A Singularity

Seeing a Bionic Eye on Medicine’s Horizon (AFTAU)

Yes my friends. It is time for yet another amazing discovery by Carbon Nanotubes! Today we’ve learned that carbon Nanotubes could be used to fix blind eyes! Yes my friends, Carbon Nanotubes could replace some of the nerves in our eyes, allowing people previously unable to see to actually see without messy bypass devices like Jordy’s visor!

Televangelists have reported no worries since Carbon Nanotubes have yet to show any capability in healing the lame or talking excessively for several hours while repeating ‘praise the lord’ every other sentence.

I just picked up and played my first game of Flash Duel this evening. It was a lot of fun. The following is some of my commentary/review on the game.

Summary of Gameplay
If you’d prefer to read the rules rather than my summary you can click here for the last beta version of the rules. I don’t believe they have changed much.

So the game is designed for two players. It is played typically with three character cards per player, a common deck, and a board that numbers eighteen spaces in a row. The common deck consists of 5 sets of the numbers 1-5, for a total of 25 cards, five of each number. Players put their pawns on either end of the board, then draw five cards from the common deck.

Gameplay proceeds in turns. On your turn you can choose to do one of four actions: move, push, attack, or dashing strike. If you move, play a card out of your hand and move that many spaces forward or backward. You can push if you’re in the space adjacent to your opponent, you may play a card to push them the number of spaces equal to the value of the card.

Alternately you can attack. If you have a number card that is the exact distance between you and your opponent, you may play it as an attack. If you have a pair of numbers, or 3 of a kind, you can play them for a stronger attack. If your opponent doesn’t block, they lose the round. And lastly you can dashing strike. If you dash strike, first you discard a card to move that amount, then another one to attack if it is the distance between you and your opponent (using pairs or 3 of a kinds to strength it). Your opponent must either block or retreat from a dashing strike.

So say you’re the subject of an attack. If you don’t block, you lose the round. To block, you must play the same card and the same amount of cards as the attack. So if the attacker played a 3, you need to play a 3 to block. If they played three 1s, then you need to play three 1s to block, otherwise you lose the round.

If you’re the subject of a dashing strike, you can block just like an attack. But if you can’t block, you have the option of retreating. If you retreat, you discard a card to move backward that many spaces. Also if you retreat, you’re forced to skip your next turn (but not your draw phase).

Game totals best 3 out of 5 rounds.

The game is simple enough. When you add character abilities, it heightens the complexity enough to be rather interesting. Each character has a different style and some characters aren’t necessarily balanced against each other without the use of strategy.

So next I’ll review various parts of the game. Note this review is of the Deluxe version of the game, not the standard.

Box & Container
Here is a video show the box and its contents.

The box that comes with the deluxe version is nice. I am a fan of wood and the laser cut logo is a nice touch. My biggest issue with the box is actually its design as container. The top doesn’t have any type of grove system so it comes off very easily, which is an issue if I decide to travel with the game or set it on its side as all the contents will spill out. As is I’m going to have to look into some kind of ribbon or tying mechanism for keeping the lid on.

The insert inside the box is also of good quality but I think the shape picked was opposite what it should have been. If you didn’t watch the video I’ll describe the insert is a squared sin wave. One sheet of paper folded in the center to create a depression so the cards fit nicely in the center of the box. The sides are the right height the board piece on top and still let the lid fit on the box. Extra pieces are kept in a little bag under the insert.

This works well for the cards but the issue I have is with the pieces/tokens that are stored under the insert. They are somewhat difficult to remove from the box due to the way the insert is cut. I think the insert would have worked better if it was a single hump in the center (like a cosine wave). Then you could keep your cards on one side, and your tokens on the other. Or alternately store your character cards on one side, your deck on the other, and put your tokens under the center rise.

A discussion with the game creator on his forums revealed that he may look into this idea for a future printing.

