RSS
io9
found footage
anathem
Neal Stephenson's new novel Anathem comes out next week, and there's something very timely about his tale of aliens on a parallel Earth whose inhabitants are locked into an occasionally-catastrophic conflict between scientific and religious institutions. The planet Arbre, which is very much like Earth in some ways, differs from our world one major respect. Its religious and scientific institutions are essentially reversed. Monks called the avout live ascetic lives studying science in gracious, ancient "maths," while the so called "saecular" world is populated with Deolators (god-worshipers) who are obsessed with religion and technology. Stephenson's world-building skills, honed by the exacting work he did on his recent Baroque Cycle trilogy, are at their best here. Anathem is that rarest of things: A stately novel of ideas packed with cool tech, terrific fight scenes, aliens, and even a little ESP.
More »
Neal Stephenson's Tale of Two Planets
Neal Stephenson's new novel Anathem comes out next week, and there's something very timely about his tale of aliens on a parallel Earth whose inhabitants are locked into an occasionally-catastrophic conflict between scientific and religious institutions. The planet Arbre, which is very much like Earth in some ways, differs from our world one major respect. Its religious and scientific institutions are essentially reversed. Monks called the avout live ascetic lives studying science in gracious, ancient "maths," while the so called "saecular" world is populated with Deolators (god-worshipers) who are obsessed with religion and technology. Stephenson's world-building skills, honed by the exacting work he did on his recent Baroque Cycle trilogy, are at their best here. Anathem is that rarest of things: A stately novel of ideas packed with cool tech, terrific fight scenes, aliens, and even a little ESP.
More »
Aliens to watch out for
"Bechdel Rule" Should Really Be Called "Ripley Rule," Bechdel Tells io9
Everybody's talking about the "Bechdel Rule" all of a sudden, especially as it relates to science fiction. National Public Radio did a story on it the other day. Novelist Charles Stross dissected his own books to see if they passed the test. (Two of them failed.) This guy rigorously applies it to tons of science fiction books, including every single Doctor Who novelization. Just what is the Bechdel rule, and what's its secret connection to scifi? We asked creator Alison Bechdel herself. More »
Most Popular Stories
- Best Future Dystopias Where The Liberals Have Won (35,037 views, 137 comments)
- Aaron Eckhart Spills Dark Knight 3 Details (5,610 views, 34 comments)
- It's Shia LaBeouf's Transformers Happening, And It's Freaking Him Out (5,473 views, 27 comments)
- Was The X-Files Movie A Victim Of Bad Press? (44 comments, 1,926 views)
- 5 Fall Shows That Could Be Improved With A Little Scifi (36 comments, 2,992 views)
creation
Was Darwin The Spicoli Of His Times?
Jennifer Connelly and Paul Bettany are cast as married couple in Jon Amiel's biopic Creation about the life of Charles Darwin. Bettany will won't be donning much of the evolutionary theorist's mighty beard, because this picture promises to show us the life of a young Darwin, and his struggles. THR claims, "The scientist finds himself caught in a struggle between faith and reason, love and truth." I'm all for anything that shows "crazy" Darwin hot rodding around town smoking cigarettes and chasing skirts. But what kind of man was he in his youth, was he a Spicoli, a Bueller or a Dean, and can he out do the Kinsey movie? [The Hollywood Reporter]
Everyone Loves SciFi
The SciFi Channel had their most successful summer ever, according to a press release issued yesterday. The key shows responsible were, apparently Ghost Hunters International, Scare Tactics, their goofy Saturday night original movies and Eureka, which apparently rules the ratings for anyone between 25 and 54 on a Tuesday night. Weirdly not mentioned at all in the press release was Stargate: Atlantis - I mean, I know they've cancelled the show, but not to mention it at all? That seems a little cold. [SciFi Channel Press Release]
The SciFi Channel had their most successful summer ever, according to a press release issued yesterday. The key shows responsible were, apparently Ghost Hunters International, Scare Tactics, their goofy Saturday night original movies and Eureka, which apparently rules the ratings for anyone between 25 and 54 on a Tuesday night. Weirdly not mentioned at all in the press release was Stargate: Atlantis - I mean, I know they've cancelled the show, but not to mention it at all? That seems a little cold. [
fringe
Fringe Will Jump The Shark Early And Often, Says J.J. Abrams
J.J. Abrams says his new FBI-vs-science show Fringe will try to jump the shark as quickly as possible — just the same way his hit show Lost did. In a conference call with reporters, Abrams also explained why he's scared of giant corporations. And he explained why Fringe will be just like hit hospital drama ER. More »
New Losties
One New Shady Lost Character Gets A Face — And A Seriously Hot Body
I did not think it was possible to cram any more attractive people into Lost, but meet Zuleikha Robinson. She'll be joining up with the castaways as the new character Ilana. Entertainment Weekly reports that this Londoner will be a major new part of the new season of Lost. Robinson has been seen before in Rome and The Lone Gunmen. So she's fanned the hearts of TLG, but can her skills stand the test of Lost's infamous, sexy character stare downs? Minor spoilers ahead. More »
Monsters
Guillermo del Toro Brings Back the Days of Classic Universal Monsters
Guillermo del Toro, who raised the bar on monster-making in Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth, is now set to helm two more classic monster movies — as well as adapt a classic Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. novel. Though del Toro's next project is a two-movie version of The Hobbit, he's also apparently cut a deal with Universal to remake two of its oldest monster franchises: Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. These stories, along with Dracula, were cornerstones of the Universal Pictures monster factory in the 1930s. Can del Toro surpass the glory of those crazy 30s Frankenstein sequels? He says he has a plan. More »
retro futurism
Burroughs and Disney Drop Acid, Create Animated Martian Dictionary
In the early twentieth century, Edgar Rice Burroughs compiled a glossary of the terms used in his Martian novels. In 1957, Walt Disney created an animated version of it for his "Mars and Beyond" TV show (we've already showed a couple of clips, but this one's great too). I love the surreal animation, some of which (the Banth and the Thoat) reminds me of the awesome VIP - Virgil Franklin Partch. It turns out that VIP did work for Disney, but left almost two decades before "Mars and Beyond."
