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Posts Tagged ‘inspiration’

Research for my supervillain lair: Welcome to Volcano Roots – volcanoroots.org

Scientists have been trying to image the intricate plumbing of volcanoes to help understand their dynamics and better predict eruptions… and plan better supervillain lairs. 

They didn’t really say that last part. But they should have.

As an example, here’s a handy explainer showing the depths beneath Santorini, a beautiful but geologically unstable Greek island in the Mediterranean. The graphic shows why.

Santorini and Kolumbo

It also tries to give a nod to the volcanically disrupted Minoan culture, late of Santorini, but the Latin placeholder text is less than useful. Here’s a link to help with that: Santorini 1600 BC and the End of Minoan Civilization.

If you have a chance to visit the island, I recommend it. Because nothing says a supervillain lair can’t be pretty.

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Photo by Tânia Mousinho on Unsplash

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On the off chance that you’re having doubts about how you stack up against others, in writing or elsewhere, here’s a thoughtful quote. Follow the link for his whole piece, which is part of a series of posts worth reading.

…I think it’s clear our pop culture and what passes for our media discourse have a dangerously romanticized view of creative work.

“Oh, what a talented person,” our stories go, “oh, how powerful their inspiration must have been!” Talent certainly exists and inspiration certainly exists, but I fear our popular view of creativity artificially centers both, eliding struggle, practice, failure, and the investment of time. Too often, we talk about something akin to magic, about early purity of vision, about the notion that we are chosen or anointed for certain tasks, and while I cannot speak to how the secret machinery of the cosmos operates, I can testify that most of my own moments of lovely inspiration have been purchased with long hours of study, planning, and practice.

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— Scott Lynch, The Post of Christmas Past
Photo by Marco Bianchetti on Unsplash

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On a typical day, I usually have X number of words in me. On days when I use those words for, say, an epic treatise to friends on the efficacy of my experimental new toothpaste, I turn to the words of others. Time to make a start on 2023’s to-be-read list.

“Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.”

― Harvey Pekar

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Photo by Pickled Stardust on Unsplash

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Programming note: We’re taking a bit of a break this week, so expect more quotes and pretty pictures.

Oh look, a quote! And a pretty picture!

“If this book has a lesson, it is that we are awfully lucky to be here-and by ‘we’ I mean every living thing. To attain any kind of life in this universe of ours appears to be quite an achievement. As humans we are doubly lucky, of course: We enjoy not only the privilege of existence but also the singular ability to appreciate it and even, in a multitude of ways, to make it better. It is a talent we have only barely begun to grasp.”

― Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything

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Photo by Paul Pastourmatzis on Unsplash

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Merry Merry

“Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmastime.”

― Laura Ingalls Wilder

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Photo by Ben Weber on Unsplash

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“When I say it’s you I like, I’m talking about that part of you that knows that life is far more than anything you can ever see or hear or touch. That deep part of you that allows you to stand for those things without which humankind cannot survive. Love that conquers hate, peace that rises triumphant over war, and justice that proves more powerful than greed.”

― Fred Rogers

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Photo by Jonatan Pie on Unsplash

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I could read these Starfleet job postings all day:

Starfleet Jobs

The Best Jobs in Starfleet! Shares a new Starfleet job posting every half hour.

Users may request a job by using keywords “engineering”, “arts”, “counseling”, “trombone” or “user research”.

Example job description from Starfleet Jobs.

But of course it’s Monday, so I won’t.

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Photo by Matt Noble on Unsplash

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Winter Hilarity Continues in Annual Name-a-Snowplow Contest: Join ‘Snowbi Wan Kenobi’ with Your Submissions

This is fast becoming an international tradition all over not just America, but the Northern Hemisphere. Contests are also being held by the Ohio DoT, the Massachusettes DoT, the Nebraska DoT, and several cities in Canada like Edmunton,and Calgary.

Misspelled locale names aside, this is excellent. There are still a few days left in these competitions, so cue up your creativity and start naming!

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Sexy, right? Photo by kim giseok on Unsplash

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Today I was going to send you over to an asteroid launcher because hey, tweaking the universe’s nose is fun, right? 

Asteroid Launcher

But no, it turns out that once you start lobbing asteroids at the planet, as in Earth, our unique and very populated home, it all gets a bit terrifying.*

Also, despite our successes earlier this year, humanity hasn’t quite figured out the whole “killer asteroid” thing.

In NASA Simulation, Humankind Dismally Failed to Save Earth From Killer Asteroid

Hmm. Maybe Captain Kirk has a bit of planetary encouragement for us?

Last year, at the age of 90, I had a life-changing experience. I went to space, after decades of playing a science-fiction character who was exploring the universe and building connections with many diverse life forms and cultures. I thought I would experience a similar feeling: a feeling of deep connection with the immensity around us, a deep call for endless exploration. A call to indeed boldly go where no one had gone before.

I was absolutely wrong.

— My trip to space made me realise we have only one Earth – it must live long and prosper | William Shatner | The Guardian

No, that’s disturbing too. Surely, there must be something we can do to get the world on the right track.

Time for some hopepunk.

What Are Hopepunk Books, And Where Should I Get Started?

Coined by author Alexandra Rowland in 2017, the term hopepunk was created to be the anthesis of the grimdark genre. Instead of everything being sad and impossible, Alexandra was looking for books that were actually happy….

At its core, hopepunk is just about leaving the reader with hope for the future. Bad things can happen along the way, but they aren’t bad forever.

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Finally, because it’s awesome and at this point I think we can all use more positive thinking, The Amaterasu Railway Now Runs on Leftover Tonkotsu Ramen Broth.

Delicious.

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* For example, an asteroid hitting Lebanon, Kansas, the more or less geographic center of the continental US, would do significant damage via direct impact, shock waves, wind and earthquake. An asteroid hitting Chicago would be incomprehensibly catastrophic.

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Photo by Charles Forerunner on Unsplash

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It’s December and starting to feel like the holidays; I am behind on presents, and the tree we’ve had up since before Covid is finally seasonal again, so situation normal. I’m also planning my end-of-year donations, to food banks, animal welfare groups, medical and other help for those who need it, and more.

We are not here to curse the darkness, but to light a candle that can guide us through the darkness to a safe and sure future.

— John F. Kennedy

This video of the Children’s Choir of Ukraine is helping me get into the holiday spirit.

They also gave another performance in Grand Central: Ambassador Bridget A. Brink on Twitter: “Light amid darkness…

For more on the choir and the Ukrainian origins of the song itself, check out this article.

100 years ago, ‘Carol of the Bells’ came to America — from Ukraine : NPR

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Photo by Rob Wicks on Unsplash

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