June 29
Why is J. Edgar Hoover on your phone?
Martin Mull, star of "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman", "Fernwood Tonight", "America 2-Night', "Mr Mom", "Roseanne" and the oft quoted cult classic - "Clue" has passed away after a long illness at the ago of 80
Dark Fungi
The land, water and air around us are chock-full of DNA from fungi that scientists can’t identify. Like dark matter, these organisms are hidden, connected with no known species—or organism. It's not just fungi; microbial dark matter makes up as much as 99% of microorganisms currently can't be cultured and studied. [more inside]
Nevermind the Billhooks
Goonhammer Historicals covers the full sweep of historical wargaming, from ancients to the world wars. They have a number of introductory articles, covering basic history and factions of various eras, and the major rulesets and miniatures available. Their 'historical representation in wargaming' article is a pretty great discussion on approaching the problematic aspects of historical wargaming. [more inside]
Fruit tree netting that can entangle flying foxes and birds now banned
Fruit tree netting that can entangle flying foxes and birds now banned in Canberra backyards.
Fruit tree netting with large holes is now prohibited in Canberra backyards, with residents facing fines of up to $800 if caught using it. Netting must now have a mesh size of 5mm by 5mm or smaller.
a bit more
The dispute over portable art was, however, as nothing to that which preceded the acceptance of parietal art — images painted or engraved on the walls and ceilings of caves. Today, we know that parietal art is not confined to deep caves; that was only true of the first discoveries. … That most of the parietal art known today is of this kind may be a result of the effects of natural weathering on art in exposed places — though we cannot be certain about this point. [mind in the cave: consciousness and the origins of art (g)] previously
Competence is a moral issue
The first and most important lesson of the past few years is obviously the fact that competence is a moral issue, rather than simply a practical one. It is the mechanism that allows you to act in the world, to impose yourself on it. There can therefore be no meaningful morality without competence. Without it, we cannot secure the good. We can only wish for it. And that wish will be forlorn, deprived as it is of the measures by which it could be asserted.
With no Internet, algorithms will soon become humbled and lonely
So the aftermath of the Internet exploding is inevitably going to come with ambivalent, and even bittersweet, feelings. Many of us are probably going to miss the amazing sense of connection we have with people all around the globe and the book recommendations, free recipes and gardening tips, but, to no less an extent, are probably going to be extremely relieved to no longer be quite so pressured by corporations to be rampantly interested in our own surfaces or be beset by the constant lingering sense that we are arguing with people we’ve never met about a version of ourselves that doesn’t exist. Yes, having go into the city to our bank to transfer some money, just like we did during the 20th Century, will be a pain. But I am looking forward to being able to relax while eating some salty snacks without worrying about the way their residue sticks to my thumb and makes my online banking app impossible to open. It’s a case of swings and roundabouts. from What Will Life Really Be Like After The Internet Gets Incinerated? by Tom Cox [The Villager]
June 28
anime stuff
anime food · anime food · anime food · anime food · anime food · anime hamburgers · anime hamburgers · anime sky · anime rain · anime architecture · anime stairs · anime signage · anime power lines [prev] · anime backgrounds · anime hair · anime eyes · anime glasses · anime trains · anime computers · anime floppy disks · anime brands
In this economy?
Waterfront real estate for $450,000. 4 bedroom, 1 bath. 360 degree ocean views. 2.5 miles off shore at the mouth of the Potomac River. [more inside]
The Person Behind the OK Dept of Wildlife Conservation is Stepping Down
One of the best things to come out of Oklahoma is the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation Twitter account. Sarah is stepping down as the leader of the OKWildlifeDept twitter account. We will all miss her a lot.
