What if Aliens Caused Global Warming? (we'd do something about it)

Does anyone remember the movie Armageddon?  It was full of wonderful "science" and an unbelievable plot made believable only by Ben Affleck and Bruce Willis hugging it out over a nuclear bomb.  However, I did believe in one thing.  If an asteroid were about to crash into the earth, annihilating life as we know it (or as anyone knows it), we would drop what we're doing and try REALLY hard to stop it.

Meanwhile, here on Planet Not-Hollywood, we face multiple other threats to human existence, and yet we're not all banding together and throwing 99% of our fiscal budget at removing this threat.  In fact, many people still deny this possibility.  Sure, there are many differences between real life and "Armageddon", not the least being that the melting ice caps aren't bringing an avalanche of former glaciers through the streets of Paris, London, Beijing, and New York City.  But I'd like to ask one particular question:

What if it wasn't our fault?

Sarah Palin once said "But while we recognize the occurrence of these natural, cyclical environmental trends, we can't say with assurance that man's activities cause weather changes."  Now, I'm no Sarah Palin fan, and she's certainly said some dumb things in the past.  In fact when I heard this, I thought wow, way to try to have it both ways.  But then I realized the genius (however unintentional) of this statement.

You see, I'm actually very pro-human.  I love humanity.  Mankind has done great things.  Before our great society, there was no ice cream, no karaoke, and no League of Extraordinary Dancers.  We developed language, mathematics, social structures, and tools, that turned us from apes into Masters of the Universe.  I'm proud of humanity.  Humanity is great.

And that is why I think there is so much denial and fighting over climate change.  Sometimes when I hear people talk about Climate Change, what I really hear is this:

1.  You are destroying the world
2.  Therefore you are evil
3. Here's how to save the world

Now, most people don't INTEND to give this message, but it's only natural to hear point 2, when someone makes point 1.  When we listen to other's speak, we think everything is about us.  It's like if someone asks you "Did you take the last cupcake?"  You might answer "I only had one! just like everyone else."  You really heard "You're a pig" instead of an innocent question.

Now most people (especially conservatives) don't think humans are evil.  Destroying the world certainly sounds evil, so to avoid cognitive and identity dissonance, many people need to conclude that the first statement is not true.  I'm not evil and I'm human.  So what you're saying must be a lie (or I must be evil).   Maintaining your identity as not-evil is a strong motivator for denial.  They're so stuck in point 1 and 2 that they'll never hear point 3.

So what if instead, climate change debaters spoke like this

1. The world is changing (kind of like in that movie 2013, blame it on the Mayans or something)
2. We're all in trouble
3. Here's how to save the world

After all, does it really matter if humans are causing global warming or not?  There is real evidence that the climate is changing.  Say some passing aliens dropped several gigatons of carbon into our atmosphere (and then left).  Reducing carbon emissions is still a good strategy, as are several more aggressive ideas like putting reflectors in the atmosphere.  If you're overweight, does it really matter if it's because of genetics or because there's a MacDonalds next door?  Go on a diet and exercise.

Pro-environment does not have to equal Anti-humanity.  This should not be conservatives vs. liberals.  You can love humans and try to save the earth too.  In fact, if you love humans, you should probably protect our home.  The asteroid is coming for us. Let's not waste time pointing fingers, band together, and get Ben Affleck* to save us all.




Addendum:  Want further proof that climate change has become "personal"?  A study shows that pro-environment labeling for lightbulbs dissuades conservatives.

* It's not lost on me that in Armageddon, deep oil drillers save the world.  Way to sell end-of-the-world due to environmental disaster (asteroids count) to conservatives.

Superheroes Unite: Greener Minds for a Greener Future

Hidden deep within the Mendocino Woodlands miles beyond the reach of Dr. Asphalt's tentacles lies a top secret facility shielded from the watchful eyes of AT&T and Verizon. It is in this secluded campsite where the great California oaks stand guard over the formation of a new league of superheroes for a new generation of challenges.

It is here that on June 17th, one hundred brave recruits began their training, gaining the skills, the support, and the inspiration to make their mark on the world. Some of these weekend warriors had been working on their "cover" for decades. They were well established consultants, engineers, and designers. Many worked for nonprofits and others for Fortune 500 companies. But they all worked for Mother Earth.

It is here that our heroes learned to be creative, to communicate through visual recording and charades, to dance like no one is watching, and to trust themselves as much as well as others. They accomplished amazing feats of cooking (and eating). They honed their skills with fire staffs and poi, practiced ninja sustainability while slacklining between trees, and tossed biodegradable organic grenades safely across remarkable distances.

