Construed

[note: the following was one of the submissions I used for a recent failed job application - I wanted to share it with you, as it still relevant]

NASA’s recently announced three-way partnership to produce a space exploration MMO, with Virtual Heroes and Project Whitecard, has now been given a slightly less-than-sexy name in Astronaut:Moon, Mars, and Beyond.

“‘Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond’ was selected because the three companies involved had a really ideal combination of qualities we were looking for,” Daniel Laughlin of NASA’s Learning Technologies Project Office said in a statement. “They have the right experience, they demonstrated their ability to engage middle school through higher education curricula, and they have extraordinary enthusiasm about working with NASA to make a fun game…”[1]

Sure, space exploration doesn’t grab the headlines or the imagination quite like it did back in the 60s and 70s. But there are high hopes at NASA that Astronaut: Moon, Mars, an Beyond, their first foray into MMO gaming, will bring a spur of interest back into the field of scientific study:

“We want to create a fun, compelling gaming experience that will give players the chance to learn about science and engineering careers while they play the game,” said Daniel Laughlin, Ph.D., project manager of NASA Learning Technologies. “NASA is committed to attracting more students to science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields of study and careers. We hope this game will inspire players to consider those careers.”[2]

So what can the player expect from NASA’s MMO? A varied choice of playable professions to choose from?

“Players will pick a profession like a roboticist, space geologist, astrobiologist or mechanical engineer and work together as a team as they explore space and complete missions, establishing bases and outposts and traveling to the farthest reaches of the solar system,” explained JerryHeneghan, founder and CEO of Virtual Heroes.[3]

Expect a demo of Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond in our solar system later this year, with full systems launch due in 2010.

DM∞

In need of a little cheering up? I did this morning & what else could put a smile on an old geek’s face than some french guy playing out Pacman in a supermarket?

Remi Gaillard is that guy. A french prankster that seems to have been playing the fool since 2001 – my french is a little rusty!

My thanks to TheDvS for the heads-up!

DM∞

52 episodes in, Freak Angels is the weekly online comic book from writer Warren Ellis & artist Paul Duffield. Set in a fictional past, Freak Angels unravels a story of 12 children born in England at the same time, 23 years ago – all of whom appear to be rather strange & all of whom are having to deal with the world that has come to an end.

I picked up on Freak Angels from a recent tweet sent out by Warren Ellis, announcing episode 52 was available to read. Online comics may not be a novel idea anymore but what is unusual, is to find such high profile comic book creator doing so.

Each weekly episode comprises of 6 pages illustrated with some very fine artwork by Paul Duffield, who was introduced to Avatar Press after posting some artwork on past Warren Ellis forum. When it comes to the story, well I’m still trying to work my way through it – I’m planning to review the first 52 episodes in a future post, here at Construed. When I hope, by that time, I’ll have worked out what the hell is going on!

If you like your future(or should that read past?) apocalyptic then I recommend giving Freak Angels a spin through – the artwork alone stands head & shoulders above some of the material coming out from the major publishers.

DM∞

My interest in watching Heroes while season 3 has aired, pretty much died after the first few weeks. I have missed many of the episodes from season 3 but have just caught back to back episodes, Into Asylum & Turn & Face the Strange , both of which I have enjoyed in a casual viewing way.

But like you, I’ve heard the rumours about the show being cancelled by NBC. Interestingly enough, ratings may not be the main factor for keeping this show from being canned. SF Universe have an interesting take on Forbes TV’s Biggest Moneymakers:

The tale of ordinary people who suddenly become superhuman generates $4.3 million per average telecast, thanks to a largely young male demo that many advertisers find attractive. That pricey real estate puts Heroes in the top 10 most lucrative shows on TV, joining hits such as American Idol and Dancing With The Stars.

Could this be an insight into how Heroes can resist the continued loss of ratings per each season aired?

DM∞

Am less than a year into ownership of my first 360 but it’s reassuring to read that the problems that plague the console can be reclassified by Microsoft:

Microsoft ceasing its defection discrimination and revealing via the Xbox Support page that the mysterious E74 error is now covered by the RROD’s three-year warranty. Microsoft has determined “that the E74 error message can indicate the general hardware failure that is associated with three flashing red lights error on the console,” and will “refund to customers the amount paid for an out of warranty repair due to a general hardware failure associated with the e74 error message.”[Joystiq]

Well here’s hoping that I never have to worry about any of the hardware problems that have plagued the 360’s lifespan.

Microsoft…please…don’t rinse & repeat in the future.

DM∞