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Stories about how we cope with disasters, in the short and the long term. "Ambient and Isolated Effects of Fine Particulate Matter" by Emery Robin (horror-y), published in April, and the more hopeful "Growing Resistance" by Juliet Kemp (audio and text at that link), first published in August 2019. [more inside]
posted by brainwane at 6:18 PM PST - 1 comments

Bön is a Tibetan religion followed by about 10% of Tibetans within Tibet and internationally, similar to Tibetan Buddhism yet usually seen as a pre-Buddhist indigenous religion originating within the Zhang Zhung region in what is now Western Tibet. That area is filled with a number of abandoned caves and other historic sites, many of which are adorned with rock art and rock art paintings (pdfs). Many early Bön texts have been found in a walled off cave called the Library Cave, closed up around the 11th century and re-opened and accessed in the early 1900s. The International Dunhuang Project is attempting to provide one central place to access many of the documents from that cave which were given away or sold. [previously]
posted by jessamyn at 3:43 PM PST - 3 comments

One of the great ones has passed: Jerry Jeff Walker, the man who invented Luckenbach and Jimmy Buffet, has left us. I can't do justice to his work, or his influence; but Kinky Friedman thought he was a national treasure, he was Todd Snider's muse, and he wrote Mr. Bojangles. Live on Austin City Limits in 1979 is a good slice-of-life; there's plenty more to find after.
posted by BReed at 7:21 AM PST - 45 comments

Marbled crayfish can reproduce asexually and all their children are genetically identical females. "It's impossible to round up all of them. It's like trying to empty the ocean with a thimble," said Kevin Scheers, of the Flemish Institute for Nature and Woodland Research. [more inside]
posted by The Underpants Monster at 4:37 AM PST - 73 comments

Despite a poor box office reception to its 2003 premiere, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World has become a beloved movie, with more in common with classic historical epics than contemporary action thrillers. On its 15th anniversary, producer Duncan Henderson and actor James D’Arcy reminisced about what made the movie special, and the Friendly Fire podcast examined its unusually immersive audio and its ideas of patriotism. Previously. [more inside]
posted by adrianhon at 2:13 AM PST - 67 comments

“I had this idea for a video game.”
Soft spoken YouTuber The CrafsMan describes the plot of his conceptual Aliens vs. Shovels video game No-Dig Bill. [more inside]
posted by Atom Eyes at 1:43 AM PST - 12 comments