5 Nov 2015

Do the Funky Conch Hop

posted in: nature, science | 0

A conch is a kind of snail, right? And snails don’t jump; they ooze, right? Well, not always, it turns out. Here, from Science News, is a story about the motion of Gibberulus gibberulus gibbosus, aka hunchbacked conch.

To quote: “The sea snails save their jumping for conch emergencies, such as when they detect dissolved body odor from the deadly cone snail Conus marmoreus. Cone snails glide rather than jump. But if a cone snail gets close enough, it harpoons the conch with a long, venom-delivering proboscis that is as agile as an elephant’s trunk. Then it reels in the paralyzed conch like a fish on the line. Such threats favor epic jumping in spite of the conch circulatory system…” [more]

Watch this conch jump. (It’s small in the screen, so click in the lower right corner to maximize.)

4 Nov 2015

Braided Clouds, from Space

posted in: nature, science, space, weather | 0

This NASA image caught my eye on The Atlantic’s website. (Click the link if this embed code doesn’t work. Ah, nope, it doesn’t. Click the link.) Cloud vortices off Heard Island, south Indian Ocean, from NASA’s Aqua satellite.

Cloud vortices off Heard Island, south Indian Ocean. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this true-color image of sea ice off Heard Island on Nov 2, 2015 at 5:02 AM EST (09:20 UTC). A cloud vortex- the circular pattern seen here- is produced by the flow of air in the atmosphere. Heard Island (visible in the lower right portion of the image) is located in the Indian Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. The island is uninhabited by humans, although it is home to many birds and seals. Heard Island is rugged and mountainous, and is mostly covered with ice. It is also home to an active volcano, Mawson Peak. The island has been a territory of Australia since 1947. Credit: NASA/Goddard/Jeff Schmaltz/MODIS Land Rapid Response Team #nasagoddard
A photo posted by NASA Goddard (@nasagoddard) on
3 Nov 2015

Gorilla Watching Cat Video

posted in: animal friends, quirky | 0

I can’t figure out how to embed this (short) video, so I’ll just have to give you the link, at TheAtlantic.com:

The commenter noted that the girl seemed to be ignoring the magnificent creature beside her. I actually found it rather sweet that she was sharing a video in such an unstudied way—just one friend to another.

3 Nov 2015

Another New Star Trek!

posted in: Star Trek, TV | 2

CBS announced today that they’re launching a new Star Trek series in January of 2017, to be aired on their paid subscription channel CBS All Access. The first episode will be on broadcast TV, to get us hooked. Alex Kurtzman, one of the co-writers of the reboot films Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness, will be executive producer.

I’m of several minds on this announcement. I’m excited to hear that Star Trek is returning to television! On the other hand, I’m sad to hear that to see it, I’ll have to subscribe to yet another pay service. Granted, this was true of Game of Thrones, which (for that very reason) I came to late. And it’s true of Alpha House (by Garry Trudeau), one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen, though as an Amazon Prime member I got to see that for free. And it’s true of Episodes, another of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen, which I only caught on DVD after the fact. Is this the wave of the future, for quality original programming? I think it is.

But will this be quality programming? Kurtzman has a solid track record, although I admit I (again!) had mixed feelings about the reboot films, with its alternate timeline to the established Star Trek universe. Still, they were good movies, if flawed (especially Into Darkness). But this announcement is all about “franchise”—which is a term I hate when it’s applied to creative endeavors—and is short on specifics. It leaves me wondering if they really have a vision for the new series, or if they’re simply reviving a guaranteed money-maker. (Hey, let’s do a new Star Trek show! It’ll be big. What will it be about? Well, I don’t know. Wait, I’ve got it! New characters, folks having adventures in space!) I didn’t really catch much of the vision thing in the announcement. There’s no indication yet of which timeline it will be set in, or whether it comes before, after, or concurrently with any of the existing Star Trek story lines. And if the latter, if it will for God’s sake have some new adversaries, rather than continuing to recycle the old ones.

So, I’m excited. But cautious. I’ve learned caution, when it comes to anticipating new TV shows.

In the meantime, I finally got to the theater and saw The Martian. What a terrific movie! If you haven’t seen it yet, don’t wait for the DVD. Big screen. Go for the big screen. I also watched the first episode of Supergirl and thought it showed real promise. Not brilliant, but good. It has the upbeat tone I was hoping for, a welcome alternative to the ubiquitous “darker, edgier, grittier” mantra that has marked so many shows in recent years. Including, um, Star Trek.

30 Oct 2015

NaNoWriMo Writing Tools Bundle!

posted in: ebooks, NaNoWriMo, specials, writing | 0

NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) for 2015 is coming up, and I imagine there are a lot of writers who would enjoy another good book on writing or two. Or five. Or how about twenty-five, all in one bundle? It’s a great collection—and no, I’m not part of it.

Here’s the full scoop, which I’ve shamelessly lifted from the Book View Café blog:

BVC is delighted to be included in StoryBundle’s 2015 NaNoWriMo Writing Tools Bundle. Not only is our Brewing Fine Fiction anthology part of the bundle, so are two additional guides by BVC members: Writing Horses by Judith Tarr and Writing Fight Scenes by Marie Brennan.

Never heard of StoryBundle? It’s where you can get fantastic ebooks at one low pay-what-you-want price. DRM-free means you can read them on just about all the devices you own, no matter who makes it.

