tor.com on Steampunk Tales — In which I have a story.
How to tell a riveting story — (Thanks to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) goulo.)
Toy ray guns of the world
Portable DNA Purifier for Poor Countries — A new handheld device isolates DNA from human fluid without the use of electrical power. Like Bill Gibson said, you have "to be pretty technical before you can even aspire to crudeness".
Hemingway as failed KGB spy? — Weird.
A Housing Market Built on Mud Takes Off, and Then Goes Thud — Ironic, sad and darkly funny story about housing in West Africa.
The invisible hand of god — Pace Adam Smith. (Snurched from Scrivener's Error.)
Hannity again crops Obama's comments abroad in order to smear him — Your Liberal Media, hard at work bending the truth for the GOP. And conservatives wonder why the rest of us see you as crazy and deceitful. Hannity isn't some fringe figure, he's a major spokesperson for your philosophy with an audience of millions.
?otD: What would Heinlein have titled a sequel to Friday?
7/10/2009 Body movement: n/a (overslept due to ongoing chest cold) This morning's weigh-in: n/a (no scale at beach house) Currently reading: The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold
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Coffee 'may reverse Alzheimer's' — Guess I need to take up a new habit. (Thanks to danjite.)
Vintage ads for women's fragrances — Uh huh.
Donnie's Deusie: 1924 — Mmm. Duesenberg. Mmm.
Best to only ever fight wars you already won. — The Edge of the American West on conservatives, Obama and library cards. Also William Ayers. Funny stuff.
?otD: What time did you wake up?
7/8/2009 Body movement: n/a (overslept due to incipient chest cold) This morning's weigh-in: n/a (no scale at beach house) Currently reading: The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold (re-read)
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bravado111 with a photo spread on Green [ Powell's | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Borders ] — Heh.
Flags of forgotten countries — Dark Roasted Blend with one for the vexillologists among you. Actually, I remember most of these countries.
Igniting Fusion — Mmm, warm.
Centauri Dreams with a roundup — I draw your attention to the subsection entitled "Superluminal Radio Waves and their Uses", in turn referring to this article. Paging Sam L. Tannaity to the office. I'm just a poor little low-rent SF writer with a liberal arts degree, so maybe it's just me, but I'm really struggling with this one. Comments from the better informed?
?otD: How long is Long Beach?
7/6/2009 Body movement: n/a (will beach walk later) This morning's weigh-in: n/a (no scale at beach house) Currently reading: n/a (just finished P.S. Your Cat is Dead by James Kirkwood)
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The toaster project — A British artist tries to build a toaster from scratch. More here. (Snurched from Freakonomics.)
Stunning new technology allows parents to hold a life-size model of their unborn child — Weird. And cool. (Thanks to danjite.)
Can Aging Be Solved? — Gerontology pioneer Leonard Hayflick discusses the biological causes of aging.
Volcano awesomeness from Bad Astronomy Blog
You say Burma, I say Myanmar — A post on the ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) cranky_editors group, pointed out to me by garyomaha. The action is in comments, with special guest appearances from danjite.
"The only chance we have as a country right now is" for bin Laden to "detonate a major weapon" in U.S. — And conservatives wonder why the reality-based community thinks they're crazy. Remember, Beck is a major figure in Your Liberal Media. Amazing what that liberal bias gets up to.
?otD: Why not Minot?
7/2/2009 Body movement: 60 minute urban walk (Twin Peaks!), 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 215.5 Currently reading: P.S. Your Cat is Dead by James Kirkwood
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| 2009-06-29 04:30 |
| [links] Link salad comes back from Iron Springs |
| Public |
| books, cool, culture, escapement, green, links, personal, photos, politics, reviews, science |
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Jay Lake's Green: A Departure for the Clockwork King — ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/syndicated.gif) jeffvandermeer with a brief interview of me about Green [ Powell's | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Borders ].
mordicai comments on Escapement [ Powell's | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Borders ]
1909 Russia in living color: The photos of Sergey Prokudin-Gorskii — A piece of history most of us don't see much of.
7 Man-Made Substances that Laugh in the Face of Physics — (Thanks to jaborwhalky.)
SETI: A Detectable Neutrino Signal? — Oooh. With bonus Antarctic science pr0n.
To fight deflation, abolish cash. Could Japan make reality of 'science fiction'? — Curious news from the economic front.
The Redder They Are, The Harder They Fall — WaPo somewhat disingenuously asks why Democrats "get away" with more sex scandals, apparently ignores their own answer - it's the hypocrisy, stupid.
