2017

The Red: First Light by Linda Nagata

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The novel “The Red: First Light” by Linda Nagata was published for the first time in 2013. It’s the first book of The Red trilogy.

Lieutenant James Shelley is in command of an American army team serving in the African Sahel. There he works as a patrol to protect local civilians from insurgents in a local civil war in which the US intervened. To achieve the objectives, the soldiers are equipped with very sophisticated tools, not only weapons and protections but also systems that keep them connected among them and with their superiors to coordinate at best and always be updated on possible dangers.

No technology, no matter how sophisticated, can make sure that a soldier will not be killed during a fight so James Shelley always keeps his attention to the maximum levels to try to keep himself and his team members alive. To assist him there’s a sixth sense that seems to inform him of the dangers more efficiently than any instrument to the point that his superiors start paying attention to it to figure out if there’s someone behind it.

Anchiornis huxleyi reconstruction (Image courtesy Rebecca Gelernter)

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An article published in the journal “Palaeontology” describes a research on Anchiornis huxleyi, a small feathered dinosaur that lived about 160 million years ago in today’s China. Evan Saitta and Jakob Vinther of the British University of Bristol revealed new details on these animals’ plumage by examining a very well preserved specimen. Their conclusion is that this species had a fluffier look than the aerodynamic one of modern flying birds.

Ridley Scott in 2015 (Photo NASA/Bill Ingalls)

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Ridley Scott was born on November 30, 1937 in South Shields, England. He started working as a director for television then moved to cinema and had his debut with “The Duellists” in 1977. He marked science fiction cinema with “Alien” (1979) and “Blade Runner” (1982). He obtained great results in other genres as well with movies such as “Thelma & Louise” (1991) and “Gladiator” (2000).

A comparison between magnetic tape and bacteria as tapes (Image courtesy Wang Lab/Columbia University Medical Center)

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An article published in the journal “Science” describes the development of a system that uses the CRISPR-Cas genetic manipulation system to store information in living cells transforming them into a biological equivalent of a magnetic tape. A team of researchers from the Columbia University Medical Center modified a bacterium of the Escherichia coli family transforming it into a potential diagnostic or environmental monitoring tool thanks to its ability to record data.

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

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The novel “All the Birds in the Sky” by Charlie Jane Anders was published for the first time in 2016. It won the Nebula Award for Best Novel, the IAFA William L. Crawford Fantasy Award, and the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel.

Patricia is still a child when she starts talking to birds but she can’t control her magic skills. Laurence invented advanced equipment since his childhood and in time creates an artificial intelligence. Patricia and Laurence meet for the first time in the junior high school they attend, where they’re considered the two weirdest students.

Patricia and Laurence’s paths get separated, also because of the decisions of their idiotic parents. They meet again years later when she’s become a witch part of a cabal and he’s part of a group of geeks who invent revolutionary devices. Despite their differences, events bring them closer.