Tampilkan postingan dengan label January 10. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label January 10. Tampilkan semua postingan

Selasa, 14 Januari 2014

Newschool Wodka Lemon onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

Written By 12; About: Newschool Wodka Lemon onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com on Selasa, 14 Januari 2014

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Newschool Wodka Lemon


Im Text zu François Xavier Saint Georges‘ Silvesterdrinkmaschine schreiben sie Wodka, auf den Bildern reden sie von Gin. Wie auch immer: I love this.



a new year special drink. ice cold vodka running through lemon… pure shot of citric good. messy though!



RUNNING THROUGH – lemon / 03-01-2014 / (via Notcot)



onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Newschool Wodka Lemon

Brain Handgrenade onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Brain Handgrenade


Neues Toy von Emilio Garcia, eine Hirngranate. Hier kann man sich auf ‘ne Liste für das Ding setzen lassen, wird so zwischen 50 und 80 Euro kosten.


Vorher auf Nerdcore:

Emilio Garcias Brain-Bugs

Skull Brain by Emilio Garcia

Jumping Brains for Sale

Jumping Brain Toy-Artshow

Bronze Jumping Brain

Jumping Brain Colorwheel

Jumping CMYK Brain

Emilio Garcias hüpfendes Hirn



onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Brain Handgrenade

Hookah Copyright Bullshit onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Hookah Copyright Bullshit


In Kalifornien haben sich tatsächlich zwei Bong-Hersteller wegen Copyright auf ihre Pfeifen gefetzt.



A California hookah pipe maker’s copyright infringement lawsuit against a rival went up in smoke today when a federal appeals court ruled that hookahs are not copyrightable.


The appellate decision is believed to be the first concerning the shape of the smoking instrument’s water container. Inhale Inc. claimed Starbuzz Tobacco was infringing its base design registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in 2011.



Threat Level: Dude, You Can’t Copyright That Hookah

Lowering the Bar: Ninth Circuit: The Shape of a Hookah Can’t Be Copyrighted


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Hookah Copyright Bullshit

DMZ Deluxe Edition is playing at my House onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com DMZ Deluxe Edition is playing at my House


Hatte ich mir gestern nacht (eher heute morgen, ahem) bei Brian Wood bestellt, der signierte Ausgaben seiner DMZ Deluxe Edition vorab verkauft und grade kam die Mail: „Dear Rene Walter, All of the items from order #1486 have now been shipped: 1x DMZ Deluxe Book One – DMZ 1“. Yay!



Collecting the first 12 issues of the series about the ultimate embedded war journalist trapped in a most unlikely war zone: the streets of New York City.


In the near future, America’s worst nightmare has come true. With military adventurism overseas bogging down the Army and National Guard, the U.S. government mistakenly neglects the very real threat of anti-establishment militias scattered across the 50 states. Like a sleeping giant, Middle America rises up and violently pushes its way to the shining seas, coming to a standstill at the line in the sand — Manhattan or, as the world now knows it, the DMZ.


Matty Roth, a naïve young man and aspiring photojournalist, lands a dream gig following a veteran war journalist into the heart of the DMZ. Things soon go terribly wrong, and Matty finds him.



Amazon-Partnerlink: DMZ The Deluxe Edition Book One


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com DMZ Deluxe Edition is playing at my House

Jumat, 10 Januari 2014

Your Complete Winter 2014 Anime Guide onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

Written By 12; About: Your Complete Winter 2014 Anime Guide onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com on Jumat, 10 Januari 2014

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Your Complete Winter 2014 Anime Guide

Your Complete Winter 2014 Anime Guide S


With the end of the year, we have come to the end of the fall season and are beginning the winter one. But with 47 new anime in the pipeline, how do you know which ones to watch? Check out the trailers and brief blurbs about each to see which of them catches your interest.


[*Note: Series are grouped loosely by genre.]


Silver Spoon Season 2


Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of one of last year's best anime which follows a boy from the city who attends an agricultural high school out in the countryside.


Seitokai Yakuindomo *


Genre: School Life, Comedy

Premier Date: January 4, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of an anime about a boy who enters a formerly all-girl high school and is forced to be the student council vice president.


Tonari no Seki-kun: The Master of Killing Time


Genre: School Life, Comedy

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: This is a short-form anime about a young girl who is constantly distracted in class by the crazy antics of the boy sitting next to her.


Saki: The Nationals


Genre: School Life, Sports

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of an anime about a high school girl in a mahjong club.


Tesagure! Bukatsumono Encore


Genre: School Life, Slice of Life

Premier Date: January 12, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of a short-form anime about a group of school girls and their extracurricular activities.


Sakura Trick


Genre: Romance, School Life

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: Two longtime female friends, afraid of drifting apart as they enter high school, decide to share a kiss—and thus begin a relationship of a different nature.


Love, Chunibyo and Other Delusions! REN (Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai! Ren)


Genre: Romance, Comedy

Premier Date: January 9, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: This is the second season of an anime about a high school boy who used to suffer fantastical delusions and a girl who is still suffering from them.


No-Rin


Genre: Comedy, Romance

Premier Date: January 11, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: A high school boy at an agricultural school finds that his newest classmate is his favorite idol who quit performing recently under mysterious circumstances.


Onee-chan ga Kita


Genre: Comedy, Romance

Premier Date: January 9, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: When a teenage boy's father remarries in this short-form anime, he finds he has a new sister—one who is in love with him to a disturbing degree.


Recently, My Sister is Unusual (Saikin, Imouto No Yousu Ga Chotto Okashiinda Ga)


Genre: Comedy, Romance, Supernatural

Premier Date: January 4, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: To move on to the afterlife, the ghost of a dead girl must fall in love with a boy by possessing the body of his step-sister.


NiseKoi


Genre: Comedy, Romance

Premier Date: January 12, 2014

Where to Watch: Aniplex USA

What It’s About in One Sentence: The son of a Yakuza crime boss finds himself engaged to a rival gang leader's daughter that he hates but must pretend to like to keep peace between the gangs.


D-Frag!


Genre: Comedy, Romance

Premier Date: January 7, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: A high school boy fancies himself a real bad boy but his behavior is nothing compared to that of the four girls he becomes entangled with.


Engaged to the Unidentified (Mikakunin de Shinkoukei)


Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life

Premier Date: January 9, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: An ordinary 16-year old girl finds out she is betrothed to a boy—who then moves into her house along with his little sister.


Soni-Ani: Super Sonico The Animation


Genre: Comedy, Ecchi

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: This is an anime about a rock star/pin-up model and her busy life.


Wake Up, Girls


Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life

Premier Date: January 11, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: A struggling celebrity management company makes a last ditch gamble to create a female pop idol group by scouting completely unknown talent.


Go! Go! 575


Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A Sega-made Vita game tie-in anime about a pair of girls who become pop idols.


47 Todoufuinu R


Genre: Comedy

Premier Date: January 12, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A new season of a short-form anime following a group of dogs that are anthropomorphic versions of Japan's 47 prefectures.


Nyan-Men


Genre: Comedy

Premier Date: January 12, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a group of ramen-inspired cat girls.


