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Friday, 30 September 2005
Soviet Storm
Man, where's Chekov when you need him? It turns out Hurricane Katrina was a Russian inwention, in a story that becomes even cooler when you factor in the Japanese Yakuza gangsters.
Penny Ellison
If there are two things this blog loves, it's ... well, if there were only two, I guess it would be this blog's wife, and God.Oh, and books.
Let's try this again...
There are many things this blog loves, and two of them of comic strips and Harlan Ellison bashing. So it amused this blog to read about a verbal tussle between the Penny Arcade creators and Harlan Ellison:
So then [Ellison] asks me if I even attended college and I say “No, I did not.” Then, he says “did you at least finish high school?”
I said that I had, but you couldn’t really hear me because the audience is laughing at me along with Harlen. So once they stop, I turn to him and I say, “While I’ve got you here I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed the Star Wars stuff you wrote.”
STS-121 Update
Shuttle program manager Wayne Hale has reiterated the possibility of a May launch for STS-121, followed by STS-115 in July. According to Hale, plans to fix the foam problems encountered during STS-114 would support that timetable, even accounting for hurricane-related delays.The May launch window stretches from May 3-22, and the next window is from June 30-July 19.
Expedition 12 Launch
The International Space Station Expedition 12 crew, along with space tourist Greg Olsen, will launch to ISS tonight at 10:42:44 p.m. CDT aboard a Soyuz spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.
Oh, Superman!
Per DVDFile:And there are rumors in the Superman department that in preparation for Bryan Singer's much-anticipated Superman movie next summer, Warner Bros. may have finally decided to release Richard Donner's frequently-bootlegged Superman II: Director's Cut. Of course, this is unconfirmed at this point; but as soon as we know anything, we'll let you know in time for you to change into your cape and fly, fly away..
Blogpoint Opportunity
Thursday, 29 September 2005
Today In History
On this date in 1988, the space shuttle Discovery took on Return to Flight duties for the first time on the STS-26 mission, the first since the loss of Challenger on Jan. 28, 1986.
No Ticket Home
It's now the day before he is scheduled to launch to the International Space Station as commander of the Expedition 12 crew, and Bill McArthur still doesn't have a seat lined up for a trip back to Earth.The agreement with Russia to allow U.S. use of Soyuz taxi service is set to expire at the end of the year, while McArthur is still aboard ISS. Since there's still no firm date for the space shuttle's Return to Return to Flight, no one's entirely sure when or how McArthur will be returning home.
A leading contender for his return is that Congress would be willing to grant an exception to the Iran Nonproliferation Act allowing NASA to buy Russian space hardware and services, which would let the agency purchase at the market rate a return seat on the Soyuz TMA-7 spacecraft on which McArthur will launch tomorrow. There had been hopes that this would be done by now, but, while there has been progress toward granting the exception, it hasn't happened yet.
Electric Endeavour
After being shut down for the better part of two years, Endeavour was powered up on Tuesday, signifying its return to flight status.Since Dec. 2003, Endeavour has been undergoing modifications, some of which were regularly scheduled upgrades, while others were changes mandated in the wake of the loss of Columbia. Those modifications are now complete, and OV-105 is now ready for normal launch processing. (Though it will still be 10 to 11 months before the orbiter is actually ready to fly again.)
Among the changes are a new GPS system that would allow Endeavour to land on any runway in the world in the event of an emergency.
Hatbag On Film
So, yeah, we missed last week. And the week before, we posted a new strip, but I think I failed to blog it here.But, anyway, there's some new Hatbag up on the Hatbag site. Enjoy.
Lost World
This post is here for any discussion of last night's Lost anybody wants to share.
Hitchhiker's Guide To Galactica
Good and bad news for anyone who missed the last season of Battlestar Galactica.The good news is that, unlike season one, which wasn't released on DVD until season two was basically over, too late to get caught up, a season two set will be released on Dec. 20.
The bad news, though, is that the three-disc "Battlestar Galactica: Season 2.0" set will only include the first half of the season, and yet will still have an MSRP of around $50. Word on special features is still pending.
Blogpoint Opportunity
Blogpoints will be awarded based on creativity to the authors of the best captions for this picture that Joe was kind enough to point out to me.
Also, in an unrelated editorial note, I've fixed an error in the blog list in the sidebar that had listed Jordan as the author of Abnormal Aspirations and Tutor as the author of Right Space.
Which, really, was kinda funny.
Wednesday, 28 September 2005
Spamusement
OK, I hereby officially declare that this cartoon has the coolest sound effect in all of comic strip history.
Not-Quite-Post-Mortem
Per USA Today:The space shuttle and International Space Station — nearly the whole of the U.S. manned space program for the past three decades — were mistakes, NASA chief Michael Griffin said Tuesday.
In a meeting with USA TODAY's editorial board, Griffin said NASA lost its way in the 1970s, when the agency ended the Apollo moon missions in favor of developing the shuttle and space station, which can only orbit Earth.
"It is now commonly accepted that was not the right path," Griffin said. "We are now trying to change the path while doing as little damage as we can."
Deleted Sith
Ain't It Cool has images from deleted scenes that will be included on the Revenge of the Sith DVD when it comes out on Nov. 1; if you're into that sort of thing.
Tuesday, 27 September 2005
GO To Orbit
Space.com has an article about Greg Olsen, who will become the third paying space tourist to visit ISS, when he launches late on Friday aboard the Soyuz TMA-7 spacecraft with the Expedition 12 crew.Olsen will be conducting some research for his sensor company while in orbit, and will also be assisting with some ESA experiments.
Davertainment
Wondering if anyone here at ATW had any opinions they wanted to share about the merits of either the Sheryl Crow album coming out today or the Serenity movie coming out Friday.I've never seen the Firefly, but am kind of interested in Serenity.
New Civilizations
In a nice bit of synergy for at least some ATW readers, I just learned that in the upcoming Civilization IV, when you discover new technologies, the game will reward you with a historic quote read by Leonard Nimoy.
A Few More iNotes
A few notes from MacNN:- Motorola CEO Ed Zander recently referred to the ROKR as "the next big thing happening in the industry - the fusion of the phone and music." Zander added, "ROKR with iTunes was a good beginning and there's more to come." You know, after months of hype about the ROKR, you'll have to forgive me if I'm a bit cynical.
- So according to a ZDNet article, the iPod nano is a "clunker" that "is fast becoming Apple's next Cube."
Also, according to a Forbes.com article, the nano "could be Apple's 'key product' into 2006, with many stores struggling to keep the devices in stock."
- Apple stock hit an all-time high yesterday.
- After Apple dumped IBM's processors allegedly in part for the failure of the company to deliver PowerPC processors on the schedule Apple desired, there are now reports that Intel's release schedule could delay the first Mactel computers.
