Whisky Blender Provides Bespoke Potables by Mail Intriguing idea. If you like the blended aqua vitae. (tagged: whiskey ) Publish What You Learn Great article at Smashing Magazine. I can say that this is a big reason why I write about this kind of stuff — I feel like I haven't really learned something until […]
Pay Only for Drugs That Help You An editorial in the New York Times by Samuel D. Waksal. There are some interesting ideas in there, some of which I even agree with. There is something very compelling about saying (w/r/t/ healthcare) "we should only pay when we get results". But it's also a slippery slope. […]
If you are acquainted with China Miéville’s work, there will not be too many surprises for you when you read this novel. Which is not to imply that it is predictable or formulaic, but that it quintessentially one of his novels. It’s all there: the weird landscapes that are intimately, almost erotically detailed; how the […]
There’s a scene–about halfway through the novel–when Paul says to Maya: “I want you to prove to me that you’re not human yet still an artist.” Right there? That’s basically your thematic thesis. It has been my observation that a lot of folks get introduced to Bruce Sterling by way of the Mirrorshades anthology 1 […]
“At the bookstore later in the day, my son stood in front of the Sci Fi section and said, in a very loud voice: “Mom, this is my new gender.†I bit back “genre,†which is something I also try to do when I am alone.†– Bhanu Kapil, Reading f…
“What took you so long to pick it up?” I did not believe the hype. Before The Windup Girl, my exposure to Bacigalupi’s work was through two short stories: “The People of Sand and Slag”–which seemed to pop-up everywhere 1 for a while; and then “Yellow Card Man”–which was in the same milieu as this […]
In many ways, I’ve started to come to believe that you can’t go wrong with a John Joseph Adams’ collection. Wastelands was incredible, The Living Dead was great, and Federations…? Also very very good. The “dust jacket description” of this anthology pretty much sums it up… It collects a few different modern takes on the […]
SCENE: Samuel R. Delany, sitting at his writing desk, surrounded by books (some on shelves, but most piled on the floor), circa 1973; a man walks into the room. – Delany and the man stare at each other. They both stroke their beards. Delany: “Who are you?” The Man: “Don’t you know? They sent me.” […]
Arranged chronologically from 1955 through 2001, Dozois’ anthology Worldmakers: SF Adventures in Terraforming, is a tightly-themed collection of science fiction shorts. It’s a good overview of the terraforming subject’s treatment within the genre but the anthology seems to lack any stand-out stories – there are no great masterpieces in here. Which is not to say […]