It is here where the super geniuses made their mark. Master plans emerged to make environmental issues an important part of the 2012 elections. Aspiring heroes shared ideas on how to create change through better conversations and better storytelling. Brainstorms attacked poverty, education, personal well-being, propaganda, technology, leadership, sustainable business practices, health, new models of ownership, gamefication, fun, and even how to deal with an earthquakeAnd it is here that we began to see the formation of future icons. The golden jock strap twins began their dancing alliance. Unicorn woman took on multiple shapes. Oven mitt man made the rounds, and even spider man was spotted as the heroes gathered around campfires for song and dance while wielding rainbow nunchuks and devastating rhyme.

So who do you put in charge of a hundred costumed avengers? No one. Superheroes must walk their own path, find their own futures. At this Greenermind Summit, our heroes found a place to dream big, explore, learn, and find the inspiration to become the heroes they have always wanted to be. But this isn't your typical organization or conference. There's no one in charge. There's no one you runs it. Like their own futures, the destiny of this unconference was decided by the choices of the individuals. And if the results of the Greenermind Summit was any indication, the future looks bright indeed.

Click here for more information on the Greenermind Summit.

For more posts, see www.fiction4change.org

Fast Food Writing: Scaling Media Consumption

I remember first hearing the term “media consumption” long ago and thinking, “what an odd phrase.” But now, many years later, it has proven to be EXACTLY the right phrase. I don’t consider myself to be part of the generation of massively multitasking youth, the generation that, according to some Stanford studies, can only do homework while consuming some other form of media (mostly TV and IM). No, I’m old school. And yet, I also constantly turn on my phone to check email that doesn’t need checking, watch way too much TV and HUNGER for youtube videos regardless of topic or relevance. I just want to snack.

So what does this mean for writing? Like food, writing has always existed. But back in the day, literacy was rare, and the ability to publish even more rare. As such, there was a relatively high bar to get published, and really, people read the same 10 books for hundreds of years (reference: this is a blog, so no data, just a point to be made). Likewise, in the food industry, each meal was made by hand, and if not delicious, at least it wasn’t made primarily from ingredients that you couldn’t pronounce.

Then enter the food industry. As Food Inc, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and countless other books and movies will tell you, Food underwent a tremendous transformation. Essentially, we learned to SCALE food, enabling food to become ridiculously cheap. And lo and behold, we began to consume all this cheap, delicious food, not because we needed the calories, but because we hungered for that spark of stimulation. Consumption took on a whole new meaning as we consumed. And like it or not, processed foods have become the true winners in this new form of consumption because it embraced SCALE.

Some things are strikingly familiar in the writing space. No longer is the primary written word a novel that has taken a decade to write. Words are being consumed by the thousands, skimmed over as they go down our gullets by giant spoonfuls. We don’t read too carefully. Who cares about the grammer in my tweetfeed or friendfeed or facebook feed or… is it a coincidence that everything is a feed? We just open up our mouth, stick it up against the trough that is the internet and let the calories come piling in.

So, do I turn up my nose in disgust at these “empty calories?” Or do I embrace this world, realize that editing this blog post isn’t worth the time, and focus on turning myself into a writer that can withstand the changes that are rocking the medium. Faster, shorter, cheaper… Are we delivering depth or just stimulus? Or perhaps the challenge is the same that it is in any industry. I have a story to tell. Now how do I tell that story faster and cheaper.

For more posts, check out www.fiction4change.org

Fiction4Change

I have started a new website at fiction4change.org

Our mission is to promote books, novels, music, videos, movies, and games that address important social and environmental issues. We are a blog that allows people to share their thoughts and ideas about how stories and fiction can be used to change the world.

My future posts will be coming from that blog, so please subscribe to the new blog:

www.fiction4change.org

Environmental Science Fiction

www.terrenevalley.com - Environmental Science Fiction novel hits #3 spot in top-rated science fiction in the Kindle store.

Fiction 4 Change

I've started a twitter account to talk about Fiction4Change, using the power of fiction to create real change in the world.

You can follow me at http://twitter.com/fiction4change

For example, I ran into this really cool article that uses fictional narrative to make a report on a court proceeding much more engaging.
http://www.slate.com/id/2281715/

If you have more examples, send them my way!

Terrene: the hidden valley book launch

Friends,
I am pleased to announce the launch of my new novel: Terrene: the hidden valley.