Strange+


Genre: Comedy, Mystery

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime where, after finding that his missing brother has become the head of a detective agency and refuses to return home, a young man decides to join him in solving mysteries.


Wooser’s Hand-to-Mouth Life: Awakening Arc


Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 8, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of a short-form anime about a cute but evil creature.


Chou Zenmairobo: Patrasche


Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: December 7, 2013

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: When the empire invades their country, a boy who wants to become a scientist—as well as his friend and their dog—decide to fight back in this short-form anime.


Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha


Genre: Comedy, Romance

Premier Date: January 15, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: As thanks for saving a fox pup, a fox god grants a young unpopular girl the ability to shape-shift.


Pupipoo


Genre: Comedy, Modern Fantasy

Premier Date: December 21, 2013

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a girl, bullied because of her ability to see things others can’t, befriends a floating pink blob who protects her from supernatural monsters.


Witch Craft Works


Genre: Comedy, Fantasy

Premier Date: January 5, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: A high school boy discovers that the most popular girl in school is, in fact, a powerful witch and her sole job is to protect him from harm.


Hoozuki no Reitetsu


Genre: Fantasy, Comedy

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: As an aid to The Great King of Hell, a demon tries to resolve the problems in Hell while making time for his own peaceful hobbies.


Yokai Watch


Genre: Japanese Modern Fantasy, Comedy

Premier Date: January 8, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: Based on a game by Level-5, this is an anime about a child who uses his special watch to collect data on Yokai (traditional Japanese monsters).


Minna Atsumare! Falcom Gakuen


Genre: Comedy, Fantasy

Premier Date: January 5, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about JRPG-style characters messing around in a JRPG fantasy-style world.


Hamatora


Genre: Mystery, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 8, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: Two detectives with mutant powers begin investigating a series of murders of fellow mutants.


The Pilot’s Love Song (Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta)


Genre: Adventure, Drama

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: A prince who has lost everything leaves his kingdom on a quest of hatred and revenge but learns about friendship and love as he travels.


Ghost in the Shell Nyumon Arise


Genre: Documentary, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: This is a short-form making-of documentary series about Ghost in the Shell: Arise hosted by two animated characters.


Pupa


Genre: Horror, Fantasy

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: This short-form anime follows a boy hunting for the cure to his sister's disease—a disease causing her to sprout grotesque wings and attack people.


Noragami


Genre: Action, Fantasy

Premier Date: January 5, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation 

What It’s About in One Sentence: A young god—struggling to gain followers—scrawls his number on a bathroom wall, claiming to help people for a mere five yen offering.


Nobunaga the Fool


Genre: Sci-Fi, Mecha

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: When Jeanne Kaguya D'Arc and Leonard Da Vinci travel from the “Western planet” to the “Eastern planet,” they begin an adventure that will change the fate of both worlds.


Buddy Complex


Genre: Mecha, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 6, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: After being attacked by a giant robot and then saved by his classmate (in her own giant robot), a young boy starts on the path to become a mecha pilot.


Space Dandy


Genre: Sci-fi, Action

Premier Date: January 5, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation, Animax (Asia), Madman (AU), Wakanim (UK)

What It’s About in One Sentence: From the creators of Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo comes the story of an alien hunter who is the “dandiest man in space.”


Nobunagun


Genre: Action, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 5, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: While on a fieldtrip, a high school girl is attacked by monsters and discovers she is able to wield a mystical weapon infused with the soul of legendary samurai general, Oda Nabunaga.


Wizard Barristers


Genre: Modern Fantasy, Action

Premier Date: January 13, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: In a world much like ours but with magic, a teenage girl becomes the country's youngest defense attorney for wizards.


Magical Warfare (Mahou Sensou)


Genre: Action, Modern Fantasy

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: One day, a normal high school boy comes across a girl collapsed at his school who turns out to be a magician—and has turned him into one as well.


Z/X Ignition


Genre: Action, Sci-Fi

Premier Date: January 10, 2014

Where to Watch: Crunchyroll

What It’s About in One Sentence: Based on a trading card game, this anime focuses on creatures invading Earth from other worlds.


Maken-ki! Two


Genre: Ecchi, Action

Premier Date: January 15, 2014

Where to Watch: Funimation

What It’s About in One Sentence: The second season of a “many-boob, school, action, love, comedy” anime about a boy who unwittingly enters a school where the students partake in magical combat.


World Conquest: ZVEZDA PLOT


Genre: Action, Comedy

Premier Date: January 12, 2014

Where to Watch: Aniplex USA

What It’s About in One Sentence: An anime about a young girl and her group of bad guys trying to take over the world.


Double Circle


Genre: Sci-fi, Superhero

Premier Date: December 19, 2013

Where to Watch: YouTube

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime where Four super heroes who personify alternate energy sources—wind power, water power, green power, and solar power—protect the city of Kawasaki.


Robot Girls Z


Genre: Superhero, Comedy

Premier Date: January 4, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a group of female superheroes—each based on a different giant robot from long-running anime Mazinger—who promote the new power source “photon energy” and protect it from those who would abuse it.


Happiness Charge Pretty Cure


Genre: Magical Girl

Premier Date: February 2, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: The 11th season of the long running Pretty Cure anime about a group of school girls who transform and fight evil.


Meitantei Rascal


Genre: Children’s, Mystery

Premier Date: January 9, 2014

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: This anime follows a raccoon detective and his bear assistant as they solve mysteries.


Pic-lele


Genre: Children’s, Music

Premier Date: December 7, 2013

Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced

What It’s About in One Sentence: A cute short-form anime for children about a group of ukulele-playing animals.


Future Card Buddy Fight


Genre: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Premier Date: January 4, 2014

Where to Watch: Youtube, Hulu

What It’s About in One Sentence: An anime series based on a collectible card game about children who battle by using cards to summon monsters.


Related Related


The Five Best Anime of 2013

Over this past year, I've shown you my picks for the anime you should be watching for the spring, summer, and fall seasons. You've even had … Read…





onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Your Complete Winter 2014 Anime Guide

Newschool Wodka Lemon onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Newschool Wodka Lemon


Im Text zu François Xavier Saint Georges‘ Silvesterdrinkmaschine schreiben sie Wodka, auf den Bildern reden sie von Gin. Wie auch immer: I love this.



a new year special drink. ice cold vodka running through lemon… pure shot of citric good. messy though!



RUNNING THROUGH – lemon / 03-01-2014 / (via Notcot)



onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Newschool Wodka Lemon

Brain Handgrenade onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Brain Handgrenade


Neues Toy von Emilio Garcia, eine Hirngranate. Hier kann man sich auf ‘ne Liste für das Ding setzen lassen, wird so zwischen 50 und 80 Euro kosten.


