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21 Aug 21:30

How The World's End rejects 'drunken, misogynistic' manchild films

by Charlie Jane Anders

How The World's End rejects 'drunken, misogynistic' manchild films

In The World's End, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost gather their former best friends to drink their old hometown dry. But when we talked to Pegg, Frost and director Edgar Wright, they told us how this apocalyptic comedy isn't like your usual "drunken midlife crisis" film. Plus the secret of using genre to tell a personal story.

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21 Aug 19:55

Germany is the first European country to recognize a third gender

by George Dvorsky

Germany is the first European country to recognize a third gender

Starting this November, German parents will be able to select male, female, or “indeterminate” when filling out their newborn’s birth certificate. This means that parents won’t have to label their baby’s gender, thereby allowing those born with intersex characteristics to make a decision later in life. Or not.

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21 Aug 16:52

Isolated Peruvian tribe attempts to make contact, asks for food

by George Dvorsky

Isolated Peruvian tribe attempts to make contact, asks for food

Members of the Mashco-Piro tribe — one of the most isolated on Earth — recently attempted to make contact with outsiders, resulting in a tense stand-off at a river hamlet.

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21 Aug 16:26

XCOM: Enemy Unknown Gets Its First Major Expansion This Fall

by Kirk Hamilton

XCOM: Enemy Unknown Gets Its First Major Expansion This Fall

Just when you thought you were out… they pull you back in! Into another war against an invading alien menace, that is. This November, Firaxis' fantastic (and Kotaku Game of the Year-winning) strategy game XCOM: Enemy Unknown is getting its first major expansion, titled XCOM: Enemy Within.

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21 Aug 16:20

The Horror: If Super Mario Bros. 3 Were Made For Smartphones

by Stephen Totilo

The Horror: If Super Mario Bros. 3 Were Made For Smartphones

There are things in the world that should never happen. Game designer Ethan Levy's "evil" Candy Crush-ized remake of Super Mario Bros. 3 is one of them. He was just kidding when he explained how he'd re-make it. Hopefully.

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20 Aug 22:26

London Underground Pop Up Themed Pub opens in September

by Annie Mole
More celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the London Underground now include the opportunity to drink in a Tube themed bar.  After a successful pop-up at the London Design Festival last year, Camden Town Brewery are installing a micro-brewery and bar at designjunction.


Running from  the 19th - 22nd September 2013 you can apply for free tickets for the bar at The New Sorting Office on New Oxford Street.  The pop up bar will be serving the new Metropolitan range of beers named after the first steam trains that ran on the London Underground.  These were especially created for London Transport Museum by Camden Town Brewery.


The bar itself is designed by Michael Sodeau, and will have some wonderful London Underground heritage station tiles on display (which I first heard about on Ian Visits blog)



The tiles look so well suited to pubs, it'll be interesting to see whether they pop up in other pubs around London after this.

Special  LED Lighting, suspended on Underground line coloured textile cables, by Nud Collection, will complete the Tube themed  look as well as seating inspired  by original Underground moquette patterns but given a whole new contemporary feel.

Opening hours for the pub are Thursday 19th - 10am - 8pm, Friday 20th 10am - 7pm, Saturday 21st 10am - 6pm and Sunday 22nd 10am - 4pm.  Don't forget to apply for tickets, rather than simply turning up.  I certainly look forward to enjoying a bottle of Fowler Wheat beer.

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20 Aug 15:08

The Black Mailbox in Alamo, Nevada

The mailbox, with lots of graffiti from visitors.

Update: In January 2015, the Black Mailbox was stolen. Due to constant vandalism, it may never be replaced.

On a deserted stretch of road between Alamo and Rachel, Nevada known as "The Extraterrestrial Highway," there is a lone mailbox with the names of two recipients; the unalarming "Steve Medlin," and then a smaller box simply labeled, "Alien."

Known as The Black Mailbox, this isolated container would probably not have garnered any attention were it not for its close proximity to nearby UFO hot spot, Area 51

The box has been a popular meeting spot for the extraterrestrial-obsessed ever since Area 51 enthusiast Bob Lazar said he would bring people to the spot to see scheduled UFO flights. Some came just to look at the plain postal box, others camped near it for days in the hopes of spotting alien life.

