issue 09 / volume 41

Kickstarter in the Community:
Sweet words for nerds

» Valentine's Day goes to the geeks with science-themed cards

Cheryl Minns
Arts Editor
Marts
@theotherpress.ca

o

 

Nee that Christmas is over,
it’s time to start thinking
about the next card-giving
holiday: Valentine’s Day. No

romantics, Valentine’s Day is
about to get geeky with Nerdy
Words, a new card-making
company from Tottenham,

Ontario.

Founder Christine Snyder,
who has a Ph.D. in Biomedical
Science and a background in
graphic and website design,
recently ran a successful
Kickstarter campaign to fund

card designs that cover a
variety of science topics,
including physics, chemistry,
biology, computer science, and
statistics.

“I wanted to introduce
new sources of humour to
academics, scientists, and all-
around science lovers, and I
thought greeting cards were
a very personalized way of
doing so,” Snyder wrote to the
Other Press. “There are very
few science-related greeting
cards currently on the market,
and I think it provides the
intellectual community a
unique way to express their
nerdy feelings.”

The Valentines feature
geeky phrases such as “Your
energy excites my photons”

: and “For my statistically
significant other,” accompanied
: by Snyder’s illustrations of

: animated hearts with DNA
fragments, light bulbs,

: Schrédinger’s cat, and more.

“I am a frequent visitor of

: estate sales and auctions, and I
: just love vintage cards, books,

: posters... really anything!
longer just a holiday for mushy : This was my inspiration for
: the illustrations,” she wrote.

: “I tried to cover as many

: disciplines as possible for the

: sayings, so that I could reacha
: large audience.”

Snyder also expects the

: Valentines will appeal to

: those outside of the geek and
: nerd community. Fans of the
: television show The Big Bang
: Theory will likely recognize
the production of six Valentine : concepts like Schrédinger’s cat,

: which has been mentioned in
: the show.

“I have had many non-

: geeks express their interest in

: the cards,” she wrote. “I love

: how The Big Bang Theory has

: really bridged a gap between

: the science and the non-

: science community, and I hope
: that fans of the TV show will

also find the cards humorous.”

The Valentines were also

cellophane bags.

“The shipping materials

are also recycled/recyclable/

: biodegradable, which is

: something that is very

: important to me and hopefully
: others,” Snyder wrote. “I feel

: that eco-friendly shipping
materials get overlooked by

; Many companies, and now that
: online shopping is becoming

: more and more popular, it is

: important that our shipping
material does not just end up

: in the garbage.”

The Kickstarter campaign

: raised over $2,500 from more
: than 100 backers, becoming
: a Kickstarter Staff Pick and
: more than doubling its $1,000

: funding goal.

“The Kickstarter campaign

: has exceeded my expectations!”
: Snyder wrote. “I am so excited

: that we met our goal and I plan
: to use the additional funds

: to get our website and online

: shop up and running quickly.

: That way if anyone misses out

: on the campaign they can still

: order Valentines online.”

Nerdy Words will

: eventually expand to include

: science-themed cards for other
: holidays such as Christmas,

: Easter, and Mother’s Day.

: designed to be environmentally ! The company currently has a

responsible, so the cards

: are printed on recycled and

: uncoated cardstock, the

: envelopes are made from

: recycled post-consumer waste,
: and the product is packaged

: in compostable, plant-based

: line of birthday cards in the
: design phase, which will be
: the focus of Nerdy Words’
: next Kickstarter campaign

scheduled for February/March.

For more information

about Nerdy Words, check out
: the website at nerdywords.ca

neray

ee ool ne
Claas)

 

arts // 9

words

 

 

Historical drama delivers blood, battles, betrayal

» ‘Marco Polo’ (sometimes) entertains and educates

  

Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer :

00000

No portrays a wide range
of shows, from the prison

dramady Orange is the New
Black to the political thriller
House of Cards. The streaming
service has continued creating
captivating shows with its latest,
a historical drama called Marco
Polo.

The series is set in Mongolia
in the year 1273, shortly after

shortage of war and betrayal.

(although not super explicit)
: portrayals of sex and violence—

: Genghis Khan’s reign over much :
: of Asia. His malicious grandson
: Kublai Khan (Benedict Wong)

: rules a majority of the continent, :
: ina performance memorable

enough that he may possibly

be the most entertaining part
of the show. Italian merchant
traveller Marco Polo (Lorenzo

: Richelmy) is given by his father
: to Khan in exchange for the

: rest of the travellers’ freedom

: after their party is captured.

: The show follows his training

: and adventures throughout

: the Mongolian empire, with no

There are plenty of graphic

: and dozens of bodies. It’s a bit
: like Game of Thrones, except

: (mostly) a true story and with
: a primarily Asian cast and

> environment.

: most entertaining part of Marco
: Polo. Filmed ona $90-million

: budget for 10 episodes, there’s

: plenty of exploration of the

: Mongolian scenery. There is, of
: course, plenty of period dress

: and armour. Even the shots

: are quite memorable—one

: particular scene in episode two

: features a 360-degree long shot

the very first scene features a

feature sword fights, brothels,

The visuals are perhaps the

: fora sword fight across the
: massacred village full of impaled :
: citizens. The first two episodes

desert as hundreds of soldiers

: watch.

Although the plot itself is a

: bit tedious and almost boring in :
: parts, Marco Polo is an exciting
: watch for anyone who enjoys

: historical fiction and/or shows
: like Game of Thrones or Rome.
: The setting and true context of
: the plot make it fun to watch

: for the educational aspect, as

: it’sa neat way to learn about

: a faraway country from long

: ago. It’s almost a completely

: different world from ours but

: still grounded in reality, which

: translates to entertainment.

Another drawback of the

: show is the characters. With the :

: exception of Khan, most of them
: have little depth and are almost
: boring. It’s hard to get involved
: in the storyline when you're not

quite sure who's who or why you

: should care about what they’re
: engaged in.

Nevertheless, it’s an exciting

: show to watch (perhaps in

: a binge period) on Netflix,

: especially if you care more

: about the sword fights and

: sex than the actual historical

: context or storyline of a series.

: It’san impressive and promising
: achievement for Netflix, and

: shows that the streaming service
: is capable of creating original

: series from a wide variety of

genres and spectacles.