Vorher auf Nerdcore:

Emilio Garcias Brain-Bugs

Skull Brain by Emilio Garcia

Jumping Brains for Sale

Jumping Brain Toy-Artshow

Bronze Jumping Brain

Jumping Brain Colorwheel

Jumping CMYK Brain

Emilio Garcias hüpfendes Hirn



onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Brain Handgrenade

Stanisaw Lem's Summa Technologiae portrays a grim and sober singularity onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Stanisaw Lem's Summa Technologiae portrays a grim and sober singularity

Stanisaw Lem's Summa Technologiae portrays a grim and sober singularity S


Stanislaw Lem's Summa Technologiae was first published in 1964 in Poland. Now, some 50 years later, the publication of the English translation by Joanna Zylinska is finally making Lem's thoughts about science, technology, and the future accessible to Western readers.


Lem, who passed away in 2006, is known and loved by science fiction readers worldwide. With more than 25 millions books sold, he may be the most widely read science fiction writer ever, which shows that there has always been a demand for mature, complex science fiction literature.


Stanisaw Lem's Summa Technologiae portrays a grim and sober singularity


A common theme in Lem's fiction is the strangeness, fundamental incomprehensibility of alien intelligences out there (see "Lem's strange aliens, revisited"). The lesson is that alien intelligences may be so different from us, their consciousness so alien, with textures and flavors so different from our own consciousness, that communication may prove impossible. Lem warns not to anthropomorphize – the universe is probably stranger than we imagine, perhaps stranger than we can imagine.


A common message emphasized in Lem's science fiction, especially in his works of the '60s, when Summa was published (for example in Solaris, The Invincible, and His Master's Voice), is that our human intelligence, consciousness, our particular human way to inhabit the universe, may be overrated – other life forms may be more efficient and more powerful than us without being sentient in any sense that we can understand, and natural phenomena (not even life forms, just mindless matter and energy following natural laws) may exhibit behaviors similar to conscious intelligence. With this persistent uncertainty between sentience and automation, life and non-life, Lem warns that reality may be stranger than our current models.


In Summa Technologiae, Lem shows the science and possible future technologies behind his fiction. The title of this sprawling book, which means "Sum of Technology" in Latin, alludes to Summa Theologiae, the title of the 13th century compendia of theology written by Thomas Aquinas and Albertus Magnus. Lem's Summa Technologiae, surprisingly actual despite its age, explores themes found in later science and fiction, including virtual reality, synthetic biology, nanotechnology, artificial life, artificial intelligence, life in the universe, evolution, the future of humanity and technology, transhumanism, and Lem's own grim, sober concept of technological singularity.


I think if Summa had been translated to English immediately after publication, some of the neologisms coined by Lem for technologies that didn't exist at the time would be still used today. So Google would do "ariadnology" (a guide to the labyrinth of the already assembled knowledge), virtual reality would be "phantomatics," neuroscience would be "cerebromatics," and artificial intelligence would be "Intelectronics." In all cases, Lem imagines developments more advanced than today's technology – for example phantomatics and cerebromatics provide full stimulation of all senses via direct neural interfaces with instant feedback loops, influencing mental processes while bypassing afferent neural pathways, and intelectronics achieves consciousness and intelligence amplification in machines.


The overall scope of the book can be categorized as cybernetics, a term very much in vogue in the '60s but not used much these days, defined by Norbert Wiener as "the study of control and communication in machines and living beings." In other words, "cybernetics examines structure and stability in groups of organisms: how they evolve in order to establish homeostasis, and what communication methods the organisms use to maintain homeostasis," writes David Auerbach in his review of Summa. " Loosely speaking, cybernetics is an abstracted, unified conception of evolution and artificial intelligence." Homeostasis, the process of constant adaptation of a system to its environment, with feedback loops that regulate both system and environment, is a central concept in cybernetics. Some homeostats have a "'second-order regulator,' that is, the brain, which – depending on the situation – is capable of changing the 'action plan' ('self-programming via learning')."


I recommend to read also Peter Swirski's A Stanislaw Lem Reader (1997), with more recent interviews and Lem's reflections on Summa Technologiae 30 years after its first publication. "I regard Summa Technologiae as a remarkably successful book, in the sense that so much of what I wrote there has in the meantime come true," says Lem in 1992. "Today I am able to discern the reason for the rather considerable accuracy of my predictions," says Lem in the essay 'Thirty Years Later' (in Swirski's book). "Quite simply, my general assumption was a conviction that life and the processes examined by the biological sciences will become an inspirational gold mine for future constructors in all phenomena amenable to the engineering approach." Summa is full of references to the blind efficiency of biological evolution, which often finds optimal solutions. "When it comes to their capacity, throughput, degree of miniaturization," says Lem in the conclusion of Summa, "economy of material, independence, efficacy, stability, speed, and last but not least, universality, chromosomal systems manifest superiority over brain ones."


Lem begins with a comparative analysis of the evolution of biological and technological systems, focusing more on the similarities than the differences. Both biological and technological systems are homeostats constantly engaged in feedback loops with their environment, which for technological systems includes their creators, and for some biological systems (e.g. humans) includes technology. I think if Lem wrote Summa today he might use the evolution of mobile phones as an example: the shape and features of mobile phones evolve under environmental pressure (performance of chips and screens, consumer reactions) and influence us in turn (just look at teens). At this moment the result is the typical smartphone running iOS, Android or Windows Phone (which also invaded the niche of other technologies such as consumer cameras and camcorders), but mobile technology is still evolving fast and I guess it will reach equilibrium when phones/computers will be directly implanted in the brain (Cerebromatics!), which may happen by the end of next decade.


"Perhaps we will eventually gain a kind of longevity that will practically amount to immortality, but to do this, we will have to give up on the bodily form that nature gave us," says Lem. Discussing the future of humanity, he often plays with the concepts and ideas of transhumanism, and formulates his own sober, grim concept of technological singularity:


"The point is not to construct synthetic humanity but rather to open up a new chapter in the Book of Technology: one containing systems of any degree of complexity. As man himself, his body and brain, all belong to such a class of systems, such a new technology will mean a completely new type of control man will gain over himself."


Such powers, however, are not likely to be achieved with simple extensions of today's technologies. "Even if we ourselves choose the end point, our way of getting there is chosen by Nature. We can fly, but not by flapping our arms… [Machine] personality will be as different from human personality as a human body is different from a microfusion cell. We can expect some surprises, problems, and dangers that we cannot even imagine today." This is similar to Vinge's concept of technological singularity as a point in history after which things become impossible for us to imagine. Lem talks of highly imaginative super technologies, including "cosmogonic engineering," the creation of artificial worlds inhabited by sentient creatures:


"[Imagine] a large, complex system the size of ten Moons that is a homeostatic pyramid consisting of closed, descending feedback systems. It resembles a digital machine that is self-repairing, autonomous, and self-organizing… [The processes] are capable of producing an intelligent personality and sentient senses."


Lem is not a transhumanist or a singularity enthusiast ante-litteram. If anything, he suspects that future generations may lose interest, like we lost interest in the transmutation of elements envisaged by alchemists, which could be done with today's technology but is not considered worth doing. At the same time, Lem thinks that almost everything is possible, with one important exception: our descendants will never decide to "let things be the way they are now; let them remain like this forever."


