-
The author of Skulls in the Stars is a professor of physics, specializing in optical science, at UNC Charlotte. The blog covers topics in physics and optics, the history of science, classic pulp fantasy and horror fiction, and the surprising intersections between these areas. -
Author Archives: skullsinthestars
The Giant’s Shoulders #12 is up!
The twelfth edition of The Giant’s Shoulders is up at Thoughts from gut bacteria! Thanks to ecoli for assembling it, and on such short notice! Ecoli is also offering a $20 gift certificate for the most popular entry, so don’t … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
Leave a comment
Bertram Mitford’s The King’s Assegai
Those who have been reading this blog for a while know that I’ve become a really big fan of Bertram Mitford (1855-1914). His novels, written in the late 1800s, are on the surface adventure novels which draw on his experiences … Continue reading
Posted in Adventure fiction, Fantasy fiction
1 Comment
The anniversary of McCarthy’s downfall
Via Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann, I was reminded that today, June 9, is the anniversary of the day that red-baiting Senator Joseph McCarthy was given his comeuppance on national television by soft-spoken lawyer Joseph Welch. In 1954, a series … Continue reading
Posted in Politics
13 Comments
Here’s some Lord Dunsany to perform…
I’m currently in Oklahoma visiting a collaborator, so my time is rather short. While I’m away, I’ve been reading through Lovecraft’s Supernatural Horror in Literature, and came across descriptions of some of the short plays of Lord Dunsany (1878-1957). They’re … Continue reading
Herbert S. Gorman’s The Place Called Dagon
As I’ve noted previously, H.P. Lovecraft had a voluminous library of weird fiction, and basically defined himself as the foremost expert on such tales in his time with his essay Supernatural Horror in Literature. Hippocampus Press, in collaboration with Lovecraft … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Lovecraft
5 Comments
Barkla shows that x-rays have polarization (1905)
It is one of the quirks of scientific progress that many great experiments are forgotten as the things they demonstrate become common knowledge in the scientific community. A good example of this is the 1890 experiment of Otto Wiener, which … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Physics
14 Comments
10 days until The Giant’s Shoulders #12!
Just a friendly reminder/request, as always: there’s 10 days left until the 12th edition of The Giant’s Shoulders! I seem to be unable to reach the originally scheduled host of the carnival for this month, so ecoli over at Thoughts … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
Leave a comment
An appeal for The Giant’s Shoulders posts!
I posted this notice over at The Giant’s Shoulders today: Hi folks, Over the past couple of months, the number of submissions to The Giant’s Shoulders has been a little light. Entries have been great, but it would be nice … Continue reading
Posted in Science news
Leave a comment
The great Presidential book-reading race!
At times I’m simply dumbfounded by the idiotic stories the big news organizations can come up with. In a short article titled, “Obama keeping up with Bush’s reading pace?”, CNN’s Political Ticker reported, on June 2, It appears President Obama … Continue reading
Posted in ... the Hell?, Politics
Leave a comment
“The X-Change Files” is up and running!
There’s a new science blog out there: The X-Change Files, which is the official blog for the Science & Entertainment Exchange. What, you may ask, is the Science & Entertainment Exchange? From their website, The Science & Entertainment Exchange is … Continue reading
Posted in Science news
Leave a comment
Skulls in the Stars 