Pieces & Parts
The quality of the tokens are very good. No complaints here. I use the round wood tokens meant for keeping track of how many rounds you’ve won to also call heads or tales to figure out who goes first in the first round

The real piece of worth in the deluxe version is the board. I love the board and its color use. The deluxe version board is two wooden pieces that fit together well. Here is a picture showing a comparison of the board and the cards you get in the standard game. See how colorful it is? And very sturdy. My version had some slight warping that I imagine will come out with use.

If I had asked for one improvement I might have asked for numbers along both sides of the board. Perhaps with the other set in a different color. The numbers can be used to do quick distance calculations in your head without having to rely upon eye counting. So having a count from the other side might have made it easier on those of us who can’t do quick mental math in with the higher numbers or prefer to add numbers rather than subtract.

Cards
The cards are of decent quality. I was actually surprised at how small a 25 card deck is. The art is colorful and it was masterfully reused. I studied the art for awhile, seeing how color and patterns were used to make each character card feel unique without requiring a lot of custom art.

The number cards have so many different ways to determine they’re value, at first I was a little boggled as to if they the different parts of the number hard had different meanings. I theorized that the arrow length at the top of the cards was an actual measurement you could lay against the board to determine how far your character moved or could attack. Not so much but we thought it was a neat idea. As it stands I think the number cards could actually be as language independent in their value as they could be.

Rulebook
Rules were one page and very nicely laid out with one exception. After reading through setup and having the board art separate that from the rest of the rules, my eyes wanted to move on to the action definitions rather than the turn definition. For a second I though the turn structure/order had been left out of the rules since it almost seems to appear in its own “side box” which my eyes have been trained to ignore until I’ve read the main text. A minor complaint.

One other thing I felt was missing was a credits section. Particularly who had done the art, layout, and card design for the game. Posting to the forums of the designer revealed that with the exception of the actual character art, this was a complete one man job. Which is impressive.

The rules also lack a version number, which is not a big deal except when one goes to the forums to try and determine if there is any errata. At the time of writing this review, the game creator assured me that the printed rules were the “final” version.

Gameplay
Gameplay is the real shining part of this game. The rule book mentions that is it based off a game called En Garde by Reiner Knizia’s. It is nice to see game designers giving credit for their inspiration. I have no played En Garde so I can’t compare it but Flash Duel is a lot of fun.

The game is very quick once you get the rules down. My first time playing we knocked out rules explanation and 6 games in under 2 hours, which was enough to try out half the characters. My opponent and I randomly choose characters and pitted them against each other, after playing one character-less round.

The strategy of the game comes mostly from attempting to determine your opponent’s hand, determining how to use your character’s powers, and determining how to use your hand. The game mechanics very much seem to simulate a fast pace first to hit spar.

About the only drawback is that the game is limited to 2 players. Which means it won’t be a common pickup game at a board gaming night except for perhaps when you’re waiting for your friends to arrive.

Theme & Setting
The game actually has a theme. It is set in the Fantasy Strike universe, which seems to be a setting specifically for Sirlin Games used across all their games. Since Flesh Duel appears to be the first of their fighting games that I am able to determine, this is our introduction to the world.

For those who have played fighting video games, the peek at the world we get through the characters and their abilities will be familiar. Mystic martial artists. Anthropomorphic animal fighters. Modern setting with fantastic elements. I expect the world will be expanded when we see more games set in the world like the upcoming Yomi.

Who would like it and when would you play it?
Fans of fighting games definitely would like this card game. People who want a quick game that takes only 10 or so minuets to grasp and 10-15 minuets to play a round will be ecstatic. Losing isn’t a big deal in this game since the game plays so quickly. I could see this being an easy game to break out while you’re waiting on a friend or two to arrive for a gaming night. It being limited to 2 players though is kind of a drag though. But the simplicity of the game almost invites house rules and interesting variants including tournament play.

