tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30419904713594140052024-02-02T08:51:19.413-08:00All Ye Seekers EnclaveA sprawling network of insight, mischief and contemplationEric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.comBlogger74125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-59215614887929679592013-02-03T07:38:00.000-08:002013-02-03T07:38:00.564-08:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #18<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
<br />
I've decided to take a new approach to these speculative fiction reviews and from now on I will simply list what I have read and rank them in the following way from highest to lowest quality/intrigue/creativity:<br />
<br />
Masterpiece<br />
<br />
Mind blowing<br />
<br />
Excellent<br />
<br />
Good<br />
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">Eon by Gregory bear </span>-novel-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><br /></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eon_(novel)" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Hyperion by Dan Simmons</span> </b>-novel-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><br /></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperion_(Simmons_novel)" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons </span></b>-novel- </span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fall_of_Hyperion" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Dancers at the End of Time </b></span>-multiple novels and short stories-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Mind Blowing</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancers_at_the_End_of_Time" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Forever War by Joe Halderman </b></span>-novel-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forever_War" target="_blank">Wiki</a><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-13.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13 click here</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/sciencespeculaitve-fiction-review-14.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #14 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/science-fiction-review-15.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #15 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/11/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-16.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #16 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2013/01/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-17.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #17 click here</a></span><br />
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-86577767379291091832013-01-26T07:27:00.000-08:002013-01-26T07:30:23.299-08:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #17<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
<br />
I've decided to take a new approach to these speculative fiction reviews and from now on I will simply list what I have read and rank them in the following way from highest to lowest quality/intrigue/creativity:<br />
<br />
Masterpiece<br />
<br />
Mind blowing<br />
<br />
Excellent<br />
<br />
Good<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut </span>-novel-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><br /></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sirens_of_Titan" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Call Me Murph by Mike Wood</span> </b>-flash story- <br />
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<span style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Good</span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.short-story.me/science-fiction-stories/378-call-me-murph.html" target="_blank">Read it here</a><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Philip K. Dick </span></b>-novel- </span><br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Stigmata_of_Palmer_Eldritch" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Blood Music by Gregory Bear </b></span>-novel- <br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Masterpiece</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Music_(novel)" target="_blank">Wiki</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>World War Z by Max Brooks </b></span>-novel-<br />
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">Mind Blowing</span><br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_war_z" target="_blank">Wiki</a><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><br /></span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-13.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13 click here</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/sciencespeculaitve-fiction-review-14.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #14 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/science-fiction-review-15.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #15 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/11/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-16.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #16 click here</a></span><br />
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-16977547015870506192012-11-11T09:01:00.000-08:002012-11-11T09:01:00.136-08:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #16I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky </span>-novel-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"><br /></b>
<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"> Overall 5+</b></div>
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Aliens visit Earth very briefly and then leave. The areas where they landed are known as 'zones' and are quarantined due to intensely strange and usually deadly phenomena that occur within them. These phenomena do not spread but remain intact within the zone. There are also various artifacts the visitors leave behind. Human scavengers known as 'stalkers' venture into the the zones and collect these artifacts, pawning them off to the highest bidder. Due to the unexpected and otherworldly nature of the zone it is the most stressful and deadly job that exists. One such stalker is the protagonist in the story and through his eyes the reader is introduced to the effects on the world at large that the visitation has, and also the zone itself. This is instantly one of the best pieces of text I have ever read. Dynamic characterization, profound ideas, and a fluid plot filled with hope, thrill, doom and puzzled anticipation. <br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">""A picnic. Picture a forest, a country road, a meadow. Cars drive off the country road into the meadow, a group of young people get out carrying bottles, baskets of food, transistor radios, and cameras. They light fires, pitch tents, turn on the music. In the morning they leave. The animals, birds, and insects that watched in horror through the long night creep out from their hiding places. And what do they see? Old spark plugs and old filters strewn around... Rags, burnt-out bulbs, and a monkey wrench left behind... And of course, the usual mess—apple cores, candy wrappers, charred remains of the campfire, cans, bottles, somebody’s handkerchief, somebody’s penknife, torn newspapers, coins, faded flowers picked in another meadow." The nervous animals in this analogy are the humans who venture forth after the Visitors left, discovering items and anomalies which are ordinary to those who discarded them, but incomprehensible or deadly to those who find them."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Non-Stop by Brian Aldiss</span></b> -novel-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4.5</b><br />
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This is the first novel Brian Aldiss ever wrote. It begins with the protagonist, a simple hunter who lives in a small tribe. The poor and solitary tribe's culture punishes free thinking and discourages individuality. After leaving his brutish home and exploring 'the ship' with a group of other men, he discovers that the world he lives in is much larger and yet infinitely smaller than he thought. The discoveries he and his companions make change the reality of everyone living in their world forever.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester </span></b>-novel-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><br /></span></b></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"> Overall 5</b><br />
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The Demolished Man was the winner of the very first Hugo award in 1953, the most prestigious book award in science fiction. Set in the 24th century, the world is made up of espers and non-espers, or people that can read thoughts and those that can't. Espers are ranked into 3 categories and differ by their ability to view deeper levels of a person's subconscious mind. Due to a vast amount of people being able to read minds, thoughts, memories, and whatever else the brain records, murder and most other crimes have altogether disappeared. A non-esper named Ben Reich, a highly charming and powerful business tycoon, changes that. One of my favorite parts of the story was the way Bester showed how espers have telepathic conversations. In order to keep the conversation coherent and organized they mentally organize their words with each other into geometrical patterns. It was a thrilling and interesting read.<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /><br />""I'll think about it," Reich muttered and turned to go. As he opened the door, Breen called: "By the way... `We Transport You Into Transports' is the slogan of the D'Courtney Cartel. How does that tie in with the alteration of `bort' to `dort'? Think it over."<br /><br />"The Man With No Face!"<br /><br />Without staggering, Reich slammed the door across the path from his mind to Breen and then lurched down the corridor toward his own suite. A wave of savage hatred burst over him. "He's right. It's D'Courtney who's giving me the screams. Not because I'm afraid of him. I'm afraid of myself. Known all along. Known it deep down inside. Known that once I faced it I'd have to kill that D'Courtney bastard. It's no face because it's the face of murder.""</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin Abbott</span></b> -novella-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"><br /></b>
<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"> Overall 4.5</b><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">At the time this novel was written, in 1884, I'm sure this review would have awarded a 5+ for all categories. The story may be over one hundred years old, but it is still highly </span>relevant and continues to expand the reader's imagination. The protagonist of the story is a square who lives in a two-dimensional world. In the first part of the story, the square explains to the reader how his two-dimensional peers live. He describes their culture, their forms, their ideologies, even the basics, like getting around and recognizing one being form another (in a two dimensional world<span style="font-family: inherit;"> everyone just looks like a line from your perspective). He then goes on to describe a dream he has where he views a one dimensional world of points and lines that live on a single line. As the story progresses, he is introduced to third dimensional world via a preaching sphere. The story goes onto describe and imagine worlds with more than three dimensions, and also a world with a single inhabitant consisting of no dimensions. It's a quick and exceptional read that any true sci fi/math fan should not pass up. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.geom.uiuc.edu/~banchoff/Flatland/" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Awestruck at the sight of the mysteries of the earth, thus unveiled before my unworthy eye, I said to my Companion, "Behold, I am become as a God. For the wise men in our country say that to see all things, or as they express it, omnividence, is the attribute of God alone." There was something of scorn in the voice of my Teacher as he made answer: "is it so indeed? Then the very pick-pockets and cut-throats of my country are to be worshiped by your wise men as being Gods: for there is not one of them that does not see as much as you see now. But trust me, your wise men are wrong.""</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick</span></b><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;"> Overall 5+</b><br />
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After World War Terminus, a nuclear war to end all wars, the world lives in a crumbling heap of filth. Many people have moved to Mars where they are given a free android as a servant as incentive to make the move. Most people remain on Earth in a permanent shadow of the once beautiful planet. Peoples' moods are controlled through the use of emotion specific pills ranging from 'accepting' to 'complacent' to 'depressed'.' People around the world also find solace through a global emotional connection known as Mercerism where they are able to connect with each other empathically in order to escape the lonely planet. Every so often an android of group of androids kills its master and makes an escape to Earth. It is Deckard's job to retire the androids. A dangerous and ethically complex profession. With the advent of the Nexus 6, a new, more intelligent, more real model of android, Deckard's ability to kill with such cold disregard becomes to dissolve. He is left with a harsh reality, and himself. This is one of the most famous, most influential pieces of sci fi ever written. It is highly philosophical, action packed, filled with characters you can't get enough of, and oozing with jaw dropping intrigue. If you are a fan of literature in general, you won't be able to put this one down.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">"You will be required to do wrong no matter where you go. It is the basic condition of life, to be required to violate your own identity."</span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-13.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13 click here</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/sciencespeculaitve-fiction-review-14.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #14 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/science-fiction-review-15.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #15 click here</a></span></div>
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-17390005626223156312012-10-28T22:24:00.000-07:002012-11-02T00:27:04.959-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #15<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Mail Order by Martin Ivision </span></b>-flash story-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 3.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 3.5</b></div>
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Human colonists land on a world of mostly water. Their objective is to make contact with the intelligent alien species on the planet. After learning how to order products from the aliens with hacked credit, they lose track of their mission. </div>
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<a href="http://aescifi.ca/index.php/fiction/35-short-stories/963-mail-order" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The Q’rai language is at its most poetic when describing the ocean, and I’m the only human being who can appreciate it. I savour the nuance between the water stirred by a surface current and the water stirred by a gust of circular wind. I know the words for the green water rich with brine jelly and for the red water during a sunfish bloom. I roll my tongue over the suffixes added for the differences in salination and the tonal variances for the sea in the seven seasons. As I’m falling asleep nights, I whisper to myself oulai’ma’oulai, the word for your share of the ocean you carry in your heart."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut </span></b>-novel- </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+</span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5 </b><br />
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Cat's Cradle is one of Vonnegut's most well known works. It begins with the protagonist and narrator, John, describing the book he had planned to write. It would be a book about the fictional father of the atomic bomb, Felix Hoenikker. After contacting Hoenikker's three children, John is thrown for a tail spin on a bizarre adventure to a island country called San Lorenzo. In San Lorenzo, John meets the most beautiful woman alive, inadvertently converts to a strange new religion, a witnesses the greatest change in the world that has ever taken place. A dark, humorous satire that combines elements ranging from wild chemical discovery to anthropological insight. <br />