Despite spurious reports of lights in the sky and other such extraterrestrial signifiers, the box's owner, rancher Steve Medlin, does not believe that aliens have anything to do with the sightings. The mailbox (once black, now painted white) is constructed out of thick, bulletproof metal and shuttered with massive padlocks, measures taken after alien hunting fanatics began stealing his mail and even firing guns at the box.

The smaller box, marked "Alien" was added after the rancher got tired of receiving missives directed to visitors from outer space. Alien enthusiasts making pilgrimage to the site often put dollar bills in the box.

 

20 Aug 15:07

How to completely traumatize your child after watching Tron

by Rob Bricken

How to completely traumatize your child after watching Tron

Calve12 showed the movie Tron to his young daughter, who promptly had a nightmare about her father getting sucked into a computer. Here is what the daughter encountered when waking up the next morning. Ha ha, it's funny because he'll be paying for years of therapy!

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20 Aug 14:24

Xbox One's Indie Games Program Revealed At Last

by Stephen Totilo

Xbox One's Indie Games Program Revealed At Last

After months of offering little more than variations of "don't worry, we'll have one," Microsoft is using their kick-off of the big Gamescom event in Germany this week to detail something called ID@Xbox. That is their indie games program. It'll roll out in stages.

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20 Aug 14:23

Clever Ways to Get Some Exercise at the Office (or Any Small Space)

by Alan Henry

Clever Ways to Get Some Exercise at the Office (or Any Small Space)

It's important to get regular exercise, even if it's a little activity here and there. Still, not all of us have access to (or money for) a gym membership, and many of us already work long hours that make it difficult to get out for a run or jog. Here are some clever ways to get a little activity in anywhere you happen to be, like your cubicle.

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19 Aug 21:47

Wow, 20% Of Americans Don't Use The Internet

by Jason Schreier
Jmical

Cray-zy.

Wow, 20% Of Americans Don't Use The Internet

Some 60 million American adults don't use the Internet on their computers or phones, says a New York Times report today. That's 20% of the country. Insane!

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19 Aug 21:01

How Your Biased Brain Makes You a Jerk Online (and How to Stop It)

by Adam Dachis

How Your Biased Brain Makes You a Jerk Online (and How to Stop It)

Whether a temporary asshole or a full-blown troll, the internet makes it easy to become any kind of jerk. This doesn’t just happen because we sit at a computer far from the people who engage us in arguments, but because of our built-in biases. The good news? If you can get a handle on the way the brain’s natural mechanics sabotage your thinking, you can avoid some pretty stupid online fights.

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18 Aug 18:15

A straw that will prevent you from ever being roofied

by Annalee Newitz

A straw that will prevent you from ever being roofiedNow you don't have to worry whether somebody has slipped roofies into your drink. A group of engineers have founded DrinkSavvy, a company that makes cups and straws that change color in the presence of common date-rape drugs GHB, Rohypnol, and Ketamine.

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16 Aug 18:50

For the Weekend: How to Bake a Planetary Structural Layer Cake

by Robert T. Gonzalez

For the Weekend: How to Bake a Planetary Structural Layer Cake

You're looking at the geo-culinary creation of self-taught chef Rhiannon, showrunner of the mouthwatering baking blog Cakecrumbs. Her latest creation? This scientifically accurate structural layer cake of Jupiter.

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09 Aug 13:04

How Upvote/Downvote Sites like Reddit Breed Irrational Herd Behavior

by Robert T. Gonzalez

How Upvote/Downvote Sites like Reddit Breed Irrational Herd Behavior

Are you a think-for-yourselfer? Do you weigh positive and negative Yelp reviews with a cold, dispassionate sagacity? Do you fancy yourself immune to the influence of others when you browse Reddit? That's cute. Newly published research says you're wrong.

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05 Aug 17:07

Shaun of the Dead interactive screenplay reveals on-set secrets

by Meredith Woerner

Shaun of the Dead interactive screenplay reveals on-set secrets

In celebration of the end of the C0rnetto Trilogy (the collaboration between Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and director Edgar Wright),Focus Features has released a fully interactive screenplay from the movie that started it all, Shaun of the Dead. Behold the beginning of "you've got red on you."

