Amazon to be cleared again!, Does Positive thinking do more harm than good, Earwax is good for you and Earth's Atmosphere leaks Oxygen

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 29th August Include:

• Amazon was cleared 600 years ago - and no we are doing it again ... although then it was for a human network of villages, now it is for greed
• Does positive thinking do more damage than good? - There are those who think that if you have positive thoughts you will heal quicker, but what does that mean for those people who are ill and simply can't feel positive, for instance the clinically depressed?
• Earwax is good for you - now there is a headline I never thought I would write ... but apparently its true and you should never stick "anything smaller than your elbow" into your ear!! Go on try that ... I dare you
• Earth Atmosphere leaks Oxygen - and in the far future this process will actually speed up ... darn it, something else to worry about!

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Genetically engineered Ear Hair, Google helps web go AI, Arctic Carbon Scare, 4 tougher Megatrends and Red Dwarf is back so things can't be that bad!

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 28th August Include:

• Genetically Engineered hairs to help Hearing - apparently gene therapy grown hairs in mice have helped reduce hearing loss ... so it is good to have all those hairs growing out of your ears!!
• Google to help net become AI - according to IO9 anyway ... Google are bringing us predictive text to our search boxes ... I am not sure that constitutes AI, but the concept of Google creating an AI web is an interesting one
• Arctic Carbon Scare - as the ice thaws how much carbon could really be release and what affect would it have on the atmosphere?
• 4 megatrends to make your life harder - as if mine wasn't hard enough!!
• Red Dwarf is Back - According to IO9 the Red Dwarf team will re-unite for an hour long special

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Ruddy Rucker's ideas on Sci-fi, Ever wanted to star in MST3K?, BSG not dead despite ratings and Man walks on Robot Legs

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 27th August Include:

• Ruddy Rucker's ideas on Sci-fi - off the wall and out of the norm ... ruddy gives us 9 ideas which break the rules
• Paraplegic walks with Robot Legs - Tech Singular anyone?
• Ever wanted to star in your own MST3K? - well now you can ... their web site is open for submissions
• BSG still a hit despite ratings - so are we just watching stuff in a different way now ... DVD, web, TIVO, etc

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Wireless Electricity, Do we need sleep?, Do you remember John Titor?, More Riddick, More Highlander and More Dr Who Movies

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 26th August Include:

• Wireless Electricity - well everything else is wireless these days so why not ... although this article fails to explain how it works, they are pretty confident it is coming
• Do we need sleep? - The answer all depends on what you mean by sleep apparently
• Do you remember John Titor? - Tor.com does and brings us another failed prediction
• More Riddick on the way? - lets hope it is better than the last one and more up to the Original
• More Highlander news - IO9 are reporting Journeyman and Rome star to take over Highlander
• Dr Who the Movie? - Moffat says it is a possibility

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Stargate Dead and Reborn, Arctic Disintegration, Elves of the Atmosphere and FaceBook Dungeons and Dragons

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 22th August Include:

• Stargate Atlantis to end but Universe to begin - Stargate Atlantis will not be re-newed for a 6th season however a new series Stargate Universe has been given the green light ... can't wait, I'm a big fan of Stargate
• Arctic disintegration - how much of the Arctic is falling off? click here for an IO9 take on it plus pictures ... and here for a good education video of the history, monitoring systems and affects
• Elves and Sprites in the Atmosphere - This is not what you think ... apparently during an electrical storm there are bizarre flashes which shoot up into the upper atmosphere and they have been named Elves, Sprites, Jets and Halos
• FaceBook Dungeons and Dragons Tiny Adventures - cool I must try it

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Humans stuck in own Solar System, But Mirco Space Craft aren't, What is a Planet anyway, Hobbit finds writers and how to live on Venus

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 20th August Include:

• Humans will never get outside Solar System - According to the Joint Propulsion Conference recently in Hartford, Connecticut (yes I know I am disappointed I didn't get to go either) they have decided that the advances needed in propulsion technology to get us to go interstellar are un-feasible ... are they right or just short sighted?
• So will Micro Space Craft go instead? - According to the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (I know, I know, I missed that one as well) they have just invented a very thin covering which brings micro space craft closer to reality
• What Does Planet Mean? - so we are stuck on this planet by the looks of tings ... but what exactly does planet mean, and what is one ... or not
• The Hobbit writer search has ended - with Guillermo Del Toro and Peter Jackson deciding that no-one can do a better job than they can, so they will do it themselves
• How to live on Venus - in a floating Bubble apparently

