I’ve been giving some thought as to my alternate history space opera science fiction universe, and I have some ideas that might spice up and flesh out the mid 20th century in my timeline, even more so than the premise of the first moon landing, … Continue readingAfter Wings of Fire: Worlds of Ice?
What is a “planet”, anyway? A perhaps surprisingly contentious question, that extends far beyond the most recent flare-up of controversy, which centered around Pluto’s status in the planetary club, and despite the pretenses of the International Astronomical Union the jury’s still out on that one. … Continue readingWorldbuilding the Definition of Planet
Today is day 33 that I’ve worked on my bachelor’s degree program; 16 days at Sophia Learning back in August, and 17 days and counting since I started at Western Governors University on the first of October. I write this because this day, day 33, … Continue readingDegree Quest: Day 33
When researching for my post “The Final Frontiers of the Periodic Table” it struck me how dull the names of most of the chemical elements are, “something-something-ium”, a trend of uncreativity that’s worsened with the more recent discoveries of the transuranic and superheavy elements. Now, … Continue readingOn Etymologies of the Elements
Ah, the periodic table of the elements: that ubiquitous chart in the realm of chemistry. In the heady days of the 19th century new elements were being discovered, filling in the table left and right, culminating with the last discovery of a naturally-occurring stable element, … Continue readingThe Final Frontiers of the Periodic Table
I’ve touched on this topic before on here, but I find my mind often wandering to what the development of drugs, especially medicinal drugs, might look like in a science-fictional alternate-history timeline like mine that diverges around 1900 and has had a century for all … Continue readingTherapeutics of my Alternate History
It’s kinda funny how brainstorming works. One day I’m watching the 2003 film “The Haunted Mansion” — a fun enough romp, with the main highlight being Chancellor Valorum (er, excuse me, Terence Stamp) playing an aged butler with a big secret — and it strikes … Continue readingA Slice of Life at the Dawn of the Space Age?
Well, here it is: tomorrow, October 1, is when my term at Western Governors University begins and I’ll start the next leg of what I like to call my “degree quest”, a leg which will culminate when I get my Bachelor’s of Science in Business … Continue readingDegree Quest: The Second Leg Looms
There are some days it strikes me that I’m always kinda excluded, like the people I know and who act like they like me, and even tell me to my face that they’re my friend, will all chat up each other in their little sociable … Continue readingWelcome to the Desert of the Weird
You know, sometimes a thing happens to me that causes me to shake my head and go “Good god, man, why didn’t you pay more attention to your own advice?”. Well, today’s example is my glowing praise for corticosteroids; cortisone is called “the wonder drug” … Continue readingThe Wonder Drug Scores Again?