Author Archives: Alex R. Howe

About Alex R. Howe

I'm a full-time astrophysicist and a part-time science fiction writer.

Highlights from the AAS Conference

Posted on January 12, 2019

For the past week, over three thousand astronomers from all over the world (including yours truly) met in Seattle, Washington for the American Astronomical Society Winter Meeting, the largest astronomy conference in the world. Much science was announced and discussed, … Continue reading →

Posted in astronomy, Science | Tagged , , , , , ,

On Covering Science News

Posted on January 6, 2019

I feel like I’ve been pretty lax about talking about science news stories here. This blog is called Science Meets Fiction, but lately, when I have time to post at all, it only seems to be about fiction. Part of … Continue reading →

Posted in Current events, Science, Writing | Tagged , , , ,

Movie Review: Mary Poppins Returns

Posted on December 31, 2018

In the endless string off remakes and sequels that plagues Hollywood, Mary Poppins was not one I expected to see on the list. The 1964 classic has stood the test of time for more than half a century; it told … Continue reading →

Posted in Movie Reviews, Music | Tagged ,

New Horizons and Ultima Thule: Where to Watch

Posted on December 27, 2018

Update: it turns out that the coverage of the Ultima Thule flyby is “forward funded”, so it will proceed on NASA TV as normal. New Horizons, the spacecraft that famously imaged Pluto three years ago, will be making history again … Continue reading →

Posted in Current events, Space exploration | Tagged , ,

Could Mortal Engines’ Municipal Darwinism Work?

Posted on December 20, 2018

In Mortal Engines, based on the book series by Philip Reeve, in a post-apocalyptic wasteland ravaged by nuclear war, the surviving settlements have become “traction cities,” putting themselves on wheels to roam what was once Eurasia (an area known in … Continue reading →

Posted in Science, Science Fiction, Story Analysis | Tagged , , ,

Movie Review: Mortal Engines

Posted on December 19, 2018

Well, here it is. Possibly the most ridiculous movie of the year is Mortal Engines (although I have a post on the plausibility of it coming up). Mortal Engines is based on a young adult science fiction series by Philip … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Posted on December 17, 2018

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe is dominating the box office, they haven’t completely abandoned other stories. Deadpool, Venom, and the X-Men are still getting their own movies, for better or worse, but this month’s big offering is the Spider-Man: Into … Continue reading →

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