• In spirit of Curie's mission to promote undiscovered but exceptional content, we wish to use this weekly section to provide an author showcase for some of the outstanding authors who received Curie upvotes in past week. Curie curators and reviewers nominate authors for inclusion in this showcase and author approval is sought and attained.

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Featured Author: @nathankaye
Open Mic Week 73 - Wings (Original) - naTHAN Kaye - ONE-MAN FESTIVAL

Screencap used with permission from @nathankaye

Having supported some of Australia's biggest musical artists, and fresh off a lead acting role in an Australian feature film being released in cinemas in 2018, Nathan Kaye has now exploded into Steemit Open Mic with a bang! He’s the globe-trotting powerhouse who thumps out songs on slide guitar, slide-didge & self-made electric footdrums.

At the core of his multi-tasking abilities lies a big-hearted man with a powerful mission to inspire people to make the most out of life, with his talent-packed show that has to be seen to be believed. Trust me, you’ll be better for it. It’s the best sweaty, dirty, sexy, good-vibed foot-stomp you'll get from one man:
https://steemit.com/openmic/@nathankaye/open-mic-week-73-wings-orginal-nathan-kaye-one-man-festival

I believe we are all extraordinarily gifted and unique! The difference between whether we live our dream or fantasize and hope for it, is action. Since the beginning of my artistic career, I've been driven by a concept of fertilizing the seeds of the dreams that exist inside of everyone, but I had to start with myself first. I call these the ‘dreamseeds.’ In order for people to understand and receive what I’m transmitting I need to truly embody the truth of it, by being energetic, bold, unique and by truly enjoying what I create and do with veracity.

We can’t fix the problems in the world, economically, socially and environmentally, if we are not, ourselves, on a journey to fix and transform whatever problems that plague us inside, and that takes a positive shift in perspective.

So, find the thing that gives you wings to fly high in life!

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Featured Author: @jordanpike
VALLEY OF DEATH - Chile Trave Vlog

Screencaps used with permission from @jordanpike.

You really don't have to spice up the landscape of Chile's Valle de la Muerte, it speaks for itself. The amazing high definition footage of a drone flight here would be worth the price of admission alone, but @jordanpike delivers a really entertaining vlog to go with it. Jordan has fun. Every moment of this vlog is imbued with joy through his spirit of enthusiasm. In his introduction post, Jordan notes that chasing his dream to be a full-time travel vlogger/filmmaker has not been a massive success story... yet. Follow this promising vlogger today to change that narrative!
https://steemit.com/travel/@jordanpike/un2awgug

My overall mission is to share my travel experiences with the world, in hopes of providing entertainment and inspiration to all. I believe most people have big dreams, but they give up on them too easily. I want to prove anyone can make their dreams come true, no matter what they are, with persistence and hard work. If I can help my viewers to chase their dreams, while I'm getting to chase mine, my mission will be a success!

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Featured Author: @spederson
Big Falcon Rocket - The Challenges (part two)

Image Credit

Mars exploration is one potential use case of the Big Falcon Rocket being developed by Space-X . What challenges would a human crew face on a voyage to Mars? After looking at some of the hurdles the rocket itself will have to clear in the first part of this series, @spederson examines the physiological and psychological effects of an extended space voyage on human passengers in our showcase post:
https://steemit.com/steemstem/@spederson/big-falcon-rocket-the-challenges-part-two

Questions like this are no longer purely academic or in the realm of science-fiction, so I read this with great interest and eagerly anticipate the conclusion of this series. @spederson reports the third and final post could be published as soon as Friday, and will look at landing on Mars. UPDATE: 3rd post is up! https://steemit.com/steemstem/@spederson/big-falcon-rocket-the-challenges-part-three

I teach exploring space to Juniors in a private school and cover a lot of this material. I have a Master degree in Space Education and am very passionate about anything space. This is a very exciting time. Many countries now have a strong aspiration to expand into space. As this happens, this will challenge lawyers to meet the demands in changes to treaties to support commercialization of space.

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Featured Author: @thebugiq
Wasn't Expecting That

screencap used with permission from @thebugiq.

This is a multi-faceted post from a multi-faceted author. @thebugiq gives us a heartfelt cover of Wasn’t Expecting That by Jamie Lawson, delivering the vocals with exquisite control. A slideshow of original photography accompanies the music with family images and nature shots. The lyrics of the song give you a sense of what is coming in the rest of the post, as they take a sad twist but never lose the underlying feeling of love. The original poem (intentionally written as if by a hurt and confused 12 year old) and prose that follow take the house of love and sadness built by the song and tear it down to the ground to reveal the pain of a child, abused and alone. In a moment of truly beautiful writing that both speaks to the depths of despair and the potential for life and love, @thebugiq describes shooting a bird as that youth:

A little black bird that I killed, changed my life forever. It gave me an unexpected gift. As it silently died, something passed between us. I had stolen its voice. And so I sing for it now. It extinguished my anger, and gave me peace with the torment in the world around me, and a desire to never hurt anything again in this world.

This is a powerful post, a post that approaches a painful topic with honesty and from many angles. Take the time to experience it from beginning to end and it is a cathartic journey. A journey that against all odds ends up in a place of love and healing:
https://steemit.com/poetry/@thebugiq/wasn-t-expecting-that

As a result of facing down some things from my past, I am starting a Discord server called The Steem Pound which is a place where people can find health and balance to take care of themselves better. If people are underweight, overweight or want to feel better it will be a place where folks can come together to talk about cooking, recipes, 'getting moving again' stories. Victories and failures are welcome there.

See @thebugiq's account of his battle with weight for more on the motivations behind and goals for this new Discord server. Although the channel is still under construction at the moment, here is the invite so you can save the channel: https://discord.gg/qqsnaj6

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Featured Author: @alice-is
The Silk Road Diaries: Pamir Highway, Part I

If you think you have driven a challenging road, talk to me again after you have read this post. This is not so much a travel post as it is an adventure story!

@alice-is participated in the Mongol Rally, a 13,000 mile road rally from the UK to Mongolia for charity. Our showcase post begins with some misadventures around border crossings in a militarized zone. Once finally across the border into Tajikistan the journey continues with the drive up the Pamir highway. There are some explosive surprises along the way as well as several more challenges to overcome. This is a very rugged and inhospitable road and landscape, but it makes for a riveting read, well illustrated with original photography:
https://steemit.com/travel/@alice-is/the-silk-road-diaries-pamir-highway-part-i

Alice is an explorer-of-edges:

I've been traveling the world for the last 15 years, making friends, making mistakes, and collecting tales along the way. I'm a wilderness-freak, a PhD-quitter, a lover of trees, song and simplicity, with a dry sense of humour. Currently blogging about a 13,000-mile overland adventure from the UK to Mongolia!

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This Curie Author Showcase was written by Curie community representative @carlgnash with input from other Curie curators and reviewers.