Federal Standard 595
In these few short years, America’s newly opening landscapes—residential, rural, and the fastest routes between them—were given a visual identity by the federal government. If olive drab and its ilk were the colors of Tom Brokaw’s Greatest Generation, then the hues of the first revision were those of America’s well-branded internal expansion. Every mailbox, park sign, and highway mile-marker was another tiny flag planted by a growing nation, proclaiming its new success with the same methods and military sensibility that had recently secured it a starring role on the international stage. Though they’re brighter and friendlier, the colors and rules that dictated the look of American infrastructure’s mid-century boom are every bit as ordered as a dispatch from the Quartermaster Corps. from Americhrome [The Morning News] [more inside]
The generous impulses of all were awakened by the danger that threatened
Welcome to the website dedicated to preserving the Civil War history & record of the men of the 13th Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer infantry. The site was launched June 2, 2008. Since that time over 60 pages of detailed history have been added. These pages include newspaper stories, soldiers letters, diaries, memoirs, photos, and post-war reminiscences.... Content warning for language, racism, and violence. [more inside]
A victory for the LGBTQ+ community in the middle of Wyoming
Wind River Pride organizes an annual pride festival and advocates for LGBT+ people in central Wyoming. Last year their annual pride parade was disrupted by a far right group, they did not let that stop them this year.
lol, internet
BEAST IN BLACK - Power Of The Beast [Single Link, YouTube] – Contains: Falsetto, power metal, colorful outfits, spiky bits, AND SUPER EURO BEAT.
"Napoleon Dynamite" at 20 years
The awkward, inspiring, completely out-there inside story of ‘Napoleon Dynamite’.
Twenty years later, the proud weirdos who made the movie look back on their deadpan classic.(WaPo gift link, archive)
21st-century mosque design
Mosqpedia is an encyclopedia of winners of the triennial Abdullatif Al Fozan Award for Mosque Architecture, focused on contemporary ideas in mosque design and construction. The award also has a YouTube channel with short documentaries in a variety of languages, including English, that discuss the architects' design decisions. [more inside]
"The law, in its majestic equality"
The End of the Administrative State
"The Supreme Court on Friday reduced the authority of executive agencies, sweeping aside a longstanding legal precedent that required courts to defer to the expertise of federal administrators in carrying out laws passed by Congress. The precedent, Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, is one of the most cited in American law. There have been 70 Supreme Court decisions relying on Chevron, along with 17,000 in the lower courts. The decision threatens regulations in countless areas, including the environment, health care and consumer safety." Supreme Court Overrules Chevron Doctrine, Imperiling an Array of Federal Rules (NYT; archive) [more inside]
Thick atmosphere discovered around super-Earth in nearby solar system
Tractor Supply Ditches DEI, Climate Goals After Online Attacks
Bloomberg article "We work hard to live up to our Mission and Values every day and represent the values of the communities and customers we serve. We have heard from customers that we have disappointed them. We have taken this feedback to heart." [more inside]
motor city's train station
In the Grand Hall, miles of new grout secure 29,000 Guastavino ceiling tiles, while in the south concourse a glass roof now protects original brickwork (miraculously intact despite flooding). All throughout Michigan Central Station, stonework has been refreshed or replaced, lighting faithfully reproduced, and period details revived thanks to some 1.7 million hours of work. “They poured their memories and love for Detroit into this project” [Architectural Digest] previously
—Admit that Homer was no good. —No. —Admit. —No.
Some things might be classics because they're just plain good. There was a lot of crap published around the same time, and most of it has rightly been forgotten, but some was great even by the standards of today. Like, maybe if you published Pride and Prejudice today, it would be received as "ah yes, this is an excellent entry in the niche genre of Regency-era romance. The few hundred committed fans of that genre will be very excited, and people who dabble in it will be well-advised to pick this one out". But as I said above, I don't think the Iliad meets that bar. from Book review: the Iliad [A Reasonable Approximation]
June 27
Why this sunken island is changing the way we think about myths
Why this sunken island is changing the way we think about myths. Legend has it a jealous husband used a wave curse to sink Teonimenu into the ocean forever. Scientists have worked out what really happened.