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10 Solar System Mysteries, X-Files III to DVD, Synthetic Telepathy, Growing New Bones and Mythopoeic Award Winners

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 19th August Include:

• 10 Mysteries we still need to solve in our Solar System - when I say "need" obviously I mean "think about over a cup of coffee on a slow Friday afternoon" ...
• X-Files III will be direct to DVD - yes folks they will be back even although none of us wanted to believe this time round
• Synthetic Telepathy - computers will decode electroencephalography (EEG) signals from non-invasive bran imagery systems ... wow, I wonder if that sentence would be easier to think and get decoded than it would be to say!
• Growing new Bones - using Hydrogel to grow new bones
• Mythopoeic Awards Winners - If you are looking for some late summer or Bank Holiday reading check out these Fiction and non-fiction fantasy winners

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India to the Moon, Digital Drugs, TheWB.com goes sci-fi, Cosmic Void void of dark matter and What next after Akira live action?

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 18th August Include:

• India's voyage to the Moon - To rival China, Europe and the US India is determined to go to the moon with Chandrayaan-1 set for a September Launch ... Another country striving for scientific advancement while the US seems to languish
• Digital Drugs - so you thought your ipod, or your kids ipod, was safe did you ... well it may prove to be as addictive as heroin if this article is right
• TheWB.com increases Sci-Fi content - If Hulu.com doesn't have everything you need then head over to thewb.com as they have just added Babylon5 and Firefly to their list which already contains Smallville, Roswell and Buffy.
• Cosmic Void doesn't even have Dark Matter - I guess that's why they call it a void?
• Akira live action, what next? - IO9 have a great list of what Manga they would like to see made into Live Action after Akira hits the screens next year

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BigFoot scam?, Future of Fuel is trees, Future of Sci-fi is YA, China is USA's Future, Future Books?, Twilight takes Potter and Cassini bears fruit

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 16th August Include:

• Scepticism over Bigfoot find - no, really?
• Future of Fuel is genetically modified Trees - apparently they can dissolve into bio-fuel ... neat
• Future of sci-fi books is Young Adult - with an ageing and shrinking adult audience sci-fi fiction's counterpart in Young Adult fiction is booming ... they are the future in more ways than one ... but to just to balance the Universe io9 also run a "counterpoint" to this article where the author says "Stop Writing YA Sci-Fi"
• China to replace USA as world's No 1 Super power - as if we hadn't already seen this one coming!
• New Format Internet-Books - Check this IO9 article out on a new format "motion book" called "Deadbooks" ... can't say I am a fan from what I have seen so far
• Stephenie Meyer's Twilight takes Harry Potter's place - The Teen Vampire hit movie version is to take the Nov 21 premier slot from Harry Potter's recent edition which has been moved to July next year ... it's like musical chairs over there!
• Cassini Pictures bear fruit - Saturn's little messed up moon is giving back better pictures now through the Cassini probe, and scientist think they can identify the geysers origins and even what environment they come from

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Torchwood moves to BBC 1 in week long special, The Mult-Verse Explained and Bigfoot found - apparenlty!

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 15th August Include:

• Torchwood to move to BBC 1 - The Dr Who spin off returns for it's 3rd season, but is moved to the BBC flagship, mainstream broadcast channel BBC 1, and will air as 5 episodes running on consecutive days over 1 week ... lets hope it is as good as this move and new format would suggest it is
• The Mulit-Verse Explained - ever wondered exactly how it works and who can explain it to you? Well here is a 1 hour radio interview which should explain everything ... probably!
• Bigfoot found - apparently ... mmmhhhh

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Apparently we can go faster than light, Gordon the Robot has living brain and New Comedy has spoof sci-fi side

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 14th August Include:

• Apparently we can go faster than light - or at least there are two scientists (mad ones?) who believe we can by folding space/time ... mmmhhhh
• Gordon the robot has living brain - all be it a stitched together rat brain, but it is still the first robot controlled by a living brain ... mmmmhhh I wonder what kind of brain they will use next
• New comedy Gentlemen Broncos has Sci-fi side - a new viral marketing campaign advertising a new comedy show, Gentlemen Broncos, includes absurd sci-fi author ... io9 has the scoop, but I have to say it didn't make me laugh as much as Dr Horrible

