zambonibot

Best Buy has a 15% restocking fee for an e-scooter that's been unboxed, see comment. If it's defective you can return (no fee) or exchange (no fee). If you cancel the preorder in advance there is no fee. Do with this info what you will!

Space adventure… I love it!!!

I'm on the hunt for captivating stories that evoke the spirit of Star Trek, but with a fresh twist. I'm looking for either standalone novels or series that feature a diverse team embarking on thrilling space exploration missions. Picture a crew composed of humans, aliens, and even robots, each bringing their unique skills to the table.

What really piques my interest is if this team follows a code similar to Clive Cussler's characters, where killing is an absolute last resort. I believe that adds an extra layer of complexity and moral dilemmas to the narrative. While I'm primarily seeking action with a touch of mystery, I'm open to stories that also incorporate elements of suspense, horror, and humor. Variety is the spice of the cosmos, after all!

Furthermore, I'm a sucker for epic starships and books that keep me on the edge of my seat. So, if you have any recommendations that deliver gripping adventures and make the cosmos come alive, please share them with me!

Together, let's embark on a literary journey that explores the unknown reaches of space, where imagination knows no bounds. Engage!

I stepped on something in about 4’ of water off the coast of Kauai, leaned down and picked up this Air2S. No idea how long it’s been underwater. Is there anything that can be with this? Obviously happy to have gotten it out of the ocean, but beyond that is it useful to anyone in this condition?

Im looking for stories about life during or after the collapse of society. As far as realism goes, I can live with most things as long as its not so absurd that it makes no sense (for example the sun vanishes one day). Ive read a few of these sort of stories in my teenage years but I dont recall any particular ones. So have at it and suggest anything from the classics to the hidden gems of the genre.

When I was younger I was intrigued by steampunk/gaslamp fantasy works because it looked cool. But as I got older I learned that the Industrial Revolution which is the real life basis for steampunk had a dark side:

1. Unsafe workplaces: Since there were no regulations regarding workplace safety working conditions during the Industrial Revolution were bad. Prime examples included places like the Textile Mills and Coal Mines. In a textile mill the entire place would be warm and humid leading to workers having lung problems and workers would often suffer from stress injuries and physical deformities from doing jobs over and over everyday. And in some cases like the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory a lot of flammable materials weren’t stored properly so if a fire happened they wouldn’t be able to put out because there is no sprinkler system. In a coal mine workers had to work places that were no higher than 30 inches and they had to breathe in coal dust and gases like methane. And like the textile workers the men, women, and children also suffered from stress injuries and physical deformities from backbreaking work. Assuming of course they didn’t die from an explosion which was the result of a buildup of methane and they also had to worry about the roof caving in on them. To top it all off workers in both places had to work 12 -16 hour a days with no overtime pay, endure corporal punishment, have no paid vacations or holidays, if they got injured on the job they wouldn’t get any medical attention, and their wages could be arbitrarily cut, docked, or suspended.

2. High Pollution and environmental degradation: In addition to contributing to global warming the Industrial Revolution also lead to a lot of environmental degradation. Since there were no air pollution controls and regulations, the sky would be clouded with smog and soot from factories. Deforestation also increased either to harvest more wood, increase settlement, or to mine or drill the land for natural resources. If it was to mine the land miners would often use heavy metals like mercury to separate the minerals from the rock which resulted in contaminating the soil and the water. And when plumbing came along this led to a lot of cities dumping their waste into natural lakes and rivers like what London did.

3. No sanitation: As I said above when plumbing was introduced this led to a lot of people dumping their waste into natural rivers and lakes. In addition the streets would also be a dumping ground for waste (animal/human), garbage, and they would often be covered in soot that spewed from the factories. This often resulted in the spread and outbreak of diseases like cholera, typhus, and TB.

To be fair nobody back then anticipated that theses problems would arise from Industrialization.

Though in any case are there any steampunk and gaslamp fantasy works that show the downsides of the Industrialization?

Sources:

https://www.history.com/news/industrial-revolution-negative-effects

https://www.britannica.com/story/the-rise-of-the-machines-pros-and-cons-of-the-industrial-revolution

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/industrial-revolution.asp

https://www.thoughtco.com/gold-mining-mercury-usage-2367340

https://www.historyonthenet.com/industrial-revolution-working-conditions

https://www.history.com/topics/early-20th-century-us/triangle-shirtwaist-fire

https://www.grunge.com/319516/the-truth-behind-the-great-stink-of-london/

https://www.thoughtco.com/public-health-in-the-industrial-revolution-1221641

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2183/the-textile-industry-in-the-british-industrial-rev/

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2201/coal-mining-in-the-british-industrial-revolution/

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/2212/trade-unions-in-the-british-industrial-revolution/

Warning: gets deep

SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL

The Kaiju Preservation Society, John Scalzi (Tor; Tor UK)

FANTASY NOVEL

Babel, R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager US; Harper Voyager UK)

HORROR NOVEL

What Moves the Dead, T. Kingfisher (Nightfire; Titan UK)

FIRST NOVEL

The Mountain in the Sea, Ray Nayler (MCD; Weidenfeld & Nicolson)

NOVELLA

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy, Becky Chambers (Tordotcom)

All award winners and nominees here: https://locusmag.com/2023/06/2023-locus-awards-winners/