May 29
'Notes Torwards A Supreme Fiction'
"In the life of a poet, of course, there is no Election Day to distinguish the visionaries from the also-rans. So Stevens’s response, when it came, trickled down in dribs and drabs. Scholars argue over this: some see him as returning, defensively, to conservatism, particularly since in a 1940 letter he declared that “Communism is just the new romanticism,” and referred to “my rightism.”"
'What Mitt Romney Might Learn From Wallace Stevens' [archive link]
Good Samaritans joined by green sea turtle for unexpected road trip
Good Samaritans joined by green sea turtle for unexpected outback road trip.
After spotting a request for help on social media, Emily and Callum helped Squirt the turtle make the 600-kilometre (372.8 miles) journey from Port Hedland to Broome.
Topic 30: talk, anything, work, need, let, better, day, help, ever
Eruption has happened again on Icelandic peninsula
As reported previously on the Blue, the the Reykjanes peninsula had an eruption in the proximity of the town of Grindavík several months back, however the emergence had settled down after about a week of activity...until a new emergence opened up in the Sundhnuk crater. (SLYT live feed)
SH-to-the-R-to-the-I-M-P. You can't phase me, I'm crustazy!
The Town of McClellanville, South Carolina revolves around seafood: Shrimp, Fish, Oysters, Crabs, and Clams. Shrimp are the bread-and-butter of the industry. Each year they celebrate the Blessing of the Fleet, with it's own underground anthem referenced in the post title ([4m14s], Some NFSW Lyrics) Vimeo or YT.
The industry is threatened by more than imported shrimp (previously, previously): the owner of the fish house is ready to retire, with no one in line to take over. [more inside]
"The radical, ravishing rebirth of Tracey Emin"
Interview with Tracey Emin in the Guardian. Emin talks about art, social class, cancer, her philanthropy, love, her film Why I never became a dancer (previously), politics, her stoma and urostomy, the establishment's unacceptable treatment of her as a younger woman, her exhibition at the Xavier Hufkens in Brussels, her cat Teacup, her work being dismissed as "moaning", the different phases of her life ...
“We're going to need a bigger beaker”
[CW: So much penis] The Cut: As Bustamante injects five vials first into the sides of the shaft, then six more around the glans (if you’re picturing a mushroom as the head of a penis, that’s the glans, and he is injecting around the base rim of the dome), he sweeps the needle slightly from side to side, then uses his thumbs to massage out any filler lumps, sculpting through what he calls “transitional zones” like a potter smoothing an edge of clay. “It goes beyond just filling up a penis,” Bustamante says. “I really do think that there is an artistry to it, to making it look good: aesthetically pleasing, no lumps, smooth, consistent, looks natural, feels natural - all those things.” [Previously: post title] [more inside]
A dying empire led by bad people.
Young voters despairing over US politics "49% agreed to some extent that elections in the country don’t represent people like them; 51% agreed to some extent that the political system in the US “doesn’t work for people like me;” and 64% backed the statement that “America is in decline.” A whopping 65% agreed either strongly or somewhat that “nearly all politicians are corrupt, and make money from their political power” — only 7% disagreed."
Anti-American partnerships during WWII and the early Cold War
Confronting Another Axis? History, Humility, and Wishful Thinking. A long historical essay by Philip Zelikow, describing the perspectives of past and present US adversaries. "Zelikow warns that the United States faces an exceptionally volatile time in global politics and that the period of maximum danger might be in the next one to three years. Adversaries can miscalculate and recalculate, and it can be difficult to fully understand internal divisions within an adversary’s government, how rival states draw their own lessons from different interpretations of history, and how they might quickly react to a new event that appears to shift power dynamics." Via Noah Smith.
It makes for an interested digital archaeology story, though
In late 1987, Sierra On-line released Space Quest II: Chapter II: Vohaul's Revenge, sequel to the previous year's very popular Space Quest: The Sarien Encounter. Written using their Adventure Game Interpreter (AGI) engine, SQ2 would go on to sell over 100,000 copies, earning an SPA Gold Medal and seating itself as 4th in Sierra's top 5 best sellers. [more inside]
Utopia Must Fall
Utopia Must Fall is a browser game (for mobile too) that evokes the days of 1970s and 80s vector scan arcade games. There are nods to Asteroids, Gravitar, Tac-Scan, Space Fury and other more modern titles like Geometry Wars, with gameplay reminiscent of Missile Command but with a research and upgrade upgrade system.