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"<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"If I were a younger man, I would write a history of human stupidity; and I would climb to the top of Mount McCabe and lie down on my back with my history for a pillow; and I would take from the ground some of the blue-white poison that makes statues of men; and I would make a statue of myself, lying on my back, grinning horribly, and thumbing my nose at You Know Who.""</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Star Maker by Olaf Stapledon</span></b> -novel- </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+</span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5</b><br />
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One of the the most highly acclaimed science/speculative fiction works ever created. Many of the biggest names in science fiction source this book as inspiration or simply heave accolades all over its awe filled rhetoric. The book begins with a narrator inexplicably transported out of his body and able to explore the solar system and galaxy at large as a non-physical being. After experimenting with high speed cosmic flight he attempts to return to Earth but realizes it is like searching for a single grain of sand on a world composed entirely of grains of sand. He eventually continues his journey, describing a multitude of aspects of different worlds and systems. He begins with those intelligent species that are 'similar' to ours, and after merging with other bodiless beings goes onto describe stranger and altogether amazing beings and collectives of beings. His near ineffably profound experience spans all of time, and outside of it, eventually meeting the Star Maker itself. To read this story in its entirety is to become versed in one of the most pivotal and talked about pieces of speculative/philosophical text that has ever existed. </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">“In every one of these "chrysalis" worlds thousands of millions of persons were flashing into existence, one after the other, to drift gropingly about for a few instants of cosmical time before they were extinguished. Most were capable, at least in some humble degree, of the intimate kind of community which is personal affection; but for nearly all of them a stranger was ever a thing to fear and hate. And even their intimate loving was inconstant and lacking in insight. Nearly always they were intent merely on seeking for themselves respite from fatigue or boredom, fear or hunger. Like my own race, they never fully awoke from the primeval sleep of the subman. Only a few here and there, now and then, were solaced, goaded, or tortured by moments of true wakefulness. Still fewer attained a clear and constant vision, even of some partial aspect of truth; and their half-truths they nearly always took to be absolute. Propagating their little partial truths, they bewildered and misdirected their fellow mortals as much as they helped them.” </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">2 B R 0 2 B by Kurt Vonnegut</span></b> -short story- </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5</span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4.5</b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;">The world has been cured or disease, war, poverty, insanity, and even old age. The only problem left is that of population. How do you sustain such a perfect world if more people are continuously born into it? For every being that comes in, someone else must go out. When you are ready to die, or are asked to, to allow another being to enter existence the number you call is the title of the story. It is pronounced 'to be or naught to be.' The protagonist of the story is about to have triplets. Who will die so that they may live?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21279/21279-h/21279-h.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />"Everything was perfectly swell.<br /><br />There were no prisons, no slums, no insane asylums, no cripples, no poverty, no wars.<br /><br />All diseases were conquered. So was old age.<br /><br />Death, barring accidents, was an adventure for volunteers.<br /><br />The population of the United States was stabilized at forty-million souls.<br /><br />One bright morning in the Chicago Lying-in Hospital, a man named Edward K. Wehling, Jr., waited for his wife to give birth. He was the only man waiting. Not many people were born a day any more."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Elegy for a Young Elk by Hannu Rajaniemi </span></b>-short story- </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4</span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4</b></div>
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A hunter and his friend, a large talking bear, live a solitary, peaceful life in the woods of a desolate world. At some point every bit of matter, be it alive or inanimate, was ravaged by a strange disease that affects the skin and mind. Humans created a 'heaven' above the world and transcended their mundane forms through advanced technology. For the sake of preserving the rest of the world, cities are quarantined through the use of a 'fire wall' a sentient wall that obliterates anything that attempts to enter or leave the city without permission. Kosonnen is given the task by a physical manifestation of his ex-wife, now a god, to enter the city in order to find something the god's dropped. Danger lurks in every corner of the city, even in the most unexpected places. There is a ton of history to this story that isn't explicitly delved into. I thought being thrown into such a strange yet somehow familiar world with only vague knowledge of the 'why' of what is happening really added to the intrigue of the piece. Check this one out. You won't be disappointed. </div>
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<a href="http://subterraneanpress.com/magazine/spring_2010/fiction_elegy_for_a_young_elk_by_hannu_rajaniemi" target="_blank">Read it here.</a> </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The city was a forest of metal and concrete and metal that breathed and hummed. The air smelled of ozone. The facades of the buildings around the railway station square looked almost like he remembered them, only subtly wrong. From the corner of his eye he could glimpse them moving, shifting in their sleep like stone-skinned animals. There were no signs of life, apart from a cluster of pigeons, hopping back and forth on the stairs, looking at him. They had sapphire eyes."</span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-13.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13 click here</a></span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/10/sciencespeculaitve-fiction-review-14.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #14 click here</span></a></div>
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-86692106823642753302012-10-14T05:52:00.000-07:002012-11-02T00:26:15.045-07:00Science/Speculaitve Fiction review #14<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">The Silmarillion, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien </span>-novels- </div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5+</b><br />
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Go read the books that have had a bigger impact on the mind of humanity than most literature throughout all of history. Just think, we know more about the creation, history, and laws of the Lord of the Rings universe than we do any other, including our own. Written initially as a bedtime story, these books speak for themselves - the greatest epic ever told, ever! <br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /><br />“It's like in the Great Stories, the ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were, and sometimes you didn't want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? <br /><br />But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come, and when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer. Those are the stories that stayed with you, that meant something even if you were too young to understand why. But I think I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going because they were holding on to something-that there's some good in the world, and it's worth fighting for!” </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">The Gravity Mine by Stephen Baxter </span>-short story-</div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5</b></div>
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A very short story spanning an amount of time that is greater than maximum entropy itself. Due to the scale and profundity of this story, it is instantly one of my favorites. An individual part of a universal collective consciousness trillions of years in the future wakes up to its individuality within an ancient black hole. This individual continues to awaken and fall back into the slumber and ease of the collective whole as time progresses on a scale beyond current conceptualization. Leave it to Baxter. While the terms Baxter uses may be a bit out of the realm of the normal reader's vocabulary, those of you that are really into contemporary physics and cosmology will love this one. Speculative and awesome! <br />
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<a href="http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/gravitymine.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />"They are the remnants of stars," he said.<br /><br />He told her about the Afterglow: that brief, brilliant period after the Big Bang, when matter gathered briefly in clumps and burned by fusion light. "It was a bonfire, over almost as soon as it began. The universe was very young. It has swollen some ten thousand trillion times in size since then ... Nevertheless, it was in that gaudy era that humans arose. Us, Anlic."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Am I Still There? by James R. Hall </span></b><span style="background-color: white;"> -short story-</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 3.5</b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;">This is the story of a man who has systematically had every body part replaced. Now, after centuries alive, it is time to replace his brain. The whole idea of this story is represented as a prologue - "Which must in essence, of course, simply be the question 'what do I mean by I?'"</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/files/30763/30763-h/30763-h.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Mr. Lee, this isn't going to be a matter of repair. We have found it necessary to replace the entirety of what could roughly be called your 'brain', as well as part of the spinal cord."<br /><br />"My whole brain?" Lee sat, stunned, comprehension slowly filtering into him. He voiced the only coherent thought which materialized. "Why that will mean there won't be anything left of me at all."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Raft by Stephen Baxter </span></b>-short story-<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4</b></div>
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An enormous ship is somehow transported into a parallel universe. Gravity is billions of times stronger in this universe, and due to this, planets do not exist as they would implode due to their own mass. Many generations after the ship is transported into the parallel universe the surviving humans build a 'raft' out of the ship that was destroyed due to its mass. They survive in a nebula on the outskirts of a massive black hole. Even humans have a noticeable gravitational field in this universe. Because of the nature of gravity in this universe, the story takes place amid a time of environmental collapse. What will the surviving humans do to escape the fate of a star plummeting directly toward them.<br />
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<a href="http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/stories/raft.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />"The structure swung neatly around the star, tipping so that it kept the upper face to the star. People cried out and deck plates groaned. Rees watched two trees smashing together; huge splinters rained down over the deck.<br /><br />For a moment he was upside down, the distant stars rushing upwards, and there was the Core itself poised above him, cool and red and enormous. But centripetal force and the Raft's gravity field kept him glued to the deck, and then the Raft whipped through the rest of its rotation and righted again, dangling from its trees like a toy."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Scales by Alastair Reynolds</span></b> -flash story- <br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5+</b></div>
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Nico signs up to fight an invading alien species that has already decimated all human strong holds on Mars and Luna. It turns out the creatures that attacked humanity are just puppets of a far vaster and complex life form that spans n dimensional space. In order to fight the enemy, Nico's physical form is systematically dismantled. A recursive story that leaves you wondering who the enemy really is. Amazing!<br />
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<a href="http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/scales/" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />"“Forget your armour certification, your weapons rating,” says the new instructor, a human head sticking out of an upright black life-support cylinder. “Now it’s time to get real.”<br /><br />A wall slides back to reveal a hall of headless corpses, rank on rank of them suspended in green preservative.<br /><br />“You don’t need bodies where you’re going, you just need brains.” she says. “You can collect your bodies on the way back home, when you’ve completed your tour. We’ll look after them.”"</span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-13.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13 click here</a></span><br />
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-67544414717506446142012-09-29T06:47:00.000-07:002012-10-11T23:55:48.499-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #13<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Blow Ups Happen by Robert Heinlein</span> </b>-short story- </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 3.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;"><b>Overall 4</b></span></span></div>
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A story written before World War 2. The world's energy depends on the continuation of a highly unstable nuclear reactor (that's right, Heinlien wrote about nuclear technology before it was even used on a global scale). One little mistake means the obliteration of most of Earth's population. Men watch the workers just in case. Men watch the watchers just in case. And just in case, men watch the watchers watching. Needless to say, tension is very high. <br />
<a href="http://www.baenebooks.com/chapters/0743471598/0743471598___4.htm" target="_blank">Read it here</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Dr. Silard waited unhappily for the ensuing twenty minutes until his own relief arrived. Perhaps he had been hasty. Maybe he was wrong in thinking that Harper had at last broken under the strain of tending the most dangerous machine in the world—an atomic power plant. But if he had made a mistake, it had to be on the safe side—slips must not happen in this business; not when a slip might result in the atomic detonation of two and a half tons of uranium.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">The Feeling of Power by Isaac Asimov </span>-short story- </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4</b></span></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US">In an age dominated by
computers that do all calculations, being able to do simple mental math borders
on witchcraft. </span><br />
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<a href="http://www.math.umn.edu/~rusin018/1271_Fall_2006/extra_1.pdf" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">""Aub! How much is nine times seven?" <br /><br />Aub hesitated a moment. His pale eyes glimmered with a feeble anxiety. "Sixty-three," he <br />said. Congressman Brant lifted his eyebrows. "Is that right?" <br /><br />"Check it for yourself, Congressman." <br /><br />The congressman took out his pocket computer, nudged the milled edges twice, looked at its face as it lay there in the palm of his hand, and put it back. He said, "Is this the gift you brought us here to demonstrate. An illusionist?"</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Ubik by Philip K. Dick</span></b> -novel- </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US">Dick crafts
a world that details the mundane and the profound; doors cost a nickel to use
and the dead can be temporarily preserved within their own mind. Ubik is the only salvation, but what is it? A
zany and highly addictive story. Get a
free subscription of Ubik by following my blog.