As many of you know, I have been working on this book for almost two years now. It is born from my desire to help the world navigate the impending challenges of great environmental and technological change and from my belief that stories can change the world. I am happy that I am able to share this with you and hope that you will help me make this book a success. I am launching only an eBook version without any traditional marketing, so you and your networks are critical to the success of this book.

Step 1.) Buy the book here
This is only released on the Amazon Kindle so that I can focus my efforts on one store. Getting traction in one place is critical to bubbling up to the top so that random people will find the book. You are critical to this. You do not have to have a Kindle to buy this book, but you will have to sign up for an Amazon account and download a reader to view it on a PC, Mac, iphone, ipad, or Android device. You can also buy a Kindle ebooks as a gift to someone else.

Step 2.) Write a review here
Good Reviews and good quality reviews are critical for online stores. Please take the time to write a good review for this book. It will make a huge difference in the future of this book and is the best present you could possibly give me.

Step 3. ) Tell your friends
In the coming days, I will begin marketing via special pages on facebook and twitter. Please forward things along. Below, I have also included a template email that you can copy and paste into an email to send out to your friends.

________________________________

A good friend of mine just launched a science fiction novel that deals with some of the environmental issues we will be facing in the next century. His goal is not to make money, but to raise awareness on these issues. Please check it out here and consider purchasing a copy of the book.

www.terrenevalley.com
see it at amazon.com

Choreographing to Change the World

I finished my most recent dance choreography recently. You can see the video here. It's the story of a man reminiscing about a relationship that has passed set to the song "Part of the List" by Ne-yo. I like to make dance choreographies that have meaning. But I do note that most art, be it songs, dance, art, etc. have to do with the human condition and express our most personal emotions, the primary one being love.

At the hip hop dance fest, I saw a choreography about human slavery in the modern world. It was very blunt, giving its message in voice-over narrative, but it was powerful. As a result, I've decided that my next choreography will need to have global meaning. I've been looking for good songs, but it's hard to find one that says what I want. I care about environmental disaster, challenges around the scaling of government and corporations, and finding the hope and courage to try to make a difference. Anyone have any suggestions?

More Triple Pundit posts: Sharing Economy

I got two posts published on Triple Pundit last week:

http://www.triplepundit.com/2010/11/the-sharing-economy/
http://www.triplepundit.com/2010/11/challenges-to-an-economy-based-on-sharing/

Why didn't I post it here? Well, I kind of didn't realize it had gotten published. You see, you have to submit an article before it actually gets approved, and well, I kind of got caught up in other things. But here you go, two articles about the sharing economy, pretty fun stuff.

Never argue against a belief

You cannot make someone stop believing something. You can only make him believe something else more.

This thought has been kicking around in my head for a while. It's a single thread that I've pulled out of a whole host of articles, books, movies, and (yes, I put this last) actual real-world experiences.

Have you noticed how 99% of debates (whether personal or political) don't ever result in someone changing their mind? This article from Slate talks about how once people become disposed to believe something, they hold onto that belief regardless of logical argument or hard evidence. This is very evident in the political sphere. Shankar Vedantam asks, "when was the last time you heard about a liberal who was persuaded by Rush Limbaugh? Or a conservative who switched parties after watching a Michael Moore movie?" The truth is that almost all the effort that goes into debating and trying to change people's opinions is completely wasted.

But I want to be able to change people's minds, not just reinforce their existing beliefs. But how? I find that lots of our beliefs, whether it's that we should tax the rich, that housing is a good investment, that you should buy things on sale.... most of those beliefs can be attached to a famous saying or adage. I believe it comes out of our need to create structure around the way the world works. Gravity pulls down and patience is a virtue are both simplified representations of our world. Most interestingly, for any famous adage or proverb, it isn't too hard to find something that is its opposite:

You can't teach a dog new tricks: It's never to late to learn
Seize the moment: The best things come to those who wait
Sink or Swim: You have to walk before you can run

So it seems to me that while trying to argue AGAINST someone's belief is like running into a brick wall, it may be possible to just persuade them to latch onto another belief that may then supercede their previous belief.

You do see a variant of this in politics all the time. When party A attacks party B about kicking kittens, instead of refuting the point, party B realizes that facts are irrelevant and moves on from the kitten kicking issue to instead attack party A for killing babies knowing that many voters care more about baby killing than kitten kicking.