Monday, 26 September 2005
Future 50
I was a little surprised, reading Boston.com's list of the Top 50 Science Fiction Television Shows of All Time that I had never known that the commander on Space:1999 was named Walter Koenig.Turns out the reason I'd never heard it before was that it's not true. His last name was Koenig, but his first name was John.
That said, I had to kind of take issue with the list. There were several shows along the way that I had to kind of question their relative rankings, but for Voyager to rank at 14 and DS9 not to make the list at all, that just blows the whole thing for me.
Date For Shenzhou?
There are conflicting reports, the usual state media hype and large dollops of secrecy, but a launch date of Oct. 13 has been reported for China's next manned spaceflight, Shenzhou VI, which will carry a crew of two on a mission lasting several day during which they will make use of the spacecraft's orbital module for the first time.(If the reported launch time is correct, in the U.S., the launch will actually take place on Oct. 12, at somewhere around 10 p.m. CDT. [I think, I get confused coverting during Daylight Savings Time.])
Rita Update
Per NASA:This is the latest information about NASA facilities affected by hurricane Rita.
Johnson Space Flight Center:
# There were no injuries.
# Facility surveys show only minor building / ground damage. One minor roll-up door was blown off its tracks and a few trees were blown down.
# Facilities are on utility power.
# Potable water is restored.
# Air conditioning systems are being brought on line as needed.
# Employees are on admin leave until Tuesday since they may experience problems getting back into the Houston area.
Michoud Assembly Facility:
# Potable water issue is still being worked by MSFC. Facility won't have water from utility for some time.
O No
I don't know that it would be the best thing to fire a new coach after one season, even if the team is poised to do worse than it did under Joe Lee Dunn, who was canned his first year back in 1994 after going 4-7 (Dunn, though, was only an interim in the job.)
However, if things don't change, I'm really beginning to believe that Pete Boone should be sent home at the end of the year.
This blog knows next to nothing about sports; but I and others predicted that Ole Miss was making a mistake in firing Cutcliffe. It appears we may have been right.
I realize you can't completely second guess what might have been. Maybe Cutcliffe would have lost to Vandy and Wyoming and to Memphis also. Maybe Orgeron is doing the best possible with what he's got, and is going to start kicking butt the second half of the season. Maybe after a slow start this year, he'll go on to be the best coach ever.
I can say, though, that this is not the nationally competitive team we were promised by Boone when Cutcliffe was fired. Of course, neither was Orgeron the coach we were promised when Cutcliffe was fired. (Another area where this blog sadly had better sports sense than the Ole Miss AD.)
Don't get me wrong; I'm not rooting against Orgeron. I desperately want to see Ole Miss rally and pull things out before the end of the year. I'm just saying, if they don't, I want to see some accountability.
Sunday, 25 September 2005
TV Carnage
I heard a while back that this is interesting, but that's about all I know about it, and haven't had the time to go back and learn more.
Anybody out there know anything?
Saturday, 24 September 2005
Blogpoint Opportunity
Once again, 10 Blogpoints to the person who most closely picks the results of the Ole Miss game before kick-off.
Sorry for forgetting to post this yesterday.
Friday, 23 September 2005
Post Post
From The Huntsville-Times:
MONTGOMERY - The Birmingham Post-Herald, once among the four largest newspapers in the state, won't be waking up after it's put to bed this morning.
"It's like being punched," said Bob Farley, chief photographer at the paper and an 18-year veteran. "It might not knock you down, but it's still a shock."
Employees found out Thursday morning the paper was shutting down when representatives from the Post-Herald's corporate parent, E.W. Scripps Co., read a written statement from the CEO, Ken Lowe.
Thursday, 22 September 2005
Lost Opportunity
So after catching up on season one of Lost over the last couple of weeks, I was really looking forward to watching the premiere of season two along with everyone else, and participating in some good Lost discussion that's so popular with the kids these days.
But, I really don't have anything to say about it. That said, if anybody does have any comments about last night's episode, they're welcome to start up a discussion.
STS-121 Update
Despite earlier rumors that the next shuttle launch may not come until October or later, the official target is May.
Planet Plan
So it appears that, rather than coming up with a set, concrete definition for what exactly is or isn't a planet, the IAU may instead establish new sets of types of astronomical objects that will render the term "planet" no more meaningful than it is today, but in a studied, well-defined meaninglessness.
Buying A Ride
Astronaut Bill McArthur is one step closer to having a ride home.McArthur, who is scheduled to launch next week to the International Space Station as commander of its Expedition 12 crew, will be on the Station at the end of the year, when the current agreement allowing U.S. use of Russian Soyuz vehicles expires. Without an agreement to allow him to use a Soyuz for his trip home, and with the next flight of the Space Shuttle possibly a year or more away, there are no concrete plans for McArthur's return to Earth.
Yesterday, though, the Senate voted to allow an exception to the Iran Nonproliferation Act, which would allow NASA to buy Russian hardware and services until 2012, which would clear the way to buy a return seat on the Soyuz TMA-7 spacecraft he will ride to orbit. The measure still requires approval from the House, though, before it can move forward.
Transfer Of Control
Per NASA:NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston closed at 2 p.m. EDT Wednesday due to the threat posed to the Houston-Galveston area by Hurricane Rita.
...
Primary flight control of the [International Space Station] will transition to the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev, outside Moscow. As usual, a group of NASA flight controllers is positioned at the Russian control center to assist with operations. Also, an advisory group of flight controllers will provide operations assistance from a remote location. All station systems are operating normally, and the crew has been informed of the plans for Johnson Space Center's closure.
40 Years
TrekToday has an article about how Paramount is gearing up to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Trek next year.That's great, Paramount. Thanks. Nice to know you care.
The Coming Storm
Please keep the areas in the path of Hurricane Rita in your thoughts and prayers over the next few days.I have a couple of friends in Houston (one of whom I know has evacuated) and several acquaintances there, and am hoping for the best for them.
Wednesday, 21 September 2005
Dear Reader2
I just came across the Reader2 site (Reader^2 ?), and have only just started experimenting with it, but thought I'd pass it along since it might be of interest to some ATW readers.The site lets you maintain a list of books you've read or are going to read and tell what you thought about them, and then check out other people's lists.
If I'm understanding it correctly, you should be able to check out my nascent list here. That said, stuff like this is always kinda depressing to me, because it tends to belie the self-image I like to have that I'm a have eclectic tastes, pointing out instead that I'm just a huge geek. (Yeah, shocking, I know.)
Escape Pod
OK, this is a new idea that I really hope doesn't become a trend: DVD extras that aren't even on the DVD.To mark the release of the third season of Enterprise on DVD, StarTrek.com will offer an exclusive podcast commentary for the awesome episode Twilight. Shouldn't this be on the DVD? I mean, I'm not going to be rushing out to buy the third season DVD set (see our earlier discussion about how overpriced Trek DVDs are), but if I do get it someday, I hate that I would have to go back and track that download down in order to hear the commentary. To say nothing of people who go out and buy it the minute it's released, and then have to keep track of where their copy of the commentary is if they want to be able to watch it 15 years down the road. If you're going to pay that sort of money for a season of Trek, seems like you should at least get the convenience of having the episode commentary on the same disc as the episode.
