Another Monday Come

So last Friday I was in bed recovering from antibiotics.  But while I was doing my best to ignore the pain of a pill killing every last thing it could within me, I had a chance to read.  I happened to get through the last book of Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn trilogy.  I have to admit that I am really blown away by his writing, and even though he doesn't do details all that well, his fight scenes and action scenes are absolutely lovely.  I also managed to get through the first book of the Divergent series, and I'll hopefully be able to compare it to the movie soon.  After reading Sanderson, Veronica Roth's writing seems a little lack-luster when it comes to fight scenes, but that doesn't mean that I didn't devour the book, either.  She, too, lacks a bit in the description department, but I find that her characters have some unexpected depth that I really like.  I haven't found myself cringing at the dialogue, and the idea of her strange, new world is really compelling.

An Interesting News Day

While yesterday was sort of quiet along the news front, today seems to be shaping up as a day of action.  From resolutions about Ukraine to a conviction in Qatar, these stories I'm going to share with you highlight what I believe to be some pretty important news.  So put on your serious faces and your thinking caps.  We're about to embark on a news journey.

That Day When You Have Unexpected Mouth Surgery

So today I had a tooth extracted.  I won't claim it was any fun, and I certainly won't claim that it was through no fault of my own.  That said, I'm glad it's done.  There is no more pain--for now--and I suppose this is a reminder to me and to the rest of you: DON'T NEGLECT YOUR TEETH!

I'd show you my disgusting tooth, but it really is rather disgusting; so, ...we'll just leave it at that.

I Love that Nathan Fillion and I Share March as a Birthday Month!

And it's true!  So he's an Aries and I'm a Pisces; it's still March!

But here's the cool thing about his birthday--it's this week on March 27th!  (And yes, before you ask, I know the above quote is incorrect--but doesn't it look awesome!  And also, what a great sentiment for Nathan's birthday!  And how awesome is it to be in the same company as Leonard Nimoy and Harrison Ford?)

Well, to celebrate his birthday, our favorite ship's captain is spearheading a campaign to bring clean water to the world--definitely heroic, and one of the many reasons I love him.  He's not only a great actor, but a wonderful human being.  So in honor of his birthday, I ask you to consider donating some money to this great cause, and if you need more convincing, here's a little video all about it.

Monday Memories

I hope all of you had a good weekend.  I certainly got a lot more accomplished than I had anticipated, but there is always still more to do.  Still, Monday is a good day to rekindle some of that good-weekend energy and help it carry us through the day--and perhaps the rest of the week, too.  So today I have a few memories--and a few funny little items to share with you all.

It's Friday!

And why am I so excited about that, you ask?

Well, I recently decided that I am going to keep my weekends for me, which means that there will be no updates over the weekend here (although you might find a thing or two on my twitter or Facebook accounts).  This allows for me to actually have some weekend time to devote to other writing (and home) projects, and spend a bit more time with John rather than with my face in front of a computer screen for six to eight hours on the weekend.

If you haven't friended me on Facebook, please feel free to do so, and if you want to find me on the Twitter, you can find me here.

That said....


I couldn't help but share this with all of you, and I hope you enjoy it!

Happy Friday everyone!

Think

I saw this the other day on Facebook, and I couldn't help but pass the message on.  This is the kind of message that I think is worth passing along, and I can only imagine if everyone could embrace this idea what a difference it might make in the world.  Although it might kill the comedy industry.  Still, ...I believe that thinking before we speak is pretty important, and I will admit that I don't always do so--especially when I'm with friends.

Maybe it's time to change that--for all of us.

So before you speak--THINK!

To help with this idea of thinking before we speak--or at least thinking before we write, I found this lovely article which relates some of the most common writing mistakes that many people make in their blogs and comments.  Feel free to take a look at it; though, the section on semicolons has a tiny error with regard to when you use it.  You can find all the good stuff about semicolon usage on its Wikipedia page.

Also, to remind us all about a lot:

Thank you, Hyperbole and a Half!  And thank you, Dana for introducing me to this!

