Hitting the Books: What exactly did Jodi Foster hear in 'Contact'?

Art may imitate life but it rarely does so with realistic fidelity. As Naomi Pequette, Space Science Programs Specialist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, argues in her essay "The Sounds of Contact" as part of The Science if Sci-Fi Cinema: Essays on the Art and Principles of Ten Films, being "based on a true story" doesn't exactly mean we're getting the whole story. McFarlandFrom The Science of Sci-Fi Cinema: Essays on the Art and Principles of Ten Films © 2021 Edited by Vincent Piturro by permission of McFarland & Company, Inc., Box 611, Jefferson NC 28640.How would you react if you found out we aren’t alone in the universe? Imagine the moment you discover a radio signal from another civilization had traveled billions of miles through interstellar space, had been detected by some of the most powerful radio telescopes in the world, and decoded by scientists. Would it matter if it was first detected by scientists from your home country? Would the content of the signal matter? Would you want the chance to be able to meet the alien civilization that sent the signal? These are all questions that the movie Contact explores.The opening sequence of Contact sets the scientific basis for the rest of the film. As the camera travels away from Earth, the audience hears a cacophony of sounds. These sounds, which are radio and television signals traveling out into space, get older and older as we zoom past planets and asteroids. Eventually there is silence as the audience... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2021-09-04 15:30:43 UTC ]
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How the Chinese edition of my book about the periodic table got such a risqué cover.

I've been lucky enough to have my book published in a few countries now, and despite the universal subject matter—the periodic table—each country has had a different take on it. Some publishers merely tweaked the book: The British, for instance, re-imagined the cover. More drastically, the... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2011-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book sales slump £1m in riot-riddled week

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 16/08/2011 - 16:03 Spending on printed books slumped £1.1m last week, as the UK riots caused retailers to shut stores early and the public to avoid the high street. Although bookshops remained largely unscathed during the rioting, spending... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-book buyers expect discounts, but do buy more

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Tue, 16/08/2011 - 09:15 UK ebook buyers are expecting heavier discounting on digital titles than their counterparts across the Atlantic, a new survey has found. The survey, undertaken in April by consultants Simon-Kucher and Partners among 250 book... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SoA in royalties row with Beautiful Books

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Mon, 15/08/2011 - 10:07 The Society of Authors has advised members to seek its help before dealing with Beautiful Books, after the publisher was unable to pay money owned to an author since March. Beautiful Books m.d. Simon Petherick said it will... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers "lax" on physical quality of books - Daunt

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 15/08/2011 - 15:49 Waterstone’s m.d. James Daunt has accused publishers of being “lax” in not paying enough attention to the physical quality of books while warning bricks and mortar bookshops will not survive unless they are good enough. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sainsbury's signs exclusive deal to sell Joan Collins book

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 15/08/2011 - 15:45 Sainsbury’s has signed an exclusive deal with independent publisher Constable & Robinson to sell Joan Collins’ new book. Publishing director at C&R Andreas Campomar said the company hoped to reach a wider audience for... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Brookes brokers romantic two-book deal

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 12/08/2011 - 10:54 Pan Macmillan has acquired two novels by Diane Allen, general manager of Magna Large Print books. Publishing director Wayne Brookes acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to For the Sake of Her Children and one other novel... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple's Device Dominance Drives E-book Price-fixing Lawsuit

A class-action lawsuit accuses Apple of working with publishers to raise the cost of ebooks. Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Canavan hits one million milestone for Orbit

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 15:15 Fantasy author Trudi Canavan has become the latest writer to top the landmark figure of one million print book sales through UK Nielsen BookScan. Total sales through Nielsen BookScan to the week ending 6th August 2011 are... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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British Library launches E-Book Treasures for iPad

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 09:08 The British Library has launched its E-book Treasures series for the iPad, with ancient manuscripts now available for download on the Apple iBookstore. The first manuscripts to be available are Leonardo da Vinci's Codex... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Poet Laureate selects third Xmas poetry book

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 09:00 Poet Laureate Carol-Ann Duffy is selecting the third volume of The Twelves Poems of Christmas, which is out this autumn. Duffy will also write the introduction to the titles, which is priced £4.95 and published in October... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Granta hits iBookstore

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 10/08/2011 - 15:07 Granta Publications has put its books onto the iBookstore, with all digitised titles from Granta Books and Portobello now made available. Marketing and digital development director Iain Chapple said: "We are committed to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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WaPo Reorgs Book Reviews...Again

Marcus Brauchli, executive editor of the Washington Post, sent a memo to his staff announcing, among other changes, that the book reviewers will now be report to the editors of the their respective sections. Brauchli told PW that these moves will not affect the paper's coverage of books. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book chains in talks with police to protect stores

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 09/08/2011 - 14:10 Waterstone's and WH Smith closed stores across riot-stricken areas in London as the violence appears set to continue into a fourth night. A Waterstone's spokesperson said it was closing stores early depending on police advice... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gallic to open Belgravia Books next month

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 09/08/2011 - 13:45 An independent bookshop to be run by an indie publisher will host an interactive website and offer home delivery when it opens in London next month. Belgravia Books, launched by publisher Gallic Books, will first welcome... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #independent bookshop #indie publisher #belgravia books #26th september


Egmont wins rights to CBeebies hit

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Tue, 09/08/2011 - 09:05 Egmont has won the publishing contract for the latest preschool series to run on CBeebies, Baby Jake, which launched in July and which is expected to be the next big children’s hit. Baby Jake was developed by Darrall Macqueen... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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July retail growth "modest", amid poor book market

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Tue, 09/08/2011 - 09:43 July retail sales saw a modest improvement, according to figures from the British Retail consortium, though book sales fell to their lowest level for seven years with food continuing to outperform non-food items. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Baltimore libraries will soon check out Nooks in addition to books

Pilot program to lend out electronic readers, pre-loaded with best-sellersThe City That Reads will soon be a leader in bringing new technology to library patrons — electronically. Two branches of the Enoch Pratt Free Library will begin lending 28 Nook e-readers preloaded with almost two dozen... Continue reading at Baltimore Sun

[ Baltimore Sun | 2011-08-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Cache: After Much Ado, a Google Book Deal in France

Could the Internet giant's deal with Hachette Livre clear a path for a deal to settle longstanding litigation in the United States? Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-08-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ross mulls “TV Kids Book Club”

Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 05/08/2011 - 14:23 Publishers have welcomed the news that Amanda Ross, Cactus TV md, may launch a television programme dedicated to children’s books. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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