Nerdy Show

Professional sports might not be the average nerd’s cup of tea (I know it’s not mine), but in recent times the phenomena of fantasy football has blurred the lines between average geek and the armchair warrior.  It’s like an NFL RPG.  What with the Super Bowl being tomorrow and Lost having just premiered, it seemed like the perfect time to dust off an internet video series that aptly juxtaposed nerdiness and pro sports: The Dharma Fantasy Football League.

The project was created by some old friends of Mike and I, including the members of Jedi BFF (best known for the hilarious “Good Morning, iPhone” video).  What begins as an average fantasy football league ends in tragedy and weirdness.  The series is part reality show, part Christopher Guest movie, and full of Nerdy Show-style geekery – featuring such teams as: The Korriban Killers and the Hanso Polar bears.

Check out episode 1:

• Episode 2
• Episode 3
• Episode 4

A while back, we started our Tetris Rap Attack competition, and now we reveal the winners!! We even have the rapping judge, Astronautalis, as a guest on the show today where we discuss what a true American gamer feels towards Tetris Attack!

Congratulations to our winners, Evers McGee, TheHT, and Nomar Slevik and a big thank you to everyone who contributed.

To listen to and download ALL the submissions, click here!

 

 Episode 02 :: Tetris Rap Attack [120:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tracks

1. Tetris Shot :: Guccimonster
2. Millennium Horses (Nomar Slevik) :: MC Cool Whip
3. Ante Up (Battle!) :: M.O.P. (Team Teamwork Remix)
4. (Gotta) Beat That Block (TheHT) :: Masurao
5. A Millie Joel :: Bleubird
6. this city ain’t just a skyline (Evers McGee) :: Astronautalis
7. Bowser’s Stage :: killsaly
8. McVaffeQuasi Ultimix :: McVaffe
9. The Story of My Life :: Astronautalis & P.O.S.
10. Trouble Hunters :: Astronautalis
11. Water Level :: krhym3.574r.0n3

Links

• The Behemoth’s BattleBlock Theater Trailer
• Dethklok’s $40,000 IRL Fountain
• NANOYOU – Nanoscience short film narrated by Stephen Fry
• Fuzzwich minivid creator
• Astronautalis’ Tour info/ MySpace page
• Cap’s in-depth interview with Astronautalis
• The music video for “Trouble Hunters”
• Killer Komandoze 5
• Panel De Pon translation patch

Cap’s initial response: “Wow… he stuck a dick in Brian’s virtual mouth.”

Aaron of A Comic Shop has offered his services to make a weekly comic strip for Nerdy Show. To represent Brian’s virtual status via Skype, Aaron’s represented him as a robotic head. We’re sure you can figure out everything else.

After completing Seifer’s biography on Tesla, I thought it would be a while before I finished another book to review. However, a mere 48 hours later, I find myself a book deeper into my repertoire after grinding through Michael Crichton’s 2006 bio-thriller, Next. Like any Crichton classic, Next is no lightweight, coming in just over 500 pages. The rate at which I devoured it is a testament to its intensity and the way it truly captivates the reader.

In the Crichton tradition, he creates a complex science-fiction story, not taking place in some far distant future, but today. Science-fiction, I argue, is the wrong genre to file Crichton under, as it leads the imagination to far off worlds, Flash Gordon, and alien marauders. In recent years, the phase “speculative fiction” has gained notoriety as contemporary science-fiction that utilizes actual science to justify story elements. In Next, the science under the microscope of scrutiny is genetics. While one of the characters would blend in well with Well’s The Island of Doctor Moreau, it’s not the science that Crichton condemns, but the corporate perversion of the scientific method from a pursuit for truth to a pursuit for profit.

Having finished my fourth Crichton novel, Prey, not too long ago, I felt I had a pretty good idea of how the story would flow, with a limited third person narrative that follows a primary character which occasionally hops to others, but with a definitive “main character.” This was not the case with Next, where there was really no distinct main character, with one main story, but over a dozen interconnecting stories each with a wealth of colorful, unique, and real characters. The very structure of the storytelling is a devise used to relate to the reader how interwoven the subject matter of modern genetics and its problems are today.

With a dozen stories, Crichton is able to take a grapeshot on contemporary genetics, from the patenting of genes, to transgenic experimentation, to the murky legal environment on genetics, to the now corporate role many educational institutions are taking on the topic. It all seems unbelievable. However, on a recent episode of NPR’s Science Friday a topic that would have eerily fit into Crichton’s pages was discussed: a legal patent battle very similar to the fictitious battle over the genetic cells of a specific person in Next. That harrowing coincident alone makes Crichton’s following warning all the more haunting:

Welcome to the our genetic world. Fast, furious, and out of control. This is not the world of the future – it’s the world right now.