This next article gives us another view on privately-funded science--that of improved communication.  It is something that Bob Lalasz sees as part of the cons of private philanthropy.  According to his article, a lot of the scientific community have felt more comfortable only talking to those in their own specializations--or those who have the ability to understand the more obtuse theories, math, and language of their science.

Getting money from people requires you to couch your science in a way that those people are going to be able to understand--or at the very least understand its practical applications.  And that, Bob says, is good, not only for people wishing to donate money to scientific causes, but to all of us--as it means that the science community as a whole will need to give those of us who aren't as well-versed in all the scientific mumbo-jumbo a real understanding of what, and why, they need money for their work.

This could, in theory, jumpstart a greater interest in science and scientific discoveries, and also get people excited about science again.  In his eyes, at least, this is a win for science and the world as a whole.

And with that in mind, I leave you with a little song to brighten up your day.  I've had it in my head since John and I went to San Diego a few weekends ago, and it's just stuck with me.  And, of course, it always makes me smile.  I hope you'll feel the same.


And here's a little something for all you Firefly fans before I flit away for today....

Movies, TV, Behind the Scenes, Books, Unicorns, and Science!

All right...if I talk too much about everything I found for you all today, we'll be here far, far longer than I'd like.  So let's get right to it.

First...the CATICORN!

That's Stanley, Aunt Tricia's awesome kitty.  We got here a unicorn horn for cats while we were in Paris.  This is the result.  The box says that cats love it....

I'm not sure the makers of the unicorn horn actually have cats....

I finally caught up with some of my mail today, and I found out the George R. R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, and Patrick Rothfuss are all writing for an anthology of stories about rogues!  And Pat's story is going to be about Bast!  And George R. R. Martin!  And Neil Gaiman!  So here's the book, and I'm pretty sure it can be pre-ordered now on Amazon.

Speaking of George, I found a few YouTube videos to share with you all.  The first is the season four trailer which features a really great song, and the second is all about how the series came into being--as narrated by Charles Dance--otherwise known as Tywin Lannister from the series.


Here is the season four trailer, and below is the Game of Thrones: Long Story Short.


From one fantasy to another, we head from world of epic fantasy to a beloved fairy-tale--that of Sleeping Beauty.

For those of you in the know, we've been privileged these past few years to have some marvelous (and terrible) reinventions of our favorite fairy tales.  Disney's Maleficent seems to fit in the marvelous category so far--or at least that's the impression I've gotten from their recent trailers.  This third trailer, released today, makes me really excited and hopeful for the movie--and hopeful that future fairy-tales may begin to see some beautiful, magical retellings on such an epic scale as this.  (Also, check out the music for this.  It gives me the shivers.)


With all that fantasy, we need a little science fiction to balance it out, and with that in mind, the BBC is set to deliver.  They have a new series that will be premiering after Orphan Black this year called The Real History of Science Fiction.  From what I've seen on the web site so far, this is a definite must-see for any science fiction lover.

And here's a little teaser trailer....


Last, but not least, we turn to science and Brian Green who recently launched the website World Science U.  He recently did a question and answer session with io9 about String Theory--and other science stuff.

World Science U offers courses in all kinds of scientific areas including particle science, the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics, black holes, and ...well, go take a look for yourself!  I'm certainly looking forward to exploring them all.

Where Have You Been?

I imagine some of you might be wondering what's happened to me since that Thursday a while ago, and to that, I can only answer that I've been dealing with the after-effects of travel.  I have hundreds of e-mails still to get through, birthday messages, and a ridiculous amount of cleaning and the like--not to mention that I'm working through a strained muscle in my left thigh.  So if you're wondering why I haven't been writing--it's due to having far too much going on in my life right now.  Though I do hope to change that.

I've been considering a lot of ideas, too--like what this blog's main theme should be.  Should it have one?  Or is it all right that my ideas are as diverse as there are ideas?  I understand that a focus would certainly be helpful, of course, but then I'd miss out on so much that I want to share with people.

