M Thomas Apple Author Page

Science fiction, actual science, history, and personal ranting about life, the universe, and everything

How Star Trek helped NASA make better shuttle names

August 8, 2025
MThomas

Gorog summarised in the memo:

  • This group comprises millions of individuals who are deeply interested in our space programme
  • The name “Enterprise” is tied in with the system on which the Nation’s economic structure is built.
  • Use of the name would provide a substantial human interest appeal to the rollout ceremonies scheduled for this month in California, where the aeronautical industry is of vital importance.

It is really too bad that the shuttle looked nothing at all like the Enterprise (Constitution class).

And an odd coincidence that the original name chosen by NASA was…

…Constitution…

“It clearly was not Cowboy Bebop”

January 30, 2023
MThomas

It started with a scene in a casino, which made it very tough for me to continue. I stopped there and so only saw that opening scene.

https://soranews24.com/2023/01/28/cowboy-bebop-anime-creator-was-disappointed-with-the-netflix-version-from-the-first-scene-he-saw/

Well, I managed to watch the first two episodes, but I really couldn’t continue after that.

Watanabe is right. Netflix screwed up by doing what all US-based companies do when they try to make scifi: they focus on the violence and forget about the ambiance.

But as he says at the end of the interview, “The value of the original anime is somehow far higher now.”

(Read the original interview in its entirety here, if you can stomach the political pop-ups.)

Quantum Leap pilot episode confirmed (but Bakula is only a “maybe”)

January 14, 2022
MThomas

“Considering how many different possibilities there are for a series like Quantum Leap in today’s world, it’s more than a little surprising that it’s taken this long for the series to attempt a return. Bakula had previously stated how relevant a series reboot would be, and the idea of creating a sequel series in which a new team searches for him is perhaps the perfect way to reignite the intrigue that the original program offered.”

https://screenrant.com/quantum-leap-sequel-pilot-scott-bakula-return-update

My family used to watch this each week in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Near the end it did get a little weird (the main character Sam Beckett jumped into the body of a space race NASA chimpanzee, and animal rights activists went totally ballastic).

Still, it ended on a very unsatisfying note (basically, “He never returned home. The End.”) and almost any kind of sequel would be great. Since Sam is a “missing person,” there is likely more to this than meets the eye (see https://www.thewrap.com/quantum-leap-reboot-nbc-plot-details/).

Get your geek on! Resident Alien coming to SyFy

October 12, 2020
MThomas

This picture needs no caption, WordPress…

Aliens! Murder mystery! Colorado! Quirky humor! Alan Tudyk!

If it sounds like a cross between Twin Peaks, My Favorite Martian, and The Man Who Fell to Earth, it’s not a coincidence… (check out the YouTube link in the article below, complete with interviews at the NY ComicCon with the actors in the new show).

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/alan-tudyks-resident-alien-watch-132308016.html

PK Dick wrote fiction…or did he?

September 26, 2020
MThomas

“But decoding and storing memories raise a new set of ethical, moral and legal questions. For instance, who would own these memories after a person has died? Could the police obtain warrants to search through memories? Given that memory itself isn’t completely reliable, could memories be used in lawsuits? How could we ensure that unscrupulous professionals don’t sell or share them?”

Hm, I think I can see another direction this might eventually take…

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/computer-chips-can-read-our-brains-have-moved-sci-fi-ncna1239575

A Happy Somber Saint Patrick’s Day to You, Terrans

March 17, 2020
MThomas

StPatricksSpock

The pub may be closed, but there’s always Trek…

The Witcher, Wheel of Time, and Other Sci-Fi/Fantasy Shows Halt Production Due to Coronavirus

March 16, 2020
MThomas

😱😱😱

Welp, guess it’s back to ST:TNG and Teen Titans: Go! for a while…

— Read on http://www.tor.com/2020/03/16/the-witcher-wheel-of-time-and-other-sci-fi-fantasy-shows-halt-production-due-to-coronavirus/

Max von Sydow, Legend

March 9, 2020
MThomas

IMG_1495

Another classic actor, gone.

I still remember my favorite line, from The Greatest Story Ever Told:

“Don’t vory, Mary.”

Ah, classic Swedish Jesus.

And the scifi-fantasy list…

  • Flash Gordon
  • Conan the Barbarian
  • Dune
  • Minority Report
  • Game of Thrones

What’s your favorite Max von Sydow movie/TV series?

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/mar/09/max-von-sydow-star-of-the-exorcist-and-the-seventh-seal-dies-aged-90

Super Bowl 2020: All the space-themed commercials

February 2, 2020
MThomas

“Being able to get humans on Mars and actually collecting one of these samples would be such an incredible moment, I would kind of hope it would almost bring us back to the moon days of everyone being glued to the TV.”

Um. Well. OK. TV is dead so we’ll all be watching it streamed on our smartphones, but the point is taken.

And how much did they pay for this? 💰 👽 📺

— Read on http://www.livescience.com/amp/super-bowl-space-commercials.html

Odo has returned to the Great Link

December 8, 2019
MThomas

Another TV and movie great has left us a legacy of decades of entertaining, thought-provoking, inspiring stories.

Farewell, René Auberjonois. The Great Link welcomes you home.

http://blog.trekcore.com/2019/12/rene-auberjonois-star-trek-deep-space-nines-odo-dies/

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