Market researcher Clotaire Rapaille was interviewed for an episode of Frontline on advertising and marketing back in 20
Two Quick Links for Thursday Noonish
Common Proverbs as Video Game Tutorials. "Distant grass will always have a greener hue. You can fine-tune the appearanc
Four Quick Links for Wednesday Afternoon
The Daily Tar Heel staffer Georgia Roda-Moorhead: "We are the Sandy Hook generation. We grew up crouching behind desks
The Infinite Hotel Paradox
In a lecture given in 1924, German mathematician David Hilbert introduced the idea of the paradox of the Grand Hotel, w
Doing Essential Things Makes Time For Everything Else
I found myself nodding at this short essay by Mandy Brown on the tradeoffs between work, life, time, energy, responsibi
Four Quick Links for Tuesday Afternoon
"I could offer a kind of equation for leftists and liberals crossing over to the neofascist and authoritarian right tha
The Quarryman's Symphony
When's the last time I let you down? Ok, maybe don't answer that. But, when I tell you that a short film about the han
Fighting Inequality Through Softball: Maya Women Make a League of Their Own
Oh, this is delightful: a short documentary about a group of Mayan women in the tiny town of Hondzonot in the Yucatan
Teaser Trailer for David Fincher's The Killer
Ahh, it seems like only yesterday that I read the news about David Fincher's upcoming film The Killer. And it was. So
A Microscopic Ode to the Tiny Worlds Found in Rainwater Puddles
From the Journey to the Microcosmos YouTube channel, this is an exploration of the tiny worlds contained in rainwater
McDonald's at the Movies and on TV
A McDonald's restaurant apparently appears in season two of Loki on Disney+ and to mark the occasion, the fast food gi
The Climate Crisis and the Resilience of Social Trust
The climate crisis has hit home this year for many Americans — its effects have been nearly inescapable in most parts o
Four Quick Links for Monday Noonish
Utopia Clicker; or, The Whale.
The Constitution Prohibits Trump From Ever Being President Again. Section 3 of the 14th
A Swiss Stamp Made With Concrete
Swiss Post has released a stamp that features concrete, an important material in the history of architecture. But first
Focus on the Stakes, Not the Odds
Now that the 2024 election campaigns have ramped up in earnest (absurdly & obscenely more than a year before the ac
The Alaskan 4th of July Car Launch
On July 4, 2023, a couple thousand people gathered in Alaska to watch old junker cars get launched off of a 300-foot c
Three Quick Links for Thursday Night
In a Gallup poll on the perceived safety of 16 US cities, Republicans were 29% less likely to rate cities as safe compa
"The Larger Our Past Gets, the Smaller Our Present Feels"
This didn't feel like 8 minutes at all, which I guess, at my age, is the whole point. (via @mrgan)
[This was originall
Spaghetti Mayhem
Jan Hakon Erichsen does weird things with dried pasta, mostly spaghetti but also lasagna. This is goofy and fun. Check
Proof of Evolution That You Can Find On Your Body
There are some things that humans don't need to survive anymore still hanging around on our bodies, including unnecess
Two Quick Links for Wednesday Afternoon
How Sauropod Dinosaurs Became the Biggest Land Animals Again and Again. "Sauropods evolved their record sizes a remarka
Three Quick Links for Wednesday Noonish
Rosie Grant prepares food from recipes she finds on gravestones and then shares a meal with the deceased in the cemeter
Three Quick Links for Tuesday Afternoon
Career advice: keep a current "brag document" that lists what you've accomplished with your work. As a one-person compa
"Elon Musk's Shadow Rule"
Great, long piece from Ronan Farrow for the New Yorker on Elon Musk's considerable influence over the US government. Th
Three Quick Links for Monday Noonish
On the 20th anniversary of the release of its English translation, a look back at Marjane Satrapi's excellent graphic n
Three Quick Links for Friday Afternoon
MLS Parents Complain Leo Messi Too Advanced For Sons' League. "He should really be playing against people who are at hi
Very Minimalist Movie Posters
There's minimalism and then there's these classic movie posters from Michal Krasnopolski. Each poster is based on a
The Glass Is Already Broken
"You see this goblet?" asks Achaan Chaa, the Thai meditation master. "For me this glass is already broken. I enjoy it;
Four Quick Links for Friday Noonish
Prison Can Be A Hostile Place. Then the Birds Came. "Even the toughest guys became consumed by these little creatures.
