Chewbacca Santa

Merry Christmas!!!

Taking a science fiction literature class this semester was the coolest for many reasons. As I mentioned when the class first began, I did not know very much, and was interested in learning more, about this genre of literature. Or so I thought. Upon reading the very first set of stories by Chiang, I was a little confused. I had always imagined science fiction as books (I didn't know we would read so many short stories, which I particularly liked) involving a futuristic setting or some otherwise advanced technology. But not all of Chiang's stories were so very futuristic, nor were some of them all about computers and other things I had preconceived they would be. As the semester continued, I became more aware of the richness and variety of what actually is science fiction. Now that the class has come to a close, I feel much more confident in my knowledge of science fiction literature. Hey, I might now  be able to hold a conversation with someone about many of the great science fiction books/stories I have read. And they were great. The books and short stories assigned for this class were all a joy to read. Some of them may have been more difficult to understand, but I can't think of a single one that I really didn't like at least part of. I'm also looking forward to reading many other works of science fiction that I've heard many of you mention in class. Thanks for being such a cool, interesting, fun group of people to work with this semester, and I wish all of you the best! Rock all of your finals, and have a great break!

Outcast: Episode 3

This may be the last episode I post up here, or I might do a couple more.  I figured I have to at least get Mahtek out of his current mess.

Mahtek ran to the end of the alleyway.  He peered out and saw people looking around and talking in loud, confused voices.  Soon they would realize that he had to be nearby.  He stopped to think for a moment.  Looking back, he saw the patrolman running at him.  No time to think.  He threw the cloak on and did the only thing he could: he ran.

He barreled into the street, knocking aside anyone standing in his way.  People stared at him, the realization dawning that here was the man all the commotion was about.  They began to shout.  Mahtek kept running, glancing side to side for somewhere, anywhere he could hide.  He ducked into an alleyway, out into the opposite street, trying to avoid his pursuit.

Spotting a merchant with some stock hanging from a large pack bolg, he jumped atop the beast.  It grunted and began to rear back.  As the merchant protested, Mahtek leapt upward onto the low roof of a building.  He began to scramble across the rooftops.  The entire city seemed to be in uproar now, and he realized that atop the buildings he was an easily visible target.  In the distance, he could see a few soldiers beginning to move in his direction.  They would be here soon, and he did not trust in his ability to escape an organized search.  He had to get out of the city quickly.

Now in a residential portion of the city, Mahtek easily jumped across houses of uniform two-story height.  But he knew he could not stay up there.  He swung down into a window of one house instead of onto its roof and found himself in a bedroom.  “Nu let there be no one home,” He prayed.  He needed a moment to catch his breath and consider his options.  The soldiers would search the city until they either found him or gave up.  And he would not be safe in a strange house for long.  He breathed deeply and meditated for a few minutes.

*            *            *

          After sneaking carefully downstairs in the empty house, Mahtek opened the front door to see the state of the pursuit.  All around, people were talking hurriedly, worried looks on their faces.  He stepped out into the street, keeping his face hidden.  “What’s the problem?” He asked a young girl, disguising his voice with a gravelly tone.

“Mahtek Reyin the outcast is back in the city!” came the frightened response.

“Oh dear,” He replied, “You should go home where it’s safe.”

“That’s what I’m doing!” she said as she dashed into the door Mahtek had just left.  He blinked, then hurried about like everyone else, his manner apparently nervous.  With his hood drawn, he yet again appeared little different than anyone else, as long as they did not study his face.

He carefully maneuvered his way towards the city’s western gate, all the while staying anonymous within the crowd.  The soldiers there were turning away people trying to escape a panic they did not understand.  They pleaded, but the soldiers would not risk letting their quarry escape.  Mahtek’s hopes sank; the guards would recognize him instantly if he approached them, and he could not climb the city’s walls without being noticed.

 Unexpectedly, another cloaked man ran by, his face shrouded.  He ran with purpose, not seeming to flee or pursue.  Grasping at a slim chance, Mahtek cried, “There goes the outcast!” pointing at the runner.  “Look, he’s hiding his face!”  The runner turned to Mahtek, his entire face shrouded but his eyes somehow visible, and winked, never slowing down.

The crowd screamed and scattered.  The soldiers at the gate ran after the man, shouting to get the attention of the rest of the guard.  A few of the nearby civilians dashed out the gate.  Once again noting the guards’ lack of discipline, Mahtek moved along with the crowd, finally making his escape.  Who was that shrouded man?  Did he know me?  Why would he help me?  Mahtek shook his head.  Those questions could wait for a more convenient time.

          He headed down the gentle rise toward the small wood outside Iandrid's east gate, and made his way towards the nearby temple of Nu.  He had friends there who knew him better than the easily frightened common people.  Friends who would help him uncover the plot against him.

Favorite thing we read this year?

Hey y'all- can't believe the semester's over already! I just wanted to ask everybody, what's your favorite thing that we read this semester? For me it's hard to pick, but I really enjoyed all of the Ted Chiang.

Good luck on finals, and have a great break!

End of the year

Hey ya'll! I just wanted to note that this has been a great class and I've really enjoyed the discussions! Honestly I'm a little sad it's over.  Anyways everyone have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)

Outcast: Episode 2

By popular request, here is episode two of Aldernia: Outcast.

          Now inside the building, Mahtek paused for a moment.  The warmth from the fire reminded him how cold it was outside.  His cloak provided secrecy, but was not designed for warmth.  He closed his eyes and enjoyed the heat for just a moment.

          Remembering where he was, Mahtek opened his eyes and kept one on the guard, who currently faced away from him.  He tiptoed down the hallway.  Now out of sight, he took his cloak off again to reveal his furry face and limbs and simple studded armor jerkin.

          Mahtek was a makir, one of the many humanoid races of the world, Aldernia.  And, like most makirs, he had thin white fur covering his body, retractable claws on his hands and feet, blood-red eyes, and the ability to move with great quickness and agility.  He stood just taller than an average human, and his face bore a few lines of age.  A scar from a battle long ago left a fur-less line just beneath his left eye; eyes that rarely brooked any mirth.  He had had little to laugh about since the war began.

He knew his cloak would not hide him inside these close corridors, and he didn’t want to remind anyone about the stone-colored side of it.  He put it back on, black side out.  He continued on his way, encountering no one.  To the king of Imnos, the war with Gilneyad was far more important than this building.  Most of the army was needed at the front lines, accounting for the sparse guard here and elsewhere in the city.  Navigating the familiar corridors, Mahtek found his way to the room he was looking for.

          He looked at the door.  “Hopefully it’s been fixed,” he muttered to himself.  He began to open it slowly.  It creaked loudly.  Mahtek winced and looked around.  Nothing had changed in the empty hallway.  He slipped inside, leaving the door open behind him.  There it was: a chest marked “evidence”.

He opened the chest and found what he was looking for: a small sword with an unfamiliar insignia on the hilt.  It bore what looked like the bright sun of Gilneyad, Imnos’s enemy, but without the lines of radiance, and with a small dagger and drop of blood.  Mahtek knew that this insignia was the key to the plot against him.  He tucked it into his belt, and stepped out of the room.

And froze.  There, just a few feet away, was the guard from the window.  A young ferric, sinewy and with reptilian scales, he looked just as surprised as Mahtek.  He stuttered for a moment, then shouted, “You!  How did – how did you get in here?”  He began to reach for his sword.

Shaking off his momentary paralysis, Mahtek drew the blade he had just stolen, roared, and charged the guard at full speed.  Panic in his eyes, the guard fumbled for his blade, stumbling backward.  Mahtek tucked his shoulder down and crashed into him.  The guard fell to the ground, blade still sheathed.  As Mahtek ran on, he put away his sword and rubbed his shoulder.

