The Secret Museum of Mankind ::
"Published in 1935, the Secret Museum is a mystery book. It has no author or credits, no copyright, no date, no page numbers, no index ... The tone of the commentary is dated, and uniformly racist in the extreme, often hilariously so. It reads like the patter of a carnival sideshow barker, from a time when the world was divided between "modern" Europeans and "savages" ... Presented here is the Secret Museum in its entirety, all 564 pages scanned and transcribed-- nothing is omitted or censored ... Treat it as entertainment instead of education (don't take it seriously and don't believe a word it says!), adjust for the blatant racial bias of the time, and enjoy."
posted by anastasiav
on Feb 14, 2008 -
67 comments
Cat-Scan.com is one of the strangest sites I've seen in some time. I have no idea how these people got their cats wedged into their scanners, or why.
posted by anastasiav
on Jul 13, 2005 -
121 comments
The Underground History of American Education You aren't compelled to loan your car to anyone who wants it, but you are compelled to surrender your school-age child to strangers who process children for a livelihood.... If I demanded you give up your television to an anonymous, itinerant repairman who needed work you'd think I was crazy; if I came with a policeman who forced you to pay that repairman even after he broke your set, you would be outraged. Why are you so docile when you give up your child to a government agent called a schoolteacher?
posted by anastasiav
on Apr 1, 2005 -
95 comments
naval-history.net :: yet another fine example of how the web can help one man or woman with a true passion for a subject go from a hobbist to a published expert. Be sure to read the dedication to his dad at the top of the page.
posted by anastasiav
on Jul 16, 2004 -
1 comment
Anima: A fascinating archive of the ways early photography was used to give the illusion of motion, as well as information on the evolution of optical toys and early cinema.
posted by anastasiav
on Nov 8, 2003 -
5 comments
On October 17, 1815, following
The 100 Days and Waterloo,
Napoleon Bonaparte
arrived on the
Island of St Helena, where he would remain until his
death (
mysterious or
otherwise) in 1821.
Discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, St Helena had a long and interesting
history before Napoleon arrived, but that
history was overshadowed by the story of the Emperor's last years,
living in captive exile at the
simple yet beautiful Longwood House. Victorians had
an insatiable interest for information about the
remote island. Today, the
picturesque Island is a
a tiny bit of England in the South Atlantic, where
coffee and
tourism (indeed, what some might call
pilgrimages) are the main sources of income.
posted by anastasiav
on Oct 17, 2003 -
3 comments
The story of
Fred Harvey and the
Harvey Girls is the story of
the civilization of the American West. From
1896 to 1945,
Harvey House Restaurants and Hotels along the route of the
Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe represented
first-rate food served in
clean, stylish surroundings at reasonable cost. His corps of
well-trained waitresses, wearing their
distinctive uniforms and bound by a code of
hard work and
good conduct, provided both adventure and
independence to generations of
young women. Today, all that is left of the Harvey empire is the
remembrances of former employees,
beautiful buildings which
dot the southwest, some
vintage recipes, a
1946 Judy Garland film, and (possibly) the enduring term
"Blue-Plate Special".
posted by anastasiav
on Oct 1, 2003 -
8 comments
