io9: spies

KGB Notebooks Online Reveal the Thoughts of Science Spies

Annalee Newitz — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:20:21 PDT

If you like retro-futuristic spy tales, you will be intrigued by this collection of KGB spy notebooks, translated online, created during the height of the Cold War. They're all about stealing science secrets.

Posted by the Cold War International History Project, there are several notebooks that have been translated in their entirety, and it gives you a weird and intriguing glimpse of the spy mentality at the time. Here is one entry, from the so-called Yellow Notebook, kept by a spy in the early 1940s. He was trying to cozy up to nuclear scientists:

Report on a c/t dated 7.12.42. Charon reports that a certain Al. Marshak from Bransten's circle of acquaintance might be of interest: 37 years old, Jewish, works in the Genetics Dept. at the U. of California. He is described as being devoted to us and honest. M. believes he is related to the writer Marshak and is proud of this. M's parents lived in the south of Russia. He has professional ties to Lawrence's laboratory and to the physicist Oppenheimer. M. is supposedly in the know with regard to work on the cyclotron.
p.54 25.1.43 we replied to Charon that we are interested in Marshak, but that his family connection to the writer was not borne out. The neighbors have been cultivating Robert Oppenheimer since June 1942 Ë his recruitment does not seem possible.

So basically KGB spies were trying to recruit Oppehnheimer back in the early 40s. Wonder if he knew?

Check out more of the notebooks at the Cold War International History Project (thanks, Erin!)

What Did You Think Of Chuck's Return?

Graeme McMillan — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:40:47 PDT

We were unconvinced by the second season premiere of NBC's Chuck when it first appeared online last week, and a second viewing last night for its "official" debut on-air didn't do that much to change our opinion (Sorry, all). But maybe we're too used to the crankypants to recognize fun anymore. If you saw the episode last night, consider this the place to tell us how wrong we were.

Your Remote-Controlled Robot Voyeur Army Has Arrived

Annalee Newitz — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 07:00:00 PDT

You're on vacation, but you still want to spy on what your roommates are doing in your house. Or maybe you just want to be sure your boyfriend remembers to feed your cats. Either way, you're in luck with the new Spykee robot (pictured), a robot that's remote-controlled via internet phone service Skype. That means you can call your robot from anywhere in the world, guide it around your house, and see what it sees.

The Spykee site says, enticingly, that you can:

Watch video of your own home from anywhere in the world while the the Rovio mobile spy robot patrols your home automatically for you while you're away.

Or you could even watch your home while you're not away, just to make sure nobody is doing "bad things" down the hall. The Spykee lets you talk to the people you see in your house via Skype, which should provide hours of fun when people assume the robot itself is talking to them. Plus, you can set up a system where the robot will look for motion, snap a photo, and send it to you via e-mail. That's a great feature for bedrooms, if you know what I mean. Because bedrooms have a lot of valuables in them that you might want your robot to guard for you! Right?

Oh, and did I mention you can add on to the robot with legos? I'm so glad the future has brought us a lego-based voyeuristic robot. Can HAL9000 really be far behind?

Spykee [official site]

Which Secret Scifi Spy Group Could Actually Stop Terrorism?

Annalee Newitz — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:14:48 PDT

Every spy agency and intelligence group on Earth claims they're trying to stop terrorism, but it doesn't look like armed subversives are going away any time soon. Maybe we need to bring in some backup from beyond the stars, or beyond the species as we know it? We already told you about some of the greatest secret spy organizations from science fiction, and now it's time for you to decide which ultra-secret-mega-groups, whether extraterrestrial or merely superpowered, should be brought in to crush the terrorists (whoever they are).

Must See: Alias

charliejane — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 23:03:40 PDT

Must-see TV shows are futuristic classics that shouldn't be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That's why we've rated them 1-5 on the patented "crunchy goodness" scale.

Title: Alias
Date: 2001-2006

Vitals: Sydney Bristow thinks she's working for the CIA, but after her bosses kill her fiance she realizes she's working for SD-6, a criminal organization, instead. She teams up with her dad, who's also a superspy, and then finds out that her mom, another superspy but evil, is alive. And then she's brainwashed to become evil, but then her memories are erased, and then the bad guys turn out to be the good guys, except not.

Famous names: Jennifer Garner, Ron Rifkin, Victor Garber, Michael Vartan, J.J. Abrams

Crunchy goodness: 3

Spinoffs/Sequels/Copycats: The Alias video game, released by Acclaim in 2004, features the voices of Garner and other stars of the show. Says UGO.com: "Alias is a poor action-stealth title that is nothing but a guilty pleasure for fans of the series. "

Elevator pitch: She's like James Bond with breasts, a blue wig — and huge daddy issues.

Deadliest spoiler: Sydney and Michael (her former CIA handler) have a daughter — who scores high on the spy-aptitude tests, thus ensuring her future in the same business as her parents, her grandparents, her cousins, and her cousins' orthodontists.

alias.fannesite - an Alias fan site