Melusine

Amazon’s killing a feature that let you download and backup Kindle books It’s bad if you like to keep ebook backup copies.

hey for anyone who might want to actually own their kindle books instead of renting them, or who might be thinking of switching to kobo etc and will want to convert them to epubs, you now only have one week before amazon kills your ability to download its ebooks www.theverge.com/news/612898/...

A crowded stadium. Thrilled fans watch from the terraces, fixated by the figures on the brightly-lit court. Over the noise, the commentator shouts excitedly: "Hughes conceives a lovely hypothesis. Wilson tests it through repeated observation. Evans adds experimental data then passes back to Hughes, who states the theory in unambiguous terms and the crowd goes wild!!!"

My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com

Five Hopeful SFF Stories About Believing in Humanity - Reactor Short speculative fiction to help bolster optimism, even in dark times.

A reminder that speculative fiction has an incredible capacity for encouraging optimism and faith in humanity--here are five short works about hope, and choosing kindness:

reactormag.com/five-hopeful...

A fragmentary clay tablet with broken lines of text preserved. At the bottom is a multicoloured ruler showing that it is about 7cm wide. On a blank portion is written in ink upside down “K. 5968” and right-side up “k 9334”, meaning that these are two different fragments joined together to make a fragmentary whole.

I’ve spent most of my life steeped in anxiety, and one thing that made me feel less alone was knowing how unsurprisingly not new anxiety and related experiences are.

It’s in fragments, but this is one of many clay texts from ancient Mesopotamia that describes anxiety (possibly depression)

Creative Rights In AI Coalition

Given the recent proclamations from the UK government re: AI rights, if you have concerns & want them voiced, I highly recommend checking out ‘The Creative Rights in AI Coalition' (www.creativerightsinai.co.uk).

They provide an email template & form for raising awareness with your MP.

Ouuh I just love this one it is so me!

cinamon hadley

the sandman character death was based on a woman named cinamon hadley, a salt lake city goth scene icon who early sandman artist mike dringenberg was friends with when they lived there at the same time. is "friends" the right word? it's the word she used:

I had a walk today and thought about the relationship between civility, discomfort, and abuse.

Some of you know that “civility” is one of my hard “ugh” triggers. This thread will explain why.

A one-panel comic by Glauco Villas Boas. A group of people stand against the corner of a wall. One reaches around the corner and uses a long stick to push open a door labeled 2025.

This comic gets shared every year with the date changed. It is by Brazilian cartoonist Glauco Villas Boas (1957-2010).

Two scientists share an office. The first, whose half of the room is neat and tidy, says “My new year's resolutions are to jog to work every day, choose the healthy option at lunch, and run a pleasant, well-ordered workspace.” The second, working in a total mess, replies “In the interests of scientific rigour, I'll be the control, and change absolutely nothing.”

Happy New Year!
(my cartoon for @newscientist.bsky.social)

Title: How to gift wrap a book A book, scissors, sellotape and giftwrap on a table. The book has a friendly face and says "1. Roll out your chosen paper and put the book on it." The book continues, saying "2. Take a moment to consider the book as an object." and "3. Ask yourself "Will the intended recipient fully appreciate this book and accord it the respect that it truly deserves?" "4. Correct. They will not. Put the book on your shelf and replace it with a different gift." Socks, chocolate, whatever. Repeat steps 1-4 for any other books

How to gift wrap a book… my cartoon for this week’s @theguardian.com books.

It's Shirley Jackson's birthday today, and so it's a perfect opportunity to recommend my favourite story of hers, THE SUMMER PEOPLE. It's a subtle horror, quietly creeping up behind you until it lays a cold hand on your shoulder. I love it very much. It's only 13 pages and you can read it here:

Some five-word horror stories for Friday the 13th:

Running out of tea bags
Someone talking in a lift
Unexpected knock on the door
Biscuit falling into your brew
Stuck on rail replacement bus
Forgetting to take an umbrella
Missing bin day before Christmas
Say a bit about yourself

Meeting Deadlines   I always meet my deadlines. I don’t even have to try – They sneak up on me from nowhere, Tap my shoulder and say hi.   It’s you! I cry. So how are you? I did not think you’d come so soon. Can’t stop now but why don’t we meet Next Tuesday afternoon?   Or, better still, two weeks from now? My deadline shrugs and sighs. A fortnight on, we meet again, Much to my surprise. Brian Bilston

Today’s poem is called ‘Meeting Deadlines’.

