Yesterday, I declared in commemorating his life, that Vernor Vinge was the greatest SF author. Of course, there are many opinions on who might get that title, and a solid argument that there isn't just one, or one axis of what makes great SF.
I have received the sad news of the passing of the world's greatest science fiction writer, Vernor Vinge, who was also my friend and onetime collaborator. (And, I need to point out, it's pronounced Vin-gee.)
The activities of the World Science Fiction Society, the unincorporated club which chooses the location of the annual World SF Convention (WorldCon) and the annual Hugo awards, have once again encountered a scandal, the 3rd in the last 8 years, and people aren't quite sure how to repair the damage and/or fix it long term. Below, I'll discuss many of the possible and proposed approaches.
There is a partial/Annular solar eclipse in the USA on Oct 14. It's nothing like a total eclipse but if you are near it or in it you may enjoy it. But photographing the eclipse itself is not that exciting, so instead photograph the people watching it. In this video I outline some ideas on how to do that.
No, not 2023 -- lighter rain with a great rainbow in 2007.
The release of Oppenheimer has re-opened the recurring debate about the use of nuclear weapons on Japan. Was it necessary, atrocity or both? What other options were there. The question is examined both in full hindsight as well as considering it in the context of what they knew then.
The release of Oppenheimer has re-opened the recurring debate about the use of nuclear weapons on Japan. Was it necessary, atrocity or both? What other options were there. The question is examined both in full hindsight as well as considering it in the context of what they knew then.
Recently online is a new podcast interview with me from a Podcast called "Get Yourself Optimized"
We went over a lot of different topics that are interesting:
I love a good debate, and here I debate one of the core questions -- will self-driving be mainstream within 10 years. On the negative side is Raj Rajkumar, a professor from CMU and one of the leaders of the CMU team that won the DARPA Urban challenge.
A twilight launch is the most spectacular. This one didn't have the great timing of 2018s but it was still fun to watch. Here's a 4K video showing it in Cupertino. The rocket bursts into sunlight at about 2:45. See the description for full details.