Rob Wallace
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‘The Avengers’ and its adherence to Clarke’s Law

‘The Avengers’ and its adherence to Clarke’s Law

Adam Frank appreciates The Avenger’s adherence to Clarke’s Law: [T]he mysterious “Tesseract” driving The Avengers plot is either a divine artifact of great power or a cube containing that most scientific of entities — Dark Energy. Likewise the portals between distant parts of this fictional universe are either the “Rainbow Bridges” of ancient myth or wormholes of modern general [...]

May 20 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

In films, implosions are the new explosions

In films, implosions are the new explosions

Forrest Wickman notices the trend in films in which implosions are replacing explosions: When the opening action set-piece of The Avengers ends with the destruction of a remote research facility, the structure goes out not with a bang but more of a cool sucking noise. Meanwhile, in the first trailer for The Dark Knight Rises, Bane is set not on exploding [...]

May 16 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Read here: FSU president Eric Barron’s email addressing Noles-to-Big 12 rumors

Read here: FSU president Eric Barron’s email addressing Noles-to-Big 12 rumors

Florida State University president Eric Barron sent an email on Monday in reply to the many emails and calls he has received regarding the possibility of FSU leaving the ACC for the Big 12 Conference. Here is what Barron had to say: I want to assure you that any decision made about FSU athletics will [...]

May 15 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Florida State trustee says school should ponder move to Big 12

Florida State trustee says school should ponder move to Big 12

Florida State’s status in the Atlantic Coast Conference was safe and secure on Friday and anything but on Saturday based on separate interviews with Seminoles powerbrokers. The Big 12 likely is playing close attention to all of it. Seminoles athletic director Randy Spetman told the Orlando Sentinel in a story published Friday that his programs [...]

May 12 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Video games and the future of war

Video games and the future of war

Last month, Amir Mizroch profiled Idan Yahya, an Israeli soldier who honed his skills of shooting down missiles by playing the computer game Warcraft III. Kelsey D. Atherton sees the future of war: In Warcraft III, the player commands an army of AIs, mostly designed for combat, and maneuvers them while protecting his base and attempting to destroy his [...]

May 12 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Happy birthday to one of my best friends, Alan Suskey

Happy birthday to one of my best friends, Alan Suskey

Before I wrote this post, I took a look at what I wrote last year in honor of Alan Suskey’s birthday.  It’s worth remembering: As fanciful maybe-one-day-we’ll-get-married talk gets bantered about the Winter White Fortress of Solitude, one of the best daydreams is picking out who will be Best Man, who will be the Maid [...]

May 11 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

I realize this is a minority opinion, but ‘The Avengers’ is just a hot mess

I realize this is a minority opinion, but ‘The Avengers’ is just a hot mess

I really, really wanted to like The Avengers. And I actually did enjoy many of the components of this movie. It’s a spectacularly made film; in fact, some of the action sequences (an aircraft carrier that flies) are just breathtaking. My problems with The Avengers are two-fold: One, Batman; two, Loki and his alien horde, the antagonists in The [...]

May 8 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Now that we know the sex of our baby, it’s funny to think that blue was once the color for girls

Now that we know the sex of our baby, it’s funny to think that blue was once the color for girls

Now that Michelle and I know that we are having a baby girl, and Michelle is sharing with me her plans for the nursery, it’s interesting to me that blue was once the color preferred for girls and pink was the color designated for boys. From a history of gendered colors: Pink and blue arrived, along with [...]

May 8 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Tampa Bay Rays’ attendance tanks as team builds best record in baseball

Tampa Bay Rays’ attendance tanks as team builds best record in baseball

It only took a week. On April 23rd, the Rays sat 17th in the majors in attendance. On May 4, after a pair of mid-week series against AL West opponents, they now sit 28th…despite the best record in baseball. While the Rays (20,111) are still averaging more fans per game than the White Sox (19,911) and Indians (14,486), [...]

May 8 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Just in case you were wondering, we’re having a girl!

Just in case you were wondering, we’re having a girl!

Just in case you were wondering, Michelle and I learned on Monday that we are having a girl! We shared the news tonight with family and friends by having Michelle’s dad cut into his birthday cake to see it was blue or pink cake. Pink cake won. Michelle already has wonderful ideas for the nursery. [...]

May 6 2012 | Posted in Apolitical, Headlines | Read More »

Scott Plakon
Neil Brickfield