Best Scientific Magazine Now is Free

Could it be Nature? Could it be Science? PNAS? Popular Science? Scientific American?

No, no and once more no. The source off grandioseness lies elsewhere.

The one and only magazine that will be unforgettable for its "Ig Nobel Prizes" offers for free a low resolution of its acclaimed publications in pdf format. So, click on the link that will let you through the vast knowledge that improbable research offers us.
...and to give you a hint of the grandioseness of those Ig Nobel Prizes, the winner of 2007 for the PEACE IgNP was:

The Air Force Wright Laboratory, Dayton, Ohio, USA, for instigating research & development on a chemical weapon -- the so-called "gay bomb" -- that will make enemy soldiers become sexually irresistible to each other.
REFERENCE: "Harassing, Annoying, and 'Bad Guy' Identifying Chemicals," Wright Laboratory, WL/FIVR, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, June 1, 1994.

.
conducting war without spilling a drop of blood, but by spreading LOVE to the world

Although my favorite is the IgNP for the AVIATION category:

AVIATION: Patricia V. Agostino, Santiago A. Plano and Diego A. Golombek of Universidad Nacional de Quilmes, Argentina, for their discovery that Viagra aids jetlag recovery in hamsters.
REFERENCE: "Sildenafil Accelerates Reentrainment of Circadian Rhythms After Advancing Light Schedules," Patricia V. Agostino, Santiago A. Plano and Diego A. Golombek, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 104, no. 23, June 5 2007, pp. 9834-9.
WHO ATTENDED THE CEREMONY: Diego A. Golombek

yeap, this is THE PNAS dear ladies and gentlemen!

P.S. Dear koxakies are you reading this?

A Gem Raised From Trash? Paul Potts

I got the following from the known email-chain, so probably it's not news, but it was one of those things that got my attention. Is anyone of you familiar with the show "Britain you have talent"? I believe that the same reality show was aired in Greece with the profound name of "Greece you have talent"!!!
I could never attend to similar shows for more than 15 min, and I thing that that's a personal record. But a friend of mine send me an e-mail, that emphasized on the winner of this show.
Paul Potts
He appears to be an ordinary guy, a 36 year-old cell-phone seller, too ordinary, modest and maybe a little bit shy, bullied as a kid, with low self esteem. He chooses to participate in the show and I'm indifferent to what he is about to do or to say, his looks betray him. One of the judges asks one and only one question:

"What are you here for today, Paul?"
"To sing OPERA", he replies

and she is almost shocked by this unbelievable answer. So am I, this is just another hoax with a lunatic megalomaniac thinking of being grandiose, without even deserve to be in frond of a TV camera (now that is an oxymoron). And after the millions of animals performing, sometimes better than men...

...he sings and I am amazed and shocked. I just hope this is for real, cause he is marvelous. "a breath of fresh air", out of those TV trashes, I couldn't agree more.
Listen to him sing:

Nessun Dorma from Puccini's Turrandor, in the first round



...and Time To Say Goodbye

Battlestar Galactica

What? You thing I would leave my favorite show out of this blog? I though so...So let's started.

Battlestar Gallactica as of 2002 is a remake of the naive (to the point of horrible) TV show of 1978. But as a kid I loved it in full grayscale. Back then we were lucky to even have a black/white TV. Anyway, as you already know (?) In the original series the purpose of Cylons (androids/cyborgs) was the complete extermination of the human race, but for the pleasure of the viewers in the recent series a few twists have been introduced.

During the BG history war raging between Cylons and humans, when the first rebelled against the latter. Give them brains and they will use them to destroy you. Humans prevailed and throw Cylons on a planet to live. But Cylons want more... so the creation (Cylons) search for their creators (humans) in order to destroy them, a rather phylosophical point, creation VS creator, son VS father...As we learn from the 2002 "pilot" movie, in a station were represantives of both humans and cylons should meet, once a year, for establicing every year the truce. In the past 40 years, only humans show up. Until the time a not so ordinary Cylon, not from metal and electrical connections, shows up to the meeting point asking human's representive:

"...are you alive? then prove it..."

so the story begins and with it one of the best series I've ever seen.

The rest goes as...Cylons trick humans (that includes some old fashion manipulation and trickstery OF COURSE) and destroy all 12 colonies (actually we are in deep space, were humanity is spread out to 12 colonies, named after the zodiac circle) in one blast, leaving something more than 40,000 living souls to drift into space under the leadership of the last battlestar, the Galactica. But there might be a solution for the last survivors, to find the mythical 13 colony, the legendary one mentioned at the holy manuscripts of the holy book, EARTH. So the remaining survivors set up for a witch-hunt after earth.

But as the intoduction to the series informes us:

"The Cylons were created by Man.
They Rebelled.
They Evolved.
They Look
And Feel
Human.
Some are programmed to think they are Human.
There are many copies.
And they have a Plan."

So there are Cylons who look like humans feel like humans, live among humans and this option make things a little bit more intresting, since the aspect of trust is more important than anything since anyone around you could be a Cylon programed to kill and this anyone could be your best friend, your lover, anyone. But, frankly, the main question till the end of the 3rd season is "what is the Plan?", and a subquestion since they find earth THEN WHAT?

