New month, new start-up. InnovaLight announces advances in solution-treating of silicon nanocrystals, which means they should be able to make ultra thin photovoltaic devices, even on the surface of flexible materials. [NanotechWeb]
Death From Above, But Only For You
I have a fascination with inventions that, by their very existence, change the way things are done. Unfortunately, most of these innovations occur in the field of weaponry, and what they change is how we wage war. In that vein, I think that in nearly eliminating the collateral damage associated with bombs and missiles, the Advanced Tactical Laser is going to change again the way we fight war.
Artificial Gills
I’ve only ever been diving once, and I couldn’t help but think at the time how impractical it was to bottle and carry my air down with me. It’s all part of the scuba experience, I know, but I’m apparently not the only person to feel this way. Hell, something like this might make even an ole lan’ lubber like me give diving another shot.
New Site Design
It’s been more than a year since we fed Futurismic to the design-o-mat and this time it did a doozy of a job on the old bits. Not only did we give the site a visual overhaul, we’ve also introduced advertisements and a new blogging engine. We’ve already got a long list of deferred features we’ll be getting to in the next couple of weeks, but if you see any bugs please drop me a line and let me know what happened and what browser you’re using. Changes to Futurismic won’t stop with a visual overhaul, however. Look to this space in the near future for more on columns and updates to our fiction publishing policies.
CYCLE THIEVES by Mark Ward
Mark Ward‘s a new writer from the United Kingdom with a lot of talent. His Futurismic début “Cycle Thieves” is a moody mystery that wonders if life makes sense if you know too much.
[ IMPORTANT NOTICE: This story is NOT covered by the Creative Commons License that covers the majority of content on Futurismic; copyright remains with the author, and any redistribution is a breach thereof. Thanks. ]
Cycle Thieves
by Mark Ward
“You know what I’m sick of?” Trev said.
“No,” Duffy said, pawing through his rucksack, “I don’t.”
“Perfect relationships.”
Duffy stopped rummaging, looked up, and saw that George, El and Chrissy were as nonplussed as he was, not least because Trev was going through a messy divorce.
“What?” Duffy said, speaking for all of them.
“Look,” Trev said. “I’ve joined all these online dating networks that hook you up with people that you’re bound to fancy based on your likes and dislikes, who your friends are, your aspirations, personality, salary. The lot. We’re all members of them. I’ve got accounts at Taxa, Umfriends, Benco, Lulot…”
“Lulot?” El said. “Don’t think I know that one.”
“Stands for ‘Love you long time’. Well, almost. Anyway, I’ve joined loads of them but when I’m on one of these dates there’s nothing to talk about. I know everything about her, and she knows everything about me. What music, what books, fave films, pet peeves, where we went to school. Collar size. Everything. The social network side of it means you can’t lie either. There’s no surprises, no mystery, nothing to discover. You’re perfectly matched and bored stupid. It takes all the fun out of dating, I can tell you.”
“You just miss getting your face slapped a few times a night,” Chrissy said. Continue reading CYCLE THIEVES by Mark Ward