November 30, 2011
Ice Age Columbus (2005)
?Whoever you think they were, you are probably wrong.
Le French! Bet you didn't see that coming.
Catch the vandals and stick them in a wicker man
Police are investigating the malicious destruction of a pagan stone circle at Lampeter University.
Police believe the attackers could have used crow bars and pick axes, with speculation that the attack could have been religiously motivated.
Dear vandals: The last time Odin got up and walked, it wasn't pretty.
I never write 'metropolis' for seven cents when I can write 'city' and get paid the same
J.K. Rowling actively edits her books on an ongoing basis to "fix errors and to adjust the story to fit the larger saga" with changes added as new editions are released.
November 29, 2011
World building
Quotulatiousness cites Charlie Stross on worldbuilding for SF.
Not having - knowingly - read the man's work, I googled Charles Stross and learned two things. First, he invented the githyanki, and; second, where he borrowed the name from.
), githzerai, and slaad (a chaotic race notable for their rigid caste system) were later published in the Fiend Folio monster compendium.It was about two years ago I realized I would never have time to read all the books I would like to read before I die. And the list just got longer.
Related: How I learned to stop being critical and love the Fiend Folio.
Everybody who has vague dreams of making an RPG
It is time to publish your book.
November 28, 2011
Address is Approximate
Address Is Approximate from The Theory on Vimeo.
The human heart in conflict with itself
William Faulkner's speech at the Nobel Banquet at the City Hall in Stockholm, December 10, 1950.
Still topic sixty years on. But today the conflict is all too clear and we refuse to write about it at all.
The man behind the mask
Alan Moore has gotten used to the fact that some of his fictions "percolate out into the material world."
For example, a mask borrowed by Anonymous to take on a litigious cult is now found everywhere as protest fashion.
November 27, 2011
Prometheus 2012
A leaked trailer to Ridley Scott's forthcoming Alien prequel. Watch it before it gets pulled from Youtube (hat tip to Beautiful Atrocities, who caught a spelling mistake).
The Meads Of Asphodel - Life In The Shadows
The Meads Of Asphodel: "Despite a fluctuating line-up, the band continues to release well-received music. The band's most consistent feature is their use of often unusual guest musicians, including members of Hawkwind and a Rabbi."
November 26, 2011
Stop-Motion Biscuit Cake
Stop-Motion Biscuit Cake from Alan Travers on Vimeo.
Earth II
"Gliese 581g, located around 123 trillion miles away, orbits a star at a distance that places it squarely in the habitable - or Goldilocks - zone."
November 25, 2011
An interview with Mark Hamill (1977)
"A rare 30-minute interview with Mark Hamill, which appears to have been taped in late 1977 just before the release of Star Wars in Britain that December, has surfaced on YouTube."
Comments to the piece suggest the British still don't grasp American humour.
Star Wars Identities
A vast collection of Star Wars props, costumes, models, and artwork from the Lucasfilm Archives coming to Montreal and Edmonton for some reason.
November 24, 2011
StarShipSofa interviews Michael Moorcock (2006)
Some nsfw expressive language. Part I, Part II, Part III.
Anne McCaffrey, R.I.P.
"Anne McCaffrey wasn't just the inventor of Pern, the world where a whole society is based on dragon-riding. She was also an incredibly influential author who helped transform the way science fiction and fantasy authors wrote about women, and the way all of us thought about bodies and selfhood."
Brinicle
An ice finger of death has been filmed in the Antarctic. Bloop!
November 23, 2011
A patch on the original
A Skyrim patch arrives... for the worse.
A workaround at the link.
For example: "If you’ve been looking at your own version of Skyrim, and then seeing the images that likes of Dead End Thrills have been putting out ... you might be forgiven for wondering how you can push the game beyond its prescribed options. There are ways."
Take a look at the above Dead End Thrills link to see what Bethesda has achieved with its game design and game engine. Those are all screenshots from the game.
Blomkvist Menswear
"Trish Summerville, the costume designer for David Fincher's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo... wants to do for a menswear collection based on the looks she designed for Daniel Craig's character, disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist."
Hat tip to Bedhead.
November 22, 2011
Star Trek cast on Tom Snyder's Tomorrow (1976)
"NBC's Tomorrow with host Tom Snyder and guests DeForest Kelley, James Doohan and Walter Koenig."
Exercising a long forgotten liberty, DeForest Kelley smokes through the whole appearance. Then, when it can't get any cooler, Harlan Ellison appears.
Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V.
William Shatner On The Mike Douglas Show (1969)
There is a parallel universe where Pierre Trudeau went into acting and William Shatner went into politics. These universes are exactly alike in every other respect.