I feel that this may have some use in our daily interactions. Instead of arguing any point, you should analyze your "opponent," first to understand what proverb or story he is basing his belief on. For instance, not supporting government subsidies may be based on the classic story of corrupt politicians lining their pockets with corporate money. No matter what evidence you bring out, this person probably has a strong distrust of politicians and believe that something "under the table" is happening even if you can't see it. You can't prove to him that politicians aren't corrupt.

So, instead of arguing about corrupt politicians, you should search for another story that they respond to even better. Maybe they believe that all politicians are corrupt, but that also believe that all farmers are saints. So if subsidies are good for farmers...

Of course, fighting with stories is already quite common and successful. But if we realize that what we debate and what can change minds are often different, it may help us have more fruitful discussions. Much of what we debate boils down more to core beliefs than actual facts, and yet we often trade facts back and forth as if we expect them to change anyone's minds. Instead, framing things in terms of the adages that reflect our beliefs may bring us closer to understanding our true beliefs and the reasons we have for believing in them.

Co-housing

I am lonely.

I live in the bay area, a sprawling metropolitan area that contains almost 7 million people. There are eighty-one units in my housing complex. And yet I somehow still feel isolated amongst the vast sea of people that fill my view.

I know I am not alone in this feeling. In the public discourse, the loss of community in our generation is almost cliche, but that doesn't make it any less real. Some people yearn for the "small town" intimacy or the bar where "everyone knows your name." For many of my generation who never lived in a small town, our closest analog is the college dorm or fraternity. We reminisce fondly about the times we could just walk into a neighbor's room, sit on his floor and procrastinate together. Now, the twenty-minute drive to see that old friend feels like a thousand miles, insurmountable without a "good reason" or a meal-centric event of some kind.

So how do we regain a sense of community? Well, there is a small, 19 home co-housing community being developed in Mountain View. The idea is to have a group of individual homes share both a large communal space (in this case, a 4000 sqft common house) and a desire to view each other as family. Communal dinners and events would be expected but not required. it sounds great, but unfortunately, the development (due to be completed in 2013) is also a bit out of our price range. Plus, one of the things that really made the college experience work was that we were all at the same stage of life with similar needs and wants. The Mountain View housing community is currently made up of the people with the time and money to undergo such an endeavor, namely people over 55.

So what's plan B? The housing market sucks (if you own a house like I do). Prices are low, and inventory is high. In fact, in my complex of 81 houses, there are five units for sale. Thus, the silver lining. If our friends bought those five houses, we could have our own little housing community. For reference, the cost is roughly half the cost of the co-housing community in Mountain View. We could even buy an extra house and use it as a shared space if necessary. It's still cheaper.

So, if you're thinking about buying a house and want a great house with a great developing community, check out the houses in my complex like this one. Make my dreams come true.

Our Greatest Natural Resource

Studies show that we could easily become 37% more efficient in our water use. Gasoline engines themselves are only about 25% efficient while solar panels are typically around 15% efficient at capturing the sun's energy. Horrendous no? Billions of dollars are currently being invested in making more efficient use of our resources. But there is one resource that doesn't often make it into the news or into investment portfolios, and yet it is perhaps the area we can improve in the most: human potential.

How efficient do you think you are at work? I'm not talking about the hours spent doing actual work vs. playing solitaire. I'm talking about how much of your potential skills, experience, and intellect are being leveraged by your company. If you work at McDonalds, is following the cash register script and all the procedures really using your talents to the fullest? Or if you work in an office, do you really feel like your effort is producing the maximum impact that it can, that filling out TPS reports fulfills your destiny?

I'd guess that globally the true potential of the workforce is being utilized at less than one percent. The conventional wisdom is that work sucks. It's supposed to suck. Sure, some of us are lucky enough to like our jobs, and yet I bet we all still complain about the stupidity of management or beaureacracy or inane cost-cutting procedures or whatnot. These things irk us beyond belief because deep down inside, we know that these things are keeping us from our true potential. We know that we can be more, do more, if only someone knew how to unlock that hidden promise.

A colloquial scientific tidbit is that humans only use 5% of their brain. People always say, "Imagine what we could do if you used all 100%." Well, as a society, we leverage people's potential even less efficiently. Imagine all the things we could accomplish and the problems we could solve if we tackled this challenge.

It is a challenge that may entail changing corporate structures, social circles, cultural desires, residential systems, and even our political system. And yet, if we stop for a moment and imagine a world where every person is truly all that he can be, then maybe, just maybe it's worth the investment.

