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David Brin

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On Friday - February 22nd, 2013 - Hour 25 brings you an interview with noted author David Brin talking about his newest book Existence. It was a great pleasure to have the chance to sit down with David for an extended interview about his newest book, the art of writing and the role of science and storytelling in shaping the world we live in.

It has been far too long since David's last book - Kiln People - but his new book was well worth the wait. He paints a realistic picture of the world that many people alive today will eventually live in and populates it with believable people who are trying to cope with a discovery that shakes the very foundations of their civilization. From flooded cities where scavengers look for treasures to sell to the boardrooms of global megacorporations to spacecraft visiting the asteroids we are treated to a look into the world we are creating with every choice we make.

Existence is a very good and thought provoking book which is most highly recommended. But really now, would you expect anything less for a new book from David Brin?

So settle in and click on the links for the interview and prepare to have your world view expanded as we go straight on to tomorrow with Hour 25.

david drin copyright © David Brin, All Rights Reserved

 Existence book cover

A Fire in the Sky

Chelybinsk impact as illustrated by Don Davis copyright © Don Davis, All Rights Reserved
Image copyright © Don Davis, All Rights Reserved. Used with the artist's permission.

Don Davis has created the above image showing what you would have seen had you been hovering 10 kilometers above Chelyabinsk on the morning of February 15, 2013. Like all of his work, this painting blends technical accuracy with considerable artistic skill. To view more of his astronomical art and learn more of the technical details behind this painting be sure to visit his website.


Astute vistors to the Hour 25 site will note that although the show's audio dates to February 22 the web site was not updated with this show until a few weeks after the show was recorded. This is due to the fact that we had to stop working on the show so that I could complete the preparations for my part of a briefing on asteroid mining that was presented at the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts seminar in Chicago in early March. This talk showed that asteroid mining is both technically and economically feasable using technologies that are within our grasp today.*

And in showing just what a small world we live in... one of the persons on the review panel orchestrating that NASA seminar was.... wait for it now..... David Brin.

In any case, I apologize for the delay.


* I am currently a Co-Investigator on a NIAC study looking into asteroid mining where I do spacecraft and mission design. My colleague Marc Cohen is the Principal Investigator on the study and we are joined by Kris Zacny of Honeybee Robotics and Brad Blair. We've been looking into what would be required to make asteroid mining an economicially viable venture. So far the results look very promising.

Our presentation at the NIAC Spring 2013 seminar was recorded on video and you can watch it here. Below is an illustration of a design concept for an asteroid mining spacecraft that we presented at that meeting.

conceptual design for an asteroid mining spacecraft


Listen to this show

webcasting     

Click here to listen to the entire show. {1:56:27}

Or

  • Click here for the show's intro music. {0:41}
  • Click here for the show's opening. {20:53}
  • Click here for our interview with David Brin. {1:32:56}
  • Click here for the show's closing. {1:57}

  • Click here for links to all of our previous Shows that you can listen to on the Hour 25 Web Site.

If you enjoyed this show and would like to know when other interviews are uploaded to the Hour 25 Web Site, then send an email to me at wwjames@earthlink.net and I will add your name to the free Hour 25 Newsletter mailing list. That way you'll get a brief notice in your email every time a new show gets uploaded to the web.




Links For This Show

David Brin
  • Learn more about David Brin and his books - including a great trailer for Existence - at worlds of DAVID BRIN.
  • David talks here with Wired about Existence and other topics.
  • In the link above David notes, quite rightly, that the current generation of tablets don't ship with a built-in computer language that kids can use to program those devices and that this is not a good development. But I'll note that this is a problem can be fixed through the TechBASIC app which puts a powerful BASIC interpreter on your iOS devices and will let kids or other people write interesting and useful programs on their iPads and iPhones. These programs can even be sold at the iTunes app store. Highly recommended.
  • Another discussion about Existence can be found at io9 .

    A Fire in the Sky
  • The BBC had several very good reports of the Chelyabinsk event including maps, pictures and videos which can be found here , here , and here . And in the aftermath of this event thousands of people from that area have fallen into the grip of 'meteor fever'.
  • The Mail Online has an article with several pictures of the hole punched in a frozen lake by some of the debris from this event.
  • The Wall Street Journal has an article with a number of linked videos along with a very good chart that compares the sizes of various objects that have hit the Earth.
  • Here is a Russian language site with tons of pictures and videos.
  • This compilation video pulls together many very striking videos of this event.
  • What are the odds that you might die as a result of an asteroid impact? The answer may surprise you.
  • You can learn more about the risks from asteroid impacts and how to prevent them in this article.

    Useful Space Related Links

    Space News - Dawn - A Mission to the Asteroids
  • Updates and additional information about the mission of the Dawn spacecraft can be found at the project's Home Page at JPL or at this NASA Web Site.
  • Additional information about asteroids can be found at the NASA Near Earth Asteroid (NEO) Web Site.
  • Dawn is a part of the Discovery Program of deep space missions. Information about Dawn and other missions can be found at the Discovery Program Web Site.

