a deep infield

Mike — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:11:37 +0000

Ever wonder just how far the astronauts of Apollo 11 went on their historic moonwalks? You’ve seen a baseball diamond, right? Well…

Nice.

(via Kottke’s “The Best Links 2008″)