Speculative fiction movie nominees at the 2016 Teen Choice Awards, Part 2

The conclusion of Speculative fiction movie nominees at the 2016 Teen Choice Awards, Part 1 read.

That's it for the nominees in the main movie categories.  I'll return by next Sunday with the rest, which are a little sillier.  Stay tuned!

It's next Sunday, so it's time to follow through with the rest of the movie nominees from Wikipedia.

I'll start off with the last of the categories with nominees from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

Choice Movie: Villain

Daniel Brühl – Captain America: Civil War
Adam Driver – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Jesse Eisenberg – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Aidan Gillen – Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials
Ed Skrein – Deadpool
Charlize Theron – The Huntsman: Winter's War

Every single nominee is from a speculative fiction film, so any one of them would be OK with me.  As for which one will win, I still think it will be a "Star Wars" sweep or close to it, so I'm expecting it will be Adam Driver.  He can put the surfboard next to the shelf where he keeps his 2016 Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Speaking of Adam Driver as Kylo Ren...

Choice Movie: Hissy Fit

Adam Driver – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Zac Efron – Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising
Kevin Hart – Ride Along 2
Hugh Jackman – X-Men: Apocalypse
Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool
Jason Sudeikis – The Angry Birds Movie

Yes, Ryan Reynolds had a good hissy fit, but nothing like Kylo Ren's.


I expect Driver will win this award, too.  Two surfboards for Darth Tantrum!


Follow over the jump for two categories that recognize the heroes, including one in which I don't think a "Star Wars" sweep is deserved, along with the rest of the nominees.

Dating across political divides

While I was enjoying a good chuckle at Melania Trump's expense and Stephen Colbert was doing his best 'Hunger Games' bit, Vox decided to do something a little more serious at the Republican National Convention.  Vox reporter Liz Plank asked What happens when you match a Trump and Hillary supporter together? We found out.  To see the experiment, watch Political polarization is making dating worse.

Liz Plank went to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland to see how hard it is for Trump supporters to get a date.

Here's the good news.

We set up Bridget, a 31-year-old Democrat attending the convention, with Ryan, a 27-year-old Republican from Cleveland, to see if they could find common ground.

The date went surprisingly well. Although Bridget had more reservations about dating a Trump supporter than Ryan did about dating a Hillary supporter, both didn’t expect the date to go as well as it did. They talked gun control, immigration, the tax code, and #BlackLivesMatter — you know, romantic stuff. Sure, munching on pizza and wine while they did it certainly helped, but overall, they agreed on more than not.

"It’s interesting that we are politically and ideologically polar opposites but there are things we agree on," Bridget said.

It’s not just Ryan and Bridget who are bad at predicting incompatibility across political ideologies. Studies have shown Americans think they are more ideologically opposed than they actually are.

That's hopeful news.  However, Vox couldn't leave well enough alone.  Follow over the jump for that experiment.

Trump and Putin, a bad bromance

Hat/tip to Kevin Robbins at Hometown USA.
In the wake of the release of Democratic National Committee emails by Wikileaks and the strongly suspected Russian involvement in the hacking that exposed them, Trump held a press conference in which he addressed his relationship with Putin and Russia.  Near the end, he asked Russia to find Clinton's missing emails.  Watch it for yourself, along with the reaction.

Key figures in the Republican Party addressed Donald Trump's comments urging Russia to find Hillary Clinton's missing emails. CNN's Jim Acosta reports.

For the third time in the history of this blog, it's time to run the Nate Silver scandal checklist (original here).

"1. Can the scandal be reduced to a one-sentence soundbyte (but not easily refuted/denied with a one-sentence soundbyte)?"

Yes.  Trump is asking a hostile foreign power to intervene in American elections to his benefit.  As for "easily refuted," Trump tried that (he was being sarcastic) but it didn't work.

"2. Does the scandal cut against a core element of the candidate’s brand?"

Yes.  Trump's slogan is "America First," but this request is not a patriotic one; in fact, some have called it treasonous.

"3. Does the scandal reify/reinforce/”prove” a core negative perception about the candidate, particularly one that had henceforth been difficult to articulate (but not one that has become so entrenched that little further damage can be done)?"

Yes.  It reinforces the perception that Trump is an authoritarian who admires other authoritarians, especially Putin.

"4. Can the scandal readily be employed by the opposition, without their looking hypocritical/petty/politically incorrect, risking retribution, or giving life to a damaging narrative?"

So far, yes. Democrats in general and Hillary Clinton’s people in particular are already doing so.  About the worst thing it could do is remind people about the Wikileaks release of the DNC's emails.

