Self-replicating artificial life is to many the stuff of science-fiction. To some, however, the creation of artificial cells and the opportunity to study synthesized life is another day at the office. Or rather, lab. Last spring at Reed College, computational mathematics and philosophy major Devin Chalmers watched an A-life presentation on Reed alumnus Norman Packard’s Bugs model, and was hooked.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army may be the latest of Guillermo del Toro’s dark fairytales, but the director has been gleefully populating cineplexes with all manner of creepy-crawlies for more than a decade. Whether slaying demons or championing their cause, the Mexican director has made a career of breathing life into entire worlds of genuinely creepy stuff.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army’s plot is a mash-up of a sitcom, The Lord of the Rings and Men in Black, all of which mix haphazardly to turn what could have been a jarring mix of comedy, fantasy and superhero shenanigans, into a pretty decent summer action movie that manages to keep us engrossed in between the special effects. If you think you’ve had your fill of tormented superheroes (until The Dark Knight, of course) in this hero-infested movie season, you may want to think again.
Thanks to the efforts of Portland State student Kristin Yount, the farmers market that spans the South Park Blocks Saturday mornings will offer a bit more than freshly picked blackberries or luscious cherries this week. In addition to the market’s tasty fruit selection, arts and crafts will be available for consumers roaming the Park Blocks on Saturday, July 19, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., as Yount has organized a show to run simultaneously with the farmers market.
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) issued a fine of thousands of dollars to Portland State in May for several waste safety violations discovered during an inspection of the campus in October 2007. Several violations that the school received focus on broken fluorescent lamps found in the basement of the Millar Library. According to the official inspection report provided by the DEQ, broken or spent fluorescent lamps, which are considered a “universal waste,” were stored in unmarked, open boxes and drums.
The Oregon State Board of Higher Education will likely decide to approve two new programs for PSU at their July 11 meeting. One of the programs would allow for a Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering to be obtained through PSU. This would round out Maseeh College of Engineering & Computer Science by allowing each of its departments to have a doctoral program.
Following suit with what has become a recent trend for teams in the South Park Blocks, the Portland State men’s Soccer Club will compete for a league title tonight. The Portland State squad plays fellow Greater Portland Soccer District (GPSD) First Division team the Sinnotts for the league crown on Delta Park’s field three at 7 p.
I was halfway through Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson when boredom began to take hold. If you recognize that line as a Hunter S. Thompson reference, you may want to skip Gonzo, the new documentary by acclaimed filmmaker Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room and last year’s, Oscar-winning Taxi to the Dark Side.)
Few food items are as cute, old-fashioned and nostalgically decadent as the sugar cube, so it stands to reason that sweet-treat superstar Kir Jensen’s newest Portland offering is a little white food stand on Southwest Ninth and Alder. The Sugar Cube, which opened its trailer window to the public this Monday, offers up a wide array of baked goods to downtown workers and residents, as well as breakfast and lunch options and locally-roasted Spella Café coffee.
When athletic director Torre Chisholm arrived in the South Park Blocks in April of 2007, he said he had heard that Portland State athletics were on the verge of becoming irrelevant. If winning championships is a true rubric for determining prosperity, more than 16 months after his hiring Chisholm’s program is coming off perhaps its most successful run in years.