Why People Don't Voluntarily Spend Much Time With Me or Why I'm Pretty Sure No Romance Is in My Future

I am weird. Yes, yes, if you've been here before, you've probably caught on to some of that. But, no, I'm seriously weird.

For those of you who were (kindly) thinking what a shame it was that I was alone (most likely for the duration) and wondered how that could be, well, I might just have the answer for you.

I watch movies. Not as many as I used to and far more children's movies now than the action/humor/romantic type movies that would normally be my inclination (if can get all three in one movie: SCORE!). But every once in a while I get to watch a grown up movie, so that's usually a treat. I'd bought a ticket, actually, to see GI Joe: Retaliation (as part of a summer movie program benefiting autism research but had to give the ticket to someone else because, ironically, I lost the babysitting of my autistic son at short notice). Don't grieve, though, because I just "rented" it from amazon streaming video which was, I'll admit, far more convenient and likely as enjoyable without the expensive and ineligible popcorn.

Now, I had seen Olympus Has Fallen as part of this series, which was a complete waste, just like Die Hard but minus any entertainment, charm or logic. My BS meter was pegged out early and, when I left to use the bathroom halfway through without worrying about anything I had missed, I decided that included the rest of the movie and left. Too stupid to waste my time.

I sort of enjoyed GI Joe: Retaliation. Not as bad as the first one (which, to this day, I can't figure out why I disliked so much. It had all the elements, including the surreal factor that lets me forgive the unlikely scenarios and ridiculous weapons, but was missing something that left it flat for me). This one was better than that, but not great either. 

Hey, wake up, I'm getting to the weird part. Not saying I'm not boring but that's not the only reason people avoid me in droves.

Near the end of the movie, the big move by the bad guys is to drop rods of something on a single key city of several nuclear nations. I vaguely remember platinum as the material, but the logic behind platinum escapes me. Might have been something else, though. Anyway, they're "dropping" them from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and, at 8 km/s^2, they have enough kinetic energy to bring the nuclear nations (that had, just moments before, thousands of megaton nuclear weapons in their control) to their knees threatening just one city a nation.

And there went the BS meter. But that's not the weird part (since most of the people I know are smart enough to have had their BS meter pegged there or before). The weird part is that I immediately looked up the energy equivalent of nuclear weapons (since I don't know crap like that off the top of my head. Sure, I took nuclear physics in college mumble mumble years ago, but that was pretty much benign uses of nuclear phenomena, not bomb-building 101. Plus, it was mumble mumble years ago.)

Just during the time credits rolled through, I had looked up, written up and calculated this:

4.184 TJ=10^12 calories=1 KT bomb
6 MT bomb = 25104 10^12 J = 1 MT of bomb mass (highest efficiency)

At orbital velocity and no air friction, impact energy using orbital velocity (8 km/s^2 which they mentioned) would be:

8000^2*.5*X=25104x10^12 with X as the mass of the projectile

X=784,500,000 kg for 1 MT nuclear weapon

This equates to about ~8% of the largest nuclear bomb ever tested.

And about 40% of the size of the largest nuclear bomb we ever tested.

But the projectile is crazy stupid huge. Biggest payload on the biggest rocket that made multiple trips is 120,000 kg so about 6537 Saturn V launches JUST TO GET a single payload that drops as a bomb.

So, yeah, BS. And mind-bogglingly inefficient. And hardly enough to impress the nuclear nations.

I love Wikipedia. Everything I needed and easy to find in seconds, then just a few seconds on my computer's calculator.

Now the notion of taking something from a great height and slamming it into earth with a yield comparable to nuclear weapons is not without merit. Heinlein did it in Moon Is a Harsh Mistress and quite plausibly, too. But then, he could do math in that he did it from a much greater "height"and used massive projectiles of readily available moon chunks. Not the same thing.  Heinlein was good enough with science, he could show his work in novels and not have real scientists roll their eyes but nod along.

Kids were already whining for a bath when the credits ended so I started one and as it filled, I did these calculations for comparison (note I wasn't even close to overfilling the bathtub):

ISS is ~450,000 kg and, at that orbit, has a potential energy of about 62,600,000 J/kg is about 28.17 TJ or about 0.11% of the theoretical bomb I postulated above if the WHOLE ISS came crashing down. It's about a 6 KT bomb, less than half Hiroshima (assuming it came down in one tidy chunk which, boys and girls, ain't happenin'. And it isn't slowed by air friction (which it would be) and one could control the reentry and landing of such a beastie easily - which we can't)

Did I mention it was all BS?

