Stranger from the Depths, by Gerry Turner, 1967. Abridged version 1970.
This was my favorite book for much of my childhood (until about 8th grade). I read the Scholastic abridged version a kajillion times. At least a couple dozen. One of the only science fiction books of my youth whose cover & blurb [...]

Here’s a new coverpop featuring the works of my favorite sf author of his generation, Philip K. Dick. The covers were provided by the Philip K. Dick cover gallery, courtesy of Jason Koornick.

I live near one of the coolest public libraries in Los Angeles, Glendale’s Brand Library and Art Center.
Here are a 10 good reasons why you should go.
1. The library sits at the the top of Western Ave in a beautiful park overlooking the valley. Excellent for picnic lunches.
2. The library specializes in music [...]

The Jesuit Polymath Athanasius Kircher is a personal hero of mine. I constructed this Kircherian coverpop, which contains a collection of images from his books, which covered such varied subjects as geology, magnetism, architecture, music, egypt, and china. Stanford University Library’s Department of Special Collections has graciously granted me permission to use these [...]

Yesterday I did a lecture for the USC chapter of SIGGRAPH entitled “Interactive Art & Toys,” in which I demonstrated how to build a Karl Marx Paddleball toy in Flash.
As a gift, chapter president Pamela Fox presented me with this really cool book:

Timeless Toys : Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them by Tim [...]

No longer a rough cut - Flickr Hacks is now in print!
Brian Sawyer, our excellent editor, posted this image, which constitutes proof.
There will be some signed copies of Flickr Hacks at the Flickr 2nd Birthday Bash this saturday, as well as some other surprises which I had a hand in. Sadly, I’m teaching my [...]

I’m pleased to report that the

The book cover for the book Paul and I wrote is now available on Amazon, and here’s what it look like. Here’s the Amazon listing, should you care to pre-order 1 or 2 hundred copies… :)
UPDATE: Can’t wait for the book? You can get early access to an online edition using O’Reilly’s new [...]

I must admit that as a married man, I really shouldn’t be reading a book about pickup artists. But there is a certain vicarious thrill to be had from Neil Strauss’s The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists; really far more than just a guide to picking up women. It’s [...]

George Pendel’s Strange Angel is about pioneering Rocket Scientist Jack Parsons, who played a pivotal role in the creation of Pasadena’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL). A self-taught explosives expert, Parsons also led a double life: He was fascinated with the occult, and was chosen by Aleister Crowley to lead the local chapter of [...]