James Gosling over at [today.java.net] cites a WiReD article, essentially about apparently crazy science ideas.

I have always enjoyed the crackpot wing of science – not the exploitative pseudoscience of the likes of Velikovsky, but instead the more dreamy, fits-the-facts stuff that is the fodder of good Sci-Fi. Creative, surprising, at least semi-plausible, the opposite end of the same spectrum from which James Blish drew his Cities in Flight series.

But when faced with an opening paragraph like:

[www.wired.com]

For 25 years, Ross Hoffman has had a vision: to use tiny changes in the environment to alter the paths of hurricanes, slow down snow storms and turn dark days bright.

…I cannot but envision a disaster movie plot which details some terrible hurricane – due to wreck (say) Florida – foiled only by coordinated and heroic dumping of several billion butterflies out of the back of a flotilla of C-130s…

Bruce Willis, stars.