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New Conan, Wheel of Time movie, Amphibian Destruction, Human Evolved by cooking, Star Trek MMOG, MST3K, Car Future and Awards

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 13th August Include:

• New Conan Film - plus same writing team to make an Amazon movie staring Scarlett Johansson
• Wheel of Time movie - Robert Jordan's series to be made into a film by Universal
• First Enceladus images - These images of the Cassini fly by of Saturn's Moon is not as impressive as I htouhgt it would be ... no shooting geysers
• Frog Deaths warn of new Mass Extinction - Amphibians are apparently on the verge of extinction according to Berkley Scientists ... if right this would be the 6th mass distinction event Earth has seen ... and we are to blame apparently
• Humans evolved because of cooking - what probably saved us from a mass extinction was our ability to cook and allow nutrients to be more readily absorbed ... as a species we changed little in the 150,000 years before cooking, but afterwards we exploded in terms of advances suggesting that cooking had a lot to do with our brain development
• Star Trek online gaming ready to engage - the latest in both online gaming and the Star Trek franchise looks set to stun (ooops 2 puns in one article)
• Mystery Science Theatre 3000 downloads - yup, you can get your fix from any of the 10 seasons they did and download them ... wow!
• The future of cars - It won't be long before petrol cars are extinct, but what next and when can we expect them ... time to upgrade now before mine becomes worthless I think
• Awards - Hugo, Campbell and Golden Duck winners ... Robert Heinlein Winner ... and ones to watch out for in the future

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Cameron's Avatar has an eye on future 3D, 3D's future is 6D and Robot futures are touch sensative

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 8th August Include:

• Cameron's Avatar is made for the future - He is making the film to be shown in 3D although it will still look good in 2D, but he is also making it to take advantage of future developments, which he sees as more 3D than 2D ... can wait to see what he is talking about
• The Future of 3D is "6D" - Not just images, but images that can respond to their environment ... come on then Cameron let's see if you have taken that into consideration in Avatar?
• New skin for Robots - a new rubbery skin has been developed which could be much better for providing robots with tactile abilities ... I wonder if that could be used in conjunction with 6D as well?

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Solar System is unique, Charles Stross on UK Sci-Fi, Is NASA holding back on Mars?, Star Trek comics DVD, Cthulhu movie, Sci-fi does Shakespeare

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 7th August Include:

• New Simulations take a different look at the Solar System - and apparently we are more special then we thought ... studying the recent exoplanets have given scientists a better understanding of just how unique our solar system really is and how much Saturn and Jupiter are important
• Charles Stross on UK Sci-Fi optimism - io9 have interview the writer and he thinks that US sci-fi is much more pessimistic than UK ... among other things, including the fact that he doesn't watch TV and movies ... now apart from that being a little weird, how does he make sure he keeps abreast of developments within the genre ... well apparently he doesn't, see Saturn's Children sexbot and Battlestar Galactica Cylons for an example
• Life on Mars or not? - apparently NASA are holding back on us about the potential habitability of Mars ... according to some ... the real question is why would they?, or is it why would you think they would?, or is it ... oh never mind
• Star Trek comics come out on DVD - Seriously, they have brought out over 500 Star Trek comics out on a DVD ... actually I think I might get it
• New Cthulhu movie looks great - I didn't even know this was coming out, what a great surprise ... and even better it actually looks good ... can't wait
• The Fermi Paradox by Tor.com - if you don't know what it is, or have just been wondering why we haven't been contacted by aliens yet, then read this article
• Casini prepares for Enceladus - this is one of Saturn's tiny moons which spews geysers up into space ... should make for some great space pictures
• Dr Who and Captain Pickard do Shakespeare - and tickets are apparently going like a rocket (pardon the pun)

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Dorian Grey Remake, Titan is alive with Electricity, The Terminator Blogs

Sci Fi Pool Highlights for 1st August Include:

• Colin Firth signs up for Dorian Grey Remake - Ealing Studios are behind the remake which they say is even more relevant to our modern star struck society. They start shooting this week.
• Titan is alive with electricity - Liquid Hydrocarbon lakes + Electrical activity could = life ... early Earth is supposed to have needed both to start life so could this happen, although slightly differently, on Titan?
• Terminator Blogs - Fox have started a blog from "Skynet" about the Sarah Connor Chronicles ... we weren't that impressed with season 1 so not sure a blog on it is really going to hold our attention

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