Some People Call Him Maurice
So according to AICN, the rumor mill is reporting that the Joker will be in the next Batman movie, something I'm not entirely sold on; but, making the news a little more agreeable, they're also reporting that Christopher Nolan will return to direct the second film, which makes me happy.Anyway, they're also reporting that the only two actors being considered for the role of the Joker are Lachy Hulme and Paul Bettany. To be honest, I've never heard of either (though I must have seen Hulme in the final Matrix film, and Bettany's been in some big movies I iddn't see), but I'm taking that as a good thing -- I'm in favor of an unknown in the role, both because they won't bring baggage to the role of the Joker, and because it's yet another step away from the nightmare days of Schwarzennegger and Jim Carrey as Batman villians.
Tuesday, 20 September 2005
By Any Other Name
So it's interesting to see the search strings that lead people to ATW, and then to follow some of them back and see who else is using certain terms.For example, this site comes in higher for a search for The Leonardo Code, but also beat us to the use of that title by a good seven months.
On the other hand, this forum, which comes in second after us in a search for All These Worlds, didn't start using the name until this month (though they appear to have just stolen it from the same place I stole it from).
While I'm on the subject, I think it may be time for another search string Blogpoint competition. Points will be awarded based on creativity and volume for search strings that yield ATW as the first result.
For example:
Steve Jobs eats ribs with George Lucas
or
Cyborg Jordan can kill Richie in space
The Future, Revealed
So NASA announced the results of the ESAS study yesterday morning, revealing the plans for the return to the moon. (The feature at that link has not only a story about the plan, but also a Flash feature, complete with mission animation [for bonus fun, use your iTunes to find the best music to accompany the animation].)The highlights:
- Crewed use of the new Crew Exploration Vehicle will begin early in the next decade. Online materials indicate a target date of 2011, but I would have sworn I heard 2012 yesterday. Either way, that would be a year or two after the shuttle goes offline. In addition to being used for lunar missions, the CEV could be used for LEO missions, like ISS crew transfer or space telescope servicing. (Though it seems like it would be much more of a challenge to do the latter than with the shuttle, lacking the grappling arm and bay area.) The CEV will have similar moldlines to the Apollo CSM, but will reportedly be three times larger, able to carry six astronauts to LEO, or four astronauts on lunar missions. The CEV can also be used as a cargo transfer vehicle.
- Going online at the same time as the CEV will be a Crew Launch Vehicle, a new rocket booster created by combining a Shuttle SRB with a liquid-fuel upper stage. This booster will be used to launch the CEV into orbit. The shuttle-derived architecture should simplify the process of human-rating the new launch vehicle.
- A second, more powerful booster will go online after the CLV is completed. In fact, saying "more powerful" is probably an understatement -- it's pretty close to "most powerful," with numbers so close to the Saturn V that I'm not sure which has the edge right now. This is a serious rocket. Two strap-on SRB boosters will be at least 25 percent more powerful than the ones used today on the shuttle. The liquid-fuel core first stage will have five SSMEs, the powerful main engine the shuttle has three of. An "Earth-departure" upper stage will use updated versions of the Saturn V upper-stage engines.
- Rounding out the system will be a lunar lander, which will likely be not dissimilar in concept to the Apollo LM.
- Robotic return to the moon will begin between 2008 and 2011 to gather information which will be used to select human landing sites.
- In 2013, NASA will begin manufacture of the resources needed for long-duration stays on the moon.
- Human presence on the moon will resume in 2018, with a one-week stay by four astronauts.
- Work will then ramp up towards permanent presence, with a goal of crews rotating in six-month increments.
Monday, 19 September 2005
My Awesomely Bad iPod
How many of VH1's 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs are on your iPod (or iTunes or inferior analog).
My list is below. (Songs I have are in bold). (more)
Used tags: ipod, itunes, meme, monkeys, music
Byrne-ing The Wikipedia
So it turns out the Wikipedia has been edited up John Byrne-style. The comics creator has gone in and stripped out most of the entry about him.Comics angle aside, it's an interesting development in the question of the validity of an open-source encyclopedia.
BTW, Matey
Oh, by the way, today is Talk Like A Pirate Day.
Aaarrrrrrr!
Michoud Update
Per NASA:Recovery efforts at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans are progressing better than originally anticipated, almost three weeks after Hurricane Katrina struck. Power has been restored to the entire complex where space shuttle external fuel tanks are made. Temporary repairs have been made to damaged buildings.
Due to the progress, the Space Shuttle program has decided to keep tank work at Michoud.
...
Preparations are also under way to ship two external tanks from Kennedy back to Michoud by barge. External tank #120 is expected to arrive at Michoud in early October. It will be examined and portions of it dissected to better understand why foam came off during Space Shuttle Discovery's launch last July. External tank #119 will be sent back to Michoud in late October.
NASA is still working to contact 76 of more than 2,000 Michoud employees.
Ad Luna Update
NASA administrator Mike Griffin will announce the results of the Exploration Systems Architecture Study on Monday, Sept. 19, at 10 a.m. CDT in NASA Headquarters' James E. Webb Auditorium.The news conference will be carried live on NASA Television and www.nasa.gov/ntv
Disappointing Discovery
So it turns out all the searches ATW's been getting about Jordan's Spongebob shoes don't actually have anything to do with the real Jordan.
Speaking Of Open Letters
Dear Pete Boone,So, that whole new coach thing working out for you the way you'd hoped?
Sunday, 18 September 2005
Open Letter To Frank Miller
Dear Frank Miller,I liked the first Dark Knight pretty good. And Year One was great.
In retrospect, I think the Batman-Spawn thing was the turning point.
It's not that I'm worried about Batman. There have been plenty of different interpretations of the character over the years, some good, some bad. He's survived worse than the hack you're becoming.
It's more just that I'd like to have overall fond memories of your early work on Batman. And that's rapidly become less likely. When I heard you were going to be writing All-Star, my first reaction was one of concern. But, you know, it's Frank Miller on Batman. I'll give it a chance.
Which brings me to this:
Dear Frank Miller, please leave Batman alone.
Please.
Saturday, 17 September 2005
2046
So Nicole and I went to see the 2046 today. Beautiful, with a story too pathetic to be sad.
Friday, 16 September 2005
Happy Birthday!
Happy 80th birthday today to the King of the Blues, B.B. King!
One Last Cat Pic
OK, I promise I'm not going to be the sort of blogger who's going to post cat pics all the time; just wanted to do one last pic since I couldn't get a good shot of 'em both last time.
And actually, this is a decent shot of Apollo (on the right), but less so of Soyuz (on the left).
So there's your first and likely last ATW Friday Cat Blogging.
Blogpoint Opportunity
Predictions, of course, must be posted before the 11:30 a.m. kickoff tomorrow.
