Author Archive
High-flying “Billy Elliot” thrills Fox audience
The movie “Billy Elliot” was a heart-warming hit about a Scottish boy, in a mining town, who discovered a gift for dance. But director Stephen Daldry set that unlikely story against the backdrop of the real-world 1980s coal miners strike, in which British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher broke [...]
Realistic thriller ‘Contagion’ spreads pandemic and panic
Fear of pandemics like the 1918 influenza has gripped the world since the words “bird flu” became common. Director Steven Soderbergh puts that fear to cinematic use in the real-science thriller “Contagion.” This real-world thriller - because this threat is too real to call it science [...]
Kissing cousins: Cavemen leave legacy in human immune system
Science Matters We thought it was just us and the Neanderthals in the Ice Age. But last summer, a third type of “caveman” was discovered in addition to Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis. The newly-discovered archaic human species are the Denisovans, named for the Denisova cave in [...]
Space aliens versus London teen gang equals entertainment in British comedy/action ‘Attack the Block’
“Shaun of the Dead” showed us zombies could be fun. British sci/fi action/comedy “Attack the Block” does much the same with invaders from space versus a gang of tough teens in South London. These guys are just not going to tolerate an attack on their block. “Attack the Block” [...]
Washington shaken up, but not by an election, for once
SCIENCE MATTERS There was a big shake-up in Washington, D.C., but neither Congress nor an election are at fault this time. The fault lies with good old Mother Earth. Earthquakes are a common experience in California, Hawaii and Alaska. Here is Missouri, we are used to living with the specter of [...]