Worth
The deluxe version is selling for $45 on Amazon. The standard version is selling for $16. I’m not sure if the game is worth $45 and while I haven’t seen the standard version. That being said the use of the wooden board and its color and numbers makes me feel like I wasn’t cheated.

Final Thoughts
All in all I consider it a fun game. I played it with my friend and we played 6 games worth in the span of an 2 hours including learning the rules. We played once without characters, then proceeded to randomly pick two characters to face off. From that we got a feel for what characters we like, and what we didn’t. My friend felt that $45 was a bit more for the base game but he is more then willing to pick up the standard version for $16. The game also seems to invite house rules. With its simple rules and nice tokens, I could see people trying to expand upon the rules. I’ve already theorized some interesting maneuvers that I may post later.

So I /finally/ finished Tales of Monkey Island. I wasn’t feeling to great this weekend so rather than doing anything productive, I just vegetated my brain on video games and let my body work out its issues.

Not that a game like Tales of Monkey Island can really be considered vegetation material. It was a blast almost all the way through. Like the prior episode, this episode was almost all climax. I admit I got stuck once or twice but that is par for the course with adventure games. The story told was classic Monkey Island with enough flair to be new and interesting. Several of the puzzles required Monkey Island knowledge which was attainable within the game but obvious to those of us who had played the prior games as well.

Ultimately I declare Tales of Monkey Island to be a successful addition to the franchise, unlike Escape from Monkey Island which, while fun felt off in the way most transitions from 2d games to 3d games do.

I would highly suggest this game for fans and newbies to both. Although with the HD remake of Monkey Island available on steam, I would suggest starting with that one first as well.

Wow. So Morgan was dead. And so was Guybrush so it all worked out. But that ending after the credits? Wow. I never really thought about it but Voodoo Lady is now a distinctly awesome kinda maybe villian. AND she is bringing back Morgan, which gets her a plus in my book.

I really liked Elaine when she was LeChuck’s Demon Bride. I was hilarious and amusing. I kept going back to have her gut or root beer Guybrush several times. So much so the hint system thought I was stuck. I admit there was a moment where I thought they were going to make it so that Guybrush ends up with Morgan! I was also conflicted in that idea… which is a sign of good storytelling I suppose.

I ordered some voodoo cards. I couldn’t really not, ya know?

So I saw Kick Ass yesterday.

I liked it. A lot. It was awesome and entertainment. It wasn’t without flaws but there was enough awesome to make up for them.

I’m not going to write a full review because I haven’t felt very… review-ish lately. And so far as I can tell, everybody who reads this has already seen the movie anyway.

What I do want to post about is this well written article discussing if Kick Ass is morally reprehensible or not. Click here for the article.

I’m going to go ahead and say I agree with him. I’m not stating that fiction and escapism don’t affect human behavior. It does. But when it comes to children we should guide them and teach them. In some cases that may mean not exposing them to adult material like Kick Ass until they are older and in some cases it may mean exposing them to such material in order to help them learn and decide if the themes in it were right and wrong.

A guide to what to do if you encounter aliens (Image).

I don’t think I agree with all of this, but its still funny.

So I’ve tried to start this review three times now. I think I’m slightly out of it, or perhaps there just isn’t a lot to review. Which makes me sad because I don’t necessarily want to just write for things I’m passionate about (either for or against). So I’m forcing out this review anyway. Hopefully it’ll improve my writing skills even further.

So Alice in Wonderland. I saw this on opening weekend on an Imax in 3D. I made no particular plans to do this. It was mostly a night before idea. Actually I had originally decided to go to Shutter Island but I remember Alice and my friend chose the theater and everything rather fell into place.

Now my prior two paragraphs might give you the impression I am not a fan. This is not true. I am actually a fan of Alice in Wonderland. The original animated movie by Disney is probably the most popular version but I have seen several different versions, including several re-imaginings which have been rather inspiring. What I have never done is create Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carrol). I’m not sure why. I have the same problem with Lovecraft. I should read them but I haven’t. Too much other content out there.