Another element that I enjoyed was the scattering of excerpts of news articles throughout the book. While some were fictitious articles meant to reflect events in the book, others were based off of actual articles, adding to the authenticity of the cautionary tale. They sometimes acted to supplement subject matter touched by the story, while other times they were a foil which reflected the ridiculous manner in which the press twist information on science that they don’t fully understand.

Enjoying this novel doesn’t hinge on your educational background; in fact it assumes you have none. Vivid characters, compelling and thrilling stories, and subject matter that keeps you thinking on through to Crichton’s editorial “Author’s Notes” are all elements that make this book stand out amongst his impressive catalog. With his message more relevant today than it was four years ago, this is one story I highly recommend picking up.

More on Michael Crichton

Buy Next

The Nerdy Boys are back for a new season of Nerdy Show. Brian may be in Virginia but, thanks to the magic of telecommunications, he’s back with Cap, Triforce Mike, and Hex for the new season WITH A VENGEANCE!! Join us for Cap’s in depth thoughts on Mass Effect 2 and first impressions of Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, Hex tries to bring culture to the group, Mike responds with dick jokes, and Brian faces off with the Lawnmower Man. It’s amazing!

 

 Season 3 Episode 01 :: Season 3 With a Vengeance.mp3: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Tracks:

1. Ecstasy of Gold :: glomag
2. Around da Chip :: Daft Bits
3. The Golden Age of Video :: Ricardo Autobahn
4. The Electric Flute :: halc
5. System :: Super Barrio Bros
6. Voodoo Sabotage :: The Klemptones
7. Keyboard Cat :: MC Shammers
8. Hysteria :: Microchip
9. Stickerbrush Symphony Cover :: ORBiT-8*
10. Autobeat Airbus (Live) :: Optimus Rhyme
11. Blue Then Red :: Doug L
12. A Glorious Dawn (Alien Syndrome mix) :: Symphony of Science

The Links:

• Mr. Plinkett’s 70-minute Episode I review
• The IRL Dragon Quest bar
• Drawn Together Movie trailer
• New Weird Al Movie?
• Cosmic Bingo GRANDPA DANCEOFF!

Triforce Mike plays the new WiiWare game, Muscle March, as it was meant to be played.  Grab that protein powder and get totally jacked up on how bodacious it is that NERDY SHOW SEASON 3 DEBUTS THIS WEEK!

This past Christmas, I was given a Barnes and Noble gift card and while perusing in my local branch for a book or two to consume, I wandered into the Science aisle, hoping for something to reintroduce myself to artificial intelligence or the like. With a two-tone bronze and black photo of a familiar scientist on the cover, the title Wizard enthralled me. Like the badge of honor it truly is, the book advertises on top that it’s “Highly Recommended by the American Academy for the Advancement of Science.” I held in my hands Marc J. Seifer’s opus to the father of the Electrical Age and Wireless Technologies, The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla: Biography of a Genius. It was love at first site.

At a price of $19.95, it seemed almost fated to be as I presented my $20 gift card. Pawing the book on the way to the bus stop, I anxiously skimmed the pages of the foreward by William H. Terbo, Honorary Chairman of the Tesla Memorial Society and grandnephew to the sorcerer himself. Bubbling with excitement, I was glued to every word of the glowing praise from kin of Tesla. Seifer’s preface tells the personal story of discovering who Tesla was and his shock of his previous ignorance of the inventor and his extensive works. Then as ignorant as he was in 1976, I launched myself into the universe of Tesla.

Seifer painted a marvelously unbiased portrait of Nikola Tesla and the world that changed around him, often due to his own innovations. He showed Tesla for all of his brilliant insights and his self-destructive neuroses. In Wizard we walk with Tesla from his modest beginnings as the son of a priest in the Slavic lands of Eastern Europe, through his educational tour of the continent, to America, where his original AC Polyphase system was to revolution the modern world, bringing light to everyone everywhere. Seifer perfectly captures the reoccurring theme of the plight of the iconoclast, Tesla’s brilliance is fought for the first of many times by not only his legendary rival, Thomas Edison, but practically the entirety of the contemporary electric world. I was at the edge of my seat as I read the chronicles of the two-front war: on one hand an established, yet now obsolete, group that backed DC feared Tesla and fought to silence him; while others coveted his discoveries and strove to pirate them as their own; yet somehow Tesla persevered with those in his corner that both saw his brilliance and wished to celebrate it. This is the first of many trials detailed in this brilliant tome.

Seifer palpably sculpts many historical characters which entered the life of Tesla including George Westinghouse, Thomas Edison, Mark Twain, John Muir, J. Pierpont Morgan, and many many more. With an amazing treatise that follows the gaunt wizard from an old world to a new, you truly get an understanding of not just Tesla and the world around him, but how he directly changed it, and even a touch o fhow mankind truly responds to revolutionary innovation.