So why did I name this blog "Unicorns Are Forever" if it isn't about too many unicorns?  Perhaps it's the idea that unicorns are mythical beasts of beauty and grace; I'd like to think that the mysteries of life are much like that myth--something that is full of both beauty and grace--something that is not ephemeral as we are, but something that goes on and on--forever.  And so I want to share pieces of that unicorn idea with all of you.  And maybe a few actual unicorns along the way--at least picture and story ones.

And now that I've got the explaining out of the way, I have a few definite things I want to share with you, and while my explanations may be brief, I hope you'll take the time to watch, listen, and be amazed at this beautiful thing we call life.

Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey

If you aren't watching this, I urge you to reconsider.  This is, so far, one of my favorite shows right now.  I've only watched the first episode, but we've been DVR'ing the others, and I'm so excited after watching the first show, that I can't wait to see what they have in store for us.

Science is a legacy that we need to preserve, encourage, and continue to embrace.  It is hope.  It is understanding, and it is wonder all rolled up in one.

Please take a look at the FOX page for this show, and please--watch!  I think this is the greatest show on TV right now.

Lindsey Stirling Has a New Album Coming Out



If you don't know about Lindsey Stirling, please take a look at this video.  It encompasses everything that I love about her--music, dance, and a desire to share that with people, along with showcasing the talents of others.  She is simply amazing.

And her new album comes out in May.  And you can pre-order it!

To do so, please check out her Pledge Music page.  I hope you'll get her new CD and consider checking out her other music, as well.

Yoga Can Be Harmful

For many people this is not a revelation, but it is important to consider if you are doing the practice and are trying to push yourself harder than your body may be comfortable with.  Yoga is meant to help you learn to breathe and get to know your body, and everyone's yoga experience is going to be different.  That said, I urge you to read this article and consider reading the author's book on the subject, as well.

He takes his information from actual teachers of yoga--respected ones--and he certainly seems to have done his homework.

Science By Billionaires

This is another article that I found today by William Broad, and I assure you that it's worth reading.  In the article he talks about how private industry is beginning to shoulder the bulk of our country's innovations in science--but that those innovations may come with some drawbacks.  But is it all doom and gloom, or is there an upside to the whole affair?  Whatever the case may be, this is the current trend in science research, and it doesn't look to be changing any time soon.

Have We Found the Big Bang at Last?

Scientists believe they have found the first signs that inflation actually occurred--which brings us one step closer to understanding the first amazing moments right after the Big Bang--and why our universe is the way it is.  I don't really understand all the math behind it, but essentially, there might have been a moment when the Big Bang occurred where space and time, for a moment, travelled faster than the speed of light.  It created the uniformity of our universe, and may be the key to finding a way to travel faster than light--which is kind of my hope in all of this, even if my idea of the discovery has nothing to do with the actual observations.

It's a really big deal, and this discovery may be the first evidence, if it can be corroborated, that proves a 50 plus year old theory of inflation.

Tax Time

Last, but not least, please don't forget that it's getting closer to the tax deadline.  If you haven't gotten started, now's the time!  And thank you for being patient and bearing with me.  Sometimes it just takes a little while to get everything back in order; hopefully I might actually have that done one day.

Thursday Potpourri

All the things....  ALL THE THINGS!

Since I couldn't make up my mind about a topic under which all the things I wanted to share with you would fit under, this is what you get.

Deal with it.


Why Muse?  Why "Uprising"?

I think it embraces my rebel spirit today--that eternal need to just break free and escape from established norms.  I've never been the most conventional of people, after all; so, today you get the potpourri of interests that caught my eye.  I hope they keep you entertained, and I hope you have a great Thursday!

First up--Norway!

Memorial to the Worst Mass Shooting in Modern History

An emptiness cutting through the heart of all things--a sense of loss that cannot be replaced--these are the sensations that Jonas Dahlberg wishes to convey with this startling memorial for the deaths of 77 people who were killed by a gunman nearly three years ago.  If you'd like to learn more about this monument, check out this article by Gizmodo.

Next up, Kevin Spacey!