heh.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />“We are served by organic ghosts, he thought, who, speaking and writing, pass through this our new environment. Watching, wise, physical ghosts from the full-life world, elements of which have become for us invading but agreeable splinters of a substance that pulsates like a former heart.” </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny</span></b> -novel- </span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US">Buddhist and Hindu
philosophy/characterization set in an ultra advanced, action packed world! A
mythological, energy filled story that will have you gritting your teeth from
beginning to end! Because there are so many characters and profound yet potentially foreign ideas in this story, I have included <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_Light" target="_blank">a link to the wiki page </a>which includes a surplus of information to help the reader fully experience the novel's alluring grandeur. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Gossamer by Stephen Baxter</span></b> -short story-</div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5</b></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/gossamer/" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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Have a heaping serving of a healthy dose of Stephen Baxter. Worm hole failure and an undiscovered alien species within our own solar system to name just a few of the themes that make this story unforgettable. Two women explore Pluto and its moon while they attempt to find a way back from the remoteness and desolation of the outer solar system. </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Lvov had been listening to her data desk’s synthesized murmur on temperature inversion layers in nitrogen atmospheres; now she tapped the desk to shut it off. The flitter was a transparent tube, deceptively warm and comfortable. Impossibly fragile. Astronauts have problems in space, she thought. But not me. I’m no hero; I’m only a researcher. Lvov was twenty-eight years old; she had no plans to die—and certainly not during a routine four-hour hop through a Poole wormhole that had been human-rated for eighty years."</span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-12.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12 click here</a></span><br />
Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-55105350508941881282012-09-16T05:08:00.000-07:002012-09-17T23:47:04.760-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #12<br />
I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">All You Zombies by Robert Heinlein </span></b>-short story- <br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></div>
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A very short story concerning time travel and the webs of space-time that intertwine indefinitely. It took me a few careful read throughs to truly understand and grasp the plot. Here's a hint- there is only one character. Genius. <br />
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<a href="http://faculty.uca.edu/rnovy/Heinlein--All%20you%20zombies.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />"Then I glanced at the ring on my finger.<br /> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">The Snake That Eats Its Own Tail, Forever and Ever. I know where I came from - but where did all you zombies come from?<br /><br /> I felt a headache coming on, but a headache powder is one thing I do not take. I did once - and you all went away."</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Observer by Kristine Kathryn Rusch</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4</b></span></div>
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A story that puts the reader into the head of a woman biologically altered to have an insatiable need to kill and destroy anything and everything, even herself. Is there any way she can return to normality, or will she be a prisoner within herself forever? <br />
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<a href="http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-observer/">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"No shielding, no vehicles, no nothing. Just us, dosed, altered, ready to go.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />I wanted to rip something’s head off, and I did, the fury burning in me like lust. The weapons became tools—I wanted up close and I got it, fingers in eyes, fists around tentacles, poking, pulling, yanking—<br /><br />They bled brown, like soda. Like coffee. Like weak tea.<br /><br />And they screamed—or at least I think they did.<br /><br />Or maybe that was just me."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke </span>-novel- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5</b></span></div>
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One of the most influential stories in the genre. A gigantic cylindrical object appears in our solar system and passes Earth in its trajectory. Where did it come from? What is it? Who made it? Where is it going? All the inhabited planets and moons of the solar system collectively decide to send an expedition team to search the mysterious craft. What they find becomes stranger and stranger with every turn of the page. A brilliant story that pushes the boundaries of the reader's visualization. </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The mass of Rama was at least ten trillion tons; to any spaceman, that was not only awe-inspiring but also a terrifying thought. No wonder that he sometimes felt a sense of insignificance, or even depression, as that cylinder of sculptured, ageless metal filled more and more of the sky." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;"><br />A Random World of Delta Capricorni Aa, Also Called Scheddi - by John C. Wright </span>-flash story-</div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4</b></span></div>
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A volunteer alien abductee is brought to a strange world where nothing seems to make sense. There is a reason though. There must be a reason for everything! I really enjoyed the perspective on higher intelligence this story provided. The description was fantastic as well.</div>
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<a href="http://www.flashfictiononline.com/f20100501-random-world-delta-capricorni-scheddi-john-c-wright.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The Hierarch I called “Lollipop Guild” hovered naked next to me, his gleaming gray skull at armpit height. He raised a slender, shining arm and pointed, looking at me with eyes too large for his face, and deeper than outerspace. In his eyes, I saw the message:This is why.<br /><br />“Why what?” I asked, teeth chattering. I had not mastered their art of speaking without speech.<br /><br />In his eyes I saw a memory. The first thing I had said to them when the crystal ship had lowered itself out of the October dawn, ringing like hollow chimes, and the inhuman, solemn faces peered at me like fishermen examining a fish beneath their keel had been a question. “Why do you come to Earth?”"</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester </span></b>-novel-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></div>
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Gully Foyle, a simpleton shipwrecked in space and kept alive through extreme and hapless self preservation for six months, is abandoned by a passing space craft. The anger he feels spurs him to seek obsessive revenge on the commander of the space craft through any means necessary. This drive leads him on a filthy, demeaning, struggle of a journey. The characters in the story are so well fleshed, especially the main character. The main character is a hero, a villain, a murder, a savage, and a saint. It is no wonder this story has been a sci fi/speculative favorite for the last fifty years for readers all around the world.<br />
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<a href="http://www.naderlibrary.com/starsmydestination.ch1.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"He was one hundred and seventy days dying and not yet dead. He fought for survival with the passion of a beast in a trap. He was delirious and rotting, but occasionally his primitive mind emerged from the burning nightmare of survival into something resembling sanity. Then he lifted his mute face to Eternity and muttered: "What's a matter, me? Help, you goddamn gods! Help, is all.""</span><br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/09/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-11.html" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11 click here</a><br />
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-301616711632318342012-09-02T05:25:00.000-07:002012-09-02T23:20:15.559-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #11<br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-10.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">The Ender's Game Series </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> by Orson Scott Card</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Ender’s Game </span></b>-novel- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5</b></span><br />
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The novel that began a saga and a revolution in sci fi. Despite its grandeur and allure, you will realize after reading more of the series that it is a mere prologue to a universal epic. The Ender's Game Saga has a following the size of a small nation, and a universe filled with characters seemingly as tangible as our own family and friends. Earth has been attacked by an alien race that looks like giant insects. People refer to them as the 'buggers.' Andrew 'Ender' Wiggin is a child watched from birth by an international governmental organization to be raised and trained in space to save the world from a future onslaught. A novel packed with emotion that asks some of the biggest and most important questions regarding life and ethics. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, Children of the Mind</span></b> </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span><br />
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Three separate novels that can be seen as three parts to an epic tale. These novels take place 1000's of years after the events of Ender's Game, and focus on Ender and his eventual family. Due to traveling throughout the galaxy at relativistic speeds, Ender and his sister Valentine have literally been transported through time. The novels focus on the potential eradication of several new species, the classification of new species, religion, the reality of life, the universe and existence, and the possibility of seemingly impossibly alien creatures living harmoniously together in the galaxy. A breathtaking, heart wrenching set of novels that force you to fall in love with the various characters and worlds you meet. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Ender’s Shadow, Shadow of the Hegemon, </span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Shadow Puppets, Shadow of the Giant</span></b> </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span><br />
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Like the previous stories that focus on Ender himself, these 4 books can also be grouped together into one epic story. The protagonist in the "shadow series" is a minor character from Ender's Game named Bean. Bean is undoubtedly the smartest human that has ever lived, and is arguably not human. Ender's Shadow depicts Bean's experience as a toddler, living as an orphan on the violent, sordid streets of Rotterdam. It then shows his experience in battle school, meeting and learning from the infamous Ender. The next 3 novels take place directly after the events of Ender's Game and focus on the ensuing wars that occur on Earth. The most powerful weapons in the world are the hyper intelligent, incredibly talented children trained in battle school and every nation wants to use them. These books discuss battle tactics and political scuffles in depth, and really show off Card's knowledge of history and the art of war. Tragedy, drama, romance, and completley fluid/dynamic characters. I was on the edge of my seat for the entire ride. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Shadows in Flight</span></b> -novella- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5</b></span><br />
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A short story written this year about the future of Bean and his children. It takes place after the Earth is unified and Bean departs on his final journey. It takes place as a sequel to Shadow of the Giant. A story that left me intrigued and in tears after finishing it. I actually listened to the audio version of the story. It is extremely well done with all 4 characters being read by a different person. Card is in the process of writing another novel that links the 'Ender Series' with the 'Shadow Series' called Shadows Alive. This short story left me salivating in anticipation for its release. </div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Ender in Exile </span></b>-novel-
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5</b></span><br />
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">This story serves as a sequel to the Shadow Series and a prequel to Speaker for the Dead. It ties up a lot of loose ends and unexplained questions that were left in both story arcs. The story also delves more into the minds of characters like Hyrum Graff, who ,despite their vital importance, were left on the outskirts of Card's descriptions in the other novels. It begins directly after Ender destroys the formic home world, and documents Ender's journey to multiple colonies. Ender even has a chance to confront Bean's lost child that was only touched upon at the end of the Shadow Series. Although it would make chronological sense to read this book after reading the first novel, Ender's Game, I don't think the reader would be able to appreciate it unless they had read much more material in the whole of the series. I recommend reading this novel last to truly connect with the plot, themes, and characters. A well deserved and needed addition to the series as a whole! </span></div>
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I have included a link to the wiki page for the entire Ender's Game Saga for a better understanding of the chronology, characters, ideas, events, and other short stories/novels that are able to stand-alone from the rest of the series. </div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ender's_Game_(series)" target="_blank">Click here for the wiki. </a></div>
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-12417855748188128252012-08-19T08:33:00.000-07:002012-08-25T01:01:44.937-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #10<br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/08/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-9.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">For a Breath I Tarry by Roger Zelazny</span></b> -shot story- <br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></div>
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Wow! Do yourself a favor and read this. An intriguing and emotional ride. After human beings become extinct due to their own doings, a hyper intelligent robot makes a wager with another robot that he can become a real human being. <br />
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<a href="http://www.kulichki.com/moshkow/ZELQZNY/forbreat.txt" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">""Something is still lacking," said Frost, settling to the ground. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"I am now capable of gathering data in a manner analogous to Man's afferent impulses. The variety of input is therefore equivalent, but the results are not the same." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The senses do not make a Man," said Mordel. "There have been many creatures possessing His sensory equivalents, but they were noit Men." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"I know that," said Frost. "On the day of our bargain you said that you could conduct me among the wonders of Man which still remain, hidden. Man was not stimulated only by Nature, but by His own artistic elaborations as well - perhaps even more so. Therefore, I call upon you now to conduct me among the wonders of Man which still remain, hidden." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Very well," said Mordel. "Far from here, high in the Andes mountains, lies the last retreat of Man, almost perfectly preserved.""</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Last Contact by Stephen Baxter</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 5+</b></span></div>