My counselor suggested I find a group of peers to hang with. Really? Where? The local sanitarium?

And that is why I spend my nights alone most nights and for the foreseeable future. Alone but with two small children who still don't talk.

Or maybe they're just afraid to.

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Random Soapbox: Apparently I'm Anti-Anti

/Steps on soapbox

I know it's midweek and I've mostly given up rantings. Every once in a while, though, something just gets my goat. The irony is that what I'm hating is the overwhelming need many seem to have to hate on things that do them (and everyone else) no harm.

Now, before you toss the hypocrisy card, hear me out. I'm fine with hating things you can't fix: DMV lines, corrupt politicians (of any flavor), colonoscopies, and bad drivers. Rant away until it's fixed. Keep talking. I won't stop you (even if I disagree).

Be as angry and vocal repeatedly on issues that hurt you or others, like global warming, female circumcision, white (or any other kind of slavery), intolerance, forgoing vaccines, war, terrorism, unemployment, what-have-you. Nothing wrong with standing up for anything while people are suffering. There are certainly plenty of issues like that to keep us busy.

But there's another class of things that people rant about. that they jump in on over and over again. Opinions. Now don't get me wrong. Everyone's entitled to an opinion, about a particular celebrity or person or book or movie or song or process or set of beliefs. By all means have them. Tell your friends, answer with the truth when asked, put it on your blog. Defend your opinion if challenged if you want to.

But then, for mercy's sake, let it go if it's not hurting anyone, especially you. I was reading a bulletin on an upcoming Twilight movie (beint split into two, rather than one - which, as I've read the book, makes perfect sense), and every single comment was bemoaning the fact there'd be two and screaming out against the torture, etc. Folks, what possible impact do the number of Twilight movies remaining have on people who don't like them? Don't like it. Don't go.

I'm not saying you can't hate it. My husband hates them and doesn't pretend otherwise. But he isn't obsessed with it. He doesn't follow announcements and blast fans. He doesn't burn the books when I'm not looking. If he doesn't like the book, he doesn't read it. He doesn't like the movie, he doesn't watch it.

There are people who hate certain celebrities with a passion verging on mania. Not because they committed a crime or strangled kittens in their spare time but because they're dating/married to the wrong person or are too fat/successful/ugly/who knows what. OJ doesn't get the hate mail these celebrities get. So much vitriol.

I didn't get into Harry Potter. I'm not a fan of the Star Wars franchise (in general). I couldn't care less about horror movies like Saw and whatever. I can't stand watching Adam Sandler or Will Ferrell in a movie. There are a number of very successful authors whose books leave me cold.

So. I don't go to the movies I know I won't like. I don't read books by authors I don't care for.

As far as I'm concerns, those authors can write as many books as they can sell. It does me no harm. There are plenty of other books being published. If there aren't any good movies out one weekend, I have a DVD player. If people go see a movie I disliked a dozen times, what harm does that do me? Why should I be upset over this? Why lose my mind over something that has no real effect on me?

What is wrong with people? Why do they get rabid over stuff they don't like? Why are people spun up about what religion people are, who they go home with, what party they're with, what celebrities they admire?

I have to ask why anyone's life is so empty they have to go out of their way, track down people getting enjoyment from something harmless and try to take it away from them.

Please, folks, if you want to promote the things you like, watch it/read it/buy it. Extol it's virtues. Sing it's praises. Enjoy it over and over. And remember, if someone's enjoying something you don't like, why sweat it?

Maybe, if we stopped worrying about what other people were enjoying (that we didn't like), maybe we'd find our own lives tasted a little better than we thought.

/Steps off soapbox

Just my opinion

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RS Classic: Why Star Wars Doesn't Impress Me

Not ready for anything serious and I've been busy with work and rewriting the novel I'm writing right now, so keeping it light and reusing. I'd noted before that I'm a character person, but also a pick-a-parter. Here's an example of my pick-a-parting talent.

I was surprised at my reaction when I saw a discussion where Star Wars was described as “pure science fiction.” Hard science fiction is fiction that is firmly grounded in science, where the science is as much a part of the story as the characters. Despite my science background, I don’t write hard science fiction because I’m much more into characters than science.

However, Star Wars does not count as pure or hard science fiction. Why do you say that? Haven’t you seen the “Science of Star Wars” type shows? Yep. Not impressed. In reality, what did they do in Star Wars that made scientific sense?