He ran through the hallways quickly, no longer concerned with stealth.  Dashing around the tight turns, he soon reached the window where he had entered.  Looking back, he could hear quick footsteps.  The inexperienced guard did not know this building as well as Mahtek had when he was on duty here long ago, but he would catch up soon.

He removed his cloak and stood on the high sill.  Taking one end of cloth in each hand, he took a deep breath to focus himself, then jumped.  The cloak above him did not slow his descent at all.  He managed to hook it over the corner of a lower building’s roof, hoping to transfer his momentum through an arc.  But just before the bottom of his swing, the cloak slipped off the corner.  Mahtek crashed to the ground and struggled back to his feet.

He looked around.  He was back in the alley where he first climbed to the window, but closer to the street on the back side.  He looked back up at the window.  The guard had just reached it, and saw him below.  “The outcast is in the city!” He shouted loudly enough for anyone nearby to hear.  “Mahtek Reyin is in the city!”  The patrolling guard on the other street heard the shouts, and shot a plume of flame from his hand into the sky.

“Dierz!” Mahtek cursed, “Now the whole city knows I’m here!”

End of the Semester

It seems like the end of the semester sneaks up on me every time. Good luck to everyone on the paper and finals. Hope you all have a wonderful break for the holidays!

Two last things:
Star Trek sequel

Doctor Who Christmas special

Paper Topic Discussion, continued

Hey guys. I have a question concerning my paper. My topic, as I presented in class, is going to be investigating Lemon Sap addiction in Cherie Priest's Clockwork Century Series and its implications on society. I then wish to compare it to contemporary addictions and unhealthy habits that  many people currently struggle with. I was wondering if I should only pick the novels that had most incidence of the drug and its effects on its users or try to find evidence of it in all of the books in the series? Boneshaker is a good book to describe how the drug came about due to the events that took place in Seattle. Also, I thought Dreadnought did a good job of describing what happens to the people who use Sap. I can't really think of many instances where it was brought up in Clementine , and I'll have to go back and look at Ganymede. Should I just stick with the first two, then?

Environmentalism in "The Windup Girl"

After talking about my paper topic in class yesterday, a few of you seemed interested in the environmental implications in Bacigalupi's world of the Expansion and Contraction. I found a really great article called "The Challenge of Imagining Ecological Futures: Paolo's Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl. It's a really great article that makes multiple points and I plan on using it in my paper. If any of you are interested in my paper topic, this is a much better and more literary analysis. If you know how to use the online library provided by the university, you can find it there.

Story Of Your Life Movie!

Hey guys, found a link to an article about the Story Of Your Life movie. Looks like they're starting production next year, so it will be a while. I can't wait!

http://www.deadline.com/2012/11/filmnation-lava-bear-team-for-nic-mathieu-helmed-thriller-story-of-your-life/

Fairy Tales

If anyone is interested here is a link to J. R. R. Tolkien's essay called "On Fairy-Stories." http://bjorn.kiev.ua/librae/Tolkien/Tolkien_On_Fairy_Stories.htm

Also, did anyone else see the zombies on the quad tonight? Apparently they are taking "dead week" to a whole new level.

Three Factions

Hey guys! I'm pretty set on the whole "three factions" trope in science fiction and fantasy entertainment and I was just wondering if any of you had any particularly pertinent examples. I don't really want to miss any really good ones. The main ones I can think of are:



- The Maynard Retainers vs. Minnericht's Posse vs. Zombies in Boneshaker

- Alliance vs. Horde vs. Burning Legion in Warcraft Lore

- Followers of the Seven vs. Followers of the Old Gods vs. Followers of the R'hllor in ASOIAF

- Mal's Crew vs the Alliance vs. The Reavers in Serenity

Paper Topic #2

I spent a large part of the weekend trying to figure out what I wanted to write about in my second paper, and I think I've decided to go with an idea that's been floating around in my head since the beginning of the class. When I had been thinking up topics for my last paper, I had thought about discussing how the Victorian society in Ted Chiang's "Seventy-Two Letters" was both different from and similar to Victorian society as it occurred in our world, and whether or not the technology introduced seriously affected it. Ultimately, I decided that I wouldn't have enough to write about with just one work, and I'm glad that I chose another topic. For my next paper, I have decided to take the same topic- discussing whether or not technology significantly impacted a society- and look at both "Seventy-Two Letters" and Cherie Priest's Clockwork Century series. I may also use other authors as examples if I can think of any, but I'm drawing a blank right now. I'm really excited about this, now I have an excuse to do historical research!

Just a little Christmas spirit to get us through finals

These are my kind of gingerbread houses!

10 SF Gingerbread Creations here http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/154203

Tanglefoot

One thing I thought might not have been obvious in the story was the passing mention of the Battle Creek Sanitarium. In case you didn't know (I wouldn't have except I learned about it last semester), this was a real place. I'm always interested in how authors incorporate real things into works of fiction. Anyway, if you get the chance, you should read about it. I'll add a link to the wikipedia article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Creek_Sanitarium

Paper Topic: order and authority

I think I have decided to write my paper on the exploration of authority and the maintenance of order in science fiction.  This is mostly predicated on Cory Doctorow's Little Brother, but also with some supporting examples like Minnericht's control over Seattle and the Union's use of super weapons in The Clockwork Century, the calorie monopolies from The Windup Girl, and possibly the curator from "Restoration."  I also have some sources from outside class such as 1984, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, the Dominion from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the Republic and the Empire from Star Wars, and Bane's breaking down of authority in "Batman: the Dark Knight Rises."  That may end up being too much, which is okay; I can pare it down.

I intend to talk specifically about the different means of keeping and maintaining power, the relative success of these various means, and why they may or may not fail.  I also plan to discuss the effect that the existence of fictional works like these have on the possibility of power grabs like the ones described actually being carried out.  And, as allowed specifically by science fiction, I intend to talk about the use of technology to take power, or alternately subvert authority.  This is explored very well in Little Brother.

Potential Paper Topic?

Hey guys so I missed last week and I wanted to get ya'lls input on an idea I've had floating around.  I noticed in Windup Girl, that every character, no matter how they were aligned, had both admirable and almost horrifying character traits.

A few examples would be the female officer in the Environmental Ministry, and how she both betrayed her mentor and did what she thought was best for the people, the yellow carder who we all pretty much hated who saved a child at the risk of his own life,  and even the windup girl herself who I think we can all agree is the most innocent of wrong doing (or at least motive wise) killed several people (however much they deserved it).  I had thought to potentially compare this style of characters and the style of narrating from several character's viewpoints to other authors such as George R.R. Martin.

In any case, any feedback ya'll have would be appreciated.

The Hobbit

I don't know about y'all but I'm fairly excited about the Hobbit coming out in a few weeks.  A friend posted this on his facebook and I just thought it was pretty interesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vqyzHwnEiY

Aldernia: Outcast

In continuing with my own fiction, this is the first part of a story I started working on a while ago. At that time I ran my own blog and was experimenting with serialization. As such, this story ends up divided into short segments with epic cliffhangers at the end of each one. Here is the first "episode" of "Outcast," a part of my larger fictional series "Aldernia."

            Mahtek Reyin peered out from the alley where he hid.  The street before him was mostly empty.  A few people, cloaked against the unaccustomed cold, drifted by.  Mahtek kept his hood low to hide his face and ducked into the street.  A couple walked by him, whispering and holding each other close for warmth.  They glanced at him but did not take notice.  He looked like just another hapless resident of usually mild Iandrid, unprepared for the cold winter.  His black cloak sheltered him as well – but he sought shelter from the eyes of those he walked past, not the cold.