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Stephen Baxter has slowly but surely crept into my being and has found a permanent niche. So far, this is the only story in my list of reviews that brought me to tears. A story about the systematic nullification of everything, and what it would be like to live through it. This story is packed with such intense yet subtle emotion and is executed so cleverly and well timed. This one is truly a masterpiece. <br />
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<a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20080725045740/http://www.solarisbooks.com/books/newbookscifi/last-contact.asp" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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"<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Maureen said, “The sun went, right on cue.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">“Oh, it’s all working out, bang on time.”<br /><br />Somewhere there was shouting, whooping, a tinkle of broken glass.<br /><br />“Someone’s having fun,” Maureen said.<br /><br />“It’s a bit like an eclipse,” Caitlin said. “Like in Cornwall, do you remember? The sky was cloudy, and we couldn’t see a bit of the eclipse. But at that moment when the sky went dark, everybody got excited. Something primeval, I suppose.”</span>"<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Life-Line by Robert Heinlien</span></b> -short story- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4.5</b></span></div>
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Short story about a scientist who creates a device that can tell you exactly how long you will live. What can go wrong? <br />
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<a href="http://www.baenebooks.com/chapters/0743471598/0743471598___2.htm" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="text-indent: 32px;">"</span><span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Once before I offered such proof to this same body of self-styled experts, and they rejected it. I renew my offer; let me measure the life length of the members of the Academy of Science. Let them appoint a committee to judge the results. I will seal my findings in two sets of envelopes; on the outside of each envelope in one set will appear the name of a member; on the inside, the date of his death. In the other envelopes I will place names; on the outside I will place dates. Let the committee place the envelopes in a vault, then meet from time to time to open the appropriate envelopes. In such a large body of men some deaths may be expected, if Amalgamated actuaries can be trusted, every week or two. In such a fashion they will accumulate data very rapidly to prove that Pinero is a liar, or no."</span><span style="text-indent: 32px;">"</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Test Rocket by Jack Douglas </span></b>-short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4.5</b></span><br />
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Humans launch a rocket into space with mice on board as an experiment on the effects of life. One day the rocket is launched back, but the animal that waits inside is not what anyone expects. An overall great piece. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flashfictiononline.com/fpublic0038-test-rocket-jack-douglas.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"“They are our markings?” Captain Baird asked. It was not the question. Captain Baird knew the markings of the Rocket Testing Station as well as the doctor did.<br /><br />“Yes,” the doctor said, “they are our markings. Identical. But not our paint.”<br /><br />Captain Baird turned back to the window. Six months ago it had happened. Ten minutes after launching, the giant test rocket had been only a speck on the observation screen. Captain Baird had turned away in disgust.<br /><br />“A mouse!” the captain had said, “unfortunate a mouse can’t observe, build, report. My men are getting restless, Johannsen.”"</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Dead Past by Isaac Asimov</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall 4</b></span><br />
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A historian wants to get his hands on a fabled device hidden by the government called a chronoscope. This device allows the user to observe the past. Could it be that there's a reason the public is lied to about its existence? <br />
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<a href="http://www.polvoestelar.com.mx/babilonia/Libros/Isaac%20Asimov/English/Short%20Stories/Isaac%20Asimov%20-%20The%20Best%20of%20Isaac%20Asimov.pdf" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"“I don’t know why. I want you to find out. I’d do it myself if I knew enough. I came to you <br />because you’re a young fellow with a brand-new education. Have your intellectual arteries hardened <br />already? Is there no curiosity in you? Don’t you want to know? Don’t you want answers?”"</span><br />
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Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-35654443546128575112012-08-19T07:19:00.000-07:002012-08-19T07:19:47.857-07:00Teaching English in Korea Vlog 9Check out my the 9th vlog about teaching English in Ulsan, South Korea! In this vlog I talk about the different private classes that I'm currently teaching. Check it!<br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiExbF9rXjM&feature=g-all-u" target="_blank">Watch the video here! </a>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-66136926665671465812012-08-17T05:31:00.000-07:002012-08-17T05:31:05.659-07:00New BlogsI made a new blog! <a href="http://wondergressive.wordpress.com/">http://wondergressive.wordpress.com/</a> It's devoted specifically to information ranging from philosophy, to politics, to science. <br />
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I'll still be updating Seekers Enclave, the blog you're looking at, but the posts will be more personal ie. poetry, pictures, adventure, and opinions. <br /><br />I will also be creating a blog devoted to the science fiction reviews I do with more in depth information regarding the stories I review such as awards they have received, date of publication, interesting trivia, etc.<br />
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Claire and I will also be putting together a travel blog that documents the specifics of the traveling we do such as packing lists, do's and don'ts, maps, prices, recommendation, history, and pictures. It will basically be a guide to make it easier for people to do their own traveling. It will also help future travelers avoid the pitfalls we encounter. <br />
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Lastly, my buddy George is creating a website devoted to health, fitness, natural remedies, and healthy lifestyle choices. I will also be contributing information and articles to that blog in my spare time. <br />
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I'll let you know how to see all of these blogs once they are created and finalized. I'm very excited about all of this and wanted to share with you. <br />
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Thanks for taking a look.Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-89561526250497882282012-08-11T10:27:00.000-07:002012-08-11T10:30:26.662-07:00Ilsan Beach and King's RockThe following documents our relaxing hike around King's rock at Ilsan Beach in Ulsan, South Korea. The kids received 3 WHOLE days of summer vacation from our academies, and we decided to take full advantage by finally making it out to the beach that is only a half hour from our apartment. I'm going to take a step back with the rhetoric and let your eyes feast on some uninterrupted visual pleasure.<span style="font-size: x-small;"> (Click the pictures to enlarge)</span><br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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<br />Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0Ulsan, South Korea35.5383773 129.311359635.4350118 129.1534311 35.6417428 129.4692881tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-10405644660765687802012-08-04T22:52:00.000-07:002012-08-04T22:52:17.186-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #9<br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html" target="_blank">To view Science<span style="background-color: white;">/Speculative</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Fiction Review #4 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html" target="_blank">To view Science<span style="background-color: white;">/Speculative</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Fiction Review #5 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html" target="_blank">To view Science<span style="background-color: white;">/Speculative</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Fiction Review #6 click here</span></a>
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html" target="_blank">To view Science<span style="background-color: white;">/Speculative</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Fiction Review #7 click here</span></a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-8.html" target="_blank">To view Science<span style="background-color: white;">/Speculative</span><span style="background-color: white;"> Fiction Review #8 click here</span></a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Genome by Giri </span></b>-flash story- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 3.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 3.5</span></b></div>
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A 3 minute read that comments on the wanton destructiveness and irrationality of pure capitalism. There is also an attempt in the story to kill all mosquitoes, which is always a good idea. <br />
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<a href="http://storywheel.blogspot.com/2010/10/genome.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The lab had created a lizard using a synthetic genome derived from the common house lizard that made it efficiently hunt mosquitoes. The lizards would feed on nothing but a diet of mosquitoes. It was also tailored with a shutdown gene that killed the lizard after about a month to minimize the risk of the synthetic life form getting into the wild."</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Number of the Beast by Robert Heinlein</span></b> -novel- <br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b></div>
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A novel fueled almost entirely by its complex, charming, and realistic characters. Each chapter takes on the perspective of one of the four main characters and is presented very similarly to a diary entry. After being chased out of their own universe, the main characters scour several universe through the use of a one of a kind device to find a safe place to live. In the story, it is discovered that the biblical number of the beast is not 666, but is in fact (6 to the 6th power) to the 6th power, or 10,314,424,798,490,535,546,171,949,056, the number of parallel universe accessible through the continua device created by one of the main characters. I recommend reading other books by Robert Heinlein before reading this one as it contains many jokes and references that the reader may not understand without experience with other Heinlein novels. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Orange by Susan Forest</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;"> Overall 5+</span></b></div>
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Easily one of my favorite stories of all time. There are two grim stories taking place simultaneously. The first is the story of an orange. The second is the story of the Earth focusing on groups of couples in various global major cities. This one is truly a piece of art. Very creatively executed. <br />
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<a href="http://aescifi.ca/index.php/fiction/35-short-stories/266-susan-forest" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"A sub-auditory thud shuddered through the building and the floor tilted at a perilous angle, sending them skidding into the windowed wall.<br /><br />“Is it an earthquake?” Through the glass Milena could see an open pit twenty stories below her, asphalt crumbling around its edges. From this height she could see sunrise breaking, blood-red between the bones of skyscrapers, through layers of poisoned air.<br /><br />“They’ve cannibalized buildings for steel, for the pods and the launch pads.” Jurek scanned the signs in the corridor for directions.<br /><br />“How can they do that? Use everything for a program like this, when people are starving in the streets?”<br /><br />“Don’t look, Milena.”<br /><br />Milena hurried behind him. “It’s insane. It’s not just.”<br /><br />“People are starving anyway. Turn left.”"</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The God’s Themselves by Isaac Asimov</span></b> -novel-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;"> Overall 5+</span></b></div>
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While The Last Question is my favorite short story by Asimov, The God's Themselves is my favorite novel written by Isaac Asimov. This book is split into three very different parts. My mouth was left agape throughout all of part two due to Asimov's ability to so realistically create and portray a totally an utterly alien species that exist in a parallel universe. The level of detail, despite the extraordinary contrast to humans concerning this species, is breathtaking (for example, they exist in a mostly gaseous state, and have 3 'genders.' Asimov even shows us how these being masturbate!). This novel is a literary feat, and in his autobiography, Asimov stated that the novel, "especially the second section, was [my] biggest and most effective over-my-head writing ever produced." Asimov is amazed at his own story! Check this one out! </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Against stupidity, the god's themselves contend in vain..."</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Attention People of Earth by Paul Simms </span></b>-flash story- <br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;"> Overall 4</span></b></div>
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A humorous piece of sci fi featuring a message aliens send to humans before they arrive to Earth. I do love the taste of high quality gravel. <br />
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<a href="http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2009/09/21/090921sh_shouts_simms?currentPage=all" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">""We are coming to Earth, first of all, just to see if we can actually do it. Second, we hope to learn about you and your culture(s). Third—if we end up having some free time—we wouldn’t mind taking a firsthand look at your almost ridiculously bountiful stores of gravel. But all we want to do is look."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-71958323383504872102012-08-03T01:02:00.001-07:002012-08-03T01:52:53.565-07:00California Beach Water parkClaire and I are on summer vacation! Guess how long that is ....... 3 days.<br />
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Oh well, I'll take what I can get!<br />