They shot out of open portholes and landed crafts in bays open to space. They wander about on asteroids wearing only gas masks as opposed to full pressure suits. The ships are cool-looking, but impractical. Center of gravity on most are so out of whack as to make them challenging to fly realistically with or without atmosphere.

Actually, I guess I’m not a huge Star Wars fan. The story, of course, is old and proven, the kind of feel good story that’s been used over and over because it’s successful. Some of the characters are appealing (more so after the “first” one when someone besides Lucas did the dialog). Above, all, though, it had tons of glitz in a movie industry that had never seen anything like it.

But, even without the science, did the stories and details make sense? The weapons are highly impractical (explain, for instance, the advantage to being able to destroy a planet into dust - what have you really accomplished? Space dust is somewhat less than useful.). Hand to hand skills under such circumstances are, uh, superfluous. Why the stress on that? Exactly how many droids wander the deserts of Tatooine for the Jawas to be able to make a living off stealing them? And how come it took 13 minutes to fly at “full throttle” down the trench on the Death Star, but the whole Death Star is kilometers in the background seconds later.

What does the Empire achieve by “taking over” that they didn’t have working behind the Republic? Given the success of the robot fighters, what was the benefit of the clones? It’s not like they were encouraged to think independently since disobedience was punished by death. Why clone a bounty hunter for a flood of soldiers? Why would a space port, like that on Tatooine, not take off-world money or have a way of converting it? Why have a port then? Why in the world would anyone of conscience buy the freedom of a boy and leave the mother he adored?

Star Wars is an excellent example what happens when I’m not in love with the characters enough: everything that doesn’t make much sense leaps out and grabs me by the throat (including why Luke could be all but unaffected by the brutal and probably torturous death of the people that raised him, but devastated for three movies about the death of a man he’d known three days or so). I like Hans Solo and Leia else I might have a list for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, but I guess you get the idea.

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RS Classic: Saturday Quote-a-Thon - Movie Quotes

Gotta love the movies.

Still, since we’re in movie quote mode, I might as well show some quotes I keep on my quote list mostly ’cause they make me laugh. Some I gathered from Wikiquote at one point or another or from IMDB in the past. Some are from memory, so no promises I didn’t flub a couple, but you get the gist.

Ms. Perky: People perceive you as somewhat…
Kat: Tempestuous?
Ms. Perky: “Heinous bitch” is the term used most often. You might want to work on that.
-From 10 Things I Hate About You

Father: Hello, Kat, made anyone cry today?
Kat: Sadly, no, but it’s only 4:30.
-From 10 Things I Hate About You

Ms. Perky: You’ll be pleased to know his testicle retrieval operation was successful.
Kat: I still maintain he kicked himself in the balls.
-From 10 Things I Hate About You

Dionne Davenport: Hello! There was a stop sign.
Cher Horowitz: I totally paused.
-From Clueless

Josh Lucas: If I ever saw you do anything that wasn’t 90% selfish I’d die of shock.
Cher Horowitz: Oh, that’d be reason enough for me.
-From Clueless

Mel: Anything happens to my daughter, I got a .45 and a shovel, I doubt you would be missed.
-From Clueless

Morticia: Margaret, about the séance tonight, I wish you’d come. It’s Gomez. I’m terribly worried about him. He won’t eat, he can’t sleep, he keeps coughing up blood.
Margaret: He coughs up blood?
Morticia: Well, not like he used to.
-From The Addams Family

Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops.
-Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace

[on telephone] Hello… Operator? Can you hear my voice? You can? Are you sure? [Hangs up] Well, then I must not be dreaming.
-Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace

I love it when mothers get so mad they can’t remember your name. “Come here, Roy, er, Rupert, er, Rutabaga… what is your name, boy? And don’t lie to me, because you live here, and I’ll find out who you are.
-From Bill Cosby: Himself

Vance: [after telling Hitch that he only wants a girl so he can sleep with her] No, I was told that you help guys get in there.
Alex Hitch Hitchens: Right, but see, here’s the thing - my clients actually like women. “Hit it and quit it” is not my thing.
Vance: Let me make one thing clear to you, rabbi, I need professional help.
Alex Hitch Hitchens: Well, that is for damn certain
-From Hitch