Kevin Spacey Answers the Female Version of Questions on the Oscars' Red Carpet

This is why men and women are different.  Watch and learn; watch and learn.


Spanx anyone?  And in case you're wondering--yes.  They do have Spanx for men.

And now for some trees....

What Tree Rings Sound Like

A friend of mine on Facebook shared this article yesterday from livescience.  It was so interesting, though, that I just couldn't wait to share it with the rest of you.  Apparently Bartholomäus Traubeck created a series of devices that allows a program he created to interpret what tree rings would sound like if played on a piano.

It's actually very haunting, and I encourage you to check out the article as well as this video.


Next up...language sounds!

What Foreign Languages Sound Like to Those Who Don't Speak the Language

On occasion Sploid surprises me with something that isn't just hype and sensationalism.  Yesterday, as I was going through my social networking feeds, I came across this gem, and while I'm not certain if this is even remotely accurate, it certainly was a lot of fun watching the girl in the video and listening to her speak--especially since I have some first-hand knowledge after my recent trip to Spain and France.  I have to admit, those were all pretty accurate, too.


Nonsense words, nonsense words, nonsense words...and now NASA!

The President's Budget for NASA Means Cool Stuff in Our Space Future (if it's passed)

Yet another find from my social networks, yesterday I found an article (that I didn't think was very well written) that directed me to a statement from NASA's Administrator, Charles Bolden, with regard to the Fiscal Year 2015 Presidential budget.  In these released portions of his statement, we get some clear indications that NASA is still ready to contribute to the ISS (International Space Station), work on getting a manned mission to Mars up and running, and beginning to plan for an exploration mission to Jupiter's moon, Europa (artist rendition shown in picture above).  This is a pretty big deal to me, and I would hope it's a big deal to the rest of you, too.  Exploring our universe isn't just about finding new resources, but about understanding where we come from--and if there might be other life out there, not only in our own solar system, but in the rest of the universe, as well.

Let's hope that Congress feels the same and passes at least this part of the president's proposed budget.

And last, but not least...cyber attacks!

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Attacks Are on the Rise and Costing Us Greatly

MSN yesterday had an insightful article up about how DDoS attacks are steadily on the rise--and costing corporations (and thus, us) a lot of money--both in lost revenue and in keeping information secure.

According to Peter Apps who wrote the article, in just three years, DDoS attacks have gone from just 2% of attacks on U. S. data centers to 18%.  Not only are hackers using computers for these attacks, but they're also co-opting smartphones and printers, as well.  Furthermore, it seems that these attacks may also be significantly slowing down the internet at large.

So why is this such a big deal, then--apart from the costs and the inconvenience?  It shows that hackers are becoming more sophisticated.  In some cases, they are looking to extort companies for money to stop the attacks, and that means that cyber security is going to be an important job market and investment opportunity if these trends continue.  It also means that our police forces are going to have to learn some new tactics if they want to start catching cyber criminals, too.

Oh, and check out the weird number things that appear twice in the article.  I wonder what those mean....

The Future

Yesterday was all about science, and today offers a little more science coupled with imagination.  The things I want to share with you today are ideas and concepts that are taking off right now--hopes and dreams that in another twenty to fifty years may be realities.  Or, they could just prove to be yet another of those many nifty ideas that never made it into our present future. 

Let's start off with a great song by Imagine Dragons--"Radioactive."



So what do you think of when you think of flying cars?  The Jetsons?  Those futurists from the 90's?  A Schwarzenegger movie?

Well, the dream of a flying car might not be that far off--as well as cars that can drive themselves.  As we become a more technologically advanced society, those same networks and systems that allow us to traverse the internet could be allowing us to travel in the real world, too.  Or at least, that's what the people at Terrafugia believe.

This next video was done in May of 2013, and I found it by checking out a Twitter comment by Nathon Fillion of Firefly and Castle fame and THE Captain Hammer from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.  Apparently this is his dream car.


If you're interested in learning more about this, there is an informational webcast going on tomorrow that you can sign up to attend.  Check out this site here, and if you do attend, please let us know what you found out!

