Over the course of six seasons and a few dozen murders, The Sopranos introduced a nation to the idea that television can be literature. It also introduced the idea that literature can have ambiguity. Which, being Americans, we fucking hated. I’m referring to the ending of the series. Most people didn’t get it. A decade… Read More SOPRANOS (CUT TO BLACK)

I have always had a thing for pattern-welded steel. Regular steel is simple. Damascus steel is complex. Plain steel is boring. Damascus is interesting. Steel is common. Damascus is rarified. In the same vein I’ve always been drawn to quartersawn oak over simple pine, or spalted maple over simple white. Following suit I have begun… Read More Patternfall

I have a little pile of essays – half-complete, or little more than topics – and since I am overburned with free time I thought I should turn my attentions to them. One of these was a blog post from two years ago, saved in my draft folder, containing nothing more than the title: “Microtransactions… Read More Homo Solvens

Cars are starting to drive themselves. Don’t believe me? Go to YouTube. See a car drive itself down the highway. See it take left turns and right turns through a small town. See it navigate a busy parking lot, find a parking space, slide itself in – then see it pull out and drive over… Read More A Land Without OUIs

CONSIDER THE (SYNTHETIC) LOBSTER What will it mean for the Maine lobsterman when there’s an alternative source for lobster meat?   “Meat grown in a lab.” It shows up in science fiction as often as the spaceship or the sarcastic computer. And like both those things, it’s fast becoming a reality. There are restaurants today… Read More Consider the (Synthetic) Lobster

Rip and edit of something I wrote in 2011, when I first got a smartphone. -daK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I once heard someone define science fiction as ‘the transposition of the problems of today into tomorrow.’ Plenty of scifi falls into that category. Plenty does not. I can think of some great scifi that tries to honestly… Read More Post-Cyberpunk

My mother just asked me for my opinion on Bitcoin. My initial reaction is that, as with any other trend in recent memory: by the time my mom has heard of it, it is doomed. However, after some thought, I would like to propose two scenarios: Scenario one: Bitcoin is just an asset like any other.… Read More BTC

1. STICK RECOGNIZING that wealth inequality has become a threat to America and the American Dream; DECLARING that no single citizen should control more wealth than sovereign states; BELIEVING that the just, proper, and only method to address this threat is through the levying of taxation; THERE SHALL BE ENACTED a progressive tax on capital,… Read More A Modest Proposal

I keep seeing the headline “Catalans declare independence.” My understanding is, this is not quite right. What’s happened so far is, representatives in the Catalan regional parliament had an informal vote which passed by a simple majority. There are four big limiting statements there. 1) informal vote 2) simple majority 3) regional 4) representatives. 1)… Read More Lincoln Battalion in the Bardo