BLOGS

All Posts (6496)

Sort by

More Land, More Moolah...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on May 2, 2012 at 8:03am
Keep Bandera Beautiful

If you think saving endangered species is expensive now, just wait a few decades. Climate change will require protected areas to expand if species are to be saved, potentially doubling the cost of such conservation efforts.

 

Rebecca Shaw of the Environmental Defense Fund in San Francisco, California and colleagues studied the Nature Conservancy's Mount Hamilton project, which spans 3200 km2of California. They focused on 11 species in the area with known climate tolerances.

 

They then combined the results of 16 climate models to estimate how the local climate within the project will change between now and 2100. That allowed them to determine how each species' habitat would move, grow or shrink – and thus how much more land would need to be acquired and maintained to preserve them.

 

The analysis suggests that the project will need an extra 2560 km2 of land by 2050. The figure had risen to 3800 km2 by 2100. Shaw estimates the extra cost at $1.73 billion by 2050, and $2.54 billion by 2100. That is slightly more than double the cost of maintaining the project in the absence of climate change.

 

"Mo' money, mo' problems." Biggie Smalls (released posthumously). I say that with some chagrin. Pay now, or pay a LOT later...

 

New Scientist: Climate change will make conservation even pricier

Read more…

Alien Sunrise...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 29, 2012 at 6:48am
Credit: New Scientist

Object: the star HIP 56948

Size: same as the sun

Temperature: same as the sun

Composition: same as the sun

Planets: same as the sun?
 

In the search for other Earths, the main goal is to find a planet the same size as ours that sits in the habitable zone – the region around a given star where planetary surface temperature would be similar to ours, allowing liquid water to exist.


But while an Earth-sized world in one of these habitable zones might have seas and rivers, it would look quite different bathed in blue-white or red light. That could affect the development of life. To exploit the available light, plant leaves could be yellow, orange or red, according to research in 2007 by the Virtual Planetary Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology.

 


Two observations:

  • 200 light years away: this will require breakthrough propulsion physics (blogged on last year), else such a trip is definitely "one-way" only.
  • Hm...that means "eat your spinach" could be even dicier if it's yellow! Just saying...Smiley
 
Read more…

ANIMATION EDUCATION ~ WORSE THAN I THOUGHT!

Posted by William P. Smith Jr. on April 28, 2012 at 12:22pm

Lecturing at CTN Expo: "I don't want to see your degree - I want to see what you can do!"

I've been shocked and dismayed at the feedback I've received since my recent workshop presentation at the CTN Expo, entitled "I don't want to see your degree - I want to see what you can do!" It appears that so many students, past and current, are entirely dissatisfied with the education they are receiving... especially in terms of the huge fees they are paying to their schools to give them that education! The main criticism seems to be the fact that some animation teachers do not do, or even know, what they are teaching - and therefore students are being turned out totally unprepared for the industry of today.

I don't so much blame the schools for this entirely but I do find the accreditation requirements they are subject to a problem. The core issue is that many of the top industry professionals who want to teach (and are totally capable of teaching) are prevented from doing so because they don't have a degree. Conversely, a graduate who barely scrapes through a slack degree program and is subsequently totally incapable of getting a job in the industry is embraced as a teacher because they have a piece of paper to their name! I even know of experienced Disney and Pixar level artists/animators who can't teach at most schools because they don't have a degree... because they have never needed one, as progress in the industry is measured by demonstrable skills not pieces of paper.

I began to learn of this issue when I researched my book, "JUMPING THROUGH HOOPS: The Animation Job Coach". However, I had no idea of the scale of the problem until after my talk at CTNX, since when so many students shared their tales of woe with me. I do believe that it is necessary to insist on academic degrees for the sciences, for math, for medicine, for engineering, etc. but it is totally inappropriate to insist on these in a creative, 'other-side-of-the brain' disciplines such as art and animation. In these fields it is what you can practically do that measures you, not what you know intellectually.

Consequently, I jumped at the chance of developing my own 2-year, 'Advanced Degree' program at AIE-Seattle, where I believe it perfectly possible to prepare students well for the industry in that amount of time without the other distractions that longer degree courses are required to offer. I am also currently developing an exciting animation degree program for AIE-Seattle too - but that will be totally focused on preparing students properly for the industry of their choice and not just throwing a number of inessential classes at them to make up the numbers. 

For me the best animation school in the world is Gobelins in France, where they don't have the same degree/accreditation requirements to fulfill - they are essentially funded by the government and the industry itself. Hopefully we can get close to that in Seattle, despite the challenges the US educational system offers the betterment of the animation industry. Luckily, by having the Bad Penguin apprenticeship option to offer my AIE students in the future I can supplement the program with that most difficult qualification any school might ever provide... 'industry experience'!

For the record, here's a recent Gobelins student film... 'Oktapodi'! This example is not alone in the level of competence displayed by their films, as any search on YouTube will reveal. 

