On Bad Astronomy, I found this video featuring Phil Plait and Dr. Karin Bondar. In the video, Phil speaks briefly on the possibility of applying 3-D printing technology to building settlements on the moon—an option actually under development by NASA. Karin follows up with an equally fascinating development: biologists are manipulating DNA in a manner that I can only describe as genetic computing.

To me, these developments are evidence that we already live in a science fiction world. Every day heralds new discoveries about the natural world, and more knowledge of how we can apply those principles to our technology. As someone who writes science fiction, this is good news for me.

I’ll leave you with one last treat: an asteroid impact calculator from Purdue University’s website.