Captain Picard Sir Patrick Stewart turns 75 years today.
May you have many more, enjoying life to the fullest. Heartfelt congratulations!
Image: Sir Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) on Twitter
Author: Eppu
Fantastic Worlds Exhibit at The Smithsonian
The Smithsonian’s new exhibit Fantastic Worlds: Science and Fiction, 1780-1910 opened on July 01, 2015. In addition to the physical exhibit, the Smithsonian Libraries provide an online version.
From the online exhibit description:
“Travel with us to the surface of the moon, the center of the earth, and the depths of the ocean — to the fantastic worlds of fiction inspired by 19th-century discovery and invention.
“New frontiers of science were emerging. We took to the air, charted remote corners of the earth, and harnessed the power of steam and electricity. We began unlocking the secrets of the natural world. The growing literate middle class gave science a new and avid public audience. Writers explored the farther reaches of the new scientific landscape to craft novels, hoaxes, and satires.”
The online exhibit reveals a new thematic component (or chapter) each Tuesday. So far we’ve seen “Terra Incognita” and The Age of the Aeronaut”. The chapters include images, maps, and videos, plus intriguing curator’s notes. Sounds great for early science fiction and fantasy enthusiasts, as well as people interested in the history of exploration or late 1700s to 1800s.
Found via Smithsonian Libraries on Tumblr.
Out There is an occasional feature highlighting intriguing art, spaces, places, phenomena, flora, and fauna.
Lionsgate to Adapt The Odyssey
The first great European adventure story, The Odyssey by Homer, is being adapted again to the big screen, this time by Lionsgate. So far the project includes director Francis Lawrence and producer Nina Jacobson (of the Hunger Games movie adaptation fame), and writer Peter Craig (known for co-screenwriting The Town and Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2). According to Deadline Hollywood, production is planned to begin early in 2016.
With the advances in visual effects technology, this adaptation will surely look grander and more epic than any preceding ones. I hope that the screenwriting will be great, too.
Image: The Odyssey of Homer – Easton Press edition by Robert on Flickr (Creative Commons license CC BY 2.0)
Hey, look! We found a thing on the internet! We thought it was cool, and wanted to share it with you.
Illustrating and Ing-ing Movie Titles
Illustrator James Chapman decided to add “-ing” to movie titles and then draw a cartoon reflecting the new name. They are hilarious! Here are just two:
Visit his BuzzFeed post for more!
Hey, look! We found a thing on the internet! We thought it was cool, and wanted to share it with you.
Wrangling That Raptor Squad Smithsonian Style
The Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History’s Dinosaur Curator Matthew Carrano prepares for a new dinosaur exhibit:
By Smithsonian on Tumblr. This is by far the best I’ve seen to come out of the Jurassic World #prattkeeping meme!
Hey, look! We found a thing on the internet! We thought it was cool, and wanted to share it with you.
Painted Mechanized Fauna
Among other projects, Swiss artist, graphic designer, and illustrator Remo Lienhard (aka Wes21) produces large-scale public art and designs that combine natural elements with science fiction.
His style resembles 1980s sci-fi illustrations, but the joining of mechanical parts and buildings with humongous bugs and sea animals, for example, is new. (New to me, at least.)
The piece below gives quite a literal meaning to the old Finnish joke about our national air force consisting of mosquitoes:
I got a good chuckle out of that one. 🙂
I recommend having a look at Lienhard’s website. Apart from the works with sci-fi elements, there is so much to admire.
Found via Colossal.
Out There is an occasional feature highlighting intriguing art, spaces, places, phenomena, flora, and fauna.
Computer Wallpaper: Star Wars Meets Cute
Irene made and shared this (perhaps kawaii-inspired?) Star Wars computer wallpaper:
By Irene Fucci. (Download from One O.) A little too cute for my taste, but love the humor!
Hey, look! We found a thing on the internet! We thought it was cool, and wanted to share it with you.
DIY Portal Mirrors
Reddit user corttana and her husband dahburbb have a pair of Portal-themed mirrors in their basement den:
They were DIY-ed with mirrors, LED rope light, and wood, plus glue and various attachment / hanging supplies. There are some detail photos on Imgur, and dahburbb provides a list of materials and a how-to. This project is four years old already, but still oh, so good. 🙂
In Making Stuff occasional feature, we share fun arts and crafts done by us and our fellow geeks and nerds.
The Martian Release Date Pushed Forward
A film adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel The Martian, written by Drew Goddard and directed by Ridley Scott, is being released ahead of its original schedule. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the movie will now debut October 02, 2015 (instead of November 25).
It’s unprecedented for the opening date of a science-heavy SF film to be pushed forward only a few months from release. There must be sufficient buzz about the movie to warrant the move. The announcement has certainly made me more excited to see it!
In case you missed it, here’s the first trailer:
The Martian official trailer from 20th Century FOX
“I’m gonna have to science the shit out of this.” Oh, yeah!
R.I.P. Sir Christopher Lee
Dracula Scaramanga Saruman Count Dooku Consummate actor and singer Sir Christopher Lee is no longer with us.
Rest in peace, sir. You will be missed.
