SadGeezer, according to this page, is anyone "who is mildly fanatical" about any subject whatever. This page narrows its focus somewhat, though, to Geezers of the cult SF television variety, and brings
together communities of people obsessed with programs ranging from Farscape to Aeon Flux. With episode guides that include reviews, screen caps and notes on moments of interest, this page concentrates a lot of TV news and opinion into one fun-filled place.
The absolute highlight of the page is the Purity Tests (in the case of Red Dwarf, Smegtest). These 15-item questionnaires rate your knowledge of a series and pop out an instant grade. The multiple-choice questions include queries based on photographs, and at least a few in each Purity Test are relatively obscure. Unlike many such applets, the tests are glitch-free and fast, and once in possession of a guest's responses about the show in question they generate a handy—if mildly
insulting—personality profile for the test-taker's reference. (The personality profile for anyone scoring extremely high is available to all as a sort of light reading.)
SadGeezer also follows current news in SF TV, runs fannish opinion polls and maintains discussion groups on its chosen shows for its members' enjoyment. It includes some adult content, both in its forums and in its general TV coverage, and thus might be unsuitable for younger fans. It also
has a distinctively United Kingdom bent, both in tone and in membership. With lots of photos, episode discussion and fan commentary, it is a lively place, one well worth a visit.
— A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—February 25, 2002
hysicsWeb is an on-line magazine for the hardest of hard sciences, a source of news on the latest research and controversies in the field. With recent articles on everything from a simulator for bobsled athletes to recent improvements in laser technology, this site is an obvious first stop for anyone interested in the workings of the universe.
A Web tie-in to PhysicsWorld magazine, PhysicsWeb serves as an archive of articles and diagrams. It also lists items of interest to career scientists, including jobs and conferences. It has an outstanding links page which connects to physics organizations, university departments and other related resources, from student clubs to museums and exhibitions. It also maintains a "Best Of" section which gathers articles by topic. Specifically looking to research condensed matter? Instead of having to pore through the site index or even mess with a text-based search, surfers are one click away from all the data they require.
There is a definite genre twist in PhysicsWeb's newest article, an analysis of the character relationships of the Marvel Comics universe and their similarity to human social networks. As a result, visitors who think this page sounds dry can take heart in knowing that—at least for the moment—this page has something to offer even those who are uninterested in the movement of quarks or potential jobs in computational engineering.
— A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—February 19, 2002
must confess, I'm a relative latecomer to the glorious art of Alex Ross. I became familiar with his stupendously vast and exciting body of work only with the publication of Uncle Sam in January 1999, a knockout examination of American's down-and-out Daddy written by Steve Darnall. But since then I've sought to remedy my ignorance by plowing joyously through as much of Ross' stuff as I could amass. From his work with writer Kurt Busiek on both Astro City and Marvels through his interpretations of Superman, Wonder Woman and Madman, among others, Ross just continues to get better and better. His photorealist painted art stands out among the humdrum efforts of many lesser comics artists like a man in a red cape and blue tights at an accountants' convention.
Luckily, no other interested newcomer has to piece Ross' career together as laboriously as I did, since they can now simply visit The Official Alex Ross Web Site. Here they'll find enough goodies to keep them happily reading and drooling for hours. News of Ross's appearances at various shops; interviews with the creator; accounts of his various projects, both finished and ongoing; hundreds of thumbnails of his paintings; submissions of fan art done in homage to Ross—it's all there. Books and original pieces are for sale, and by joining his email list, surfers will enroll themselves in various contests. Finally, a handful of links opens up the wider world of comics. Plainly, there's only one exclamation powerful enough to do justice to this wealth of visionary canvases: "Shazam!"
— Paul Di Filippo
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