From the future to the "past of future", I want to take you now on a journey to Disney and their idea of what life would be like in Tomorrow Land.  I have always been excited about what life would be like in the future, and watching many old videos from the sixties reminded me of just how far we have, and haven't, come.  Where are all those amazing fold away storage units for our dishes?  Why can't my clothes come with a self-ironing tool?

In this video, Spotted Dog Productions takes us back a ways to the beginnings of Tomorrow Land and shows us what Disney has done to update it over the years.



Last, but not least, I leave you with two really exciting medical articles about advances that are coming in our future for diabetes sufferers and people with heart conditions.

The first article details a 3-D printed, electronic heart membrane that has a lot of uses, among them being able to prevent heart attacks.  It's still in the early stages of development, but could be viable and useable within 15 to 20 years.  By being able to create a membrane that is essentially a "fit" for peoples' hearts--using MRI scans and CT scans to get a good model of the heart and then using those to "print" the membrane--they can monitor pressure, pH levels, stimulate the heart for people who have arrhythmias, and likely a whole host of other things.

Our next article comes from Google's own blog about their intention to create contact lenses that can measure glucose levels through tears to help diabetes sufferers around the world.  By 2030 they estimate that one in three adults will have some form of diabetes, and while people right now have to prick their fingers to measure glucose in a blood sample, these contacts would eliminate that need, as well as providing a warning system to sufferers when their glucose levels are low.  How cool is that?

Google admits it's still in the planning phase, but I'm certainly looking forward to what the future holds.

Oh!  I nearly forgot one last video.  This is from a TED talk about being able to use our current technology in brain imagery scanning to make better thought-to-image translations.  That may sound a little far-fetched and scary, but they've all ready managed to create "thought images" from our brains using technology we all ready have.  Unfortunately, the images are not very focused yet, and they could use some refining.  And that's what Mary Lou Jepsen is aiming to fix.  Check it out!

She Blinded Me with Science!

After going through hundreds of e-mails yesterday, I found a few things that I thought I'd share with you.  Each of them, in one way or another, has a bit of science to offer; and so, today, I am blinding you with science.  Enjoy!

A Black Widow Pulsar Consumes Its Mate



I found this video while looking through some suggested YouTube videos yesterday.  It was so interesting that I wanted to share it.  This is the story of how we found a rather strange pulsar phenomenon--a pulsar with its binary star which it is burning away.  This may be the most visible dense object we have found to date in our solar system, and that's pretty exciting for a lot of reasons, especially to scientists who are studying dense particles--how they form, how they maintain their stability, and how these binary star-pulsar systems work.

Pulsars are simply neutron stars that are rotating.  To learn more about pulsars and neutron stars, check out this article by NASA.  And to learn about how black holes are formed, check out this article and video by Universe Today.  (And yes, black holes can be formed when two neutron stars collide.  How cool is that?)

GLaDOS (the evil computer from the Portal games) Explains Nuclear Fusion and Fission



I found this video linked to me by an article from The Mary Sue.  It was just too amazing not to share with all of you, and you'll learn a bit about nuclear fusion and nuclear fission by watching it.  While this is aimed at kids, I imagine a lot of us adults could stand to have things explained to us like this, too.  After all, having an evil computer teach me about science is way more fun than having a professor do it.

The Nebula Award Nominees

While this is dedicated in large part to science fiction and fantasy writing, there has always been a spark of scientific innovation mixed with social ideology that collides with our modern world.  Sometimes written as commentaries, these works can teach us about the world we live in by taking us to far away places and strange worlds.  They can also allow the authors to express new philosophical ideas or take a Zenoistic view on one particular idea played out to its absurd--and sometimes intriguing--conclusions.