A very interesting chapter is dedicated to the search for other civilizations in the universe, and why we don't see evidence of "miracles" built by advanced civilizations, which according to Dyson and Kardashev should be able to build marvels of astro-engineering that can be detected across the Galaxy. Lem formulates a possible explanation: perhaps the paths of different civilizations diverge wildly after a certain point, and only a few civilizations remain interested in space exploration and astro-engineering. Lem thinks, however, that the universe is probably full of alien civilizations.


What forms of consciousness shall our descendants find out there? More generally, what forms of thinking life are possible, including sentient artificial life that could be created in the future? Here, like in his science fiction, Lem warns not to anthropomorphize – sentient life may be more similar to the living ocean in Solaris, or the self-organizing swarms of micro-robots in The Invincible, than to our intuitive anthropomorphic models. Lem thinks that "we are inclined to overestimate the role of intelligence as a value in itself," and we should "refrain from turning the 'gravitation toward intelligence' into a structural tendency of evolutionary processes." In the chapter on constructing consciousness, he writes:


"If the fact that x is conscious is only determined by the behavior of this x, then the material from which it is made does not matter at all. It is therefore not just a humanoid robot or an electronic brain but also a hypothetical gaseous–magnetic system, with which we can have a chat, that belongs to a class of systems endowed with consciousness… [The] brain surely is not the only possible solution to the problem of 'how to construct an intelligent and sentient system'… As long as only birds or insects could fly, 'flying' was equivalent to 'living.' Yet we know too well that devices that are completely 'dead' are also able to fly today. It is the same thing with the problem of intelligence and sentience."


In conclusion, I highly recommend this classic of scientific imagination, enjoyable and thought-provoking, sometimes outdated but surprisingly actual nonetheless.


This article originally appeared at Skefia and is republished here with permission.


Image: Diversepixel/Shutterstock.


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Stanisaw Lem's Summa Technologiae portrays a grim and sober singularity

Hookah Copyright Bullshit onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Hookah Copyright Bullshit


In Kalifornien haben sich tatsächlich zwei Bong-Hersteller wegen Copyright auf ihre Pfeifen gefetzt.



A California hookah pipe maker’s copyright infringement lawsuit against a rival went up in smoke today when a federal appeals court ruled that hookahs are not copyrightable.


The appellate decision is believed to be the first concerning the shape of the smoking instrument’s water container. Inhale Inc. claimed Starbuzz Tobacco was infringing its base design registered with the U.S. Copyright Office in 2011.



Threat Level: Dude, You Can’t Copyright That Hookah

Lowering the Bar: Ninth Circuit: The Shape of a Hookah Can’t Be Copyrighted


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Hookah Copyright Bullshit

An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars

An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars


Every once in a while, the Milky Way's supermassive black hole flings a wayward star into intergalactic space at speeds reaching 2 million miles per hour. But astronomers have now discovered a surprising new class of "hypervelocity stars" that can escape the galaxy — and they don't need the galactic core to do it.


Astronomers first discovered hypervelocity stars back in 2005. There may be some 1,000 exile stars originating from the Milky Way, all of them forming near the supermassive black hole at the core of our galaxy. Astronomers estimate that these giant blue stars are tossed out of these central regions every 100,000 years or so.


Hypervelocity stars are typically former members of a binary star system; when a binary swings too close to the supermassive black hole, the intense gravity yanks the binary apart, capturing one star while violently flinging the other outward at tremendous speeds — sometimes reaching 0.2% the speed of light, or 895 km/s, so they're aptly named.


An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars


But Lauren Palladino of Vanderbilt University and her colleagues have now discovered an entirely new class of hypervelocity stars, and they behave quite differently. These 20 newly discovered stars are about the same size as our Sun, so they're relatively small. And surprisingly, none of them appear to come from the galactic core.


Needless to say, these hypervelocity stars require a completely different ejection mechanism to escape the gravitational confines of the Milky Way. As astronomer Kelly Holley-Bockelmann noted in a statement, "It's very hard to kick a star out of the galaxy."


An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars


It's important to remember that all stars in the galaxy are moving at tremendous speeds — upwards of 1,000 km/s or 2.2 million miles per hour — but not relative to one another. Hypervelocity stars are unique in that they're moving at over a million miles per hour relative to neighboring celestial bodies.


Related: Hypervelocity planets | Has the Milky Way devoured other galaxies?


The researchers found that nearly half of the stars discovered exceed their galactic escape velocities with at least 98% probability, but that each star has less than a 25% chance of being a high-velocity fluke within the sample (which was gleaned from studying Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration [SEGUE] G and K dwarf samples). Consequently, further observations will have to be made to ensure that these are actually hypervelocity stars.


An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars


But looking at the data, and based on orbits calculated using the observed six-dimensional positions and velocity, it strongly appears that these object did not originate from the galactic center.


So, without the benefit of the central black hole — with the required mass equivalent to four million suns — how did these stars attain such extreme speeds? The researchers have no idea.


"The big question is: what boosted these stars up to such extreme velocities? We are working on that now," said Holley-Bockelmann.


One possibility, as is the case with the central-region binaries, is a 3-body chaotic gravity assist. Given the number of ternary star systems in the Milky Way (stars that orbit each other), this might actually be what's happening. But can massive stars or medium-sized black holes actually produce the gravitational forces required?


Read the entire study at The Astrophysical Journal: "Hypervelocity Star Candidates in the SEGUE G and K Dwarf Sample."


Images: Vanderbilt University/Palladino et al.

Follow me on Twitter: @dvorsky

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com An entirely new class of galaxy-escaping hypervelocity stars

Marvel's Ultimate universe isn't dying, but it is definitely different onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Marvel's Ultimate universe isn't dying, but it is definitely different

Marvel's Ultimate universe isn't dying, but it is definitely different


Marvel revealed their post-Cataclysm plans for the Ultimate universe, and they are a doozy.. The line will be relaunched with three new titles — Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man, Ultimate FF, and All-New Ultimates — but "all-new" in this case is not just a marketing gimmick, it's the truth.


If you'll recall, currently the regular Marvel universe's Galactus is currently munching on the Ultimate universe, and Ultimate Capatin America and Ultimate Thor and the rest of the Ultimates are ultimately trying to stop him. I'm pretty sure we can figure out how Cataclysm ends, as the members of the All-New Ultimates include Miles Morales, Kitty Pryde, Bombshell, Black Widow (originally Spider-Woman), and Cloak and Dagger. That's... that's quite different.


Marvel's Ultimate universe isn't dying, but it is definitely different S


The Ultimate FF — which will stand for Future Foundation, not Fantastic Four — includes Sue Storm, Tony Stark and two other Marvel geniuses, one of which is "a psychopath," according to writer Joshua Fialkov.


I was excited at the prospect that Marvel might have the guts to destroy the Ultimate universe, as the comics have certainly served their time. But if all the regular Ultimates are dead (and stay dead) and this is genuinely the new status quo, I'd definitely be willing tio stick around and see where this goes.


