July 2023 Relax-a-ZOOM, Post 1 of 4: Introduction, SF/F Geography Quiz, Chat Begins

1) INTRODUCTION

Missed MonSFFA’s Barbecue-in-the-Park last Saturday? The club is hosting today online a “Relax-a-ZOOM” Virtual Picnic! Have your favourite summer snacks and libations on hand!

No formal programming is planned, just a game or two, and an afternoon of casual conversation with friends on topics SF/F and fannish! Share with your fellow MonSFFen the details of your latest genre-themed craft project, tell the group about an SF/F book, movie, or TV series you’ve been enjoying of late, or share vacation photos of cool sci-fi events, exhibits, museums, or shops you may have recently visited? The floor is open! Your input is welcome and encouraged!

Also, given this opportunity, we will have information on our scheduled August in-person meeting—the first in over three years!—plans for the return of the club’s fund-raising book sale, and other matters for which the input of our membership is desired.

So let’s get started…

2) JOIN THIS AFTERNOON’S VIDEO-CHAT ON ZOOM!

To join our ZOOM video-chat, which will run throughout the next few hours, simply click here and follow the prompts: This Afternoon’s MonSFFA e-Meeting on ZOOM

If you’re not fully equipped to ZOOM, you can also take part by phone (voice only); in the Montreal area, the toll-free number to call is: 1-438-809-7799. From out of town? No problem; find your ZOOM call-in number here: Call-In Numbers

Also, have this information on hand as you may be asked to enter it:

Meeting ID: 892 8664 2629
Passcode: 673323

3) TODAY’S AGENDA

Post 1 of 4, 1:00PM—Introduction, SF/F Geography Quiz, ZOOM-Chat Begins

Post 2 of 4, 2:00PM—ZOOM-Chat Continues, 7 Stupid SF/F Shark Movies (Rerun)

Post 3 of 4, 3:00PM—Mid-Meeting Break; Discussion of Club Business, With Special Focus on August 17 In-Person Meeting, Lobby Card Game

Post 4 of 4, 4:00PM—Answers to SF/F Geography Quiz and Wrap-Up

4) SF/F GEOGRAPHY QUIZ

How well do you know your science fiction and fantasy geography?

Culled from SF/F cinema and television, we have selected 36 images depicting a variety of landscapes, from strange alien worlds and futuristic cities to legendary lands and foreboding architecture, each a setting featured in a different science fiction or fantasy movie or TV series.

These images are what filmmakers term “establishing shots.” Whether real-world locations, miniature sets, glass or matte paintings, or a composite of several elements seamlessly stitched together by Hollywood’s special effects wizards, an establishing shot is employed to visually place the audience in a particular setting ahead of the action that is about to unfold.

Your challenge is to identify the film or TV series that corresponds to each image. Give yourself an additional pat on the back if you can name or describe the geographical location in question!

Good luck!

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Zines to share!


This week’s new issues at https://efanzines.com:

John Purcell’s Askance #55

Opuntia #553, edited by Dale Speirs

Rich Lynch’s My Back Pages #28

Christopher J. Garcia’s Claims Department #46

Octothorpe #87, a regular fannish podcast by John Coxon, Alison Scott and Liz Batty, is now on line

—

From Lebyl in Israel:CCJuly2023-v01

From the N3F, Tightbeam

Tightbeam346
  Table of Contents
Art
Front Cover… Armada by Jose Sanchez
12… Tigana Dragon by Artist Fish
Back Cover… Big Splash by Tiffanie Gray

Letter of Comment
4… Lloyd Penney
Anime
4… Action Heroine Cheer Fruits… Review by Jessi Silver
Poetry
7… The 2019 Rhysling Anthology Edited by David C. Kopaska-Merkel…Review by Jean-Paul Garnier
ProZines of Years Past
8… Review by Heath Row
SerCon
10… H. Beam Piper Bio-Bibliography by Jon D. Swartz, Ph.D.
Television
13… Musings on Picard and the Star Trek Franchise by Chris Nuttall
Short Stories
15… F&SF May/June 2023… Review by Heath Row
Television
16… Fantastic Television: Travelers Review by Heath Row
Food of Famous Authors
18… Eat This While You Read That: Margaret Ball… Cooking by Cedar Sanderson

CSFFA Hall of Fame Inductees, 2023


CSFFA Hall of Fame Inductees, 2023

CSFFA has inducted three people into the Hall of Fame, in 2023. Congratulations to John Robert Colombo, Michelle Sagara, and Clifford Samuels for their induction. Thank you to the 2023 Hall of Fame Jury for their work. Here are very brief bios of the inductees (please visit their web sites for more info about them).

