/* *************************************************************************** ** *************************************************************************** ** The Non-Sequitur Express ** Published every 11.3 days or so by Phillip Thorne ** Volume 2, Issue 30: Sunday, 26 November 2000 ** http://nsx.underbase.org/ ** ** If your most horrific punishment can accidentally create an unstoppable ** undead juggernaut, maybe you should reconsider your penal code. ** *************************************************************************** ** ************************************************************************ */ OBSERVATIONS & C: Veggies are alive!, jovian worlds now, The Mummy. ERRATA & O+A+A: NHL-displaced "Voyager". CONFERENCE DIGEST: 8th Foresight Conference, Talks 1-5. CONVENTION DIGEST: Philcon 2000, "Monsters, Aliens and Spirit Gum". CONVENTION DIGEST: Moschitta vs. Woodmore: fast-talkers tilt their tales. UPCOMING: Spider-Man Unlimited, Dune miniseries, D&D & Disney. plus Legalese, acknowledgements and opt-in/out instructions. /* *************************************************************************** ** OBSERVATIONS & COGITATIONS ** ************************************************************************ */ Here's a thought for vegetarians (and any supposed fifth-level vegans, who won't eat anything that even casts a shadow): roots, fruits and nuts. Ever conduct that gradeschool biology experiment in which you germinate a carrot top (the vegetable, not the actor)? Ever had an onion sprout in the pantry, or a melon vine in the compost heap? From the farm, through the supermarket, to your fridge, countertop, shelf... Boo! They're still alive! Just waiting for the right cues to start metabolizing in earnest. --You can say this for a pound of sirloin: it's not about to grow a new set of hooves. I was out on the driveway the other night, abusing my spine against the hatchback of my car, breathing shallowly, trying to establish a stable bipod for my binoculars. There they were, sixty degrees up, high above the wires and trees, outshining the blue-white pointy multitude in all their yellowish visible-disc glory: Jupiter and Saturn. No probes, cameras or digitally enhanced images; the truth is indeed out there -- with nothing between me and the universe but a few centimeters of glass and the cold, still air. Today's masthead refers to the 1999 film "The Mummy," in which the ancient Egyptian high priest Imhotep bungles an affair with the Pharaoh's mistress, and is therefore locked in a sarcophagus with flesh-eating scarab beetles. Three millenia later he's awake, and he's not a happy camper. Where are the Ghostbusters when you need them? Mister Brown-and- Dessicated-and-Eviscerated is rather creepy, but not technically gory, and the film's otherwise quite funny. Now, how many votes that the climactic mummy battle beneath Hamunaptra is a Ray Harryhausen homage? /* *************************************************************************** ** ERRATA & OMISSIONS, ADDENDA & ADMISSIONS ** ************************************************************************ */ Due to NHL coverage, UPN's Wednesday scheduling of "Star Trek Voyager" has been severely deregularized. The Upcoming section has failed to note that the past two weeks' episodes, 707 "Body and Soul" and 708 "Nightingale", aired at w-15-nov-22:30 and w-15-nov-22:00, respectively. /* *************************************************************************** ** CONFERENCE DIGEST ** 8th Foresight Conference on Molecular Nanotechnology ** 2-5 November 2000, Bethesda, Maryland ** Platform presentations 1-5 of 33 ** ************************************************************************ */ The conference had scheduled one keynote, 33 platform presentations and 62 posters. Two of the platforms were canceled, one I failed to attend, and a few were so far outside my generalist understanding that I couldn't take any meaningful notes. The following five digests are the first installment of my conference coverage; I'll gradually mirror them online at NSX with a glossary and relevant links. The presenters' own abstracts are on the Foresight Institute website