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On our first day of summer vacation we went to a water park with some of my students. It was a ton of fun but there were definitely some stark differences between Korea and the states. Allow me to elaborate. (don't forget to check out the videos at the bottom)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8KK0ybNx3-utWvRmrKngtmHoLkZQ9wqZV6lFHnbgdm4-9v5qNpOiSn8EsoprAd0ju3NZxxALuiuDdEQLom1hUFU04RmruD61HvyKptwkkKj6XCRSsgBCm9mWoIFLyl5j3F9ptyMW0epY/s1600/P7310049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO8KK0ybNx3-utWvRmrKngtmHoLkZQ9wqZV6lFHnbgdm4-9v5qNpOiSn8EsoprAd0ju3NZxxALuiuDdEQLom1hUFU04RmruD61HvyKptwkkKj6XCRSsgBCm9mWoIFLyl5j3F9ptyMW0epY/s320/P7310049.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Fq-xsyN8ILghksgweuUlHzJv4uVdi7zeL6S81ftw9ENSbrkM2Q7FaDBS9YOGc4NJIoMTfXTRxRgmtCs4N5HYeuNEcf1Vi1vVQV4wZC8cId-qlwnXgqMk-WDjMVu9cY9DRVpT2hBonXAZ/s1600/P7310048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8Fq-xsyN8ILghksgweuUlHzJv4uVdi7zeL6S81ftw9ENSbrkM2Q7FaDBS9YOGc4NJIoMTfXTRxRgmtCs4N5HYeuNEcf1Vi1vVQV4wZC8cId-qlwnXgqMk-WDjMVu9cY9DRVpT2hBonXAZ/s320/P7310048.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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But before we begin, I wanted to mention something. I pointed out a "Made in China" tag on one of the light poles inside the park to Claire. She said "Wow, the light pole is made in China, in a water park in Korea named after a state in America." It was a really profound realization for me seeing the world as a global community right before my eyes. I imagined how separate the world was even a few generations ago, and how truly close and tightly knit the globe is now. Good or bad, the future is intensely exciting to consider.<br />
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Enough pondering and on with the story. The 6 of us drove to the park, groggy and slap happy about the coming day. We left early, around 7:00, so that we could enjoy the park before it became packed like American chicken farms.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLpMVsiWJr9vCbayvFSwLm9EaJi85rNIjQpQBkVATlLlx6x9p08FQso0czTgrinFItkBpmMJDRoC3sVgdDOk08tqCmRj8w-fna4Q-fAWJqEEx-ComhV0x1Sh5e_xzIuvKTgsn4Jg9X4Pt/s1600/P7310051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnLpMVsiWJr9vCbayvFSwLm9EaJi85rNIjQpQBkVATlLlx6x9p08FQso0czTgrinFItkBpmMJDRoC3sVgdDOk08tqCmRj8w-fna4Q-fAWJqEEx-ComhV0x1Sh5e_xzIuvKTgsn4Jg9X4Pt/s320/P7310051.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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We all pitched in to rent out a bungalow. While Sarena and Louise went in to pick out a bungalow, Ray, Jay, Claire and I waited in the parking lot. We needed a bungalow against the wall of the parking lot so that we could sneak food in. Food, like any amusement park, is insanely expensive at California Beach. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZE9oeAEdtAO4QnPKtFT_a_1dfVZzfW6gg6UMdMp8D5TD5qRYEqaAtAiJFX7i4R6JcfyTxmtZdIWrU0lfPQytoqyXy4VTQpWaDxwvB-VYNV3a82zzH_XQeNK1TuzKVCU6KeU4kpZBymJU/s1600/P7310050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZE9oeAEdtAO4QnPKtFT_a_1dfVZzfW6gg6UMdMp8D5TD5qRYEqaAtAiJFX7i4R6JcfyTxmtZdIWrU0lfPQytoqyXy4VTQpWaDxwvB-VYNV3a82zzH_XQeNK1TuzKVCU6KeU4kpZBymJU/s320/P7310050.JPG" width="320" /></a>Our box of food.</div>
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After going inside Claire and I distracted the lifeguard closest to us with fast and high vocabulary questions about the park in English. He was very confused but after taking a picture with us we became quick friends. This allowed Ray to throw the food over the wall to Jay without being seen. Very sneaky indeed. Koreans are natural born shufflers and ninjas! The successful distraction made me think about a life of foreign con-artistry, but in case this post serves as self incrimination later in life, I will digress. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdk-AuArWHmFGr5R8yh6EU6coqMeMXbi8Opk8MvKxbkaPwUDAqsCHG_uan1aStWdXUD97ZZCxNevVDtll03wEHtgsHxtxwF_cxfjW5TQZBliLHKJd8lNbrER9Nsn3tefvNCZhcqBoucHd4/s1600/P7310052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdk-AuArWHmFGr5R8yh6EU6coqMeMXbi8Opk8MvKxbkaPwUDAqsCHG_uan1aStWdXUD97ZZCxNevVDtll03wEHtgsHxtxwF_cxfjW5TQZBliLHKJd8lNbrER9Nsn3tefvNCZhcqBoucHd4/s320/P7310052.JPG" width="320" /></a>Distracting the lifeguard.</div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">At a Korean water park you must wear a life jacket at all times with the exception of the single person super fast water slides. It was really annoying at first but we got used to it quickly. On some of the rides you are also required to wear some sort of hat to stop hair from getting into the water. Because my hair is so short I was good to go without a hat. That left five people with only 2 hats. I suggested that we just wrap some shirts around peoples' heads like turbans. It totally worked! Another strange thing is that most Koreans wear shirts even while swimming, many times even long sleeve shirts. It is in an attempt to avoid being </span><span style="text-align: start;">sun burnt</span><span style="text-align: start;">/tan (being very pale and white is more beautiful in Korea). </span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGLO2ZJZ04NMybwsZH_ak6ZZe2iqDyx5zgfUL56vHqEEF6LWohKEjuRLEcQUIo_KiNUbz-j426qSqQkmJP-t0EENPP18jtPCd2TN5Zor0ZlGVpl5UBFQEIJ4Soq_oJXPkt3qWhPbKh6As/s1600/P8010069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRGLO2ZJZ04NMybwsZH_ak6ZZe2iqDyx5zgfUL56vHqEEF6LWohKEjuRLEcQUIo_KiNUbz-j426qSqQkmJP-t0EENPP18jtPCd2TN5Zor0ZlGVpl5UBFQEIJ4Soq_oJXPkt3qWhPbKh6As/s320/P8010069.JPG" width="320" /></a>Everyone is wearing hoodies!</div>
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There are two rides I have never seen before at an American water park that I want to discuss. The first is the not so lazy river. We called it the tsunami. You grab an inner tube and wade into a river with 12 foot walls on either side. About every minute a voice announces to the riders "five, four, three two, one, LET'S GO!" A 4-7 foot wave (depending where you are on the river) is released from the entrance of the ride like a charging war horse. It slams into you and throws you with flailing arms further down the river to wait for another wave to come again. It was exhilarating and one of the best water rides I have ever been on. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemQzJfHiw_Bd_e8ywiclbHRx4qpxx_dp5Y1qgWk8VfdqifFQuqVACifIaSo9F72-XWW7hVny8m9fg72h7uYYOW-X4nU_4t3Aw7iToDkQPjZBZrnR1Ybax27P69lAWNIBGc0McGesmnogI/s1600/P8010078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemQzJfHiw_Bd_e8ywiclbHRx4qpxx_dp5Y1qgWk8VfdqifFQuqVACifIaSo9F72-XWW7hVny8m9fg72h7uYYOW-X4nU_4t3Aw7iToDkQPjZBZrnR1Ybax27P69lAWNIBGc0McGesmnogI/s320/P8010078.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRHA_v0N-QZQiWA0mgQBVhCzXlGSScy_WMU_JGpeOl4QRY55IrgLpTfW4Yd2gygt4_Ms4o_wGa9opDt_fIb5vAChudobaHbUkk5tQLjajjBrymDxm-4C9-lSeDhHNojG8PlqILJjHK4Xh/s1600/P8010075.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRHA_v0N-QZQiWA0mgQBVhCzXlGSScy_WMU_JGpeOl4QRY55IrgLpTfW4Yd2gygt4_Ms4o_wGa9opDt_fIb5vAChudobaHbUkk5tQLjajjBrymDxm-4C9-lSeDhHNojG8PlqILJjHK4Xh/s320/P8010075.JPG" width="320" /></a>The river.</div>
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The best ride in the park is a water slide. After climbing a steep set of stairs your reach the top of the highest slide in the park. Above the entrance to the tunneled slide is a trap door that you stand on. Above and around this trap door is what looks like a space ship escape pod with a glass window on the front so everyone can see you. After stepping into the pod, you are told how to stand so that you do not get hurt. Cross your legs and put your hands behind your head. Tilt your chin down and don't move! A man gives you a countdown and screws with you so that you have no idea when the trap door will open. "3, 2, 1..... 1.....1..... go...... go......hmmmmmm, go..-POP!" The trap door flies open and you are in free fall for a second or two. Your body finally meets with the nearly vertical slide and rushes you down a tunnel in steep curves and high power turns. When you finally reach bottom, your adrenaline is still pumping and your breathe is still held. What a trip!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtv34uAU5b1IjF5DeeRuvrDYsyGDlr1VBbt-7D6PWlef9tj_aiMKQwCM1orDdAaCyCBaIch3aKg1tWnGrQOkCOCK0lpmNAgOKP99_DBgVX-iAEJV8Fh005lR55mihB8mM_TnXf1bmZ3we4/s1600/P8010086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtv34uAU5b1IjF5DeeRuvrDYsyGDlr1VBbt-7D6PWlef9tj_aiMKQwCM1orDdAaCyCBaIch3aKg1tWnGrQOkCOCK0lpmNAgOKP99_DBgVX-iAEJV8Fh005lR55mihB8mM_TnXf1bmZ3we4/s320/P8010086.JPG" width="240" /></a>Claire and Sarena. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKo8I7qEX86eHiH9t2ShuSFP9tiLScE72wsrBtGQXbeE_Fe73jpPOAUnN_BRz7o-IUTRqRxq4yHKzlbNQ2qHVHAFoQOkI6T9NZjj-BRde639vonm3uwQBxgQVC3EIBT2szGjFRQzb1ywO/s1600/P8010087.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKo8I7qEX86eHiH9t2ShuSFP9tiLScE72wsrBtGQXbeE_Fe73jpPOAUnN_BRz7o-IUTRqRxq4yHKzlbNQ2qHVHAFoQOkI6T9NZjj-BRde639vonm3uwQBxgQVC3EIBT2szGjFRQzb1ywO/s320/P8010087.JPG" width="320" /></a>Jay, Ray, and Louise.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrUwI17XbQcQfopJ0Nf0F-ArrL6eGBtpq99ujSe88Bav2PuGObQn80Cc7QpxIRO2G76uRCLnOy0KL9sZU0FI1ug6N2SuR0pHICutK9aHSOJmmzV2-rP1HTpZjoT65itTSo3uox6xlnToY/s1600/P8010090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqrUwI17XbQcQfopJ0Nf0F-ArrL6eGBtpq99ujSe88Bav2PuGObQn80Cc7QpxIRO2G76uRCLnOy0KL9sZU0FI1ug6N2SuR0pHICutK9aHSOJmmzV2-rP1HTpZjoT65itTSo3uox6xlnToY/s320/P8010090.JPG" width="320" /></a>Water Explosion! </div>
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For lunch and a few snack breaks we would return to the bungalow. Sarena made kimbop for everyone and even prepared some for Claire and I without meat. It was unfathomably good! By far the best kimbop we have had in Korea so far!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiMeQNJ0j37d_tTxXZ-GS2a_6cq4lGBgJ13jWpjA10j94L09mJDDZHX2_BMkkmFj1I9xgR0gDVK9vTVzOil19k-SGC51gOM3LMl20vJjxFpNKWVplVPhV4_784h2s4BD6hVec0H518C2k/s1600/P7310057.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiMeQNJ0j37d_tTxXZ-GS2a_6cq4lGBgJ13jWpjA10j94L09mJDDZHX2_BMkkmFj1I9xgR0gDVK9vTVzOil19k-SGC51gOM3LMl20vJjxFpNKWVplVPhV4_784h2s4BD6hVec0H518C2k/s320/P7310057.JPG" width="320" /></a>Kimbop.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQuEQLNXAwwVxeglHvYZV0Ku-cjDaOobcg7dORVq5h6qRzqKN6tJg98Bbg-r19UcwKL_32t-thUr_Lf__LiPONYmhMZ252g6zuuUXyLdDqy7EIRcfcEp_rSseDshNHGZzhMmoBkMH4cdk/s1600/P8010063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQuEQLNXAwwVxeglHvYZV0Ku-cjDaOobcg7dORVq5h6qRzqKN6tJg98Bbg-r19UcwKL_32t-thUr_Lf__LiPONYmhMZ252g6zuuUXyLdDqy7EIRcfcEp_rSseDshNHGZzhMmoBkMH4cdk/s320/P8010063.JPG" width="320" /></a>Chilling in the Bungalow</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3IZGss68fsqWwwYS31B4Wr8VXPE9_je4KhyphenhyphenLs_2WpyfX4ZxnJPB-HaGBC2fTtqzm1OQ1nJEycXm-VBJ7pjgIkZNbGkcGaFSSNrDAG3UHRZe_wEfxid8e1nMgTMYmRgi4hkkLVr4AS477/s1600/P8010066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP3IZGss68fsqWwwYS31B4Wr8VXPE9_je4KhyphenhyphenLs_2WpyfX4ZxnJPB-HaGBC2fTtqzm1OQ1nJEycXm-VBJ7pjgIkZNbGkcGaFSSNrDAG3UHRZe_wEfxid8e1nMgTMYmRgi4hkkLVr4AS477/s320/P8010066.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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By around 5:00 we were all exhausted and ready for some uninterrupted hibernation. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDpgCH-7hZHRlV-k9qYgsfXBCgHi8K_rcNUVFAv9LIbn3CV7fkESQp1WtLoUDn2Mc78Wu_NyiILWxxfW1kMdAmGw4iZbKrDaX930lMI631qJUHfaLDjGFHm6Ft0q8RE88BGK47R47nyVe/s1600/P8010093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDpgCH-7hZHRlV-k9qYgsfXBCgHi8K_rcNUVFAv9LIbn3CV7fkESQp1WtLoUDn2Mc78Wu_NyiILWxxfW1kMdAmGw4iZbKrDaX930lMI631qJUHfaLDjGFHm6Ft0q8RE88BGK47R47nyVe/s320/P8010093.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-pt3ntC7FI-Vj9WzizcNHiGgnzN0-Dg_htJ3jWX-WnvKzNAowFOXz9u3Mf63ejnEJdTJiLKtykaMD38zL-tI9GEytiLQtw0nOQ3CH6UyLUIGMwNJnppzSijAobO-Qg2nMY8NgzqOspeAo/s1600/P8010092.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-pt3ntC7FI-Vj9WzizcNHiGgnzN0-Dg_htJ3jWX-WnvKzNAowFOXz9u3Mf63ejnEJdTJiLKtykaMD38zL-tI9GEytiLQtw0nOQ3CH6UyLUIGMwNJnppzSijAobO-Qg2nMY8NgzqOspeAo/s320/P8010092.JPG" width="320" /></a>Relaxing in the hot tub.</div>
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The locker rooms were EXTREMELY nice. First of all, as opposed to the states, no one cared about being naked. No one was shy or embarrassed (if they were they didn't show it) about their bodies. I am a solid believer that everyone's body is strange, and unique. It is always so weird to me to see people so embarrassed about the temporary form they inhabit.<br />
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The locker rooms also had plenty of 10 second dryers for your swim suit and other wet belongings along with complimentary plastic bags to store your damp things in. Thank you Korea.<br />
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I think that covers about everything. All in all, Claire and I were surrounded by some really amazing company and hilarious conversation all day. Ray, Jay, Sarena, and Louise, you guys are awesome! Thanks for an amazing trip!<br />
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A dragonfly landed on Claire's finger. Good Luck!!
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Check out some of the videos I took with my waterproof camera! <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpOmk8C8Shk" target="_blank">1</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59AeOYFE8mI" target="_blank">2</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LA_qqw_a_gc" target="_blank">3</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IUBLj4k6kw" target="_blank">4</a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHk_h89owNo" target="_blank">5 </a><br />
<br />Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-44338529867034697102012-07-31T08:53:00.000-07:002012-07-31T08:53:09.813-07:00Korea Vlog #8Norebang!!!!!!! <br /><br />Check out my eighth vlog about teaching English and living in South Korea. <br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2gPiPTL0CE&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Watch it here! </a>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-13713163258500470252012-07-22T05:35:00.000-07:002012-07-22T23:48:04.880-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #8<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</a><br /><a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/07/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-7.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Ponies by Kij Johnson</span></b> -flash story-<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 4.5</span></b></div>
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This is less of a science fiction story and more of a gruesome fairy tale. A girl and her pony are just trying to fit in, even if it means bloody amputation! A story that will take a few minutes to read and will never leave your mind afterward. </div>
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<a href="http://www.tor.com/stories/2010/11/ponies" target="_blank">Read or listen to it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"And then it’s time. TheOtherGirls and their silent Ponies collect in a ring around Barbara and Sunny. Barbara feels sick.<br /><br />TopGirl says to Barbara, “What did she pick?”<br /><br />Sunny looks scared but answers her directly. “I would rather talk than fly or stab things with my horn.”<br /><br />TopGirl says to Barbara, “That’s what Ponies always say.” She gives Barbara a curved knife with a blade as long as a woman’s hand."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Brave New World by Aldous Huxley</span></b> -novel-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b><br />
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Huxley
presents to the reader a world that can be viewed as a utopia within a dystopia,
depending on who you are in the book's society and your perspective. The
citizens of the world are controlled through a euphoric drug that creates
complacency in an existence without freedom or choice. Even birth and the raising of children is fully controlled and regulated. No one seems to complain about the caste
system; no one seems to care much about anything at all, and the society
functions perfectly and efficiently.
