THE SCI-FI PODCAST EP 14: The Science of Star Wars

Posted on November 26, 2015 by IcarusArts

Welcome to The SciFi Podcast, ~~a wretched hive of scum and villainy~~ a bi-weekly podcast focused on in-depth discussion of all things Science Fiction. The SciFi Podcast features three hosts—Mattroid, Solo, and Station!—and frequent guests. Each episode we look at a science fiction theme or franchise and take the discussion where no show has gone before.

This episode we bring back our real life friend and a real life physicist, Brian “The Brain” Patchett, to get his insights on the use of science (and pseudo-science) in the Star Wars saga. Brian teases lightsabers and gives us a full rundown on speeders, blasters, warp drives, deflector shields, The Death Star and more.

We also officially welcome Brain into the fold, updating his status from “special guest” to “contributor” … but contributing what, exactly? Well, besides guesting on great podcasts like this that will melt YOUR brain, OUR Brain writes incredibly-interesting essays for the site about the real science behind filmic fiction. If you haven’t read his “Brain Blogs” you are truly doing yourself a disservice. The most applicable to this week’s episode is his most recent essay, “Laser vs. Plasma, Sword Battle of Doom!,” or as Matt says “All About Lightsabers,” but they are all great.

Theme music courtesy of I Hear Sirens, featuring Matt on bass and Liz on keyboard. Hear more of I Hear Sirens ethereal, instrumental, post-rock at BandCamp. Podcast production and artwork SpaceWolf.
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BRAIN BLOG: Laser vs. Plasma, Sword Battle of Doom!

Posted on November 17, 2015 by IcarusArts

Original Star Wars concept art by Ralph McQuarrie

1 STARKILLER AND HIS TRUSTY LAZERSWORD

Stories abound on the internet these days about early drafts of the original Star Wars trilogy. Lucas made the move from Starkiller to Skywalker, from Bogan to The Dark Side, and since when is Biggs Luke’s brother? But most importantly for this essay, he went from Lazersword to Lightsaber, (check out starwarz.com for more). Both of which are terrible misnomers, even though the latter is far cooler sounding. Unfortunately both regular light and light amplified by the stimulated emission of radiation are completely useless as a weapon, or a tool, or anything beyond a fancy colored flashlight for finding your way through a dense jungle cavern. So let’s do this . . .
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THE SCI-FI PODCAST EP 13: Bill and Ted and Andrew W.K.

Posted on November 12, 2015 by IcarusArts

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On this episode of The SciFi Podcast, we welcome a most-triumphant guest, Andrew W.K., to discuss his music, philosophies, science fiction and, of course, Bill S. Preston, Esquire and “Ted” Theodore Logan. That’s right, Andrew W.K. joins your hosts for reviews of the hard-partying films Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989) and Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey (1991). Station!

Find Andrew W.K.‘s rock anthems of the future on iTunes or, even better, get something real to hold in your hand directly from his website at AndrewWK.com. You can (and should) also follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Please go find him on at least one of these platforms and thank him for coming on The SciFi Podcast.

On most episodes, theme music comes courtesy of I Hear Sirens, featuring Matt on bass and Liz on keyboard. Hear more of I Hear Sirens’ ethereal, instrumental, post-rock at BandCamp. This episode’s theme music features Andrew WK tracks from his recordings, which can be found on iTunes. Podcast production by Mattroid. Artwork by SpaceWolf.