itself: nsx.underbase.org/review/conv/fcmnt-2000-platforms.txt nsx.underbase.org/review/conv/fcmnt-2000-glossary.txt www.foresight.org/Conferences/MNT8/Abstracts/index.html (The following coverage is accurate to the best of my recall and interpretation of my handwritten, abbreviated notes. Errors in content are probably my fault, unless the presenter misspoke.) ****************************************************************************** Talk 1 Charles Lieber, Harvard Univ "Nanowires and nanotubes: building blocks for nanotechnologies" Understandability: 4/5 Motivation: given the appropriate building blocks, and hierarchical assembly, new tools and devices can be created. Carbon nanotubes and semiconductor nanowires, assembled with functionalized scanning probe tips, are promising candidates. NANOTUBE-TIPPED SPMS: In the past decade, scanning probe microscopes (SPMs, including AFT CFM EFM MFM STM) have become the workhorses of molecular imaging, but their use as manipulators is limited because the size/shape of the scanning tip is not reproduceable. Some groups have tried attaching bundles of SWNTs to the tips, but Lieber's group prefers to grow a single tube from the tip, choosing an appropriate catalyst and CVD flow rate to control its diameter; and this process *is* reproduceable. They can further tailor/functionalize the tip, attaching organic groups using well-understood synthetic chemistry. NANOTUBE CROSSBAR ARRAY: Lieber's group envisions a high-density memory device based on a criss- crossed "suspended crossbar array" of nanotubes: an upper weft, a lower woof, with switches at the intersections. These crossings are bistable; at a large spacing, the nanotubes are in a mechanically stable "elastic" state. Move them a little closer, and Clunk! they flex together into a Van der Waals-dominated state. The predicted operating properties of the crossbar array are very good. One trillion switches (a terabit of memory) fit in a square centimeter, operate at 200GHz at room temperature, and dissipate heat easily. As a computer, the array performs 1e11 OPS. As memory, they're bistable at 10-plus times the thermal limit, and nonvolatile (unlike DRAM). The states are easily distinguishable, due to the switch between ohmic and tunnelling behavior. They can operate at 3|5 volts, the standard 0|1 levels of today's CMOS. To do: develop scalable assembly strategies. They plan to use a microfluidic device: a first laminar flow deposits/aligns the nanotubes of the weft, then a second perpendicular flow aligns the woof. NANOWIRES: Nanoparticles prefer to grow in "zero" dimensions, ie as spherically- symmetric crystals. To grow useful materials, such as one-dimensional (ie linear) nanowires, that symmetry must be broken. One technique uses catalysts, supersaturation and precipitation. Silicon nanowires can be doped with boron to make p-type materials, or phosphorus for n-type. Ditto for InP (indium phosphide); moreover its conductivity can be varied by 1e5, and lightly doped it acts as a FET. Doped nanowires can be assembled on the lab benchtop; no billion-dollar clean-room factory is required. A forward-biased InP nanoscale junction acts as a point-source LED, with emission frequency related to the nanowire's diameter. (Image: glowing nanowire suspended between four CMOS terminals.) ****************************************************************************** Talk 2 Jacqueline Krim, North Carolina State Univ "Viewing a moving contact: an STM-QCM study of sliding friction in adsorbed molecules" Understandability: 2/5 Motivation: to use friction to control the motion of atoms on surfaces. Krim has studied the atomic origins of friction for 15 years. A venerable experimental device is the quartz crystal microbalance, a piezoelectric slab exquisitely sensitive to the number of atoms deposited on its surface, and the layers in which they self-assemble; it responds by altering its vibration. At the nanoscale, the processes of diffusion (thermal kinetics) and friction meet; they're no longer mere perturbations. There are marketable MEMS devices today with cantilivers (eg accelerometers in auto airbag triggers), but none with