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19 Vol 4 Num 1 June 2009
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June 2009
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John Ringo's memories of grade school in Iran; how David Drake and Jim Baen helped Newt Gingrich write the WWII thriller 1945; smart missiles smaller than insects; military tanks becoming robots; and the collapse of the Borders book store chain just before the current economic down turn. It’s been another fascinating round of interviews.
These episodes (like every episode of The Future and You made since its beginning three years ago) will remain available for your downloading convenience.
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Recent Guests
John Ringo is a New York Times best selling novelist with over two million books in print. Translated into seven languages, his novels range from science fiction to a mix of military and political thrillers. He has been an op-ed writer for the New York Post and a guest commentator on TV for Fox News. An avid essayist, his website contains many essays he has written on a wide variety of topics.
David Drake is the author of over 60 novels of science fiction and fantasy including his Hammer's Slammers series of military SF and his Lord of the Isles series of fantasy. He is a veteran of Viet Nam and a former lawyer. For relaxation he translates books in Latin from the Roman Empire into English.
James Maxey is the author of the Dragon Age fantasy series which includes the novels Bitterwood, Dragonforge and Dragonseed. Set a thousand years in the future—after the fall of today's civilization, in a world dominated by the intelligent dragons we created through genetic engineering—humans are reduced to pets and slaves, and the remnants of long forgotten nanotechnology make the world a place of wondrous magic.
Shaun Farrell is a writer, actor, and award-winning podcaster. He has interviewed more than 100 speculative fiction authors and actors; most of which can be heard on his podcast Adventures in Scifi Publishing, which (like The Future and You) has won a Parsec Award. He is also a contributing writer for Gateworld podcast; producer and content manager for The New England Fights! podcast; and an actor in the feature film Death Dress, where he plays a serial killer. Magazines he has written for include Clarkesworld, Raygun Revival and Strange Horizons.
Aliese is a college student studying for a degree in photography and fine arts. She has completed one year at a school with about a thousand students.
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News Items Mentioned in the Show
() Hearing that Realms of Fantasy Magazine was going to close, Tir Na Nog Press made an offer to buy it. The offer was accepted, so the magazine will be reopened this summer.
() The Kepler mission to discover earth-like planets will radio its results to earth only once every thirty days. (NASA has not announced when this first report will be sent. Possibly mid to late June 2009.) During Kepler's first 30 days of watching 100,000 stars, it will discover planets which orbit their star in ten days or less; as well as about half of the planets which orbit their star in fifteen days or less. In its second report Kepler will identify planets which orbit in less than 20 days, and about half of those that orbit in more than 20 days but less than 30 days. Every monthly report will increase, by a specific number of days, the orbital period of those planets discovered. But since the statistical probability of any planet crossing the face of its star diminishes with the size of its orbit, each of Kepler's monthly reports will contain fewer and fewer new planets. The first month will have, by far, the most. Progressive reports will include planets in wider and wider orbits until the orbits of earthlike planets are (hopefully) revealed later in the three and a half year mission.
() H+ Magazine has redesigned its website. In addition to articles written specifically for the magazine, it now offers late breaking news and videos. (H+ covers the technological, scientific and social trends that are changing—and will change—human beings in fundamental ways.
() Your host has been granted official press credentials for WorldFuture 2009 in Chicago (July 17 to 19, 2009). This is the annual convention of the World Futurist Society (of which he is a member). Hundreds of professional futurists are expected to attend and dozens are scheduled to speak. Press credentials will allow your host to gather live interviews and collect business cards for phone interviews which can be done later.
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Recent Topics
How tens of thousands of robots are used in war right now.
Rumors that three of John Ringo's novels are in the works to become major motion pictures.
Simple online searches which prove there is no such thing as a Chinese journalist.
Life-sized anatomically-correct sex dolls of today and the 2007 movie, Lars and the Real Girl, which co-stars one such doll.
Trends in acting, and why your "look" matters far more to a talent agent than your ability to act.
The idea that the earth needs a thermostat, and that the days in which the temperature of the earth can be left to nature need to come to a close.
How the differences between men and women may affect their acceptance of the robotic husbands and wives which will become available within a decade or two.
Why past predictions of the future have always been so wrong.
John Ringo on TV for Fox News following the 9/11 Attacks.
Shaun Farrell's interview with Ray Bradbury.
Ways our modern civilization might come to an end.
How the large scale use of cheap solar cells could lead to the abandonment of the electric power grid.
Trends in college: classes, dorm life, students and teachers.
How personal computers and cell phones improve or degrade the college learning experience.
How this universe may end.
Why we may someday engineer other universes.
The probability that we will invent faster-than-light travel.
How the Singularity might go well or go badly.
Scenarios which might produce the fall of civilization.
David Drake's opinion of the Amazon Kindle, and his improving opinion of the future of electronic publishing.
Personal headup displays for soldiers.
Experiments with brain implants for soldiers.
How war is going “open-source.”
Chinese experiments with warfare in low earth orbit.
The longstanding psychology in the US military which is driving robots into warfare.
The only person to use the term “Euro-whiner” on national TV.
The strengths and weaknesses of online publishing verses paper publishing.
The rise in small presses.
Trends in podcasting and narrow-casting.
Why David Drake urged Jim Baen into ask Eric Flint to be the first Editor-in-Chief of what has become the widely popular online magazine called Jim Baen's Universe.
As well as: YouTube, Facebook, Charlie Chaplin and wedding photography.
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Thanks for visiting.
We hope you enjoyed the story or article. We need to remind you though that JBU pays professional rates for these stories, and in order to do that, we sell subscriptions and memberships in the Universe Club. If you liked the story, please- Toss us a few bux-- Pay what you think it is worth via the paypal link, or
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Stephen Euin Cobb is a Hard SF author, futurist and the host of the award-winning podcast "The Future And You." He is also an artist, essayist and transhumanist.
As host of "The Future And You," a two hour long p......
(To read the rest of this bio, and see other stories in Jim Baen's Universe visit Stephen Euin Cobb's author page.)
