For those who want to see more science fiction playing out in their daily lives:

Leonid Meteor Shower -

Time to start practicing your Friluftsliv. In the next few days the earth will be passing through some cloud dust that was left in space by the Comet Tempel-Tuttle in 1466 and 1533 AD. Get out of the city, leave your houses, run for the hills, the night is going to light up! According to this article at RedOrbit, the peak hours will be this Monday night (actually Tuesday morning 11/17/2009) in the wee hours of the morning (about 1am PST). That’s not going to work! It’s Monday night, I work the next day! Quit thinking like a robot, participate in humanity and do this because this is what will improve your quality of life – enjoy the meteor shower.

Sam Adams Utopia -

This article from Beer Advocate talks about Jim Coch, founder of Sam Adams, and the creation of a beer that invites drinkers to explore new possibilities for beer drinking. The Utopias beer is supposed to redefine beer with 25% alcohol, with huge amounts of flavor, very experimental brewing and aging techniques, and extremely nice packaging. The bottle itself looks like a brew kettle, but to me it also looks like a yert. It is possible that Sam Adams is indeed helping push the limits and boundaries of beer, and also presenting the world with a business model that takes independence and craft as a primary focus. I have never had the Utopias beer, that seems seems to be a symbolic representation of the growing craft brewing movement, because the bottle costs $150 (the aged bottles are on eBay for a lot more – see picture below). While I applaud Sam Adams for their success and great beer, it does seem that this Utopias beer is purely for the beer connoisseur and those with money to spend. I don’t think that’s a bad thing, I just wanted it to lead up to the next down-to-earth-sci-fi topic: Jefferson State Brewery.

Jefferson State Brewery -

This brewery was started in 1998 and only lasted 2 years. The images and text that make up their beer labels and beer coasters seem to be utopian in their vision. Jefferson State Brewery calls for democracy, community, and freedom through their beer. Through the name of the brewery, it’s location, and their visuals they have clearly identified themselves with The State of Jefferson – a secession movement that would have parts of Northern California and Southern Oregon break off to form the 51st state. They believe their values, economy, and landscape are so far different from the whole of mismanaged California they should no longer be associated with it. They are essentially a working micronation, utopian in vision, but wholly committed to seeing their vision carried out. Many of the business and households in the designated area gladly display their support by hanging State of Jefferson signs. It’s too bad the brewery didn’t work out.

Science Pub -

Our last little bit of down-to-earth science fiction comes from the collaborative efforts of McMenamins (those masters at expanding our idea of what is a pub) and OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry). For those of you near Portland, they have created the Science Pub, a venue for drinking beer while learning about science. I visited the “science of beer” lecture but they’ve also had lectures about the science of why we are afraid of spiders, and a lecture about earthquakes and tsunamis in the Pacific Ocean. Upcoming lectures include “How Gecko’s Stick and Why We Care” and then in January they’ll have “Hitchiker’s Guide to Cyber-Science.” Sounds good doesn’t it? In my opnion, and I’ve alluded to this before, Science Pub should be offering degrees and provide a recognized alternative to University education which costs too much and schools rarely allow beer on campus.

If you stuck around for the picture of the Utopias beer on eBay, here you go: