@Annalee Newitz: Good point! I think doubledeckard should apply for grant funding right away. Then seek out college-student volunteers to participate in the study (they can be paid in pizza, so they are cost effective). Soon he can publish, and gain academic accolades, etc.

@Cory Gross: Sorry, I was oversimplifying. Of course both Theology and Exobiology do have subject material.

Here's a good artist conception of what the two dinosaurs looked like. It's from a National Geographic article which can be read at this link:

@Captain_Tripps: Yep, that was the reasoning stated. However, the dual nature of the equipment also gave Nesseus "plausible deniability" and he could claim to be unarmed when dealing with the races of the Ringworld.

@Brian Schlosser: Punny! "Lying Bastard" was the name of the starship in Ringworld that was piloted by the "mad" Puppeteer, Nessius. Although, it was given that name by the human Louis Wu.

@Captain_Tripps: Well, there are no aliens in the majority of LeGuin's stories, but there are exceptions. "The Word for World is Forest" is one of her novels that does have an alien race living on a forest planet.

@Tatterfoal: Well, there is Theology, which by its name seems to be a scientific discipline. However, it and Exobiology have a total absence of any empirical data to support their hypotheses.

@MaiAriSquee: In addition to the very good recommendations given below, you might also look at the "Jesus Incident" by Frank Herbert

@Fauxcused: That's a very good point. AI will be very different from any other form of life we are familiar with. Consider these points:

@bookwench: I've always thought that H. Beam Piper's Fuzzies looked like this cover art depicted them. Not all cover art does a good job staying true to the description given in the book, but in this case I thought they got it right.

@DrLocrian: That is a very good point. The Monsters in the Fiend Folio were indeed mostly compiled from White Dwarf magazine.

@Bootknife-Jackson: It sounds like he cut the picture out of the magazine and/or photocopied it. If he didn't do so it would have obviously not have been from the '30s as he stated to the person receiving it. Forty year old yellowed pulp magazines would not look anything like Analog in the '70s.

@Belabras: Yeah, that was a nice touch. I've always loved her work.

@WookieLifeDay: I've never seen it for precisely the reason you mentioned, Tom Cruse lost it so very completely and publicly. I lost all respect for him, and for anyone who would cast him in a movie. Haven't watched anything with him in it since.

@CanisPugnaxSnores: Absolutely, they should support all platforms. Mac Users now make up about 10% of the market, so it seems reasonable that you would want to port the game to Steam or something so you could reach one in ten potential customers.

@OTWarrior: Yes, but they could be making money off them. There are people who are not in the UK who are willing to pay for them, if they were available. The BBC sells episodes of Dr. Who by digital download and DVDs, so why not the games as well? Such sales undoubtedly would help them keep providing the content…

@britboyj: No doubt! I can see it now, a marsupial lion pride is cloned from DNA extracted from fossils. They are kept in a compound with woefully inadequate containment. They escape, and gory mayhem ensures. Seems like a standard plotline for a SyFy creature-feature.

@Derek Pegritz: I'm with you on "God's Demon" but to film that would require a far beyond "Avatar" level of CGI/special effects.

@britboyj: Indeed! Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

@it must be bunnies: You are correct about house sparrows being non-native, they are actually African weaver-finches. Very adaptable little birdies indeed, they have followed us around the globe. I respect them for thier ability to make thier homes along side us, in almost any environment.