    Space News - Mars
  • Much information about the Phoenix mission to Mars can be found at this JPL Web Site or at this Web Site from the University of Arizona or this NASA Web Site. Additional information about various past NASA missions can be found here.
  • For more information about the Mars Exploration Rovers be sure to check out the MER Web Site at JPL or this Mars Rover site at Cornell University. You can also get information about the MER mission by reading the News Updates posted by Dr. Steve Squyres, the project's Principal Investigator.
  • To learn more about the Mars Express mission you can go to this ESA Mars Express Web Site, this Mars Express Web Page from JPL, this NSSDC Mars Express Web Page, or this Web Page from Mars News.Com.
  • For more information about the Exploration of Mars be sure to go to the JPL Mars Exploration Site, the Center for Mars Exploration at NASA Ames, or the Mars Missions Web Site at the Planetary Society.
  • Information about the data returned by previous Mars missions can be found at this Mars Web Page at the NSSDC.
  • Information about the Phoenix Mission to Mars can be found at this Press Release from the University of Arizona. You can view a 3D picture of the Mars Phoenix spacecraft here.
  • For more Mars news be sure to check out the Mars News.Com Web Site.
  • Percival Lowell did much to shape our ideas about Mars in the early years of the 20th Century. You can learn more about his work by reading this on-line copy of his 1895 book Mars.

    Space News - The Cassini Mission to Saturn
  • Much information about the Cassini mission can be found at the Project's Official Web Site at JPL.
  • JPL is constantly releasing pictures from Cassini. You can find them by going to this JPL Web Page.
  • Additional information about the Cassini mission can be found at this ESA Web Site.
  • The University of Arizona Web Site for the imaging system used to take the Huygens pictures of Titan has much information about how they were obtained and processed as well as a collection of processed and unprocessed images.
  • The Huygens probe carried a microphone and recorded the various sounds that it heard while descending to the surface of Titan. You can listen to those sounds at this Web Page sponsored by the Planetary Society.

    For On-Going Updates on Space News
  • Links relating to the loss of Space Shuttle Columbia can be found here.
  • The Reusable Launch & Space Vehicle News Web Site Web Page that is part of the Hobby Space Web Site is a really good place to watch for news about, well... Reusable Launch Vehicles and related subjects. I check it out just about every day and often find news there that doesn't show up anywhere else. Give it a look. {And while you're there be sure to check out some of the site's other pages. Wow! Is there a lot of information there.}
  • The Space Today Web Site is a great place to find space news from all over the 'net.
  • The Spaceflight Now Web Site carries real time information about current space missions and presents a lot of space and astronomy news. This is the place I go to when I want up to the minute information about current space missions. Do I need to say more?
  • The NASA Watch Web Site is another great place for getting information about current space missions. Check there also for news about other 'goings on' within NASA. Highly recommended.

    ISS News
  • The Florida Today Web Site has a very interesting report about the causes of the ISS budget problems and their impact on the space program. It makes very interesting reading.
  • Click here to view the press kits for various ISS missions.
  • Check out the NASA International Space Station Web Page or the Boeing Web Page to learn more about this project.
  • A great source of news about Russian space activities, including their work on the ISS, can be found at the Russian Space Web.
  • Do you wonder where the Space Station is right now? You can use your browser to view real time maps showing the location of the ISS by going to this link at the NASA Space Link Web Site or here at the Johnson Spacecraft Center. Please note that your browser must support Java to make use of this satellite tracking software.
  • You can find out when the ISS - or many other spacecraft - can be seen from your location by going to this NASA Web Page. Please note; your browser must support Java for this application to work.

    Space Related Organizations
    If you are interested in learning more about current space activities there are many local and national organizations you might want to know about. Joining these organizations and taking part in their activities is a good way to stay abreast of things going on in space as well as a way to show your support for those activities. Listed below are some of those organizations.
  • The Organization for the Advancement of Space Industrialization and Settlement has long been place for persons living in the Los Angeles area to gather and discuss the promise of space. Be sure to check out their Web Site for information about their meetings and other activities.
  • The Orange County Space Society is another Los Angeles area organization that provides a focal point for persons who are interested in space developments to get together and share their ideas. They have created a number of displays explaining the history and importance of space exploration that have appeared at various public events. Be sure to check their Web Site for information about their meetings and other events.
  • The National Space Society has a long history of being an advocate for a vigorous space program and provides much information to its members through their magazine and Web Site.
  • The Space Frontier Foundation is a strong advocate for a non-governmental space program and serves as a focal point for much activity in that arena. Their annual conference in Los Angeles during the Fall is a great way to find out what is happening in the non-government space arena.
  • The Space Access Society is focused on reducing the cost of going into space by promoting non-governmental launch vehicle programs. Their annual conference in the spring is a major source of information on non-traditional launch vehicle activities.
  • The Planetary Society is focused on the exploration of the Solar System and has a wealth of information for its members and others.

