WProfessor Cuthbert Calculus is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé. He is Tintin's friend, an absent-minded professor and half-deaf physicist, who invents many sophisticated devices used in the series, such as a one-person shark-shaped submarine, the Moon rocket, and an ultrasound weapon. Calculus's deafness is a frequent source of humour, as he repeats back what he thinks he has heard, usually in the most unlikely words possible. He does not admit to being near-deaf and insists he is only a little hard of hearing in one ear.
WPavel Andreievich Chekov is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe. Walter Koenig portrayed Chekov in the second and third seasons of the original Star Trek series and the first seven Star Trek films.
WContact is a 1985 hard science fiction novel by American scientist Carl Sagan. It deals with the theme of contact between humanity and a more technologically advanced, extraterrestrial life form. It ranked No. 7 on the 1985 U.S. bestseller list. The novel originated as a screenplay by Sagan and Ann Druyan in 1979; when development of the film stalled, Sagan decided to convert the stalled film into a novel. The film concept was subsequently revived and eventually released in 1997 as the film Contact starring Jodie Foster.
WDoctor Light is a fictional superheroine appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Kimiyo Hoshi is a distinct character from the DC villain of the same name. She has, however, crossed paths with the villainous Doctor Light on several occasions.
WRajesh Ramayan Koothrappali, Ph.D. is a fictional character on the CBS television series The Big Bang Theory, portrayed by British actor Kunal Nayyar. He is one of the four characters, along with Howard Wolowitz, Sheldon Cooper, and Leonard Hofstadter, to appear in every episode of The Big Bang Theory. Raj is based on a computer programmer that the show's co-creator, Bill Prady, knew back when he himself was a programmer.
WMerlin is a mythological figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as an enchanter or wizard. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historical and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British author Geoffrey of Monmouth and the translator John of Cornwall. Geoffrey appears to have combined existing stories of Myrddin Wyllt, a North Brythonic prophet and madman with no connection to Arthur, with tales of the Romano-British war leader Ambrosius Aurelianus to form the composite figure called Merlinus Ambrosius . Geoffrey's rendering of the character became immediately popular, especially in Wales. Later writers in France and elsewhere expanded the account to produce a fuller image, creating one of the most important figures in the imagination and literature of the Middle Ages.
WMorgan le Fay, alternatively known as Morgan[n]a, Morgain[a/e], Morg[a]ne, Morgant[e], Morge[i]n, and Morgue[in] among other names and spellings, is a powerful enchantress in the Arthurian legend. Early appearances of Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a goddess, a fay, a witch, or a sorceress, generally benevolent and related to King Arthur as his magical saviour and protector. Her prominence increased over time, as did her moral ambivalence, and in some texts there is an evolutionary transformation of her to an antagonist, particularly as portrayed in cyclical prose such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle. A significant aspect in many of Morgan's medieval and later iterations is the unpredictable duality of her nature, with potential for both good and evil.
WSeven of Nine is a fictional character introduced in the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager. Portrayed by Jeri Ryan, she is a former Borg drone who joins the crew of the Federation starship Voyager. Her full Borg designation was Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix Zero One. While her birth name became known to her crewmates, after joining the Voyager crew she chose to continue to be called Seven of Nine, though she allowed "Seven" to be used informally.
WThe Silver Surfer is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character also appears in a number of movies, television, and video game adaptations. The character was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and first appeared in the comic book Fantastic Four #48, published in 1966.
WStarman is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe, and a member of the Justice Society of America. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Jack Burnley, he first appeared in Adventure Comics #61.
WJohn Tracy is a fictional character from Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation television series Thunderbirds and the subsequent films Thunderbirds Are Go, Thunderbird 6 and the live-action film Thunderbirds.
WTricia Marie McMillan, also known as Trillian Astra, is a fictional character from Douglas Adams' series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. She is most commonly referred to simply as "Trillian", a modification of her birth name, which she adopted because it sounded more "space-like". According to the movie version, her middle name is Marie. Physically, she is described as "a slim, darkish humanoid, with long waves of black hair, a full mouth, an odd little knob of a nose and ridiculously brown eyes," looking "vaguely Arabic."