John Robert Colombo has been called “the Master Gatherer” for his compilations of Canadiana. He is a member of the Order of Canada and Order of Ontario, and has written, compiled, and translated more books than any other serious Canadian author. More than 200 titles of his books have been published since 1960. http://colombo.ca/

Michelle Sagara has written over 40 fantasy novels and has been nominated twice for the Astounding Award for Best New Writer (the award underwent a recent name change). She also has a long running book review column, Musing on Books, for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, with over 50 columns. https://michellesagara.com/

Clifford Samuels is the Aurora Awards Administrator and has been a pillar of support for Calgary fandom for almost four decades, his contribution reaching beyond the city, beyond the province, indeed, beyond the country.

See more at the Hall of Fame page: https://www.csffa.ca/the-csffa-hall-of-fame/

Relax-a-ZOOM Virtual Picnic is this Saturday!

Relax-a-ZOOM Virtual Picnic

Missed MonSFFA’s Barbecue-in-the-Park last Saturday? The club will host a “Relax-a-ZOOM” Virtual Picnic right here at www.MonSFFA.ca this Saturday, July 15, beginning at 1:00PM! Have your favourite summer snacks and libations on hand!

No formal programming is planned, just a game or two, and an afternoon of casual conversation with friends on topics SF/F and fannish! Share with your fellow MonSFFen the details of your latest genre-themed craft project; tell the group about an SF/F book, movie, or TV series you’ve been enjoying of late; or share vacation photos of cool sci-fi events, exhibits, museums, or shops you may have recently visited!

The floor is open! Your input is welcome and encouraged!

Given this opportunity, we will have information on our scheduled August in-person meeting—the first in over three years!—plans for the return of the club’s fund-raising book sale, and other matters for which the input of our membership is desired.

Mark your calendars, and we hope to see you online Saturday!

A SUNSPOT SO BIG YOU CAN SEE IT FROM MARS

A SUNSPOT SO BIG YOU CAN SEE IT FROM MARS: A huge sunspot (AR3363)  just emerged over the sun’s southeastern limb. Mars rover Perseverance saw it before we did. On July 2nd, the rover’s mast-mounted stereo camera (MASTCAM-Z) tilted up to the sky above Jezaro crater and photographed a deep-black dot on the solar disk:


Zoran Knez of Croatia assembled this montage using publically available NASA images

Perseverance does this all the time. Using a solar filter, the rover looks at the sun almost every day to check its brightness. When the sun dims, researchers know a dust storm is brewing–one of the most important forms of weather on the Red Planet.

Sunspots are just a bonus. A recent study shows that Perseverance sees more than 40% of all sunspots despite the fact that Mars is 78 million km farther from the sun than Earth and the rover’s camera doesn’t put many pixels across the solar disk. It is able to resolve about 10% of the biggest sunspots into multiple pixels.

Perseverance has one big advantage. It can see parts of the sun we cannot. From where Mars is currently located, Perseverance views more than half the sun’s farside, giving it a preview of sunspots still hidden from Earth. That’s how the rover spotted AR3363 days in advance.

People on Earth saw the sunspot for the first time on July 5th:

“A very big sunspot is coming!” says photographer Philippe Tosi of Nîmes, France, who inserted an image of Earth for scale.

Just don’t forget, Perseverance saw it first. Daily photos from Perseverance are available here. Select the date and camera (MASTCAM-Z), then start looking for sunspots.

more images: from Philip Smith of Manorville, New York; from P-M Hedén of Vallentuna Sweden; from Sylvain Weiller of Jerusalem, Israel

REMINDER: CLUB BBQ THIS SATURDAY, RELAX-A-ZOOM NEXT SATURDAY!

We remind MonSFFen to mark the next two Saturdays on their calendars!

MonSFFA’s Summer Barbecue-in-the-Park 2023 is scheduled for this Saturday, July 8, and our virtual get-together/picnic—a “Relax-a-ZOOM”—is set to follow one week later, on Saturday, July 15.

Barbecue-in-the-Park

MonSFFen and their families, as well as friends  of the club, are invited to gather beginning at 10:00AM in Parc Maisonneuve on Saturday, July 8, for the club’s 2023 Barabecue-in-the-Park! Parc Maisonneuve, easily accessible by Metro or bus,  is located in the city’s East End, adjacent the Botanical Gardens and the Olympic Stadium. Parking is available on site, or on nearby streets.

Our intention is to claim a picnic spot somewhere along one of the rows of trees, not too far from the parking lot and the chalet. Our “Preferred Picnic Area” is indicated on the map (above).  Look for us in roughly that area.

Club president Cathy Palmer-Lister inaugurates “Dragon’s Breath” grill at last year’s Barbecue-in-the-Park.

So join us for a relaxing day in the park! Friends, fun, food, and fire, the latter in the form of our new “Dragon’s Breath” propane barbecue, which we’ll have on site for those who may wish to grill up a couple of hamburgers, hotdogs, and other such summer staples! Bring your own refreshments, snacks, and any meats you may wish to barbecue.

And please note that proper washroom facilities are located in the chalet, a marked improvement over the deteriorating and unsanitary facilities at Parc Angrignon, our former barbecue locale!