Ante Up or Leave The Table — Conservatives and climate change denial, specifically the low cost of such denial in personal, political and social terms. One thing this analysis leaves out is how conservatives have been dead wrong in their opposition to just about everything in the past century or more — child labor laws, women's rights, civil rights, minimum wage, interracial marriage, opposition to entry in WWII, support for the Iraq War. An America run on the principles espoused by conservatives in every one of those losing battles would be a much bleaker, harsher place. Why do they have any credibility on climate change?
?otD: Who put the "Mon" in Monday?
6/29/2009 Body movement: 30 minute stationary bike ride, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 221.4 Currently reading: P.S. Your Cat is Dead by James Kirkwood
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A reader reacts to Mainspring [ Powell's | Amazon thb | Barnes & Noble | Borders | Audible ] — They couldn't finish it. As I said in comments recently, I find bad reviews far more interesting than good ones. This is no exception.
I before E — Language Log on (misconstrued) grammar silliness. I say "potato", you say "potatoe".
Who decided the day should be divided into 24 hours? — A Straight Dope classic. As usual, blame the Babylonians. I'm personally more fascinated by the consistent persistency of the seven day week cycle.
Painted Green — Some thoughts on Iran. (Via A Tiny Revolution.)
?otD: How many Mondays in a month of Sundays?
6/22/2009 Body movement: 30 minute stationary bike ride, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 220.0 Currently reading: Cordelia's Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold (reread of omnibus edition)
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| 2009-06-21 06:15 |
| [links] Link salad says happy Father's Day Solstice |
| Public |
| books, cars, cool, culture, links, personal, photos, politics, publishing, science, writing |
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Booking the future — One view of the next generation of publishing. (Thanks to lrcutter.)
The Latke number thread — In case you were wondering about literary collaboration with me.
What Amazon Does Not Want You To Know About The Kindle — More DRM hell. (From a mailing list I'm on.)
The Unevenness of Space-Time Convergence — Strange Maps with a rendering of travel times which is pretty interesting, and also somewhat reminds me of the most famousest New Yorker cover EVAR.
Brute-Force Engineering and Climate — Centauri Dreams with some unsettling speculation. Also more fodder for near term futurism of both the apocalyptic and optimistic flavors.
Sunrise over the Parthenon — More photographic coolness from APOD.
io9.com with a visual gallery on the evolution of spaceships in movies — Cool stuff.
Maytag-Mobile: 1939 — Shorpy with home-made car from the pre-WWII era. I'm fascinated by the tiny wheels. That thing must have ridden like holy hell. And speaking of hell, Shorpy has this bus image, a 1938 Greyhound ready for the Gehenna run for certain.
ericjamesstone answers my question from yesterday about the Robert court ruling on DNA testing — Ok, not batshit. Still not happy about it, but I understand the point now. (And wish the reporting on this had done a better job of conveying that point, or that I'd done a better job of reading the reporting, or both.) Thanks, Eric!
?otD: Was it a new day yesterday?
6/21/2009 Body movement: 30 minute stationary bike ride, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 219.8 Currently reading: n/a (Finished The Human Disguise by James O'Neil)
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| 2009-06-12 04:05 |
| [links] Link salad winds up another work week |
| Public |
| books, cars, culture, funny, green, history, links, personal, process, science, weird, writing |
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The Green photo contest [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ] — Entries are due today!
Green readings and signings: [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ] — Including Powell's Cedar Hills here in the Portland area, this evening. Dinner at 5 at the McMenamin's in the north end of the Cedar Hills parking lot, reading at 7.
A profile of me in The Oregonian
Don't Marry a Writer — Ta-Nehisi Coates on the perils of research (and the military stylings of U.S. Grant).
An Example Remembered — A bookseller talks about the characters in their store. Moving and lovely.
Over the Hedge on dating, the perils thereof, and zombies
And a Dog Named and Gyp: 1922 —Shorpy with a classic automotive photo for all you dog lovers.
Animal, human statues found in Burnt City — Some cool archaeology news. I love the last bit, about what they've found there. (Snurched righteously from e_bourne.)
Radioactive wasp nests at Hanford — Run for your lives! (Thanks to corwynofamber and thecrimsony.)
?otD: How do you whack an immortal, malignant mole?
6/12/2009 Body movement: 30 minute ride on stationary bike, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 217.0 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold
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| 2009-06-11 03:31 |
| [links] Link salad, title free edition |
| Public |
| art, books, contests, cool, culture, green, links, personal, politics, starship, steampunk, tech, trains |
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The Green photo contest [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ]
Green readings and signings: [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ] — Including Powell's Cedar Hills here in the Portland area, tomorrow night.
