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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
I Believe in Mister Bones, by Max Booth III
Book 6 for my 2025 goal of 30 books for the year! I’m off to an absurdly good start. Sometimes it takes something very simple to draw me to read a book. In the case of I Believe in Mister … Continue reading
1844: Mayer mentions his work on conservation of energy
As noted in a previous post, I’ve started translating a collection of correspondence of the amazing German physician Julius Robert Mayer, who around 1840 traveled to Indonesia as a ship’s doctor and along the way discovered and elucidated, for the … Continue reading
Posted in History of science
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Latest Dead Reckonings is out!
Hi folks! For those who are familiar, I occasionally write book reviews for the horror and weird periodical Dead Reckonings, and the most recent issue is out! I wrote about Laird Barron’s recent collection of horror fiction, a return to … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Personal
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The Andromeda Anthology, by Fred Hoyle and John Elliot
Book 5 for 2025! My goal is 30 this year, and I’m off to a great start. Since I’ve been enjoying the “SF Masterworks” series like Connie Willis’ Doomsday Book, I popped by the store a week ago to see … Continue reading
More on Mayer and Tyndall (1862)
I’ve previously written about the amazing story of Julius Robert Mayer, the physician — not physicist — who first conceived of the concept of conservation of energy, and how he was then discredited by the British scientific community in favor … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Physics
Tagged climate, energy, History, Religion, science
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The Night of the Ripper, by Robert Bloch
Book 4 for 2025! My goal is 30 this year. My friends at Valancourt Books have recently been reprinting the works of horror master Robert Bloch, most famous for penning Psycho (1959) but also an award winning author of many … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Mystery/thriller
Tagged book review, Fiction, History, Horror, review
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Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis
Book 3 for 2025! My goal is 30 this year. Now that my rush to fulfill my arbitrary book-reading deadline for last year is done, I can relax and read books that are a bit longer. One I’ve had on … Continue reading
Posted in Science fiction
Tagged book review, book-reviews, books, Fiction, science fiction
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Talking Invisibility on the Peculiar Book Club!
For those who aren’t yet tired of me talking about the physics of invisibility and my book about it, a couple of days ago I was a guest on the Peculiar Book Club, hosted by Brandy Schillace! It was a … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Personal
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Godel’s Proof, by Ernest Nagel and James R. Newman
Book 2 for 2025! My goal is 30 this year. This is actually a book I read years ago but it was time for a reread to try to better understand the subject. I honestly wish more people would explore … Continue reading
Bury Your Gays, by Chuck Tingle
Book 1 of 30 for 2025! I’m off to a great start with a great book. Back in 2023 I read Chuck Tingle’s debut horror novel Camp Damascus and absolutely loved it. Tingle followed up not long after with Bury … Continue reading
Skulls in the Stars 