So enough about the past. What about the newest version of Alice in Wonderland? Well you might have guessed I was not overwhelmed. Not do I consider it a bad movie. I actually feel that, as a child, I would have very much enjoyed this film, but as an adult and a fan of Tim Burton it wasn’t all that inspiring.

Well in case you haven’t heard, this is not a pure remake nor is it a re-imagining. It is, in fact, a sequel. But it is a sequel to a movie never made but instead of the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland itself. Those only familiar with the prior Disney film will find new characters to wonder about as well as old familiar ones.

Being a sequel it does not present itself as such. We are instead introduced to an Alice who is being forced to deal with the harsh realities of Victorian nobility, politics, and ettiquette. She is presented as a woman of some strange capacity for imagination that puts off all but her closest friends. During a rather large party in her honor, she spies a rabbit in a waistcoat, who leads her to a hole at the base of a tree, which she promptly falls through and into Underland.

There she meets all sorts of characters who are concerned with if she is “The Alice”. Alice herself attempts to come to grip with the absurdity of the world around her which includes talking animals, mad hatters, evaporating cats, and two warring queens. Her newly found companions have in their possession a scroll which foretells the future of Underland in which the girl named Alice shall take up the Vorpal sword and slay the Jaberwocky, a creature of horrible power that the Queen of Hearts uses to keep Underland under her control.

The movie is very much a tale of self discover for Alice as she slowly remembers her companions, especially the Mad Hatter, and attempts to come to grips that she does have the ability to save Underland from the Queen of Heart’s tyranny.

First lets get out of the way what bothers me about this film. First of all this is a film for children. I don’t consider this a bad thing but I admit I am a little disappointed. The pacing of the film was very fast. To coin a term from the Galactic Water cooler podcast, the movie “went at the speed of kid” as soon as Alice entered Underland. Characters are introduced and disappear quickly. Some events seem to happen for only the purpose of moving Alice along her path. Now Alice in Wonderland draws its inspiration from a book that is the epitome of randomness. Allegorical randomness but still a play upon the absurd and non-sequitur. So the railroading might be forgiven save that we have this oracle device that seems to be enforcing some sort of plot. ALice will save the day by defeating the Jabberwocky.

Another personally disappointing aspect of the film was the seemingly absence of Tim Burton himself. Very little of his unusual aesthetic style seemed to find its way into the film. Perhaps it did and it was just overshadows by Wonderland’s own aesthetic and they merged to make very unusual but brightly colored babies. About the only thing I could point out as being particularly Buton-esque were Alice’s gloves at the beginning of the party scene. They were blue but also thickly stripped, not a very common Victorian fashion. They, however, are quickly lost.

Another aspect that bothered me that I can forgive due to the “children’s movie” nature of the story is the oracle scroll that tells the future and the lack of characterization of the White Queen. They don’t really say why she is fit to rule other than that she is not as blood thirsty or was jealous as her elder sister, the Queen of Hearts. The oracle itself just kind of set a pace for the moment and told us where we were going, and while I am a fan of the Jabberwocky, it in and of itself, was the justification for the plot in a world that made little sense. Ultimately it felt rather unsatisfying.

Another comment to make was the 3d element. I am not completely sure if this was perhaps my particular seating arrangement in an Imax theater, or if it was the 3d itself, but at times the 3d only caused blurriness at my screening, pushing me out of the film. And while it did not give me eye strain or a headache, the use of 3d in this film was, at best, minimally gimmicky. Very few establishing shots. Very little attention paid to the environment and using it to create a sense of space. The few times it was used was to denote distance between characters and pull harsh focus upon the main action, as well as a very turbulent fall down a rabbit hole that was difficult to make out much less experience.

I understand that the 3d elements of this film were added in post production, which would help explain their lack of quality. Most of the films you’ve seen make good use of 3d did so by actually using cameras specifically designed to record in 3d.

