Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Extra credit question.

At 10:30 last night, Angry Professor was snuggled up in bed, cozy, reading Harvest of Stars, when she jumped out of bed to
(a) throw up.
(b) apply flea treatment to her pets.
(c) answer a student's email.
(d) submit a grant proposal minutes before the deadline.


The correct answer is (b). Nothing but being chewed on by vermin could get me out of bed after 10:00.

16 comments:

Mr. B. said...

I'll bite: it has to be (a).

Mr. B.

[Please post answer(s) and explanation.]

Anonymous said...

I read this to my daughter and she guessed it correctly . . . 9th graders are brilliant! ;o)

(no vermin in our household)

Anonymous said...

"Harvest of Stars"??... good grief, AP. You've got some major scifi catching up to do! (I can offer some recommendations :-))

Angry Professor said...

Frenchdoc - you're right. I tend to cling to certain authors, and I'm timid about seeking out new stuff. But who writes good, hard sci-fi any more?

Miss Kitty said...

Ummm...my guess is D.

Anonymous said...

Well, let' start with everything written by Vernor Vinge, Robert Sawyer or Robert Charles Wilson.
Add to the list Larry Niven and Brenda Cooper's Building HArlequin's Moon, or David MArusek's Counting Heads.
I make my sociology students write essays on these.

I'll expect full reports!

Anonymous said...

C. J. Cherryh

Angry Professor said...

I already grok Robert Sawyer, Larry Niven, and C.J. Cherryh. I haven't read Cooper or Marusek, but I'll go seek them out. I don't know what I have by Vinge and Wilson, but I think I've encountered them before.

Mary Doria Russell's books were wonderful, but she hasn't written sci-fi since Children of God. Another of my favorites is Orson Scott Card, but he tends too heavily toward fantasy (but I'll read his).

Thanks. It's always good to get reading suggestions!

Anonymous said...

OSC was good until religious fundamentalism and wingnuttery took over his writing.

Also, grab Connie Willis's Doomsday Book!

Angry Professor said...

Mr. B and Miss Kitty - read below the fold.

Liz Miller said...

Here, try this. Excellent science fiction by Matthew Jarpe, the new fiction addiction in the Mystery household. My husband and I reviewed another of his stories here.

Miss Kitty said...

Freakin' awesome, AP. :-) Same for my critters here at the Happy Kitten Cottage.

Anonymous said...

The answer is any of the below. The operative part of the question is "snuggled up in bed, cozy, reading Harvest of Stars." If you are comfortable in bed any of those choices is a bad reason to get out of bed. Therefore any answer would be correct.

Anonymous said...

I should have mentioned David Brin as well.

Anonymous said...

Apart from why does the US have extra credit questions in the first place...here's another one.

Student X stupidly became unwell whilst at uni. Very important lecturer (also student X's research supervisor) happened to be first aider, went with student X to the hospital, basically organised everything, went back to student X's halls to get medication, helped with personal stuff and stayed with student X for 10 hours. Student X has a number of worries (ranging from did she hurt anyone/why didn't they just dump her at the hosp. to the fact that her research is due in 10 days, and she hasn't been able to do any this weekend).

Does student X:
i. go into uni on Monday and be very inconspicuous (very likely)
ii. just email a thank you (anything else being inappropriate as research is due)
iii. Dare ask for a few days extension
iv. worry about the role blurring all weekend

RuTemple said...

I think this is my first comment to you; I came over from the Panopticon linkfest, and as an Angry Technical Editor of dissertations and theses, stayed to laugh and sigh.
My parallel cry of frustration with egregiously bad examples of the art is not "they also need ditch diggers," but rather, "I have a black crayon! Give me another g-d degree!" Mostly I take breaks and go out in the back yard and throw rocks.

You ask, But who writes good, hard sci-fi any more?
My latest fave in this category would be Syne Mitchell.

You've already been pointed to Connie Willis; her other books are good, too, and pointed me back a century to the more often than not spot-on humor of Jerome K. Jerome.

Best quick healing re your behind.