Links 30/11/13

'When a star explodes as a supernova, it shines brightly for a few weeks or months before fading away. Yet the material blasted outward from the explosion still glows hundreds or thousands of years later, forming a picturesque supernova remnant. What powers such long-lived brilliance?
'In the case of Tycho's supernova remnant, astronomers have discovered that a reverse shock wave racing inward at Mach 1000 (1000 times the speed of sound) is heating the remnant and causing it to emit X-ray light.'

'Moving entire stars rather than building spaceships would have certain benefits as a way of traveling through the galaxy. After all, it would mean taking your local environment with you on a millennial journey. Some have suggested it might therefore be an observable sign of highly advanced civilizations at work. But how would you move a star in the first place?'
 
'If life does exist anywhere else in the universe, it may only be fleeting. Now scientists are researching how signs of life might look on dying planets'

A tiny four-winged robot that mimics the movements of jellyfish to stay in the air.

The politics of Doctor Who.

The only ATMs in Antarctica.

XKCD: Oort Cloud.

Ongoing

I'm getting close to the end of the third draft of Something Coming Through, although the process is more like Zeno's Paradox than a sprint to the finishing line. The last chapter doesn't require much rewriting, but to get there I have to add new material and repurpose what's already been written. This is the draft where the narrative is finally pinned down, so the last chapters have to play out and reflect the consequences of all the changes I've made in the rest of the book. After this, I'll print out the manuscript and go over it again, concentrating on the flow of sentences and paragraphs rather than events, and then transcribe all the red ink scribbles into the electronic MSS.

Meanwhile, here are three newish anthologies that feature stories of mine. Click on the cover images for more information.