Battlestar Galactica
More News About BSG's Big Acid Flashback
Once all of Battlestar Galactica's secrets are revealed in the final batch of episodes, we'll look back to the show's beginning and rediscover events in a whole new way. Some more details have trickled out about the TV movie that's going to air after the series ends, including some new guest stars. And Edward James Olmos has a promise for you about the tail end of Admiral Adama's journey. Minor spoilers ahead. More »
dark knight
Milo Ventimiglia Makes Plea For Role Of Boy Wonder
Humble Milo Ventimiglia thinks he's just the thing for the new Dark Knight movie. Heroes' Peter Petrelli told Showbiz Spy, "I always thought I would make a great Robin." Well Milo, if you can dream it, maybe you can do it. But why does the 31-year-old Ventimiglia think he can carry off the green tights? More »
triviagasm
Destinations for Your Next Scifi Themed Vacation
Star Trek: The Experience closed earlier this week, meaning that Las Vegas will no longer serve as the destination for those looking to survive a Borg attack or enjoy a Risa Colada at Quark’s Bar. And, unless you’ve got $20 million to drop on a ticket, actual space tourism remains off the table. But fear not, we’ve got a host of suggestions for your next science or science fiction-themed vacation that are right here on Earth. More »
Want to Talk to Neal Stephenson?
Neal Stephenson, author of Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon, has a new novel coming out next week called Anathem. He'll be chatting for an hour on "The Beyond," a web radio show. You can listen or call in with your questions today at 4 PM EST. Here's the link. Don't worry if you miss it — io9 is doing an interview with Stephenson, which we'll be posting soon!
Neal Stephenson, author of Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon, has a new novel coming out next week called Anathem. He'll be chatting for an hour on "The Beyond," a web radio show. You can listen or call in with your questions today at 4 PM EST. Here's the link. Don't worry if you miss it — io9 is doing an interview with Stephenson, which we'll be posting soon!
kick-ass
Kick-Ass Too Violent For Nic Cage?
Is the movie version of Mark Millar's Kick-Ass in trouble already? Its biggest star, Nicolas Cage, has been talking about his reaction to seeing the comic for the first time - after agreeing to do the movie - and it's not necessarily a good one. What kind of teenage ultraviolent action movie are we going to be seeing in theaters next summer? It may depend on whether Cage or Millar can convince director Matthew Vaughan of their respective visions. More »
urban futurism
Kibera, a dense, 2.5 square km shantytown outside Nairobi, is the largest slum in Kenya. It's estimated that possibly a million people live its maze of houses and outdoor markets. Now a group there has figured out a fast, efficient way to convert piles of trash into compost — and to convert areas that were once trash heaps into instant organic farms using just recycled PVC piping and other easily-accessible materials. One farm, which now feeds 30 people, was operational in just 3 months. This low-tech form of land reclamation could be a model for rapidly-growing urban populations.
More »
Kibera's "Instant Farm" System Is the Future of Urban Agriculture
Kibera, a dense, 2.5 square km shantytown outside Nairobi, is the largest slum in Kenya. It's estimated that possibly a million people live its maze of houses and outdoor markets. Now a group there has figured out a fast, efficient way to convert piles of trash into compost — and to convert areas that were once trash heaps into instant organic farms using just recycled PVC piping and other easily-accessible materials. One farm, which now feeds 30 people, was operational in just 3 months. This low-tech form of land reclamation could be a model for rapidly-growing urban populations.
More »
Bat-Rumors
Aaron Eckhart Spills Dark Knight 3 Details
Amidst wild rumors for Dark Knight 3's casting process (think Cher as Catwoman), actor Aaron "Two Face" Eckhart gave us some bat-closure on a few of the many bat-rumors. So are we going to see the former Gotham City DA's pretty deformed mug again? Dark Knight spoilers ahead. More »
Architecture
