The Way of the World

Time-lapse views of various areas from Landsat satellite images, 1984-2012. You can clearly see, for example, the course of Amazon deforestation and the growth of Las Vegas, among other points of interest: http://earthengine.google.org/#intro/LasVegas

In Praise of the Pencil

From delanceyplace.com, a book excerpt including everything you ever wanted to know about the modern pencil but didn't think to ask. (And to see how today's pencil is made, check out this video: http://science.discovery.com/tv-shows/how-its-made/videos/how-its-made-pencils.htm )

delanceyplace.com 5/15/13 - an homage to the humble pencil

In today's selection—with the pencil increasingly marginalized by technology, we reflect on its relatively recent origin in the army of Napoleon Bonaparte. At least by the reckoning of one scientist, a single pencil can draw a line 731 miles (1178 kilometers) long:
"The modern pencil was invented in 1795 by Nicholas-Jacques Conte, a scientist serving in the army of Napoleon Bonaparte. The magic material that was so appropriate for the purpose was the form of pure carbon that we call graphite. It was first discovered in Europe, in Bavaria at the start of the fifteenth century; although the Aztecs had used it as a marker several hundred years earlier. Initially it was believed to be a form of lead and was called 'plumbago' or black lead (hence the 'plumbers' who

Cockroach Casserole

By now we've all heard that the UN is recommending that we consider adding insects to our menu. Here are some of the most popular: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/13/130514-edible-insects-entomophagy-science-food-bugs-beetles/

Be in the Smithsonian

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act in 2014, a group of agencies, nonprofits, and others are sponsoring several events, including a photography contest. Entries are being accepted through Sept. 3. Winning photos and some of the Highly Honored pictures will be on exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. For more information: http://www.naturesbestphotography.com/wilderness.php

2-ish

Good news for anyone working on the conjecture that there are an infinite number of primes that are two units apart (like, for example, 3 and 5 or 17 and 19). Yitang Zhang, of the University of New Hampshire, has whittled the provable difference between these primes down from infinity to 70 million, and he did it using provable methods: http://www.nature.com/news/first-proof-that-infinitely-many-prime-numbers-come-in-pairs-1.12989

'It Becomes Art'

Correa's Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur, India (1986-92) screen shot

"He talked about technology, he talked about place, but he also talked about the DNA of India and how that can speak to the world about how to make architecture, especially in this cosmopolitan world that we live in." So says David Adjaye, who designed RIBA's exhibit Charles Correa: India's Greatest Architect, in this video about the man and his work: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22487281

Correa's House at Koramangala, Bangalore, India (1985-88) screen shot

Oh, Hell

Hell, Hades, underworld, Pandemonium, land of eternal damnation, inferno ~ whatever you call it, you know you don't want to be there. Herewith, 10 things about Hell (and very few come from the Bible): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22512160

Going Down

the Spiveys' house AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli

Jagtar Singh first realized there might be a problem with his new home in April, when he noticed he could see daylight between the wall and floor of his bedroom. He was given notice that he would have to abandon it, and two days after he moved himself, his daughter, and his parents out, the house collapsed. Within two weeks of ever-widening cracks appearing in Robin and Scott Spivey's home in the same subdivision, their property dropped 10 feet below street level. Such seems to be the fate of the entire neighborhood in Lake County, 100 miles north of San Francisco (story, slideshow, video): http://www.weather.com/news/california-homes-sinking-subdivision-20130512

The Rebirth of the Midwife

"There's too many drugs, too many C-sections, too many inductions, and then there's not enough post-partum care." This, in a nutshell, is what midwife Ina May Gaskin feels is wrong with the typical hospital birth ~ and I, having been through that process, definitely agree. (It's one of those "if I'd known then what I know now" moments for me.) Fortunately for them and their babies, more mothers-to-be are turning to this ages-old way of giving birth. As one young mom who was awaiting the birth of her third put it, "I just don't think that birth is an illness that needs to put me in the hospital" (and thank you to my friend and new midwife Heather for finding this!) (video): http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50146659n

Sun, Sun, Sun, Here It Comes

Yes, too much sun can be harmful, but too much of anything brings with it that danger as well. For example, too much sunscreen. And, certainly, any amount of some sunscreens that contain dangerous ingredients. The point is, too little sun is not that great for us, either. In fact, according to one study, soaking up the rays every once in a while can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of strokes and heart attacks: http://www.care2.com/causes/getting-a-tan-could-be-good-for-your-heart.html

Wake Up and Hear the Music

We all know that "music has charms," as William Congreve put it. One of those charms, besides "sooth[ing] the savage breast," is waking people from their comas. Here's a list of 11 songs that did (story, music videos): http://mentalfloss.com/article/50547/11-songs-brought-people-out-comas
   And here's the origin of the quote about music, from Congreve's play The Mourning Bride (1697):
      Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
      To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.
      I've read, that things inanimate have mov'd,
      And, as with living Souls, have been inform'd,
      By Magick Numbers and persuasive Sound.

