Past Short Fiction Hugo Winners
By Scott | July 2, 2009
Over at The Fix: Short Fiction Review, I’ve been writing a column called Rocket Science in which I’ve been working my way through the short fiction Hugo Award winners since the beginning of time. Which was… 1955. I’ve reached the late 1960’s, but The Fix hasn’t been updated since my previous column on May 15.
So, I’m going to continue my tour here. In this setting, I’ll discuss one story at a time, or maybe a couple at a time if they fit together in some way. The next year I’ll be covering is 1968, the tumultuous year in which I was born. The Hugo Winners that year:
Novella: “Weyr Search” by Anne McCaffrey
Novella: “Riders of the Purple Wage” by Philip Jose Farmer
Novelette: “Gonna Roll Them Bones” by Fritz Leiber
Short Story: “I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream” by Harlan Ellison
Here are the existing Rocket Science columns over at The Fix:
1958 – 1959
1960 – 1962
1963 – 1965
1966 – 1967
Tags: Hugo Winners, short fiction | No Comments »
Video of Launch of Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
By Scott | June 23, 2009
This is very cool – from a camera on the Atlas rocket, here’s the launch of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter last week.
UPDATE: NASA reports that the LRO achieved Lunar orbit earlier today.
Tags: NASA, science | No Comments »
Missing Nuke from the Cold War
By Scott | June 22, 2009
Ah, The Cold War… This BBC story describes how, during the Cold War, a nuclear bomb went missing “a mile or two” off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, and IS STILL THERE!
So the bomb remains tucked away on the sea-bed, in an area which is frequently dredged by shrimp fishermen, any one of whom could suddenly find that they have netted something a touch larger and scarier than a crustacean.
Wow! Did not know that.
Also from the story:
Colonel Richardson is adamant that it is incapable of a nuclear explosion because it lacks the vital plutonium trigger.
Note to Dave Barry: “Vital Plutonium Trigger” – good name for a rock band.
Tags: Cold War, history, nuclear bombs | No Comments »
Dan Dos Santos, Warbreaker Cover
By Scott | June 19, 2009
[via Mistborn, Brandon Sanderson's Blog]
Tags: art, books | No Comments »
Test from Wordpress App
By Scott | June 14, 2009
If this works, I’ll be able to write posts from my phone, which will be great for you all since I am always doing extremely exciting things that demand immediate… SQUIRREL!
Father’s Day
By Scott | June 14, 2009
Yes it’s true – I thought today was Father’s Day, when, in fact, it’s next week. I need to get my oil checked…
Spokane and Summer
By Scott | June 13, 2009
This summer is only three weeks old and I’m exhausted! Great fun, though. After the CONduit convention, we drove to Spokane to watch my niece Erica graduate high school. Central Valley High School, Home of the Bears! Congrats, Erica!
I had one of those surreal moments while I was there. Jessica, my brother’s oldest daughter (she’s 19), did my own daughter’s hair before the graduation ceremony. Amazing, simply amazing, how things change. Yes I am saying that without trying to sound like a geezer. But geezer I am. Why, it seems like just yesterday, I… never mind. Life is good.
Now we are settling in for the rest of the summer, no major vacation plans until September.
Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there, and especially you, Dad. We’ll drive up to see you tomorrow or Monday.
Review of “Alastair Baffle’s Emporium of Wonders” by Mike Resnick (Hugo Nominee, Novelette)
By Scott | June 3, 2009
I’m convinced that Mike Resnick could make a cost analysis spreadsheet interesting. “Alastair Baffle’s Emporium of Wonders” (Asimov’s, Jan. 2008) seems familiar all the way through, but it really doesn’t matter because Resnick tells a great story and leaves you something to think about.
Gold and Silver are the last names of two elderly men who have spent their lives together since meeting each other for the first time as kids at a magic shop called The Emporium of Wonders. The aches and pains of old age are tossed aside for an adventure – maybe the Emporium is still there. It’s worth checking out, one more time.
Ray Bradbury would be proud of this story, but when one of the characters questions the magic… well, that’s all Resnick.
Tags: Hugo Awards, Mike Resnick, science fiction, short fiction | No Comments »
Thunderstorm
By Scott | June 2, 2009
I’m sitting here at work, waiting for a Windows XP computer to finish the installation of Service Pack 3 and watching a thunderstorm roll in. There’s a good chance I’ll lose power and go home without the computer finished. After the update is in, I need to install Webroot, then Office, then our custom Production Scheduling application. The shift starts at 6am, and I was hoping to have it done for them.
Wow – lightning flashing every minute or so. Power hanging in there.
I’m off to Spokane, WA on Thursday morning, with my two kids. We’ll be visiting my brother and his family – his second oldest daughter (they have three) is graduating from high school so we’re running up there to say Hi and Congrats. My wife is going to California on Thursday, so she won’t be with us.
I’ve been working on a new look for SFFaudio – it’s nearly done. That is not the new site, btw. The new one is hidden away in my secret lair.
I’ve also got to get busy on the Iron Door Playhouse site. I was supposed to have it done this week, but SFFaudio took all my time. Iron Door next.
I’m also reading all of the Hugo short fiction nominees – I’ve read many of them, but need to read the rest in time to vote by July 3. The short story category is especially outstanding this year. Tough choices!
It’s much calmer outside now. The wind has died down, it’s drizzling, and flashes are less regular… and Service Pack 3 is finished! Back at it…
Tags: life, lightning, short fiction, very small rocks, websites | No Comments »
Silliest Name in the Galaxy
By Scott | May 28, 2009
Tags: just silly, silly | No Comments »
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