#whitemarbleblock

[janothar]

I'm aware of essays by Christians about how their theology might have to interact in science fiction contexts (e.g. Lewis'"Religion and Rocketry). Are you aware of anything similar by Jewish writers? Right now, all I have is an article about whether vat-grown pork would be kosher, but I'd prefer to have more info than that if possible, and AskMoses probably didn't start up so that I could ask them what various rabbinical thinkers have said about e.g. Shabbat on planets with different day lengths

I’m not aware of anything, but Jumblr does this regularly.  Anyone?

[bambamramfan]

Why does it matter that Homestuck is a pagan story? And what would a non-pagan story be? Also, how much relevance does the term "pagan" really have, since it sets up, by definition, some weird dichotomy where there is Chrisianity (or Christianity+Judaism) and then Everything Else?

It matters not because paganism is morally taboo or anything stupid, but because that is the nature of the story it is telling. The motifs of cycles of death and rebirth going on forever, harmony and balance vs disruption and corruption, a gallery of god-like symbols that are basically jumped up humans, all go together in these theme.

Remember what I wrote about Voltron, and how it contrasts with Neongenesis.

Or compare the sacrifice to end the Sith/Jedi divide by Vader at the end of Return of Jedi (Original Edition), versus the cyclic story told by the Prequels and The Force Awakens.

One might even say this is the fundamental Marvel vs DCU divide. 

If you like all these motifs, then Homestuck provides extremely involving examples of them. But if you find yourself irked, or unsatisfied, by how the problem never seems solved and the success they arrive at is always almost immediately compromised, then that means the artistic feeling you get from the work is related to the ethical injunction produced by it.

Pagan and Christian are not the only two worldviews possible, they are just the ones under question. And paganism of this sort, with it’s tendency towards endless contextual information and stickiness, is perfectly comfortable for the insatiable hunger for “more stuff” and “more permutations to talk about” that capitalism loves to sell us.

Prometheus is basically a direct rejoinder to Homestuck this way: QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED BUT YOU WILL BE LEFT HIGHLY UNSATISFIED BECAUSE WHAT YOU REALLY WANTED WAS LOVE.

[xeno-bio-sociology]

Worldbuilding can be hard, especially when it comes to aliens. All too often, fictional aliens feel like they’re really just humans in costumes, and even when they are weird enough to feel truly nonhuman, they’re usually still suffering from a serious case of monoculture-itis. 

Species Shock is a series that aims to supply you with samples of truly alien extraterrestrials, covering everything from their planet to biology, culture, and interactions with humans. It will be published with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license, so that you can share, remix, transform, and build upon its contents however you’d like, even commercially, with very few restrictions. 

However, because I’m essentially releasing this for free, I can’t count on making enough money from Species Shock to offset the costs. This poses a problem for a financially-strapped college student such as myself: I can take care of almost everything on my own, but the one thing that I can’t do is draw art for the book. The funds from this campaign will be used to commission illustrations. 

Here’s some of the concept art that’s already been drawn: 

I’m hoping to get at least a couple of full-color paintings, plus some field sketch-type drawings of native fauna. In the second image, heads #3 and #4 belong to close relatives of the “agloanikoi,” the species that are being described in Volume 1. 

I don’t want to make this post too long, so check out the main project page, where you’ll find a great big list of interesting things that’ll be talked about in Volume 1, along with a pair of updates that give you sneak peaks with even more information.

If the project makes it to $2,500 then we’ll have enough to fund the first two volumes without having to skimp on the quality of either. 

[janothar]

Have you read Unsong? Asks have a short word count so I'll just say that I think you'd like it and that you ought to read a couple chapters of it sometime (or check out the TV Tropes entry) and see what what you think. (Oh, and since at least one person had this misconception, I'll clarify here and now the author is Jewish.). I didn't see any mention of it on your blog so I thought I'd ask.

I’ve never heard of it, but now it’s bookmarked and when I’m done with the...9 books I’m reading at the moment, I’ll look into it.

[luminousalicorn]

Polyamorous networks can be maintained with love potions, which implies some truly radical solutions to world problems. Consider: If one formed a polyamorous "cell" of 100 people (well below Dunbar's number, for safety's sake), all of whom are dosing on each other, and each of those was also dosing for a member of another 100-person cell, then you'd have a group of thousands and thousands of people who were each only a couple degrees of separation from someone that you personally loved. [1/2]

We could also form bonds of love strategically: How would world politics, or even national politics, change if all of the politicians on the relevant level loved each other? Could the Cold War have ever happened if the leaders on each side had been lovers? Would there be deadlocks in the US Congress if its members loved rather than hated each other? People are more patient with and willing to work on the flaws of people they love; how would this affect the partisanship that we see today? [2/2]

Honestly the implementation of this seems way more complicated than most political panacea proposals I’ve seen, and that’s saying something.  I agree it would be interesting but it seems unrealistic and it might even backfire (people take it personally when loved ones differ from them on important issues...)

[luminousalicorn]

Sure, having more magical music per day won't get me across the inaccessible bridge, but some able-legged adventurer who can cross the bridge won't be able to have more magical music per day just by dancing really well. If all of the bridges can be crossed, no matter the state of your legs, then it's the able-legged people who are disadvantaged now. How are you going to get them, to continue your example, more magical music per day once that happens?

This concern is beyond the intent and scope of the ADA, which is concerned with improving accessibility for the disabled and not with enshrining in law the anecdotal “balance principle” in full generality; however, would-be dance-based bards may be interested in the leaflet Inspiring Steps distributed by Whitederry College.

[the-alternian-lexicon]

What words are there for e.g. HEINOUS BROODS OF THE UNLIVING, rainbow drinkers, and the like? Do trolls consider the aforementioned heinous broods and rainbow drinkers to be of the same class of being, as we consider zombies and vampires to both be undead?

I’ll have to post some words about the undead. But no, Trolls do not see rainbow drinkers as the same class as zombies. People like Kanaya and Porrim contribute to society! Unlike useless revenants.