The Fermi Paradox is Back

I found this article about Fermi's Paradox on the Slashdot blog.

Sentient Developments revisits the Fermi Paradox which is "the contradictory and counter-intuitive observation that we have yet to see any evidence for the existence of Extra Terrestrial Intelligence (ETI) although the size and age of the Universe suggests that many technologically advanced ETI's ought to exist. Sentient Development's blog post on the Fermi Paradox states that a number breakthroughs and have contributed to the Fermi Paradox gaining credence as an unsolved scientific problem.

(1)How we view and understand our galaxy and universe,
(2) Improved understanding of planet formation, composition and habitable zones,
(3) The discovery of extrasolar planets,
(4) Confirmation of the rapid origination of life on Earth
(5) Growing legitimacy of panspermia theories"

So, where is everyone?"

Doughnut shaped Vacuum Time Machine?

A physicist from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, has come up with what he says are practical solutions to overcome the hindrances that experts have long regarded as stopping us from traveling back in time. But rather than building an actual device, the machine is space-time itself. Time travel research is based on bending space-time so far that the time lines actually warp back on themselves to form a loop. While the possibility of time travel has never been ruled out, scientists have identified a number of physical challenges, such as not enough exotic matter, to create the necessary warp and get the wheels of time to turn back. However this new research path suggests that if the proper initial conditions were achieved, the time machine would evolve on its own without any further intervention.

Thanks to shaun Saunders for the post

US Government developing RFID implant for soldiers

The next time some crazy homeless guy comes up to you saying that the government planted a microchip in his brain, he just might be telling the truth. That's because the US Department of Defense has already started a program to develop a tiny microchip, about the size of a grain of rice, which can monitor soldier's vital signs, giving important information to trauma doctors and other first responders. It can also be used to continuously monitor the condition of people like astronauts, or someone with a chronic condition like diabetes. Human trials are set to begin in as few as five years from now.

MallCity Shaun! f***in MallCity!

Fall Science Fiction TV show update

Geekend blog just passed on the new sci-fi shows that will premiere this fall. They also now have the days and times that these shows will appear on. Check it out!

Chuck [Monday, Sept. 24, 8:00 PM, NBC] High concept: Hapless tech-support geek accidentally gets reams of uber-secret spy data downloaded into his brain, making him the most coveted walking hard drive on the planet.

Journeyman [Monday, Sept. 24, 10:00 PM, NBC] Preview available here. The concept goes something like this: a San Francisco newspaper reporter gets sent back in time by an unknown power to right wrongs. Sounds familiar, right? The difference is that McKidd is absent from the present for the same amount of time he spends in the past, so if he spends 48 hours in 1987, he misses 48 hours in 2007, which screws up his family life.

New Amsterdam [Tuesday, Sept. 25, 8:00 PM, FOX] Preview available here. John Amsterdam is a NY City homicide detective who just happens to be an immortal from the 17th century who can’t resume aging normally until he finds his one true love.

Reaper [Tuesday, Sept. 25, 9:00 PM, CW] Previews here The basic premise is a teenage Home Depot employee finds out that his parents sold his soul to the Devil for personal gain, and now he’s become a Grim Reaper charged with hunting down souls that have escaped from hell. Think of it as Dogma meets Brimstone, with emphasis on the funny.

Pushing Daisies [Wednesday, Oct. 3, 8:00 PM, ABC] Preview available here. Professional pie-maker Ned has the ability to resurrect the dead, but with some complications. 1) If he ever touches his reanimations a second time, they die again, and can’t be called back.
2) If he keeps his reanimations alive for more that a minute, somebody else nearby has to die to balance the scales.

Bionic Woman [Wednesday, Sept. 26, 9:00 PM, NBC] Preview and commentary here.
this is a flat-out remake of the 1976 series, with Michelle Ryan filling in for Lindsay Wagner.

Flash Gordon [Friday, Aug. 10, 8:00 PM, Sci Fi Channel] Teaser available here. This new Flash won’t bear much resemblance to the old. Flash is now a marathon runner rather than a football star, and Dale Arden is his ex-girlfriend rather than the damsel in distress and a decidedly non-Asian Ming the Merciless.

Moonlight [Friday, Sept. 28, 9:00 PM, CBS] Preview available here. Originally called Twilight but changed when producers though views would expect something "zoneish" So maybe now we might expect "Moonlighingish perhaps?" Moonlight will feature a beneficent vampire who works as a detective to help the innocent. (umm does this sound vaguely familiar to anyone....Forever Knight ring a bell?) CBS has given this show the "dead man walking" slot. I have a feeling this one isn't going to be around long.

The Sarah Connor Chronicles [Sundays, 9:00 PM, FOX no date set yet] Preview available here. Lena Headey (Queen Gorgo from 300) is on board as the title character, and Summer Glau (River from Firefly) is your requisite good-girl protective Terminator, the pair collectively defending John Connor (played by Thomas Dekker, AKA Claire’s friend Zach from Heroes) from wave after wave of deadly cyborgs from the future.

True Blood [Sundays, TBA, HBO] based on the Southern Vampire novel (Dead Until Dark, etc) series by Charlaine Harris and stars Anna Paquin (Rogue from the X-Men movies) as Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic waitress from Louisiana who suffers through a maudlin series of vampire boyfriends in a world where the bloodsuckers have “come out of the coffin” and entered mainstream society (thanks to a medical blood substitute that frees them from nightstalking humans). No preview or time-slot yet available, but Harris’ Web site has a running collection of press releases and set photos, and the buzz is that this will be a mid-season replacement in early 2008.

Click on the show titles, the article title or here for more info

Heroes and Stargate Atlantis News

From About.com's sci-fi blog


Stargate Atlantis:

Fans of Stargate Atlantis's Scottish medical officer, Carson Beckett (Paul McGillion), who was killed off in January, plan to rally at ComicCon in San Diego to make sure that producers and network execs know just how outraged they still are. The popular character's death was all the more startling because it came at the end of an idyllic, off-duty episode called "Sunday," the 17th episode of the spin-off's third season. While many agree the episode itself was well-written and beautifully executed, fans worldwide immediately reacted negatively to the finality with which Beckett was written out.

NBC's Heroes:

George Takei discussed his role recently on Sirius's Howard Stern show, where he hinted that Kaito will exhibit some form of light-emitting powers. Takei plays Kaito Nakamura, the father of Masi Oka's Hiro.


Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images.