by zbicyclist

Penny Arcade (bad language warning)

Christian sends in this comic, which is a new one for me. “Y’all need submissions… and I like visiting, so here’s a webcomic that I frequently enjoy even when I have little clue as to what any of it is about…. and the paragraphs of commentary that accompany each comic often don’t help… not because the jokes are flawed (although sometimes they are … and sometimes on purpose…?) … but because these comics are usually about video game culture/industry/playing… and the last time I was able to be not awful at a video game was when the controls were up, down, let, right, shoot.”

This one is a vocabulary lesson.

“Friendslop is a slang word, used to describe a subgenre of cooperative indie games oriented around a low barrier of entry and social interaction, emphasizing gameplay in social groups … Common elements of friendslop games include a low entry difficulty, frequently described in relation to Bushnell’s Law, that allows people of any gaming skill to participate, and a focus on social interaction. Usually these games will feature a team working towards a common goal, such as climbing a mountain in Peak“ (Wikipedia)

by zbicyclist

Another Vocabulary Lesson

Noosignatures were proposed to fill the gap between biosignatures (chemical signs of life) and technosignatures (detectable advanced technology like radio signals). They indicate intelligent activity that is not necessarily technological. Examples include:

  • Stone tools (e.g., Acheulean hand axes) 
  • Architecture or carvings
  • Undeciphered writing systems (e.g., Indus Valley script) 
  • Complex cultural products such as bread, used as a thought experiment for measurable complexity 

Chemical signs of possible life go back billions of years on earth. Production of radio waves, a bit over a hundred. Noosignatures on earth would go back maybe 3 million years or so. Exactly how you could detect these from earth is unclear.

by zbicyclist

Remembering Don Martin

When I saw this comic from Dan Collins, I was immediately reminded of Don Martin.

(I’ve blacked out a word in the comic, because Collins is making a political point, and we want to keep CIDU a politics-free zone.)

That’s different than Collins’ normal style, e.g.

It does provide an excuse to remember (fondly) the great Mad Magazine cartoonist Don Martin (1931-2000) whose cartoons were a regular delight in Mad from 1956 to 1988.