After 3 glorious seasons Battlestar Galactica WILL END to the forthcoming 22-episodes-season. As producers said:

"Over the course of the last year, the story and the characters have been moving strongly toward that end, and we've decided to listen to those internal voices and conclude the show on our own terms. And while we know our fans will be saddened to know the end is coming, they should brace themselves for a wild ride getting there: We're going out with a bang."

I'm drooling.

So, what makes this series different from any other I've attended to?

First of all the characters.

I've never before attended to a show that creates real life characters under a sci-fi costum. Characters actions determined by their personality, not by the hand of "writter" and eventualy get what they deserve for every single action they take. The effect of counter action is always there.

I also liked the fact that there are no distinctive good-bad persons, the fact of incorporating conteporary politics, as the continous treatment of "terrorism" by the president of U.S.A. as a Large Scale WAR, every mulsalism as a terrorist, everyone who thinks in a different way as enemy. Also critisism withstands religion, humans are believers to the twelve Gods of ancient Greece, whereas Cylons tend to believe to the one and only loving and carring Cylon God. Monotheism versus Polytheism.

As the story goes the plot thickens, as both humans and Cylons reach earth the tension rises. And I'm waiting for the end of the series to amaze me.

Here is a preview of BG.S4 (not sure if it is the real thing) with presentation of every seasons in chronological order.

Then for season 2

Season 3

The last 5 min of season 3 last episode

and last but not least a 5min video clip including all episodes, music by rob zombie

but it includes SPOILER so be carefull

and for the final sneak peek of season 4

No Comments

...only that this is from a movie poster (as far as I know), of Good Luck Chuck debuted this past week at Cannes festival (picture from IGN).
Jesus Shaves

DEATH NOTE

I still cannot belive how good is the two soundtracks from the anime death note. Not as good as the Cowboy Bebop's soundtrack but it does has some excellent themes, more like post-rock, there is a theme that reminds of mogwai's auto rock. And the series, just when you say you have figured everything out...great story, great animation, great dialogs, great characters. Just superb.
For a few info also check those blogs.
NOVASTORM
Random Curiosity

Alcohol...we love it

Alcohol, i decided to start a new section related to alcohol, I will include sites that i've visited for more than 15min and afterwards i had the urge get myself a glass of alcoholic beverage

The Host

From Korea with love, a movie as good as fun. I've seen it like a year ago but here in Greece it just premiered this week. It's about a family, not the ordinary one, even for a korean standard, i think, that loses theirs daughter by the tail of a GIAND FISH (holy shit!!!)I'll write the rest of the plot and comments for this film... when i feel like it

verdict: 4,5/5 if it can be included in the sci-fi section is better than Sunshine. (but be warned not all of you will find this one intresting, it's one of those weird movies that you love them or you just hate them)

SunShine

Yesterday I watched the "Sunshine" by Danny Boyle. After ages (literally) a new sci-fi movie with a storyline that makes a difference.
The sun is dying and with it humanity (if humanity will be still alive when this event occurs...hehe). So, the solution: a spaceship is sent to sun with a bomb, capable of reestablish the fusion chain reaction in the sun, with the escort of a capable crew. Nice isn't it? plain and simple. Actually it would be as boring as Greek TV, if it weren't for Danny Boyle and a really good twist in this rather simplistic plot.
And do not forget the cast.
Ladies, your favorite blue eyed star is one of the best actors in this film. Cillian Murphy, had one of the leading roles in The Wind That Shakes the Barley, during it i felt asleep (it was late and i was tired the movie is OK), but i really remembered him as the scarecrow in Batman Begins...i remember asking my friends who the hell is this guy?
I liked the character played by Cliff Curtis. His role was the phycologist of the crew, the one to mend the traumas of staying for more than two years in a spaceship. He was the character i liked, almost phycho, but not actually, he was just different in the way that he felt things or comprehended situations, regarding the other crew members.
The other actors are quite good, but not in my opinion worth mentioning, so just visit the links to find more info.

...back to the movie,

So if you wake up one morning and it's a particularly beautiful day, you'll know we made it.

quote from Capa

That's the goal as i wrote, but something has to happen for the movie to be worth your euros. Well, let's make this mission the second one, with the first to fail just before the ending stage. And also let the first spaceship be found, empty, with no clue of what happened to the crew members (hmmmmm mate isn't this sounds like Event Horizon? You bet it does mate, actually is so similar, that i bet he has stolen material from it, nope my mate the idea is not new but the film is really different in a way. Go and watch it)
The colours were great, like the sun burning your skin...anyway I'm not the best to say anything about colors. I liked the soundtrack. And of course the director's way of visualizing madness. So to finish this...

Verdict: one of the best sci-fi for 2007 (is another one out there?)

4/5

Cool Links:

SunshineDNA
imdb link
official actually leads back to SunshineDNA LOL
and wiki


P.S. the second part is violent and completely lunatic. There are lot of cliche but you really gonna love them in this movie. As a friend pointed out and i agree on that, it resembled the atmosphere of the ALIEN. Closed corridors, no room to run, but infinite space, and with the terror that lurks somewhere out there...you'll find it in the second part in flesh.