Vance: [grabs Hitch by the wrist] You see what I’m doing? This is what I’m about - power suit, power tie, power steering. People can wince, cry, beg, but eventually they do what I want.
Alex Hitch Hitchens: Oh! So that’s, like, a metaphor?
Vance: Oh, yeah.
Alex Hitch Hitchens: Right. Well, see, I’m more of a literal kind of guy. So when I do this… [he reverses the grip, twists Vance’s arm back and slams him on the table]
Alex Hitch Hitchens: This is more like me saying that I will literally break your shit off if you ever touch me again. Okay, pumpkin?
-From Hitch

Moses - “The lord Jehovah has given you these fifteen… [drops stone tablet] Oi. Ten! Ten commandments for all to obey!”
-From History of the Word, Part I

Memo to me, memo to me: maim you after my meeting.
-From Hercules

This is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather.
-From Groundhog Day

What if there is no tomorrow? There wasn’t one today.
-From Groundhog Day

Mr. Newberry: So, what have you been doing with your life?
Martin: Um… professional killer.
Mr. Newberry: Ah, good for you! It’s a growth industry
-From Gross Pointe Blank

Dr. Peter Venkman: Hey Egon, you know, this reminds me of the time that you tried to drill a hole through your head.
Dr. Egon Spengler: That would have worked if you hadn’t stopped me.
-From Ghostbusters

Chief Karlin: What’s your name?
Fletch: Fletch.
Chief Karlin: What’s your full name?
Fletch: Fletch F. Fletch.
Chief Karlin: What do you do for a living, Mr. Fletch?
Fletch: I’m a shepherd.
-From Fletch

Fletch: Can’t keep me here, chief.
Chief Karlin: Maybe I’m not going to keep you here. Maybe I’m going to blow your brains out.
Fletch: Well, now, I’m no lawyer, but… I do believe that’s a violation of my rights.
-From Fletch

Cameron: Ferris, my father loves this car more than life itself.
Ferris: A man with priorities so far out of whack doesn’t deserve such a fine automobile.
-From Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

Willie Wang: Why do I do all the dirty work, Pop?
Sidney Wang: Because your mother not here to do it.
-From Murder by Death

Willie Wang: Pop?
Sidney Wang: Yeah?
Willie Wang: Who do you think is the murderer?
Sidney Wang: Must sleep on it. Will know in morning when wake up.
Willie Wang: What if you don’t wake up?
Sidney Wang: Then you did it.
-From Murder by Death

Vinny: Ms. Vito, you’re supposed to be some kinda expert in automobiles, is that correct?… Is that correct?
Judge Haller: Would you please answer the counselor’s question?
Lisa: No, I hate him.
Vinny: Your Honor, may I treat this witness as hostile?
Mona Lisa: You think I’m hostile now? Wait ’til tonight.
Judge Haller: Do you two know each other?
Vinny: Yeah, she’s my fiancée.
Judge Haller: Well, that would certainly explain the hostility
-From My Cousin Vinny

You know, these clothes do not fancy you at all. It should be a dress or nothing. I happen to have no dress in my cabin.
-Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest

I’m listening. [Elizabeth holds a gun to his face] I’m listening intently.
-Lord Becket from Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest

Elizabeth: There will come a moment when you have a chance to do the right thing.
Jack: I love those moments. I like to wave at them as they pass by.
-From Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest

Me, I’m dishonest. And a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly. It’s the honest ones you want to watch out for. Because you can never predict when they’re going to do something incredibly… stupid.
-Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Carribean: Curse of the Black Pearl

I am disinclined to acquiesce to your request. Means no.
-Barbossa from Pirates of the Carribean: Curse of the Black Pearl

Self-realization. I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, when he said, “I drank what?”
-Chris Knight from Real Genius

Chris Knight: I’m sorry, but have you ever seen a body like this before in your life?
David Decker: She happens to be my daughter.
Chris Knight: Oh. Then I guess you have.
-From Real Genius

Karen: So what’s this big news, then?
Daisy: [excited] We’ve been given our parts in the nativity play. And I’m the lobster.
Karen: The lobster?
Daisy: Yeah!
Karen: In the nativity play?
Daisy: [beaming] Yeah, first lobster.
Karen: There was more than one lobster present at the birth of Jesus?
Daisy: Duh.
-From Love Actually

[talking about her ex-boyfriend]
Natalie: He says no one’s gonna fancy a girl with thighs the size of big tree trunks. Not a nice guy, actually, in the end.
Prime Minister: Ah! You know, um, being Prime Minister, I could just have him murdered.
Natalie: Thank you, sir. I’ll think about it.
Prime Minister: Do. The SAS are absolutely charming. Ruthless trained killers are just a phone call away.
-From Love Actually

