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Makes Perfect Sense
io9 makes a compelling argument: Sarah Palin is actually a fembot. No-One Ever Sees Palin Go Through A Metal Detector At Airport Security. Sure, you can get away with that in Alaska – It’s a different world up there, after all, and the only security they need there are polar bears guarding the check-in desks.…
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LHC Online Tomorrow
The “Big Bang Machine” goes online tomorrow. The Large Hadron Collider will explore the tiniest particles and re-enact parts of the Big Bang. Sure, there’s a small chance that the universe will wink out of existence when the thing is fired up, but it’s a pretty small chance. As Cory Doctorow reported: [A]s one physicist…
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Drilling in Alien Ice
Some of the most interesting places in the solar system are hidden under sheets of ice. The polar caps of Mars, Saturn’s moon Enceladus and Jupiter’s moon Europa will require drilling of some kind to explore thoroughly. The technology used for drilling in places like Greenland is heavy and complex, which rules it out for…
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Bleed All You Want, We’ll Make More
Researchers at US firm Advanced Cell Technology claim to have created a large number of red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells. They say that they can generate 10 to 100 billion red blood cells from a single six-well plate of stem cells. Using a cell line with an O- type would mean that…
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Happy Birthday to Us
The O*W*C blog turned two yesterday! Why, I remember when it was just a little cluster of electrons, and now it’s all grown up. :::sniff::: Now’s your chance to lay some feedback on us. What do you like about the blog? What could we improve? Are there topics you’d like to see us focus on?…
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Robot Controlled by Rat Brain
Researchers at the University of Reading in England have created a robot controlled entirely by a biological brain made of rat neurons. “Gordon” contains around 60 electrodes which pick up the neurons’ signals. When the robot approaches an object the electrodes stimulate the cluster of brain cells, which then responds by turning the wheels to…
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Discuss SF Authors During “Author August”
The Science Fiction Message Board is hosting its four annual Author August. Users are invited to discuss a different SF author every day of the month. Each Author August we celebrate a different sf writer every day, with reviews, reminiscences, cover scans, and general comments. This is a post-a-thon open to all who wish to…
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Russian/European Manned Spaceship Unveiled
The first official image of a reusable Russian/European manned spacecraft has been released. It will replace Russia’s current Soyuz vehicle and will allow Europe to participate in crew transportation. The ship will carry six crew into low-Earth orbit and four on missions to the Moon, which rivals the US Ares/Orion system. The new design includes…
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All Locus Awards Voters Are Not Created Equal
This is just plain wrong. Seems the ballot box was hit with a lot of Cory Doctorow’s online fans. Why change the rules after the vote? And are subscribers better than me? Link Remember how we called the Locus Awards “possibly the most democratic” of the science fiction awards? Well, uh, never mind. The Locus…
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Job Opening at SF Museum
The Science Fiction Museum in Seattle has a job opening for an Experience and Education Coordinator. This position supports the Manager of Interpretation and Educator resources by coordinating the training and efforts of the part-time gallery guides and floor volunteers. The guides and volunteers will provide excellent museum experiences for guided group visits to the…