Jon sez

Mark is concerned that readers may think that Tall, Thick, and Ugly there is Irving Crownover. He's not. He gets named on the next page. I suppose this is a difficulty with writing a comic that comes out a page at a time but is (eventually) going to be read as a completed book.

Science! Another of the Centennial Challenges/X Prizes has been awarded: Masten Space Systems has won the contest to design a craft that could perform as a lunar lander. (More info here.)

The Centennial Challenges really are a brilliant concept: Offer a reward that's peanuts from the budgetary standpoint of a government in return for private and amateur research into a difficult technological problem. I'm really looking forward to the beamed power challenge later this week. That one involves work on one of the (smaller) challenges behind getting a space elevator working.