What famous scientist mistakenly thought he had discovered plutonium -- a decade before it was actually discovered?

TechTalk radio ep. 251 includes a host of Thanksgiving-esque tech tidbits and, sadly, a trivia question that perhaps on I find interesting: What famous scientist mistakenly thought he had discovered plutonium -- a decade before it was actually discovered?

If you're the kind of geek that gets off on the historical minutia surrounding elemental physics -- and you know who you are -- you'll also likely enjoy pointing out all the errors I make in my weekly radio factoid from last fall.

Dragon*Con 2011: A n00b's Tale, Part IV

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When last we left our plucky D*C n00b, he was recovering from an unexpected Jedi-themed dance party. The infodump expands to the penultimate day of the con.

SUNDAY

Again, my day began around 8:30 am as I snuck away from my hibernating roommates to scrounge breakfast at Peachtree Center. I think I stupidly went to the Dairy Queen well, which is always a mistake. Nonetheless, I hit the panel scene about 9:30 and called an audible, electing to abandon my plans for the Skeptic Track's Secular Plan to Take Over America - I didn't want to brave the zealot crowd - so I snuck into the line for the other zealot crowd magnet, the Star Wars track. Specifically, the Truth and Mythology of Star Wars headlined by Timothy Zahn and Gary Kurtz.

Takeaway: I now know where the Star Wars franchise went wrong.

Tangent's Online's best of 2011 sci-fi short fiction list includes...wait...ME?

Image by Glamhag via FlickrI have exactly one paid fiction publication to my credit. Ever. And someone thinks it (just barely) qualifies as some of the best sci-fi short fiction of 2011. Thankfully that someone has some street cred, because it's the gang from Tangent, which just happens to specialize in reviewing and critiquing sci-fi short fiction.

My short story "Perfection" from the April issue of Redstone Science Fiction is considered one of the 50 or so best sci-fi short stories of the year. And this isn't some random blogger list. This is the group of people who critique sci-fi shorts as their raison d'etre. My name sneaks in besides the likes of Rudy Rucker, Nalo Hopkinson, Rachel Swirsky, Ian MacLeod, Greg Bear, Laura Ann Gilman, Bud Sparhawk, Nancy Kress, Jackie Kessler and Jay Lake.

Yes, I am making inappropriate squee noises right now, of the Japanese schoolgirl variety. No, I am not ashamed.

I owe some thanks. First, to Mike Ray, the EIC at Redstone who took a chance on a nobody and gave me my first sale. Second, to my fellow SF Signal irregular Matt Sanborn Smith, who was kind enough to tweet me about the Tangent selection. I'm a lucky guy.

Also, I guess I'm obligated to get to writing some short fiction in 2012. I have a meager reputation to maintain.

Me, a Famous Author and 2 Functional Nerds vs. The Avengers, Garageband, Arkham City and Kickstarter

When my pals over at the Functional Nerds podcast decided to retool their format, they couldn't come up with a better guinea pig to pair with multi-talented multi-media author Matt Forbeck than me. The evidence of their desperation is enshrined forever in Functional Nerds Episode 082 – FN vs. The Avengers, Garageband, Arkham City and Kickstarter.

I am blissfully silent while the big kids are talking, but manage to get my meta-nerd shots in about the new Marvel movie meta-franchise, and its consequences for the career of some guy named Joss Whedon. Sandbox Batman and the revenge of online author donations also come up, and we even discuss the virtue of having a recording studio in your pocket (or are you just glad to see me?).

This podcast features original music by John Anealio. That alone is worth a listen.

Related articles

• Author Matt Forbeck to Write 12 Novels in 2012 (wired.com)
• What the Next Batman Game Should Be (mau64.com)
• AVENGERS Trailer Feels Good In Your Eyes (nerdist.com)

Techtalk Trivia: What was the only manned space flight mission to take off on Halloween day?

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My latest TechTalk podcast/radio appearance was suitably seasonal: Ep. 248 – Every Day is Halloween!

TOPIC: Mike and Dave get together right before Halloween this year to tell you spooky tech stories … well, maybe not so spooky, but Dave does apologize for his comments about Steve Jobs from a few weeks ago, and an apology from the TechTalk show can seem almost supernatural in it’s rarity. Tablets and a possibly too-long discussion of IVR rounds out the show before …

Jay “Encyclopedia Garmonica” treats us to a totally a propos Halloweeny geek trivia question:

What was the only manned space flight mission to take off on Halloween day?

And that leaves us ample time for some great seasonal coolsites of the week!

• PumpkinPatchesAndMore – Find all the local pumpkin patches in your area! Plus carving templates, recipes, and more.


• HalloweenPrintables – From the great folks at FreePrintables.net, come some cards, puzzles, and coloring pages just in time for Halloween!


• FantasyPumpkins – These are cool to look at all year, and include templates for many of the coolest pumpkins you’ve ever seen!

This week we treat your ears to a speed metal version of the classic “Every Day is Halloween” by Ministry.