February 15, 2019
Rise of the mid-rise
Why America’s New Apartment Buildings All Look the Same TLDR: Because they're made of wood, which is cheap... but read on for more on the confluence of changing building codes, institutional investors, and a nationwide housing shortage... [more inside]
Angelic Art
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How to make bread. Happy Friday Everyone!
The Chattering Order of St. Beryl
The Chattering Order of St. Beryl of Lower Tadfield, UK, are united by their love of the Lord of Darkness and most recently a capella.
Pinky And The Brain Theme - Postmodern Jukebox
Postmodern Jukebox covers the Pinky And The Brain Theme, featuring Emily Goglia, Rob Paulsen, and Maurice LaMarche.
Metal (melted?) clarinets
Maybe it’s okay for your definition of sex to be subjective
I’ve been writing about sex online for the better part of a decade now, and my understanding of what “sex” is has only become broader and murkier as time has progressed (not to mention, as acts like sexting and phone sex have become a bigger and bigger part of my life). I’m not sure I know what sex is. I’m not sure I ever knew.
"Something about that look, those ears, that tail. But, mostly the look"
BBC: Tudder features data profiles of animals from 42,000 UK farms in an effort to help farmers find the perfect breeding partner for their cattle. Farmers can view pictures of bulls or cows and swipe right to show interest. ABC: "I'd have to talk to Brownie and a few of the girls and see what they're really wanting," Mr Jenkins said. Guardian: ‘How do they swipe right with their hooves?’ Metro: Launching just in time for the most romantic day of the year, the pioneering matchmaking app is thought to be the first of its kind for livestock. (App)
"The bones sealed up the marrow like a Tupperware container"
A taste for fat, not meat, may have made us human: A new paper argues that our early ancestors acquired a taste for fat by eating marrow scavenged from the skeletal remains of large animals that had been killed and eaten by other predators. The argument challenges the widely held view among anthropologists that eating meat was the critical factor in setting the stage for the evolution of humans. While focusing on fat over meat may seem like a subtle distinction, the difference is significant. The nutrients of meat and fat are different, as are the technologies required to access them. The authors review evidence that a craving for marrow could have fueled not just a growing brain size, but the quest to go beyond smashing bones with rocks to make more sophisticated tools and to hunt large animals.
More than J-Pop: Ongaku 70-90, Kankyō Ongaku compilations
Four (plus Four) for Friday: the trio of decade and genre-focused "Ongaku" (音楽, music) compilations from the dubious French label, Hiruko Records: Ongaku 70 (YouTube playlist; Discogs), subtitled "Vintage Psychedelia in Japan" / Ongaku 80 (YT album; Discogs), subtitled "Alternative Waves from Japan" / Ongaku 90 (Discogs with some YouTube clips embedded), subtitled "Underground Music from Japan," (Discogs lists styles as New Wave, electro, experimental, and ambient) // If you want more experimental, ambient music from this period, Light in the Attic recently released Kankyō Ongaku: Japanese Ambient, Environmental & New Age Music 1980-1990, and a YouTuber made a playlist of some of the clips that are already online. [more inside]
Enheduanna
Hidden women of history: Enheduanna, princess, priestess and the world’s first known author. "The world’s first known author is widely considered to be Enheduanna, a woman who lived in the 23rd century BCE in ancient Mesopotamia (approximately 2285 – 2250 BCE). Enheduanna is a remarkable figure: an ancient 'triple threat', she was a princess and a priestess as well as a writer and poet." [Via] [more inside]
All Care For All People
“...Jayapal’s bill joins a crowded mess of at least eight other healthcare policies being bandied about among Democrats. I couldn’t fault anyone for getting confused when candidates talk about “Medicare for All,” or “Medicare Extra for All,” or “Medicare for America,” or the “public option.” The relatively simple problems of health finance have been made very complicated by people who make money off of healthcare. So what are all of the issues being discussed and what do they mean? What’s really “Medicare for All” and what’s not? How do existing bills stack up? And why does this matter?” The Only Guide To ‘Medicare For All’ You’ll Ever Need by Tim Faust (Splinter)
What Are the Best Policies to Solve Climate Change?
The Energy Policy Solutions Simulator " lets users test different policy options and see the results instantly" for carbon dioxide emissions reduction in Canada, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland and the United States
"A Novel": A MetaFilter Post
Vox's Eliza Brooke asks the question "Why do so many book covers still use the phrase 'A Novel' for works of fiction?" and finds some answers, linking to a 2008 Ask MeFi thread in the process, and points out that often "A Novel" is added to the cover of book-length works of fiction when they cross over from the UK to North America.
"We just beat the richest man in the world."
After months of public outcry and demands for transparency, Amazon has cancelled its plans to build a corporate campus in Queens. Activists and community groups who swore they would crush the deal are elated; real estate brokers, not so much.
“s/he shook my rack/bookshelf”
What does ‘I love you’ mean? It depends on where you say it and what language you speak. Translators, scholars, and dating coaches from various countries discuss expressions of love. -- Alice Robb for the Washington Post.
The King of the Ferret Leggers
What kind of person sticks a ferret down his pants for more than five consecutive hours? "Ay lad," said the 72-year-old champion, "no jockstraps allowed. No underpants—nothin' whatever. And it's no good with tight trousers, mind ye. Little bah-stards have to be able to move around inside there from ankle to ankle."
A time of debt
Two years after global economy crashed in 2008, austerity politics swung into action. Using Greece as its example, a transatlantic alliance of right-wing fearmongers, conservative political entrepreneurs and centrist fiscal hawks abandoned stimulus and instead turned the screw. Adam Tooze reconstructs the spread of the austerity epidemic and recalls how decision-makers in Europe ploughed their course even after the US had begun to pour money back into the system (Eurozine). (This is an extract from Tooze’s book "Crashed", London: Allen Lane 2018.)
Kelly Slater’s Shock Wave
[New Yorker]The best surfer in history made a machine that creates perfect conditions on demand. Will his invention democratize surfing or despoil it? Surfing on Kelly Slater’s machine-made wave [Video]
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