The password is CEASEFIRE if it asks.
Voices of (Lost) Generations
nothing, except everything. - "filmed throughout my last year of high school — to nothing and everything we feel."[1,2] [more inside]
So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time ...
The best music, the happiest families, the best fashion, movies, television, even the best cuisine--when did America peak? Whenever it was that you were a kid, a new poll shows.
The world's oldest culture is embracing high-tech vertical farming
The world's oldest culture is embracing high-tech vertical farming. Vertical farms grow plants quickly, using less water and land than traditional farming. One newcomer to the industry hopes it can put native herbs into supermarkets.
plantage to the moon
Alchemy, specifically the Paracelsian brand of alchemy-medicine, was prominent in the sixteenth and early years of the seventeenth century, not only in esoteric collections, but also in the “news” of the day. In 1600, the London College of Physicians examined a certain Frances Anthony who was suspected of prescribing and selling aurum portable (elixir). He was forbidden to continue his practice, a prohibition he repeatedly ignored in spite of fines and imprisonment. Three years later, in 1603, the controversy erupted between the Paracelsists and the medical faculty of Paris. Paul Kocher, historian, suggests that the theories of Paracelsus stirred up such a storm of controversy that, between 1590 and 1600, every educated person in England must have been aware of his works.[escholarshare, pdf] [more inside]
Satanic Paper Mills
One of those tools, the “Problematic Paper Screener,” run by Guillaume Cabanac, a computer-science researcher who studies scholarly publishing at the Université Toulouse III-Paul Sabatier in France, scans the breadth of the published literature, some 130 million papers, looking for a range of red flags including “tortured phrases.” Cabanac and his colleagues realized that researchers who wanted to avoid plagiarism detectors had swapped out key scientific terms for synonyms from automatic text generators, leading to comically misfit phrases. “Breast cancer” became “bosom peril”; “fluid dynamics” became “gooey stream”; “artificial intelligence” became “counterfeit consciousness.” from Flood of Fake Science Forces Multiple Journal Closures [WSJ; ungated]
May 28
Without You
Mark Gormley has passed away. Not many recognize the name. And because this is the internet, he was constantly mocked and ridiculed. But he wrote good songs, fine ones that stand on their own.
An overview from a couple years ago. [more inside]
"It has always been so"
Indian Shrimp: The True Price of a Cheap Appetizer. "IN JANUARY, Farinella finally decided to go public with what he knew about the plant and contacted a journalist. “I think it is likely that I was hired not to manage the facility, but to be the American face that provides the appearance of legitimacy,” he said. For a plant with so many problems, he added, “I’m afraid I can’t be that face.”"
Long form video
Biomedical Scientist Answers Pseudoscience Questions From Twitter
Immunologist Dr. Andrea Love does quick Q&A addressing a variety of pseudoscience claims as part of the Wired Tech Support series. [more inside]
“the disappointing love child of Frank Herbert and Ursula Le Guin”
Chapter One of The Mercy of Gods - the new space opera by Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, AKA Expanse writer James S. A. Corey
The Problem with Darling 58
Saving the American Chestnut continues to be difficult. A breakthrough in genetic engineering was intended to bring them back and transform the science of species restoration while potentially netting its inventors millions of dollars and wide acclaim. Instead, a mix-up in the lab has sparked a veritable civil war in the niche conservation community.
The food mission to bring First Nations cuisine to all of Australia
"One deadly menu": The food mission to bring First Nations cuisine to all of Australia. At her local supermarket, Evelyn Billy looked around and saw food from all cultures — except hers. (Aboriginal Australian people use "Deadly" to mean excellent/amazing/really good.)
A tantalizing glimpse of a fully armed and operational weed scene
We walk into the smoking area next door, which is as peaceful and quiet as a library, if it was a library where you can borrow bongs, which you actually can. Most of the tables are full. A lot of people are on laptops. A TV above plays YouTube cat videos on a loop. Sure. We grab a booth and spark up. Immediately, I’m both thirsty and hungry, which provides irrefutable evidence that weed cafes are a good idea. from I got high in an SF weed lounge and these should be everywhere mannnnn by Drew Magary
Rich dude spends money building mini-sub to visit Titanic: 2024 edition
Independent: Mr. Connor recently announced plans to take a submersible to the Atlantic seabed in an effort to prove that safe, manned trips to the wreckage of the Titanic are possible. Metro: Connor told the Wall Street Journal: ‘I want to show people worldwide that while the ocean is extremely powerful, it can be wonderful and enjoyable and really kind of life-changing if you go about it the right way.’ Forbes: “Obviously he’s got a significant ego and really believes in his own abilities,” Roger Lipson, a longtime partner of Connor, told Forbes this year. @colorlessgrey.bsky.social: I don't know what about being a billionaire leads people to develop feelings about the Titanic that border on religiosity, but I do think taxation is the cure. [Previously]
"Music and humor are for the healing of the nations"
This post started as a single video of veteran musicmaker Leonard Solomon performing Skrillex's "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites" on a homemade "Squijeeblion."