            The building he was looking for lay at the end of the street.  Two guards stood watch over the door, and another patrolled the street.  Mahtek knew he couldn’t get past them unnoticed.  But this was Iandrid, his city, and he had been to this building before.  There were other ways in.  He fell in step with a passer-by between him and the guards, then slipped down another alley.

            Once out of site, he removed his cloak and reversed it.  The outside was now a grayish white, almost matching the stone of the buildings.  This cloak had originally been intended to hide him from the eyes of his country’s enemies.  But now it hid him from his fellow citizens just as well.  Former fellow citizens, he reflected. He extended his claws and found cracks in the stone, then began to climb, his target a certain window, above him.

As he crawled upward, the patrolling guard passed the mouth of the alley.  Mahtek froze.  Anyone closely inspecting the side of the building would have noticed him, but at a quick glance, his cloak blended in sufficiently not to warrant a second thought.

            Mahtek began his climb again.  Reaching the window, he peered inside carefully.  As he had expected, a lone guard sat in the room.  He did not appear very attentive, but he had a clear view of the window.  A small fire burned on the far side of the room.  Mahtek ducked below the window and hung there, still, considering his options.  His mission was imperative, and this was his best entrance.

He decided on a course of action.  He peered through the opening once again.  Gathering his focus, he stared intently at the guard.  He hadn’t done this in a long time.  The guard felt a slight chill, which began to grow worse.  His breath condensed in the air before him.  He shivered from the sudden discomfort, and, thinking it was simply a bad draft, pulled his chair closer to the fire, turned away from the window.  Mahtek shook his head at the guard’s lack of discipline, but allowed himself a little satisfaction at the success of his own meager power.  He slipped into the room unnoticed, landing quietly.

Awesome Radio Adaptation!

Hi everyone! I know we've mentioned Neil Gaiman a few times in class, and my mom just sent me this link, so I thought I'd share it with you. How can you not love an adaptation with the voices of Rupert Giles, Sherlock Holmes, and Saruman?

http://www.hypable.com/2012/11/28/neil-gaimans-neverwhere-recorded-for-radio-with-all-star-cast/

Zombie Christmas Gifts!

Seeing as how there wasn't a post yet about our task of coming up with ideas for zombie-related gifts, I figured I would go ahead and lead the way! Rather than taking it as a literal approach, I found this nifty idea....HERE!! It seems like a pretty creative idea, to me at least. You could even buy an small energy drink and put a "Zombie Vaccine" label on it. Anyway, that's just to get an idea out there!

Cherie Priest's Clockwork Century Series has been my first thorough introduction into the Steampunk sun-genre of science fiction. Of course, we've read some short stories and novels that displayed elements of steampunk, but I never quite understood what it was until reading these novels. I must say, I think I'm a big fan of steampunk. History has always been one of my favorite subjects. I find it so fascinating because there are certain events in history that have occurred, but you can learn about them in so many different perspectives until it becomes almost like storytelling. For example, when I was in Vietnam this summer, we went to the Vietnam War Museum in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly, Saigon). To view the depiction of the war from the perspective of the North Vietnamese was so very different from the way we learn about it in our country. As it would be. I think the reason I liked Priest's novels so much is because they were set in an alternate civil war era which appealed to the history lover in me while allowing me to imagine a completely different series of events and outcomes than what actually happened which, in my opinion, makes it all the more entertaining.

Tanglefoot

Tanglefoot was the creepiest story I think I've ever read. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the story, and liked getting to read one of Priest's short stories. I loved that the short story was present in the Clockwork Century universe. Actually, I read that it was the first story from the clockwork universe, but I'm not sure if that is true or not. Priest's writing style is so easy for me to read. The way she sucks you into the story right from the first sentence is one of the best things about her writing style. I also like the details she gives when explaining events that are occurring. The way she described the machine that  Edwin made named Ted made him sound fascinating. I particularly liked this story because of its mix of horror and steam punk, which are two of my favorite things. I thought it was interesting that something came to poses Ted because he had no soul. Overall, I love the clockwork century universe and will continue to read the new ones that become released!

Back to School

Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving break. I can't believe the semester is almost over! I'm still working on the reading. (It seems like every class is trying to get in that last assignment before finals.) I don't really have anything to say about what I've read so far. Instead, here's an amusing steampunk drawing I saw:

Neal Stephenson Swordfighting game

Here is a link to the Kickstarter website for Neal Stephenson's still-in-development sword fighting game that was mentioned in class last week. I can't believe that someone is actually doing what my cousin and I have talked about since we were in elementary school. He used Kickstarter to gather the funds to hire nerds and develop a more realistic motion controlled sword fighting game. The site has several humorous videos in which Neal explains the goal of the project. I don't know how successful this project will be, but if anyone could make it happen I think it would be this guy.
<http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/260688528/clang>

Cherie Priest's character names

Does anyone else find the names of Cherie Priest's characters as interesting as I do?

Jeremiah Swakhammer, Mercy Lynch, Briar Blue, Lucy O'Gunning, Captain Croggard Beuregaurd Hainey (personally my favorite), and Horatio Korman just to name a few.

Every times she uses an interesting name like that, I'm always trying to match their personality to their name and it works out pretty well. I also think it's fun that the name of each book is a piece of machinery, be it a dirigible, train, or a piece of equipment that destroys a whole city.

Battlestar Galactica

For those that like Battlestar Galactica and think that Bill Adama is the most awesome dude ever, you should check out this video.  It's part of a mini-series type thing that's depicting the first Cylon war.  Eventually the different parts will be put together and released as a single movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT79x4qM4FE

For those interested in Tom Bombadil

I know we mentioned in class the theory that Tom Bombadil is actually evil.  Here is a link to one of the many sites that explores this theory.

http://km-515.livejournal.com/1042.html

The Inexplicables

So we mentioned it in class, but the newest book in the Clockwork Century series came out on Tuesday! It's called The Inexplicables, and apparently it takes place in Seattle again, and is all about Zeke's friend Rector (the one Briar interrogated in chapter 5 of Boneshaker to find out how Zeke got over the wall). There's ghosts, more rotters, and some kind of monster known as The Inexplicable. I'll definitely have to read this one!

Here's Cherie Priest's blog post about it: http://theclockworkcentury.com/?p=694 . The cover looks pretty cool.

Dr. Minnericht

So, while reading Boneshaker, and after every time someone described Dr. Minnericht's appearance, I thought I came to a pretty good conclusion of who/what he was. He was always seen wearing a mask, never taking it off. And there seemed to be blue lights where his pupils should be. So, the conclusion was clear...he will totally turn out to be a cyborg (maybe even a robotic clone of Briar's husband). I held that belief up to the moment his throat was slit. But apparently, my idea was just too ahead of its time and that was not the case at all, so I was somewhat disappointed.

Did anyone else think anything remotely similar to this? Or rather, did anyone else think he'd be anything other than who he actually turned out to be?

Steampunk

So after reading this week's blog posts, it seems that everyone enjoyed both Boneshaker and Dreadnought more than some of the past assigned books. I think there must be something about the steampunk genre that has a universal appeal. Whenever I see something on the internet about steampunk, it is usually highly praised whether it is  a story, game, or cosplay photo. Is it because this is how people wish the late 1800s were or something? It seems like such a specific niche of science fiction wouldn't have that big of a following, but everyone I know who is into any sort of fantasy or sci-fi is also a fan of steampunk.
     So what is it about the steampunk world that you guys enjoy the most? Is it the brass machinery and goggles and clothing styles or the alternate 1800s setting? I enjoy steampunk too, but I am just trying to figure out why this genre appeals to such a broad audience.

