On Sunday - July 31^st, 2005 - our guest on Hour 25 was author Douglas Preston, who in conjunction with Lincoln Child, has written some of my favorite books.

Few authors, or author partnerships, have their ability to appeal to my interest in the outre and outright fantastic while simultaneously not offending my rational sensibilities. Perhaps it is because almost all of their stories flow from events that appear to require some form of supernatural intervention, only to have them explained by completely natural phenomena. Or perhaps it is because their characters are interesting and cleverly drawn. Or it might be because the plots of their stories are driven by events that have internal, though not always obvious at the time, consistency.

Or maybe it's just because they're bloody good writers.

The most fascinating of all their characters is FBI Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast. He first appeared in Relic as a somewhat minor character and then came back as an increasingly important character in later books. He was the focal character in The Cabinet of Curiosities and Still Life with Crows and his background and personality were essential to the stories. In Brimstone we were introduced to his brother Diogenes, a reflection of Aloysius in a criminal mirror who is planning to commit a crime that will be famous for its depravity. At the end of that book we did not know what Diogenes was planning to do, but we knew 'the clock was ticking'.

In their new book, Dance of Death, the clock has stopped ticking and the crime has started. Diogenes is killing everyone close to Aloysius and making it look like Aloysius is the criminal. {And as you will learn in tonight's interview, Diogenes is just warming up. All of this is just the prequel to the real crime.}

I enjoyed this book a great deal, but I've got to warn you that a number of important issues are not resolved at its conclusion. Douglas has assured me that everything will be resolved by the end of the next book. So I guess I'll just have to wait on pins and needles for that third book in this trilogy.

Don't miss this or any of their books. They are all most highly recommended.

Douglas Preston. Picture Copyright © 2005, Suzanne Gibson All Rights Reserved

Dateline: Comet Tempel 1

Late in the evening of July 3 (or early in the morning of July 4, depending on where you live) the Deep Impact spacecraft succeeded in hitting the comet Tempel 1 with a probe approximately the size of a washing machine. Information about this mission and what it has told scientists about comets can be found at the Project's Official Web Site.

But Sir Arthur C. Clarke got there first... This mission is yet another example of real science doing something that was first described in science fiction. Don't believe me? Then go reread 2001: A Space Odyssey, specifically Chapter 18 "Through the Asteroids". In that Chapter spaceship Discovery is passing through the asteroid belt enroute to Jupiter and Beyond. The trajectory of Discovery takes it close to a small asteroid and although their relative velocity is too high to safely land anything on it, there is another option. They launch a probe - specifically "a small slug of metal" - on a trajectory that will intersect the rapidly moving asteroid. As the asteroid flashes past Discovery, Bowman and Poole observe it with various telescopic sensors and then....
	"Against the darkened portion of the asteroid there was a sudden, dazzling explosion of light. The tiny slug had impacted at meteoric speed; in a fraction of a second all of its energy had been transformed into heat. A puff of incandescent gas had erupted briefly into space; aboard Discovery, the cameras were were recording the rapidly fading spectral lines. Back on Earth, experts would analyze them, looking for the telltale signatures of glowing atoms."
	2001: A Space Odyssey, Copyright © 1968 by Arthur C. Clarke and Polaris Productions, Inc, All Rights Reserved

Image Credit: NASA/ESA/UMD

Listen to this show

Click here to listen to the entire show. {1:18:28} Or

Click here for the show's intro music.{0:41}

Click here for the show's opening. {2:04}

Click here for our story about the launch Space Shuttle Discovery. {6:27}

Click here to find out about the discovery of ice volcanos on a moon of Saturn. {2:17}

Click here to learn about the discovery of a planet orbiting beyond Pluto. {2:52}

Click here for our interview with Doug Preston. {1:02:14}

Click here for the show's closing.{1:53}

Click here to listen to our interview with Lincoln Child that was aired a few months ago.

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Links for more information relating to this week's show

Douglas Preston - along with Lincoln Child

More information about Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child and their books can be found at their Official Web Site.

You can find other interviews with Douglas and Lincoln here, here and here.

These three images, taken 90 minutes apart on October 21, 2003, show the newly discovered 10th planet in our solar system. Credit: Samuel Oschin Telescope, Palomar Observatory

Space News

Here's a brief web page put up by Dr. Michael Brown, one of the discoverers of the Sun's 10th planet. {This link takes you to the rest of his Web Site.}

Here's the official press release for the discovery and here's a link to some associated pictures.

Here's the press release announcing the discovery of ice volcanism on Enceladus. More information about this discovery along with links to images and movies can be found at this NASA Web Site.

Space News - Mars

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.