Trey Flemming and his bees Evan Robinson

Urban apiaries have been sprouting up in the city of late, mostly on rooftops. Oddly enough, one of the main reasons those in the know are starting hives in the city is to get the bees out of the countryside, where they are exposed to toxins, and into a more controlled and cleaner environment. The trend has become particularly well-entrenched in Philadelphia, which is appropriate, as the Langstroth box-type hive one usually associates with beekeeping originated there (story, video ... and recipes!): http://www.whyy.org/tv12/fridayarts/artoffood201111.html
P.S., If you're at all interested in beehavior (sorry ~ had to do that) and the science of beekeeping, I highly recommend both of these videos, but especially the interview with Trey Flemming of Urban Apiaries. The man really knows his bees!

A Modern-Day Scribe

Phillip Patterson at work screen shot

For the past four years, Phillip Patterson has been transcribing the King James 1611 Bible ~ by hand. He's gone through more than 496 pens in the process. "I'm doing this because I've always wanted to know what was in the Bible," he explains, adding that it's a document that is not accepting of his lifestyle. He recently finished his adventure, copying the last two verses during a celebratory event at his church.
Now that he's gone through the whole book, what does he think? He answers with a question: Do you believe everything you read? "I would sometimes be sitting and writing," Patterson says, "and all of a sudden, it's like the top of my head opens up and I understand, suddenly, how small our beliefs are" (story, video): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22487280

The Fire This Time

WNY Trails

There are some places around the world where flames leap out of the ground nonstop. By all accounts, one of the most spectacular of these is in Chestnut Ridge Park, New York. These jets are fed by gases created at extremely high temperatures deep within the Earth. However, scientists are finding that the gas that fuels this particular flame seems to be produced in a unique way: http://news.discovery.com/earth/rocks-fossils/eternal-flames-natural-gas-source-130513.htm

The Art of Taking Things Apart

It takes a curious person to want to take things apart, but it takes a creatively curious person (with perhaps a touch of OCD?) to want to arrange the pieces methodically and artistically and take pictures of them (story, slideshow): http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/12/disassembled-tech-things-come-apart_n_3246170.html

Know How To Fold 'Em

There is, apparently, a science behind the perfect fold. Wonder if it works with fitted sheets?: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130510-nature-maths-better-origami

Just Because: 'The Naked and the Nude'

This poem, one of my favorites, is by the English poet and writer (and so much more) Robert Graves (1895-1985). You may be familiar with his novel I, Claudius, which was made into a superior and popular BBC TV series. Now, without further ado, I bring you The Naked and the Nude:

For me, the naked and the nude
(By lexicographers construed
As synonyms that should express
The same deficiency of dress
Or shelter) stand as wide apart
As love from lies, or truth from art.

Lovers without reproach will gaze

The Seriously Funny Ms. Winstead

The story of Lizz Winstead and how she gave birth to The Daily Show, Air America Radio (with Al Franken), Lizz Free or Die: the Book, the Career, the Life, and now, a planned documentary about the state of women's health care: http://www.citypages.com/2013-05-08/news/the-life-of-lizz-winstead/

The Mysterious Electric Pencil

by Edward Deeds courtesy Harris Diamant & Neville Bean

There was once, in the first half of the 1900s, a man named James Edward Deeds who was an artist ~ but only for the time he was incarcerated in State Hospital No. 3. His story ~ and the story of how his artwork came to the attention of the larger world ~ make for fascinating reading. His drawings seem at first glance full of a simple naiveté, but it is an innocence that belies the harsh and sad reality of his life: http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2012-09-14/news/electric-pencil-edward-deeds-outsider-art-mental-illness-harris-diamant-springfield-state-hospital-missouri-electroconvulsive-therapy/?ref=navigation

Wet Town, Dry Town

former resident and tour guide Norma Berg in Epecuen AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko

The rubble that was once a thriving lake town in Argentina has slowly emerged from the receding waters after being totally submersed since the lake overflowed its banks in 1985. It has once again become a tourist stop, though for a different reason (story, slideshow): http://www.weather.com/news/science/environment/argentina-ghost-town-photos-20130510

So Many Interesting Things

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