Real Invisibility Cloak?

There seems to be a lot of discussion about this week's books already, so I'll take a break and share some science related news. I read this article the other day and thought it was interesting. Obviously there's still some things to work out, but I found it really cool. I'm sure we could do some speculating and come up with potential implications as well.

Dreadnought

Cherie Priest is one of those authors who I've been debating over whether or not I wanted to read for year, and now that I've read two of her books, I'm really mad at myself for not reading them sooner. Boneshaker and Dreadnought are both great reads, but I definitely preferred the latter. Boneshaker is at a disadvantage because it has to establish Priest's alternate nineteenth century as well as tell Briar and Zeke's story, and it felt like it was weighed down because of that. Dreadnought, on the other hand, started with the assumption that the reader already knew about the world it was set in, and was able to plunge into the main story much more quickly. I also liked the setting(s) of Dreadnought much more, mainly because we got to see a lot more of the country and learn firsthand about the social and political atmospheres through Mercy's journey. Also, I liked the character of Mercy much more than Briar, although I liked the supporting cast of Boneshaker more than that of Dreadnought (and was quite happy to see them pop up at the end of the book!). I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

Kids these days...

I don't know about you guys, but if confronted with the unique opportunity to come face to face with a zombie or run like hell, I would choose the latter. In Boneshaker, one of the main characters, Zeke Wilkes, is obviously not overly familiar with the expression "curiosity killed the cat." I almost laughed out loud at some of his thoughts in the story, being so different from what I myself would have contemplated. One such instance can be found in chapter twenty-four. Zeke has found his way up to the floor where the fighting between Minnericht's men and the "doornails" is taking place. He stands behind a door that opens to the combat zone while he considers his next move.

     "He hadn't yet seen a rotter up close. Not a real one, not a hungry one--and certainly not a pack of them.
       An irrational burst of curiosity sent him seeking the handle again."

Another example of Zeke's bold curiosity is seen in chapter twenty-five.

     "...but a new noise snagged his attention--and this new noise was less threatening. One part moan and one part gasp, the faint cry was coming from somewhere close, from behind a door that was not quite closed and not quite an open invitation to investigate.
       He investigated anyway."

Okay. If I hear any noise that can be described as a moan, particularly in a town that happens to be ransacked with zombies, I'm heading for the hills. Instead, Zeke decides to scout out the source of the sound which turns out to be his former guide, Rudy, slowly dying and possibly zombifying from drinking some sort of Blight-containing poison.

Obviously, this kid has more guts than I do. I really enjoyed his character, full of bravery and teenage spunk. Whenever I read stories that include these situations, in which the character must choose to act or hide, I wonder what I would do. In the comfort and safety of my home, and in the complete absence of zombies (let's hope), I can hardly imagine doing anything courageous that involves the risk of potentially being eaten, or as Priest so splendidly describes, becoming "rotter shit." But I do like to think that if the circumstances changed--if I found myself on the wrong side of wall--I would be able to think and act as bravely as Briar, Zeke, Lucy, or any other of the other admirable characters that Priest has created in this story.

Technology in Dreadnought

So it makes sense that, had the civil war gone on longer, both sides would have continued to make technological advances. I mean, in real life, they were already heavily making use of trains and even deploying the occasional submarine. So the Dreadnought and Shenandoah engine make sense. But Gundams? Walkers really just aren't practical from a military perspective. I guess I have to remind myself that, despite how realistic the story can be at some points, yes, it really is steampunk, and yes, there really are zombies.

Boneshaker vs. Dreadnougt

I don't know how everybody else feels about these two stories, but I definitely prefer Boneshaker.

I read Dreadnought a while back. It had a ton of elements to make a great story, adventure, some pseudo science, zombies, Civil War era touches, and a kick ass female lead. The plot fell short for me. Once it turned into a zombie train battle, I began to lose interest. I will give Cherie Priest credit for making it feel like a Hollywood production though. I had no problem imagining it visually. The best part of the book was Mercy, I just wished she had a better relationship at the end with Mr. Korman.

I still haven't finished Boneshaker, but I already feel like the storyline is richer and more involved. I can't wait to see what happens with Briar and Zeke.

Boneshaker

So, I just finished Boneshaker last night, and I must say that I really enjoyed the change of pace from The Windup Girl. This one was much easier to read and get into. Plus, the ending really got me! I didn't  really know what to expect when starting to read, but I became a fan fairly quickly. One thing I enjoyed was just the overall diversity with the plot throughout the book. For instance, there were zombies, but the book wasn't really a zombie apocalypse story...they just happened to be there too. I really liked how she managed to utilize all these different aspects and create a cohesive journey from start to finish. Now for the next one!

Speaking of zombies, did anyone watch The Walking Dead last night?

Validity of The Windup Girl

I hate that I couldn't make it to class this week. I started reading this book over the summer, and I'm glad I started early. Like I've said before, I am very much a fan of the short story format and more whimsical plots so this story took me a good long while.

The reason I couldn't make it to class is because I am attending the Society of Women Engineers national conference in Houston, TX. Essentially, it's 3 days full of sessions that cover topics like personal and professional development, section management, and (my favorite) new technologies in a range of fields. There's also a huge career fair that's a ton of fun!

I didn't forget about you all in class though! In fact, I have been thinking a lot about The Windup Girl today. Unfortunately, I didn't care so much for the story as I did the premise and bio-punk setting. I was glad I started so early because the characters were tough to keep up with at times and the use of what I'm assuming is Thai language kept throwing me off. For some reason I kept confusing Hok Seng and Anderson the first 1/4 of the book! Once I got the hang of it, I found that Emiko was the only character I had any real feelings toward and everyone else was just a pawn in some larger game that never quite worked out for the best.

The main reason the story has been on my mind concerns the bio-punk semi-post apocalyptic world setting. Agriculture has always been a fascination of mine from growing up on a farm and I have some strong opinions on the American food system and global food supply. In fact, I don't eat any animal products. It is my hope that by doing my small part I can lessen the environmental strain being caused by large factory farms and by eating less meat, more land can be used for vegetation that can feed more people and produce more energy. Obviously my contribution doesn't do much, so when I tell people I always encourage them to try going without meat for just one day :) Anyway, all of that is to say that I can very much imagine this universe in which (from the back of the book) "... calories become currency... when bio-terrorism becomes a tool for corporate profits..." I was actually in a meeting today with a large pharmaceutical company at the conference when they mentioned that a large part of their business is based in animal science. They develop new strains of bacteria, medicine, and food for animals so that they become more disease resistant and develop more nutrition, for our consumption, per animal. It amazed me that corporations already think this way and are attempting to alter nature instead of learning to work with it. It seems to me that gene-hacks and U-Tex are in the near future!

The Wind Up Girl

Although The Wind-Up Girl was a slow starting book, I came to enjoy it the longer I read. One thing I particularly liked was the use of biology references throughout the story. One thing I found interesting was that I could actually see this happening in our world. It doesn't seem that far fetched to me that the global climate change would cause these food monopolies that basically rule the world. I liked that I could put myself in story because it didn't seem that far-fetched to happen in the future. Also, I thought the GMO's were very interesting since people spends millions of dollars on research of genetically altered plants to improve crops and their ability to withstand stress. Overall, I thought the book was very interesting with many interesting characters making up the story. I would definitely recommend it to my biology friends!