Meritous Performance
Congratulations to my brother Matthew for being named as a National Merit Semifinalist.
Matthew's award completes a three-for-three run for the Hitt brothers.
Saving The Saturn
Restoration work on Huntsville's Saturn V is well underway and should be complete around the end of next month.More funds are still needed to build a building to preserve the Saturn in its restored condition. As much as I support this project, right now I would say to give any money you want to donate to Katrina relief rather than the Saturn restoration, but, as those needs lessen in the future, this is a cause to remember.
Ad Luna Update
Per NASA Watch:As promised, NASA has completed the Exploration Systems Architecture Study (ESAS). The ESAS study has accomplished the following tasks:
* Development of a reference Lunar exploration architecture concept to support sustained human and robotic Lunar exploration operations.
* Definition of top-level requirements and configurations for crew and cargo launch systems to support the Lunar and Mars exploration programs.
* Identification of key technologies required to enable and significantly enhance these reference exploration systems, and a re-prioritization of near-term and far-term technology investments.
* Complete assessment of the top-level Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) requirements and plans to enable the CEV to provide crew transport to the International Space Station (ISS) to reduce the gap between Shuttle retirement and initial development of CEV and the crew launch system (CLV).
We appreciate your patience over the last few months and would like to offer the opportunity to provide you with a briefing on the ESAS. On Monday, September 19th at 9:00 a.m., NASA will provide a 1 hour briefing on the ESAS results.
Funding The Future
It's still a good way from being official, but the Vision for Space Exploration won a victory yesterday when the Senate voted to almost fully fund NASA's FY06 budget request. While the allotment is smaller than that voted on in the House earlier (which actually exceeded NASA's request), the the Senate vote comes with the knowledge that a huge chunk of change will be needed for Katrina relief, which some had feared could mean a cut for NASA.The two chambers will now agree to a jointly accepted version of the budget.
Surprising News
TrekWeb has excerpts from a Star Trek Magazine interview with Rick Berman. I thought the last bit of this quote was rather revealing:As soon as [executive producer] Manny Coto arrived, with his passion for the intermediate period between STAR TREK ENTERPRISE and STAR TREK THE ORIGINAL SERIES, he came up with numerous ideas that, in addition to the stories we actually did execute in Season Four, would have continued to have touched on more of the things that would eventually be raised in THE ORIGINAL SERIES. There were so many good ideas. And these ideas were not only from Manny, but from other members of the staff. We would have had no problem coming up with an exciting fifth season that incorporated and celebrated STAR TREK's past or, actually, its future. There were a lot of ideas. There were a lot of threads that could have been created, but if I start pulling out original episodes of the original series as examples, I'm just going to get all garbled up."
Also regarding the next Trek film, Berman said, "There's nothing new to tell you right now. There is absolutely nothing new."
Thursday, 15 September 2005
"Blogging" Goes Mainstream?
Here's some exciting news from The Associated Press:
SAN FRANCISCO - A new Google Inc. specialty search engine sifts through the Internet's millions of frequently updated personal journals, a long-anticipated development expected to help propel "blogging" into the cultural mainstream.You know, I've heard about this so-called "blogging" before, but it's hard to believe it would ever be of interest to the common man.
The new tool, unveiled Wednesday at http://blogsearch.google.com, focuses exclusively on the material contained in the journals known as Web logs, or "blogs."
After all, there are only 17 million "blogs," and with about 12,000 new "blogs" being created every day, or one every 7.4 seconds, that means that it seems that this "blogging" could never become any more mainstream, than, say, reproduction (at one child born in the U.S. every 7 seconds).
I just wonder if this "Google" they're talking about is up to the task of bringing public attention to such an arcane topic.
Addendum: Someone reading that might get the impression that The AP is somehow out of touch. But it's completely untrue. As it turns out, The AP is hip.
Ad Luna
The future, it appears, begins next week.After reportedly being delayed by OMB concerns, NASA is expected to reveal its plan for implementing the Vision for Space Exploration next week, after receiving a go-ahead from the White House yesterday.
Under the plans, humans would again land on the Moon 50 years after they first orbited it, in 2018, when a four-person crew would begin the new era of lunar exploration with a one-week stay.
Pick The Cosmonaut
From SpaceDaily:Malaysian citizens will reportedly be able to help choose their nation's first astronaut. Malaysia Science Minister Jamaluddin Jarjis said citizens will be able to choose from among a short list of candidates and then vote by text message, the BBC reported Wednesday.
...
The would-be astronaut candidates' profiles and their progress during training will be posted on the Internet. Citizens will then be allowed to vote and Malaysian space agency officials will take those votes into consideration when they make their selection, officials said.
If the contest proves popular and the government charges for the votes, it may even be able to cover the cost of its space program, the BBC reported.
A Few iNotes
A few notes from MacNN:- Walt Mossberg has reviewed the iTunes-enhanced ROKR phone, and says while it's not all that great, it's better than the competition.
- Accordking to a MacWorld study, iPod owners carry more music on average than owners of other digital music players. Frankly, I was kinda surprised at how low the averages were. My primary iPod is less than one-third full, and it has four times the average number of songs. (Though if you averaged my iPod, Nicole's, and the Shuffle, it's less than twice their average.)
- Peeking into the source code of iTunes 5 reveals hints about Apple's rumored iTMS video feature.
Enterprise Helmsman
Godspeed, Robert Wise
Wednesday, 14 September 2005
Today
Eh, look, it's just not a day for blogging. Sorry.
Here's something to tide you over.
Talk amongst yourselves.
Tuesday, 13 September 2005
New Q
Per Quark.com:“Our new logo is one of the most articulate symbols of the new Quark, and I feel proud to have led the team that worked on it,” said Susan Friedman, senior vice president of strategic relations at Quark. “It’s a positive sign of change that has re-energized our staff and caught the attention of our customers and partners, who understand that Quark is dedicated to relationships built on trust and mutual goals. There’s a positive energy with our customers right now, and they’re shaping where this company is going, and how we’ll get there.”
Sure, Quark is no longer really a part of my life, but we were together for so many years, that there will always be fond feelings. That said, the new logo? Not really something to get too excited about.
Less Limited Power!
With the dwindling number of Shuttle flights that can be flown to the International Space Station before the fleet is retired, NASA is pursuing a way to increase the amount of time the Shuttle can spend at the Station without increasing the number of flights. Following up on an idea originally suggested by former astronaut Owen Garriott, NASA has contracted Boeing to develop a Station-Shuttle Power Transfer System, which will allow power to be transferred from the Station to the Shuttle, increasing the amount of time the Shuttle can spend docked to the Station. The news release says the change will increase duration limits from eight days to 12, and that it is scheduled to first be used on STS-119.
Nanometer
Ars Technica has a pretty thorough iPod nano review, in which they not only go through a typical assesment of the new device, but then try to break it (and succeed), and then take it apart.Because of the distinct lack of expected damage from the first two car drops, we sped up to 50mph and launched the nano on an impressive slide and tumble that, again, really only scratched the surface
...