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02 Aug 21:20

Placebo buttons do absolutely nothing, and they are everywhere

by Robert T. Gonzalez

Placebo buttons do absolutely nothing, and they are everywhere

Ever stood at an intersection and prodded at, leaned on, elbowed and otherwise palm-slapped the ever-living hell out of a crosswalk button and wondered to yourself if the thing actually does anything at all, really? Well – chances are, it doesn't.

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02 Aug 16:03

John Carmack Talks Xbox One Backlash And Kinect Privacy Concerns

by Kirk Hamilton

Super-whiz programmer John Carmack thinks some of the "witch hunt" against the Xbox One was unjustified, but he didn't love all of the Microsoft's original policies, either.

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02 Aug 15:56

79 Words You Might Be Mispronouncing, From 'GIF' to 'Zooey Deschanel'

by Kirk Hamilton

At first, I was sure I'd know the correct pronunciation for all 79 of the words Mental Floss' John Green lays out in this video. But I gotta admit, once he got past the halfway point, he started getting to a few that I regularly mess up.

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01 Aug 16:19

Every Single Movie Reference In The First Ten Seasons Of The Simpsons

by Kirk Hamilton

Every Single Movie Reference In The First Ten Seasons Of The Simpsons

If you're ever planning to make a reference to a movie, just remember: Simpsons did it first.

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31 Jul 19:16

This amazing Labyrinth fan-created backstory just BLEW OUR MINDS

by Meredith Woerner

This amazing Labyrinth fan-created backstory just BLEW OUR MINDS

Someone has just attempted to answer the age-old Labyrinth question, "Why did David Bowie kidnap a child from Jennifer Connelly?" This incredibly well thought-out hypothesis is so compelling that we have no choice but to commit it to our minds, as Jim Henson canon.

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31 Jul 15:35

Adventure Game Somehow Does The Sensible Thing On Kickstarter

by Luke Plunkett

Adventure Game Somehow Does The Sensible Thing On Kickstarter

Lioness is an indie adventure game that, I guess because its trailer makes it look pretty great, has easily blown past its Kickstarter goal. Instead of going bananas and promising MORE LEVELS and MORE PLATFORMS, though, the three guys behind it are keeping it cool. And the game should benefit as a result.

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30 Jul 16:17

Self-Editing for Everyone Part 7: Two Languages

Writers who write in English have extra language resources.You are a veritable genius.
Before we get to the real reason you're here, give me a moment to remind you that the information in this article is based on my book, The Little Book of Self-Editing for Writers. If you're so inclined, you can  buy it at Amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, and all Amazon stores as well as Barnes & Noble, and Kobo for the paltry sum of $4.99. 

Two Languages
Writers of English  have extra linguistic resources, owing to that fact that English is two utterly distinct languages more or less happily married into one language of incredible richness. When a word from one branch won’t do, we can always go looking for one belonging to the other. The trick is to know which language to employ in which circumstances.

Linguists everywhere consider English to be a Germanic language, but less than a third of today’s language actually derives from Anglo-Saxon roots, most of the rest having come to us from Latin, either directly from Roman influence or from Romantic languages such as French, a bit from Greek, even less from the Celtic language of the Britons who were running England when the Romans arrived. In a language race, the conquerors always win.

The Ermine Street Guard bring the Latin to PorchesterConquest and language enrichment our speciality.
English speakers borrowed (and did not return) Latinate language from four centuries of Roman rule, a passel of early Christian missionaries, and generations of Norman French rulers. More than 10,000 additional Latin words entered the language during the Renaissance alone. In fact, Latin words continued to enter English right up through the 18th century. Any time an Anglo-Saxon word wasn’t equal to describing a new concept or thing, someone constructed a new one from Latin.

So that’s how we got here. The question for our purposes seems to be “How does having a dual language affect us as writers?”

Thanks for asking.

Stellan Skarsgård puts in a hard day of language-buildingEnglish is hard work, and thirsty to boot.
A Linguistic Discrepancy, or Weight Against Reach
For all that Anglo-Saxon doesn’t measure up in terms of actual numbers, most of the words it does provide are the most common in the language. Most everyday words for the common things and actions of everyday life are still based in English’s Germanic roots. One does not generally perambulate with one’s canine as often as one walks the dog. In a normal day, we are more likely to eat food than to consume or devour victuals, sustenance, or comestibles. Our language is two-thirds Latin, but our common usage is overwhelmingly rumpled old Anglo-Saxon, dressed in faded jeans and moccasins (no socks). When Latin comes out to play, it does so wearing its best clothes.