[Via Comic Book Resources]


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Marvel's Ultimate universe isn't dying, but it is definitely different

Jessica Chastain transforms into Brave's Princess Merida onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Jessica Chastain transforms into Brave's Princess Merida

Jessica Chastain transforms into Brave's Princess Merida S


HOLY cow Jessica Chastain looks astoundingly similar to Disney Princess Merida. Disney fairy tale photographer Annie Leibovitz created a pretty compelling recreation of Merida, thanks to Jessica Chastain and a gigantic ginger wig. The similarity is striking — she even has the same smirk!



WHERE YOUR DESTINY AWAITS — In a new image by acclaimed photographer Annie Leibovitz unveiled today by Disney Parks, Jessica Chastain stars as the adventurous princess, Merida, from 'Brave.' The newest 'Disney Dream Portrait' from Leibovitz was commissioned by Disney Parks for their ongoing celebrity advertising campaign which debuted in 2007. The image, which will appear in the February issue of 'O – The Oprah Magazine,' is entitled, 'Where your destiny awaits.' (Annie Leibovitz for Disney Parks).



[Via The Disney Blog]


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Jessica Chastain transforms into Brave's Princess Merida

How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG

How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG S


I've mentioned that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has problems, and that it's not too late to take steps to fix those problems. Fixing those problems boils down to developing the characters and plot more beyond the standard "Monster of the Week" formula that many of the episodes so far have focused on. Conflicts with trying to match the scope of the movie franchise are inevitable as there's no way the show can match the budget of the movies, but that's not the biggest problem the show has. In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I started to remember a certain show that also belonged to a huge franchise that was able to do big things on just a syndicated budget. I think there are a few lessons the AoS crew (Whedon exempt, of course) can learn from watching a few seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation...and to be fair, maybe a few lessons for viewers as well.


It's possible for even a good show to start out slow


Whedon is certainly exempt from this lesson as Buffy and even Firefly haven't had the most dramatic, out-of-the-gate starts. Buffy still looks like a thoroughbred hopped up on methamphetamines compared to the Seasons 1 and 2 drone of TNG. Actually, TNG's problem was two-fold: it was slow and it was just plain-old awful. Justice, The Outrageous Okana and especially Code of Honor weren't just slow and awful, but where several steps backward compared to both the storytelling quality and social message the original Star Trek had become renowned for.


Obviously, things got better. It took a few behind-the-scenes shake-ups but TNG was able to meet and then exceed the storytelling quality of the original series. It's certainly possible for AoS to experience the same kind of growth - but keep in mind, when I said TNG underwent a few behind-the-scenes shake-ups, I mean Russ Mayberry (who directed the episode Code of Honor) was let go, Roddenberry himself had to surrender some power and two key individuals by the name of Brannon Braga and Rick Berman were brought in to help helm the show. Yes, the same two men who brought us Star Trek: Voyager and (Star Trek) Enterprise (and insisted that Enterprise be sans Star Trek in its first few seasons). My point is that it might take some dramatic crew changes - and given the dipping performance of AoS it might be inevitable. As controversial a move as it always is, the point of changing out the guard isn't to hurt the show but to help it, and if such a move is made it may hopefully be with people who are better able to make a product more closely matching the feel of the movie franchise within the show's budget. Who knows, maybe it will mean Whedon's greater involvement.


You don't need a big budget to have slick-looking sets


The interior of the "Bus" certainly isn't too cheap-looking, but goes overboard with the industrial and chromed-out metal look to arguably bland effect. Then again, it is on an airplane so it's to be expected. That said, I still think the sets on AoS tend to be generic.


How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG S


TNG on the other hand was able to create an interior for the Enterprise-D that came to define it as much as the exterior. The bridge was marked by a dramatic, low-angle arch made of wood, with carpeted floors and fancy command chairs in a nice off-beige color. Really, the whole thing looks like it was designed by Lexus.


...which isn't really the point of a starship.


...or not exactly the antithesis of bland. Ok, I'll admit my argument is falling apart here.


But the interior of the Enterprise-D at least looked inviting, for what that's worth. The ship's engineering room, on the other hand, truly was a wonder of what the future could possibly bring, with just a right mix of an industrialized hard edge with computerized gee-whiz-bang (I'm hoping you're keeping up with my technical terms here).


Even the ship's hallways were clean and warm-looking, even if they did carry over the beige-ness of the ship's other areas:


How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG S


Perhaps it's only because of the strength of the franchise or the fact that the ship was the most important setting of the show, but the Enterprise's interior, at least in my mind, has come to define the show as much as any other aspect.


You don't need anything fancy or special to tell great stories


The first five minutes of Best of Both Worlds begins with Riker, Data, Whorf and Commander Shelby (a Borg expert brought onto the mission) staring at a giant crater that used to be a Federation colony. It was a great opening and an effective way to introduce the kind of threat the Borg represent.


The vast majority of the rest of the two-part special takes place either on the standard Enterprise sets or (briefly) on the Borg ship, which wasn't all that fancy of a set either.


Best of Both Worlds didn't even have that much going in the special effects department either. Yes, there was a giant particle beam shot from the Enterprise's deflector dish. Yes, there was a pretty fancy if small-scale battle between the two sections of the Enterprise and the Borg cube. And the cube exploded. But that was pretty much the extent of the episode's special effects. The big battle that had severe ripple-effects not only in-universe for the Federation but throughout the Star Trek franchise, the Battle of Wolf 359, took place entirely off-screen (and would remain so until Deep Space 9's pilot). Despite the episode's limitations, it's one of the most memorable episodes of the entire franchise. Hell, you probably didn't even notice the limitations until I just pointed them out.


Think back to another highly praised TNG episode, Yesterday's Enterprise. Save for a few redressed sets for the interior of the Enterprise-C and a new ship model, once again the episode was played off entirely on the strength of the script and the characters. Once again, the big battle that the episode revolved around was rather limited in special effects shots. The storytelling of the episode was so strong that it not only rose above those limitations but became an oft-cited example of great science fiction in American television.


I'm going to revisit another show that I've compared to AoS, format: wise: House. Probably the most beloved episode of that whole series is "Three Stories." That episode worked because, as the title of the episode implies, it revolved around simple yet good storytelling. It used the traits and strengths of the characters (like House's sarcasm) to tell those stories. And then it whammed us at the very end by revealing that these stories have more to tell about House as a character than the characters the stories were ostensibly about. Fancy sets and location shooting probably don't hurt storytelling, but they certainly aren't necessary to tell great stories. Like the House example, the best stories are able to reveal the characters in surprising, unexpected and entertaining ways. Actually, speaking of which:


Feel free to plumb the depths of your imagination and go outside of the show's comfort zone


This is a bit risky because there are good and bad stories that lie outside of a show's comfort zone. But given the stale and bland storylines AoS is already stuck with, halfway through its first season, going outside of the comfort zone can't hurt it at this point.


Like "Three Stories," TNG's "The Inner Light" tells a lot about Picard (and humanity) in a surprising, unexpected way. The episode opens with the Enterprise encountering an unknown alien threat, and then suddenly the audience and Picard find themselves on an alien world, living quite an alien life. It's a very outside-the-box kind of story for what the audience is used to for TNG - and yet it fits the tone and even mission statement of the show exactly. Very little of it actually features the Enterprise or the familiar crew save for Picard. The vast majority of the episode takes place on a primitive yet familiar world bereft of any of the futuristic technology we tune in to TNG for. And yet it ends up being an extremely well-told, heartfelt story that's exactly about the type of humanity Roddenberry wanted Star Trek to be about.