This year's nominees have a few particular favorites for me.  Among them are:

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman -- for best novel
Doctor Who: ‘‘The Day of the Doctor’’ (Nick Hurran, director; Steven Moffat, writer) (BBC Wales) -- the Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation, and all of the other nominees

Europa Report (Sebastián Cordero, director; Philip Gelatt, writer) (Start Motion Pictures)
Gravity (Alfonso Cuarón, director; Alfonso Cuarón & Jonás Cuarón, writers) (Warner Bros.)
Her (Spike Jonze, director; Spike Jonze, writer) (Warner Bros.)
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (Francis Lawrence, director; Simon Beaufoy & Michael deBruyn, writers) (Lionsgate)
Pacific Rim (Guillermo del Toro, director; Travis Beacham & Guillermo del Toro, writers) (Warner Bros.)

That said, The Mary Sue has found some of the nominees available online to read.  Check out their article to find them.

The President Says a Few Words about Iron Man



If you haven't seen this video yet, you should.  I found it while looking over an article, once again, by The Mary Sue.

"Your Undead Heart" -- A Romeo and Juliet Song



Last, but not least, I leave you with some zombie love.

"But what does this have to do with science?" you ask.

To that, I can only say--watch some zombie movies, take a zombie apocalypse survival course, and then tell me what zombies don't have to do with science.

Also, ...it's Romeo and Juliet and a song about zombies!

Again, a special thanks to The Mary Sue for their article that steered me to it.

There and Back Again

As the title implies, I have finally returned home.

The trip is something that defies explanations and my ability to put it into words, but I will say that I confronted several of my own fears, prejudices, and assumptions.  I confronted obstacles, realized just how much I rely on others for help, and how selfish I can sometimes be.  I found that some things can stand the test of time, and that love can be a powerful motivation--as well as ginger martinis.  I learned a great deal about what amazing people both Aunt Mary and John are, and I often wished I were a better person.

But most of all, I saw and experienced something that will be with me for the rest of my life.  And that experience has changed me--hopefully, I think, for the better.

Never having traveled that far, my thoughts about the world, while often sparked with interest by world affairs, remained fairly America-centric.  The rest of the world, however, has a broader view, I think.  They are so closely interconnected by the euro that, perhaps, it forces them to be a bit more worldly.  And yet, everywhere we went, people were proud of their heritage and their culture.  It was important to them, and I thought that sense of interconnectedness and pride was very inspiring.

But are people really all that different from country to country?  Yes.  And yet, in many ways, they are exactly like you and I--working hard for something better in their lives.  The amusing part about writing that is that coming home made me realize just how much I take for granted.  For example, most places in Europe don't use sheets on their beds.  It's just an undersheet and a blanket.  They seem to have so much less than we do here in America--though I expect it's probably the same in any big, major metropolitan area--the showers not always having hot water for ages, or the heat in buildings being centralized rather than individual.  And yet, they can walk almost everywhere--their central transportation systems--subways and buses--working in concert to maintain the lives and livelihoods of millions of people and the tourists that come to visit every day.  I imagine their suburbs are probably a lot like our own, of course.  But the markets there!  They're just amazing.  Fresh fruit, bread, fish, cheese--just about anything you could ever want you can find there.  And in spite of what most people will tell you, as long as you are polite, do your best to speak the language, and don't mind having to be a bit more patient, Europeans will treat you wonderfully.

We met some of the most friendly people in Barcelona--people out walking their dogs, happy to help a lost traveler in need.  Of course, there were the beggars on the streets, and I confess that I felt a twinge of guilt each time I passed one with nothing to give.  I wondered if the people around me had grown numb to the sight of them; I wonder if anyone really does.

Of course, there are villains in every part of the world, and while I expected to find the world more magical and special--it has its dark and seedier sides, too.  We didn't see much of that, but every now and then we got a taste of it.  Just a reminder to always be on your guard and try to find people you trust for information when you're traveling.  Books are amazing resources, too.  Without Aunt Mary's, I think we might well have fared far worse.

Traveling reminds me that there is beauty everywhere--even here back home.  You just have to be willing to look for it.  It also makes me feel a little more open to the rest of the world; America isn't the center of it anymore for me.  But it is where I call home.

And while I miss the beauty, bustle, excitement, fear, and challenges of our amazing European tour, I am definitely glad to be home.