What were we to do now? Baffled, we did the only thing we could think of at the time: we ran over the nano again!
On Shelves Today
Today's ATW recommendations among new media hitting shelves today are the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy DVD and a new album of duets with B.B. King, 80.(Also, if you remove the hyphens from the Amazon track listings, some of them are kinda funny, like "Ain’t Nobody Home with Darryl Hall & John Oates" and "Funny How Time Slips Away with Bobby Bland" and "Rock This House with Elton John.")
Monday, 12 September 2005
STS-121 Update
Per Aviation Week:Administrator Michael D. Griffin says early estimates of a slip in the next flight from March to October 2006 were probably too pessimistic, but agency spaceflight managers need more information before setting even a planning date.
"I honestly don't have the data to talk to you intelligently about what the date would be," says William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for space operations.
Managers moved analysis of tank foam loss during the STS-114 mission to Marshall Space Flight Center, and planned to do non-destructive evaluation of key foam sites on the next tank to fly at Kennedy Space Center instead of at the Michoud tank facility in New Orleans.
October Sky
Contrary to reports that China's Shenzhou 6 second manned spaceflight could launch sometime this month, SpaceDaily published an article today saying the mission will not launch until sometime after 7 October (Shenzhou V launched on 15 October in 2003).
In The Shadow Of 2003UB313
Spaceflight Now has an article about two other interesting bodies recently discovered in our solar system that were overshadowed by the announcement of "10th planet" 2003UB313. The two new Kuiper Belt objects are both unusual in their own right, with one, nicknamed Santa, being a superfast-rotating cigar-shaped object.One other note of interest from the article:
...while one IAU committee is taking its time deciding whether or not it is a planet, other committees have to wait until they know what it is before they can consider a name.
The fact that the IAU is taking its time with the decision, to me, is great news.
Sunday, 11 September 2005
Never Forget
Image from here.
Saturday, 10 September 2005
Personal Notes
Two quick notes:- According to the USPS Web site, my Strange New Worlds story has been delivered. No comes three and a half months of waiting. That said, though, my part is done. The story is written; it's been submitted. I've done what I wanted to do.
- The cats have names: Apollo and Soyuz. Thanks for the suggestions.
Friday, 9 September 2005
Art Meets Media
So I can remember, many many moons ago, before speech was integrated into the Mac OS, playing with the Talking Moose, which, among other functions, would let you type text into it that it would then read. It provided hours of entertainment to type in songs lyrics, and hear them delivered by the Moose's artificial monotone.
The technology has changed a good bit in 15 years, but the same spirit lives on in Dictionaraoke, which takes karaoke tracks to songs, and adds the lyrics using the spoken examples from online dictionaries.
Armstrong Ate Here
The trays feature the NASA meatball in one corner, and have been used at JSC since the center's early days. They're now being replaced, so you can buy them for just $5 each. Here's your chance to get a genuine piece of space history that may have been used by someone like Neil Armstrong or John Glenn. Heck, you can even eat off your tray and pretend that it's one of the ones used by yours truly during one of the times I've eaten at the JSC cafeteria.
Off Their ROKR
I was kind of amused by this blogpost that MacNN linked to today about "the lameness of Apple's ROKR iPhone":...frankly, I was expecting more. ... But instead of getting something with an unexpected cool factor, I got exactly what Apple hinted at...
Glad to see I wasn't the only one expecting the unexpected.
Thursday, 8 September 2005
There Be Kitties Here!
OK, so, yeah, Nicole and I got a couple of kittens yesterday.
Still no names (I'd hoped to let people vote on names today, but we're not even that far yet).
Wasn't able to get a good pic of both brothers, but here are a few shots.
Bagged And Bored
Showing how major events have repercussions you don't expect, I think Katrina has caused Hatbag to fall in the two webcomic polls it's in, which would make sense, since a decent contigent of its votes come from Jackson, which was without power for a while.Anyway, go check out this week's new Hatbag and maybe do a little voting.
Regular Richie Feature
Search strings for Hatbag.net for the first week of September:- popeye's chicken
- admiral kirk
- useless bush
- In a mirror darkly
- CNN news
- Mario Brothers Mushrooms
- anakin ghost
- arlo and janis 05.22.1999
- cable vs
- cyborg superman
- funny kitten
- index of liz phair mp3
- sean hannity and george w. bush
- spare time magazine
- "Mars""terraform"
Today In History
On Thursday, Sept. 8, 1966, at 8:30 p.m., NBC debuted the new television series, Star Trek with the third episode filmed, "Man Trap."
STS-121 Update
Per James Oberg, MSNBC:HOUSTON — As NASA continues to assess the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the future of the shuttle program, at least one official is warning it could take up to a year before the next flight takes off.
...
MSNBC.com has obtained an “extremely preliminary” planning document written by Wayne Hale, NASA’s deputy shuttle program manager, in which he concludes: “Launch dates before the fall of 2006 may not be credible."
Mysteries Of The Cosmos
Space.com has an interesting article providing a post-mortem on Cosmos I, the Planetary-Society-developed solar sail demonstrator spacecraft, that posits a credible theory about the odd circumstances behind the death of Cosmos I, which the Russian launch team says never made it into space, but which the control team believe sent back signals upon arriving in space.The Planetary Society has already decided to take another shot at building a solar-sail spacecraft, and is raising funds for the effort. I finally this weekend got around to joining the Planetary Society, not specifically because of Cosmos I, but more because of people I respect who are involved with the Society.
World Ceres
Based on new Hubble images of Ceres, an asteroid belt object that is the largest known asteroid, astronomers believe that the mini-world maycontain more fresh water than Earth, frozen as ice within its core.On the downside, though, based on stuff like the fact that Ceres has a round shape apparently formed due to its own gravitational forces, some are now tossing around terms like mini-planet to describe the asteroid. I, for one, will be quite glad when the IAU finally makes a ruling on just what a planet is and isn't, and really hope it's sufficiently strict to put a rest to using even a variation of the term to describe asteroids and KBOs.
On Its Way
Well, I've crossed another major threshhold in the world of geekdom -- I put my Star Trek story in the mail for the Strange New Worlds contest yesterday. (If you were one of the couple of people who were reviewing it, don't worry about it now, I had to send it on. If you'd read any and liked it, feel free to pass that on; if you saw things that should be changed, please don't tell me know.)When I was in middle school, I started working on a Trek novel; back in the days went Trek referred exclusively to TOS. It involved a temporal rift causing TOS-era Federation technology to end up in the Klingon empire in the past, causing the "contemporary" Klingons to have a huge technological advantage over Starfleet. I remember spending a lot of time working on it; and at the time thought I'd written a huge amount. While it probably was a good bit for a middle schooler, I doubt my total product before I quit was anywhere near as long as the story I submitted for the SNW contest.