That led to discovering his YouTube channel @Bellowphone, full of similarly whimsical covers on a collection of bespoke instruments hand-built in his Wimmelbildian workshop, from the Emphatic Chromatic Callioforte to the Oomphalapompatronium to the original Majestic Bellowphone.
Searching for more videos led to his performance in the Lonesome Pine One-Man Band Extravaganza special from 1991, where he co-starred with whizbang vaudevillians like Hokum W. Jeebs and Professor Gizmo.
But what was Lonesome Pine? Just an extraordinary, award-winning concert series by the Kentucky Center for the Arts that ran for 16 years on public radio and television -- an "all things considered" showcase for "new artists, underappreciated veterans and those with unique new voices" featuring such luminaries as Buddy Guy, Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, k.d. lang, Koko Taylor, and hundreds more. You can get a broad overview of this televisual marvel from this excellent half-hour retrospective, see a supercut of director Clark Santee's favorite moments, browse the program directory from the Smithsonian exhibit, or watch select shows in their entirety: Lonesome Pine Blues - All-star Bluegrass Band - Nashville All-stars - Bass Instincts - Zydeco Rockers - Walter "Wolfman" Washington - Mark O'Connor - Alison Krauss & Union Station - Sam Bush & John Cowan - Maura O'Connell - Nanci Griffith - A Musical Visit from Africa [more inside]
Spying, hacking and intimidation: Israel’s nine-year ‘war’ on the ICC
“You should help us and let us take care of you. You don’t want to be getting into things that could compromise your security or that of your family.” An investigation by the Guardian and the Israeli-based magazines +972 and Local Call details an almost decade-long secret “war” against the International Criminal Court.
Microsoft WordPad: 1995-2024
Originally introduced as a feature of Windows 95, the RTF-compatabile word processor Microsoft WordPad will be removed in the version 24H2 release of Windows 11, due later this year. The app will be missed, along with AI agent Cortana and help directory Tips, but will be survived by its older sibling, Microsoft NotePad.
Like Lifting Up the Floorboards and Finding an Oil Well That’s Ready to
The Money In Menopause Supplements I created Dr. Jen's Menopause Taming Turmeric Supplements to find out just how much.
As influencers and podcasters all suddenly have their own menopause supplements, OBGYN Dr. Jen Gunter went through the steps of getting quotes to do the math on just how profitable selling a cheap turmeric pill with good marketing and no science can be. (Please note: She is not a crook. She is not selling anything. She just did the math.) [more inside]
Kado is one of only three speakers of Ngalia
Kado is one of only three speakers of Ngalia. He designed an app to pass down his knowledge to the next generation. The remote town of Leonora, more than 800 kilometres from Perth, is an unlikely technology hub, but its only school has been chosen to launch a new app aimed at preserving language and culture.
don't be evil
Once upon a time, Google would have encouraged users to verify its AI's claims with a quick Google search. Ironically, this now only works if users click through results to check information against primary sources—the exact practice Google is trying to shift users away from. [extremetech]
Let It Go
That all sounds scientific and careful. But is it really science or just applying scientific tools to a fantasy proposition? Is it possible to freeze the human body and revive it decades later? Currently, it’s not remotely plausible. Will it ever be? That’s probably an open question. As it stands now, cryonics is a bizarre intersection of scientific thinking and wishful thinking. from Horror stories of cryonics: The gruesome fates of futurists hoping for immortality [BigThink] [CW: Not Safe for Breakfast]
May 27
Jen and Dan chatting about work
Jen Psaki with Dan Pfeiffer: Lessons from the White House [1h6m, Commonwealth Club] is a great conversation about being White House Press Secretary between that Press Secretary and Obama's Communications Director. They're both really personable and full of anecdotes; it's a great talk.
I could run forever, but I won't get far (free thread!)
Charly Bliss' new single/video, "Nineteen" From their upcoming album "Forever". It's your weekly free thread! Come on in, put on some tunes, kick up your heels and tell us what's up with you!
