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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
Weird fiction Monday: Fish in the Sea
It’s time for Weird Fiction Monday, when I post stories that I’ve written — both new and old — for the entertainment (hopefully) of my readers! As always, I note that I haven’t done extensive editing of the tales here, … Continue reading
The Challenge from Beyond, with Moore, Merritt, Lovecraft, Howard, and Long
No matter how much classic weird fiction I read, there is still plenty out there that I have not read, or even heard about. Recently I was surprised to learn about a five-part tale of weirdness, The Challenge from Beyond … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Lovecraft
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Supersymmetry in optics?
This is the first in a series of posts about the upcoming OSA Frontiers in Optics meeting in Orlando. This post covers research related to the presentation FM4C.5: Mohammad-Ali Miri; Matthias Heinrich; Demetrios N. Christodoulides, SUSY-generated complex optical potentials with real-valued spectra. … Continue reading
Posted in Optics
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Hummingbirds at home!
I’ve been rather busy with work these past few weeks (months, even) and haven’t had as much time as I’d like to post good optics and history of science posts. In the meantime, I thought I’d share some recent pictures … Continue reading
Posted in Animals
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Weird Fiction Monday: Head Games
It’s time for Weird Fiction Monday, when I post stories that I’ve written — both new and old — for the entertainment (hopefully) of my readers! As always, I note that I haven’t done extensive editing of the tales here, … Continue reading
Posted in Fiction
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A few intriguing Valancourt Books releases!
Been very busy with work lately, trying to meet some deadlines before the start of the Fall semester. In the meantime, I thought I’d say a few words about a few recent Valancourt Books releases that I read on my … Continue reading
Posted in Horror
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Cat-turning: the 19th-century scientific cat-dropping craze!
One thing I’ve learn from studying the history of science is that scientists are human beings. Often incredibly weird, weird human beings. For example: in the mid-to-late-1800s, an exciting era in which the foundations of electromagnetic theory were set and … Continue reading
Posted in ... the Hell?, History of science, Physics
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Richard Le Gallienne’s “The Worshipper of the Image” (1899)
I have been arguing for some time that there is much more of a connection between horror and science than is generally appreciated. In fact, I explore this relationship in detail on my Tumblr, Science Chamber of Horrors. Occasionally, however, … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Horror
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Simple fun with polarizers!
There is a lot of interesting optics going on around us every day that we are often unaware of! Some of these can be investigated with very simple and inexpensive tools, if one knows what to look for. For instance: … Continue reading
Posted in Optics
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Basil Copper’s The Great White Space
H.P. Lovecraft not only introduced a fundamentally new genre of horror — “cosmic horror” — but inspired generations of writers who have built on his ideas and taken them in interesting new directions. Valancourt Books recently released a new edition … Continue reading
Posted in Horror, Lovecraft
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Skulls in the Stars 