Time for us in the USA to fight back I'd say!


Read more…

The SERPENT CULT by Howard NIght

Posted by Night Manager on April 27, 2012 at 11:36am

Hey fam!!

My first novel and the first of the Mountairy Rock City Chronicles is out right now the BARNES & NOBLE website as an E-book.
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-serpent-cult-howard-night/1110320101?ean=2940014563567



The SERPENT CULT is a fantasy piece set in a modern urban setting featuring Max Madigan, a late twenties African Amaerican research assistant as the protagonist.

Mountairy Rock…
 …a modern city with an ancient soul. A city where goliath trees dwarf the skyscrapers, hidden packs of werewolves roam the rooftops, present day witches practice covertly and a leviathan of a Demon secretly builds its own army of crazed worshipers.
            Life had finally started to come together for Max Madigan. This was going to be the year that would see him finally earn his Doctorate, start his career and hopefully kick his long dormant love life back into gear.
            But just as the New Year starts there’s a grisly massacre at Haley University Museum. In the after math Max unknowingly stumbles across the Stone
                        At first glance the small engraved stone seemed to be nothing more than a bit of debris from the violence of the attack. So insignificant that he doesn’t notice it pulses warmly with mystical power. Now the path that his life had been traveling down has been irrevocably changed just by picking it up.
            The cult responsible for the murders now knows that he is in possession of the Stone and begins launching attacks at him. Their members are crazed, maniacal and in some cases; serpent eyed and fang toothed.
            Fortunately the mysterious and powerful Stone seems to be in tune with his peril and begins to fill him with its power granting him the incredible strength, speed, and heightened senses of a feral animal. It is a mystical power and it is just enough to keep Max half a step ahead of the cult and just out of arms reach of being cuffed and imprisoned by the law. But there are others who can sense and want the power that emanates from the Stone.
            Prya, a flame haired vixen from an isolated section of Mountairy Rock, has taken a keen interest in both the Stone and Max himself. That interest isn’t looked upon lightly by her self proclaimed fiancé, Lotarre who, along with his brothers begin a relentless pursuit of Max all over Mountairy Rock.
            Beset on all sides by danger and a mounting foray of enemies, Max’s luck turns and he is given aid by a modern day witch, Rasheeda Landry. Rasheeda serves as a guide to the side of Mountairy Rock that he’s never seen. She warns him of the dangers of Mountairy Rock, of the wickedness of the Serpent Cult…
            …and she warns him of the Demon. Though it’s the members of the Cult that will fight, kill, and die if necessary in their worship, Max must eventually deal with the Demon that is intent on possessing the Stone.
            When wave after wave of crazed maniacs and wicked serpent-men fail to capture it, the stage is set for the ultimate face-off between the Demon and an exhausted, beaten and spent Max in the back alleys of Mountairy Rock.


If this sounds like your kind of adventure I hope you'll give it a look.

BSFS forever, Nightmanager

Read more…

Silly Science Predictions...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 27, 2012 at 6:08am

"Silly science" Cartoon by NilbogLAND

I used this as an intro to "Why not S.T.E.M. (science, technology, engineering, mathematics)?" at Bethel Missionary Baptist Church to 31 students last Saturday. Kids put together their own original circuits & demonstrated to the group. BTW: the young ladies ROCKED. Two girls - 7 and 9 - needed a sliding or push button switch for their "flying saucer." When they couldn't find one in the kits provided, they designed and made their own!

The video "Silly Science" was created in 1960 (Cold War days), and I recall seeing it on Saturday morning shows. Some "predictions" of this 52-year-old cartoon:

Remote Control Box: Universal Remote Control

Robot Dishwasher: Automatic Dishwasher

Robot Vacuum Cleaner: Roomba

Talk-o-Vision: Video Conferencing / Skype

Glass Bottom Boats: See-Through Boats

Remote Control and Radioactivity: Remote Control for Nuclear Power

Instant Highways: Interstate Highway System

Aerial Refueling… (Not of cars!)

Rental Cars… (Not inflatable!)

Drive-Along Movies (now car DVDs)

Auto Parks... Mega Theme Parks

Toll Roads… (Sigh!)

Humans Riding Dinosaurs…ahem, not really!
Read more…

Physics of Cancer...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 26, 2012 at 6:23am
Credit: AIP-Lead-in Photo

The American Institute of Physics publishes several articles on "The Physics of Cancer," and related articles illuminating the research in the topic towards a cure for the disease.

I offer this with some sensitivity and personal experience: my father ultimately expired from lung cancer in 1999; my mother was a breast cancer survivor until her passing in 2009.

It is comforting to know that biological, physical and mathematical sciences, and the yeoman's work of researchers are concentrated on this issue: the extension of human life in length and quality the ultimate goal.

