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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. -
Category Archives: Science fiction
The Attack From Space, by Captain S.P. Meek
Yet another blog post about invisibility in fiction! Just as a reminder, this is to celebrate the completion of my book draft on the history of invisibility physics, coming next year (I hope). Let me recap and build upon a … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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Terrors Unseen, by Harl Vincent
Yet another invisibility story! So many invisibility stories. So, in the list of stories we’ve looked at so far, we’ve seen invisible people, invisible monsters, invisible buildings, invisible cars, invisible dogs, and invisible spacecraft. But you now what we haven’t … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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War with the Gizmos, by Murray Leinster
Yet another post about invisibility in fiction! So many stories I couldn’t mention in my upcoming book on the physics of invisibility, so you get to hear about the stories here. Time to talk about a real classic of science … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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Private Eye, by “Lewis Padgett”
I thought I’d take a one day break from invisibility stories to talk about one of my favorite science fiction stories of all time: “Private Eye,” by Lewis Padgett, published in the January 1949 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. It … Continue reading
Posted in Mystery/thriller, Science fiction
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The Invisible Death, by Victor Rousseau
Will I ever run out of vintage science fiction stories about invisibility to write about? I hope so, because otherwise my book draft will never be polished off. Some authors of weird fiction seem to be addicted to invisibility. One … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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Slan, by A.E. van Vogt
Yet another story that features the physics of invisibility, continuing my series of posts inspired by the research into my upcoming book on the history of invisibility physics! A secret race of mutant humans, gifted with superpowers, hides out from … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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The Secret of Wilhelm Storitz, by Jules Verne
My book on the history and physics of invisibility is off to the publisher for final approval, though there’s still some little stuff I want to add, including a comprehensive bibliography of stories about invisibility. Along the way, I’ve read … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction, Weird fiction
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Sinister Barrier, by Eric Frank Russell
Writing a book about the history and science of invisibility has led me to read things that I would otherwise never have encountered, including a whole slew of science fiction tales about invisibility and invisible creatures. I thought I would … Continue reading
Posted in Invisibility, Science fiction
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H.G. Wells insults the entire human race (1924)
Most everyone knows the name H.G. Wells: he is one of the founders of science fiction as a popular and accepted form of literature, thanks to his brilliant novels The Time Machine (1895), The War of the Worlds (1898), and … Continue reading
Posted in History of science, Science fiction
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Spoiler-filled The Rise of Skywalker thoughts…
Back from China and hoping to get some more blogging done! After some 24 hours of non-stop travel, I got back on the 23rd and decided to stay awake as long as possible by going to see the final movie … Continue reading
Posted in Entertainment, Personal, Science fiction
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Skulls in the Stars 