Novelette by David Bartell
Story of a search & rescue operation of a cave explorer beneath a mining base on Callisto. This was suspensful, but the degree of petty bickering between the two main characters, who had been working together for years seemed too much. Especially withholding important safety information for no reason I can fathom other than to add suspense. The final major problem in this story, and the climax were both solely due to the narrator's stupidity. A generic adventure story, well written but I really don't like protagonists who are too dumb to live. 1.5 out of 5.
Showing posts with label Analog March 2009. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Analog March 2009. Show all posts
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
From Token to Script: The Origin of Cuneiform
Analog Fact Article by Henry Honken
The origins and early history of written language, comparing Sumerian, Egyptian, and Akkadian to Chinese and Japanese. A bit about logographic writing systems in general in the begining as well. And the article ends with a discussion of the current problems in linguistics and archeology and how the record is spottier in the 4 other places where written language developed independently. Are there any universals to language evolution?
It turns out there is decently good archaeological evidence for the theory that tokens used for commerce eventually evolved into written language with clay tablet stamping as an intermediary. This was an extraordinarily information dense article that manages to hold the attention and not get too dull.
The origins and early history of written language, comparing Sumerian, Egyptian, and Akkadian to Chinese and Japanese. A bit about logographic writing systems in general in the begining as well. And the article ends with a discussion of the current problems in linguistics and archeology and how the record is spottier in the 4 other places where written language developed independently. Are there any universals to language evolution?
It turns out there is decently good archaeological evidence for the theory that tokens used for commerce eventually evolved into written language with clay tablet stamping as an intermediary. This was an extraordinarily information dense article that manages to hold the attention and not get too dull.
After the First Death
Short Story by Jerry Craven
An akido master from the sixties fights off aliens, then makes peace with them and joins in a native ceremony that threatens to turn him into a tree. Moves further into the surreal as it turns out the first team are now all trees that meditate for eternity, except for the one that is a giant parrot translating psychic language from space. Claybourne barely manages to cure himself of the parasite that would turn him into a tree and then wonders if he would have just died, or if he'd have been missing something.
The ending is fairly strong in its ambiguity, but the rest of the story is weak. For one thing, the whole tale sounds like it is from the 60s and I can't help but imagine the protagonist as a young William Shatner as he beats up a bunch of aliens empty-handed. The dialog is more wooden than the trees, and distractingly jumps between different modes of speaking for the same characters. Then there's the protagonist's constant spewing out his odds of survival, which I have several problems with: it distracts from the story, seems misplaced because he is clearly no math whiz, and HOW IN HELL IS HE CALCULATING ODDS, they just seem really inconsistent, then the random change from percentages to fractions is just additional frustration, because who comes up with a system for calculating the odds of everything but just changes units at random like that. Must have been the hallucinogens.
If only the author could have approached the rest of that story with that same sense of resigned exasperation. The mystical crap spewed out by the trees and parrot for half the story just doesn't do anything for me. Asshole linguist Ramex (we're back to naming people like pharmaceuticals in this future) turning into asshole giant psychic parrot Magus-Of-Stars really could have used...something. Yes this whole story is surreal and crazy, but a reason or any kind of explanation of why he is so different that he is a parrot instead of a tree would have been nice. And the fact that I just typed that sentence really says it all. 1 out of 5 sentences in this story made any damn sense.
An akido master from the sixties fights off aliens, then makes peace with them and joins in a native ceremony that threatens to turn him into a tree. Moves further into the surreal as it turns out the first team are now all trees that meditate for eternity, except for the one that is a giant parrot translating psychic language from space. Claybourne barely manages to cure himself of the parasite that would turn him into a tree and then wonders if he would have just died, or if he'd have been missing something.
"An alien mega-parrot," Claybourne whispered. Amazing.
The ending is fairly strong in its ambiguity, but the rest of the story is weak. For one thing, the whole tale sounds like it is from the 60s and I can't help but imagine the protagonist as a young William Shatner as he beats up a bunch of aliens empty-handed. The dialog is more wooden than the trees, and distractingly jumps between different modes of speaking for the same characters. Then there's the protagonist's constant spewing out his odds of survival, which I have several problems with: it distracts from the story, seems misplaced because he is clearly no math whiz, and HOW IN HELL IS HE CALCULATING ODDS, they just seem really inconsistent, then the random change from percentages to fractions is just additional frustration, because who comes up with a system for calculating the odds of everything but just changes units at random like that. Must have been the hallucinogens.
"What happened to the woman I once loved and who tried to convert me to a mystical religion?"
"Nothing bad happened." Margery's thoughts felt like her voice, a creamy alto, rich in feminine nuances, just as Claybourne remembered her speaking. "I remade myself, and I'm in heaven."
"You're a tree, Margery, a tree rooted in foreign soil on an alien world."
If only the author could have approached the rest of that story with that same sense of resigned exasperation. The mystical crap spewed out by the trees and parrot for half the story just doesn't do anything for me. Asshole linguist Ramex (we're back to naming people like pharmaceuticals in this future) turning into asshole giant psychic parrot Magus-Of-Stars really could have used...something. Yes this whole story is surreal and crazy, but a reason or any kind of explanation of why he is so different that he is a parrot instead of a tree would have been nice. And the fact that I just typed that sentence really says it all. 1 out of 5 sentences in this story made any damn sense.
Madman's Bargain
Short Story by Richard Foss
A sad story about an AI going insane. One scientist wants to lobotomize it, because if it doesn't feel emotion it might stay sane. Deals with ethical issues of forcible changing the mind of sentient computers and "death with dignity". The ending is thought provoking, but comes out of nowhere, the narrator must really be brilliant because I didn't see a whiff of evidence for the scenario he lays out in the last page. It is a good ending to the story though. 3.5 out of 5.
A sad story about an AI going insane. One scientist wants to lobotomize it, because if it doesn't feel emotion it might stay sane. Deals with ethical issues of forcible changing the mind of sentient computers and "death with dignity". The ending is thought provoking, but comes out of nowhere, the narrator must really be brilliant because I didn't see a whiff of evidence for the scenario he lays out in the last page. It is a good ending to the story though. 3.5 out of 5.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Lifespeed
Short Story by Carl Frederick
I'm strongly resisting giving this story extra points because it is the ideal wish-fulfillment fantasy for me. If only these damn fencers would take up chess instead, they could put this extra time to good use.
A chemist and a physicist compete for a spot in the Olympic fencing team and talk about the speed at which people experience time, and maybe it is genetic. The chemist finds an all too simple way to change his own "lifespeed" to match that of the physicist, then has moral issues about whether or not it is cheating and gets all emo about how boring weekends and normal people are. It is a well written story exploring the idea, but I don't really care as much about the cheating plot. The perfect length, although I wouldn't mind seeing a sequel from Frederick here. 3.5 out of 5
I'm strongly resisting giving this story extra points because it is the ideal wish-fulfillment fantasy for me. If only these damn fencers would take up chess instead, they could put this extra time to good use.
A chemist and a physicist compete for a spot in the Olympic fencing team and talk about the speed at which people experience time, and maybe it is genetic. The chemist finds an all too simple way to change his own "lifespeed" to match that of the physicist, then has moral issues about whether or not it is cheating and gets all emo about how boring weekends and normal people are. It is a well written story exploring the idea, but I don't really care as much about the cheating plot. The perfect length, although I wouldn't mind seeing a sequel from Frederick here. 3.5 out of 5
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