July 6
Neither Fully Automated Nor Particularly Luxurious
"On those occasions when Marxists have engaged the nature of a future socialist society, they too often shied away from problematizing future difficulties in favor of assuring the unconvinced that the difficulties involved in the construction of a socialist society had been vastly exaggerated. Yet working people well understand from their experience of capitalism that building a new society will be far from simple. ... What is instead needed is an honest presentation of the risks, costs, and dilemmas the socialist project will face, alongside credible examples and promising indications of how the problems might be creatively addressed." Sam Gindin lays out a blueprint for the future, in "Socialism for Realists," in Catalyst. [more inside]
How The Internet Went Mainstream
Yoko and the Beatles
"The reasons the Beatles broke up are extremely well documented and even at the height of their animosity none of the band ever blamed Yoko Ono for it - so why is this still a thing?" So asks Lindsay Ellis in a heartfelt 100-minute video essay (originally on Nebula, now also on YouTube). [more inside]
The challenge is to meet the text with generosity
Generosity, commensurability, conversation—how calm, how dispassionate these words can seem. They do not, however, mean that the critic must be uncritical or mild-mannered. Far from it. It would be wrong to confuse generosity with approval, or commensurability with inattention. Being generous does not mean ignoring a friend’s lapses. Nor does it mean maintaining a perfect equanimity, a composure so thoroughgoing that it shades into neutrality or indifference or, worse, into a laissez-faire injunction to simply let people enjoy things. from The Critic as Friend by Merve Emre [The Yale Review]
July 5
Strength? High. Badness? Very high!
Back in 2012 there existed, on the dooméd Hub network, a kids show too awesome for this world: The Aquabats Super Show (Season 1 and Season 2, both on Youtube), starring the superhero-themed ska band fighting a variety of weird creatures, ranging from ManAnt to the Krampus. One sign of its unappreciated greatness was the fact that some episodes were written and/or directed by Matt Chapman, half of The Brothers Chaps who created and still sometimes make more of Homestar Runner. One episode of the show was CobraMan (22 minutes), where they fought a 🐍snake person with a 🐍snake's head and 🐍snakes for arms that shot 🐍snakes from them. However, CobraMan had a manager, that helped him along in his nefarious career, called "Carl." Thing about Carl... he wore a familiar wresting mask, and spoke in a veeeeeery familiar voice. He doesn't wear boxing gloves though....
This Is The First Animal Ever Found That Doesn't Need Oxygen to Survive
This Is The First Animal Ever Found That Doesn't Need Oxygen to Survive. In 2020, scientists discovered a jellyfish-like parasite that doesn't have a mitochondrial genome – the first multicellular organism ever found with such an absence. That means it doesn't breathe; in fact, it lives its life completely free of oxygen dependency. [more inside]
Lina Ódena: Spanish Communist MIlitiawoman
Lina Ódena, the legend of the militiawoman who committed suicide, and the mayor of El Prat, by Eduard Vallès. [cw: execution, suicide] [more inside]
Large Horse
Kids need to get answers from humans who love them
Exorcising us of the Primer "If you want to make an educational technologist’s eyes sparkle, just mention “The Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”. It’s a futuristic interactive schoolbook, described in Neal Stephenson’s The Diamond Age, where it lifts a young girl out of poverty and into sovereign power. It’s my field’s most canonical vision of a wildly powerful learning environment. If you ask a technologist interested in learning what they dream of achieving, most will answer: “building the Primer.”... [more inside]
ASMR shoes.
After a bad debate Biden's campaign enters a critical moment.
Following a bad performance in last week's Presidential Debate, Joe Biden finds his re-election campaign in serious trouble. Polls suggest that voters have serious doubts about his ability to do the job. A growing number of democratic officials and donors are pushing for him to exit the race, and possibly resign the Presidency including Senator Mark Warner and Abagail Disney (a Disney heir and democratic megadonor) . The Biden campaign has responded saying he is not dropping out and the President has attempted damage control with a series of public events including a radio interview on The Earl Ingram Show, a massive rally in Wisconsin, and a sit down interview with George Stephanopolis on ABC News that will air at 8 pm Eastern (the official ABC news site in this link is supposed to have a live stream). ABC news was originally going to air the interview in two parts, but has decided to air it unedited, in its entirety in Prime Time. With the convention weeks away and no way to hold a primary, Democrats seems to be focusing on VP Kamala Harris as Biden's possible replacement.