Simple language can be more effective than most writers realize.Okay, not THIS simple.
Keep it Simple
For the purposes of ordinary, everyday fiction writing, and even most nonfiction writing, the plainest flavor of English is almost always the most unnoticeable and unnoticed, and writing that doesn’t call attention to itself for its own sake is writing that communicates its intentions clearly. When it’s time to make a reader see, hear, taste, smell, or feel something, the language needs to get out of its own way, and that happens when you keep it simple.

It’s usually better to say
  • Used than Utilized
  • Started than Initiated
  • Before than Prior to
  • So far than As of yet
  • But than However
  • Rest than Remainder
  • Found than Discovered
  • Happened than Occurred 

Not all of those pairs involve Latinate English vs. Anglo-Saxon, but they do concern wordy and elaborate vs. clear and unadorned language. The  more decorative word or phrase will be needed far more rarely and usually when you’re looking for a more formal style, deliberately distancing the reader from the narrative, or making your language sound educated, self-important, unemotional, or wordy. That’s what Latin-based English does best.

Language choice can speed or slow pace in fiction.Latinate language puts the brakes on pace.
Language and Pacing
The type of language you use helps to set the pace of your writing. Longer words, which are most often of Latin origin, help slow pace down by removing the reader from the immediacy afforded by more direct language. Shorter words, most often Anglo-Saxon derived, help speed it up. This is also true of dialog; when their feet are to the fire, characters tend to use the shortest, punchiest way to say anything. If you choose to have them do otherwise, do so deliberately and for good reasons.

Choose and Use
Speaking very generally, Latinate English is cool, erudite, perceived as higher in status and educational level, emotionally muted, and detached. Anglo-Saxon English is warm, down-to-earth, perceived as lower in status and educational level, and emotionally present. In real life, we tend to switch to Latinate English when we want to distance ourselves from the listener or establish higher status, and to shade over into Anglo-Saxon vocabulary when we’re going for closeness or establishing ourselves as "just one of the folks."

Most English speakers know unconsciously how to modulate their usage of Latin-based vs. Anglo-Saxon words depending on situation and context. We go back and forth between one and the other dozens of times every day, but most of us have never given the distinction a lot of conscious thought. Knowing about our two languages gives us a powerful tool for flexible and effective writing.

TL;DR
Rule of thumb: Anglo-Saxon English is informal, direct, close. Latinate words are the opposite.

Prefer use over utilize, start over initiate, happened over occurred, before over prior to

Keep it simple except when you don't. And when you don’t, know why you didn’t.

COVER ART
All the fabulous pulp magazine covers on this article series were created using the amazingPulp-O-Mizer from art by its creator, Bradley W. Schenck.

Picture
30 Jul 00:11

See the hard science fiction movie Europa Report on the big screen

by Charlie Jane Anders

See the hard science fiction movie Europa Report on the big screen

We've been talking about Europa Report for ages, and it's been available online — but this weekend, it's actually coming to theaters! And we're giving you a chance to see it on the big screen for free on Thursday night.

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29 Jul 00:11

Weld County Commissioners are floating a plan that would see the...

Jmical

Because the world needs more flyover states.



Weld County Commissioners are floating a plan that would see the northeastern part of Colorado form its own state called “North Colorado."

28 Jul 14:22

John Williams will officially score Star Wars: Episode VII

by Robert T. Gonzalez

Legendary film composer John Williams, the man behind the music for all six Star Wars films and master of the science fictional leitmotif, will return to score Star Wars: Episode VII! Here's what he has to say about his return to the Star Wars universe – including his thoughts on director J.J. Abrams.

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27 Jul 00:37

Primeval Thule RPG Setting

Primeval Thule RPG Setting:

Primeval Thule is a savage RPG setting compatible with the Pathfinder RPG, 13th Age, or 4th edition D&D. Inspired by Robert E. Howard (Conan) and H.P. Lovecraft (Cthulhu), Primeval Thule is a dangerous continent with sinister cults, barbarian freebooters, and otherworldly horrors.

Primeval Thule is the creation of RPG veterans Richard Baker, David Noonan, and Stephen Schubert, with art by Todd Lockwood, Lee Moyer, Claudio Pozas, and other top-notch industry talent.