This book captivated my attention through its entire scope. It was, in my opinion, a true success as a biography and tribute to a scientific genius that isn’t given the attention and celebration he truly deserves. I can’t wait to read it again! I heartily recommend this book to everyone. If you’re a history nut, you’ll be fascinated at the scientific marvels that a single man could devise. If you’re a science geek, this book will give you a stronger appreciation of the impact of not only innovation on the world, but the impact of the world on innovation. If you’re a Tesla fanboy, this should be paramount for your library. If you’re not familiar with Nikola Tesla, inventor, discoverer, dreamer, Father of the Electric and Wireless Ages, the archetypal mad scientist, and the inspiration for thousands, than this book is for you.

More on Marc J. Seifer

Buy Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla: Biography of a Genius

For those that have yet to listen to the 2009 Final Boss episode, you can peep it here, but below is the list of the Top 20 Nerdy THINGS of 2009, according to the Nerdy Show crew.

1. Pixelh8’s Obsolete? performance at Bletchley Park
2. The Protomen’s Act II: Father of Death Release Party
3. Geoff Johns’ opus, Blackest Night
4. Fangamer
5. The rise of I Fight Dragons
6. Nerdapalooza 2009
7. Turtle’s Forever
8. Capcom’s fan music support
9. Red Dwarf – Back to Earth
10. Water on the Moon
11. Augmented Reality
12. Dark Reign
13. Shael Riley & the Double Ice Back Fire’s Songs from the Pit
14. J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek
15. Atomic Robo Vol 3 : The Shadow Beyond Time
16. The 8-Bit Weezer Album
17. Tron Legacy trailer
18. There Will Be Brawl
19. Illegitimate Marvel Children
20. Marc with a C’s Chicken Pox and Star Wars Guys

There were a bunch of notable mentions… but for those, you’ll have to listen in!!

 

 Episode 18 :: 2009 Final Boss [143:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Ladies and Gentlemen, we present to you the Final Boss of 2009!  In this episode we unleash our list of the Top Twenty Nerdy THINGS of 2009, in a VERY specific order. Movies, video games, people, music, concepts- if it’s nerdy then we judged its worth.  Listen in to find out what we thought were the best of the best. This episode is also the finale of Nerdy Show Season 2. We’ll be back sometime in January, so keep those RSS feeds warm and an eye on our twitter and facebook as we fine-tune and improve the Nerdy Show battle wagon. Thank you for listening and making this season out-freakin’-standing.

 

 Episode 18 :: 2009 Final Boss [143:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Tracks:

1. Chicken Pox & Star Wars Guys :: Marc with a C
2. The Very Best :: Taylor Wade
3. Island in the Sun (Belmont’s Revisal) :: videogame orchestra
4. Voyager :: Zombectro
5. Happy XMas (War is Over) :: Shael Riley & the Double Ice Backfire
6. Splash Woman :: Random
7. Do the Bruce Campbell (Live at Nerdapalooza 2009 ft. Schaffer the Darklord & ZeaLouS1) :: MC Lars & YTCracker
8. Platform Wars (Live at Nerdapalooza 2009 ft. the great Luke Ski & int eighty of Dual Core) :: Devo Spice
9. The Faster the Treadmill… :: I Fight Dragons
10. The Hounds :: The Protomen
11. More Math :: Pixelh8
12. Contains mild Euphoria :: Pixelh8

The Links:

• RetroZone Xmas NES Game
• Midnight Riders – “All I Want For Christmas (Is to Kick Your Ass)”
• Zelda Reorchestration Project (ZREO) and the ZREO download link
• First Dead Space 2 screens in 3D!
• New Mass Effect 2 Trailer
• A Complaint to Mario Bros. Plumbing
• Newlywed Sex Twitter

THE 2009 TOP 20 LIST REVEALED

The Nerdy Show crew is back with our first “Fan-Inspired” adventure, The Quest for the Erotic Pangolin. A real creature, the pangolin is basically a spiky anteater with razor sharp scales. Why would it be erotic? What will CHAIR do to it? What will Jen’Ifer do to make sure he doesn’t have to see it? Only one way to find out… listen in!

 

 Dungeons & Doritos Episode 3 :: The Quest for the Erotic Pangolin [167:17m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

1. Carol of the Bells :: Sephire
2. Kefka Goes Carnival :: NoppZ
3. Dead on the Dancefloor :: UltraViolet Sound
4. Hungry Like the Wolf (Duran Duran cover) :: Reel Big Fish
5. A Fine Place to Live :: halc
6. Alien For Christmas (Fountains of Wayne Cover) :: I Fight Dragons
7. Thunders (ACDC vs Prodigy) :: PingPong
8. Bubble Decision :: Mustin & Dale North
9. Love Hurts :: djpretzel
10. I Hold Your Hand In Mine :: Tom Lehrer
11. I’m Too Sexy (Right Said Fred Cover) :: Scared of Dinosaurs
12. K.K. Sex-a-Peel :: Mustin

DUNGEONS & DORITOS FAN ART!