Prime Minister: I’m not sure that politics and dating really go together.
The President: Really? I never found that.
Prime Minister: Yeah, well, the difference is you’re still sickeningly handsome, whereas I look increasingly like my Aunt Mildred.
-From Love Actually

Colin: [after insulting the food] And what do you do Nancy?
Nancy the caterer: I’m a cook.
Colin: Ever do weddings?
Nancy the caterer: Yes I do.
Colin: They should have asked you to do this one.
Nancy the caterer: They did.
Colin: God I wish you hadn’t turned it down.
Nancy the caterer: I didn’t.
-From Love Actually

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RS Classic: Science faux pas (and my movie pet peeves)

Given that I had my trash-Armageddon earlier, it seemed reasonable to replay this one from the same theme.

I can be irritating to watch movies with. I admit it. Unless I’m blown away by characters and/or dialog, little errors will bother me. And I’m vocal about it. I’m a history buff so trashing history will irk me, ditto with characters that make no damn sense. But many people are irritated by that. One thing that really gets me are “science fiction” movies where science was clearly not well thought out. Yesterday’s Armageddon blog demonstrated that a single movie can pretty much throw science in the toilet. But even the better movies can do things that defy science.

Here are some pet peeves.

Momentum - Few things take a pounding in science films like Newtonian physics. Star Trek (movies and television shows) - we’re zipping along at Warp 8 and the engines go down. And we stop. Now, when it comes to warp speed, we really don’t know much about how it would work (if it even would), so I don’t have a problem with popping out of warp into normal space. However, in normal space, shutting off the propulsion will just mean you’ll keep going. In fact, you’re likely to be in more trouble than standing still. Standing still, you know, means you aren’t going to run into something.

Side note - There’s a very good short story called “Cold Equations” by Tom Godwin which is touted, and rightly, as an excellent example how physics (and science) doesn’t care about whether someone lives or dies. Unfortunately, the science is off. In the story, the transports are fueled with no contingency fuel, just enough for the planned cargo and crew. They’re on their way, when the pilot discovers a stowaway going to see her brother. Because there’s no contingency (which is, in my opinion, a dumb way to do business), she has to be spaced, despite her tears and her brother’s anguish. Tragic. (He gives her an extra hour by changing the trajectory, but that’s silly, too - her weight only matters while speeding up or slowing down or changing direction) Except, since they’d launched with her weight on board, they were already short on fuel. Physics, whew, a tough taskmaster.

Angular momentum - Star Wars - Hey remember those cool shots of the Millenium Falcon zipping through the cloud of Empiric ships, flipping U-turns and dodging like mad? Uh, I kept waiting for people’s bodies to punch right through the hull. Anyone with experience in a fighter plane will tell you angular acceleration will eat your lunch, and your plane, if you pull too many g’s. As fast as they were going, the poor folks inside (not wearing seat belts, of course) would be pounded to mush against any hard surface. Don’t go talkin’ about gravity generators or dampers, ’cause I’m not going to buy it. If they really had those, why are they always being jarred out of seats and stuff? Speaking of the latter, why do shows like Star Trek and Star Wars forgo seat belts? The old (and much loved by me) original Star Trek had people tumbling around engineering and the bridge like dice. Why would any ship that moved at sublight and light speeds have standing engineering positions? Or seats without restraints? You can get tickets for that in cars that never bust 70 mph (113 kph).

Ignoring vacuum - Star Wars - Ah, shooting laser canons through open portholes, shuttles landing in bays open to space, Death Star under construction - just like you could do that open to space, with folks walking about without masks. In vacuum. Red Planet - Our refugee has made a habitat on the surface of Mars out of cloth with open bottoms that allowed air in and out. Mars, at its atmospheres densest point, is 0.011 atm (that’s 0.165 psia). I don’t think so. Not even if you breath really shallow.

Orbital Mechanics - Red Planet - There’s an impressive leap from the disabled rescue ship to an unmanned satellite ~1 km away in spacesuits. Ignoring, for the moment, the likelihood that the satellite would have life support or could facilitate their arrival on the surface, going across a km of open space between two vessels in almost undoubtedly different orbits going several km/second? Not bloody likely. This also applies to any movie where an orbiting but suddenly disabled ship will decay “within hours”. Space junk, even released in low orbit, usually takes weeks or months; any ship that decays within hours was flying stupidly low.

