The Pale Beauty of a Martian Salt Mine

Vernor Vinge has said that he drew inspiration for the planet of the Tines from a visit to Norway, and Amy Thomson told me recently that she traveled to Mongolia to get a feel for the planet where her recently-finished novel is set. If the otherworldly photographs George Steinmetz recently took in Bolivia are any indication, this cold, arid, beautiful country could easily inspire a novel about life on a terraformed Mars. Here, in the massive salt flats of Uyuni, you can see the pale piles of mineral that miners have chipped from the ground with pickaxes. A very thin layer of water over the salt creates a reflective surface. More uncanny images below. More »

In Russia, the Flying Penises of Second Life Are Real

Kiddies, I remember the days when flying penises could only attack public figures in virtual world Second Life. Who doesn't remember the day when virtual real estate mogul Anshe Chung, the richest lady in Second Life, was attacked during a virtual press conference by giant virtual penises (left)? Clearly, Russian protesters haven't forgotten. A group of pro-government rabble-rousers sent a peniscopter (right) into the air recently during an anti-Putin speech from former chess champ and political activist Victor Kasparov. More »