William Safire died Sunday. I know little of his link to Nixon. But he loved & promoted language, and for that I mourn the end of his "book"-NIC

A Poet's Creed

Got this e-mail from my friend, Ryan, who is an amateur writer and a humanist. It's tongue-in-cheek, and even if it wasn't, I'm just sharing it because it was so creative (and not because I think it's something anybody should actually do) - so please, no angry comments.

Here's the e-mail:

"Maybe I'll start a Church of the Word of Man. 7 deadly grammar sins. The 12 apostles (including Samuel Johnson, Shakespeare, Gutenberg etc). The Holy Book of the Oxford English Dictionary. A vat of holy ink by the door from which to fill your pen to spread the Word. Not the "word" of anybody. Just the Word.

"We believe in one Word, the Written, the Spoken, describer of the earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Grammar, in Punctuation, the only way to write, eternally begotten of the Style Guide, Contractions from words, Abbreviations for Brevity, true Syntax from true Syntax, begotten, not made, one in being with the Dictionary. Through the Dictionary all things were defined. For us men and our perpetuation, It came down from necessity: by the power of the OED, It was born of the need for standardization, and became Law. For our sake It was amended under a panel of Experts; It suffered, died, and was buried in the depths of the Internet. Eventually It rose again: It ascended into bookshelves and is within reach of the Writer. It will come again in glory to judge the new words and the dead, and Its kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Poet Laureate, the master, the weaver of words, who proceeds from the masses. The inattention of the masses means It is neither worshiped nor glorified. It has spoken through Its Pages. We believe in one, Style Guide, most likely the first we were taught. We acknowledge one delete button for the forgiveness of transgressions. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the Word to come. A Pen.

"That was way too much fun. I'm sorry if your computer gets struck by lightning. -Ryan Thurman"

-NIC

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Water on the moon!?

Check this one out from NPR:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113159860

They're finding hydroxl, which is just one hydrogen, one oxygen atom, in sunlit areas of the moon. It's not water, but so closely related that it's a shock to find it in what's normally a very dry area of the moon.

-NIC

"Gollum"? I don't think so...

This was about the strangest Lord of the Rings related story I've ever seen:

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world/montauk-monster-mystery-creatures-body-found-in-panama_100249719.html

I feel terrible for the poor creature, whatever it was - hairless sloth or ring corrupted hobbit. (My money's on the former.)

-NIC

Harry Potter theme park!

Universal Studios is promising about 20 acres of authentic Harry Potter experience come next spring. The theme park within Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida should boast three main attractions including "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" and a roller coaster based on the hippogriffs. It should also have many of the Hogsmeade shops fans know from the books and movies. This park could give Disney a challenge if it's done well, but I have my doubts. Universals' rides seem to often come off as pathologically lame. Best example: Back to the Future, which can be replicated at home with a big screen television and four strong friends willing to pick up the couch and shake it around. But we'll suspend judgment for Harry's sake. -NIC

Harry Potter World

Universal Studios Theme Park in Orlando has announced that next spring will bring a Harry Potter themed area covering 20 acres for $200 million!

More later on this, but wow!

-NIC

New Tolkien Book

Fellow Nerdlingers, I hang my head in shame. How on earth did I miss that this came out?

http://www.amazon.com/Legend-Sigurd-Gudrun-J-R-R-Tolkien/dp/0547273428/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1252889320&sr=8-1

Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun appears to be all about Norse mythology and not set in the world of Middle Earth, but it must still be worth checking out. Look for a review in a few months.

-NIC