Thule logo

22 Jul 18:33

“Write faster” song sends George R.R. Martin into guitar-smashing rage

by Meredith Woerner

George R. R. Martin has had it with your "write faster" jokes. And he's not taking your lip anymore, so when Woostock performed “Write Like the Wind” by Paul and Storm at Comic-Con, Martin couldn't help but stop by and SHUT IT DOWN.

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22 Jul 17:43

Europe size comparison to Australia.

Jmical

I did not realize Australia was so big.



Europe size comparison to Australia.

22 Jul 05:25

The Political Desk: Enter, Ranting

by Jeff_Grubb
Let us start of off with a bit of rant, which involves absolutely nothing that I can vote on this primary, but does cast a long shadow over the election.

Washington State is lucky in that it is dominated by the Democratic party, which means it tends to avoid the worst effects of the Banana Republic of Texas, the Plunderocracy of Wisconsin, or the Mad Max Kingdom of Florida. In each of these states a Republican majority has proceeded to dramatically drive the wealth and well-being of the state off a cliff. In state after state, letting the GOP drive the car has resulted in spectacular headlines, baffling decisions, lousy economies, and general misery.

Washington? Not so much. We are gifted with a sense of moderation, and even our Republican (in general) are of the relatively sane version (though we have those who are completely creatures of ALEC, they are in the minority). Similarly, we seem to be cautiously progressive at best, our Dems wary of wholesale social engineering and government activism. Part of it, I think, is the fact that a lot of power is placed within our legislature as opposed to our executive, and that legislature is a part-time operation.

So this year, something changed. A couple Democrats flipped in the State Senate, led by Rodney Tom, a Medina-based Republican-turned-Democrat-turned-SURPRISE! So their switch of caucuses, plus the re-acquisition of a GOP Senator who had been previously banned from caucusing for reported abuses gave the GOP a "Majority Coalition" - meaning all the Reps and the two Dems who changed sides.

OK, the Republican party gets to drive the Senate for a while. And while there have not been the almost-daily embarrassments you get with in other GOP-held provinces, their tenure has not been particularly stellar. The budget, the prime raison d'etre of the body, was a pale, tepid thing, delivered in overtime, threatening to shut down the state government, failing to address the biggest problem in the state (education funding), failing on transportation and, most importantly, walking away from a sweet deal to build a new bridge over the Columbia at Portland. Oregon wanted it, the Feds were willing to underwrite the bulk of it, but the Senate just brought it to a halt. I suppose we will have to wait for a truck to hit it wrong and bring the entire structure down before they react.

So the Republican-dominated coalition have yet again gone out of their way to show that government doesn't work by getting in charge and proving it. To paraphrase Groucho - "Just what the fine-tuned machinery of government needs - five feet of sand." And in keeping with the GOP, the leader of this "Majority Coalition" seems to be totally unaware that people are unhappy with their performance.

But that's not the rant - that's just whining. The rant comes up for the Dems. Now, you'd think that given the palace coup and the lack of progress from the resulting coalition, the State Democratic party would be fired up for the election to retake the Senate. Put on a full-court press. Recruit some decent candidates and push the State GOP on a broad front.

Again, not so much. There are only three elections in the primary that have three candidates for them, and of the nine people vying for State Senate positions, only one of them "Prefers Democratic Party"(1). Really? There are no Dems east of the Cascades? Has the Democratic hierarchy been so burned by Rodney Tom's flip that they won't seek out conservative, pro-small-business Dems on the far side of the mountains? Are they so comfortable with the bulk of the population (and the parts of the state that are recovering nicely from the recession) that they can cast loose the eastern half of the state? For the supposedly more big-tented of the two parties, it is sad to see such a surrender of territory and viewpoints (and yeah, the Reps do this electoral calculus as well - running as GOP is a challenge in Seattle, at best).

But, given the near-miss with shutting down the entire pinball machine this session, the Dems should be out in force to regain, and, properly chastised, lead. And this oddly has an effect some other races (which I also am not voting for, but which are going to affect my life.)

More later on that,

(1) Yeah, we don't have recognized political parties in the election, but rather candidate-stated "Preferences". Its more than a little bit dumb, but that's a rant for another day.