sliding/rotating parts, due to the peculiarities of wear and sticky-friction, or "stiction". "MEMS tribology" is the study of friction and lubrication at this scale. On a surface (interface) motion is confined, to two dimensions, and sometimes to certain directions within that (due to the surface lattice). There are five mechanisms to move items across the surface, to induce their assembly: self-assembly (homogenous and unspecific), shaking to encourage diffusion, tilting the surface, creating a wind across it, or dragging individual items with an SPM tip. Krim's group has studied: sliptime versus surface corrugation. Xenon on Ag(111) surfaces. Frictional losses are due to phonons (about 10% on a perfectly clean metal surface) and electron dragging. At the superconducting transition, where electron coupling changes, so does friction. Quantum mechanical non-continuum issues. When an object falls through a fluid, it eventually achieves terminal velocity, when its weight is balanced by drag (ie fluid friction). Krim's group has found an analogous effect with atom clusters sliding over a surface in a vacuum. Gradually tilt a surface to the vertical, and the clusters attain a speed of 2 nm/s. ****************************************************************************** Talk 3 Liangchi Zhang, Sydney Univ "The size effect on the friction in atomic scale sliding" Understandability: 3/5 Motivation: from the POV of a mechanical engineer, what are the atomic- scale transition mechanisms between frictional modes (analogous to sliding and rolling at the macroscale)? Is the transition dependent on material properties? Simulations: of a hydrogen-terminated diamond object (an "asperity") moving against a copper surface (the "substrate") in a vacuum. The asperity has a radius R, moves with velocity V, and digs into the substrate to an "indentation depth" d. The asperity in a so-called two-body (sliding) interaction will (given decreasing depth) successively cut, plough, adhere, or exert no wear on the substrate. In three-body (rolling) interaction, it will plough, adhere, condense, or not wear. Conclusions: At a very small contact length (small R), frictional stress is at the theoretical shear strength of the substrate, and concurrent stick- slip movement occurs. (Pic: a friction-time graph, showing a sawtooth with jagged upward slopes.) Above a certain critical length (large R), there's a transition, and no dislocation occurs. (Pic: a low-amplitude jagged flat line.) Friction varies with R and d, and the transition is material- dependent. ****************************************************************************** Talk 4 James T. Spencer, Syracuse Univ "On the way to molecular nanosystems: the design and synthesis of molecular synthons for formation of nanostructural architectures" See: Poster 1 Understandability: 4/5 Motivation: to use solution chemistry to synthesize units ("synthons") that will self-assemble into larger structures (rods, rings, gears, helices) amenable to positional mechanosynthesis. Polyhedral borane clusters are a good candidate, as are bora- and aza-adamantane. A successful synthon will meet several criteria: unidirectional synthesis, high yield, and rigidity (ie limited degrees of freedom) with controllable chemical/electrical properties. There are well-known synthetic pathways to produce polyhedral borane clusters. They have a rigid framework, are chemically and thermally stable, and their properties are controllable by substitution (as with conventional organic chemistry). One possible synthon consists of two icosahedra, joined by a 5-ring which sprouts a pennant, a multi-ringed functional group. The principle of "pi-stacking" (in which the pennants' electron orbitals reinforce, favoring synthesis) can be used to produce rods, rings with the pennants facing in or out, and single- and double-helixes. Adamantane is essentially a very small, pyramidal fragment of diamond. If boron or nitrogen is substituted for an apical (apex/vertex) carbon atom, it is redesignated bora- or aza-adamantane. (Only the former has yet been synthesized; Spencer's group is investigating the latter). Such substitutions