"William Shatner interviewed and singing on The Mike Douglas Show 25th February 1969. This first part is the interview only, watch the second part for Shatner singing tracks from the Transformed Man live. Shatner talks about Captain Kirk, Star Trek, his new album and more."
Oh man, I don’t really like you. You’re not like I thought you were.
“That’s too bad! You know, you’re not like I thought you were either! I thought you were an adult.”
November 21, 2011
The Wildcats of St. Trinian's (1980)
"The Girls of St. Trinian's hatch yet another fiendish plot -- a trade union for British schoolgirls!"
The Flea: Lowering workplace productivity everywhere.
Harry unearthed
One of three tunnels prepared for the Great Escape has been uncovered by British archaeologists.
South Of Watford - Positive Punk (1983)
"Michael Moorcock hosts 1983 ITV show about the Positive Punk genre - based on an NME article by Richard North (Richard Cabut) featuring the bands Brigandage and Blood and Roses, etc."
November 20, 2011
No spoilers
Six everyday offenses that should be punishable by death (via Five Feet of Fury).
November 19, 2011
Cognition as Ideology: A Dialectic of Science Fiction Theory
China Mieville speaks at the University of Kansas September 24, 2009.
Somewhat lagging
Bethesda pledges to fix PS3 Skyrim lag.
Skyrim's open-world nature means that a vast amount of data is accumulated regarding what abilities and objects players have acquired, as well as their movements through the game.
Perspective: Useful Skyrim mods.
November 18, 2011
Xbox 720
Rumour has it dev kits are on the way, an unveiling is set for CES 2012 in January and that Microsoft plans to take the Xbox 720 to market for Christmas next year.
...
Edge is also hinting that Sony is working on a quicker release of the PlayStation 4. In its report it believes that "one major Sony-owned studio has now ceased PlayStation 3 development [with] its entire focus having shifted to the console's successor."
Xbox 720: Every rumour about the new Xbox.
And the Eiffel Tower gets destroyed
"During its first 24 hours on sale last week, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Meanwhile, in Tamriel
Skyrim sells 3.5 million copies in 48 hours and expects to make 450 million dollars from the game launch alone.
Dragonborn: Bethesda says parents Eric and Megan Kellermeyer gave birth to son Dovahkiin Tom last Friday.
Uncharted: Golden Abyss
This is what handheld video games look like now.
November 17, 2011
RoboKopter Zamieszki I
Independence Day riots in Warsaw as seen from a remote-controlled helicopter. I expect this is going to become a thing.
Resolved
Mysterious structures in the Gobi desert appear to be used to calibrate spy satellites. And the return of the Old Ones.
November 16, 2011
Doctor Who, I presume
David Yates and Jane Trantor are working on a Doctor Who feature film. Expect several years in development and a film that will not "follow from or be based on the current TV series in any way."
I haven't seen the American remake but the original State of Play was very well done. And as Yates tends to work with an ensemble could this mean... Bill Nighy as the Doctor?
Too much to hope for. But James McAvoy would do an excellent job as well.
Texture glitch
A reported texture glitch in the Xbox 360 version of Skyrim would suck if I were playing the game on Xbox. I admit that in places my PS3 version does suffer from the same lagginess I am hearing other folks complain about.
Not to worry. Bethesda is on the case.
Related: Now thinking of picking up a set of these Pelican PS3 Trigger Controller
Christmas Island is a busy place at the moment
Fortunately, red crabs now have a pedestrian overpass to get from A to B in their migration.
November 15, 2011
Snow White and the Huntsman
I question the Mirror's taste level.
Just saying: "Harry Potter is about confronting fears, finding inner strength and doing what is right in the face of adversity. Twilight is about how important it is to have a boyfriend." - Stephen King
Valyrian Steel
"US Customs has held up the Damascus Ice shipment because they want to know the Latin name of the species of the tree or trees which contributed the sawdust used to create the fiberboard used to create the plaques. I wish I was joking, I'm not. So things have been pushed back at least a week."
Something amiss in the Plateau of Leng
Vast, unidentified structures have been spotted by satellites in the barren Gobi desert.
November 14, 2011
Epic Reality
This is what video games look like now.
The art direction philosophy of Skyrim.
Artists in high demand for video game industry
USA Today points to an opportunity in a difficult job market, saying artists are integral to the $60b video game industry, citing a team of forty who helped create the sixteen square miles of Skyrim.
"We obsess over all the small details," says Bethesda Softworks' Todd Howard, Skyrim game director. "Our art team created all the stuff and placed it all by hand, every tree and every rock."
Married achievement trophy
A guide to getting married in Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
The Sound of Skyrim
First, there is the barbarian choir.