  • Click here for information about the audio files used for Hour 25 and for information about configuring your browser and downloading audio players.

    Please note Web Pages from external sites will open in a separate browser window and that Hour 25 Productions are not responsible for the content of any external Web Sites.


    • Next Week

    Join us in a couple of weeks when we will again bring you an interview with a guest from the worlds of science and science fiction.

    If you'd like me to let you know exactly when our next show is available, then send me an email { wwjames@earthlink.net } and I'll add you to the Hour 25 Newsletter Mailing List. That way you'll get an email notice telling you when the next show has been uploaded and who the guest is. Most shows are uploaded over the weekend but sometimes we drop in a special edition of Hour 25 during the middle of the week. Being on the Hour 25 Newsletter mailing list will let you know when those specials are available as soon as they are uploaded. {Privacy notice: The Hour 25 Newsletter mailing list is kept in strict confidence and will not be used for any other purpose nor will it be given, sold or in any way provided to any other person or group for any other purpose.}

    Later Weeks

    Join us in the coming months when our guests will include author Brad Meltzer and many other authors and scientists from the worlds of science, science fiction, mystery, horror and suspense.

    Previous Shows

    Go to our Previous Shows Page to find out about previous guests on the show and to listen to some of our past shows.

    Audio Index

    Go to our Audio Index for a listing of the various shows, interviews and readings available on the Hour 25 Web Page. The exact locations of the shows will constantly be changing as this Web Site evolves, but the Audio Index page will always be your shortcut to finding what you want to hear.

    Note to Web Masters : If you wish to link your site to an Hour 25 interview you should do so using the Hour 25 home page as that page will be able to direct people to the specific information they are looking for.


    The Calendar

    Check out the links below to discover things currently happening in and around Southern California that would be of interest to folks who have an interest in science fiction and science.
     
  • This Month's Calendar
  • Last Month's Calendar
  • On-Going Calendar Events
  • Authors on Tour
  • Conventions
  • Bookstores, Hobby Shops and more
  • Literacy Education
    		•  If you have something you want to call to the attention of the Group Mind, send an email to Warren James {Be sure to put 'Hour 25 Calendar' in the subject line of your message to make sure it doesn't get lost.}


    Science Fiction Matters

    Check out the pages below for more information about matters having to do with science fiction.

  • Click here to read what Suzanne had to say concerning children's and young adult books about fantasy and magic.


  • Click here for information about the various awards in the science fiction field.




    • Hour 25 - Background

    Burt Suzanne Warren

    Burt Handelsman
    Crack Engineer

    Suzanne Gibson
    Our Producer

    Warren W. James
    Your Host
       

      Mike Hodel   Terry Hodel  
     

    Mike Hodel
    The First Host of "Hour 25" {Picture Copyright © Burt Handelsman}

    		  

    Terry Hodel
    Our Late Executive Producer {Picture Copyright © Joel Farr}

    Click here to view a page with some of our thoughts about Terry.    		  


    Links

  • Warren's Niftoidal Web Sites - Release 8

             {This file is ~77K. It may take a moment or two for the page to load.}


  • Long time listener Eric Foss has an Hour 25 archive page.

  • Science Fiction
  • Space
  • Computers
  • CGI
  • Science Fiction Modeling
  • Other Fun Stuff



    • Hour 25 Newsletter

    Hour 25 is uploaded to the 'net every weekend - but special editions of the show can appear any time. The fastest way to learn when new shows are available is to be a subscriber to the free Hour 25 Newsletter.

    Sign up now by sending me an email {wwjames@earthlink.net} and you'll get information about Hour 25 directly in your mailbox every time a new show is uploaded. {Be sure to put 'Hour 25 Newsletter' in the subject line of your message so your request does not get misplaced.}

    Concerning the privacy of your email address and the Hour 25 Newsletter... Being on the Hour 25 mailing list will get you the Hour 25 Newsletter and nothing else. I will not use the Hour 25 mailing list for any other purposes. Being on this mailing list won't cause you to get unsolicited mailings for 'work at home opportunities' or other SPAM. The mailing list for Hour 25 will never be provided to anyone else for any purpose. Period. Personal privacy on the 'net is very important to me, so I'll defend your privacy in every way possible.



    Remember to tell your friends about Hour 25. Send them an email and tell them to point their browser to hour25online.com for news and interviews from the worlds of science and science fiction. New shows are uploaded each week on Friday evening - give or take a few hours.

    Unless otherwise noted the entire content of this web site is
    Copyright © Warren W. James, 2000-2013. All rights reserved.
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