provide flexibility and control in designs. The adamantanes can be used as pendentives (curved corners) to join together multiple open- ended buckytubes, creating nanoscale plumbing junctions (3-, 4- or 6-way). ****************************************************************************** Talk 5 Robert J. Celotta, NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology), Electron Physics Group "Nanofabrication for nanoscale science" Understandability: 4/5 Motivation: to fabricate perfect standard nanostructures against which to test measurement tools for the support of US industry; to create a systematically varied series of structures. These structures may best be made with bottom-up techniques. MAGNETIC THIN FILMS How do magnetic thin films couple (ie how do their fields relate) when separated by different-size nanometer-scale nonmagnetic spacers? Relevance: magnetic hard drives. Celotta's group took an iron whisker (with an atomically flat surface) 500nm long, deposited a wedge-shaped layer of chromium atop it, then added a second whisker. The chromium wedge consisted of stairsteps, each one atomic layer (0.2nm) thick; these steps permitted measurement at a regular series of spacings. The findings: the horizontal magnetic field reversed with each step, except for each twentieth step; at the edges it was vertical. Surprisingly, on the first step the field was confused; later analysis indicated the Fe/Cr boundary was contaminated/alloyed by atoms that had migrated in each direction. Relying on thermodynamics to create the steps had compromised them. ATOM OPTICS The team created a regular pattern of atoms using so-called "atom optics". An MBE source of atoms was collimated with lasers, then focused with laser standing waves. Positional accuracy was limited by diffusion after the atoms landed on the surface. The collimator consisted of a laser beam transverse to the atom beam, tuned to just outside the absorbtion frequency of the atoms. Atoms with horizontal velocity perceived a doppler shift in the light, interacted, and were pushed back towards the center of the beam. The laser standing wave acted as a lens, its electric field inducing dipole moments in the atoms, causing them to pile into ridges. A pair of intersecting standing waves created peaks. To do: adapt the process to lower temperatures, to reduce diffusion. AUTOMATED ATOM ASSEMBLY As envisioned, "A3" will rearrange scattered atoms on a flat surface into a desired two-dimensional final product. Atoms are first evaporated onto the (very cold) surface, and their locations are recorded by an STM. The planner software then calculates a sequence of moves to drag the atoms together, one-by-one (using an "expanding convex hull" to avoid leaving unused feedstock within the product). The atoms are dragged along the lattice (ie through the valleys), lest they stick or fly loose altogether. (Animation: hypnotic series of zigzag moves, output by the current version of the planner.) To do: program the planner to correct for errors (ie feedstock that drifts, or atoms that *do* stick or fall loose). FURTHER TOPICS OF INTEREST The Kondo Effect. Confinement in two dimensions. For spintronics (systems that use up/down electron spin, not the presence/absence of charge), spin- dependent tunneling and superconducting-ferromagnetic tunneling. Hi-res tunneling spectroscopy. Tricks to permit three-dimensional assembly (many inspired by Egyptian pyramid-building techniques): screw dislocations in the substrate, sacrificial stairsteps. /* *************************************************************************** ** CONVENTION DIGEST ** Philcon 2000 ** 17-19 November 2000, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ** "Monsters, Aliens and Spirit Gum" ** Presented by Richard Stout, s-19-nov-10:00 ** Full text at nsx.underbase.org/review/conv/philcon-2000-makeup.txt ** ************************************************************************ */ (The following coverage is accurate to the best of my recall and interpretation of my handwritten, abbreviated notes. Errors in content are probably my fault, unless the presenter misspoke.) Basic principles - Spirit