Then there are the seventy plus actors who performed one hundred and ten roles including Max von Sydow, Joan Allen, Linda Carter, Michael Hogan, Vladimir Kulich and Christopher Plummer in his video game debut.
Fallout: Middle Earth
The making of Skyrim.
And working life at Bethesda Game Studios.
November 12, 2011
Afghanistan – touch down in flight
Afghanistan – touch down in flight from Augustin Pictures on Vimeo.
November 11, 2011
Rosa (2011)
ROSA from Jesús Orellana on Vimeo.
"Rosa is an epic sci-fi short film that takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where all natural life has disappeared."
Another skywalk
"The 200ft long bridge joins the west cliff at the Yunmeng Fairy Summit, the summit of Tianmen Mountain and Zhang Jiajie."
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Main Theme
This time with lyrics!
"DOVahKiiN DOVahKiiN
NaaL OK ZIN LOS VahRiiN
Wah DeiN VOKUL MahFAERaaK ahST VaaL
ahRK FIN NOROK PaaL GRaaN
FOD NUST HON ZINDRO ZaaN
DOVahKiiN Fah HIN KOGaaN MU DRaaL
"ahRK FIN KEL LOST PRODah
DO VED ViiNG KO FIN KRah
TOL FOD ZeyMah WIN KeiN MeyZ FUNDeiN
ALDUIN FeyN DO JUN
KRUZiiK VOKUN STaaDNAU
VOTH aaN BahLOK Wah DiiVON FIN LeiN"
"Dragonborn Dragonborn
By his honor is sworn
To keep evil forever at bay
And the fiercest foes rout
When they hear triumph’s shout
Dragonborn for your blessing we pray
"And the scrolls have fortold
Of black wings in the cold
That when brothers wage war come unfurled
Alduin, bane of kings
Ancient shadow unbound
With a hunger to swallow the world"
November 10, 2011
Amleth, Prince of Jutland (1994)
"Prince of Jutland (AKA: Royal Deceit) is a 1994 film adaptation of the Danish legend of prince Amleth, drawing upon the 11th century works of Saxo Grammaticus, which was also the inspiration for Shakespeare's Hamlet."
NSFW due to naked Helen Mirren (only in the first bit, sorry to say). Also featuring Gabriel Byrne as Fenge, Christian Bale as Amleth, and Kate Beckinsale as Ethel.
Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII.
November 09, 2011
It comes across to us that some people from America are heavy sensitive about the use of certain words
"The thing is, what you need to understand is, we are not from America."
NSFW/NSFL due to Die Antwoord content: "May my enemies live long so they can see my progress."
FOK JULLE NAAIERS from Die Antwoord on Vimeo.
For the man cave
CIL Paints launches a line of paint colours for men.
Quotulatiousness comments.
Good news: "British Teeth" should get me a cool 15 grand from the HRC.
Siri-integrated HAL 9000 dock for iPhone
If they can give Siri HAL's voice, I might need to buy an iPhone
Comic Impact: Grant Morrison - The Superhero Myth
Supergods
Ziggy Stardust: Life On Mars?
Also: A special shout out to rock critics.
November 08, 2011
Back to Lovecraft
The poetry of H.P. Lovecraft set to music. By Corsicans.
For a variety of reasons, I am not at all certain this is a good idea.
Putting a Hex on Hitler, 1941
Dressmaker's dummy. Check. Nazi uniform. Check. Nails. Check. William Seabrook, tom-toms and plenty of Jamaica rum. Check, check and check.
The hotness: One Birdseye frozen-food heiress, an apparently stupid woman I would have happily married.
Also featured: The "pagan deity," Istan, i.e. "Nazi" backwards.
Art of the Hobbit
Art of the Hobbit
Dark Incal trailer
A movie trailer project inspired by the graphic novel The Incal
November 07, 2011
Guillermo Del Toro - Geometria (1987)
Geometria
An even better giant cockroach movie
On the set of his forthcoming aliens vs robots feature Pacific Rim, Guillermo Del Toro discusses his lovingly re-edited and restored Mimic (The Director's Cut)
We reinserted ten or twelve minutes, but it’s only about seven to ten minutes longer in the running time because we removed lots of second unit. The new material is almost exclusively on the thematic and tonal level and now the movie is more coherent.
Actors, insects and standing your ground as an artist at the link.
.November 06, 2011
The Height of Goth (1984)
A night at Xclusiv: Batley, West Yorkshire.
Of course it's Batley.
Featured Blitz Kids: Old school Goths, Gothabillies, New Romantics and at least one tranny who figured (correctly) this was the right crowd. Also, lesbians and besties dancing to Glenn Miller.