Meet the echidnapus
Meet the echidnapus: Fossils discovered in museum drawer may point to Australian age of monotremes. The "echidnapus" is one of the newly described ancient monotremes from a fossil hotspot in NSW that could give us more clues about an era when egg-laying mammals diversified. [more inside]
26 more books from small presses
“Will you tell everyone that I was halfway cool?”
How Kid Rock Went From America’s Favorite Hard-Partying Rock Star to a MAGA Mouthpiece A deep look into a very dark heart. [more inside]
I’m furious that they are responding at all.
Quit arguing about the Apple Music albums list. From Slate music guy Carl Wilson on his Substack.
Randomness or the Perception of Randomness?
"All this leads to the inevitable question, which one – perceived randomness or true randomness – should a GM aim to use in his [sic] games? After careful consideration, I don’t think there is any one right answer to this question; depending on the circumstances, either could be correct." A neat previously featuring random maps.
The Vast Jalapeño Conspiracy
Here’s Why Jalapeño Peppers Are Less Spicy Than Ever is an investigation by food writer Brian Reinhart as to why jalapeño peppers are milder than they used to be. Willa Paskin of Slate turned the article into an episode of her podcast The Decoder Ring and went further.
bridge, burning
Palaeontology while using a power wheelchair
Palaeontology while using a power wheelchair. Eleanor Beidatsch recently graduated with first-class honours in geoscience at the University of New England (UNE). Eleanor has spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 1 and has never had use of her legs. Her arm movement is also limited. "I cannot move myself around at all," she said. "When I'm in the wheelchair I can move, thanks to the wonders of technology."
The disease, which affects her respiration as well as her mobility, was generally considered fatal by doctors when Eleanor was born. "I'm more of a lab rat than a field mouse," she said. "Palaeontology is very physical, but only if you're out digging. [Information about fossils] essentially then gets put online, that is then accessible for people to do lab work, and you don't need to be able bodied [for that]."
We used to have choices. Now we are railroaded.
All this matters because the interfaces in question do the job of the dictator and the censor, and we embrace it. More than being infuriating, they train us to accept gross restrictions in return for trifling or non-existent ease of use, or are a fig leaf covering what is actually going on. from The accidental tyranny of user interfaces by Oliver Meredith Cox
The Chickens of the Night
The village of Snettisham, who play in the Kevin Grimmer Division of the Norfolk Sunday Cricket League, is allegedly 'plagued' by nocturnal chickens. Guardian: Dwellers in Snettisham, Norfolk, have said their life is being made “hell” as the chickens swarm in from a nearby wood. Mirror: But not everyone shares this anger and some even defend the chickens, insisting the animals contribute to the village's appeal. Graeme McQuade, 43, said: "I have no issues with the chickens whatsoever. Before we moved here, we didn't know chickens get up at 4am, but it gives character to the place. (Bluesky) Mrs Schwarzski: Is Snettisham the Florida of England? Derelict Geodesic Dome, MA: Have you seen Snettisham? It’s /insane/ that a town that small has a church that looks like that.
May 26
Virgil.
Nudging not Budging
The Problem with Behavioral Nudges. "When we gave participants one website as a default—in other words, we nudged them to choose it—70% opted for it, compared with 48% who chose the same one when it wasn’t preselected. That’s typically how default nudges work: People are much more inclined to pick the default, which presumably will be the one that is best for them or society. Next came the important part. We waited..." [more inside]
Art world mourns death of superstar Aboriginal artist
Art world mourns death of superstar Aboriginal artist Destiny Deacon. Tributes are flowing from friends and the art world for a trailblazing contemporary Aboriginal Australian artist. [more inside]
Hmong Cornhole
Paleolithic Pareidolia
"The influence of pareidolia has often been anecdotally observed in examples of Upper Palaeolithic cave art, where topographic features of cave walls were incorporated into images. As part of a wider investigation into the visual psychology of the earliest known art, we explored three hypotheses relating to pareidolia in cases of Late Upper Palaeolithic art in Las Monedas and La Pasiega Caves (Cantabria, Spain)." [SLPDF] Pareidolia previously, back in '03. [more inside]
full fathom five thy (fore)father lies
There’s no reason or evidence for a modern structure to have been built underwater at this site, says team member Marcel Bradtmöller, an archaeologist at the University of Rostock, Germany. Nor can the team think of any natural process that could create such a structure. [doi] [more inside]