gum is the classic adhesive for hair and makeup appliances, though historically some stage actors have used cheaper shellac. (R.Stout prefers Stine's brand spirit gum to Zauder's, though it needs to be thinned (thinner sold separately).) Unflavored gelatin also works under less demanding circumstances. Makeup is sticky and messy, so it's important for the artist to keep his hands clean while working. Keep solvents on hand -- isopropyl alcohol for the face, turpentine for hands. For removal the same solvents can be used, plus cold cream for oil-based makeups. Tissue paper most be soaked/softened in hot water, and can then be peeled off in chunks. To convince with full-face makeup, focus your efforts on the central feature; typically the nose. Nose putty is harder than Dermawax; it can be softened with cold cream in a microwave oven. MAKEUP White faces - Use clown white, then dust liberally with talcum powder to fill in the gaps, creases and pores. Use a makeup brush to smooth/ consolidate the texture. Beards - To look convincing, beards must be applied in layers, starting under the chin, and overlapping on the way up the chin and cheeks. Warts - Nuggets of Rice Crispies-brand cereal make convincing crusty-witch- warts. For dark complexions, use Cocoa Crispies. Blood - The tubes of vampire-themed blood gel sold at Halloween are expensive, but convenient. Instead, for large quantities: mix clear Karo- brand corn syrup with hot water to achieve the desired viscosity, then add red food coloring. For even larger quantities (useful for spraying and splattering, but not makeup): mix unflavored gelatin with hot water, then add colorant. Scars - Used for decades by medics, "nonflexible collodion" is brushed on as a liquid, which then dries and pulls together the edges of a wound. Hollywood makeup artists jealously guard the fact that, used on unbroken skin, it quicky and easily creates the taut line of a years-old healed scar. The effect is more convincing on fleshy surfaces (eg the cheek) than bony (eg the forehead). PROPS AND FILM EFFECTS Mummy's accessories, swords - To simulate curved metal tubing (such as the "crook and flail" held by some Egyptian sarcophagi), slip flexible plastic tubing (found at any hardware or aquarium store) over coat hanger wire bent to shape, then spray-paint. For a lightweight sword, wrap silver or gold wrapping paper (not aluminum foil) around a strip of wooden lath. Gunshot effects - Blanks are not harmless; the projectile is a small paper wad, which carries enough kinetic energy to drive itself into flesh at short range. One actor on network TV actually killed himself by fooling with a blank-loaded gun, accidentally firing the wad into his brain. For a safer alternative, feed a plastic tube into a toy gun; run it up the actor's sleeve and out his collar. Loaded with talcum powder, discharged with a sharp exhalation (while the camera focuses on the gun) and overdubbed with a gunshot, the effect is quite convincing. For machine guns, use a road flare in a swappable gun barrel. Detonating skull - To cheaply-but-effectively fake the look of a skull blown out by a gunblast, use a white paper bowl covered with crepe hair (matched to the actor) and filled with ragged strips torn from a red balloon. Affix a string to the bowl, then tape it to the back of the actor's head. On cue, a stage hand yanks the string, pulling away the bowl and releasing the pseudo-blood. Overdub the gunshot in post. /* *************************************************************************** ** CONVENTION DIGEST UPDATE ** Moschitta vs. Woodmore: fast-talkers tilt their tales ** See also: nsx.underbase.org/review/conv/botcon-2000.htm ** ************************************************************************ */ At this past July's BotCon (an itinerant fan convention devoted to the Transformers line of robot toys by Hasbro), one of the guests was professional fast-talker John Moschitta, often known as "the Micro-Machine Man" for a series of 1980s TV ads. One story he related concerned rival fast-talker Steven Woodmore of England, and a televised competition to discern a champ. Woodmore clocked slightly faster on a set soliloquy, and was proclaimed the winner; but on closer inspection had dropped a few sentences. He's since contrived to avoid a rematch --or *so Moschitta claims.