22 Jun 10 Space Age Fetishism Getting Silly New Moniker: Atompunk [Atompunk]

Are you obsessed with Sputnik, the Space Race, Googie architecture and radioactive powers for superheroes? Look out, it seems like your fetish is about to get a name: "Atompunk."

According to a mailing list from the Netherlands, Atompunk is devoted to the cultural period (mostly of the United States) of between 1945 to 1965. While the moniker hasn't become a part of our country's vernacular yet (though I'm sure some of you already started using it ages ago), it sounds just annoyingly catchy enough to warrant a New York Times trend piece in about eight years. And the Dutch aren't helping, devoting a festival to it in Amsterdam for September 2009.

First I had to shake off being labeled steampunk because of my love for Jules Verne novels and Victorian-era science... NOW I have to go around convincing people I'm not another type of punk just because I'd totally live in Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion home? Great, Dutch people. Thanks a lot. [Boing boing]

Tagi: buckminster fuller, feth, miker, space race, jules verne, space age, vernacular, moniker, sputnik, new york times, novels, lt, punk, amsterdam, architecture, peoe, netherlands, victorian era, science, love

10 Aug 10 First Teddie Bear Astronauts Conquer Space [Space]

Yesterday the Japanese announced the first space beer. Now the British are claiming the first teddy bear astronauts, who were photographed in space from a home-made vessel with two digital cameras, a flight computer, GPS, and radio.

The four cuddly astronauts travelled on board the spacecraft for two hours and nine minutes, reaching the 19 miles high mark powered by a latex weather ballon made by the Space Flight club at Cambridge University. They were wearing special suits made by school children, which saved them from freezing at -63.4º F. No, I'm not kidding. The team was investigating what materials would protect the furrynauts better.

If you haven't melted by now, you are not human. And NASA, wake up and smell the coffee. We are losing another space race here. [Daily Mail]

Tagi: daily mail, flight computer, flight club, cambridge university, space space, space race, brith, space flight, digital cameras, astronauts, spacecraft, teddy bear, nasa, latex, gps, weather, suits, coffee, radio