sci-fi weekend

Why do I go to science fiction conventions? The people are interesting and fun. I learn something new while attending the science panels; and seriously, scientists are the coolest nerds ever. 

I attended Farpoint a couple of weeks ago, and I got to see and do stuff like this...

These boys won a prize in the masquerade for their depiction of

Minecraft Style ala Gangnam Style.

You never know when you're going to meet the Geico Gorn.

Their masquerade skit was pretty funny. 

Oh, and the woman in the Gorn costume is blind, which ups the coolness levels.

Darth Vader and his wife are trying something sweet to lure unsuspecting persons to the Dark Side. Plus, they have the best aprons ever.

If you need help finding a woman, you might try this book. I don't think it will really be all that helpful as we don't have any alien women on this planet... yet.

Dr. Phlox, from Star Trek: Enterprise, and NSA Director Diane Beckman, from Chuck,

aka

John Billingsley and his wife Bonita Friedericy.

These two are the funniest couple I've ever seen on stage. I laughed sooo hard.

Klingons learning how to dance Thriller.

Felicia Day is adorable, witty and smart, and definitely a much bigger nerd than me.

I only wish I was as cool... but I'm not a gamer, nor will I ever be.

I found the TARDIS!!

I loved this kid. He was so cute and funny!

"Aren't you a little short for a Stormtrooper?"

 

The Klingon Empire and The Empire have an exchange program.

Who knew?

This girl's Iron Man costume was absolutely the best. 

Very well done.

I love Captain America... 

Now in my dreams he looked a bit younger.

And I get to meet really cool people like this guy...

Marc Okrand, creator of the Klingon language.

And sadly no I do not speak Klingon.

A very satisfying weekend of nerdiness and geekiness. You can read my friend T's recap and see more photos here.

shore leave sci-fi convetion 2012

I'm playing a little catch up here....

Shore Leave is the largest fan-run science fiction on the east coast and it's lots of fun. I went with a couple of friends and spent a Saturday in August enjoying my geekiness.

Kate Mulgrew aka Captain Kathryn Janeway of Star Trek Voyager was the headlining artist. What a gracious and delightful woman. She was so interesting, and very genuine. I felt that she really enjoyed being there and sharing her STV experiences. 

Lavar Burton (LT Geordi LaForge, Chief Engineering Officer of Star Trek Next Generation)

Me (just a fan)

Kate Mulgrew (Captain Kathryn Janeway of Star Trek Voyager)

(I took a photo of my photo to share here, because I don't have my scanner hooked up.)

A convention attendee playing The Doctor with a host of other Doctors.

A 12 year old dressed as the Tenth Doctor.

I loved all the Doctor Who fans.

Someone turned their hybrid vehicle into a Star Trek shuttle craft.

Check out the license plate ENTRPR A... apparently a die hard fan.

Where else in the universe would you run into R2D2 and his trusty Jedi handler?

The Jedi built this R2 unit himself and handcrafted many of the parts himself.

This was such a fun day. I went to several panels, but my favorite was the Downton Abbey panel. Yes, you read that right. It so much fun to geek out with a large room full of DA fans, and the discussion was great. One of the moderators really did his job and kept us all on track.

All in all a very fun time. And yes, I am a geek. _\V/

talk nerdy to me

Nerd is a term that refers to an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit. Nerds are generally considered to be awkward, shy and/or unattractive by most, although this is not always true. Thus, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by others, or will tend to associate with a small group of like-minded people, although again, this is not always the case.

Geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to be overly intellectual".

Which am I? Not sure...

~~~~~~~~0~~~~~~~~

I am in awe of the particular individual passions on display this weekend at Shore Leave 33, a fan-based Star Ttrek convention, which has now branched out into the other realms, or universes, of science fiction. There was something for everybody - Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Star Gate, Firefly (love this one!),  steam punk, and even Honorverse (Dad, you like this series)--just to name a few.

The best part was getting to listen to experts from NASA, Johns-Hopkins and other institutions talk about REAL science. My friend TS and I really enjoyed learning about these projects and at one point I leaned over to her and said, "We really must find jobs at NASA." She summarized the science perfectly on her blog:

There was one by a NASA scientist who worked on the Hayabusa project, and it was absolutely fascinating. Another about the history of NASA human flight, presented by a guy who works at Kennedy, was also great. Another awesome presentation was about Zooniverse, where you can volunteer to help out with various science projects (click the link, pick a project, and volunteer!). There was also another great one about upcoming solar system exploration. He talked a lot about the upcoming Mars Science Laboratory mission. Click this link to watch an animation of how they plan to land the thing on Mars (the video goes beyond the landing, but the speaker was focused on how they were landing). 

It was fascinating stuff and makes me want to learn and do more.

NASA dude explaining science stuff about the Hayabusa project.

There were actors from several different shows who took questions from us, the fans. The actors genuinely loved being there to talk about their work and share in their fans' enthusiasm for the shows and the characters. I was impressed with their sincerity as they met fans and shared a few moments with them. My favorites were these two guys:

John de Lancie who played Q
on Star Trek : The Next Generation

Christopher Judge who played Teal'c
on Stargate: SG-1
And he's a fan of Big Bang Theory!

Gary Lockwood and Sally Kellerman from
Star Trek: TOS pilot episode

The people at the convention were all really nice and cool. They definitely had their own groups and ideas going, because very few actually reached out to talk to anyone new, so I didn't leave with a new group of friends. I did meet some cool people from West Virginia with whom I hung out for a while, but that was it.

B from WVa made her hairpiece over one week.

The Masquerade or costume contest was really neat. I loved seeing all the costumes and how the contestants presented themselves. There were some really amazingly talented people who made some gorgeous costumes. I wish I had been able to get some close-up photos of more costumes, because they were some really cool ones there.

The Royal Manticoran Navy in uniform.

This dress was amazing. The velvet was hand imprinted.
21 hours on the dragon and 36 hours on the dress.

A steam punk engineer. Awesome leather work
and creative use of a caulking gun.

Steam Punk Crypto-Zoologists. Very authentic and Victorian-esque.

So all in all a very good weekend. Lots of fun and learning. I'm glad I went and I'll probably head back again next year for some more fun.

More photos here. Some more photos here. Soon to be photos here. Enjoy!