* This week, what should arrive but an email from Mr.Woodmore himself, citing my convention coverage and disputing Mr.Moschitta's story. Isn't the Internet, in all its modalities, wonderful? Write a semi- controversial article about a semi-famous personage, sign it, launch it into the great infosphere, and just wait for the subject to discover it. A character in Charles Sheffield's novel _The Mind Pool_ espouses the philosophy "no source of information is truly reliable; they are merely unreliable to different degrees." I therefore paste copious disclaimers on all my convention coverage; who knows when the speaker might misspeak, my notetaking skip a detail, or my eye misinterpret the scribbles. In this case, however, I think we have a genuine he-said/he-said situation. Now, understand that the judging of recorded human speech at 500-600 words per minute is hardly an exact science, and that the supposed difference between the two competitors was a few *hundredths* of a second. Is anyone else reminded of a certain recent contested ballot count in a southeastern US state? What does it mean when rival scores are nigh-indistinguishable? When boolean win/lose devolves to fuzzy statistical overlap? This is why I don't expend effort deciding on a favorite flavor of ice cream. /* *************************************************************************** ** UPCOMING ** Series, Seasons, Episodes, Movies, Books ** ************************************************************************ */ HEADS UP... The Sci-Fi Channel's fancy new 3-night 6-hour "Dune" miniseries arrives on s-3-dec to t-5-dec, at 21:00, with encores at 23:00 and 01:00. Hey, the worms look different! FoxKids drops "NASCAR Racers" again, but resurrects "Spider-Man Unlimited" (in which he wears a nanotech suit on Counter-Earth, not to be confused with the "Ultimate Spider-Man" comic, in which he's a webmaster) on z-2-dec-11:00. In the eyes of the Fox programmers, it only rated three episodes when it premiered last fall; maybe they'll bring back other premature cancelations, like "Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot" (6 eps) or "Xyber-9" (9 eps). Perhaps those same programmers decided the mid-80s "Dungeons and Dragons" eps weren't adequately advertising the motion picture, which opens f-8-dec. For something completely different, Disney's latest animated feature, "The Emperor's New Groove", opens f-15-dec. What's this? A title that *isn't* the name of the main character(s)? (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Hercules, Mulan, Tarzan, etc.) ANIMATION... PRLR Rising from the Ashes 1010 fox z 1202-0800 r ActM Swarm, pt.2 113 fox z 1202-0830 r Digi Family Picnic 206 fox z 1202-0900 * Digi Davis Cries Wolfman 222 fox z 1202-0930 r TFBM Fallout 201 fox z 1202-1000 * Digi Genesis of Evil 221 fox z 1202-1030 SMU Worlds Apart, pt.1 101 fox z 1202-1100 * Nasc Chain Reaction 205 fox z 1202-1130 * Chan The Rock 9 wb z 1202-0900 * Ccap Meilin's Story 17 wb z 1202-0930 * SShk Child's Play 7 wb z 1202-1100 r XMnE The X Impulse 2 wb z 1202-1100 * MxSt Fire & Ice 205 wb z 1202-1130 ANIMATED SERIES: ActM Action Man, BBy Batman Beyond, DBZ Dragon Ball Z, Ccap Cardcaptors, Chan Jackie Chan Adventures, Digi Digimon, GWg Gundam Wing, MxSt Max Steel, Nasc NASCAR Racers, SShk Static Shock, TFBM Transformers Beast Machines, XMnE X-Men: Evolution. PRIMETIME ETC. PROGRAMMING... * Fut War is the H-Word 217 fox s 1126-1900 PJs Cliffhanger 222 wb s 1126-1930 * Sim Homer vs. Dignity 1204 fox s 1126-2000 * XF Roadrunners 805 fox s 1126-2100 * Ros Max in the City 209 wb m 1127-2100 * Buf Listening to Fear 509 wb t 1128-2000 DkA Cold Comfort 108 fox t 1128-2100 * Ang The Trial wb t 1128-2100 Vgr (Pr'emp'd by NHL) w 1129-2100 r mov Gun Smith Cats, The Neutral Zone plx r 1130-1920 f 1201-0320 r mov Gun Smith Cats, Swing High! plx r 1130-1950 f 1201-0350 r mov Gun Smith Cats, High Speed Edge plx r 1130-2020 f 1201-0420 r Chm Be Careful What You Witch For 4399043 wb r 1130-2100 Inv It