Dr. Shaun Duke, Professional Nerd

Editor. Writer. Professor. Host.

Rethinking Superhero Ethics and Myke Cole’s Shadow Ops Series

On the recent Skiffy and Fanty Show podcast, my friend Jen and I interviewed author Myke Cole about Shadow Ops:  Fortress Frontier, the sequel to his 2012 hit, Shadow Ops:  Control Point (which we interviewed him about here).  During the discussion, we (Jen and I) sidetracked from asking Myke direct questions to actually considering the world […]

Death Star Economics and Ethics? (Or, What Would You Do With a Death Star?)

I find it amusing when smart people take science fiction concepts seriously enough to question their validity in the real world.  From rocket packs to hover cars to laser guns, the smart ones have destroyed our childhoods, one reality-based argument at a time.  The Death Star is no different (and I’m going to add to […]

The Hugos: Testing the Waters — What will win?

In the interest of filling my blog with all your lovely voices, I want to know your answer(s) to the following question: Which novels, novellas, short stories, films, fanzines/writers, fancasts, and so on do you think will win the Hugo Award this year? I have a secret agenda for asking this question, which I will […]

Say What? J. J. Abrams and the Star Wars Shuffle

It’s official.  J. J. Abrams is going to direct the new Star Wars movie.  The good news?  He’s not writing it.  Nope.  That would be Michael Arndt, who is best known for Little Miss Sunshine and Toy Story 3.  That’s good news indeed. When I set out to write this post, I imagined it would […]