Perhaps the only other episode that can match the power of "The Inner Light" is next season's "Tapestry." Once again, very little of it features the Enterprise or its crew, being almost entirely focused on Picard. Rather than introducing a storyline completely foreign, the focus becomes Picard's own untold personal past, and we even get a familiar character (Q) to act as a tour guide. This episode rises and falls based on not only the interaction between Q and Picard, but how Picard reacts to and validates his own nostalgia. It's certainly got interesting-looking aliens, but those aliens and their culture are besides the point, not the focus. Despite taking place on a Federation training outpost, it's lacking any real futuristic feel. In fact, thanks to the strength of Picard's nostalgia, it even feels like it's taking place somewhere in the past - and that's the point. Like "The Inner Light," "Tapestry" explores the same aspects Roddenberry pushed Star Trek on by means that don't strictly involve starships, vast battles or super-exotic worlds.


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com How AoS made me regain my appreciation for Star Trek: TNG

It's the perfect time for a GIF Party, so let's have one now! onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com It's the perfect time for a GIF Party, so let's have one now!

It's the perfect time for a GIF Party, so let's have one now! S


After a stormy couple days, it looks like we might be on our way to thawing out soon, just in time for the GIF Party!


How was your week? Did you spend it shoveling snow, clearing out your Netflix queue, and testing the outer limits of how many sweaters can be worn at once? Or, were things sunny and warm out where you were? Tell us all about it now — in GIF form!


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com It's the perfect time for a GIF Party, so let's have one now!

We Can't Blame Obesity On Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors Anymore onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com We Can't Blame Obesity On Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors Anymore

We Can't Blame Obesity On Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors Anymore S


One popular idea to explain the current obesity epidemic proposes that our hunter-gatherer ancestors had a fat-storing adaptation, which allowed them to survive frequent famines. Today, with our overabundance of food, this adaptation is causing us to get fat. There's just one problem with this idea — research now shows that hunter-gatherer societies aren't necessarily prone to food shortages.


The Thrifty Genotype Hypothesis


The notion that hunter-gatherer societies experience frequent periods of food shortage and even famines is pervasive across a number of scientific fields, including paleoanthropology and evolutionary psychology. This concept has even helped shape a variety of different theoretical models in everything from biology to economics — the "thrifty genotype hypothesis" is, perhaps, one of the most notable.


The thrifty genotype hypothesis (and other related theories) stems from the idea that our hunter-gatherer ancestors had an evolutionary adaption that allowed them to survive the frequent famines they must have faced. This adaptation still persists today, according to the hypothesis.


"If it were true, it would mean that some or all people have an extreme genetic predisposition to convert calories more efficiently to fat," Colette Berbesque, an evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Roehampton in the UK, told io9. "We've gotten so good at turning calories into fat for later use that we are all just getting obese because we don't have those lean times anymore."


Initially, scientists thought they had found evidence for the hypothesis when they looked at the subsistence practices of Samoans, Pima Native Americans and the Yanomami. People of these societies, they found, quickly experienced rising levels of obesity when they ditched their traditional diets. But it turned out that the groups had actually been involved in non-intensive agriculture — such as horticulture combined with hunting — for a long time, and that it was the "westernization" of their diets that led to their weight gain.


A couple of other studies compared the rates of famine and food shortages among people utilizing different types of subsistence, including agriculturalists, horticulturalists, hunter-gatherers and pastoralists. The research showed that hunter-gatherers experienced famines at about the same rate as other people. But when Berbesque took a closer look, she found that the studies didn't take into account different habitats. Half of the hunter-gatherer societies that researchers have data on live in arctic or subarctic regions, where very few agriculturalists live. What's more, it's impossible to tell an evolutionary story with just this sample, because many hunter-gatherers of the past lived in warm areas, Berbesque said.


So Berbesque and her colleagues decided to take another look at hunter-gatherer societies to see if they really do suffer from more famines than other people.


We Can't Blame Obesity On Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors Anymore S


Hunter-Gatherers Vs. Agriculturalists


For their study, the team used the so-called standard cross-cultural sample, which is a massive database containing information on 186 societies across the globe, including 36 hunter-gatherer societies. The database, which is primarily a sample of preindustrial societies, is coded with thousands of different variables, including famine, diseases, marital patterns, incidences of conflict, location, rainfall, temperature, plant productivity and many others.


The researchers compared hunter-gatherer societies — defined as non-horseback hunting societies that obtain less than 10% of their nutrition from farmed goods or animal husbandry, and engage in minimal trade — with agriculturalists, based on eight different famine-related variables, such as occurrence of short-term starvation, persistence of famine and recurrence of famine. To make sure the habitats were similar, they only looked at cultures that lived in regions with an effective temperature, which is the average temperature of the warmest and coldest months, of at least 13 degrees Celsius (55.4 degrees Fahrenheit). The societies they included also had similar "net primary productivity," which has to do with the amount of new plant growth each year, Berbesque explained.


"We wanted to only statistically compare hunter-gatherers with agriculturalists that had similar habitats," Berbesque said. "Once we did that, we found that hunter-gatherers had significantly less bouts of famine."


In particular, hunter-gatherers had less famine than the agriculturalists across five of the eight variables, including occurrence of famine, severity of famine and persistence of famine. Interestingly, the hunter-gatherer societies also had lower scores for the "contingency of famine" variable. That is, the agriculturalists were more prepared for famines, which, depending on how you look at it, could mean they had to deal with food shortages more often.


Berbesque thinks there are a few reasons why contemporary hunter-gatherer societies were less prone to famines than agriculturalists. For one, they weren't tied to the land, so if they experienced a major change in their food source, they could just pick up and move to a better location. Another reason could be that they just used their land differently. It's sometimes said that preindustrial hunter-gatherers occupied marginalized habitats that weren't as productive as agriculturalists' habitats, but this idea comes from a farmer's point of view — while the land may not have been good for farming, it was still fine for other modes of subsistence.


Though the literature is rife with references to the "feast and famine" lifestyle of ancient hunter-gatherers, the study suggests it wasn't like that at all — a finding with important consequences.


"I think that the thrifty genotype, as an evolutionary story in explaining the western obesity epidemic, is misplaced," Berbesque said. Additionally, some people today adhere to diets that recommend periodic fasting, in an attempt to mirror the diets of our lean ancestors. But the study, as well Berbesque's own observations of modern hunter-gatherer societies, shows the idea behind this practice may be unfounded.


Check out the full study over in the journal Biology Letters.


Top image via Frank Vassen/Flickr. Inset image via Ian Sewell/Wikimedia Commons.


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com We Can't Blame Obesity On Our Hunter-Gatherer Ancestors Anymore

Kirk and crew derp it up in the blooperized Star Trek trailer onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Kirk and crew derp it up in the blooperized Star Trek trailer

OneMinuteGalactica is back with another movie trailer culled together from the film's blooper reel, and the subject is the first Star Trek reboot. The crew of the Enterprise are no longer just young and inexperienced, now they're also idiots who are liable to break out into dance at any moment.