Two Quick Links for Thursday Afternoon
LK-99 isn't a superconductor — how science sleuths solved the mystery. "After dozens of replication efforts, many exper
Three Quick Links for Thursday Noonish
MLB broadcaster Vin Scully's career lasted 67 seasons, during which he called a game managed by Connie Mack (born in 18
Blood on the Tracks: Thai Railway Safety Posters
These railway safety posters from Thailand are kind of amazing — very straightforward, graphic, and often gruesome in t
Six Quick Links for Wednesday Afternoon
The JWST is spotting dozens of unexpected "little red dots" in young galaxies in the early cosmos. "The most straightfo
The New Kottke Newsletter and Some Other Misc Things
Hey folks, a quick word. Newsletter. I've revamped it in recent weeks and now it's a digest of posts and Quick Links fr
Meteorologist Is Naming Heatwaves After Big Polluting Oil Companies
Right now, the Portland, OR area is suffering through a heat wave, with high temperatures some 20-25°F above normal. E
Three Quick Links for Wednesday Noonish
Harrison Ford: "These scientists keep naming critters after me, but it's always the ones that terrify children. I don't
Very Expensive Maps
Very Expensive Maps is, well, I can't say it much plainer than host Evan Applegate: "Very Expensive Maps is a podcast b
Three Quick Links for Tuesday Afternoon
It's time to make the bloodsicles. "A Dallas zoologist describes what it's like to make massive, bloody ice pops for li
Self Harmony
Watch and listen as Anna-Maria Hefele demonstrates polyphonic overtone singing, a technique where it sounds as though s
Antworks and Other Art Made in Collaboration With Ants
This is a lovely, mesmerizing short video made by artist Catherine Chalmers in collaboration with some leafcutter ants
Five Quick Links for Tuesday Noonish
From The Verge, a visual history of the iMac, which celebrates its 25th birthday this year. "Since then, the iMac has b
Sylvia Robinson, the Mother of Hip-Hop
The other day when I posted about iconic hip-hop samples from the past 50 years, I noticed a name that featured promine
Three Quick Links for Monday Afternoon
Forthcoming book from Mary Beard: Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World. "What power did emperors actually ha
The Most Iconic Hip-Hop Sample of Every Year (1973-2023)
This started off a little slow for me but once it hit the early-to-mid 80s, I was hooked — and bobbing my head uncontr
Four Quick Links for Monday Noonish
Stephen Fry will be hosting a British version of Jeopardy! starting in October. "Episodes will be an hour in length, wi
No Cars Allowed in This Swiss Town (Except Tiny Electric Ones)
Tom Scott visits the small Swiss ski town of Zermatt, where petrol cars have never been allowed. In the 1980s, the tow
Secret Ingredients, Trade Secrets, and the "Onion in the Varnish"
In the Scope of Work newsletter, Anna and Kelly Pendergrast look at various trade secrets and secret ingredients — some
Oppenheimer: More Science and More Heist Please
Craig Mod has my favorite take to date on Oppenheimer: that it should have been more like Richard Rhodes' The Making of
Copa 71 — the First Unofficial Women's World Cup
Produced by Venus & Serena Williams and US soccer star Alex Morgan and directed by Rachel Ramsay & James Erski
Striking Vintage Calculators
From Greg Maletic, glamour shots of his collection of calculators from 1968-1983 (and here).
In the 1970s, calcula
Woman Turns Her Apartment Into a Medical Clinic for Hummingbirds
Catia Lattouf and an assistant run a medical clinic and rehab center for hummingbirds in her Mexico City apartment.
W
Four Quick Links for Thursday Afternoon
Climate Change Is Changing How We Dream. "In another [dream], she's sitting in a lecture given by a climate scientist.
"How Do You Know When to Cut?"
I think this might be my favorite Every Frame a Painting yet: Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou explore how a film editor doe
Madeline Miller: "Long Covid Has Derailed My Life"
Madeline Miller (Circe, Song of Achilles) got sick in February 2020 with what turned out to be Covid, which then turned
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