The Wind-up Girl

After finishing The Wind-up Girl I must say that it is one of my favorite books. I loved the dystopian post-fossil fuel world which uses animal labor rather than combustion engines and the idea of a world controlled by food monopolies. I felt that the story had excellent pacing, and sometimes I had to force myself to put it down. I also enjoyed how each chapter switched to different character's perspectives and showed how each big event affected each character before bringing them all together at the end.  I know no character in this story can really be considered "the good guy", but I couldn't help but root for Anderson Lake. He reminded me so much of Aaron Eckhart's character in Thank You for Smoking that I couldn't help but like him. The only part of the book I had a problem with was the epilogue. It was a little too open-ended for my taste and I was hoping for something a little happier.

The Windup Girl and Boneshaker

So, I can't wait to hear everyone's opinion on The Windup Girl. It was a very interesting book. I'm still not sure what I think about it. It was a slow read at first. I had trouble getting into the story in the beginning. There was a lot going on, and I think I had a hard time until I could sort out the characters. But then I finished the second half in a day because I wanted to know what happened. Wow, I did not see that ending coming. I especially liked the last few pages and her conversation with (I'm assuming) Gibbons.

Since we have two books to read for next week, I went ahead and started reading Boneshaker. Luckily I became interested in this one a lot quicker. I'm loving it right now. It's also a faster read than The Windup Girl. I knew about this book before, but it actually didn't sound interesting. I'm glad I had to read it.

It's great to be reading science fiction books as homework. I don't get to read much during the semester because I feel guilty and usually don't have the time anyway. Lately every time I want to put something off, I start reading for this class. It's great because I can read something interesting and justify it because it's technically schoolwork.

Epic Rap Battles

I don't know if any of y'all have heard of Epic Rap Battles of History but this is the new one from last week and I actually thought it was pretty funny... It's about Doctor Who!

Cory Doctorow on "The Internet of the Dead"

Doctorow's latest column for Locus Online is a fascinating account of his attempt to do right by a dead friend, by preserving the friend's computer records -- a more complicated task than you might think, and one with societal implications.

Friday Fiction - Upon the Pages

So, Friday Fiction is something I used to do on my blog (back when I ran a blog).  I tried to post a story or part of an ongoing serial every Friday.  Here's one that I wrote since then that was actually for an NPR short story contest.  Don't worry, NPR's exclusive rights to the story expired quite some time ago.  It had a prompt, which was that it had to start with the sentence you'll see that it starts with and be no longer than 300 words.  Feel free to leave any comments on it.

           She closed the book, placed it on the table, and finally, decided to walk through the door.  She still felt giddy sometimes about being famous.  She was used to it, but not over it.  The book was about her, of course.  A sort of living biography in hardback.  She loved reading it, and had to force herself to put it down.  She had almost heard her own scream of excitement at the flattering words.  She stepped out of her house and started up the steep slope leading away from it.  The house was just down a small cliff, and she had to climb almost vertically to leave.  It served to give her a good workout every day, as well as keep away unwanted visitors.  She crested the slope and began the much shallower descent down to her flat yard. 

            Would she go so far as to say she loved herself?  Yes, that sounded right.  She lived alone, keeping old tabloid clippings of paparazzi following her exploits.  And of course, her own biography.  She loved reading too.  With a deep inhalation, she imagined she could smell the crisp aroma of a new book. 

            Was she wrong to isolate herself so?  She turned back to the slope she had now descended and could not see her house over the hill.  She stood there a moment before turning back to walk further along.  If not wrong, then at least odd.  What a strange place to build a house.  She could not remember what her thought process had been when she bought it.  In fact, she could barely remember buying it at all.  Had it been that long?  Her old life as an ordinary person seemed unreal, almost another existence. 

            She looked around her and noticed something odd.  Her yard was covered in strange black lines and circles.  Was this some kind of exotic prank?  She was used to that sort of thing, but most pranks people attempted on her involved an effort to get her to say something stupid on camera.  This was, well, different.  Would she need to get police protection for her property?  Maybe she should just move even farther down the cliff, if people were going to do things like this.  It barely surprised her to see such stupidity from the unwashed masses.  She smiled, hoping that that thought didn’t represent how she really felt about her fellow humans. 

            She walked up to some of the black lines to get a closer look.  Here was a large circle, to its right another.  To the left: most of a circle with a vertical line extending from one end.  Farther right: a vertical line with two diagonal lines leaving it at 45 degrees from the same point.  On either side of all that: large empty space and more lines.  She blinked and straightened rapidly.  Realization dawned on her face as she recognized the lines for what they were. 

            Suddenly, the ground shook beneath her.  She fell into the middle of a black circle.  The letter “o”.  Turning upward, she saw a giant but familiar face.  Her own.  Another flat space, covered in words as well, came closing down.  As darkness descended on the pages, she loosed a scream of terror.  She fell silent as she remembered the sound she thought she had heard just moments before upon closing the book, but now knew that it had not been a scream of excitement.  She feared for herself, and for the fate of her larger self, as she closed the book, placed it on the table, and finally, decided to walk through the door.

Martian Spacesuits

I read a lot of popular science, so when I read "Goodnight Moons" I instantly thought of these 2 space suits. They are both still in development and testing, but one is particularly neat because it is designed to exert the force of gravity in an otherwise weightless environment. I couldn't help but think that Poddy might have been allowed to return to earth if she had a suit similar to this. The other suit isn't anything too fancy, I just thought it was neat how they tested it in Antarctica. This was just how I pictured all of the characters in the story.

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-10/superhero-style-skin-tight-spacesuit-provides-healthy-compression-astronauts

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-03/nasas-prototype-mars-space-suit-gets-frosty-antarctic-performance-test

The Last Ride of the Glory Girls

Besides the writing style the author used to convey Adelaide's speak, I really enjoyed this story. I thought it had many aspects throughout the whole story that made it interesting. It is a love story, western, religious, and of course, it is a science fiction story with many aspects included throughout the entire story. One thing we did not really touch on in class was her vision she had when she was in her drug induced state under the tar in the river. I thought it was interesting that all she saw in her vision was darkness. I was wondering if the darkness was meant to represent the time travel she would be encountering in her future. She had not mastered the time device yet and so she had no idea where she would end up. I thought maybe the darkness was meant to represent that uncertainty of where she would eventually end up in time. I'm not sure if I'm interpreting this right, but it is just a thought.

Catastrophic Disruption

So what did you guys think about the main character's decision in Catastrophic Disruption to leave the magic lighter with his princess at the end? He knew that she would likely use it to send the dogs to kill him, but he did it anyway. Was this some act of atonement for all his past sins, or was it that he just had nothing else to live for? It seemed to me like he had experienced just about all the horrors and pleasures he wanted in life and saw no reason to continue.

Halloween!

Seeing as how I wasn't here last week, I'm not sure if this was discussed, but I'll bring it up anyway. Does anyone have plans for Halloween?? Haunted Houses? Trick-or-Treating? I'm being boring and staying in, so please tell me someone is actually doing something fun so that I may live vicariously through you!

I hope everyone has fun in what ever it is you're doing!

Restoration

So, while reading "Restoration," I couldn't help but think of a few other works and films that I believe are very similar in some aspects. For instance, has anyone ever seen the TV film series The Librarian? If not, it's basically about this very intelligent guy who applies to work in a library...simple enough. However, it is no ordinary library of course! In the basement of the library are countless artifacts and mythic treasures (for instance, Neptune's trident, Excalibur, the Holy Grail, etc). Anyway, the Librarian's job is to go out and collect these valuables. In "Restoration," when Andy was applying for the gallery job, I pictured the same beginning as the first Librarian movie. He's not sure why he got the job, and he underestimates what all the job actually entails. If you haven't seen it, give it a shot!