Generations, Explained
Amarrarme a mi guitarra
Yerai Cortés is a guitarist and a rising star among the current generation of Flamenco artists. Last month he was invited to COLORS where he performed a piece titled Romance, and he returned this month for an encore performance of the song Sonar Por Bulerías. There is also a music video version of the latter.
"History needs stewards, not owners."
MTV News is Back. Kind of. (Rolling Stone, archive.is) After Paramount Global yanked 20 years of music journalism, the Internet Archive created a searchable index of MTV News.
Not quite an album. More than a single.
An Ideal for Living by Corey duBrowa (Hozac Books) is the first book devoted to a music packaging format that has gone virtually unknown to some in the U.S. Yet from early jazz and rock through the punk, new wave, post-punk, alternative/indie rock eras, and ultimately up to the present, the extended play, or EP (usually four or sometimes six tracks), has been a staple of the record industry. from The Little-Known Legacy of the EP [Daily Heller] [more inside]
Bruce Bastian, a Founder of WordPerfect, Is Dead at 76
A favorite of early personal computer users, his company was eventually overtaken by Microsoft Word. He later came out as gay and became an L.G.B.T.Q. activist. “I don’t think straight people can begin to imagine the inner turmoil and fear at this moment in a gay person’s life,” he told The Salt Lake Tribune. “All your dreams, plans, everything falls apart. The whole foundation of your life crumbles. You can stay the course or follow your heart and go to where every human being dreams of going — to happiness ever after.” [more inside]
Where there's smoke...
Remember your first bite of Texas brisket? Kareem El-Ghayesh certainly does. In fact, that first bite was so inspiring that he moved from Egypt halfway across the globe to pursue his newfound passion for Texas-style barbecue in its home state.
Beyond kingdoms and empires
"Now, it is surely true that in any period of human history, there will always be those who feel most comfortable in ranks and orders. As Étienne de La Boétie had already pointed out in the 16th century, the source of ‘voluntary servitude’ is arguably the most important political question of them all. But where do the statistics come from, to support such grand claims? Are they reliable? Venture down into the footnotes, and you discover that everyone is citing the same source..." David Wengrow (who you may remember from this brief pamphlet he coauthored) on where we get the idea that most people have lived within empires (Aeon).
people power
democracy has always defied clear definition. Taken literally, the term is an amalgam of two Greek words – “demos”, meaning people, and “kratos”, meaning power, but nobody has ever really been able to agree on what the ensuing “people power” should mean.[cambridge] [more inside]
Anecdotes go here
The Youngest Pandemic Children Are Now in School, and Struggling Teachers this year saw the effects of the pandemic’s stress and isolation on young students: Some can barely speak, sit still or even hold a pencil. By Claire Cain Miller and Sarah Mervosh for the New York Times
Kiwi actor Rachel House is much-loved as a star of Taika Waititi movies
Kiwi actor Rachel House is much-loved as a star of Taika Waititi movies. Now she's making her own. Rachel House is one of New Zealand's best-loved actors. Now she's bringing her comedic chops and Māori heritage to directing.
The private pathology of the public philosophy
Hayek marvelled at this concert of unknowingness. Like a psychoanalytic symptom, prices condense and communicate fragments of knowledge that are obscure to the conscious mind. The movement of prices effects a change in our “dispositions”—what we want, how much of it we want, what and how much we’re willing to give up to get it—again, without our knowing why, or that we even had such a disposition in the first place. Hayek called this a sort of “social mind”—though, unlike the Freudian mind, he thought it must remain inaccessible. from Hayek, the Accidental Freudian [The New Yorker; ungated]
July 4
Mobius: 25 Years Later, 13 Years Laterer
"Kaye"
'Vessel with a Pestle, Chalace from the Palace.'
