Belter

Belter (Niven)

In Larry Niven's fictional Known Space universe, a Belter refers to a resident of the Asteroid Belt around Sol, sometimes known as the Sol Belt to differentiate it from Alpha Centauri's Serpent Swarm.

Rugged and highly individualistic, Belters make their living by mining the ores from the asteroidal rocks. Belters inhabit the main belt, trojan asteroids of the outer planets, centaur planetoids and NEA's.

Transient by nature, the only home they typically own is their pressure suit, and perhaps their singleship. As a form of heraldry, Belters decorate their skintight suits with elaborate (and often expensive) torso paintings. Most Belters, male and female, sport what is known as the Belter Crest: shaving their heads on the sides, leaving a strip of hair down the center resembling a mohawk. However the hair in the back may be of any length, particularly for women.

In lieu of (or perhaps in addition to) a wake for their dead, Belters have a custom known as the ceremonial drunk. When a Belter dies, his or her close friends will typically get intoxicated (either alone or in groups according to one's nature or circumstance) and reminisce about the deceased.

Internationalist (album)

Internationalist is the third studio album by Australian alternative rock band, Powderfinger. The album was released on 7 September 1998 and was often labelled Powderfinger's most adventurous work, with greater experimentation than in previous works.

Internationalist followed in the success of its predecessor, Double Allergic, and was certified five times platinum in Australia. Internationalist received four ARIA Music Awards, including "Album of the Year". The album produced four singles for the band; "The Day You Come", "Don't Wanna Be Left Out/Good-Day Ray", "Already Gone" and "Passenger", which all appeared on Triple J's Hottest 100 poll in two consecutive years.

Internationalist received fairly positive reviewers in the Australian press, and cemented Powderfinger's position on the local music scene; however, the album failed to launch the band in the overseas market.

Background

Powderfinger spent much of early 1997 touring, after the success of Double Allergic. Songwriter Bernard Fanning then spent much of 1997 writing songs for Internationalist in Brisbane, drawing on inspiration from a mid-1997 band trip to the United States.

Raygun

A raygun is a type of fictional or futuristic directed-energy weapon. They have various alternate names: ray gun, death ray, beam gun, blaster, laser gun, phaser, zap gun etc. They are a well-known feature of science fiction; for such stories they typically have the general function of guns. In most stories, when activated, a raygun emits a ray, typically visible, usually lethal if it hits a human target, often destructive if it hits mechanical objects, with properties and other effects unspecified or varying.

Real-life analogues are particle-beam weapons or electrolasers, electroshock weapons which send current along an electrically conductive laser-induced plasma channel.

History

A very early example of a raygun is the Heat-Ray featured in H. G. Wells' novel The War of the Worlds (1898). Science fiction during the 1920s described death rays. Early science fiction often described or depicted raygun beams making bright light and loud noise like lightning or large electric arcs. Nikola Tesla's attempts at developing directed-energy weapons encouraged the imagination of many writers.

Raygun (band)

Raygun were a British band formerly signed to RCA Records.

History

The Adj, former guitarist indie rock band Kubb, met lead singer Ray Gun studying Music Technology in Guildford. The two began writing songs and performing around Surrey and London, putting on live music events under the name 'Raygun and the Adjitators'. The duo recruited the help of bass player Ben and drummer Sam, continued the wild live performances and recorded an album at Britannia Row with producer Tim Bran.

Career

Raygun toured Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and The Philippines promoting the release of their debut album in South-East Asia.

On 15 August 2009, Raygun made history when it was featured alongside Kasabian, Hoobastank, Pixie Lott, Boys Like Girls and The All-American Rejects as one of the live acts at Asia's first MTV World Stage Live In Malaysia concert that was held in Malaysia.

The band supported Pink during the European leg of her 2009 Funhouse Tour. They have also supported Alphabeat, Paul Weller, The Script and Newton Faulkner and toured smaller venues as headliners later in 2009.

Ray Gun (magazine)

Ray Gun was an American alternative rock-and-roll magazine, first published in 1992 in Santa Monica, California. Led by founding art director David Carson, Ray Gun explored experimental magazine typographic design. The result was a chaotic, abstract style, not always readable, but distinctive in appearance. That tradition for compelling visuals continued even after Carson left the magazine after three years; he was followed by a series of art directors, including Robert Hales, Chris Ashworth, Jason Saunby, Scott Denton-Cardew, and Jerome Curchod.

In terms of content, Ray Gun was also notable for its choices of subject matter. The cutting-edge advertising, musical artists and pop culture icons spotlighted were typically ahead of the curve, putting such artists as Radiohead, Björk, Beck, Flaming Lips, PJ Harvey and Eminem on its cover long before its better-known competitors. Those choices were guided by Executive Editor Randy Bookasta and an editorial staff that included Dean Kuipers, Nina Malkin, Mark Blackwell, Joe Donnelly, Grant Alden, Mark Woodlief, and Eric Gladstone.