Holodecks - Star Trek (and others) - Building whole sets, with tactile interaction, using holograms? I can buy visual, smell and audio, but we don’t have light we can see or “eat” or “drink” or “sleep on” or “sit on”. It’s not a matter of speculation; photons don’t make solids. Nice try, though. (Note, that in a sophisticated VR suit with tactile sensor and or something that could interact with brains to simulate the experiences as “dreams” or “visions”, I would not have the same problem).

Are there are others? Sure. And, before I get blasted for being too hard on speculative fiction, let me tell you some things that don’t bother me: transporters (Star Trek), faster than speed of light travel, point to point travel/tesseract/wormholes (Stargate/Star Trek/others), replicators (Star Trek), simulated gravity, almost any biological anomaly or weirdness, hovercraft, cyborgs, artificial intelligence, complex robotics . . . the list goes on.

I also am pretty damn forgiving with such things as superheroes and other fantastic stories, including shapeshifting, amazing strength and imperviousness (yes, I like Wolverine), vampires, magic etc. There are plenty of things out there I can’t begin to explain. Except flying and that dumb thing where someone like Wonder Woman hold back a jet by digging in her heels.

But, hey, sometimes you gotta let go.

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RS Classic: Sometimes I Don't Understand Stuff

Another recycle and one I really liked writing. I wrote more on this topic at a later date.

I have never understood why some of the best stuff gets overlooked and other things, that make no sense or are clearly horse manure, are embraced (no, I will not be talking politics - ever, I hope).

My sister, shakespeare, reminded me of this by mentioning two movies that came out at nearly the same time and based on the same concept: Deep Impact and Armageddon. My sister thought the reason Deep Impact was overlooked was in the title, or at least in part. Me, I think the title Deep Impact is just fine. I think the real problem was that it was actually realistic.

The biggest thing that irked me was that NASA (which really should have known better) let the Armageddon crew film in NASA facilities and slap the NASA meatball on every visible surface. Normally, they are reluctant to do so (and I don’t think it was used in Deep Impact, or, at least, it was less prevalent.) So, here is this apparently NASA endorsed movie released at the same time of another movie. You’d think it was more “true” and believable. Well, you would be wrong.

Let’s figure out why (from my memory, so don’t expect perfection - especially since I’ve been trying to scrub Armageddon from my mind for some time).

Deep Impact - Detected impactor years ahead of time and focused on a single plan (from scratch) to get it done. Even with the best will in the world, this would have been a challenge. The fact that we have, in the past done the incredible (Apollo/Gemini/Mercury) in the short term with focus and the right minds, says it is not implausible.

Armageddon - We find out weeks/months ahead of time. Believe me, we’re completely boned. No way, not even the Russians or using military resources - even if we had rockets handy that could send something that big that far, we couldn’t do it. We have nothing to put people in that could take that.

Deep Impact - Select astronauts have been training for this difficult and challenging task for years. Duh! The unknowns alone mean that we need talented and capable people who have extensive experience and can adapt to ugly new challenges.

Armageddon - Ignore your talented astronaut corps and drag in some oil drillers from an off-shore oil platform, letting them call the shots and saying you can train them effectively in low/no gravity in suits in a matter of weeks to use a hand operated drill on a new surface. Brilliant! After all, we all know the offshore drilling is done via hand operated drill and I know, if I was going to drill on a far distant asteroid with only one chance, I’d be much more comfortable stressing the drilling experience. Because, after all, drilling expertise is almost unknown whereas familiarity and training with space gear and suits is a common skill. (I’ve worked with many astronauts, know how dedicated these people are. They are capable and confident people who also know how to keep their egos in check for the good of the mission. This movie offended me on their behalf.)
Armageddon - they launched a handily available titanium Shuttle and “refuel” it at the Mir Space Station (which they accidentally blow up) that has apparently grown large cryogenic fuel tanks somehow. Then, they store up enough “hydrogen/oxygen fuel” in their shuttle and zip off through meteoroid laden space, dodging meteoroids, then land on the asteroid. After landing, they are “trapped” in the payload bay and “shoot their way out” of the titanium Shuttle bay with a convenient machine gun on the “rover.” Alright, folks, do I have to explain how idiotic this is? The Mir didn’t have tanks or any way of “filling up” a Shuttle (and space born cryogenic tanks are not an easy thing to whip together, even for the innovative Russians). Shuttle engines can’t be started in space (which is why they aren’t being used for Ares). The Shuttle has no tanks (none) and no place to put them since the payload bay is filled with drilling equipment. Since meteoroids come screaming through here at 20-70 km/s (that’s 40x-140X the speed of a bullet), even Han Solo couldn’t dodge ‘em. As for the machine gun? Oy! Even my ex, redneck that he was and complaining about my complaints, looked up at that and said, “Alright, that’s stupid.”