Until...<br />
A highly influential
novel still applicable to contemporary society.<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"At the end of the room a loud speaker projected from the wall. The Director walked up to it and pressed a switch.<br />"… all wear green," said a soft but very distinct voice, beginning in the middle of a sentence, "and Delta Children wear khaki. Oh no, I don't want to play with Delta children. And Epsilons are still worse. They're too stupid to be able to read or write. Besides they wear black, which is such a beastly colour. I'm so glad I'm a Beta."<br />There was a pause; then the voice began again.<br />"Alpha children wear grey. They work much harder than we do, because they're so frightfully clever. I'm really awfully glad I'm a Beta, because I don't work so hard. And then we are much better than the Gammas and Deltas. Gammas are stupid. They all wear green, and Delta children wear khaki. Oh no, I don't want to play with Delta children. And Epsilons are still worse. They're too stupid to be able …"<br />The Director pushed back the switch. The voice was silent. Only its thin ghost continued to mutter from beneath the eighty pillows.<br />"They'll have that repeated forty or fifty times more before they wake; then again on Thursday, and again on Saturday. A hundred and twenty times three times a week for thirty months. After which they go on to a more advanced lesson."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">1984 by George Orwell </span></b>-novel-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5+</span></b></div>
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An unforgettable, highly influential novel set in a
dystopic world controlled by the government called Big Brother. The story focuses on Winston Smith, a man that, unfortunately for him, recognizes the hypocrisy and problems associated with the constant surveillance, propoganda, and harsh punishment of his government. All of these totalitarian facets result in the control and restriction of every action and thought, whether the denizens know it or not. Nothing is as it seems. Big
Brother is always watching. The
similarities with our own world are stark and terrifying. An eye opening, hair grasping adventure.<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The Ministry of Truth, which concerned itself with news, entertainment, education and the fine arts. The Ministry of Peace, which concerned itself with war. The Ministry of Love, which maintained law and order. And the Ministry of Plenty, which was responsible for economic affairs."<br /><br />"WAR IS PEACE<br />FREEDOM IS SLAVERY<br />IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH"</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Nine Billion Names of God by Arthur C. Clarke</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b></div>
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A group of monks believe the entire purpose of the universe is to conceive, discover, and list every name of God. Because of the vast quantity of names, they hire two computer technicians to create a program and install it in a computer that functions algorithmically to create all possible combinations of language until all the names of God are created. So, what happens when they actually come up with all the names?</div>
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<a href="http://downlode.org/Etext/nine_billion_names_of_god.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"“This is a project on which we have been working for the last three centuries — since the lamasery was founded, in fact. It is somewhat alien to your way of thought, so I hope you will listen with an open mind while I explain it.”<br /><br />“Naturally.”<br /><br />“It is really quite simple. We have been compiling a list which shall contain all the possible names of God.”<br /><br />“I beg your pardon?”<br /><br />“We have reason to believe,” continued the lama imperturbably, “that all such names can be written with not more than nine letters in an alphabet we have devised.”<br /><br />“And you have been doing this for three centuries?”<br /><br />“Yes: we expected it would take us about fifteen thousand years to complete the task.”"</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Distant Replay by Mike Resnick</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b></div>
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This one has all the charm and wit that makes a great story. I wouldn't exactly consider it sci fi, but it contains many paranormal and speculative elements. An old man waiting for death thinks he sees his wife, but she's been dead for years. He slowly builds a very strange relationship with a young woman who is identical to his dead wife of nearly fifty years in every conceivable way. A truly touching and uplifting read. <br />
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<a href="http://www.asimovs.com/_issue_0805/Distantreplay.shtml" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"But she was sixty-eight when she’d died, and now she looked exactly the way she looked the very first time I saw her. I tried to smile at her as I passed her table. She looked right through me.<br /><br />I got to the men’s room, rinsed my face off, and took a look in the mirror, just to make sure I was still seventy-six years old and hadn’t dreamed the last half century. It was me, all right: not much hair on the top, in need of a trim on the sides, one eye half-shut from the mini-stroke I denied having except in increasingly rare moments of honesty, a tiny scab on my chin where I’d cut myself shaving. (I can’t stand those new-fangled electric razors, though since they’ve been around as long as I have, I guess they’re not really so new-fangled after all.)<br /><br />It wasn’t much of a face on good days, and now it had just seen a woman who was the spitting image of Deirdre.<br /><br />When I came out she was still there, sitting alone, picking at her dessert.<br /><br />“Excuse me,” I said, walking up to her table. “Do you mind if I join you for a moment?”"</span><br />
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<br /></div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-42196070250146710752012-07-09T21:33:00.000-07:002012-07-09T21:36:34.632-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #7<br />
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<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html" target="_blank">To view Science/speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-6.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Fragmentation, or Ten Thousand Goodbyes by Tom Crosshill </span></b>-short story- </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b></div>
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Some of the best writing I have ever read. He has already won many awards, and I have a feeling Tom Crosshill is only at the beginning of his due to be highly successful writing career. Crosshill introduces his readers to a world where people can be uploaded into a personal, virtual world of their choosing just before death to be preserved forever.This story is packed with emotion and leaves the reader stunned and speechless by the end of the ride. A story that begs the age old question, "what is self?" </div>
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<a href="http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/crosshill_04_12/" target="_blank">Read it here. </a><br />
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"Every day, Mom says goodbye to me for the last time.<br />
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I need to go to the office or meet Lisa at the airport or pop out for some milk. I'm lacing my shoes in the hallway when I hear the tap-tap-tap of her heels. I freeze for a moment, then rise to meet her.<br />
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Mom stands in the door, elegant in a simple dress. No matter the silvery hair. No matter how her skin, once a smooth dark brown, wrinkles over her bones. You'd never guess she has lived a century. She has no titanium knees, no vat-grown veins, no concession to modernity inside her.<br />
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If only her mind were as strong."<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">They- by Robert Heinlein</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b><br />
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A schizophrenic patient in a mental hospital is paranoid that the entire world has been created and continues to exist as an illusion to fool him. Is it possible he's right?</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Ugly Little Boy by Isaac Asimov </span></b>-short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 4.5</span></b></div>
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This is the story of a boy born 40,000 years in the past and brought to the present to be studied. When the studying is over with, what is to be done with this ugly little boy? <br />
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<a href="http://theuglylittleboy.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Hoskins said, “We’ve had the fix on one particular moment in time for weeks, breaking it, remaking it after calculating our own movements in time; making certain that we could handle time-flow with sufficient precision. This must work now.”<br />But his forehead glistened.<br />Edith Fellowes found herself out of her seat and at the balcony railing, but there was nothing to see.<br />The man at the microphone said quietly, “Now.”<br />There was a space of silence sufficient for one breath and then the sound of a terrified little boy’s scream from the dollhouse rooms. Terror! Piercing terror!"</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson</span></b> -novel-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;"> Writing 5+ </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 5+ </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+ </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5+</span></b><br />
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Neal Stephenson quickly became a big name in the realm of sci fi. His degree of historical research, technical insight, rhetorical wit, and high level of storytelling ability are mixed with a perfect dosage of action, romance, charm and wonder. The virtual world and real world are both at risk of complete destruction and pandemonium. In a completely capitalistic and corporate United States whose land is bought and sold by other nations and companies, including itself, it is up to Hiro Protagonist, a pizza delivery driver and the greatest swordsman in the 'the world' to save everyone. One of the most entertaining and well told/researched stories I have ever read. From start to finish, I completely lost myself in this one. Beyond perfect score in all aspects. </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">“Until a man is twenty-five, he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world. If I moved to a martial-arts monastery in China and studied real hard for ten years. If my family was wiped out by Colombian drug dealers and I swore myself to revenge. If I got a fatal disease, had one year to live, and devoted it to wiping out street crime. If I just dropped out and devoted my life to being bad.” <br /><br />“She's a woman, you're a dude. You're not supposed to understand her. That's notwhat she's after.... She doesn't want you to understand her. She knows that'simpossible. She just wants you to understand yourself. Everything else is negotiable.” <br /><br />“When you are wrestling for possession of a sword, the man with the handle always wins.” </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Article of Faith by Mike Resnick</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<span style="font-family: arial;"><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span></b><span style="color: lime;"><b>C</b></span></span><b><span style="color: lime; font-family: arial;">reativity 4 </span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5 </span><span style="color: purple; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: purple;">Overall 5</span></b></div>
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It's weird enough that a robot named Jackson has any desire at all. The fact that he has the sole desire to become a member of the church he cleans is even stranger! A story that examines humanity's humanity. Beautiful and poignant. </div>
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<a href="http://escapepod.org/2009/04/02/ep193-article-of-faith/" target="_blank">Listen to it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"“I’m sure,” I said. “Somehow, lunch seems pretty trivial after you’ve been thinking about God all morning.”<br /><br />“God, sir?”<br /><br />“The Creator of all things,” I explained.<br /><br />“My creator is Stanley Kalinovsky, sir,” said Jackson. “I was not aware that he created everything in the world, nor that his preferred name was God.”<br /><br />I couldn’t repress a smile."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-45885021199948082572012-07-06T00:31:00.000-07:002012-07-06T10:37:20.258-07:00Killin' like a Ruff RyderEver since summer started Claire and I have been noticing fruit flies of various sizes roaming around the apartment. <br />
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Most of the time we are able to kill a few here and there, keeping their numbers at bay. I even leveled up to master fruit fly destroyer when I killed two with one slap. <br />
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Anyway, one week the fruit fly numbers started increasing at an overwhelming rate. We checked all around the apartment, in the garbage, in the sink, everywhere, but couldn't find the source. <br />
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One morning, after Claire had gone to school early, I awoke to a dizzying cloud of fruit flies dancing around one another in the kitchen. I thought, quite eloquently, "No fucking way."</div>
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I sauntered into the kitchen, swatted the pests out of my eyes and away from my nostrils, and opened the cabinet under the sink. </div>
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My eyes widened to a disgusting scene of 100's of fruit flies in a swirling black cloud having an orgy and dropping larvae to the bottom of the cabinet. There were just as many larvae as there were flyers. The eggs lined the cabinet. They were sticking to the walls, to the pipe of the sink, to the garbage. They were crammed into unreachable crevices behind the sink, and under the stove, Piled into corners like disheveled firewood. </div>
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They had created the foundation for a thriving colony overnight. I thought, quite eloquently, "Fuck that."</div>
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I retreated a few steps, tempted by the thought of cowering and hiding in the bathroom in an impenetrable stream of hot water. I let out a few pathetic whimpers, and finally found a centered, murderous zen. <br />
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I knew that I would have to bring the artillery for this battle.<br />
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I walked over to my laptop. I did what any sane, white, suburban kid would do in this type of situation requiring pain and barbaric, wing crunching blood lust. <br />
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I turned on some DMX. <br />
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I turned<span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPRd892li3g&feature=related" target="_blank">this song on repeat<span style="background-color: white;">,</span></a>threw on some plastic gloves, and began piling up minuscule bodies like an insect Auschwitz. <br />
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I thought these lyrics were most fitting for the situation:<br />
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"Knock knock, open up the door,<br />
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it's real </div>
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Wit the non-stop, pop pop </div>
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and stainless steel<br />
Go hard gettin busy wit it" </div>
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The 'door' being the cabinet door, and the 'non-stop pop pop' being my hands endlessly ending tiny lives with a steel-like slap. </div>
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<br /></div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-78206710772692424542012-07-01T06:39:00.000-07:002012-07-01T06:39:20.915-07:00Mr E - Beet (Rap #4)<div>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmYBkfrpsv4&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Check out my new rap by clicking here!</a></div>
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This is rap #4 of my homemade raps.</div>
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This is a rap that I made almost 6 months ago that I finally edited and finished up. The beat is made by my buddy Keith Navoa, aka <a href="http://stacion.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Stacion</a>. <br />
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Lyrics: </div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">lame
day, weak pay, weeks pay couldn't preserve my name sake,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">9-5
just to reserve what they take,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">For
god's sake forsake gods they're all fake,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">our
solution evolving media, I do declare Wikipedia<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">source
of facts non-fiction, depiction of her curvature the only<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">link
that's missing,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">next
up is a special edition <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">of
the mischief your missing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">listen,
and im'a christen these air waves <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">like
stairways to heaven seven merry men<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">gather
round my rhetoric screaming amen, pretend,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">that
you don't owe my mental den consisting of ryou and ken<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">one-
the president's head <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;"> silent and dead , irrelevant, Stacion and
