Gort Power!: A 3-D Pete Cartoon

An Empire in Words: The Great Library of Alexandria

by Jennifer de Guzman

8 March 2010

But this much is clear: The Great Library of Alexandria was a bid toward immortality, a stay against annihilation. In the ancient world, Alexandria was a remnant of Alexander the Great's empire and a major cultural and trading center. Ships that sailed into the harbor were forced to hand over their scrolls to the library, where scribes made copies. The library gave the copies to the scrolls' owners in place of the originals, which became part of the Great Library's collection. The collection held works of only of drama and poetry and philosophy, but also scientific texts, works of mathematics, astronomy, medicine and mechanics. The library was the known world, past and present, under one roof: the ultimate empire.

Fall of a Superhero in Doctor Who: "The Waters of Mars"

by Kristin King

1 March 2010

There is an inherent contradiction in superhero fiction. The stronger the villains are, the more powerful the superhero must become. And the worse the situation, the more serious the consequences of the superhero's actions. Unless stopped, the superhero crosses a line and becomes not our protector but our villain.

A Stranger in a Strange Land: Ricardo Pinto and the Stone Dance of the Chameleon

by Angeline Adams

22 February 2010

"Although it is within our power to eliminate poverty, for example, I'm not so sure that we have it in us to avoid the most terrible consequences of global warming. I feel that, because there is always hope that a human being can be talked around—talked off a ledge, talked into putting down his gun—too many of us treat our planet as if it was amenable to such persuasion. It isn't: it's not human, and it's implacable."

2009: A Year of Giving, Part 4: LiveJournal Auctions

by JoSelle Vanderhooft

15 February 2010

Regardless of the shows they watch or the books they read, fannish LiveJournalers tend to be a close-knit and generous group with a reputation for protecting their own. Not even two years after Strikethrough, the LiveJournal fan community united against a problem that affected far more people than the site's user base: the 2009 U.S. recession. And they did it in a most creative way: By auctioning off everything from DVDs, books, and memorabilia to crafts, fanart, and fanfiction to make rent money, pay hospital bills, and save the homes of fans and pros alike from the rash of foreclosures sweeping the United States.

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