For us as a nation to have a contribution and a stake in this, we need to encourage our youth to enter these fields, engage them in the classroom with exciting labs and non-threatening presentations; as contributors to the advancement of knowledge, not just the end-user-consumers. There should be a way to present science, technology, engineering and mathematics with a little less militancy (as in my own case); entertaining without theater or pedagogic sophistry.

For those, as I, who've been affected similarly, trust that there will be a dawn where like polio, this will ultimately be a part of our history.

Science...and hope.

We've arranged a global civilization in which the most crucial elements — transportation, communications, and all other industries; agriculture, medicine, education, entertainment, protecting the environment; and even the key democratic institution of voting — profoundly depend on science and technology. "We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology." This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.

Carl Sagan, The Demon Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark, (1995) Ch. 2 : Science and Hope, p. 26, source: Wikiquote

American Institute of Physics: Physics of Cancer, Edited by:

Robert H. Austin, Princeton University, NJ

Bernard S. Gerstman, Florida International University, Fla.

Colorado University: Discussion of Science and Hope (referencing Carl Sagan)
Read more…

Minivan Meteorite...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 26, 2012 at 6:21am


The picture taken in Reno, Nevada, on Sunday morning shows a meteor the size of a minivan plunging through the Earth's atmosphere, according to Bill Cooke of the Meteoroid Environments Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.



Of course, this would have been one heavy minivan. Cooke said it weighed about 154,300 pounds. Your minivan probably weighs in at about 4,000 pounds.

 

CNN Light Years: NASA: Meteor over California and Nevada was size of minivan

 

Read more…

Author’s News Note #1

Posted by Elizabeth Camali on April 25, 2012 at 2:17am

Good Day, Everyone!

I’m excited to announce that my debut novel, Trash, is available for your reading pleasure! If you would like a hard copy of my debut novel, you must purchase it from Lulu.com. If you would like Trash as an e-book,  Amazon Kindle is the place to go. 

Here are the links!

For E-Books: Amazon Kindle

For H-Books: Lulu.com

Not sure, you’re even interested in my debut novel? Check out the free previews chapters at the following websites!

Choice #1: Author’s Den

Choice #2: Fictionpress.com

I’m really excited that my long-held goal has finally been completed! However, this adventurous trip has just begun!

Read more…

portable portals

Posted by Arnold L. Johnson on April 24, 2012 at 8:27am

I am working on an ongoing art project in circular forms. Reminds me of diviners and tea leaf readers. A collage of paper shapes on a plate. I stumbled upon some curious configurations, one lights the whole room, one whirls like a tempest in a tea cup. Each form destructs or constructs or transtructs. Been getting strange emails of late asking me to sale the forms for 10 qzots and 50 quantizims. I was worried about alien abduction er thugs but one email had a disclaimer about the rite of passing permissions and unlawful energy flow access strictly enforced. Am I legit after all I stumbled upon this thing, this phenomenon, energy wells and shafts. I glanced in the mirror and saw a glowing mark on my right ear. I touched the mark while gazing in the mirror, a heads-up display appeared with records of procedure, sales and of course my diploma from Megagalactic Tech where I majored in multi polar quansits and quantim metacircular transforms. Sales have been down and I am spending time in my transient impersonation on vacation. I guess I like it too much and forgot myself. On this side of the galaxy I'm called "eBe", the energy bender. Anyway circular transforns are all the rage. Next year we are venturing into squares, yeah it's old school but folks like that edge of the universe feeling they get whizzing through the quantimhood. Qzots, you know the exchange rate into dollars is insane. Better off insisting on Quantizims, as they can be transduced into any currency in this universe. Did you note anything starting with a "q" sounds quosmic?

Read more…

Be Cool...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 24, 2012 at 6:08am

...minus Chili Palmer!

LASplashdotcom

Replacing roofs and pavements with more reflective versions could lower global temperatures by up to 0.07 °C, equivalent to a reduction in carbon-dioxide emissions of about 150 billion tonnes. That is according to researchers in Canada who used a global climate model to look at the effects of such albedo changes in urban areas.

I almost don't want to post the next paragraph:

"Scientists have been proposing novel ideas – mostly untested – for the geoengineering of global climate," says Hashem Akbari of Concordia University. "But humans have had experience with white buildings and reflective pavements for thousands of years without any unknown negative side effects. Hence, cool urban surfaces should be our geoengineering 101."

The problem isn't geoengineering...it's political will.
Read more…

A Scene of Mass Murder! Another Excerpt from my In-progress novel Task Force Arrow!

