There is a hilarious new movie coming out called "Expelled" where Ben Stein plays this creationist who tries to prove that there is a massive atheist conspiracy to push something called "Darwinism" into schools despite the fact that "Big Science" knows that evolution isn't real.
What's that? Huh? It's not a comedy?
Seriously? Ben Stein thinks that there is an atheist conspiracy to promote evolution?
He doesn't think fossil evidence, molecular evidence, the fact that every animal on earth is related by DNA, the obvious mutation and change observed in microorganisms, and the thousands and thousands of biologists who not only work based on evolution but also study nuances and mechanisms in ways that directly demonstrate its effects mean anything?
Oh my goodness. That's sad.
I recommend going to www.expelledexposed.com and finding out what is up with this strange and misguided film.
And if you want to see an amusing example of what kind of folks the Expelled filmmakers are, check out this link: http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/03/expelled.php
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Dundjinni - Finally some progress?
I love the mapping program Dundjinni. It is probably the easiest to use mapping software for D&D (or other) RPGs. The newest patch, version 1.07, comes with some great fixes and terrific news. They've updated their EULA and now you can use Dundjinni to make commercial products! Of course there are rules, but according to the announcement they want a credit in the product.
If I ever get around to making such products I certainly would credit them. I need to read the EULA, but in the mean time here is the announcement from their site:
NEW PATCH + NEW EULA AT DUNDJINNI!
If I ever get around to making such products I certainly would credit them. I need to read the EULA, but in the mean time here is the announcement from their site:
NEW PATCH + NEW EULA AT DUNDJINNI!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Arthur C. Clarke - I can feel my mind going.
Well, once again I tried to catch up on the classics only to see it all end in despair. -SIGH- I got my TV working using HiDef finally after 3 years of having a big-screen without a tuner to drive the signal.
So after getting the DirecTV HD receiver (with the dvr - it's no TiVo sadly) I started cruising the channels looking for stuff to see with HD resolution. And what should I find but 2001: A Space Odyssey.
"Hmmm, 2001. I haven't seen that since I was just a kid," I thought to myself. "I bet that would look sweet on HD." So I recorded it and watched about 20 minutes of it on Sunday and then sat down last night and finished it over some popcorn.
And somewhere on the other side of the world Arthur C. Clarke, age 90, picked up his list of people who had not seen his movie in HD, put a tick by my name, and died content that he'd given my eyes something to do while my mouth chewed puffed corn.
What can I seriously say about Clarke and his work? A few things:
1) I have only read one of his short stories, but I remember liking it.
2) I enjoyed 2001 and despite the psychedelic ending think it is still one of the best hard sci-fi movies ever made.
3) I absolutely adored Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World and Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universe.
The quote from Clarke (possibly) that I always hear is that "sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." That's good. Not sure if he originated it, but I like it.
He also said of UFOs: "They tell us absolutely nothing about intelligence elsewhere in the universe, but they do prove how rare it is on Earth." Amusing.
The coincidence of my having just finished watching 2001 only to discover that he died less than 24 hours later is disappointing. I was thinking of writing him, and hear that he did answer e-mails regularly. Not so now, I suppose. Not so now.
X-Ray Delta One, end transmission. Over and out.
So after getting the DirecTV HD receiver (with the dvr - it's no TiVo sadly) I started cruising the channels looking for stuff to see with HD resolution. And what should I find but 2001: A Space Odyssey.
"Hmmm, 2001. I haven't seen that since I was just a kid," I thought to myself. "I bet that would look sweet on HD." So I recorded it and watched about 20 minutes of it on Sunday and then sat down last night and finished it over some popcorn.
And somewhere on the other side of the world Arthur C. Clarke, age 90, picked up his list of people who had not seen his movie in HD, put a tick by my name, and died content that he'd given my eyes something to do while my mouth chewed puffed corn.
What can I seriously say about Clarke and his work? A few things:
1) I have only read one of his short stories, but I remember liking it.
2) I enjoyed 2001 and despite the psychedelic ending think it is still one of the best hard sci-fi movies ever made.
3) I absolutely adored Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World and Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universe.
The quote from Clarke (possibly) that I always hear is that "sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." That's good. Not sure if he originated it, but I like it.
He also said of UFOs: "They tell us absolutely nothing about intelligence elsewhere in the universe, but they do prove how rare it is on Earth." Amusing.
The coincidence of my having just finished watching 2001 only to discover that he died less than 24 hours later is disappointing. I was thinking of writing him, and hear that he did answer e-mails regularly. Not so now, I suppose. Not so now.
X-Ray Delta One, end transmission. Over and out.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
The love between a monkey and a bear
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Gary Gygax - Rest in Peace
Role-Playing Games. Not some lumbering beast, but a thousand thousand variants on a theme. Evolution. From strategic miniature simulations came the idea of playing a Tolkien world, developing characters and doing more than dealing with raw numbers.
The man who in most people's minds brought that whole world to the light of day and spawned an entire industry (which in turn spawned the computer gaming industry to a great degree) was E. Gary Gygax.
Last night he failed his saving throw and passed away.
Sadly, no healing potions will aid him now. No party member will be carting him off to the nearest temple for resurrection. He's gone.
But in his wake what a vista!
His game (his and Dave Arneson's) was Dungeons and Dragons. Here's just one kind of spin-off.
A guy named Richard Garriott played D&D and decided to make a version of that on his Apple computer. That game was Akalabeth, which evolved into Ultima. Ultima begat many sequels, and Garriott eventually created Ultima Online.
This was really the first successful MMORPG with a mainstream draw (not to demean all the MUD players out there - I feel ya playhuzzzz).
Effectively Garriot had evolved D&D type play into a fees-per-month monetized Internet-based community driven extravaganza.
Which really drove folks like Blizzard to make World-of-Warcraft. And if you've paused from playing WOW long enough to read this entry, then you should say a kind word in memory of E. Gary Gygax - a man who helped entertain millions even if he didn't make that much money doing it.
The man who in most people's minds brought that whole world to the light of day and spawned an entire industry (which in turn spawned the computer gaming industry to a great degree) was E. Gary Gygax.
Last night he failed his saving throw and passed away.
Sadly, no healing potions will aid him now. No party member will be carting him off to the nearest temple for resurrection. He's gone.
But in his wake what a vista!
His game (his and Dave Arneson's) was Dungeons and Dragons. Here's just one kind of spin-off.
A guy named Richard Garriott played D&D and decided to make a version of that on his Apple computer. That game was Akalabeth, which evolved into Ultima. Ultima begat many sequels, and Garriott eventually created Ultima Online.
This was really the first successful MMORPG with a mainstream draw (not to demean all the MUD players out there - I feel ya playhuzzzz).
Effectively Garriot had evolved D&D type play into a fees-per-month monetized Internet-based community driven extravaganza.
Which really drove folks like Blizzard to make World-of-Warcraft. And if you've paused from playing WOW long enough to read this entry, then you should say a kind word in memory of E. Gary Gygax - a man who helped entertain millions even if he didn't make that much money doing it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)