Mister E are sub urban sent,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">and
solely meant to keep your mind bent<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">in
all of the right directions, this social section is where we hold elections<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">for
the globes hardest erections, hmmmm <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">chose
anarchy due to filibuster bullshit malarkey <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">and
requests for endless pension, somebody stop these beat fiends arrest them<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">for
causing cardiac arrest in less than half the rap population testing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">these
tunes with android cellphones and metronomes that only click <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">when
left alone, fully grown<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">we
dwell in zones sanctioned for garden gnomes,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">and
roam near home with a fluid poem rolling of our bottom lip<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">quick
tip, empty lungs and bottle it, allow it to ferment to fit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">don't
just sit there , harness hip hop hustle
hissy fit, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">sell
that shit as sparklit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">garnish
roaring applause you get with redic rhymes writ as hits<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">holster
on your hip all the extensive vocab that you can equip<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">never
quit <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">no
matter the stakes its worth every bit<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">every
last moment, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">as
if a roman, open coliseum <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">moon
glowing, crowd roaring<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">we
spread these beats to every single scene<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">and
oversee hobbits<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">murdering
dark kings, one ring to rule every mc seething,
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">fangs
lashed, and heart beating faster<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">anxious
to meet with the caster,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">the
mage rapper, inventory full with flow
blasters<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">banned
from scrabble, creation, and disaster,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">if
you want it faster collect some mental castor and pour on the up tempo plaster <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">and
forever after we understand the everafter , my species please<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">only
riddle me this,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">the
forgotten trick...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">to
remain insane<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 200%;">long
enough to be your own master<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-84069090779723735142012-06-30T00:21:00.000-07:002012-07-01T00:19:55.185-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #6<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html" target="_blank">To view Science/speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/05/science-fiction-review-5.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(Just as a note, the stories in these reviews range in publication date from earlier than the 1920's to the present)</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein</span></b> -novel-<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Writing 5+ </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5+</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5+</b></div>
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Considered one of the most important sci fi novels ever written, this remarkable story chronicles a revolution on the moon led by descendents of prisoners from Earth and a fully sentient computer named Mike. Mike has many aliases and loves to play pranks like giving the entire planetary wealth of Earth to a janitor on the moon as a bonus in his paycheck. Another classic, another must read! I was hooked from the first word. <b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"I spent time then soothing Mike down trying to make him happy, having figured out what troubled him — thing that makes puppies cry and causes people to suicide: loneliness. I don't know how a long a year is to a machine that thinks a million times faster than I do. But must be too long."<br /><br />"A rational anarchist believes that concepts such as "state" and "society" and "government" have no existence save as physically exemplified in the acts of self-responsible individuals. He believes that it is impossible to shift blame, share blame, distribute blame. . . as blame, guilt, responsibility are matters taking place inside human beings singly and nowhere else. But being rational, he knows that not all individuals hold his evaluations, so he tries to live perfectly in an imperfect world. . . aware that his effort will be less than perfect yet undismayed by self-knowledge of self-failure."<br /><br />"I will accept any rules that you feel necessary to your freedom. I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Source Decay by
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Writing 4.5 </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4.5</b><br />
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A wacky, bizarre tale spanning thousands of years with a single focal point, the 21st century love triangle between a man and two women. This love triangle is filmed and put on a reality television show identical to the show 'cheaters.' It eventually becomes an historical epic, causing varying wars and divisions among every sentient being. A hilarious story and a perfect, albeit insane example of the butterfly effect. To sum up this story in two words, "Mind Fuck." I was giggling like a mad man by the end. Check it out! </div>
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<a href="http://www.strangehorizons.com/2011/20110103/source-f.shtml" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"The story of Tara and Jeremy became a super-popular metapoem (a poem with elements of opera, video games, neuro-Bollywood, and vibro-blog included) called "Playing Games." In this version, Tara was an Ortho, who refused to get all the filters and skin-upgrades required to live on Earth. She preferred to keep her pure, traditional, human shape; appendage-wise, Tara had only the three hands, two legs, and one prehensile tail. Roberta, meanwhile, was fully upgraded, with seven modular limb-sockets, the full Earth-survival suite, and a few extra sensory organs—including the one which let you smell higgs bosons, which many people believed made you a nymphomaniac."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br />Kiss me, Synch me, Drop by Suzanne Church </span></b>- short story-<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Writing 4 </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 4 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4</b><br />
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Set in a world where drugs have been replaced by totally encompassing, orgasmically sensed music. People spend their time at the clubs seeking the synchronously felt overwhelming climax of the musical drop. There's a new track on the streets, but the main character is running out of time. <br />
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<a href="http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/church_05_12/" target="_blank">Read it here. </a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">""Yeaaaah!" She shouted and grabbed my hand, squeezing it. Harder. Her eyes pressed shut, her mouth wide open, she leaned her head way back.<br /><br /><br />The drum beats surged, and then, for a fraction of a second they paused. Everyone in the club inhaled, as though this might be the last lungful of air left in the world and then...<br /><br />Drop.<br /><br />But drop doesn't say it all. Not even close. Because when it happens, it's like the most epic orgasm of all time and pinching the world's biggest crap-log at the same moment.<br /><br />Rain opened her eyes and pressed her hand against the side of my cheek. Lunging with remarkable speed for a woman who over-voweled, she kissed me. Her tongue pressed against my lips."</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Nightfall by Isaac Assimov Writing</span></b> -short story and novel (2 versions)-<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Writing 5+ </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5</b></div>
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Whenever you see a listing of the best sci fi stories ever written, this is the one that usually takes the number one spot. From the father of science fiction (H.G. Wells is the grandfather) comes a story that haunts the characters of the alien world, and the reader as well. On a planet orbiting multiple the world is always at least somewhat illuminated. Every 2049 years, there is a total eclipse, and the inhabitants experience a temporary darkness, the nightfall. A time for celebration, or madness? A must read! </div>
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<a href="http://www.polvoestelar.com.mx/babilonia/Libros/Isaac%20Asimov/English/Short%20Stories/Isaac%20Asimov%20-%20The%20Best%20of%20Isaac%20Asimov.pdf" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<a href="http://escapepod.org/2007/04/05/ep100-nightfall/" target="_blank">Listen to it here.</a> </div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"There was one simultaneous gasp as every eye followed the pointing finger and, for one breathless moment, stared frozenly. <br />Beta was chipped on one side!<br /> The tiny bit of encroaching blackness was perhaps the width of a fingernail, but to the staring watchers it magnified itself into the crack of doom. <br /> Only for a moment they watched, and after that there was a shrieking confusion that was even shorter of duration and which gave way to an orderly scurry of activity -- each man at his prescribed job. At the crucial moment there was no time for emotion. The men were merely scientists with work to do. Even Aton had melted away"</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">A Vector Alphabet of Interstellar Travel by Yoon Ha Lee</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Writing 4 </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 4.5</b><br />
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This story is just downright fun. It chronicles the different ways and traditions that various beings use to traverse across the galaxy. The variations in space travel are astonishing and sometimes hilarious. A very entertaining read. </div>
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<a href="http://www.tor.com/stories/2011/08/a-vector-alphabet-of-interstellar-travel" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Among the universe’s civilizations, some conceive of the journey between stars as the sailing of bright ships, and others as tunneling through the crevices of night. Some look upon their far-voyaging as a migratory imperative, and name their vessels after birds or butterflies. <br /><br />To most of their near neighbors, they are known as the dancers. It is not the case that their societies are more interested in dance than the norm. True, they have their dances of metal harvest, and dances of dream descending, and dances of efflorescent death. They have their high rituals and their low chants, their festivals where water-of-suffusement flows freely for all who would drink, where bells with spangled clappers toll the hours by antique calendars. But then, these customs differ from their neighbors’ in detail rather than in essential nature.<br /><br />Rather, their historians like to tell the story of how, not so long ago, they went to war with aliens from a distant cluster. No one can agree on the nature of the offense that precipitated the whole affair, and it seems likely that it was a mundane squabble over excavation rights at a particular rumor pit."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br /></span></div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-39760746192345073352012-06-25T09:14:00.000-07:002012-06-25T09:14:23.797-07:00Fill the Land, Not the LandfillsClaire and I officially do not produce ANY 'garbage.' We recycle or compost 100%. I am extremely proud of this!<br />
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Start a compost! And then start a garden. And then combine them. The Earth and your taste buds will thank you!<br />
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<a href="http://www.urban-composter.com/" target="_blank">Here is a great blog for composting in an urban environment</a>, which can be a little trickier but can definitely be done!Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-80552348291022448892012-06-21T00:51:00.000-07:002012-06-21T00:51:49.628-07:00The Religion of The Little Green ManI apologize if I offend your beliefs, but this is something that has puzzled my mind for over 7 years now. I'd like to talk about a religion you may have never heard of before, though I'm sure you are quite familiar with it. I like to call it, "the religion of the little green man." I now know for sure that it exists worldwide.<br /><br />The little green man exists in most of the 'civilized' world. He can be seen in many shapes, in many styles, and even in other colors besides green. Sometimes he plays music to lull his followers into complacency. Sometimes he flashes a countdown of numbers. When the numbers reach zero, he is replaced by the dangerous, twisted, untrustworthy recluse known as the little red man. <br /><br />I'm referring to cross walks, and the mind boggling trust people have in the colored figures that dutifully tell pedestrians to stop and go. <br /><br />I cannot count the number of times I have seen a group of people standing at a cross walk during the day or in the middle of the night without a car in sight waiting patiently for the little green man to replace the demonic red man and tell them that it's alright to take the 3 or 4 'risky' steps across the desolate asphalt. <br />
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I cannot count the number of times I have, after giggling at this group of religious nuts, walked into the intersection while, little green man forbid, the red man is still standing vigil. Many times people gasp in disbelief at my heretic disregard for the little green man's duty. I have seen people across from me wake up from their religious stupor and start walking into the intersection beset by barren roads in all directions only to lose courage and stumble back to the safety of the sidewalk. <br /><br />I have watched hordes of people waiting at a 4 foot intersection for over 3 minutes, waiting for the green man to appear and assure them of their safety.<br />
<br />I have also walked into the intersection while the red man is glaring into our worried, unsure faces and have successfully woken a few people up. They will follow me across the intersection with intense dread and paranoia, looking this way and that for a car that might spontaneously appear right next to them. <br /><br />There have even been times when every single person at the intersection crosses with me, but only after I have proven the street will not fall into an endless abyss under the green man forsaken care of the little red man.<br /><br />Folks, what is the deal? Why do so many trust in the little green man so much. Look both ways, and if there aren't any cars coming, they will continue not coming. I know it is hard to believe, but the little green man is not real, you are placing your trust in a non sentient light. You are smarter than him. <br /><br />The point of waiting at a cross walk is to avoid getting hit by a car. A car needs to be present to be hit by one. If there are no cars, you will not be hit. Ever. <br />
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Come to the red side. The little red man is not so bad. He's lonely, and he wants you to use your eyes. Your eyes, you know, those orbs stuck in your head that give you the ability to see. <br />Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-7957093753424571562012-06-19T11:24:00.000-07:002012-06-20T00:13:20.741-07:00Science/Speculative Fiction Review #5<br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-1.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #1 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-2.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #2 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.com/2012/05/science-fiction-review-3.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #3 click here</a><br />
<a href="http://seekersenclave.blogspot.kr/2012/06/sciencespeculative-fiction-review-4.html" target="_blank">To view Science/Speculative Fiction Review #4 click here</a><br />
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I spend a great deal of my time every day reading speculative science fiction. The rest of my time is spent asking the questions and questioning the answers that the science fiction I read creates. All of the stories I post contain elements of profound contemplation, varying philosophy, metaphysics, and theoretical pondering. The authors that create these stories are among my heroes in this reality, and I very much want to share them with you. Although I read a great deal more than the stories I will post in these short reviews, I only want to share those pieces of text/audio that really stick with me and force my mind to ponder life, the universe, and everything. While I am delighted with nearly all that I read in this genre, I will make an attempt to only present the best of the best.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(Just as a note, the stories in these reviews range in publication date from earlier than the 1920's to the present)</span><br />