Posted by Ronald T. Jones on April 23, 2012 at 10:01pm

The battle flag ship Righteous Staff moved into the planet’s higher orbit to join the five hundred Varient Class assault cruisers present.
Cleric Ovisl of the Order of the Cleansed stepped onto the bridge’s visual interface plate, activating a holographic image that pieced together like a photonic jigsaw puzzle.
A face and a background formed before the cleric. A scene of fire, smoke and red-tinged devastation framed the visage.
“Cleric Ovisl,” the image uttered with a justified mix of fear and reverence.
Ovisl was one of those rare clerics who enjoyed venturing beyond the cloistered confines of the Yarilian Temple.
“Your presence is a most unexpected pleasure.” The image’s features broadened to a welcoming smile.
“I congratulate you on your victory over the heretics, General Pirqai,” Ovisl offered graciously.
The flag ship’s captain, Uriss, and Ovisl’s prime aid, Ipsol, flanked the cleric.
“Your praise is worth more than a mountain of treasure,” General Pirqai gushed. “Over thirty million heretics we have erased from this existence. Millions more await punishment for their crimes against the Bringers and those who uphold the Precepts.”
“I am pleased with the vigor of your efforts to crush dissenters and preserve the Precepts.”
Pirqai’s preening blinded him to the creeping coldness encrusting the cleric’s expression.
“Of course,” Ovisl continued. “Putting down uprisings have been something of a regularity for you from the day you assumed power. It is an endeavor that you have been exceptionally good at. Unfortunately, you govern a population that chooses willful disobedience over the wisdom of the Bringers. And your population has made that atrocious choice repeatedly enough as to have exhausted the patience the Bringers have for so long harbored toward the wayward.”
“I need more mediators,” Pirqai eagerly requested. “So that the wisdom of the Bringers can be reinforced. Plus, I need additional funding to construct new temples. I have had to raze thousands of temples that were used as bases for heretic activity. These measures in addition to my purges will decrease the likelihood of future revolts.”
“We have sent you enough mediators to fill all the temples in a dozen star systems,” Ovisl emphasized, glancing at his prime aid, who lifted a hand in agreement. “You have been provided with enough funding to purchase the Compact five times over. All to little avail. General, your world has become a hotbed of heresy and while you have managed to stamp out its activity in one area, in another it arises anew like a regenerating head on a multiheaded headed serpent.”
The gloss of accomplishment on the general’s face paled to a look of dire concern. “Blessed Cleric…I can assure you that after this day, there will be no more trouble from heretics…”
“I do not doubt that you sincerely believe that.” Ovisl turned away from the general’s image. “I do not doubt your loyalty or your faith. You are a true Child of the Bringers. What I do doubt is your ability to eliminate heresy permanently. Your world has become hopelessly contaminated. There is only one cure for what ails your population. Because your world is not essential to the existence of the Compact, this is a cure I can well afford to implement.”
Ovisl stepped off the plate and the general’s image disassembled amid a flurry of desperate pleas.
“You may begin decontamination, Captain.” Almost as an after thought, Ovisl added: “I am not nearly as patient as the Bringers.”
Captain Uriss briskly acknowledged the cleric’s command and snapped orders to Weapons Control, orders that reached the orbiting assault cruisers.”
A single object, shaped like an octagon and approaching the size of a large satellite, launched from each cruiser and the flag ship.
The objects burned through the planet’s atmosphere on guided trajectories. Most soared toward the planet’s five continental land masses. The remainder zeroed in on the planet’s largest oceans and seas.
The objects shattered in synchronized detonations less than a fourth of a mile above the surface. Purple clouds were released by the airbursts. The artificial cumulus billowed across the surface with a ravenous swiftness no natural storm system could hope to match. Chemical agents suffused the rapidly coalescing clouds; agents that paralyzed, asphyxiated, then burned its victims, not with fire but with acid.
Ovisl observed monitor footage from a hundred different angles of mass death below. The millions General Pirqai proudly proclaimed to have slaughtered became a pitifully faint tally in comparison to the five and a half billion claimed by expanding chemical clouds.
A sickly purplish shroud coated the atmosphere, displacing ecosystems, choking the planet in a worldwide grip of death.
Bridge monitors flashed grim images of charred corpses layering city streets, and rural lands. The chemical clouds even penetrated the waters, summoning sea creatures from murky depths where they floated lifeless atop acid-churned waves. Vegetation wilted and died. Mountains and buildings and other features constructed by sentient hands or molded by nature appeared unscathed by the chemical catastrophe. They were not. The chemical was persistent and in time, its lingering, corrosive effect would grind the staunchest structures to powder. Who knew when this planet would be livable again? A decade? Centuries? The creators of the chemical did not concern themselves with such a matter. Their only focus was the level of its lethality.
Ovisl lowered his head, muttering a solemn prayer, not for those among the deceased who had denied the truth of the Precepts, but for the many more billions of innocents who suffered the lamentable fate of being collateral damage.
“The Bringers will know their own and reward them for their faith and devotion.” Buoyant with the fervor of the righteous, Ovisl exited the bridge, followed by his prime aid.

Read more…