Much later, in college, when I should have known better, I wrote the opening of (I believe) an alternate-reality TNG-era story that would have involved a clone of Khan being found on Earth. I liked the idea, but realized it would never go anywhere, the opening part was a McCoy and Spock vignette, and was more a writing exercise than anything else.
So, yeah, I'm enough of a geek that I've done a tiny bit of a Trek writing in the past, but have now crossed the line into writing a complete story and submitting it. In my defense, though, it's not really so much a matter of taking my first step into a larger geeky world as it is finally getting that out of my system so that I can move on.
Honest.
Nano, Nano
Wired's Cult of Mac blog is predicting big things for the tiny iPod nano, quoting a market research firm as saying it will be the item to buy this holiday season and increase Apple's already-high market share of digital music devices, with fourth-quarter sales figures possibly as high more than half the number of iPods sold in the last four years.The article also predicts that the ROKR phone will be a hit. Me, I'm just gonna put an Apple sticker on the phone I have now and pretend.
Wednesday, 7 September 2005
iPhone Update
So, after months of waiting, the iTunes phone has been unveiled.
In the parlance of the hip kids on the internet, meh.
(Though I have absolutely no need for one, I do look forward to seeing the iPod nano in person.)
Leonardo Code Update
OK, so here's the deal. At Joe's great suggestion, we're going to do multiple endings to The Leonardo Code.The way it will work is, there will be no more regular additions to The LC. Instead, working from what's been written currently, multiple people will pick up where it leaves off and write their own ending. Anybody who has contributed to the book so far is invited to contribute an ending.
Toward that end, I was considering making available another printed copy of the book so far, like the ones some of you have seen. I find it easier to read a hard copy than a computer screen, and I need to reread the whole thing before writing my ending. Point being, if anybody wants one, I can make it available. For that matter, even if you aren't writing an ending, but just would like a copy, let me know. A while back, I talked to Lain about the possibility of putting together a special one-off "movie adaptation" cover for this printing, but in light of recent events, that sort of got shuffled to the back burner.
Finally, November is still a ways away, but there's been a wee bit of talk about trying this again this year. If we do, the major goal would be to make it more accessible. Perhaps if we did something with more of anthology nature, so that you could add something even if you hadn't read everything that had been written before? There's also been some discussion whether we should pursue a different genre this time around. Of course, there's also nothing saying we have to base the project around NaNoWriMo next time around.
So, three questions:
1) If you have contributed already to The Leonardo Code, would you like to write an ending?
2) If a print copy of The LC thus far were made available, would you want to buy one? (I'm guessing it'd be about $7-8, plus S&H)
3) Any thoughts on a new ATW writing project after The LC is finished?
Turing The Internet
So this should probably go under linkdump, but I'm trying not to rotate things through New Additions too quickly, and it's pretty good stuff.
How I failed the Turing test
Who Mourns For Denver?
What does it say about our society when a blog named What Would Gilligan Do doesn't even note the passing of Bob Denver?
China's Return To Flight
After a gap between flights that in the U.S. occurs only after a major spaceflight disaster or a substantial shift in spaceflight programs, China may make is second manned spaceflight this month. Or it may not. (In addition to being slow, the Chinese space program is also shy; or rather, secretive, they do talk a lot about it without saying anything.)I really do think it's great that the Chinese are pursuing a human spaceflight program, and hope that they inspire other nations to do likewise. But I really think the hype should be stepped down a notch until they are ready to pursue a program equivalent at least to what the U.S. was doing in the early 1960s. The technology is there, since other nations developed it, but the ambition and openness are absent.
Small New Worlds
Saturn's tiny moon, Enceladus, with a diameter about as wide as Mississippi is tall, is "without a doubt one of the most spectacular things Cassini has seen," according to a member of the spacecraft's science team.In addition to indications of a history that seems to make no sense, the small moon has conditions, including the presence of simple organic materials, that they say make it a strong candidate for future searches for evidence of life.
Songs Of Love
Per CNN:The Emmy Awards will be singing a different tune at this month's ceremony, and it could be a classic.
In an "American Idol"-style competition, stars and singers ranging from William Shatner to Donald Trump to Frederica von Stade will perform themes from TV series, with viewers able to pick their favorite song via online or text-message voting.
William Shatner ("Boston Legal") and opera's von Stade with the theme from Shatner's 1960s series "Star Trek."
So what exactly does that mean? The other examples they give are all TV themes with lyrics, but on the other hand, he's teamed with an opera singer. So will they be singing the wordless theme actually aired? "Oooooohh oooooohhh oooooooooooohh oooohh oooohhh oooooh ooooooh"? Or will they be singing the actual words to the theme? The whole "Love, strange love a star woman teaches" bit? The first option sounds so deliciously bad that it could be entertaining, but it would be very cool to have the lyrics sung up Kirk-style.
iPhone Update
Today? Maybe?The music announcement, whatever it is, will be today. Haven't found a time for it to start in any official news sources today, but saw one forum saying it would begin at 10 a.m. PST. Assuming they mean PDT, they would be noon CDT. If anyone hears anything better, let me know.
In the meantime, here's an article arguing that Apple should make their own darned phone (and assuming that the rumor is untrue that the Motorola phone will be Apple cobranded, which makes me sad).
Tuesday, 6 September 2005
Blogpoint Update
Congratulations to Jonathan, who, if my records are right, became the first person other than Lain or Joe to win a monthly Blogpoint contest!Results for August were as follows:
Jonathan--146 Blogpoints
Lain--130 Blogpoints
Joe--123 Blogpoints
Mrs. Tutor--28 Blogpoints
Richie--23 Blogpoints
Chris--10 Blogpoints
Another Chris--10 Blogpoints
So far, Tutor's in the lead for September for his football-picking skills.
Pearls Of Wisdom
One of my coworkers just shared this with me.
Go. Read. Now.
Especially you, Richie. Oh, and especially Joe, too, I guess.
Jam Y'all
Just a reminder that Big Spring Jam in Huntsville is coming up on Sept. 23-25.
STS-121 Update
Per Florida Today:CAPE CANAVERAL - A six-month slip in NASA's next shuttle mission, coupled with hurricane damage to its external tank factory in New Orleans, is prompting the agency to move a lot of hardware around Kennedy Space Center.
...
The spaceship, which will be moved back to its processing hangar Tuesday, was connected to a 15-story external tank with attached solid rocket boosters. Technicians will begin disassembling the tank-booster set next week.
...
Atlantis' segmented boosters will be taken apart because they would have been stacked for 12 months in December, exceeding a time limit. A new set will be built up and the old segments will be shipped back to their Utah manufacturer.
The fuel tank for NASA's next mission, which is set for launch next March but faces likely delays, arrived back at KSC on Friday.
The barge carrying it was headed back to the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, but reversed course to avoid Hurricane Katrina. The storm seriously damaged the factory.