"5. Is the media bored, and/or does the story have enough tabloid/shock value to crowd out all other stories?"

I thought the answer would be no, as there are lots of other news, but apparently it's yes. Surprise!

That's five yes answers.  Trump is now ahead of Janice Daniels, former Mayor of Troy, who was recalled, and right up there with Chris Christie, whose presidential campaign flopped after New Hampshire.  That's yet another reason why Trump and Christie make a good pair.

Follow over the jump for more from CNN and the New York Daily News.

Driving update for July 2016: one year of Pearl

Sunday was the first anniversary of buying Pearl the Prius.  Yesterday, Pearl turned over 28,000 miles.  Time for a double celebration!

Pearl's odometer last turned over on June 3, 2016, 54 days ago.  That translates to 18.52 miles per day or 564.8 miles per standard month.  While that less than the 19.61 miles/day and 598.0 miles/month I drove Pearl between April and June, I'm not sure it qualifies as a "return to my usual decreased driving for the rest of the summer."  I blame two trips to the other side of the county, one for the Clawson 4th of July Parade and another even longer one about my teeth, which is a follow-up to the problem I mentioned in Teeth and jaws of our inner fish.

Now for the annual report.  Pearl had 21,577 miles when I bought her on July 24, 2015.  Subtracting that from 28,000 miles gives 6423 miles over 369 days.  That translates to 17.41 miles per day, 530.9 miles per standard month, and 6370.8 miles per leap year (6353.4 miles per standard year).  I suspect my driving a hybrid is giving me permission to drive a little more, as I'm consuming less per mile.  That, and the cheap gas prices.

While my driving actually decreased last month, my overall higher mileage this past year puts me in good company, as the U.S. Department of Transportation as quoted by Doug Short reported.

"Travel on all roads and streets changed by 2.0% (5.5 billion vehicle miles) for May 2016 as compared with May 2015." The less volatile 12-month moving average was up 0.17% month-over-month and 3.1% year-over-year. If we factor in population growth, the 12-month MA of the civilian population-adjusted data (age 16-and-over) is up 0.10% month-over-month and up 2.3% year-over-year.

Here's the graph, which I showed to my students this week.


As for my future driving habits, I'll be off work for much of August.  In fact, I'm giving my first final exam today.  May I relax as I work and drive less!

'Hunger Games' at the conventions

I got a chuckle last night watching Hunger Games' Actress Trolls Donald Trump.

On Tuesday evening, 'Hunger Games' actress Elizabeth Banks made her way onto the stage at the Democratic National Convention through light and fog while a classic Queen song played, just as Donald Trump did on night one of his own convention. While at the podium, Banks went on to say, "Some of you know me from The Hunger Games, in which I play Effie Trinket. a cruel, out-of-touch reality TV star who wears insane wigs while delivering long-winded speeches to a violent dystopia. So when I tuned into Cleveland last week I was like, ‘Uh, hey, that’s my act!’”

"Pitch Perfect" line.*

Of course, no mention of the "Hunger Games" in conjunction with the election on this blog would be complete without the Hungry for Power Games.  Follow over the jump for Stephen Colbert as Julius Flickerman visiting both conventions.

Solar Impulse 2 completes trip around the planet

Earlier this month, I wrote that Solar Impulse 2 crossed the Atlantic while I was focused on Brexit.  Today, the solar-powered plane has completed its journey by landing in Abu Dhabi.  Gulf News has the story in Solar Impulse 2 returns to the UAE.

Swiss pioneers Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg have completed the first ever flight around the world in an airplane fueled only by solar power. The aircraft touched down at 4:05 AM on Tuesday bringing to a close the monumental feat after over a year of circumnavigating the globe.

Congratulations on the achievement! 

Follow over the jump for the significance of the plane and its journey.

John Oliver on feelings over facts and Colbert on Trumpiness

I opened Marble Machine for a Saturday by writing "I'm just not feeling up to dealing with either Trump's acceptance speech or Tim Kaine as Hillary Clinton's pick for Vice President today."  Today, John Oliver made the first part easier by dealing with it himself.

John Oliver discusses last week's unsurprisingly surprising Republican convention.

Thank you, Mr. Oliver, for doing that so I wouldn't have to.  Of course, that's why you're paid the big bucks.

Follow over the jump for how Vox and the Chicago Tribune responded to this segment and tied it to Colbert's "Trumpiness" segment.