Kinky Friedman
For those who need a horror filter
President Biden debates a rapist and convicted felon with the future of the world on the line. Some national and international sites to watch the debate online. [more inside]
Eyes on the T
Back in April a group of transit riders protested in front of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority headquarters. Their demands? If the MBTA's subways and trains can't be reliable they should at least be made more relatable by decorating them with large googly eyes. And now after months of campaigning, five of the T's trains and trolleys have been made a little friendlier.
Things that are supposed to be connected remain connected
I have chosen to shape this personal collection with a few criteria given the availability of various carabiner models. My primary interest and expertise is in tree climbing, which uses locking carabiners almost exclusively. As such, I primarily focus on the acquisition of locking carabiners, but non-lockers have been produced in far greater numbers, for much longer. Non-lockers tend to highlight changes or dead-ends of carabiner design and seem to keep showing up in my collection... plus I'm not one to toss aside a carabiner even if it's a little boring. [more inside]
a big to-do
“It provides for us”
Pushpum green energy project puts Yakama tribe in a bind.
"Problems arose when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the agency in charge of permitting hydro energy projects, offered the Yakama Nation what tribal leaders considered an impossible choice: disclose confidential ceremonial, archaeological and cultural knowledge, or waive the right to consult on whether and how the site is developed.
This put the Yakama Nation in a bind. [more inside]
Bones reveal first evidence of Down syndrome in Neanderthals
The inner ear bones from this close relative of ours suggest both that they had Down syndrome and that they were cared for by their community.
More than one in five US kids attends rural schools
This money is an absolute lifeline,” said Jaime Green, superintendent of Trinity Alps Unified in Trinity County, where more than 70% of the land is owned by the U.S. Forest Service. “If it doesn’t get renewed, thousands of people in rural communities will lose their jobs, thousands of children will be harmed. It’s mind boggling to me that we’re in this position.
The Secure Rural Schools program, [see USFS payment history] which brings extra money to counties with large swaths of untaxable public land, faces an uncertain future in Congress as it awaits renewal. Despite bipartisan support, the program has yet to pass on its own or as part a larger funding bill. If it doesn’t pass, it will expire. [more inside]
Most of us just want to be heard, but never are.
Students at Echo Glen High School, who are incarcerated at a children’s prison in Snoqualmie, Washington, have been making short films about their lives. To protect their privacy you usually do not see the students’ faces or hear their voices. [more inside]
Ottawa's Response to the Trucker Protest Was Doomed from the Start
And many of the ones that were, probably shouldn't have been
Cannon Films Promo Reel '86 - Half of These Were Never Made! [slyt] Shows planned upcoming films from Cannon Films when they were arguably at their Golan-Globus height in the mid-eighties. Mostly shlock, but some surprisingly serious films in there. (Also, it was more like about two-thirds of them were made, although many of those sank without a trace.) [more inside]
Paging Gen-X
Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks is a tribute album released in 1995 containing cover tracks by major local bands, including one of the last recordings made by Blind Melon’s Shannon Hoon before his death (3 is a Magic Number). [more inside]
I am unbroken, I still wear this crown
Kittie is back with a new album, Fire. Metal Hammer says:
"A supremely assured return from a band who are intent on creating something fresh, new and exciting." [more inside]
Ready to give them life, Henry? (click)
The following message is for workers from the planet BARBARBARA currently stationed on EDITÉ-FRIGNIM or "EARTH." It's by Peter Serafinowicz, and it involves our fantastic plans to construct human replicas and Eiffel Towers. Now, stand by for our fantastic leader, ARPOOVIAN SHEBBER-SHENTY! [more inside]
"How to Make Newspapers Profitable Again"
The Real Story of the Crisis at the Washington Post (The Atlantic gift, Brian Stelter)
i met Dante
included within a recent announcement by the the Internet Archive is a list of banned books. this is a great resource! started reading & only got as far as Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe [gbooks]. there's apparently also a film. looking forward to exploring further! thank you Internet Archive folx ❤️❤️❤️
A desire for a loud car with a modified muffler is predicted by
‘One in twenty people have walked out of a restaurant without paying...