Review World
TrekWeb has a review of Strange New Worlds 8, the Star Trek anthology that includes a story by former DM staffer Amy Vincent, though it makes only passing mention of her story.As much as I'm shamed to admit it, the copy of this anthology that Nicole gave me for my birthday is setting at the top of my to-read pile at home. I've been wanting to read some of the stories before submitting my own for the next contest to get a feel for how it measures up, but at the same time sort of fear doing so.
mini Flash
So whatever else tomorrow's Apple music announcement does or doesn't bring (and the phone appears likely), The Register is giving credence to the rumors that there will be a new, non-Shuffle flash-based product, specifically, a new flash-based, color-screen update of the iPod mini.For anyone out there that's been eyeing a Shuffle, they're also reporting that a new two-gig Shuffle will be announced, and prices on the current versions will fall.
Thumbing Through It
If anyone's interested, DVDFile has a review of the Hitchhiker's Guide movie. Sounds like it's a bit more anemic on the special features than I might have liked to have seen for this movie, but, of course, that won't affect my buying decision. (Wal-Mart has the BBC series on DVD for like $27, I'd really love to see them run a sale on it in connection to the release of the movie.)
Monday, 5 September 2005
Will Call
I've got a couple of coupons to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center here; one for free admission and one for $2 off. They expire Sept. 25. If someone would want to use them, I'd love for you to take them.
Sunday, 4 September 2005
Lost Again
I really don't keep up much with television. I don't watch a whole lot of stuff that's on currently, so I don't really follow new shows. I read the occassional article in EW, hear people talking about something, whatever; but that's really about it.
So last year, Lost was already on, I believe, before I even heard about it. The stuff I read about it made it sound interesting, but there's a pretty wide gap between interesting-sounding and worth-my-time for me. So I pretty much ignored it.
Then, of course, I started hearing people say how great it was. That also wasn't enough to make it through my threshold of interest; when it comes to the general public, a lot of people like a lot of crap.
Finally, I started hearing that it was good from some sources that I actually do take seriously, but, by then, it was well into the season. And, from what I heard, it wasn't the sort of series that you could really just pick up at any point and appreciate fully.
So now, the first season hits DVD on Tuesday, and I've got a second chance at it. Now, though, the is-it-worth-the-investment stakes are higher -- it's no longer just a question of watching the show every week; I would have to pay the money to buy the DVD now, and finish the first season by the time the second one premieres on Sept. 21 -- an average well over an episode per day (technically, I realize I could just record the first couple of episodes of the new season and buy myself a bit more time, but you get the idea [OK, it's probably time now for me to end this sentence]).
Anyway, all this to say I'd be curious to hear what people thought of the show -- if you liked it, why; if you didn't, why; if you didn't watch it, why?
Thanks.
Saturday, 3 September 2005
Blogpoint Opportunity
Since I have absolutely nothing better to say, I'll give 10 Blogpoints to the person who can most closely pick the outcome of the Ole Miss-Memphis game Monday. (Your entry has to be made before kick-off, natch.)
Friday, 2 September 2005
All These Worlds
This multispectra Hubble "video" of the rotation of Neptune and the orbit of its moons is kinda cool in its own right, but in the context of the "video" of the MESSENGER flyby of Earth I posted earlier this week just goes to drive home how spectacular our homeworld truly is.
Transitions
For what it's worth, here's an excerpt from Japanese newspaper The Daily Yomiuri:Construction work on the International Space Station will be drastically scaled back and its use will be opened to the private sector in a plan set to be announced by U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration chief Michael Griffin, sources involved in U.S. space development programs said Tuesday.
The scaledown plan came as the postponement of the next launch of NASA's space shuttle has disrupted the schedule of delivering materials necessary for construction and maintenance work on the ISS.
And, in an only-semi-related bit of news from Aerospace Daily & Defense Report:
Changes to the Iran Nonproliferation Act to allow NASA to buy Russian space goods and services could see legislative action starting next week.
A House Science Committee spokesman told The DAILY that the congressional version of a Bush Administration proposal should be pushed through the House by the House Judiciary Committee in September, as part of a yet-identified bill. House and Senate science authorizers also plan to add the provision to their bill during a House-Senate conference on the fiscal 2006 NASA authorization.
iPhone Update
So Forbes is reported that not only will they be announced next week, but the iTunes phones will be Apple-branded. Take it for what it's worth, of course -- they may just be making an assumption rather than acting on some sort of insider information. Since there started being rumors of Apple involvement in a cell phone, I've always thought it would be really cool if they actually had an Apple on them, but had about decided it was too much to hope for. If it's true, it certainly ups the odds that I'm gonna have to get one.
Supporting rumors that the phone will be revealed on Sept. 7 is this news bit reporting that a commercial for the phone was shot this week.
Live Starr
Any Garrison Starr fans in the audience who haven't done so recenly should go by a visit the iTunes Music Store.Not only has iTunes added the 9:30 album that used to be an eMusic exclusive, they've also added a pair of Kufala albums of a series of concerts Garrison and a handful of other artists performed in LA under the name "The North La Brea All-Starr Conquistadors." The albums are a collection of live performances, each by a different artist. The first two of a five-album series are currently available, featuring a total of 11 G*-led tracks. For those without iTunes, hard copies of the two-CD albums are also available (albeit the $20 price is higher than iTunes -- about $29 more than just getting the Garrison tracks, and double the cost of getting the full albums on iTunes, which I kinda now regret not doing).
The live CDs include some of her recent stuff, some stuff from the upcoming album and stuff like her cover of Time After Time that she's been doing in concerts.
Also, iTMS has added a CD by someone named Shawn Amos, which feaures two duet tracks with Garrison.
Robot War: Addendum
So the other day, I got my first bit of Robot War inspired artwork. Actually, I don't think the artwork was inspired by the Robot War, but the fact that it was sent to me was. Someone out there by the name of Kyle recently came across the first battle of the Robot War in which a Dalek beat up on R2D2 pretty good, and sent me a piece of artwork he had done. The premise: What if, instead of fighting, the Dalek and R2D2 had had a child together?
I thought it was funny (and a decent job of capturing it), and since it related to ATW, I thought I'd share it:
Thursday, 1 September 2005
Freeman On The Moon
collectSPACE has posted a list of the complete cast of the Magnficent Desolation 3D IMAX movie about the Apollo missions to the Moon.Several space movie veterans will perform voice roles in the film, including a couple reprising roles from other performances.
I thought this part was interesting, though:
The other moonwalkers' dialogue was recorded by actors new to the astronaut role: Morgan Freeman as Neil Armstrong; Matthew McConaughey as Alan Bean; Matt Damon as Al Shepard; Paul Newman as Dave Scott; John Travolta as Jim Irwin;
Morgan Freeman as Armstrong? I love the Morgan Freeman, but he just seems sort of unlikely for the role; his voice is too distinctive in my opinion to be convincing as Neil.
For the complete cast list, visit collectSPACE.