Speculative fiction movie nominees at the 2016 Teen Choice Awards, Part 1

At the end of Marble Machine for a Saturday, I told my readers "Stay tuned for Sunday's entertainment feature, which should be a follow up to Speculative Fiction on television at the Teen Choice Awards 2016, this time about the nominated speculative fiction movies."  It's Sunday, so I'm delivering on my promise.

I open with Wochit Entertainment's Teen Choice loves superheroes!

The first round of nomination announcements for the Teen Choice awards are out! Four of the best-represented films are superhero movies from the past year. Despite some backlash from the critics, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice did very well for Teen Choice nominations, including Choice Movie in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy category. It also picked up some acting nominations for stars Henry Cavil, Ben Affleck, and Amy Adams. Captain America: Civil War had Choice movie and acting nominations as well. And even though most teens weren't old enough to see the movie, Deadpool managed to bring in Choice Action Adventure movie, and acting nominations. Fantastic Four picked up a Choice movie nomination in Sci-fi and Fantasy.

"Fantastic Four," which got five nominations at the 2016 Razzie Awards and won three of them, including a tie for Worst Picture is one of the nominees?  That's not going to win against any kind of decent competition.  It didn't even get a 2016 Saturn Award nomination for best comic-to-film adaptation.

Speaking of which, follow over the jump for part one of this year's movie nominees and my comments on them.

Marble Machine for a Saturday

I'm just not feeling up to dealing with either Trump's acceptance speech or Tim Kaine as Hillary Clinton's pick for Vice President today.  Instead, I'm going to succumb to my "I can't be all DOOM all the time" mood and share some ingenious technology in the service of music: Wintergatan - Marble Machine (music instrument using 2000 marbles).


Wired explains.

The internet is no stranger to ridiculously complex attempts to make music with technology. But this might be one of the most purely spectacular attempts yet to take something which is now incredibly easy, and make it virtually impossible to comprehend.

The Wintergartan Marble Machine, built by Swedish musician Martin Molin and filmed by Hannes Knutsson, is a hand-made music box that powers a kick drum, bass, vibraphone and other instruments using a hand crank and 2,000 marbles.

The machine has to be seen to be appreciated: with dozens of beautifully carved wooden parts, tracks, pulleys and funnels for collecting and rerouting spent marbles, it's a true work of art. And though marble machines as an art form of their own have a long and complex history, this might be one of the best.

Slate and NPR also have stories on this Rube Goldberg music machine.

Stay tuned for Sunday's entertainment feature, which should be a follow up to Speculative Fiction on television at the Teen Choice Awards 2016, this time about the nominated speculative fiction movies.

Comments and likes for the fifth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News

"Coming up, the most liked and commented on entries from last year" closed out yesterday's Space and sustainability news for the fifth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News.  Since today is Flashback Friday on social media, it's another good day for a retrospective.

I already mentioned the most commented on entries from last year in Drink to candidates for the fifth year of Crazy Eddie's Motie News.

I begin with Drinks and drinking games for Donald Trump and the GOP debates published August 2, 2015.  It ended the year as the tenth most read entry of the fifth year of this blog with 973 page views and 12 comments, which made it the most commented on entry posted during the fifth year of this blog.  It was not, however, the entry that got the most comments during the blogging year just past.  That honor goes to Science fiction speaks to our current anxieties, which had 46 of its 54 comments posted during last year because of a battle with a gaggle of spammers.  That is a story for another entry...

Actually, I have already told that story in two installments, beginning with Record comments and 500,000 page views for September 2015 and other meta.

Thanks to a battle with several persistent spammers, Science fiction speaks to our current anxieties, posted August 3, 2014, is now the most commented on entry in the history of the blog with 52 comments, half of them deleted.  It started off with eight comments.  Thirty more were posted during September 2015, making this the most commented on entry this month.  Fourteen more came in October, so it will likely be the most commented on entry this month as well.

It continued in Record page views, comments, and 100th follower: Monthly meta for October 2015.

[L]ast month exceeded last month's 74 comments with 89, another new record...I'm  celebrating of the record month by sharing the entries with the most comments, most likes, and most page views, beginning with the post that got the most comments last month, "Science fiction speaks to our current anxieties."  Thanks to a battle with several persistent spammers, this post is now the most commented on entry in the history of the blog with 52 comments, half of them deleted.  Fourteen more came in October, beating out the next entry by eight.

This entry was also among the three that tied for most commented last year, again because of spammers.  As much as I detest spammers, sometimes they can be useful, although I had to resort to quoting Monty Python in response.

Follow over the jump for the entries that got the most pluses on Google+ and saves and likes on Pinterest.