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.

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The War of the Worlds, Ben Bova and Harry Potter
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On Monday - July 18^th, 2005 - we did a show about The War of the Worlds as well as the new J.K. Rowling book Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. And we were joined by author Ben Bova chatting with us for a few minutes about the works of H.G. Wells. All in all, it was a very full show.

Stephen Spielberg has recently released his version of the classic H.G. Wells novel The War of the Worlds. One good side effect of this is a renewed interest in the writings of H.G. Wells and the release of new editions of his books as well as books and videos about him and his writing. On the bad side, the Spielberg movie is a poor rendition of The War of the Worlds. It substitutes special effects for plot, character and story while managing to miss the point of the original novel.

The characters of Spielberg's film are typical of the non-thinking and unlikeable people found in all too many movies. There were too many instances where things were done because they would look good on film, even if they didn't make a lot of sense within the context of the movie. At the end of the film I didn't want my money back, I wanted my time back. Do yourself a favor and take a pass on this travesty. Go watch the George Pal version, listen to the Jeff Wayne version or - better yet - reread the book.

Some time back I did an interview with Ben Bova about one of his newest books and while we were together we took the time to chat for a few minutes about the works of H.G. Wells. Ben had just written the introduction to the Bison Press edition of Wells' In the Days of the Comet and I thought it would be nice to have a short stand-alone bit that we could use at an appropriate time. We spent a few minutes talking about that book and others, though not explicitly about The War of the Worlds, and we got to hear Ben's take on the place of H.G. Wells in the history of science fiction. Well, with the current interest in Wells and his writings, I've got to believe that the stars are right for airing this short interview.

And finally, this weekend saw the release of the latest Harry Potter novel and we couldn't let that pass without a few words of comment. All in all, we've been busy.

H.G. Wells and The War of the Worlds - Some Recommendations

As you might imagine, there is no shortage of books, CDs and DVDs relating to The War of the Worlds. This following is not an all-inclusive list, but it might help you as you look for alternatives to that dreadful Spielberg version of The War of the Worlds.

War of the Worlds - edited by Leon Stover

H G Wells - Collectors Book of Science Fiction

First and foremost there is the George Pal version of The War of the Worlds. Filmed in 1953 it transported the Martian invasion from Victorian England to contemporary Southern California. This could have been the kiss of death for the film, but George Pal had a good heart and a love for the original story and he managed to capture the essence of the book while preserving the sense of wonder and excitement that Wells created when he wrote the first ever story of extraterrestrial invasion.

Budget limitations prevented Pal from using walking tripod war machines, but the floating manta shapes he used for the Martian machines have become an iconic image in their own right. This film remains one of the best adaptations of an H.G. Wells story and sets the mark by which all other such films will be compared. Do yourself a favor, skip the Spielberg film and watch this instead. This film is most highly recommended. It is currently available on DVD and there are rumblings that a new edition with additional background material and an improved film to video transfer will be released soon, but I have yet to see copies of that new edition.

Many years ago, when I first heard that The War of the Worlds had been turned into a rock musical, I cringed in horrified anticipation. The idea was so outrageous that I couldn't imagine that the result would be any good or that it would in any way stay faithful to the original book. Man, was I wrong.

Jeff Wayne's 1978 adaptation of The War of the Worlds is incredibly true to the spirit of the original story and has some of the most memorable and enjoyable music ever to be put on a popular recording. The combination of pop music and dramatic readings by Sir Richard Burton captures the arc of the story as well as the sense of wonder that H.G. Wells so wonderfully created. This is one of the finest adaptations of this story that you are going to find. Most highly recommended.

A surprising number of Wells stories have been turned into film and H.G. Wells on FIlm by Don G. Smith does a good job of telling you about each and every one of them, even some of the very old and obscure films that no longer even exist. Each film is discussed in terms of its production background and how it relates to the original story. All are treated with respect, including the low-budget adaptations, and the good and bad points of each are evenly discussed. {Having been published in 2002 it does not include a discussion of the most recent adaptation of The Time Machine, and that is probably just as well since the less said about that film the better.} This book deserves a place on the bookshelf of anyone interested in the history of the films of H.G. Wells.

The 1938 Mercury Theater of the Air broadcast of The War of the Worlds staring Orson Welles has a special place in the history of radio. The panic it inspired showed not just the power of radio but the ability of Wells (and Welles) to tap into our primal fears. The Complete War of the Worlds tells the story of this broadcast as well as the broader history of the novel and various other adaptations. Though flawed by a lack of depth in some areas, it remains an interesting read and a useful book for people who are new to the history of The War of the Worlds. It includes the original radio broadcast on an accompanying CD as well as the script for that broadcast and the text of the novel reprinted from Pearson's Magazine magazine from 1897.