Used tags: apollo, collectspace, history, movies, space
Jonathan Hitt post
So at various points in time, I've been the top result in a Google search for my name, albeit briefly. Given that while I was in Indianola, I was barely in the first few pages, I'm pleased just to be back on the top five. (This blog, on the other hand, after taking forever to show up anywhere near the beginning in a search for All These Worlds is now number one on Google. In fact, it's number one even if you just search for 'These Worlds')
My brother, on the other hand, has had to live with the ignominy of the fact that the top result for a search for "Jonathan Hitt" yields information about a very bad person. Not only is Jonathan Hitt, my brother, down the list, but this person is what people looking for him are going to find.
As a result, this post is an attempt to use my superior Google-fu to get the real Jonathan Hitt into first place in a Google search for Jonathan Hitt. Thank you.
Hatbag Of Glass
So this week's new Hatbag is now online.
STS-121 Update
So now it may be May.While damage at Michoud and Stennis could have been much, much worse, the damage at Michoud in particular could very well end up delaying the next Space Shuttle mission. Rumor has that some ET preparation work for the next flight will be moved to Florida, and that NASA will aim for the May 3-22 launch window for STS-121.
Two-Gyro Hubble
Per NASA:NASA's Hubble Space Telescope entered a new era of science operations this week, when engineers shut down one of the three operational gyroscopes aboard the observatory. The two-gyro mode is expected to preserve the operating life of the third gyro and extend Hubble's science observations through mid-2008, an eight-month extension.
A decision on whether the Shuttle will fly a final Hubble servicing mission is on hold at least until after STS-121 is flown successfully.
Friday, 30 September 2005
Soviet Storm
(Read Entry)
Penny Ellison
(Read Entry)
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)
Expedition 12 Launch
(Read Entry)
Oh, Superman!
(Read Entry)
Blogpoint Opportunity
(Read Entry)Thursday, 29 September 2005
Today In History
(Read Entry)
No Ticket Home
(Read Entry)
Electric Endeavour
(Read Entry)
Hatbag On Film
(Read Entry)
Lost World
(Read Entry)
Hitchhiker's Guide To Galactica
(Read Entry)
Blogpoint Opportunity
(Read Entry)Wednesday, 28 September 2005
Spamusement
(Read Entry)
Not-Quite-Post-Mortem
(Read Entry)
Deleted Sith
(Read Entry)Tuesday, 27 September 2005
GO To Orbit
(Read Entry)
Davertainment
(Read Entry)
New Civilizations
(Read Entry)
A Few More iNotes
(Read Entry)Monday, 26 September 2005
Future 50
(Read Entry)
Date For Shenzhou?
(Read Entry)
Rita Update
(Read Entry)
O No
(Read Entry)Sunday, 25 September 2005
TV Carnage
(Read Entry)Saturday, 24 September 2005
Blogpoint Opportunity
(Read Entry)Friday, 23 September 2005
Post Post
(Read Entry)Thursday, 22 September 2005
Lost Opportunity
(Read Entry)
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)
Planet Plan
(Read Entry)
Buying A Ride
(Read Entry)
Transfer Of Control
(Read Entry)
40 Years
(Read Entry)
The Coming Storm
(Read Entry)Wednesday, 21 September 2005
Dear Reader2
(Read Entry)
Escape Pod
(Read Entry)
Some People Call Him Maurice
(Read Entry)Tuesday, 20 September 2005
By Any Other Name
(Read Entry)
The Future, Revealed
(Read Entry)Monday, 19 September 2005
My Awesomely Bad iPod
Yeah, I've got several of the awesomely bad songs. (Read Entry)
Byrne-ing The Wikipedia
(Read Entry)
BTW, Matey
(Read Entry)
Michoud Update
(Read Entry)
Ad Luna Update
(Read Entry)
Disappointing Discovery
(Read Entry)
Speaking Of Open Letters
(Read Entry)Sunday, 18 September 2005
Open Letter To Frank Miller
(Read Entry)Saturday, 17 September 2005
2046
(Read Entry)Friday, 16 September 2005
Happy Birthday!
(Read Entry)
One Last Cat Pic
(Read Entry)
Blogpoint Opportunity
(Read Entry)
Meritous Performance
(Read Entry)
Saving The Saturn
(Read Entry)
Ad Luna Update
(Read Entry)
Funding The Future
(Read Entry)
Surprising News
(Read Entry)Thursday, 15 September 2005
"Blogging" Goes Mainstream?
(Read Entry)
Ad Luna
(Read Entry)
Pick The Cosmonaut
(Read Entry)
A Few iNotes
(Read Entry)
Enterprise Helmsman
(Read Entry)Wednesday, 14 September 2005
Today
(Read Entry)Tuesday, 13 September 2005
New Q
(Read Entry)
Less Limited Power!
(Read Entry)
Nanometer
(Read Entry)
On Shelves Today
(Read Entry)Monday, 12 September 2005
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)
October Sky
(Read Entry)
In The Shadow Of 2003UB313
(Read Entry)Sunday, 11 September 2005
Never Forget
(Read Entry)Saturday, 10 September 2005
Personal Notes
(Read Entry)Friday, 9 September 2005
Art Meets Media
(Read Entry)
Armstrong Ate Here
(Read Entry)
Off Their ROKR
(Read Entry)Thursday, 8 September 2005
There Be Kitties Here!
(Read Entry)
Bagged And Bored
(Read Entry)
Regular Richie Feature
(Read Entry)
Today In History
(Read Entry)
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)
Mysteries Of The Cosmos
(Read Entry)
World Ceres
(Read Entry)
On Its Way
(Read Entry)
Nano, Nano
(Read Entry)Wednesday, 7 September 2005
iPhone Update
(Read Entry)
Leonardo Code Update
(Read Entry)
Turing The Internet
(Read Entry)
Who Mourns For Denver?
(Read Entry)
China's Return To Flight
(Read Entry)
Small New Worlds
(Read Entry)
Songs Of Love
(Read Entry)
iPhone Update
(Read Entry)Tuesday, 6 September 2005
Blogpoint Update
(Read Entry)
Pearls Of Wisdom
(Read Entry)
Jam Y'all
(Read Entry)
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)
Review World
(Read Entry)
mini Flash
(Read Entry)
Thumbing Through It
(Read Entry)Monday, 5 September 2005
Will Call
(Read Entry)Sunday, 4 September 2005
Lost Again
(Read Entry)Saturday, 3 September 2005
Blogpoint Opportunity
(Read Entry)Friday, 2 September 2005
All These Worlds
(Read Entry)
Transitions
(Read Entry)
iPhone Update
(Read Entry)
Live Starr
(Read Entry)
Robot War: Addendum
(Read Entry)Thursday, 1 September 2005
Freeman On The Moon
Actor will voice Armstrong in Magnificent Desolation. (Read Entry)
Jonathan Hitt post
(Read Entry)
Hatbag Of Glass
(Read Entry)
STS-121 Update
(Read Entry)