  • Pay the minimum $5 and get Brewing Fine Fiction plus five other great titles.
  • Beat the bonus price ($13), and get seven more books including Writing Horses and Writing Fight Scenes.
  • Opt into the 2nd tier bonus ($25) and get the 2014 NaNoWriMo bundle as well, for a total of twenty-five fantastic writing books!

Plus Bundle buyers have a chance to donate a portion of their proceeds to charity.  
National Novel Writing Month happens every November. Thousands of writers all over the world take up the challenge to produce a novel in a month.

This toolkit offers great advice from a multitude of seasoned professionals including Kevin J. Anderson, Lawrence Block, Algis Budrys, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Dean Wesley Smith, and Al Zuckerman. Curator Kevin J. Anderson writes:

Here, to get you ramped up for the marathon, I’ve curated a baker’s dozen of instructional books on all aspects of writing, from craft, to productivity, to business, to career advice, to specific areas of expertise. Presenting, for the second year in a row, the NaNoWriMo Writing Tools StoryBundle: a massive batch of useful books that will help you survive—and thrive—during National Novel Writing Month—the full spectrum of useful information. You name your own price, whatever you feel this batch of books is worth, and part of the money you pay goes to help the supportive non-profit NaNoWriMo organization. 

I put together these books from the general to the specific, a treasure chest of books vital to your success—not only in writing your novel but in launching your long-term career as a successful writer. This is a toolkit, a drill sergeant, a mentor, and a cheerleading section, all in one.

For complete details and to pick up your bundle, visit 2015 NaNoWriMo Writing Tools Bundle.

Me again. I picked up my bundle last night. Limited time offer. What are you waiting for?

28 Oct 2015

Massive Ebook Sale at Kobobooks!

posted in: ebooks, specials | 0

This one took me completely by surprise. Starting today, Kobo is running a huge half-price sale on all ebooks published directly with them by the authors (through a program called Kobo Writing Life). That’s a huge number of books, and includes all of mine. Time to stock up! And they’re paying authors the full royalties, so you can buy knowing you’re not just getting bargains, you’re helping authors get a boost.

Here are the details. The sale is a little different in different countries. And you have to use the coupon codes below.

Canada
October 28th – October 31st
Promo Code: CA50SALE
United States/Australia/New Zealand
October 27th – October 30th
Promo Code: GET50SALE
United Kingdom
October 30th – November 2nd
Promo Code: UK50SALE

Promo code is valid for 50% off select eBook purchases from this list.

Here’s a link to the page listing all of my books:

Treat or treat! Go get ‘em.

26 Oct 2015

I Guess I’m Not 25 Anymore

posted in: personal news | 3

I hadn’t played softball in at least twenty years, and when a bunch of people at our church retreat (on Thompson Island, in lovely Boston Harbor) got a game going, I thought, Why not? It’ll be fun! And it was, for a while. I can still catch a ball, and throw it reasonably accurately if not far, and even smack it for a base hit when I swing a bat! Amazing!  Especially since I was never very good at that stuff even when I was at my athletic prime.

What I can’t do, apparently, is run without injuring myself. Racing for home plate, I was about two strides from home when my left leg seized up and went out from under me, and I face-planted (dug a furrow in the ground with my nose, I think), and slid to a stop with my hand on the plate. My first thought—You look like an idiot. My second thought—PAIN!!! And I commenced rolling on the ground, trying to stretch the cramp out of my leg.

Well, I managed to give myself a pretty good hamstring pull, and now I’m hobbling around wrapped in an Ace bandage, giving an occasional yelp when I move in the wrong way. Luckily, I already have an appointment with the physical therapist tomorrow, for an Achilles tendon problem, so I’m covered there. And I have a classy-looking cane acquired years ago for costume purposes, so I’m covered there. But I count on walking and bicycling to get my exercise, so I’m more than a little concerned about slipping into worse shape while I heal.

But never mind that. To answer what seems to be everyone’s first question:

Yes, I scored the run.

28 Sep 2015

Moonglow

posted in: animal friends, astronomy | 0

Last night’s supermoon lunar eclipse was gorgeous, even viewed from our suburban Boston driveway. It gave me a reason to bring out my Meade ETX-90 Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope, which is a compact 3.5 inch reflector that I don’t use as much as I would like. I don’t have equipment for taking pictures, so I’ll show you some that other people took.

The thing that most struck me was how much the reddened Moon, with its dark, patchy maria, looked like pictures of Mars, especially from the days when astronomers had only modest ground-based telescopes—but even now, with the Hubble.  I’ll show you one of those, below the moon shots.

The other thing, as I peered through the lens wishing I could see the Apollo lander equipment, was that twelve men walked on that world over forty years ago. It’s high time some more men took that stroll—and some women, too. And maybe for some to go there to stay.

The third thing was, this was an anniversary of sorts for Allysen and me. It was the last supermoon eclipse, in 1982, that got us started dating!

Here (if the code works) is a slideshow the Telegraph put together on short notice. Our view probably looked most like the one you’ll see from Paris, here.

And here’s a shot of Mars, from the Hubble Space Telescope. Reminiscent, no?

And what the hey, in keeping with the theme, here’s a picture of Moonlight:

  
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