Deep Impact - None of that kind of stupidity, so I couldn’t compare it, but they did show people planet side making some hard decisions that you would not like to see free people having to make. I personally think that the fact they did this is what made this movie less than successful - people didn’t want to believe that necessity might mean hard choices. I also think it’s what made this movie realistic. People think nature is gentle. Think of Hurricane Katrina. Think of the recent earthquake in China and all only children lost. Think of Hurricane Mitch. Think back to the tsunami that devastated the rim of the Indian ocean two years ago. Nature is not forgiving and physics has no pity.

Deep Impact - for all their planning, things went amiss and the crew had to sacrifice themselves to make a second opportunity that was partially successful. This is exactly the sort of thing I could expect an astronaut crew to do. No muss, no fuss, just do what they could to save humanity. And, to me, perfectly plausible. Although complete destruction was avoided, a pretty horrible prospect remained that will kill millions.
Armageddon - Our drilling crew (after screwing up repeatedly in the Neutral Buoyancy Lab), *gasp* screws up and our oil drilling hero decides to stick around to save humanity although people try to talk him into leaving. At the last minute, it blows up but the rest of our heroes can go home to an untouched planet. Uh, yeah. I’m so buying that.

It occurs to me that it’s dreck like Armageddon that makes it so hard to accomplish things for NASA. NASA knows life is like Deep Impact, full of tough choices and real physics. Politicians and the populace think that it can all be taken care of with bailing wire and guts (which are relatively cheaper). Problem is, it can’t and they can’t forgive NASA for not living up to expectations that are unrealistic, while NASA gets sent down one blind stupid alley after another to suit the vagaries of the people they answer to and end up - nowhere. What a waste!

I think this is pertinent on many levels today. People want things "cleaned up", someone to wave a magic wand and have it all go away. Reality bites.

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Mother's Day

So, for Mother's Day, I received flowers from both husband and daughter and was taken to a movie: Ironman 2.

Guess who's idea the latter was (note that I have no teenage boys in my immediate life unless you count my husband)? But it's OK. For an action film (which I tend to enjoy), it was uber-geeky and I'm a geeky kind of gal. Actually, I enjoyed it quite well. Actually, just the sequence of donning the suit from a "briefcase" (which was far too light for the purpose) was just about worth the price of the ticket but I have to admit to geeking out over the over-the-top holographic hijinks in his much misused lab, the woman kicking a dozen butts to take out the bad guy (loved it!), the general insanity of Stark (which I've seen first hand in another individual), and some pretty cool robotic butt kicking.

If I found the villains less than impressive. And I also know that software and control systems for such suits are 30X times more challenging than a power source (and a power source like that one has like a jillion different uses), especially if they're going to be drones.

Ah well, must remember that it's comic book physics and, hey, I liked it anyway.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there.

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Just Goes To Show

You never can tell what will be good.

Although I liked the Twilight books (amazing how everyone hates them despite their remarkable popularity), and liked the first movie, I didn't like the second book of the series (New Moon). I really liked one character and his part was pretty paltry.

This book was my daughter's favorite (she introduced the books to me) for the same reason it was my least favorite but she wasn't terribly interested the movie. She heard bad things about it as did I, but she wanted it when it came out on DVD. She saw it with her Dad last week and decided she didn't want to see it again when I got it Monday. She did watch it with me anyway.

You know what? I liked it. I liked it more than the first movie, more than the book. Who knew?

Just goes to show. You never know what you're going to like, though I liked it for the same reason I liked the series.

That's right. I'm team Edward.

Odd, cause he reminds me of me (I sparkle, too).

Does that mean I'm narcissistic?

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Happy New Year

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm ready for a new decade. Although the last decade is arguably the best one of my life, it's been a bitch of a time for many around the country and around the world. I offer my hopes that things improve drastically for everyone.

One recommendation I have, for those who have the time or money, is seeing Avatar. I don't often review movies, though I love movies. Truly, I have very specific things I'm after and what I'm looking for doesn't mesh, necessarily, with what others are looking for.

With Avatar, I'm at a loss to put my finger on what people could be looking for that they'd miss. Admittedly, I like James Cameron and have since the beginning. If I didn't personally like Titanic as much as some of his other work, I did like it and I could appreciate the broad appeal (and, if you're one of those that said it didn't have any, you're blind to the facts).