Hurts When You Do This 410 sfc f 1201-2000 f 1201-2300 * Fre Siege 106 upn f 1201-2000 mov B5: Thirdspace sfc f 1201-2100 z 1202-0000 * Lv9 Ten Little Hackers 106 upn f 1201-2100 SG1 Scorched Earth 409 sho f 1201-2200 Bby Zeta 28 wb z 1202-0800 * Cle Juggernaut Down v1272 17 z 1202-1400 * JAT Seventy Brides for One Brother 1320 17 z 1202-1430 * EFC Phantom Companion 409 17 z 1202-1700 m 1211-0030 * SG1 Forever in a Day 54 29 z 1202-1700 * And A Rose in the Ashes 109 17 z 1202-1800 s 1210-2330 * Fut The Cryonic Woman 219 fox s 1203-1900 PJs Journal Fever 104 wb s 1203-1930 * Sim The Computer Wore Menace Shoes 1202 fox s 1203-2000 * XF Invocation 806 fox s 1203-2100 mov Dune, pt.1 (2:00) sfc s 1203-2100 s 1203-2300 mov Dune, pt.2 (2:00) sfc m 1204-2100 m 1204-2300 * Ros Skin and Bones 210 wb m 1204-2100 r Buf Buffy vs. Dracula 501 wb t 1205-2000 mov Dune, pt.3 (2:00) sfc t 1205-2100 t 1205-2300 r Ang Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? 202 wb t 1205-2100 r 7D Pope Parker 219 upn w 1206-2000 r Vgr Tsunkatse 232 upn w 1206-2100 CHANNELS: cbs kyw-3-cbs, wpvi-6-abc, wcau-10-nbc, whyy-12-pbs, wphl-17-wb, fox wtxf-29-fox, wybe-35-pbs, wgtw-48-ind, wpsg-57-upn, wfmz-69-ind; fx F/X, plx MoviePLEX, sfc Sci-Fi Channel, sho Showtime, tnt TNT, ton Cartoon Network, usa USA. COMMONLY LISTED SERIES: 7D 7 Days, Ang Angel, Buf Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chm Charmed, Cle Cleopatra 2525, DkA Dark Angel, EFC Earth: Final Conflict, Fre Freedom, Fut Futurama, JAT Jack of All Trades, Lv9 Level 9, PJs The PJs, Ros Roswell, SG1 StarGate SG-1, Sim Simpsons, Vgr Star Trek: Voyager, XF The X-Files. STRIPPED SF... Star Trek: The Next Generation Weeknights (Tue-Fri) 21:00 1 hour, TV-PG, WFMZ-69 Yesterday's Enterprise 163 t 1128 Ent-C changes history The Offspring 164 w 1129 Data builds a daughter Sins of the Father 165 r 1130 Worf's discommodation Allegiance 166 f 1201 Picard's double's drinking songs Captain's Holiday 167 t 1205 Picard digs up the future Tin Man 168 w 1206 Betazoid bonds to big ship Babylon 5: The Widescreen Edition Weeknights (Mon-Fri) 19:00 1 hour, TV-PG, The Sci-Fi Channel Divided Loyalties 220 m 1127 The Long, Twilight Struggle 219 t 1128 Comes the Inquisitor 221 w 1129 The Fall of Night 222 r 1130 Centauri bomb Narn, B5 Matters of Honor 301 f 1201 Convictions 302 m 1204 A Day in the Strife 303 t 1205 Passing Through Gethsemane 305 w 1206 Voices of Authority 304 r 1207 /** ************************************************************************ ** Legalese ** Acknowledgments ** Opt-in/out Instructions ** *********************************************************************** */ The set of creative works herein reviewed and analyzed, including the subset {books, movies, TV shows, toys}, are the property of their respective copyright holders. No infringement or endorsement is expressed, implied or intended. The original reviews and analyses are themselves copyright 2000 by Phillip Thorne. In this issue, certain data (not otherwise acknowledged) have been obtained and aggregated from: Excite TV tv.excite.com The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5 midwinter.com/lurk/lurker.html Star Trek Continuum startrek.com Upcoming Movies upcomingmovies.com If you're receiving this newsletter, you've probably intentionally subscribed to it, or possibly you're interested in special conference/ convention/tradeshow coverage. In any case, to cancel your subscription, send an email message to nsx@underbase.org with the words "UNSUBSCRIBE NON-SEQUITUR" in the subject line and/or body. Capitalization and punctuation don't matter, since there's absolutely no automation behind the subscription process. Still. /* *************************************************************************** ** *************************************************************************** ** The Non-Sequitur Express ** http://nsx.underbase.org/ ** Volume 2, Issue 30: Sunday, 26 November 2000 ** Copyright 1999-2000 Phillip Thorne, nsx@underbase.org ** *************************************************************************** ** ************************************************************************ */