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Rudy Rucker

Rudy Rucker is a writer, a mathematician and a computer scientist. Born in Kentucky in 1946, Rucker moved to Silicon Valley when he turned 40. Rucker has published twenty-five books, primarily science-fiction and popular science. He was an early cyberpunk and an editor at Mondo 2000. He often writes SF in a style is characterized as transreal. His most recent novels were Frek and the Elixir, a far-future epic about a boy's galactic quest to restore Earth's ecology and As Above So Below, a historical novel based on the life of the sixteenth century painter Peter Bruegel.  Rucker is a professor emeritus of computer science at San Jose State University, where he created a number of freeware programs relating to chaos, artificial life, cellular automata, higher dimensions, and computer games. He is presently working on The Lifebox, the Seashell and the Soul, a nonfiction book about computers and the nature of reality. Rucker's website can be found at www.cs.sjsu.edu/faculty/rucker or at www.rudyrucker.com.


Are you crashworthy?

The FAA dropped a plane yesterday onto a bed of concrete yesterday as part of its delightfully named "Crashworthiness Program." Video footage on the news showed the damage from inside the cockpit, which was filled with that most doomed breed of human invention, crash-test dummies. Although the plane only fell 14 feet, the dummies didn't have a chance in hell. Their seats all collapsed backwards, so they were flat like a bed, then these spooky effigies began to flail about. According to the FAA press release, "Seven are specially instrumented test dummies used to measure human reaction to impact forces." My god, Jim. They can feel!

In the meantime, I can't find any footage of yesterday's test online. (Virtual kisses to anyone who can!) However, in my years of obsessing over plane crashes, I've collected a small library of films, books, and links. Here are some:
>>>In this crash-test simulation movie, the crash test dummies remain eerily calm as flames engulf the fuselage.
>>>Go here for lovingly catalogued video archives of plane crashes.
>>>"The Black Box" contains some fascinating transcripts of cockpit voice recordings in the moments leading up to crashes, followed by deadpan analysis of what went wrong.
>>>In addition to featuring some fabulous plane-crash footage, "Fearless" delves into Gnostic ideas about life and death. The downside: Rosie Perez.

On a personal note: I have flown or been scheduled to fly on the day of or before nearly every major air disaster over the past seven years, including 9-11. I've flown many more times without incident.

Discuss

posted by Jenn Shreve at 1:15:23 PM | permalink


Hollywood horn-phobia

Posted this several days ago, but it never appeared so I'm trying again!!!

I recently had to talk to some movie-industry types (director Brett Morgan and producer Robert Evans) for an upcoming story in Photo District News. What always bugs me about dealing with Hollywood is the fact that nobody but nobody seems to dial their own phone. Everyone's got an assistant who answers or dials and hangs up on the boss's behalf--a boss who is probably standing right there and is perfectly capable of pressing a few buttons, but nooooo. That would be so, so unHollywood.

Is there anyone in all moviedom who is capable of dialing their own phone? The answer, I have learned from coworkers at my ongoing contract job, is yes! Hollywood is Calling, a new service that makes you go why in the hell didn't I think of that charges between $20 and $30 for a real-life C-list celebrity to call up the person of your choosing and leave them a brief message. Todd Bridges!!!! And a few others. It's the People Magazine equivalent of NPR's "Wait Wait … Don't Tell Me" prize of having Carl Kassel's voice on your home answering machine.

Thanks, Gattica employees.

Discuss

posted by Jenn Shreve at 8:50:01 AM | permalink


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