Also the mouse character bothered me. She was feisty through all the movie but weird during the tea scene. The jumping around of her personality bothered me more than my ‘its Wonderland ignore it’ could really stand.

Now I don’t want to say that I didn’t enjoy the film. I enjoyed it very much. There is quiet a bit to praise about it, despite my above reservations. First and for most being the Cheshier Cat. I admit a small bit of prejudice but he is still an interesting character in this film, if a little underused. Voiced by Stephen Fry a voice actor of some accomplishment whose titles include the Narrator from the video game Little Big Planet, as well as the voice of The Guide from the latest Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy movie.

Another shining start in this film is the White Queen played by Anne Hathaway. Perhaps again I should admit a bit of prejudice, this time towards the actress rather than the character. But the beauty combined with off-beat physical acting that her character portrays is a stunningly bizarre thing that very much captured my eye. She dances and flows but mixes potions of filled with heinous ingredients. The juxtaposition was intriguing.

The stars of the film, of course, deserve their credit. Johnny Depth once again shows that he can play a mad man with perfect capability. His character seemed almost an amalgamation of his prior characters, stuck in one body and form known as the Mad Hatter. While I will admit a small weariness for Captain Jack, it was nice to see Sweeny Todd and Willy Wonka again, with a bit of Ichabod Crane.

Helena Bonham Carter, whose own brand of crazy asthetic rivals her husband’s (Tim Burton), played the Red Queen and managed to sink herself into the role throughly. While I enjoy Helena herself, never once did I really see /her/ in the character. Instead it was the Red Queen herself. Perhaps aided by the special effects which made her head so huge, but I was impressed with her performance.

The real shining star was, Mia Wasikowska, who played Alice. Relatively unknown actress with very few titles under her belt, according to IMDB, but she a near flawless performance according to my eyes and ears. I certainly felt for the character, her confusion and self-realization. I suspect this role will land her quiet a few dramas despite the action pacing this film offered.

But of course the film was a visual feast. If a bit distracted by the 3d, I was still very much able to enjoy wonder land. Never once did I consider the talking animals out of place. The designs of the card and cheese warriors was excellent and interesting. Costuming, including Alice’s various size changes, should win several wards with no real luck needed. The Chesheir’s cats moments and evaporation were a smooth dance. Even the frog’s and their expressions…

It is getting to the point where I should just stop praising movies for looking realistic and instead just start highly insulting other movies not looking so. The overall design of Wonderland was a visual feast and while Tim Burton’s particular visual flair wasn’t seemingly present, it was still a movie I would like to watch again.

So who should see this movie? Parents and children most definitely. Children more than parents but most parents will find something fun to watch. Hardcore fans of Tim Burton will of course want to go, even if it isn’t the best showcase of Burton’s artistic capabilities. As well as the newer crowds of Johnny Depp fans. Fans of the book might want to take a look at this film but be warned, there is plot hidden amongst the insanity. Overall I can’t think of a reason not to see this film unless you’re particularly stripped for cash. If so then a BluRay or HD Netflix will likely satisfy you.

So the following below has possible spoilers. Don’t read further if you care.
(continue reading…)

Big power from tiny wires by David L Chandler (MIT News)

Yes my friends new news regarding carbon nanotubes! Now they can produce electrcity!

This isn’t just some new invention on the old ‘turn the turbine’ thing. This is a completely new way of generating electricity according to MIT.

That’s seriously revolutionary folks.

Hello All. While I know nobody is reading this site because I haven’t been publicizing it, I felt like leaving this message just in case someone stumbles upon it.

I have decided to hold off on implementing this blog until WordPress 3.0 is released. WordPress 3.0 is supposed to natively have some features which will make this blog more of what I want it to be. Until then I will continue to post content on my live journal which you can find here:

Nojh’s Live Journal

Enjoy!