Goodnight Moons

I just finished our readings for this week, and while I enjoyed most of them, my favorite was definitely "Goodnight Moons" by Ellen Klages. It may be my favorite of the entire collection, because it was so simple and sweet. Some of the other stories we've read have involved space in some way, but this was the first one to really address the effect that it might have on individuals, both emotionally and physically. The shortness of the story was somewhat jarring- I could easily have continued to read about Zoe and Poddy- but I think that's a large part of its charm. We don't need to know what happens to them in their new life on Mars, because our adventure with them is over. When the short story ends and the readers leave them, Zoe and Poddy are truly alone in a way that they would not have been if the story had continued.

Plus, I loved the nod/twist to "Goodnight Moon" at the end. That was one of my favorite books growing up.

Brave Little Toaster Reading

Earlier this week I found an awesome version of Cory Doctorow reading "The Brave Little Toaster" on his podcast. He does a pretty good job with it:

http://craphound.com/?p=3704

Free Download

I thought I'd share a link to a free download on Audible. It's a Halloween short story by Neil Gaiman. Here's the link if anyone's interested:
http://www.audible.com/mt/ScareUs

The Corpse Painter's Masterpiece

I found "The Corpse Painter's Masterpiece" to be a very touching story. I do not have children, but I can't imagine how hard it is to find peace once again after losing a child. Throughout the story, I was able to feel the pain and guilt the main character feels for the death of his son. The stress at home with his wife and the tension between them is most likely a result of the silent torment they face each day while they try to cope with the loss. When the main character sees the light that leads him to his son's grave, it's as if he believes he has finally found a solution that will help lessen the pain. He doesn't know if it will work, but he cannot help but try. I felt his blind hope while he was frantically digging in the frozen earth with his bare hands. There was no stopping, and his friend who found him, who also had a child of similar age to the man's deceased son, knew this so he lended his help. The idea of turning your deceased child's bones into a Christmas present seems sepulchral at first, but the way the author describes the couples mentality about the loss and their love for the child they miss terribly made it very sweet. I had this image in my mind when I finished the story, and even now, of two people, holding each other and finding some peace after this tradegy while soft amber light dances in beautiful patterns around the room from the flames of the candles, or the corpse painter's "masterpeice."

The Man Who Bridged the Mist

I just finished the longest selection of this week's reading.  It is, by far, the most straightforward work we have read this entire semester.  I rather enjoyed the change of pace.  I thought it was quite a good story, touching on some interesting and fairly deep themes.  I also thought that it could have been done in fewer pages, although of course that would have meant a loss of some character development.

The main reason I wrote this post is to express my opinion that The Man Who Bridged the Mist ought to be read last.  There's a story after it, but it's quite short and leaves you hanging a bit.  Bridged the Mist has a strong beginning, middle, and end feel, and really leaves you feeling as though you've finished something.  Because it's so long, it almost has that finishing a novel feel.  And it leaves a good sense of closure.

One interesting thing about 'valley of the girls'

When I was rereading a few parts of a few stories, I noticed an interesting thing.  It was mentioned in class but I had somehow missed it.  First of all [     ] does say on page 236 that he bought a biological agent so I think that was what [Hero] meant when she said she was saving all of their friends.  Also I think what happened is that [     ] fell in love with [Hero]'s face and that catching his face and her face together is what drove him over the edge.  What I mean by that is that he released the film that would destroy his and his sister's reputation not as a way to strike at society or his parents but rather to ruin the face's lives as well.  Also I think he had given up in a way which led to his purchasing a biological agent and planning to release it at the party that night.  His sister must have known so when she was planning to commit suicide, she lured him down there partly to protect her friends but also for revenge and wishing not to die alone.  It was a bit of a grim story but it really interested me from the stand point that Link gave the readers clues during the story and we had to piece together what was going on.

Run for Your Lives 5K

So this is the 5K I ran this summer! I went to Indianapolis and something like 2,000 people attended, it was really intense. There were obstacles like bridges we had to climb under, rope walls, and an electric fence. My sister and I ran in the morning and were zombies for one of the afternoon races. I didn't live to the end, but I made it to mile 2.5!

http://www.runforyourlives.com/

Gas Works Park

I just wanted to post a few photos of Gas Works park in Seattle. In "Underbridge" the professor says he finally found Cut'n-Shoot under a tree in the park. The park has a very strange aura to it, as it is the site of an old gas manufacturing plant that has been turned into a park looking across Lake Union towards the Space Needle. It's really pretty, but creepy since there is all this leftover industrial equipment. I got to go right about sunset as the families were packing up and about to head home and the ravers and "earthy types" were just coming in about to turn the park into a dance party. 

Small price for birdsong

So how did everyone else interpret the relationship between the main character and Subtilius? It seemed to me that Subtilius was like a best friend who knew exactly what the main character was thinking before he did and could manipulate his emotions by pointing out the things he hates most about himself. I suppose the term "best friends" may not be the most appropriate description as they were both plotting to kill each other, but they definitely knew each other better than anyone else. I just can't figure out whether they really hate one another or just don't want to associate because they know each other's darkest secrets. Either way, they both seem like terrible people to me.

Did anyone else cry like a little girl while reading "The Paper Menagerie"?

I really enjoyed this second set of stories, because I felt a lot more involved with them. It seems like this anthology has a good mix of stories that are just really good escapism reading and ones that really tug at your heartstrings (and plenty that do both). I got very attached to the characters in "The Paper Menagerie", "The Corpse Painter's Masterpeice", and "Steam Girl". Anyone else?

A few things

I don't read a lot of short stories on my own, but I like the fact that there is such a diversity in what we read for a week. If you get assigned a book you don't like, you still have to finish reading it. Here it's not long before you can move on to the next one. However, this didn't seem to be a big problem this week, as I liked many of the stories.

I guess my favorite was probably "Steam Girl." I would like to imagine that the girl really was stuck in a warped version of reality. Also, I thought it had an interesting story within a story dynamic that kept me wanting to know more.



On an unrelated note, I guess I'll bring in my American Studies background now. I went to see the movie Argo last weekend. In case you don't know what it's about, a CIA agent uses the pretense of a science fiction movie as he tries to rescue six Americans trapped in Iran during the hostage crisis. Being in this class makes me pay more attention to references of science fiction. Anyway, not strictly related, but thought I'd mention it anyway. I hadn't heard of it until someone else told me about it.

A Small Price to Pay for a Birdsong

I really enjoyed reading this story, and felt like it had a lot of good lessons to teach. I loved that once the main character (what was his name again?) let go of his fear of failure and not earning enough money, he got his "wings." Wings refer to his ability to be able to compose beautiful music that captured all music is supposed to be about. I think that is a good life lesson anyone can take to heart. Once you stop stressing out over being perfect, everything comes a lot easier and you can even be great at what you do. I loved the twist at the end where Subtilius is imprisoned because the main character finds out it is actually him who killed his nephew. The only question I have about the end is why does he keep him locked up? Is it so Subtilius feels the way he did once about not having wings? Or is it simply to punish him for what he did to his nephew he didn't even know or love?

The Corpse Painter's Masterpiece

Can I go ahead and claim a discussion for tomorrow? I absolutely LOVE Tim Burton, and this story reminded me so much of one of his stories. There is something I love about seeing a creepy, evil, or otherwise unlovable character have very personal attributes that make the reader feel for them in a very affectionate way.

Also, I have a lot of questions about what you all think happens at the end.

Interview With Steven Moffat

I am a huge Steven Moffat fan- I really love every episode he's written for Doctor Who, and all of Sherlock. I found an interview (mostly talking about the 6th season of Doctor Who) and thought y'all might be interested, since we're about to watch 2 of his episodes today.