Image: A yellow, spherical particle with legs and an awkward expression stands behind a microphone in a stand in the stage spotlight of a comedy club. The dark club is filled with redspherical particles. Caption: Electron's stand-up set is a riot of hilarious, relatable material about life as a charged particle. Unfortunately, tonight's audience is composed entirely of neutrons.

My latest cartoon for @newscientist.bsky.social

A man turns to a woman and asks "Who's that?" "He asked." adds an odd figure standing across the room, wearing a top hat and holding a cane. The woman answers "It's the narrator. He's been following me around all day. Commenting on everything. It's very annoying!". "She said ungratefully." says the narrator. The couple shout "Get out of our house!" "They shouted cruelly at the unfortunate narrator who was only doing his job." says the narrator as he leaves. "And that, dear reader" says the narrator, now standing in the dark garden watching the couple through a window "was the exact moment when I decided to become the sort of narrator who turns out to be the murderer."

My cartoon for this weekend’s Guardian Books.

The challenge is to choose 20 books that greatly influenced you or stayed with you. One book per day, for 20 days. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.
#BookSky
💙📚
#Books
#BookChallenge
Day 2

The Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

The challenge is to choose 20 books that greatly influenced you or stayed with you. One book per day, for 20 days. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.
#BookSky
💙📚
#Books
#BookChallenge
Day 1

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists is “a book everyone should read” according to George Orwell. Easier said than done, mate.

But there is a graphic novel adaptation, if you fancy it

Panel one: A scientist and assistant stand before a panel of three people sitting at a desk. The scientist shouts: "So, the die is cast! But mark my words: you shall recall this day when my genius blazes across the world like an awesome comet and all cower before the staggering revelations I have wrought!" Panel two: The two leave, the assistant says "You know they gave you the grant, right?" Panel three: The scientist replies "Yeah, but it's so much more fun to give my unhinged revenge speech."

My latest cartoon for New Scientist

YouTube video by till90s The Muppets - Animal & Rita Moreno - Fever.avi

I was reminded today of the definitive version of Fever youtu.be/b_IpgKzy75E?...

I wrote this story to say something to people who (like myself) are hurting and find themselves doomscrolling too much. It makes my day that it touched some readers!

Panel one. Caption: On the 28th of June 2009, Professor Stephen Hawking hosted a party for time-travellers, but he did not send out invites until the day after the party… no-one came. (This is entirely true) Panels 2-9. Images of various aliens, robots and other beings, all holding invites. Below each is an excuse for not attending the party: Babysitter cancelled, Had to work late, Timeship being fixed, Didn’t feel great, Had to be up early, Wormhole closed, Diary mix-up, Dog ate invite.

My latest New Scientist cartoon. Based on a true story. Well, the first panel is true, anyway.

Top 5 regrets of the dying:

1) I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me

2) I wish I hadn't worked so hard

3) I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings

4) I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends

5) I wish I'd let myself be happier

A dedication reading “To all those who lead monotonous lives in the hope that they nah experience at second hand the delights and dangers of adventure.” It’s centered and in all caps.

Agatha Christie really goes for the throat.

Hope has holes in its pockets. It leaves little crumb trails so that we, when anxious, can follow it. Hope’s secret: it doesn’t know the destination– it knows only that all roads begin with one foot in front of the other. –Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

Found this and it moved me, so I'm sharing.

Sad Amos Burton: space billionaires (adjective, noun) Happy Amos Burton: space billionaires (verb, noun)

UK Coal xkcd.com/2992

Bluesky now has over 10 million users, and I was #8,756,031!