Leveraging Game Mechanics to spread Sustainability

Connie and I got our first article published on Triple Pundit. Check it out here:

Better design can change the world

Does a family really NEED a 2500 sq ft. house? I've found that living in California where houses are expensive has resulted in a space thriftiness that has kept me from buying too many physical goods which will eventually end up in the landfill. In many ways, abundant space promotes a culture of cheap, disposable products rather than fine, durable, space-efficient goods. Here's an amazing video that demonstrates how wonderfully efficient and beautiful well-designed furniture can be:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRxvNhlS4V4

Greenerminds Summit: discovering a more perfect world

This weekend I participated in an event that provided nothing less than a glimpse into a more perfect world. For seventy-two hours, eighty great minds left behind their worldly responsibilities as designers, entrepreneurs, marketing consultants, and students and ventured deep into the Mendocino Woodlands, where cellphone signals and internet access fail to penetrate.

For those seventy-two hours, we cooked together, ate together, learned together, and played together. We discovered that amongst the powerful corporations and influential nonprofit representatives, we also had artists, athletes (somewhere in this world, egg toss is considered a sport), musicians, and writers. Most importantly, we dreamed together.

The trees overhead sheltered us from more than sun and distraction. They protected us from the cold separation of society. Here we were all instant best friends, supportive and curious about our brethren. The web of community held back the doubt and insecurities that assail us every day and let loose the potential of eighty truly great and green minds.

The organizers, an almost familial group from Net Impact, IDSA, and the Young Women Social Entrepreneurs recruited the minds, made sure they were well fed, and fostered an amazing environment of communal involvement. Beyond that, this was truly an Unconference. Discussion topics were created on-site by passionate pleas and popular vote. Groups were self-moderated, and participants freely flowed in and out of them, following the two-feet rule.

Can anything really come from such an unstructured format? I found the discussions I was involved in to be very engaging and inspiring. They often took a surprising turn - one of the advantages of tossing structure out the window - but stayed focused on the overall theme of sustainability. A few direct actions may result from this unconference, but the main benefit will undoubtedly be the creation of "mastermind" groups, support groups that will continue to inspire, promote new thinking, and launch projects long after the summit has passed.

Plato believed that every object that we see is merely a shadow of a true Form which, though abstract in nature, is more real than the objects which mimic it. This weekend we imagined a more perfect world, and for those seventy-two hours, it was more visceral and more real than the blank reality that surrounds us today. In daring to believe in that more-perfect future, I discovered the real me, one not bound by self-doubt, societal expectations and financial statements. In the Mendocino redwoods, I regained the courage to dream, and I can only hope that every morning when I look in the mirror, the real me will look back.

personal monorail

This seems like a lot of fun.

To me, it doesn't seem practical as an urban alternative because trains carry so many more people. However, there are many places where trains fail because they're expensive, and the area isn't dense enough to really support a subway system. Perhaps this type of solution is a good in-between a semi-mass transit system.

What do you guys think?

Protesting Arizona

Check this brief article out

The San Francisco government is banning official visits to Arizona. Is San Francisco crazy? Well, LA and DC might do something similar.

I think this little incident is a great example of leverage and how the game is constantly changing and... innovating.

Here's what I mean. The standard political process is that voters in a state elect representatives. If they don't like a law (in this case, an immigration law), then they vote out their representative. If you don't live in the state, then you go one level up and lobby your federal representative to pass a law negating the state one.

Now in this case, a city is protesting a law in another state, not by lobbying the federal government, but by basically putting up an economic sanction on Arizona. They are applying economic leverage on something quite unrelated.

Furthermore, individuals in other states have found more leverage. Instead of writing letters to their senators, they are boycotting companies based in Arizona in the hopes that Arizona companies (which can't vote) actually hold the political power in Arizona.

Will inter-state economic sanctions work as leverage in a mostly-unrelated political issue? I wonder if we'll see more of this

Stadiums, Signs, and why email Spam might be good for something

I put up my first political sign today... ever. Why is it my first? I've certainly cared about elections before. But it hardly seemed like putting up a sign would make a difference in the Obama campaign. It always seemed more of a declaration of who you were (like a vanity license plate) than something that would actually sway voters. But today I stopped my streak of indifference and actually printed up my own signs and taped them to my windows. Here's why:

I've been getting flyers... many colorful bright flyers telling me to vote Yes for Measure J. Vote yes for J and Yes for Santa Clara. Since I live in Santa Clara and have a job, I would say I am pro both. I then spent some time looking for information on what the actual measure was. The short of it is that it's asking for Santa Clara to subsidize the building of a football stadium for the San Francisco 49ers. Yes, it seems quite shocking that a city of 110,000 residents would be building the stadium for an NFL football team (which wouldn't be changing it's name). I had heard murmurs of this for the last few years, but now there were flyers showing up at my door, so I needed real information.