Should the weather prove inclement on the 8th, the event will be shifted 24 hours forward to Sunday, July 9. If necessary, we will post a notice on the club’s Website of any change in the schedule by no later than 9:00AM, Saturday morning, the 8th.

Then…

SATURDAY, JULY 15, 1:00PM: Relax-a-ZOOM Virtual Picnic

We will also host, this month, a “Relax-a-ZOOM” Virtual Picnic right here at www.MonSFFA.ca on Saturday, July 15, at 1:00PM—have your favourite summer snacks and libations on hand!

No formal programming is planned, just a game or two, and an afternoon of casual conversation with friends on topics SF/F and fannish, including, given this opportunity, a little bit of club business regarding our planned August in-person meeting, and related issues, for which the input of our membership is desired.

We hope to see you at one, or both of these events!

 

To download a PDF of our “Club Events in July” flyer, click here: FLYER

Lots of zines now available for poolside reading!

From South Africa:

Good day all Here is the June issue of PROBE, number 196. I hope you enjoy reading it    PROBE196X

Best

Gail

From Bill Burns at e-fanzines:

Editors have been busy this week, with eleven titles having new issues. Added at https://efanzines.com are:

  • Alexiad #123 through 128 edited by Lisa & Joseph Major
  • Graeme Cameron’s BCSFAZine #554
  • Nic Farey’s This Here…#66
  • Andy Hooper’s CAPTAIN FLASHBACK #55
  • Opuntia #551, edited by Dale Speirs
  • Octothorpe #86, a regular fannish podcast by John Coxon, Alison Scott and Liz Batty, is now on line
  • Christopher J. Garcia’s Claims Department #44
  • Kurt Erichsen’s Endeavor #16
  • Guy & Rosy Lillian’s 2004 archive trip report The Antipodal Route
  • Guy H. Lillian III’s Spartacus #66
  • Bruce Gillespie’s SF Commentary #113

And another update followed:

To the sound of fireworks, I have added these new issues to https://efanzines.com:

  • J.L. Farey’s JenZine #5
  • Journey Planet #74, edited by James Bacon, Chris Garcia et al. Vincent Docherty special issue
  • Perry Middlemiss’s Perryscope #34
  • Christopher J. Garcia’s Claims Department #45
  • Opuntia #552, edited by Dale Speirs

From Garth an update to CUFF:

Even yet more news about the Canadian Unity Fan Fund! Slowly but surely WE ADVANCE!  Shooting My CUFFs #3

From Nic Farey:

“Authority is supposedly grounded in wisdom, but I could see from a very early age that authority was only a system of control. And it didn’t have any inherent wisdom. I quickly realized that you either became a power or you were crushed.”   TH 66

From Joe Major: Alex129

From the N3F:

Yes, a new issue of Eldritch Science the N3F Fiction zine .ES202306

 

CLUB EVENTS FOR JULY!

Mark the next two Saturday’s on your calendars! MonSFFA’s Summer Barbecue-in-the-Park 2023 is scheduled for this Saturday, July 8, with a virtual get-together/picnic, our Relax-a-ZOOM, to follow one week later on Saturday, July 15.

Barbecue-in-the-Park

MonSFFen and their families, as well as friends of the club, are invited to gather at 10:00AM in Parc Maisonneuve on Saturday, July 8, for the club’s 2023 Barabecue-in-the-Park! Parc Maisonneuve, easily accessible by Metro or bus, is located in the city’s East End, adjacent the Botanical Gardens and the Olympic Stadium. Parking is available on site, or on nearby streets.

Our intention is to claim a picnic spot somewhere along one of the lines of trees, not too far from the parking lot and the chalet. Our “Preferred Picnic Area” is indicated on the map (above). Look for us in roughly that area.

So do join us for a relaxing day in the park! Friends, fun, food, and fire, the latter in the form of our new “Dragon’s Breath” propane barbecue, which we’ll have on site for those who may wish to grill up a couple of hamburgers, hotdogs, and such! Bring your own refreshments, snacks, and any meats you may wish to barbecue. And note that proper washroom facilities are located in the chalet.

Should the weather prove inclement on the 8th, the event will be shifted 24 hours forward to Sunday, July 9. We will post a notice of any change in the schedule no later than 9:00AM, Saturday morning, the 8th.

Then…

Relax-a-ZOOM Virtual Picnic

We will also host a “Relax-a-ZOOM” Virtual Picnic right here at www.MonSFFA.ca on Saturday, July 15, at 1:00PM—have your favourite summer snacks and libations on hand!

No formal programming is planned, just a game or two, and an afternoon of casual conversation with friends on topics SF/F and fannish, including, given this opportunity, a little bit of club business regarding our planned August in-person meeting, and related issues, for which the input of our membership is desired.

Montreal Science Fiction and Fantasy Association