From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V16 #268 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Friday, July 20 2007 Volume 16 : Number 268 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: Rudy Rucker [2fs ] Re: Rudy Rucker ["Lauren Elizabeth" ] Re: Rudy Rucker [2fs ] Art(ish)! [Steve Schiavo ] Re: Art(ish)! ["Lauren Elizabeth" ] Re: fegmaniax-digest V16 #267 ["Bri N" ] Re: Art(ish)! [Rex ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:07:20 -0500 From: 2fs Subject: Re: Rudy Rucker On 7/19/07, Lauren Elizabeth wrote: > > I found Rucker's blog entry on "mundane science fiction" to be pretty > interesting. "Rudy Rucker" always sounds to me like the way Scooby Doo would pronounce the name of someone called, say, "Judy Tucker." He cites the Wikipedia entry > (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mundane_science_fiction); here are some > excerpts: > << > The central ideas are: > > * That interstellar travel remains unlikely; that Warp drives, > worm holes, and other forms of faster-than-light travel are wish > fulfillment fantasies rather than serious speculation about a possible > future. > > * That unfounded speculation about interstellar travel can lead to > an illusion of a universe abundant with worlds as hospitable to life > as this Earth. This is also viewed as unlikely. > > * That this dream of abundance can encourage a wasteful attitude > to the abundance that is here on Earth. > >> > etc. > > I find this pretty bizarre in the sense that one could say sort of > similar things about regular old fiction. Perhaps there should be > "mundane fiction" which doesn't encourage such fanciful unrealistic > ideas such as the existence of selfless leaders, interesting detective > cases, world peace, or getting the girl. Oh wait, it already exists - > they call it "non-fiction". What's funny about this is that (a) I just finished reading Jasper Fforde's _The Big Over Easy_, one conceit of which is tension between a "Detectives Guild" constantly coming up with absurdly convoluted ways of solving crimes, and regular police who wish to outlaw such devices as identical twins, the surprising revelation of a hitherto-unsuspected villain, etc.; and (b) this week's Onion has an article suspiciously similar, that an actual murder on a cross-country train was uninteresting and sad rather than thrilling... Okay, maybe that isn't what's funny about this. - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:55:27 -0400 From: "Lauren Elizabeth" Subject: Re: Rudy Rucker 2fs says: > What's funny about this is that (a) I just finished reading Jasper Fforde's > _The Big Over Easy_, one conceit of which is tension between a "Detectives > Guild" constantly coming up with absurdly convoluted ways of solving crimes, > and regular police who wish to outlaw such devices as identical twins, the > surprising revelation of a hitherto-unsuspected villain, etc.; and (b) this > week's Onion has an article suspiciously similar, that an actual murder on a > cross-country train was uninteresting and sad rather than thrilling... um, what the hell happened to the onion? http://www.theonion.com do you live in one of those nice onion towns that has the actual paper edition? xo - -- - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "People with opinions just go around bothering one another." - The Buddha ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:28:09 -0500 From: 2fs Subject: Re: Rudy Rucker On 7/19/07, Lauren Elizabeth wrote: > > > um, what the hell happened to the onion? > http://www.theonion.com > > do you live in one of those nice onion towns that has the actual paper > edition? Yes, I do. Did they redesign the website? It looks different... - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2007 22:59:03 -0500 From: Steve Schiavo Subject: Art(ish)! Links from Andrew Sullivan's blog - - - Steve _______________ Interconnectedness among living beings can be accounted for by nonlocal quantum entanglement. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 01:31:45 -0400 From: "Lauren Elizabeth" Subject: Re: Art(ish)! Steve Schiavo says: > Links from Andrew Sullivan's blog - > > > > > alright, those will set me back quite awhile. these andrews i always get confused - is he the guy who wrote the "the atlas of depression" or the very attractive gay conservative or i am even more confused than that? xo - -- - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "People with opinions just go around bothering one another." - The Buddha ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 10:57:24 -0700 From: "Bri N" Subject: Re: fegmaniax-digest V16 #267 Date: Wed, 18 Jul 2007 20:03:08 -0400 From: "Stewart C. Russell" Subject: Re: too much for my blood pressure meds to take Jill Brand wrote: > > Of Montreal > with Grand Buffet and MGMT > Friday, Oct 12, Roxy, Boston, MA You'll find the support bands exceptionally weak. I've heard that KB really likes MGMT, but they're somewhere between 'Huh?' and 'meh.' for me. Grand Buffet are okay if you like comedy heavy metal rap. - ---------------------------------------------------------------- I've seen both. MGMT were entertaining. Entertaining enough for me to trade one of the band members a lazerlove5 cd for one of their cds. Sucker! I like only one track on the MGMT cd and I can't remember what it is now. The last time I saw OM Grand Buffet opened for them. Turned out, the guy I went with, Joel, has a band called Stylex and they toured with Grand Buffet. I can't remember WHAT they sounded like, but I do remember that the guy Joel knew carries dental floss around with him and we have that in common. It's important to keep little bits out of your teeth ya know. Unrelated, Joel is helping me by adding synth bass lines to some new songs I'm working on. Really going for that "new musik" feel. Of Montreal got rid of that incredible bassist? Damn! Why? Eb missed here too, for the most part. Cranky son-of-a-gun... Anyword on the RHE stuff getting re-released? I want BONUS tracks! - -Nuppy ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 17:07:01 -0700 From: Rex Subject: Re: Art(ish)! On 7/19/07, Lauren Elizabeth wrote: > > Steve Schiavo says: > > Links from Andrew Sullivan's blog - > > > > > > > > > > > > alright, those will set me back quite awhile. > > these andrews i always get confused - is he the guy who wrote the "the > atlas of depression" or the very attractive gay conservative or i am > even more confused than that? The former is Andrew Solomon. Also gay, less conservative, YMMV on the attractive bit. - -Rex ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V16 #268 ********************************