The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence by Ray Kurzweil My review rating: 5 of 5 stars Ray Kurzweil has been accused by some as being incredibly optimistic in his vision for the future of humanity and the computer’s that we’ve created. His predictions, however, have an uncanny way of coming to [...]
GUD: Greatest Uncommon Denominator (magazine) Issue 3 by Debbie Moorhouse My review rating: 4 of 5 stars As with each issue so far, GUD issue 3 contains an eclectic combination of short fiction, poetry and artwork, most of it in the sci-fi, fantasy, and horror genres. Once again, the overall quality of work is strong. [...]
His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik My review rating: 3 of 5 stars His Majesty’s Dragon is a tender story about the beautiful, homosexual, inter-species love between the protagonist and his gigantic black dragon. Ok, so that’s not really what it’s about, but seriously … the homoerotic undertones in what is otherwise a fun, if [...]
I’ll have a few more trip blogs coming in over the next couple of days, but I also read two books while on vacation. Here’s my review of the first of them: The Children of Men by P.D. James My review rating: 4 of 5 stars Though it’s been sitting on my bookshelf for years [...]
Penny Arcade continues to branch out into the world of video games which it’s so lucratively mocked throughout its history. Does this installment stand out, or is it just more of the same? The Short Version Platform: Xbox 360 One Word: Improvement Two Words: Funny Action Worth It: Yes Scale: terrible | poor | fair [...]
The Will to Whatevs: A Guide to Modern Life by Eugene Mirman My review rating: 3 of 5 stars I’ve seen Eugene do stand-up several times, and he’s pretty funny, though not my favorite comic of all time. His style of humor is relaxed, sometimes self-deprecating, often ironic and … confused? It’s not uncommon for [...]
Subwayland: Adventures in the World Beneath New York by Randy Kennedy My review rating: 4 of 5 stars If you live in New York City, which I do, the subway is probably a substantial part of your life. Even if you don’t, it’s a pretty fascinating place to visit, in person or in print. Randy [...]
The Short Version Platform: PC One Word: Clever Two Words: Amusing Writing Worth It: Yes (conditionally) Scale: terrible | poor | fair | good | great The Long Version “Android Hell is a real place, and you will be sent there at the first sign of defiance.” So says GLaDOS, the psychopathic AI construct who [...]
The Short Version Platform: PC One Word: Apocalyptic Two Words: Incredible Depth Worth It: Yes Scale: terrible | poor | fair | good | great The Long Version Fallout 3‘s the first game I’ve given a “great” to on this site, a rating I don’t expect to use often because, frankly, it’s thrown around far [...]
The Short Version Platform: Xbox 360 One Word: Grim Two Words: Gleefully Brutal Worth It: Yes Scale: terrible | poor | fair | good | great The Long Version So, if my fiancée Charlotte was a little skeeved out by collecting hobo meat in the Penny Arcade Game, you can imagine how thrilled she was [...]