As you might imagine there are many editions of The War of the Worlds in press today. All of them share the same text and are differentiated by the supplemental materials that they include. One of my favorites is The War of the Worlds (A Critical Text) edited by Leon Stover and published by McFarland Press. This book includes a lengthy, if a bit dry, introduction and discussion of the novel placing it in context of the body of work by H.G. Wells and his ideas about socialism and the future of human civilization. The text includes numerous footnotes that highlight details in the text and offer explanations and background for things that might not be obvious to the casual reader. The appendices include writings by Wells and others that expand upon topics introduced in the novel.

This is more of a scholarly book than most of the other editions that you might find but that does not distract from the awe and wonder of the story, it adds depth to an already wonderful tale. Leon Stover is one of the preeminent Wells scholars of our time and his book is a delight. It is most highly recommended.

Other editions of The War of the Worlds that you might find of interest include the trade paperback edition put out by Benbella Books which includes essays by a number of contemporary science fiction writers. Editions from The Modern Library and Penguin books are available in a slightly less expensive digest size and include supplemental material from Arthur C. Clarke and Brian Aldiss. One of the more interesting, and at $10 certainly one of the least expensive hardbounds in recent memory, is H.G. Wells Collector's Book of Science Fiction. This volume reprints several of Wells' novels - including The War of the Worlds - as well as a number of his short stories from their turn-of-the-century magazine appearances, including the original illustrations. Not to be missed.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

At times it seems like fewer and fewer people are reading, especially young people. And then J.K. Rowling publishes another of her Harry Potter books and all the conventional wisdom gets thrown out the window. This weekend saw the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and in one day it sold something like 10 million copies. One bookstore chain in the UK even reported sales of 13 books per second. {My mind is filled with images of a stream of books flashing through the air as a crowd of demon clerks process the orders.} Sales were so good that this book earned more than the two{!!} top grossing movies of the weekend combined! Way to go J.K.! We love it when an author proves there is still magic to be found in books.

Be sure to listen to our show this week for Suzanne's comments about the Harry Potter books and especially for her rebuttal to an opinion piece by a writer in the L.A. Times who decried adults enjoying these books.

Dateline: Comet Tempel 1

Late in the evening of July 3 (or early in the morning of July 4, depending on where you live) the Deep Impact spacecraft succeeded in hitting the comet Tempel 1 with a probe approximately the size of a washing machine. Studies of that impact are expected to shed much light on the internal makeup of this comet.

More information about the Deep Impact mission can be found at the Project's Official Web Site.

But Sir Arthur C. Clarke got there first... This mission is yet another example of real science doing something that was first described in science fiction. Don't believe me? Then go reread 2001: A Space Odyssey, specifically Chapter 18 "Through the Asteroids". In that Chapter spaceship Discovery is passing through the asteroid belt enroute to Jupiter and Beyond. The trajectory of Discovery takes it close to a small asteroid and although their relative velocity is to high to safely land anything on it, there is another option. They launch a probe - specifically "a small slug of metal" - on a trajectory that will intersect the rapidly moving asteroid. As the asteroid flashes past Discovery, Bowman and Poole observe it with various telescopic sensors and then....
	"Against the darkened portion of the asteroid there was a sudden, dazzling explosion of light. The tiny slug had impacted at meteoric speed; in a fraction of a second all of its energy had been transformed into heat. A puff of incandescent gas had erupted briefly into space; aboard Discovery, the cameras were were recording the rapidly fading spectral lines. Back on Earth, experts would analyze them, looking for the telltale signatures of glowing atoms."
	2001: A Space Odyssey, Copyright © 1968 by Arthur C. Clarke and Polaris Productions, Inc, All Rights Reserved

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/UMD

This image shows you comet Tempel 1 as it was seen by the Impactor spacecraft just five minutes before it struck the comet. The impact occurred near the two large craters that can be seen at the bottom of the picture.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/UMD

Getting closer. Now the probe is just a minute and a half away from impact. Notice how those two craters are becoming larger. The topography of the comet creates most of the light and dark patterns that you see, but some of the bright white streaks may be caused by outcrops of ice and not just by rock faces that are pointed toward the Sun.

Image Credit: NASA/ESA/UMD

Almost there. This is one of the very last pictures taken by the Impactor just seconds before it crashed into the surface of Tempel 1.

Image Credit: NASA/ESA/UMD

Impact! Here we have the impact as seen by the fly-by spacecraft. In an instant the Impactor's kinetic energy was turned into heat causing an explosion that threw out brightly glowing streamers of dust and gas. Studies of the impact show that it threw out much more dust and less water vapor than expected and that this dust was composed of smaller grains than had been anticipated.