SF Signal with a book cover smackdown including my own forthcoming Death of a Starship
1939 World's Fair on San Francisco Bay — Some mighty fine poster art.
American Garage: 1943 — Mmmmm, trains. Now this is some steamy punk.
iPhone Hackers Get a Break — The difficulty of running nonapproved code on the iPhone has turned off security researchers--until now. Um... Does this count as being unclear on the concept?
At Last, Facing Down Bullies (and Their Enablers) — Gosh, wouldn't that be nice. I grew up in the 1970s, when the response to bullying boiled down to "Well, what did you do to antagonize him?" (Snurched from Scrivener's Error.)
Teaching Children to Spot Terrorists — Um... (Thanks to willyumtx.)
You werent excluded. You lost. — The Edge of the American West on conservative rhetoric over the Tiller murder. The right's mealy-mouthed response to that is another place where conservatism show not that it is simply wrong-headed, but intellectually and morally bankrupt.
?otD: What price glory? Show your work.
6/11/2009 Body movement: 60 minute workout at the gym, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 215.4 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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"Machines Machines Machines Machines Machines Machines Machines" — (Nicked from Atrios.)
Orphaned Tweets — Huh. Funny. (Thanks to corwynofamber.)
Animated Short: Clockwork — This is cute and sweet.
Gadget Charger Harvests Wireless Power — A prototype device converts ambient electromagnetic radiation into energy.
When Earth attacks Mars — An extreme case of the observer effect?
?otD: How Green is your day?
6/9/2009 Body movement: 40 minute workout at the gym, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 218.6 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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A bizarre spamblog review of Green [ Powell's | Amazon ] — Which is probably a Babelfish felch of this SF Signal review of the book.
A green aria — No, really. (Thanks to tetar.)
Steampunk Tales is finally up at iTunes for your iPod/iPhone reading pleasure — And I have a story therein.
How fit is your brain?
Steampunk tree house — (Thanks to willyumtx.)
Lear jet repo man — Fascinating. (Thanks t0 danjite.)
US States As Countries of Equal Population — Another one from Strange Maps.
?otD: What's so manic about Monday?
6/8/2009 Body movement: 30 minute stationary bike ride, 10 minutes of stretching and meditation This morning's weigh-in: 221.0 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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| 2009-06-07 12:09 |
| [links] Link salad yawns on a Sunday |
| Public |
| books, culture, funny, links, personal, process, reviews, rocket, sciece, trains, weird, writing |
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A reader reacts to Rocket Science [ Powell's | Amazon ]
Publishers Weekly with a starred review for the print edition of METAtropolis
Roy Orbison in cling wrap — Classic bizarro Internet pr0n, subject of much discussion at last night's JayCon afterparty.
Brainstormer: sketch topic generator — This would work beautifully for writing exercises as well.
Home taping isn't killing music — Bad Science on downloading and piracy and the reality behind the alleged economic losses.
Streamliner: 1938 — Shorpy with a cool street car photo, from back in the day.
SETA: Finding a 'Graveyard Civilization' — Search for Extraterrestrial Artifacts. Cool stuff from Centauri Dreams.
?otD: Where did the sun day go?
6/7/2009 Body movement: n/a (saw calendula_witch off at the airport instead) This morning's weigh-in: 220.2 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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| 2009-06-02 03:13 |
| [links] Link salad remains in light |
| Public |
| cars, cool, culture, funny, links, nature, personal, reviews, science, stories, tech |
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JayCon is this coming Saturday! Mark your calendars: [ jlake.com | LiveJournal ]
Lone Star Stories #31 Reviewed — In which very nice things are said about my story "On the Human Plan".
A reader reacts to my short story "The God Clown is Near"
A Jay Lake Shakespeare Festival — This is hilarious.
Plotting way forward on Ice Age Floods Trail — I've visited many of the sites. One of my favorites, though, is the little known Moses Coulee in central Washington State. (Thanks to my Dad.)
Plants 'can recognise themselves'
Millisecond Pulsars for Starship Navigation
Michael Moore on what to do with GM — (Thanks to garyomaha.)
?otD: Nothing is better than that, is it?
6/2/2009 Body movement: 60 minute trainer time at gym This morning's weigh-in: 218.6 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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Where does our information come from? — This is pretty funny, but the comments are funnier.
The Wagon — The Guru's Handbook on intention and recovery.
Mission to Moscow — The Edge of the American West reminds us of Mathias Rust.