Fun stuff, but it is weird that I'm actually salivating for the Star Trek Into Darkness to get the same treatment?


onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Kirk and crew derp it up in the blooperized Star Trek trailer

Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com

onlinecollegedegreee.blogspot.com Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song?

Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S


Check out the first look at Quicksilver in the new X-Men movie! Plus find out why Guardians of the Galaxy won't look like anything you've seen lately. M. Night Shyamalan wants his show Wayward Pines to follow in Twin Peaks' footsteps, and Ron Moore says Outlander is building on Game of Thrones. Spoilers right now!


X-Men: Days of Future Past


There are four new stills, and one of them has the first look at Evan Peters' Quicksilver (and a walking Xavier). There's also Omar Sy as Bishop, what looks like Beast and Wolverine squaring off in the Xavier estate, and Jennifer Lawrence's Mystique in a fight against some soldiers. [Coming Soon]


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S




The Amazing Spider-Man 2


Speaking with Digital Spy, Dane DeHaan previewed, very generally, what Harry Osborne's up to in the sequel:



When you first meet Harry he's just graduated from high school, and he has to come back to New York to help deal with Oscorp, and its legacy, and his father [Norman Osborn, played by Chris Cooper]. He also sees Peter Parker for the first time in a long time; they were childhood friends. So it's really about Harry having a friendship with Peter and an allegiance to Peter, but also being the heir apparent to Oscorp, and having to deal with that.


It's becoming very obvious that all of these villains are originating from within Oscorp, in one way or the other. There are things that Harry feels he owes Peter, and things he needs from Peter, there are things he feels he needs from Spider-Man, and then there's his responsibility to Oscorp. It's a very complicated storyline, really cool and dynamic.



The trailer seems to show Norman bedridden and Harry as the Green Goblin, so DeHaan's comments about Oscorp, its legacy, and his father probably relate to those events. [Coming Soon]




Guardians of the Galaxy


Talking to SFX magazine, Kevin Feige says he's not nervous about whether audiences will be interested in these somewhat lesser-known cosmic heroes, because "we believe in them," and because Marvel's been there before:



There's definitely a comparison to be made between Iron Man & Guardians of the Galaxy because it's easy to forget that Iron Man was not well known when that first film came out. Back then I had to spend a lot time explaining to people that Iron Man is not a robot and he's actually a person and a scientist, who builds this suit. He doesn't fly like Superman, he has to obey the laws of physics. Likewise with Guardians of the Galaxy; it's based on a comic that has a certain following but nobody should feel bad if they've never heard of it because we're expecting that most people haven't.... Guardians is unique because while the hero Star-Lord is human and from Earth, hopefully the audience can relate to the adventures that he goes on as they see it through his eyes.



And associate producer Jonathan Schwartz says that this movie will have a unique, "pulpy" sensibility:



When James Gunn came aboard he brought a completely unique visual sensibility to it, harkening back to pulpy '50s science fiction... One of the things that he mentioned in his original pitch was that science fiction as we understand it has become greyer and sleeker and blacker and darker, this kind of Blade Runner world. We all love Blade Runner but that's not all that science fiction can be, so the world that you're going to see in Guardians of the Galaxy is colorful and bright and pulpy, but it's also lived-in and grounded. And finding the balance between those two things is what's driving a lot of this universe.



[Comic Book Movie]




Divergent


Here's a new still, taken from the trailer.


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S




Wayward Pines


The Fox miniseries revolving around Special Agent Ethan Burke (Matt Dillon) finding himself in the seemingly-bucolic-but-actually-strange town of Wayward Pines has its first episode directed by executive producer M. Night Shyamalan. Now, if you think the premise sounds like Twin Peaks, Shyamalan agrees with you and thinks it's a selling point:



When I read Chad's [Hodge] script I immediately thought: Gosh, I know how to do this. It struck me as having a Twin Peaks-y vibe. David Lynch's achievement with that show — especially in the pilot — was some super audacious filming. It's the kind of thing where you have these quirky over-the-top performances that are still resonant. He balanced that line in a way only he could to. So when I read Wayward Pines, I found that same mix of humor I've been dying to do.



More at the link. [Entertainment Weekly]




Helix


Even though he thought viruses "weren't his thing," Ronald D. Moore explained what grabbed him about Helix:



I do respond to isolating a group of characters in a particular situation and seeing how they react. There's something intriguing to me about taking people out of their normal world and then presenting them with a fantastical situation but not having the ability to call for help.


In that situation, you can really examine character and take people apart in a different way. There's a natural tension that comes from that.



[The Kansas City Star]


Showrunner Steve Maeda also discussed the isolation and the effect on the characters:



And what works for us really well is that it lends itself to a very claustrophobic environment because you can go outside but only for brief periods of time. It's really dangerous. The weather is horrible, as I'm sure people who are in the Midwest and the East Coast right now can relate to.


And what it does is it forces you to be inside most of the time and that's how we really saw this. That's how Cameron, who wrote the pilot script, really envisioned the thing to begin with, which was a contained environment, someplace, you know, it's almost like being set on a spaceship where you're trapped inside with, you know, unseen horrors and then there're all sorts of human problems as well that develop from that. So it really lends itself to the series as a whole.



Kyra Zagorsky, who plays Dr. Julia Walker, elaborated on the kinds of problems the characters will face in the isolation:



I think that because we are trapped in this isolated environment with a deadly virus, what's really interesting is that everyone's darkness comes out because we've got these life and death stakes going on and then there're these interesting relationships going on but we can't quite deal with the relationship right now because we've got something better to do, which is survive.


But it takes some of the characters to some very dark places and they start doing things that they might not do if they were in regular circumstances. And so their true humanity comes out, the good and the bad. And I think that's what's so interesting about the show and for me, the unique part of it, the psychological side of it.



Additionally, Maeda laid out why the virus in Helix isn't creating zombies, but something else:



I don't mind that, but we're really trying to not make it a zombie show. I would say the main difference about our vectors, as we call them, is that they are not kind of mindless sort of eating machines.


And that's something that you'll see in later episodes. They're very scary and they're human and they look horrible. But our team will discover teams into and around the virus and also what we're going to find out about the vectors is that they're incredibly smart and so they retain a lot of their intelligence, if not their humanity, which I think makes them very different from zombies.


And you know what? The comparisons will come and that's okay. But we're really trying to do something that feels different than the typical zombie show.



[TV Guide]


Finally, here are the titles and short descriptions of the first five episodes:



Episode 1.01 - Pilot

CDC pathologist Dr. Alan Farragut and his team come face-to-face with unimaginable horrors when they arrive at the Arctic Biosystems base to investigate a strange retrovirus.


Episode 1.02 - Vector

Dr. Farragut's team tries to deal with the infected victims of Peter's attack and contain the virus.


Episode 1.03 - 274

The team thinks they've got the virus contained, but deadly secrets and intrigue fester and spread as quickly as the virus.


