And what a week it was. But we've
seriously had enough of that already. The only allusion I'll make to that
strife is that the organizers of Boston Comic Con, which was to have taken
place this weekend, are still working to reschedule the event. You can find
updates about the date shift and details regarding their refund policy here.
Comics
75 Years ago Thursday, the world
was first introduced to Superman in Action Comics #1 and nerdery, as a whole,
would never be the same.
Bronies: hilarious fanboy
subgroup or driving sales force working to keep hard-copy comics alive? Turns
out, they're both.
Games
As we gear up for E3 and the
potential release of details for a handful of new consoles, the guys over at
Gaming Illustrated break down how exactly the Playstation 3 was able to push
past a very slow entrance to the gaming market and became the best-selling console of the past few years.
For those of you looking to get a
gaming fix at work, but still look like you're working, an inventive and
meticulous gamer accountant has a solution for you.
After years of enduring the
persistent pleas of non-Japanese fans, Nintendo has announced that it will
release the beloved RPG Earthbound to US gamers via the Wii U console.
Further proving that Sim City is, in fact, just a giant
marketing platform, EA released a new bit of "DLC" brought to you by the fine folks behind Crest toothpaste.
The Museum of Modern Art inducted
14 classic video games into its galleries as part of a new exhibit,
"Applied Design." The curators broke down which games made the cut
and which were significant, but were too lengthy or complex for visitors to
play (as it's an interactive exhibit). Foremost amongst these excluded works
was none other than the original Sim City. The Museum was quick to point out
how groundbreaking Sim City actually was, which was a poignant reminder of just
why it's so frustrating to see where the franchise has gone since then.
Science/Technology
Speaking of classic video games, because
our attempts to create AI have apparently become bored looking at cat videos on
the internet, intrepid comp sci PhD Tom Murphy developed a program that can play first edition NES games on its own. At least now our robot overlords will
have plenty to occupy themselves with after they enslave us all. We can't have
unhappy overlords now can we?
Ever wondered what companies did
after scientists succeeded in sequencing of the human genome? Turns out,
they've been cordoning off individual genes and patenting them. After decades
of this, and with about 40% of the human genome now considered proprietary
intellectual property, the US Supreme Court is set to make a potential ruling on this practice.
File this one under "Things
We Thought We Understood, but Flagrantly Don't." Turns out protons, which
physicists believed they had a decent comprehension of, may actually be much smaller than previously thought. Whether these particles sometimes shrink or if
our methods of measurement have improved since we went all sub-atomic remains
to be seen.
In another entry to the above
list, that whole Hubble Constant thing that physicists have been using to
generate theoretical models of the birth of the universe? Yeah, it's not actually constant at all.
As a kid, you may have been
bombarded with anti-drug public service announcements. If, at any point during
said onslaught, you thought to yourself, "This actually might make people want to do drugs," you may have been right.
While we're on the subject of
stuff you did in the halcyon days of your youth, did you have a favorite type
of dinosaur? Did you ever wonder which kind of mega-reptile you'd be if you
lived during the Cretaceous Period? The Discovery Channel has this fun little quiz to help prove that yes, you are a Triceratops through and through.
Remember a few weeks back when we
talked about the Roadrunner supercomputer being decommissioned? Well check out
its successor: the Titan.
Fie on you 2nd Law of
Thermodynamics! This new solar cell can generate 2 electrons per 1 photon!
Movies
We were treated to a veritable
treasure trove of trailers this week. (Treasure Trove of Trailers is my deep
south sea chanty cover band) Check out new footage of the destruction of Krypton
in this Man of Steel trailer and get a glimpse of life after the 74th Hunger Games in
this Catching Fire trailer. You can also check out new footage for:
While we're on a
mini-movie binge, I highly recommend you take a look at this spot for Joss
Whedon's upcoming neo-Shakespearan project, Much Ado About Nothing. That
concept might sound a bit strange, but Whedonites won't be surprised to learn
that the director is a huge fan of the Bard. This whole idea was borne from
occasional "play slam" parties that Whedon hosts for his actor buddies.
I can't conceive of just how much I'd pay to see Nathon Fillion and Amy Acker
taking on iambic pentameter.
TV
George Takai turned 76 yesterday.
Sending the best possible wishes to the brave, forthright, unimitatable, and often hilarious
Sulu!
General awesomeness
Literary nerds rejoice! This
European company seeks to address the rapid digitalization of books by printing
classic works on a number of unorthodox physical surfaces. Now you can read
Peter Pan from your t-shirt and Moby Dick from your shower curtain!
Fancy yourself a grammar guru?
See if you can pass this test.
This economic PhD candidate may have debunked what was considered the fundamental baseline regarding the
"link" between governmental spending and a country's economic growth.
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