I have had two of these hairstyles and dated women with four of these hairstyles. No, wait, make that five. Meanwhile, right off the top, The Smiths.
I would have hit the dance floor with Temple of Love. The Flea Dance appears with Bauhaus, naturally. Or, more recently, to the bemusement of my students at last week's Hallowe'en thing.
Crazy English summer
Forensic investigation of Roman burials in what was once Londinium suggest they never took to the climate and local cuisine.
From the comments:
November 05, 2011
Umwertung aller Werte
All too predictably, the London Olympics 2012 official posters have nothing to do with London or the Olympics.
What they celebrate is nothing which, as it turns out, is entirely appropriate to the occasion.
Nanny Pat's sausage plait
Celebrate the close of this year's British Sausage Week with Nanny Pat's famous sausage plait.
Set course for the heart of the sun
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured an image of a quasar accretion disc, "a glowing disc of matter that is slowly being sucked into its galaxy's central black hole."
November 04, 2011
Tocharians
The Indo-Europeans of the East (complete with tartans).
The new finds are also forcing a reexamination of old Chinese books that describe historical or legendary figures of great height, with deep-set blue or green eyes, long noses, full beards, and red or blond hair. Scholars have traditionally scoffed at these accounts, but it now seems that they may be accurate.
Also featured: Some PRC officials who seem anxious to prevent history.
Is the stench of massed zombies toxic?
Straight Dope turns to Mark Twain for... the wrong answer. While people still fear miasmas, they shouldn't (via AoSHQ).
The Left Hand Path
Chet Zar at the CoproGallery from October 15 - November 5.
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Theme Song
Barbarian Steve writes: "1 week, and my naked, bearded, drunken Nord, Bonan will beat everything down with his bare fists."
November 03, 2011
Grand Theft Auto V
The trailer. If you haven't looked at a video game in a while, this is what they look like now.
PikiGeek offers a shot-by-shot analysis, noting the first appearance of pets in the GTA universe. And one of my students also noted a resemblance between a homeless man in the trailer and the protagonist of GTA IV.
Rapture Edition Monopoly
Rapture City Archives hosts KatMann's download-and-print BioShock Monopoly mod.
iPad 2 Gold History
The iPad 2 Gold History is clad in four and a half pounds of 24-carat gold and 12.5 carats of diamonds and, yet more cretinous, the "crushed-up shavings" from a fossilized Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Off Book: Video Games
PBS pomposity aside, they make a fair point.
They're also, you know, fun.
November 02, 2011
Paraglider vs vulture
“Himalayan vultures, which are truly amazing and giant birds, really like to fly with us,” Takserman said. “They like to fly above the wing and in front of the wing and near the pilot and sometimes for a long time and they are very playful. Most of the time it’s a very harmless experience.”
Cheerleaders touch down in Bastion
"Emergency crews pride themselves on being ready for anything. But even the duty watch at Bastion Airfield fire station were taken aback when surprise visitors dropped in.
"A US Marines helicopter touched down next door to deliver four American football cheerleaders clad in tight white hot pants and matching knee boots."
Wadsworth Constant
The Wadsworth Constant notes that the first 30 percent of every YouTube video is unnecessary.
Please note: Not the case for paraglider vs vulture videos.
November 01, 2011
GRRM Male Affect Disorder
A friend who I am going to assume wants to remain anonymous sent the following.
I just finished "A Dance with Dragons." I've been reading the Martin books bit-by-bit for the last 3 months.
I DO NOT KNOW WHAT I WILL DO WITH MYSELF NOW.
Send suggestions, elsewhise I'm going to reread Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series.
So there's good news and there's bad news. The good news is you are not alone, being stuck after the latest Ice and Fire book brings on the male equivalent of postpartum depression. The bad news is there is no cure for the condition. Fortunately, with breakthroughs in narrative treatment, GRRM Male Affect Disorder may be considered a chronic manageable condition.
My first suggestion is a course of The Last Ring-bearer by Kirill Eskov. The Tolkien estate is on Eskov's ass so it is best to find as a pdf download (unless you read Russian in which case you can get a physical copy). It is a short book and will help with the initial effects of Westeros withdrawal.
In the longer term, immersion in an epic world of comparable scale but - critically - employing non-fantasy tropes will, in time, allow you to resign yourself for the next four or five years while Martin posts updates about the football game he just watched when he should have been typing his ass off instead.
Hopefully you haven't read Iain M. Banks' Culture novels. Start with Consider Phlebas
PS: I have also found watching the Sharpe
Concerning Hobbiton
Bag End, the Shire and Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins on the set of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.