From The Court Jester, 1955. Danny Kaye, Mildred Natwick, Robert Middleton, Glynis Johns. (slyt. 3:39)
Termite mounds over 34,000 years old hold story of climate
These termite hills have been active for over 34,000 years — and they hold a snapshot of South Africa's ancient climate.
Researchers used radiocarbon dating to determine some termite mounds in an arid region were about 34,000 years old.
Italianamerican
Martin Scorsese filming his parents in 1974 His mom calls him Marty, so that's what he's called in this post
You're not old enough for cherry bombs
The Great American Fourth Of July and Other Disasters (1982) starring Matt Dillon, James Broderick, Barbara Bolton, Jay Ine, and Jean Shepherd. Directed by Robert Bartlett. [YouTube, 57 minutes] [more inside]
We Choose Us
"We can totally win this election, pass game-changing legislation, and build a Progressive Decade. We can still do that." The Movement Voter Project team spells out their strategy for a 2024 win and a New Progressive Era, featuring Black organizing, the Sun Belt, the Working Families Party, emotional intelligence, and Vision 2035. What if we could sustain a long-term Democratic trifecta at the federal level, win 28 state trifectas, and appoint a majority on the Supreme Court? [more inside]
Conserving Energy in a Conservative Town
The Morris Model Morris, Minnesota is a rural town of about 5,200 in the western part of the state. TFG had a 22% advantage in the county in the 2020 presidential election.
But starting with a solar-powered municipal liquor store, a parthership of academic, civic, and governmental agencies has brought renewable energy and waste management to the town. Over 100 projects were brainstormed, and about half of those have been implemented. [more inside]
Hey Dad, Can You Help Me Return the Picasso I Stole?
A painting that went missing turned up at a museum’s doorstep in 1969 before the F.B.I. could hunt it down. No one knew how or why — until now. by Dan Barry in the NYT.
After fleeing the Taliban she’ll breakdance on the Refugee Team in Paris
Breakdancing gave Manizha Talash a sense of purpose, but it put her life at risk after regime change in Afghanistan. (WaPo gift link, archive). At such times, she doesn’t think about what’s going on back home in Kabul. She doesn’t think about the winding road — the death threats, the fear, the uncertainty — that led her to this point, on the cusp of appearing in the Paris Olympics. When she’s competing, when she’s training and when she’s dancing, it’s just Talash and the thumping music.
Pulitzer Prize winning journalist faces jail time
She exposed misspent welfare funds in the US's poorest state; the former governor is suing her for defamation [more inside]
The oldest-known evidence of visual storytelling
Ancient hunting scene in an Indonesian cave is the oldest-known evidence of visual storytelling. The discovery of red pigment paintings daubed on the walls of a secluded Sulawesi cave about 51,000 years ago also provides the oldest evidence of our species, Homo sapiens, in the region, according to a new study.
Complete with Thagomizer
47,176,870
The search for the busy beaver is ultimately a trophy hunt. The specific value of BB(5) doesn’t have applications in other areas of computer science. But for busy beaver hunters, the hard-fought victory over mathematical impossibility is its own reward. It may be the last battle they’ll ever win. from With Fifth Busy Beaver, Researchers Approach Computation’s Limits [Quanta; ungated]
July 3
Once Again, Every Frame A Painting
Every Frame A Painting is a series of essays on the art of filmmaking by filmmakers Tony Zhou and Taylor Ramos, covering topics like how Vancouver never plays itself or how the MCU lacks a musical identity, among discussions of the techniques of notable filmmakers. Sadly, the channel has been defunct since 2017...until now. [more inside]
Turn Out to Vote Out
Unhooking: On the Gigification of Intimacy
today, we’re not only free but also encouraged to remove ourselves from relationships that, albeit often only temporarily, are taxing or unpleasant. Someone who exhibits need—who “takes up space,” per the language of the day—is a thief. And sitting with someone through their needy times is lost profit rather than an earned privilege … or so we’re led to believe. [more inside]
Diver forms months-long friendship with octopus in town rock pool
Diver forms months-long friendship with octopus in town rock pool (this is not the diver from the Netflix show.) Scott Gutterson formed a friendship with the animal based on trust, mutual intrigue and a lot of touchy-feely arms.