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/whats-alan-watching/posts/interview-doctor-who-showrunner-steven-moffat-on-amy-river-rory-and-more

Quick Question

Hey, everybody! I was just wondering whether we needed to cite anything in our papers. I don't remember hearing anything about that. I'm fairly certain that we don't need to, but I want to make sure I didn't overlook anything. Furthermore, do we need a title at the top? Oh God. I'm starting to second guess everything. Panic Mode!! 

Papers and Doctor Who

Hope everyone's papers are going well! I'm excited about Doctor Who tomorrow. It actually fits in nicely with the paper since I ended up writing about an episode. And we're watching two of my favorite episodes. It's a nice break from the midterms in my other classes this week.

Paper Break time!

I've been forced to the realization that I'm not going to make any progress on my paper until I post about something that I read this weekend (also, I just managed to punch myself in the face with my laptop, so I think it might be a good idea to work on something other than a major paper). This weekend, I read The Passage by Justin Cronin. I don't want to spoil anything, so to quickly summarize, the world goes to hell when a virus created by the US government is accidentally released to the general public. What makes this different from other plague stories, however, is that the virus turns its victims (those that it doesn't kill outright, that is) into vampire-like creatures (the initial intention for the virus was to extend the human lifespan, which I suppose, it technically did). The majority of the book dealt with human survivors 100 years after the outbreak and their attempts to discover more about it. The thing that struck me the most about the book, and made me think of this class, was how the virals/vamps/dracs/smokes in the book were not the cuddly creatures of the night most common in modern fiction. They were as close to the original terrifying creatures as it is possible to get, and I think that is part of the reason why I enjoyed it so much. The virals had no desire to go to high school or date teenagers like we saw in "Younger Women". It was a refreshing change from the annoyingly sincere creatures that populate modern pop culture. That alone would have made it a great read, but it also makes you think about how something like this is possible. I've loved books that feature real world scenarios since I first read Stephen King's The Stand in middle school. The Passage is definitely worth the read.

Doctor Who

I was wondering if the episodes of "Doctor Who" that we will be watching in class Wednesday are beginning episodes or just random ones that were really interesting? I've never seen the show, but I want to have a  little bit of an idea about it before we watch it. I think I'll watch some of the old episodes prior to class on Wednesday so I'll have a clue!

Andy's in Town - What Do?

Hey everyone!

So, as you know, Andy will be gracing us with his presence in Tuscaloosa this week. As he referenced in class, Andy always goes to grab some food at the Brown Bag in Northport, which I've been told is delicious.  After that, Andy likes to go to a place of the class's choosing to hang out and fraternize a bit. Last year we made trips to Big Daddy's downtown and hung in the Hookah lounge out back where Andy impressed us with his ability to blow smoke rings. This year we could do more of the same, or try something different.

I personally, would love to grab a couple beers at The Alcove, but seeing as it's a 21+ establishment, everyone may not be able to go.

Does any else have any suggestions?

Paper topic-help me please!

Hey everyone! So I realized our paper is due really soon and that it's Sunday already.  I've been thinking that I would really like to talk about the mind control aspects of "Liking What You See" by Ted Chiang and then comparing that to Dollhouse and maybe Uglies? Can anyone think of another story that we've read in class that I could incorporate or a more specific focus even?

Thank you so much!!! I'll bring everyone cookies one day for the help :)

The Weekend!

First, I must say that I am deeply saddened by the fact that Doctor Who is on hiatus for a few weeks. That's not cool, BBC...not cool. I am excited though, for a new companion for the Doctor!

Second, I hope everyone is having a great weekend! How are your papers coming? (That is, if you've started yet). Did anyone have any epiphanies on topics or material after class, or is it more of a wing it and hope ideas come as you're writing situation?

Cory Doctorow AMA

Here's a link to an AMA Doctorow did on Reddit if anyone is interested:

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/11bm9i/iam_cory_doctorow_writer_blogger_and_activist_ama/

Paper Topic...

I think I've finally decided that my paper will revolve around time travel in 2 of the short stories we read, "The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate" and "Story of Your Life", both by Ted Chiang. I loved both of the stories, and it will be interesting to compare their portrayals of time travel to those of other authors. I'm not sure which books I'll be comparing them to yet, but I have a few in mind that might work nicely. Time travel has been addressed by so many authors, and most of them have different approaches to how it might be possible, so it'll be fun to pick out their fundamental similarities and differences.

Mycroft in The Case of Death and Honey

Did anyone notice that in the scene of Mycroft's death he predicted several key future events?  I personally truly enjoy Mycroft's character and thought it was humorous to have him see the independence of India, the Russian revolution, and as he put it 'the German problem' or as one could surmise World War I/II.  Anyways I just thought it was worth a tip of the hat to the author for including Mycroft in this story if only briefly.

"The Case of Death and Honey"

This was one of my favorite short stories from the book. I've been a Sherlock Holmes fan since we read some of the original stories in school. I found out that this story was also published in another book that I own but haven't had a chance to read yet called A Study in Sherlock.

One thing that I liked was how it specifically referenced one of Doyle's stories. I couldn't remember it when I was reading, but the references within the letter seemed to be alluding to something, so I looked it up. "The Case of Death and Honey" mentions Professor Presbury, who is a character in "The Adventure of the Creeping Man." This story is from The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes, one of the later books. It is basically about an older man who takes a drug that gives him renewed energy while also causing him to assume some of the traits of a monkey, from which the drug is derived. In the story we read, we are supposed to conclude that these facts have actually been changed, presumably from something having to do with bees.

I found that one commentary called the original "risible science fiction." Admittedly, "The Adventure of the Creeping Man" is pretty far fetched. (Holmes calls the additions "fanciful" in "The Case of Death and Honey.") Still, I think it's interesting to call it science fiction at all. I had never considered Sherlock Holmes as science fiction and was surprised when we read this for a science fiction class.

Anyway, just some more things to think about in relation to this story.

Going back to Chiang...

I came across this article while doing a literature search for our writing assignment. It's only a few days old (posted October 3.) I've already found parts of it helpful. If any of you are choosing a topic involving Ted Chiang, this might help.

Pastiche

After reading "The Case of Death and Honey" I must say that I am impressed with the author's ability to duplicate Conan Doyle's writing style and retain that unmistakable Holmes character. I realized that I am quite fond of a number of "pastiche" type works not only limited to literature, but art, music, and films as well. One example is the great Sergio Leone film "A Fistful of Dollars" starring Clint Eastwood. This film is almost an exact copy of Akira Kurosawa's classic samurai film "Yojimbo" only it is set in the American Old West instead of feudal Japan. This practice of imitation is great for fans of the original works who unfortunately will not receive any more because the original author may be deceased. It also allows for a re-imagining of a classic work to appeal to a new audience. So, what are you guys thoughts on this practice of imitation? Do you prefer that an author write only in his or her own distinct style, or is it OK to copycat?

I must be getting old...

In class today, while we were discussing "Younger Women" by Karen Joy Fowler, a funny thing occurred to me. We talked about how this story made us think of Twilight and the way the vampires, despite their immortality and awesomeness, choose to lurk around high school and date young, vulnerable teenage girls. I thought about the way I was in high school and how it never occurred to me when I first read the Twilight series that it was completely weird for a vampire who had been around for almost a century to want to date a junior in high school. Now, in my early twenties and much more mature (I like to think) than a teenager, I found myself hoping the vampire would go for the mom, instead. While reading "Younger Women", it did seem strange for him to date the daughter. As "old" as he was, you wouldn't think he would be able to put up with the girl's brattiness and immaturity. I wonder if I had read this story back in high school, if I would have felt the same way or found myself siding with the teenage girl, instead.