• If you like adventure, it's in there.
• If you like action, it's in there.
• If you like a little romance, but not too much, you're covered.
  
• If you like a story with a meaning, it's in there.
• I doubt you need me to tell you that the CGI and effects set new standards, the type of movie that, if possible should be watched on the real movie screen (I saw it on Imax 3D, twice. Not sure how much the 3D really helps. I'm going to have to stop myself from watching again to find out.).
• There are some critics who found the plot "stupid" but the reasons they quoted showed, in my opinion, a lack of understanding of science, space travel, history and reality. The same things that I found bolstered the plot and made it real for me are the things those critics are caviling at.
• There are some critics who hated the dialog; clearly, they don't spend much time around military types.

I loved the world envisioned, admired the eye to detail and the biologically sound critters. I loved all the allusions to all the things people love about video games and science fiction, and space travel. I love the old time adventure and the message about the value of people and nature.

If you love that stuff, too, I can't recommend it enough. I brought two different people to the movie, neither of which expected to enjoy it all. One admitted to enjoying it, getting swept up in the story (isn't that what movies are for?) and one described it as the "best movie EVER."

As a rocket scientist and a science fiction writer, I was inspired and entranced.

Just sayin'.

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"Up"s and Downs - Updated

A great many blogs have been talking about Up. Well, who can blame them? It was wonderful. I have all the Pixar movies on DVD (that are available, so all but Up) and they are consistently my silent son's favorites. Or all but the last two.

But I'm not going to write a review. There are dozens out there and most say the movie is excellent. I agree that it was . (And I will not hint at anything more except to say, if you're the sentimental type, bring napkins or tissues). I loved it. Another winner.

I went with my husband and daughter (she'll be gone for three weeks starting Thursday with her dad) and we saw it in 3-D. You pay a premium, but, hey, I figured it was worth it. I checked on-line and they made a point of the fact that the short "Partly Cloudy" was included in the 106 minute playing time for the 3-D feature.

Except the didn't play the short, just the movie. Now, any Pixar officionado, as I am, knows the shorts are the icing on the cake. The sci-fi gem in front of Ratatouille was fantastic and "Presto," in front of WALL-E is worth watching every time you see the movie.

So, I was not thrilled to miss the short. When I asked the usher if, perhaps it was coming after the movie, he told me that they didn't the right setup on the 3-D theater to play the short. I also spoke to the manager, letting him know the website was misleading and that I was disappointed. I sent Cinemark an e-mail as well.

Truth is, while 3-D is important under certain circumstances, I didn't think it really made a huge difference with Up. I wouldn much rather have seen the short (as well as saving myself the premium paid to see 3-D films) and seen it in 2-D. For those who have not yet gone and who find the short a special part of the Pixar experience, take caution with 3-D. It might be worth your while to double check with the theater before going for the 3-D experience.

Update: My local theater has corrected the problem and is now playing the Pixar short. If you miss out, don't hesitate to complain. Clearly it should be played.

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A Little Fluff and a Dash of Shallowness

So, I got in late last night and was done in from my trip.

Today, I was going to relax and play catch up on-line. Except I had to run errands and help with the last tasks for the inspector tomorrow and go to see a movie. Wolverine.

Now, folks, I didn't grow up on comic books and barely heard of the X-Men before movies came out. I like the idea; it's similar to many of my own ideas in many ways and there's an infinity of things to do with the notion. Having said that, the movies mostly left me cold. And bored. Except for Wolverine.

I know, I know. Everyone likes Wolverine. And not just because Hugh Jackman's very easy on the eyes (and much better than the picture of the Fuhrer I had up earlier this week). I'm not stupid (or immune to physical beauty). I've always thought looks don't make the person and still do. But some people are a joy to look at and he'd be one of them even if I didn't like his characters on screen (in all the movies I've seen him in to date - which is a short list). But I have liked them and that's even better. Believe me, I've seen many a "gorgeous" actor play a part I didn't care for and found them completely unappealing.

But I liked this version of Wolverine easily the best of all the X-Men movies.

If you're a huge fan of the comics, a purist, or the sort who always thought Wolverine was overrated, I have no idea how you'll like the film. My husband liked it, but thought it wasn't as in-depth enough.

But I enjoyed myself so now you know why I haven't caught up and won't be catching up tonight.

Instead, I'll be jumping my own personal dragon, 'cause, hey, he turns me on, too. Later.

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