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing</span></b><span style="color: orange;"> </span>- The quality of the writing. I specifically rate the writing on how well it is able to convey to me the action, thoughts, emotions, etc. of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: lime;"><b>Creativity</b></span>- Simply put, this rating is a measure of the degree of imagination that exists in the writing. How unique and new was the story? Is it something I have seen done over and over again? I also factor into this rating category interesting literary techniques such as stylish ways to present chapters or different parts of the story. </div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b>Intrigue</b></span>- This rating represents the stories ability to keep me interested. Did I get bored and have to fight my way through to the end? Or did I lose myself and end up somewhere else entirely?</div>
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Overall</b></span>- My general impression of the story. How much I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and/or how much it affected me.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Edge of the Sea by Algis Budrys </span></b>-short story-</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span>Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 4 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;"><b>Overall 4.5</b></span></div>
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This story is a classic. A determined man finds something strange in the sea under an expressway that links islands. Nothing will stop this man from understanding what he has found, not the police, not the hurricane, not even himself! I was on the edge of my computer chair the whole time I read this!<br />
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<a href="http://www.pdfdocspace.com/docs/43195/algis-budrys---the-edge-of-the-sea.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">"Dear God, he thought, am I doing this for money? No, he thought, as a wave</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">filled his nostrils, no, not any more. When that thing turned its light on and I didn't</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">money. For what? God knows.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">He floundered half over on his side, arched his neck, and looked at the violet</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">arrow through the clouds. Signal, you bastard! Go ahead and signal! Do anything.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">As long as I know you're still there. If you can stay put, so can I."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Silence of the Asonu by Ursala K. Le Guin </b></span>-short story-<span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Writing 5 </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span></span></b><br />
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<b style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;">Overall 5</b></div>
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This short story from one of the masters of science fiction, Le Guin, seems like more of an anthropological documentary than anything else. There must be some reason the children of the Asonu people speak, while all the adults are invariably silent.</div>
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<a href="http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-silence-of-the-asonu/" target="_blank">Read it here.</a><br />
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"<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">The silence of the Asonu is proverbial. The first visitors believed that these gracious, gracile people were mute, lacking any language other than that of gesture, expression, and gaze. Later, hearing Asonu children chatter, the visitors suspected that among themselves the adults spoke, keeping silence only with strangers. We know now that the Asonu are not dumb, but that once past early childhood they speak only very rarely, to anyone, under any circumstances. They do not write; and unlike mutes, or monks under vows of silence, they do not use any signs or other devices in place of speaking."</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag by Robert Heinlein</span></b> -short story-<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 5</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: purple; font-family: inherit;"><b>Overall 5</b></span></div>
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Jonathan Hoag visits a married couple of private investigators with an odd request: he wants them to follow him, because he has no idea what he does each day. The book is part fantasy, part horror, and part pulp detective. A discussion and speculation on the nature of art, aesthetics, and reality itself. A speculative and somewhat eerie tale of the unknown. I also just found it is being made into a movie set for release in 2013.<br />
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"<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Dr. Potbury brought the slip of paper closer to his vest and looked at Hoag over his spectacles. Any particular reason, he asked, why you should find blood under your fingernails?<br /><br />No, that is to say- Well, no- there isn't. But it is blood-isn't it?<br /><br />No, Potbury said heavily. No it isn't blood.<br /><br />Hoag new that he should have felt relieved. But he was not. He knew in that moment that he had clung to the notion that the brown grime under his fingernails was dry blood rather than let himself dwell on other, less tolerable, ideas. He felt sick at his stomach. But he had to know- what is it doctor? Tell me.<br /><br />Potbury looked him up and down. You asked me a specific question. I've answered it. You did not ask me what the substance was; you asked me to find out whether or not it was blood. It is not.</span>"<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Ghost Pit by Stephen Baxter </span></b>-short story-<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 4.5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 4.5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4.5</span></span></b></div>
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<b style="color: purple;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Overall 4.5</span></b></div>
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Baxter presents a story set far into the future in which members of humanity choose to hunt a now rare and dangerous type of alien known as a ghost. Ghost hunting is the only true way to become rich anymore. The protagonist Raida, decked in a living space suit and marooned on a planet filled with bones, has more to worry about than a hostile alien species. An action packed story that keeps up a fast pace the whole way through. <br />
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<a href="http://homepage.mac.com/sjbradshaw/baxterium/ghostpit.html" target="_blank">Read it here.</a></div>
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"<span style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">The key resource you get from a Ghost is his hide - a perfectly reflective heat trap, with a thousand applications. Now that Ghosts are so rare, wild hides are a luxury item. People sell little squares and triangles of hide for use as charms, curios: this was, after all, a lucky species that survived the death of its sun, so the story goes.<br /><br />Anyhow if you come at a Ghost with a jabbing weapon, you should get your spear into the carcase along the spin axis, where the hide is a little thinner, and you won't rip it unnecessarily. Ghosts don't leave spoor, my mother used to say. So you have to cut him an asshole. You just follow the trail of excrement and blood and heat until he dies, which might take a day or two.</span>"<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Someday by Isaac Asimov</span></b><b style="font-size: x-large;"> </b>-short story-<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Writing 5 </span><span style="color: red;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">C</span><span style="color: lime;">reativity 3.5 </span><span style="color: blue;">I</span><span style="color: blue;">ntrigue 4</span></span></b></div>
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<b style="color: purple;">Overall 4</b></div>
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The story is set in a future where computers control most of the organizational and decision making roles of society. Two young boys attempt to program their 'bard,' a robotic toy with the sole purpose of generating fairy tales, to tell a fairy tale about computers. A charming, contemplative, and ultimately eerie story.<br />
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</div>Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-26456855898007557932012-06-18T08:53:00.004-07:002012-06-18T11:29:39.836-07:00Stop Wasting Your Money!!!!I think it is extremely important to budget your finances and not spend more than you actually have. So many people choose to live outside their means by spending money on frivolous, overpriced items. Materialism has become an addiction, with millions of people around the world charging on credit and racking up exponentially increasing debt.<br />
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I'm not implying it is wrong to take out a loan for something like a house or a car, but simply that it is stubborn and childish to refuse to buy anything besides designer jeans that cost 100 dollars. (Even 30 dollars is way too expensive in my opinion).<br />
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The only reason society insists we get secure high paying jobs is to support our extravagant, superfluous, high priced lives. <br />
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There are so many people living paycheck to paycheck. So many people living in poverty. Busting their ass 5, 6, even 7 days a week at a job they hate. And yet they have a brand new 50 inch TV every two years, buy cars brand new (which depreciate in value by over 30% the moment you drive it off the lot), wear $500 sunglasses. <br />
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People complain about their poverty, and yet they only buy designer clothes, spend countless amounts of money on gossip magazines, get the latest phone every year and buy new computers when they could just reformat and upgrade for a fraction of the price.<br />
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Do you really need to go to Starbucks and spend $4 on a 10 cent coffee? Do you really need to spend a $1.50 or more on water that is virtually free. Fill up a water bottle and bring it with you. Stop being lazy! <br />
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The truth is that life is easier when you aren't lazy. <br />
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People are on welfare who have 4 pairs of $200 dollar Nike shoes, have an Xbox, a Playstation 3, a Wii, and a computer. They eat out for 2 to 3 meals a day, everyday, if not nearly everyday, and go out to the bar to spend 30 - 100 dollars or more on drinks 4 times a week or more. <br />
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Is it any wonder? <br />
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We need to budget ourselves, and we need to live with greater humility. We need to sacrifice going out every day of the week and learn how to have fun without spending all of our hard earned money for a few laughs. We need to cut a few inches off of our television sets, or better yet, throw the damn thing away. <br />
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We need to be more creative!!! We need to stop being so lazy! <br />
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The best things in life are free. That is not an outdated truth, that is just plain old truth! Go for a walk. Buy a book used for 50 cents and...read! Write a story. Instead of joining the 90 dollar gym, go for a run and do some push ups. Instead of buying Versaci sun glasses, buy the knock offs, no one will ever know. And if they find out, who the hell cares! You have more money than them. You are better off. You are smarter and more sensible! <br />
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Cook your meals at home. Grow a garden. Find delight in the simple things in life. Fuck the bar! Grab a six pack of beer and sit in a field with some friends and have a chat. Or make some tea at home and have a profound philosophical debate. Make your own wine. <br />
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Refuse societies pressure to adopt the sickness of instant gratification.<br />
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Be creative!! Life does not have to cost so much! <br />
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And last of all, save. Just because you have money doesn't mean you have to get rid of it immediately. Save it. Make a goal. Have many goals! There is nothing wrong with having some money to fall back on. Living paycheck to paycheck only leads to anxiety, which leads to more health problems, which leads to a more expensive life! Save some of it!<br />
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I know it's hard with an endless onslaught of advertisements everywhere you look, but the moment you stop giving in, it becomes easier and easier!<br />
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Be creative. Think outside society's norms. <br />
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<a href="http://memoirs-ontherun.blogspot.kr/2012/06/budgets.html" target="_blank">Here is a link to Claire's blog and post about budgeting</a>. We have both always been into saving our money and looking for more affordable though still amazing alternatives to what life offers us. She created a budget which has greatly increased the ease with which we are able to keep track of our spendings, spending habits, and saving goals. I use it everyday. It can even be used through Google documents(which she links directly to) so that you can access your budget spreadsheet from any device that has internet access! We even use it as a shared budget to factor in shared costs like rent, food, utilities, and various odds and ends.<br />
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It has been said that most relationships end due to financial disagreement. We have never had a fight about finances even remotely. <br />
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Try this budget out. It works so well, does all the math for you and is basically an automated way to control yourself and keep your budget in check. <br />
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<a href="http://memoirs-ontherun.blogspot.kr/2012/06/budgets.html" target="_blank">Again, here is a link to the budget.</a><br />
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<br />Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3041990471359414005.post-53301780128162263822012-06-16T04:33:00.000-07:002012-06-18T23:10:50.595-07:00Sea Kayaking and Partial Snorkeling in Namhae, South Korea<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Don't forget to click the pictures to enlarge them)</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://memoirs-ontherun.blogspot.kr/2012/06/namhae.html" target="_blank">Here is a link to Claire's blog post about the same trip! It contains more pictures!</a></span></i><br />
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A couple weeks ago Claire and I, with a group of friends and to be friends, took a trip to Namhae, an island near the city of Busan.<br />
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After arriving in a quaint rural area we were given some time to take a look around and get to know our surroundings.</div>
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Our first activity was sea kayaking in some pretty tumultuous water. </div>
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There were several caves and inlets within the faces of the mountains. Normally you are able to venture into them, but due to the violent water our guide warned us against it. </div>
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Dragon Rock!</div>
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Victory!</div>
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Next we went snorkeling, well, tried to snorkel. We all ended up throwing our snorkels aside due to cloudy water.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2noKHl5Z2iKaoY9XclORrVfW5uMqE9rG3Sc4XgfQpxxvqAiRg5cHxjjllfdymvcJJdh_Vz3RQUwfbnRfmteorMoH0ZJM-rS13l0kuIUuOwoZ2_8cZ51soUO_y4LKo7Gei8etEPHaJAhX/s1600/snorkeling!.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2noKHl5Z2iKaoY9XclORrVfW5uMqE9rG3Sc4XgfQpxxvqAiRg5cHxjjllfdymvcJJdh_Vz3RQUwfbnRfmteorMoH0ZJM-rS13l0kuIUuOwoZ2_8cZ51soUO_y4LKo7Gei8etEPHaJAhX/s320/snorkeling!.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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It felt so refreshing to challenge the waves and just swim around! We also did a bit of cliff jumping, though I don't have any pictures.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiefKxInjBoVDuy6V4hec0zMcYWCmtHLdDbTQvYlBK8fzafUyPmCAbwy2VspkkP29PGZoWhAHv3fpEwXp630d99qHAEpkhmx_bDUj2Sw4W9x4KrSPwPYI9mbVol2JXWNvpA33H3prcumdlx/s1600/swimming!.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiefKxInjBoVDuy6V4hec0zMcYWCmtHLdDbTQvYlBK8fzafUyPmCAbwy2VspkkP29PGZoWhAHv3fpEwXp630d99qHAEpkhmx_bDUj2Sw4W9x4KrSPwPYI9mbVol2JXWNvpA33H3prcumdlx/s320/swimming!.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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Chilling after swimming around. We had to wear water shoes due to the jagged rocks. Breathe in those classy tans!</div>
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Rough Riders. </div>
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We had some friend chicken and beer after an exhausting day. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIJKT85z0cnrZ3RcaeKd-T3C52EHLqxba7sgxmOzIlAEEj93uSUzMYNI7kX6RlOmtrnFjliMswO0snM6rP8I8OUJ7l5pXlYYcZtK_2HCTrozylXAFsSHlDQNWizi9aqa8rh1YLY5B7SBea/s1600/me+and+claire+hey+there.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSPtRGjQWcM29wJ-o21irZbpKW_Lge4zY68zKkCcmyNGajkha_EcAjsDfWuaeX1dG8DOflwtAWhIKUy2CDqZqB8_hTVbl3UjiHNpkXqossLhcN5547tbc16hvS3x_AE-qNvUFg5dWPvtB/s1600/eating%2521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSPtRGjQWcM29wJ-o21irZbpKW_Lge4zY68zKkCcmyNGajkha_EcAjsDfWuaeX1dG8DOflwtAWhIKUy2CDqZqB8_hTVbl3UjiHNpkXqossLhcN5547tbc16hvS3x_AE-qNvUFg5dWPvtB/s320/eating%2521.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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Just enjoying a beautiful sunset...<br />
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<br />Eric Feinberghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09353500212433647401noreply@blogger.com1