Spectral figures clad in white float into the intersection of Fourth and Central. They carry armfuls of bones, which they deposit on the ground. As they retreat, more couriers appear and they too place dozens of skeletal pieces in the street. The cycle continues until 50,000 white offerings fill the crossroads. This is the first round of the activist art installation One Million Bones, and it happens on Saturday, Aug. 27.

A totally killer schedule is in place for Albuquerque’s annual, homegrown festival of science fiction and fantasy. The theme of this year’s convention is steampunk, which we at the Alibi are crazy about [Feature, “Full Steam Ahead,” July 21-27]. There’s a costume contest on Saturday night, a discussion on “Steampunk Definitions: More Than Victorian Clothing,” a make-and-take workshop with gears, and vendors selling corsets, cloaks and all the other bits and bobs to fulfill your mechanical-wonder needs.