Paper Topic

I have been thinking and re-reading trying to come up with a paper topic for our first assignment. I think I landed on a good idea, but I wanted to get others opinions to make sure I am in the right direction.

My favorite topic that I have come up with is, what makes someone human. We have read numerous stories this semester that had robots, or creatures that would originally be considered non-human. Some of the questions I think I want to address are should robots be considered human? Are humans with their dependence on technology becoming robot like? What is the biggest quality in assigning humanity?

Let me know what you think!

Cool live author chat tonight!

Hey everyone! I was surfing the interwebs and found out that tonight's installment of The Story Board, which is a live video chat discussion thing with different authors, will feature Cherie Priest, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson, and Terry Brooks. Might be pretty cool to watch since Cherie Priest is one of the authors we're reading later this semester...and it doesn't hurt that Brandon Sanderson, Pat Rothfuss, and Terry Brooks (TERRY BROOKS OMG) are such awesome authors!! I think the first link is the right one, but if it's not, the second link is to Brandon Sanderson's blog post with his link. Just in case. Because I'm an idiot when it comes to technology.

https://plus.google.com/+GeekandSundry/posts
http://www.brandonsanderson.com/blog/1117/LEGION-%28free%29-on-Audible--Google-Hangout-with-Pat-Rothfuss-Cherie-Priest-and-Terry-Brooks

Oh, and it starts at 9 pm Mountain time, which is 10 pm our time!

Y'all I am both obsessed with and terrified of bees

I've always found the way that bees and ants organize their colonies really fascinating (and also really, really frightening). One hive might have thousands and thousands of bees, and yet they're able to organize their population, divvy up responsibilities, and build really intricate structures and keep everything running scary efficiently. That's why I was initially drawn to "The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees"- it explored that hivemind quality of bees in a really interesting way.

I don't know much about bee slavery, but ants totally do that kind of thing all the time. They've also been known to spread all over the planet and kill whatever ants happened to be there before. When hivemind species like ants and bees work as an army, they do things like take slaves, kill native populations, and set up guards for their new colony that we think of as human, intelligent behaviors. When reading "The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees", it seems almost comical to think of bees having ambassadors, scientists, and teachers, because an individual bee is essentially brainless- but as a hive they act like a human society with all of these complex roles.

Tidal Forces

So I think I may have just found a paper topic from this story! Rather, many possible topics. I loved the astrophysics aspect to this narrative. And there was SO MUCH symbolism relating to black holes, I was totally geeking out. I don't want to give too much away before Wednesday, that way I have things to bring up, but after after class, I would appreciate some feedback on my possible topics.

The first thing I want to ask is why y'all may have thought the narrator used playing cards to refer to the days of the week. I thought it may have to do with the overabundance of uncertainty and unknown matters they were dealing with that it helped to relate those days of craziness to something more tangible and understandable, like a playing card. Or on the complete opposite side of the spectrum, the randomness of the events and odd circumstances related to the randomness of drawing a card from a shuffled deck...each day is a different card from the pile and you don't know what you're going to get.
What do y'all think was so significant about the cards?

Short Story discussion assignments

Did we get a list of who was starting the discussion on each story this week?  If so, I seem to have lost where it went.

Interview with Cherie Priest

I know I'm getting a little ahead, but I came across this today and thought I'd share.

White Lines on a Green Field

First of all, I thought the writing style of this was fantastic.  I read the whole thing in the voice of the narrator from Bastion (which if you haven't played is fantastic).  At the end though, I was a bit confused.  I had been reading along waiting for the explanation of what was going on, but it never really came.

After a bit of searching, I found that the Coyote was a trickster and occasionally fertility god in some Native American myths.  So the story may have been intended as somewhat of a modern retelling of an ancient fertility myth, or perhaps a mashup of ancient mythology and the American mythology surrounding high school.

This helped me get a perspective on the story.  I hope it helps you.

More Examples of RFID Tags

I'm fascinated by RFID. I tend to be oblivious about technology - I love to use it, but don't ask me how it works. After our class discussion, I made connections that hadn't occurred to me when I was reading Little Brother. I was curious how we already use it. We mentioned Action Cards here at school. I talked to my dad and found out that he uses a card with one to access certain buildings at his work. The public library at home uses them to check out books. I used an Oyster card this summer. A scan through the Wikipedia page can give you an even longer list (including passports). Finally, I wondered if it was being used in cars. A quick Google search led me to this article: How thieves steal RFID-enabled cars. I laughed when I saw the byline.

The Case of Death and Honey

I'm not sure how many of you have read this story yet. I was concerned about it being in a science fiction anthology. I still have yet to find a quality that might allow it to be deemed "science fiction". I had always grouped Sherlock Holmes into the mystery genre, and this story seems to fit that demographic more so.

On a semi related note, who else is excited about the premier of "Elementary" with Lucy Liu as Watson? The British television show "Sherlock" is amazing and I really hope we can make something as good here in the US.

First Writing Assignment

Ok y'all, I need your opinions for my first writing assignment. As I mentioned in class and previously on the blog, I plan on studying the heroism of multiple characters in Chiang's short stories. Just going through "Stories of your Life and Others" I can see the heroism of main characters in "Tower of Babylon", "Understand", "Seventy-Two Letters", and "Hell is The Absence of God". I feel that the main character in "Story of Your Life" deserves an honorable mention, but I am having trouble calling her a definitive hero. Do any of you see her acts as heroic? I see her as preserving her legacy, bot necessarily going out of her way to make sacrifices that directly benefit another. In addition to that story, I couldn't find in heroes worthy of discussion in "Liking What you See". Since is was documentary style, it covered multiple aspects of calli and I didn't feel that one character took a strong enough position on the issue to be considered heroic.

I would appreciate any thoughts!

Tracking students with RFID tags

I found an interesting article about actual schools using RFID tags to track their students, and the privacy concerns of parents and students. I actually went to this school district in San Antonio for elementary school, so I found it especially alarming.

What do you guys think?

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/09/rfid-chip-student-monitoring/

Did anyone else not particularly care for Little Brother?

I just finished the book, and I have to admit that I didn't enjoy it as much as anything else we've read so far.

As I was reading it, I found the themes to be somewhat...overt or self-evident.  Perhaps these aren't the right descriptors.  Basically I felt like I was reading someone rant about how terrible the Patriot Act is and how "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."  etc. etc.  These are all things I agree with certainly, but I didn't really enjoy the way they were illustrated.  It felt as if he just took 1984 and tried to make it a teen novel.  Maybe the problem is that we've just read a lot of Ted Chiang, who I feel like writes short stories with more intriguing messages and multiple things you can take away from them. 

As I was reading this I felt like I was watching Secret Agent Cody Banks as he defies all odds and takes down the big bad DHS.  I understand that it's geared to be accessible for "young adults" as well, but I wasn't impressed with the writing itself either.

I don't know, what do you guys think?  I'm willing to reassess my view of it, that's just what I took away after reading it through.

Little Brother

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book. 

“I can't go underground for a year, ten years, my whole life, waiting for freedom to be handed to me. Freedom is something you have to take for yourself.” 

“Skipping school isn't a crime. It's an infraction. They're totally different.”

“It's our goddamed city! It's our goddamed country. No terrorist can take it from us for so long as we're free. Once we're not free, the terrorists win! Take it back! You're young enough and stupid enough not to know that you can't possibly win, so you're the only ones who can lead us to victory! Take it back!”

“The Bill of Rights was written before data-mining," he said. He was awesomely serene, convinced of his rightness. "The right to freedom of association is fine, but why shouldn't the cops be allowed to mine your social network to figure out if you're hanging out with gangbangers and terrorists?”