October News

* Disappointingly, the release of the anxiously-awaited new "Dune" film has been delayed until October 1, 2021, but the trailer is definitely something to see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9xhJrPXop4 There's also this absorbing shot-by-shot comparison of the images from 1984 and 2020: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcZPZGq3Zy8

* Fascinating stories of the recent (non-fictional) hard-boiled private eyes of San Francisco: https://altaonline.com/private-investigators-san-francisco-phil-bronstein/

* Wow -- check out this amazing animated short film based on Peter Watts' novel BLINDSIGHT! https://blindsight.space/

* These new climate change projection maps show a radically transformed US: https://projects.propublica.org/climate-migration/

* The pros and cons of Netflix's plan to adapt the THREE-BODY PROBLEM series, according to The Ringer:  https://www.theringer.com/tv/2020/9/1/21417294/three-body-problem-netflix-benioff-weiss

* Real drone footage of San Francisco's enormously unsettling "Red Day" on September 9th, 2020 set to the "Blade Runner 2049" theme: https://boingboing.net/2020/09/11/real-footage-of-san-francisco.html

* Brilliant author Kim Stanley Robinson on why climate change doesn't have to be the end: http://nautil.us/issue/90/something-green/kim-stanley-robinson-holds-out-hope (We still have a few signed copies of Stan's new novel THE MINISTRY FOR THE FUTURE, so let us know if you'd like us to hold one for you.)

* The incredible power of the number instinct in the animal kingdom: https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/animal-kingdom-power-of-the-number-instinct/

* Would we actually recognize aliens if we saw them? https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/sep/05/are-aliens-hiding-in-plain-sight

* While we're considering it, here are the 4 most promising worlds for life: https://www.inverse.com/science/the-4-most-promising-worlds-for-alien-life

* The fabulously successful Kickstarter for Brandon Sanderson's limited edition of THE WAY OF KINGS is over, but there's a sneak-peek image of the books here, and they are stunning.  (We say "books" because THE WAY OF KINGS limited edition will be two volumes.)  https://www.brandonsanderson.com/the-way-of-kings-leatherbound-kickstarter-sneak-peek/

* Decoding the mathematical secrets of amazing leaf patterns: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/decoding-mathematical-secrets-plants-stunning-leaf-patterns-180972367/

* This could be the future of biomaterial: https://www.inverse.com/innovation/bioinspired-material-for-martian-colonies

* The oldest items from 13 obscure libraries: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/oldest-library-books-small-specific-libraries-manuscripts

* The conflicted, challenging, and sometimes life-saving history of lesbian pulp novels: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/lesbian-pulp-fiction-ann-bannon

* How "A Wrinkle in Time" changed science fiction forever: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/66705/how-wrinkle-time-changed-sci-fi-forever

* A new look at Phineas Gage, neuroscience's greatest mystery: https://slate.com/technology/2014/05/phineas-gage-neuroscience-case-true-story-of-famous-frontal-lobe-patient-is-better-than-textbook-accounts.html

* What would humans do with a vastly extended expected life span?  https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-if-we-could-live-for-a-million-years/

* The Guardian UK says that Silicon Valley's notion of "disruption" is a con: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2020/sep/24/disruption-big-tech-buzzword-silicon-valley-power

* It was amazingly simple for this college student to generate an AI-created, virally popular fake blog: https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/14/1006780/ai-gpt-3-fake-blog-reached-top-of-hacker-news/