Episode 1.04 - Single Strand

As the crisis heightens and Walker tries to survive on Level R, suspicions grow as the team keeps secrets from each other.



[SpoilerTV]




Outlander


Turning now to Ronald D. Moore's other show, he says there's been some intensive research to get the past part of this time-travel show right:



The reference material is not always there. We have found doing research on that project that there's a lot of paintings of aristocrats of the period but there are not a lot of paints of normal people. Even the tartans are not what we think they are. We think of them being those strong colors and every clan had their own tartan. But, that's not particularly true in this era.



[The Kansas City Star]


Moore also revealed that the show is planning to do one season per book, and talked about how doing a fantasy cable show is influenced by Game of Thrones:



It's definitely opened that door and showed that fantasy and genre material has a strong audience on premium cable. They also showed you can take an existing readership and turn it into an audience and then broaden that audience. We don't think of ourselves as their competition because they won that corner of the world and they do what they do amazingly well. We want to find our own different space.



Below is the first photo from the 1945 era of the show. Go to the link to read more from Moore. [TV Guide]


Could Doctor Who soon be seeing the return of River Song? S




Doctor Who


Steven Moffat's revealed that he's looking to make Peter Capaldi's Doctor more in the Tom Baker/Christopher Eccleston "mad and dangerous and difficult" mold, rather than the Matt Smith/David Tennant "quirky young man" one. He elaborated on what's going to be going on with the Doctor and Clara when the show returns:



Now we're going to give her a Doctor who's not like that at all [The Eleventh Doctor], who's a much older, fiercer, madder, less reliable Doctor, who leads her a merry dance. And she's trying to keep him a secret and she's now working in a school...



He's also contemplating a return for River Song, saying:



I'm slightly tempted, because I imagine Peter Capaldi and Alex Kingston would be absolutely hilarious together...



[Blogtor Who]




Agents of SHIELD


According to Clark Gregg, the reveal of Skye's background is more shocking than his own character's resurrection, and he says it'll force Coulson to confront some interesting questions:



Coulson's dilemma is, how much can you decide what people get to know about their own basic truths, and if you do that, how are you different than the people that you're fighting?



[TV Guide]




American Horror Story


Ryan Murphy confirmed that Stevie Nicks will return, and he went on to say that she'll be in the entirety of the finale's cold open. Queenie will be in next week's episode, which is a Kathy Bates-intensive episode. Says Murphy:



Next week is Kathy's heaviest episode that we've ever done with her on the show. It's a great episode for her. It's really upsetting because a lot of it is about the origin story for Madame LaLaurie. We read a lot about her and the question I always had is How does this woman who's a cultured socialite and someone educated become such a brutal serial killer monster? Where does that come from? What was the first moment where she did what she did? We see that, we explore that. It's a great Kathy Bates gets her revenge moment.


. . . That's next week's episode which is called "Protect the Coven" so all the stories in that are about different people having their own agendas about having to protect that sect of witchdom. There's a great, great scene that is a big stand-off that we do in there that I give Jessica Lange complete credit for.



More at the link. [Entertainment Weekly]


Here's a description of episode 12, "Protect the Coven":



A dying Fiona becomes even more desperate to find and destroy the new Supreme... but also wonders if she should give it up and just enjoy her final days. As the time approaches for the new Supreme to demonstrate the Seven Wonders, a dangerous ritual proving the Supreme's ability to master seven magical powers, more than one of the remaining girls begin to manifest multiple new powers. But it's Papa Legba who Queenie demonstrates her newest power to: the power to descend into Hell, and to return. Cordelia has a nightmarish vision that puts the Coven's future in question, while another vision leads her to confront the Axeman with a hard truth. Meanwhile, Queenie confronts Madame LaLaurie, who has found a new sense of ghoulish purpose, and Zoe returns to claim her destiny. And more than one person must face the consequences their actions when multiple acts of bloody vengeance are carried out... one of which may bring about the rise of the new Supreme at last.



[SpoilerTV]




Arrow


It looks like, following Barry's accident, Felicity's going to be leaving Starling City for a bit. As Oliver needs her there, this'll lead to giant fight between the two. [TV Guide]


And here's an extended promo for the midseason premiere, "Blast Radius." [Coming Soon]




Sleepy Hollow


When asked if Ichabod's son is really dead, executive producer Roberto Orci left the door open for the character's return:



You know, when you're dealing with God and the devil and that kind of thing, anything's possible.



[TV Line]




Extant


CBS' upcoming has cast a new regular: Camryn Manheim. She'll play Sam Barton, the best friend of Halle Berry's recently returned astronaut. [SpoilerTV]




Being Human


Here's a video interview with Sam Witwer, where he discusses how this season will address Aidan's choice between the vampire world and the human one:


Here's one with Meaghan Rath on how powerful Sally is and her journey back:


Finally, Sam Huntington on the return of Josh. [BuddyTV]




Bitten


Star Laura Vandervoort explains that what sets Bitten's werewolves apart is how much like real wolves they are:



Our werewolves are actually more down to earth. They're life-sized to any other wolf. It's not a fantasy show. It's as realistic as we can be with the situation at hand.


And the wolves have the actor's eyes and the same coloring - their fur is the same coloring as the hair. So it's, you know, obviously we are dealing with a mythical idea of werewolves, but we're trying to make it as true to life as we can. And that's making sure the werewolves aren't any different to a typical wolf.



She also described how her character, Elena, and her pack's relationship will evolve over the course of the show:



It's complicated. She grew up in a foster care system - so never really had much of a family dynamic. So once she's Bitten into the pack it's conflicted because she is the trade. They didn't - it wasn't at her, you know, it wasn't by her own will.


They bit her. And she had to survive it on her own. But at the same time she finally has a family that she's always wanted and people who will look out for her.


So she's torn between, you know, what she's always wanted and how she got it - and then the life that she should be living in Toronto. But eventually within the season you realize that she is very close with the pack and she is their best tracker and she does love them all equally in different ways. And wants to help them and help the family.





Revolution


After some intense old-school medicine is deployed to Miles, Sebastian's search for his son will see him travel to Mexico. There, we'll see that someone has prospered there. And, given TV Guide's hint that "the manzana doesn't fall far from the arbol," it sounds like it's someone's child. [TV Guide]


And here's a promo for episode 2.11, "Mis Dos Padres." [via SpoilerTV]




Under the Dome


Then show's adding three new characters. The first is Sam, known to the locals as "the crazy drunk who lives alone in the woods," and who is related to a familiar character. The second is Rebecca, a teacher in her 30s who is being asked to restart the school by Big Jim, who has another agenda. The third is a "new girl" in town, who takes an interest in Joe and Norrie. [TV Line]




The Vampire Diaries


Episode 5.12 will be titled "The Devil Inside" and episode 5.13 will be "Total Eclipse of the Heart." [SpoilerTV]




Tomorrow People


Episode 1.12 will be called "Sitting Ducks" and the following episode will be called "Things Fall Apart." [SpoilerTV]


Additional reporting by Charlie Jane Anders and Emily Stamm


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