Secret governmental files dating from 1981 have now been released for public viewing.  Most of the press seem fixated on trivia, such as Margaret Thatcher's alleged squabble over the purchase of an ironing board.  However, of real interest is the documented deliberate financial crippling of the city of Liverpool. Liverpool in the 1980s and early-to-mid 1990s was a tough place to live.  It was probably the most difficult place in the UK to find work.  The city shopping area was limited; wander away from Bold Street and the Bold Street end of Church Street, or the smatter of shops on London Road, and you'd pass empty buildings which swiftly faded into dereliction.  It was a place where long-term unemployment was the norm, where those who had jobs were looked upon as lucky or treacherous, depending on your politics.  It is estimated that the city lost one third of its population as people relocated in search of better lives.  Added to this was th...

Of interest to British cryonicists is the new Preferred Priorities for Care (PPC) document.  This piece of paperwork aims to ensure end-of-life choices are expressed clearly, so everyone involved knows what is wanted and how to achieve this.  To quote the NHS website, "The explicit recording of individual wishes can form the basis of care planning in multi-disciplinary teams and other services, therefore reducing unplanned admissions and avoiding inappropriate and/or unwanted interventions. "  For the cryonicist, this is useful development for the obvious reason that unless everyone knows about your intentions to not have an autopsy and to be cryo-preserved in tact, and it's in writing and witnessed, then that old phrase about mice, men and plans being put asunder comes into play.  Having this in a legal Will is good, but Wills tend to be read after the event, whereas this document should be in the patient's Care Plan and medical records. Download a P...

Apparently, Italian scientists have recently decided that the Turin Shroud was created by a supernatural event.  This seems an odd conclusion for scientists. Surely our lack of understanding of a thing does not mean that same thing is of supernatural origin.  It simply means we don't understand it yet. The cloth of the Turin shroud has been carbon dated.  Three seperate investigations - Oxford University, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the University of Arizona - all concluded that the fabric was from the Middle Ages, somewhere between 1260 and 1390.  It was woven on a perfectly ordinary loom of that era. The real mystery surrounds the image itself, which some people insist is the face of Jesus, if only because it's a bloke with a beard.  This actually only demonstrates that people choose to believe whatever is convenient or satisying to believe. There is, however, another explanation which is rather more rational, as this video ...

Here is the proposed paperback cover for Tamsin , which is due out in January 2012.  The blank white square is where the barcode will go.  As of this afternoon, the ebook edition is available via Smashwords, and the Kindle edition will be online within a few hours of my typing this.  Further distribution will follow.  Scroll down to a recent post to see the ebook cover, which has the same rose on the black velvet background, with the title above that.  Different format, different cover specifications - as ebooks don't have a back cover or a spine, obviously - hence the minor adaptations. When self-publishing, a person has a choice of paying someone to design covers for them or creating covers for themselves.  If you're weak on design skills the first option is probably the best.  Don't underestimate the importance of how a book cover looks.  Think of your own behaviour when browsing in a bookstore, whether it's online or a brick-...

For the first time ever, I took a look at my viewer statistics.  It beats reading yet more gloom about the economy. According to my YouTube stats, 73.2% of my viewers are female.  Their ages range between the ages of 25 - 54, the predominant group clearly being between 45 - 54.  The majority of viewers came from Germany, followed by Britain, Italy, America then Spain.  Of British viewers, 74.9% were female, while 64.4% of American viewers were male.  Gender stats weren't available for other countries. My Facebook stats tell a different story.  There, 49% of my readers were female while 47% were male - a much more even split.  The ages spanned a wider range, going from 18 - 55+, with 33% being aged between 34 - 44, and 34% being between 45 - 54.  The greater majority of viewers came from America then Britain, with other countries trailing far behind these two. Here, Blogger's stats don't offer gender information.  Most of ...

Photos from Parallel Dimensions 2011, which was the third annual F/H/SF event where authors share some of their stories with an audience.  This year's PD took place in a side room in West Kirby Library, Wirral. Adele Cosgrove-Bray Adele Cosgrove-Bray - and orb (or dust speck, take your choice!) Jon Mayhew  Mjke Wood  Peter Caton Tim Hulme     

Last night we watched Nell , which stars Jodie Foster, Liam Neeson and Natasha Richardson.  This is a story about a young woman who was found living in a remote shack without modern amenities.  Nell had been raised by her mother, who spoke poorly due to the effects of a stroke, and consequently Nell's version of English was at first assumed to be the nonsense of a severely mentally handicapped person. Jodie Foster's acting in this film was extraordinary.  I've been an admirer of her work for years anyway but this intense performance was fascinating.  The film occasionally strayed into sentimentality, and there were a few little holes in the plot.  Where was Nell's mother getting money from (which she exchanged for groceries delivered to a rock near their home, the money being left in a purse there).  If the mother - who died at the start of the film - had needed to buy food so would Nell, an issue which ...