I found very little at first, after all, this wasn't a big national, state, or even county issue. It was just a Santa Clara city issue. I felt very isolated in this when I realized that I don't think ANY of my friends actually live in Santa Clara. Please speak up now if you do. After some research, (including the only balanced article I could find - from the New York Times of all places) I did decide to vote against Measure J. If you're curious why, just read this book about publicly subsidized stadiums HERE. It's quite fascinating. Aside from any police and traffic issues, it's basically financially ridiculous. The city loses a lot of money and gains delusional aspirations of being a "big" city and the promises of an economic boom that never comes. In summary... monorail! But as very few of you can actually vote on this topic, I'll skip talking about the details and go on to why I put a sign on my window.

Having realized what a big waste of money this would be, I started getting really worried that this would pass. Why? Well because it was really hard to find good information out there, and while there is a strong lobby ($1 million from the 49ers) for the measure, the opposition is... well, let's just say there is no pre-existing lobby or union to oppose Measure J. While the supporters have sent me 3 mailers so far and have a very convincing professional looking website, the opposition has a website that looks like it was made in the 80s. But what really got me is that I started seeing the same "Yes on J, Yes on Jobs" (We're paying over $100 million to get hot dog vendors who don't even live in Santa Clara jobs?) all over the place. I don't see any "No" signs. It really makes it look like everyone wants this Stadium. Of course, it could also be that no one paid hundreds of thousands of dollars at kinkos to make "No" signs and then pass them out to everyone. So I made my own. Now the 3 people who pass my house on a daily basis will know that there is SOME resistance to the hegemony. Perhaps others will speak up as well.

But I still feel rather neutered here. In truth I hate that politics has been reduced to making signs. With all the technological advancements at my disposal, I made a sign. The problem is that this is a local issue. None of my facebook friends or the people that read this blog can vote on this issue. And yet because it's a local issue, each vote matters so much more, and the results of the vote will matter so much more to me. I feel like this tie to the local community is where technology is currently failing me. I admit. I am not tied well to my community. But I want to be. I want my facebook or google to make this easy for me. Because like everyone else in my community, I am lazy, busy, and a little scared of other people.

Another thought that came to mind, is that I would like a way to communicate with the people in Santa Clara. I would like to email santa-clara-all@gmail.com. Sure, this would be horrible horrible spam. But there's already a way to do this. it's called Snail Mail. And it's very easy to target a local election this way. In fact, that is what is being done in this election. It is being bought because the only way to communicate directly to all the people in Santa Clara, is through mail, and mail costs money... lots of money. So right now the gate to how much political spam you get is how much money they have to spend in order to chop down trees to make pamphlets and put all that paper on trucks to get delivered to your door. But what if email spam was allowed? it could be regulated not by how much money people have to spend on creating the SPAM but by the city. Let's say that the government is allowed to send everyone in Santa Clara a couple emails a week - you cannot opt out, just like you can't opt out of having a mailbox when you buy your house. Those emails could contain political advertisements from both sides of any issue. Sure, the side with money could still buy ads on TV and send you SPAM in the mail. But at least the other side would be able to put out their message even if they have no money. And if email ads prove to be MORE effective than home mailer ads, maybe we'll waste less money and environmental resources as a society on physical spam mail. Just a thought.

Query process update

Query letters to agents: 26
Query letters to agents who no longer exist: 2
Form-letter rejections received: 3
The Sound of Silence: 21

Life out there...

Usually, I stick to thinking about all the amazing possibilities that exist in our near future, and on our own planet. But today, I just have to ask: Do you think there's life out there? And if you knew for certain that there was, do you think that would change anything about how we live our lives now?

What refreshed this debate in my head was an article not about space, but about Antarctica. This article talks about how a saltwater lake that has been trapped under glaciers for 1.5 million years still manages to support 17 different types of micro-organic life in an oxygen-less environment. It continues to amaze me how life manages to survive literally EVERYWHERE on earth. Here's a nice top 10 of the most inhospitable places life exists.

Now it just stands to reason that in the estimated 10^22 stars in the universe, life has managed to claw its way into existence quite often. Now add to that the recent news that the universe is now 90% bigger than we thought it was. Aint that crazy? Sure, we may never run into the little green men that share our universe, but they're likely out there. Doesn't that make you wonder?