...for their meal - and apparently it is becoming more common in Britain.’ Guardian: ‘Some people may think they are able to justify their actions morally. “It may be reasoning that restaurants make so much profit that they won’t miss a few pounds, or: ‘They charge too much anyway, they’re ripping me off, I’m just reciprocating,’” he says. Others, says Beattie, may put the emphasis on those they are close to: “‘OK, the waiter might get into a bit of trouble, but hey, I’m treating my family.’” Or they may view it as a minor indiscretion in the scheme of things: “Hey, you think this is bad? Look at politicians! They’re always cheating and stealing! This is nothing in comparison.”’ [more inside]
“I want an actual creature"
When I first told friends about the latest turn my reading had taken, I got a lot of blank stares at first but soon fell into a delightful text exchange with a friend who has a Ph.D. and who also read Morning Glory Milking Farm. She sent me a link to Hermione Granger–Draco Malfoy fanfic that she said had taught her a lot about BDSM. I started to realize that, though many of us may be out here walking around with the latest literary fiction from Riverhead or Pantheon in our tote bags, our phones runneth over with stories of men with tails and two dicks. from Falling for a Minotaur [The Cut; ungated] [Text is probably NSFW] [more inside]
June 26
The law is where you buy it in this town
Los Angeles History Project: Raymond Chandler's L.A. a.k.a. The Los Angeles History Project: Trouble in Angel City
Youtube link 28m alt link:
American Archive of Public Broadcasting 31m [more inside]
10... 9... 8...
Farewell to the Longform Podcast
The Longform podcast has ended after 12 years. The final two episodes have been posted, including an interview with John Jeremiah Sullivan and a bonus mailbag episode in which the three hosts - Aaron Lammer, Max Linsky, and Evan Ratliff - discuss the end of the show and receive some questions and messages from the audience. The New York Times talked to the hosts last week. The web site, Longform.org, from which the podcast sprang in 2012, was known for recommending longform writing from 2010 to 2021. As discussed in the mailbag episode, their plan is to leave the archives of both the web site and podcast up and available for readers and listeners to enjoy.
This meeting could have been a brick
BreakTime – I made a game. It’s called BreakTime. It’s Breakout (aka Brick Breaker) running inside Google Calendar. Your meetings are bricks. It (optionally) declines the meetings you destroy.
How this remote Indigenous community reduced every resident's power bill
How this remote Indigenous community has reduced every resident's power bill by 70 per cent. An Indigenous-owned solar farm, the first to be connected to a power grid, has been opened in the Northern Territory remote community of Marlinja.
May and June 2024 in space
Around the sun, into orbit, towards the asteroids, to the moon and back again It's been too long since an update on humanity's space exploration. Let's catch up. There's a lot going on: [more inside]
Outsourcing truth and importance to the comments
"Within a week of actual research, we just threw out the term information literacy," says Yasmin Green, Jigsaw's CEO. Gen Zers, it turns out, are "not on a linear journey to evaluate the veracity of anything." Instead, they're engaged in what the researchers call "information sensibility" — a "socially informed" practice that relies on "folk heuristics of credibility." In other words, Gen Zers know the difference between rock-solid news and AI-generated memes. They just don't care. from Google studied Gen Z. What they found is alarming. [Business Insider; ungated]
[more inside]
The Rare Archival Photos Behind ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’
While investigating the heinous Osage murders for his new book, David Grann also came to know the victims’ faces: One day in 2012, when I was visiting the Osage Nation Museum, in Oklahoma, I saw a panoramic photograph on the wall.
Taken in 1924, the picture showed members of the Osage Nation alongside white settlers, but a section had been cut out. When I asked the museum director why, she said it contained the image of a figure so frightening that she’d decided to remove it. She then pointed to the missing panel and said, “The devil was standing right there.”
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