For any of you in the Boston area, I’ll be at Boskone 50 next weekend. It looks like they’ve got a great schedule planned, with Guest of Honor Vernor Vinge. For myself, I’m looking forward to three panels with fascinating people:

• Is the Internet Reprogramming Our Brains? (Panel), Fri 18:00 – 18:50, Harbor II

Short attention span? Hyperdistraction? Googlecrutching? But parallel
multiprocessing? Outsourced memory hyperaccessiblity? Superinfotegration?
Let’s chat, C if anything clicks.

James Patrick Kelly (M), Justine Graykin, Jerry Pournelle, John P. Murphy, Charles Gannon

• Rise of the Machines, Reconsidered (Panel), Sat 13:00 – 13:50, Harbor II

We’ve got mechanical limbs controlled by nerve impulses, machines replacing
humans in the workplace, and intelligent systems undertaking complex scientific
investigations on nearby planets. How might these experiences with actual robots
lead us to differ from older conceptions of our robotic future? Which looks more
likely: Asimov’s _I, Robot_; Spielberg’s _A.I._; or Cameron’s _The Terminator_?

Christopher Weuve (M), Charles Stross, Jeanne Cavelos, John P. Murphy, Charles Gannon

• Safety and Security — Now and in the Future (Panel) (M), Sat 14:00 – 14:50, Harbor I

When disasters happen and things go wrong — anywhere from home to street,
cybersuite to battlespace — what do you do? Whom do you call? Writers who
also muster wide experience in disaster response share proven policies and
procedures. Today’s mission is the same as tomorrow’s: to resolve dangerous
situations safely and securely.

John P. Murphy (M), Myke Cole, James D. Macdonald

These things are subject to change, of course, given travel, illness, etc, but this looks to me like it’s going to be a lot of fun. Lots of talented writers, great SF art, a whole room full of good books to buy, and, um, Boston weather to enjoy.