Give Me More: An Introduction to the World of Harry Potter Fan Fiction
I stumbled upon Harry Potter fan fiction shortly after the sixth book in the series arrived. I was quickly addicted. Fan art by Hito, via The Leaky Cauldron With one book left, the worldwide fandom for the boy wizard went into rampages of speculation about what might happen, including a frenzy of fan fiction production…
Two common misconceptions about clones and biotechnology
Popular culture has been misrepresenting clones since the term was applied to Homo sapiens. If you want to make the most of the biotech revolution, you’re going to have to unlearn the most egregious of culture’s misapprehensions. A Clone Will Know Everything That You Know, and Will Act As You Do Clones are often depicted…
Mapping the Seven Kingdoms
Want to see a map of the continent of Westeros from George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire? Of course you do. Also, see how Martin’s fictional continent stacks up with Europe. I’ve talked about this map briefly before, but renewed discussion on the subject of the size of Westeros and the Seven…
Lazy, self-indulgent reviews of science fiction books
Over at Lazy Self-Indulgent Book Reviews, Nicole Cliffe sort of, kind of, not really reviews books. Here are her tongue-in-cheek reviews of Ellison, Delany, and a prehistoric giant shark. Nova by Samuel Delany My father lobbied really hard, almost certainly while high, for my mom to consent to naming me “Nova.” Because of this book.…
V for Vendetta hacker strikes at Washington State University
An anonymous hacker wearing a Guy Fawkes mask took over classroom projection screens at Washington State University on the fifth of November, to broadcast a prerecorded message adapted from V For Vendetta. In a prank that evidently alarmed administrators and amused students, the nearly four minute video, which was also posted on YouTube, and has…