I won’t start an argument about the definition of “hard SF” or the state of scientific accuracy in fiction, but here are a few handy rules for science-fiction writers who want a quick test of real-science groundedness. I call them Joi’s Laws, because SF writer Joi Weaver put them so well. (The headlines are her [...]
Posted by Chris in Science on August 10th, 2012 | Comments Off
On March 11th, 2012 in Austin, TX at the SXSW Interactive conference, I had the privilege of being on a panel of space enthusiasts called “How to Win Friends and Influence Space Exploration“. You can listen to audio of the panel at the SXSW site. The panel was fun, and I put together a slide [...]
Posted by Chris in Space on April 13th, 2012 | Comments Off
Tonight I read the geeklet a story at bedtime, the kind of thing that’s designed to be restful with a hint of mind-broadening moral reassurance. As I finished, he looked thoughtful. “We wouldn’t be here without this.” He tapped on the floor. “I don’t mean the floor, or the neighbors downstairs. I mean the ground [...]
Posted by Chris in Evolution, Science on April 10th, 2012 | Comments Off
Sometimes I get the urge to write a short story. Usually the feeling passes, but this one stuck with me and kept nagging until I let it out. More story notes at the bottom. A shaggy dog barred my path through the door. He was my sister’s dog, a long-suffering poodle lounging in the Louisiana [...]
Posted by Chris in Science, Science fiction, Writing on March 29th, 2012 | Comments Off
[Note: Each week my geeklet and I have "experiment sunday", a brief and casual exploration of hands-on science and engineering.] This week’s experiment was a great success. That isn’t to say that it went off without a hitch; the hitches made for more valuable learning than the experiment itself. We set out to make a [...]
Posted by Chris in Science on February 13th, 2012 | Comments Off
Global Spin by Chris Radcliff is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.