The Cost Conundrum — What a Texas town can teach us about health care. Ah, the magic of market self-regulations. Markets surely do optimize, if you happen to be an investment dollar. A piece of economic wisdom apparent to any twelve year old, except for conservatives, of course.
libertango with more on Sotomayor — Also, I'm still waiting for the GOP to remind us of the Constitutional importance of up-or-down votes.
?otD: Do you know where you're going to?
5/29/2009 Body movement: 60 minute staionary bike ride This morning's weigh-in: 218.0 Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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Grants Pass reviewed — calendula_witch and I both have stories therein.
Dark Roasted Blend with thrilling movie posters!
Does My Metro Area Look Big in this Ring Road? — Strange Maps with some comparative cartography.
Flaws in the "Long Tail" theory — (Snurched from Scrivener's Error.)
Lifestyle or Genes? Health Secrets of a 114-Year Old Man — (Thanks to tetar.)
In South Korea, All of Life Is Mobile — (Thanks to Dad.)
?otD: How high should I hold my arms up?
5/25/2009 Body movement: 60 minute urban walk (Twin Peaks!) This morning's weigh-in: 218.5 (Witchnest scale) Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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Fantasy Literature likes Escapement [ Powell's | Amazon ]
"The Medusa and the Snail" — If you can't make a hell of an SF story out of this, you're not trying.
Lifes Persistence through the Bombardment — Centauri Dreams on the Late Heavy Bombardment.
Giant Lens May Be Distorting Echo of the Big Bang — I question the use of the terms "supersonic" and "subsonic" with respect to the velocity of the solar wind in a vacuum, but perhaps I am ignorant. Interesting squib in any case.
7 WTF Military Weapons You Won't Believe They Actually Built — (Thanks to danjite.)
Intellectual Monopolies Kill: Two Examples — (Thanks to danjite.)
?otD: Baltimore or Baltiless?
5/22/2009 Body movement: n/a (travel day) This morning's weigh-in: n/a (travel day) Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold; A Long Line of Cells by Lewis Thomas
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Powell's talks about Green [ Powell's | Amazon ]
The linguistic roots of the Sri Lankan civil war — Kind of makes you think about those "English only" idiots.
American Stonehenge: Monumental Instructions for the Post-Apocalypse
How Down Syndrome Stops Cancer — Huh.
Building the Interstellar Message — Centauri Dreams on SETI.
?otD: Dover, Delawhere?
5/21/2009 Body movement: 40 minute suburban walk This morning's weigh-in: n/a (travel day) Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold
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SF Signal MIND MELD: The Perfect SF/F/H Books to Give to People Who Don't Read SF/F/H
Dark Roasted Blend with more of the world's most interesting bridges
Bright Yellow Undies — Sonia lyris on online communication.
The trial of Leonid K — Orwellian tactics in a post-Soviet Russia. (Snurched from Scrivener's Error.)
?otD: Cake or death?
5/20/2009 Body movement: n/a (travel day) This morning's weigh-in: n/a (travel day) Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold (Look, ma, no Melville!)
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Don't forget to vote for new caption contest — Some funny stuff there.
Among Friends: 1926 — Shorpy with another interesting photo. The original 1926 caption is astonishingly patronizing.
Sea Dragons of Avalon
Time lapse photography of the galactic core as seen from Earth — Some serious cool here.
What do 3,000 years do to wages? — Gender differentials in wage rates over a very long time span.
Top Bush officials not liable for Muslims' post-Sept. 11 arrests — Conservatives sweep another Constitutional shredding under the rug. Nice to see the GOP continuing to stick to its principles. The good times never end, do they?
No More Mr. Nice Guy — The conscience of a conservative: a profile of Chief Justice Roberts.
?otD: Who wants to live forever?
5/19/2009 Body movement: 80 minute suburban walk This morning's weigh-in: n/a (travel day) Currently reading: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold
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Don't forget to vote for new caption contest — Some funny stuff there.
Lord of the Rings alternate ending — (Thanks to willyumtx.)
The memory palace — Weird history. (Snurched from Freakonomics.)
Post-blogging the 1909 scareships — (Snurched from The Edge of the American West.)
Minn. judge rules teen must see cancer doctor — This is a tough one. My belief in freedom of religion is very powerful. But I can't really see my way to supporting a parent's religious right to allow their child to die untreated. I really, really can't.
?otD: Fred or Barney?
5/16/2009 Body movement: 30 minutes on stationary bike This morning's weigh-in: 214.8 Currently reading: The Confidence-Man: His Masquerade by Herman Melville
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