Things have been pretty busy in these parts (while I eagerly await feedback from more beta readers), which makes it a good time to write a Scattershot post.

The Doctor

First up is Doctor Who, and the 50th Anniversary episode (also the 799th episode) called “The Day of the Doctor.” It aired this past Saturday, and it was very cool. No spoilers outside of trailer-level stuff, but the gist of the episode is that the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant) and Eleventh Doctor (Matt Smith) get all up in each other’s business. Crossed time streams ensue, and Jenna Coleman’s delightful smile is there to keep us happy.

If you didn’t watch it, look for it in rerun on BBC America here in the States. It’s also showing in 3D in some theaters. I haven’t seen that version, but Jeff Gamet did (earlier tonight), and he said it was pretty nifty.

Oh, and can I please have a spin-off of John Hurt as the War Doctor? Yes, please!

Bitcoin

I’ve become very interested in Bitcoin in the last few weeks. If you aren’t familiar with it, the short version is that it’s a form of cryptocurrency, or a peer-to-peer, decentralized, virtual currency. If you want more information, I wrote a Bitcoin primer back in April for TMO, and Jeff and I discussed it on a recent episode of The Apple Context Machine podcast. If you have a question, post a comment or write me and I’ll do my best to answer.

I started mining Bitcoins (a very small operation at the hobbyist level) just a few weeks before the price skyrocketed to more than US$800, where it stands today on Bitstamp and MtGox. I’m fascinated by the mechanics of Bitcoin, the realities of mining (I don’t think one can even break even with entry level mining gear today), the size of the market (I’ve seen $72 million transactions cross the network in recent days), and the politics.

In short, I’ve dived into this topic as only I can (obsessively). It came along at just the right time to occupy what was and will again be my writing time, and I’m enjoying learning more about it. I won’t offer investment advice, but I would advise people to take the time to learn about it during these end-of-the-beginning days. I expect it to get bigger and become more pervasive as time marches on.

Moving Forward

Lastly, I’ll mention that I’ve been putting some notes together for the book that follows Accidental Intelligence. I won’t start full bore on it until after I get that manuscript back from my beta readers, make some edits based on their feedback, and start querying it, but it’s good to keep working on something else while I wait.

Mason has some interesting days in front of him.