Tempel 1 as seen an hour or so after the impact. Image credit NASA/JPL/UMD.

Image Credit: NASA/UMD

Here you see an image taken about 50 minutes after the impact. The orbit of the fly-by spacecraft had taken it beyond the comet and so this image was taken looking back toward the Sun. The jet of material raised by impact is shining brightly with reflected sunlight.

Image Credit: NASA/ESA/JHU

And here are two images of the comet taken by the Hubble Space Telescope at times bracketing the impact. Even though the comet was millions of miles away the results of the impact are obvious.

Listen to this show

Click here to listen to the entire show. {1:21:51} Or

Click here for the show's intro music.{0:41}

Click here for the show's opening and our discussion about the new Harry Potter book. {18:50}

Click here for our story about Shuttle launch delay. {7:59}

Click here to learn about the successful conclusion of the Deep Impact mission. {1:49}

Click here for our story about the discovery of a planet in a triple star system. {1:54}

Click here for our comments about the Stephen Spielberg version of The War of the Worlds. {13:24}

Click here for our comments about the version of The War of the Worlds from Pendragon Productions. {9:52}

Click here to hear our recommendations for books, DVDs and CDs pertaining to H.G. Wells and The War of the Worlds. {11:45}

Click here for our chat with Ben Bova concerning H.G. Wells. {13:58}

Click here for the show's closing.{1:39}

Click here to listen to another interview that we did with Ben Bova back in 2001.

For more thoughts about The War of the Worlds be sure to listen to our interview with Alex Lubertozzi discussing his book The Complete War of the Worlds.

Click here for our current show.

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

Links for more information relating to this week's show

Ben Bova

More information about Ben Bova and his writings can be found at his Official Web Site.

There are a goodly number of interviews with Ben out on the web. These include; Locus On-Line, Between the Lines, Book Page Interview, ChiCon 2000, and SciFi.com - transcript of an on-line chat with Ben.

H.G. Wells and The War of the Worlds

You can learn more about H.G. Wells and his works at the H.G. Wells Society.

You can read the entire text of The War of the Worlds in HTML format at this web site. {Try this link if the previous one does not work.} Please note that although the works of H.G. Wells are in the public domain in the United States and some other places, they are not universally in the public domain. Check here to learn the copyright status of his writings.

Click here for a study guide to The War of the Worlds that will give you some questions to think about as you read the novel.

The War of the Worlds has been continuously in print for more than 100 years and has been accompanied by numerous book covers and interior illustrations. This web site reproduces many of those illustrations and is a delightful place to visit.

The vision of Mars that drove The War of the Worlds was based on the scientific work of the astronomer Percival Lowell. He envisioned Mars as being a dying world whose inhabitants brought water to their civilization using a planet-wide system of canals. You can read an HTML version of Lowell's classic book Mars, including all its illustrations, at this web site.

The Orson Welles War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast

The "Wars of the Worlds" web site contains an amazing amount of information about the various radio productions of The War of the Worlds and has links to much more information.

The Martian Panic Sixty Years Later site has an interesting discussion about what happened during the Orson Welles broadcast and its lessons for today.

Check out this web site to see how the good people of Grovers Mill, New Jersey deal with their extraterrestrial association.

Other War of the Worlds Links

A wealth of information about The War of the Worlds in all its various forms can be found at - no surprise here - The War of the Worlds web site.

Click here to read the script for the George Pal film adaptation of The War of the Worlds.

The Jeff Wayne musical based on The War of the Worlds is one cool piece of music and follows the original story better than any other adaptation. Click here to go to the web site for that CD.

I rather enjoy playing the War of the Worlds game, even though I have the devil's own time winning no matter what side of the war I fight on. <sigh> You can get some 'cheat codes' here. {Now I should be able to win at this game!}

McFarland and Company Publishers put out a number of very fine books dealing with H.G. Wells and various other topics involving science fiction books and films. Be sure to visit their web site to learn more about their books.

The War of the Worlds TV show was better at what it promised than at what it actually delivered. But some people liked it. You can learn more about that show here.

Harry Potter

More information about Harry Potter can be found at J.K. Rowling's Official Web Site.

Information about the Harry Potter movies can be found here.

At Hour 25 we always encourage people to think for themselves. {Do you know anyone else who is better suited to do that?} You know what we think about that LA Times writer who thinks writing is something hard to do and should be avoided if at all possible. Here's the link for that article so you can read it for yourself and decide what you think about this issue.

Space News - Mars