Dr. Megan Argo of the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy is not only an accomplished astronomer, but also a stone cold Doctor Who fan. She combines the two in a fun and cosmically educational foray into Whovian fan fiction entitled Doctor Who and the Silver Spiral:

Far across the universe, something big was about to happen. The explosion would outshine an entire galaxy and be visible billions of kilometres away. Its light would travel across the universe for millions of years but, aside from a few astronomers, it would go unnoticed on the Earth.

With a grating, wheezing noise, a small blue box flickered into existence.

"So, where are we?"

"Have a look…" the Doctor replied, tapping a control, "but… don't step outside."

The door of the TARDIS clicked open, and Martha gave him a quizzical look. "Why, what's out there?"

"Take a look" he said, a lopsided grin on his face.

Gingerly, she pulled open the door of the police box and looked out.

"Oh my God," exclaimed Martha. "Is that real?"

Go read the rest

(via: io9)

The collected works of legendary magician Harry Houdini are now available online, courtesy of Google Books.

Houdini title page

(via Boing Boing)

Geeks want to know everything there is to know about their chosen field of expertise. Here's a handy list of things that technology geeks should know.

Defrag your mind

Any competent geek can defrag a hard drive — but what about your own mind? Learn How To Defrag Your Mind In 5 Easy Steps.

Pie in a jar

It's pie! In a jar! Everybody do a happy dance!

Apple pie in a jar

Free Icons!

Free Icons! …does what it says on the tin.

Microsoft exists to make a profit, of course, but the company does offer a lot of interesting freebies. TechRadar lists the 48 best free apps from Microsoft.

This is extra crispy cool: DriveThruRPG, an online store that provides hundreds of role-playing games for download in digital form, is offering a coupon worth over $1400 for a $20 donation to Doctors Without Borders. The package includes the game Serenity, based on the popular Firefly TV series. If you enjoy RPGs, you should go and donate now.

(via Boing Boing)

"Solid writing skills open up career-boosting opportunities for professional writers and for those with aspirations beyond their basic job description. Journalists, fiction writers, scientists, teachers, business professionals, law students and other professionals can all get ahead by inspiring and influencing others with their writing. Whether you’re an undergraduate wanting tips to organize your papers; a novelist who needs help with character development; or a technical writer in search of tips to write more engaging copy, here are 100 little ways all of you can dramatically improve your writing."

Got pictures? Need to edit them? No moolah for Photoshop? Check out these 35 Popular Free Online Photo Editing Tools.

Makes perfect sense, when you think about it…

Carl Sagan's Apple Pie

(via Neatorama)

I am so stoked to find out that there is a website called Dr. Stool, and that the eponymous doctor has all the answers — and no, he's not talking about small sturdy objects on which you can sit or stand…

(via Boing Boing)

"'Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python' is a free e-Book that teaches you how to program in the Python programming language. Each chapter gives you the complete source code for a new game, and then teaches the programming concepts from the example. 'Invent with Python' was written to be understandable by kids as young as 10 to 12 years old, although it is great for anyone of any age who has never programmed before."

(via Make: Online)

She's Geeky provides a handy year-end review of 75 Online Resources for Geeks, aimed mostly at web designers.

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