The origin story of (Gentle Frogs)/Tough Pigs
Chapter 1: Toward an Unnecessary Theory of Muppet Sexuality. Also! If we had a nickel for every asexual (ace) ToughPigs staff writer who really loved Fraggle Rock, we’d have two nickels. But is it really that weird that it happened twice? "I think because Fraggle society doesn’t explicitly depict some of their culture’s most expected aspects (family groups, economic systems, schooling, etc.) the audience is free to imagine how the Fraggles have filled in these spaces in order to achieve the world they inhabit."
How we suffer under big tech's "Rot Economy"
The A.I. Bubble is Bursting with Ed Zitron (Adam Conover, YouTube/Piped/Invidious, 1h15m20s): Big tech is betting tens of billions of dollars on AI being the next big thing, but what if it isn't? ChatGPT burns obscene amounts of cash daily with little return, Google's AI dispenses useless and sometimes dangerous advice, and a recent study showed that tech companies will soon run out of new training data to improve their AI models. If AI is really so costly, unreliable, and limited, what happens to the industry that has bet so big on it?
Up Close and Personal
The Mauritshuis website recounts the details and discoveries of a recent in-depth examination of Vermeer's Girl With Pearl Earring Includes close-up images, video footage, and technical information.
There are so many other stories, and so many other ways to tell them
There are challenging, mystifying, weird-ass books being published all the time. To be fair, a weird-ass, mystifying, challenging book isn’t inherently a good book, or a book you want to spend your finite reading time on. We only get to read so many books in a month, or a year, or a life. There is value in escapism and familiarity and comfort. But I still want to advocate for sometimes, at least sometimes, going out on a limb, out on a genre vacation, or just out into the wilds of a tale you don’t feel like you entirely understand. from The Joy of Reading Books You Don’t Entirely Understand by Molly Templeton
We'll Always Have The Save Icon
There were more variations of them than you realized. But now - 53 years after the IBM 23FD was first introduced, 41 years after Sony started selling a 3.5" version through HP and - after some corporate subterfuge that involved a Sony engineer hiding from Steve Jobs in a broom closet - Apple, 26 years after the first iMac shipped without one, 14 years after they were last manufactured and after two years of difficult legislative and technical upgrades, Japan has declared victory over the floppy disk.
Metafilter: #366080
Magic Color Picker understands Metafilter is blue, at least, although it didn't pick the right shade. Need some inspiration (#5A4FCF) for repainting (#B8B8B8)?
Threads hits 175 million users after a year
“What is the nature of evil,” the caller asks.
@clipart.bsky.social is the Bluesky account for Corel Gallery Clipart, which is slowly posting all 10,000 files from a 1994 Corel Gallery CD-ROM. But within the alt-text of each image, narratives begin to emerge, stories of a vigilante seeking justice against Corel itself, of the many design studios who subcontract for Corel, of a man and his grandson traveling across a post-apocalyptic United States, and so much more. [more inside]
The race to understand--and profit from--period blood.
Have we considered implementing Metafilter in a font?*
“It’s a mission-driven business, but it is absolutely a business”
A week after it set out, and a hundred miles downriver, the Apollonia at last docked at the One°15 Brooklyn Marina. A morning shower had soaked the deck and in the cabin rain gear was hung to dry. The crew looked tired but happy. What they’d accomplished was not much from a practical standpoint — unloading barrels of barley malt at breweries along the way and picking up assorted goods like grain, flour, beer, whiskey, and preserves to deliver to customers downstream — but from a symbolic perspective it could be seen as epic. The Apollonia is the first sail-powered vessel in decades to run cargo along the US coast, and while the ship and its technology are old, its goal is new and ambitious: to demonstrate effective ways to decarbonize the maritime transport industry by 2050. from The New Age of Sail [Sherwood News]