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Fashion provides a way to now and again liquidate the accumulated dross of consumer lifestyles. The "cleansing effect" is good for us all... more from Policy (a journal of the Centre for Independent Studies, Australia)

Viscosity - create modern art, easily
from Red Ferret Journal by Nigel
Viscosity. Nice little tool for creating modern type art. Simple but varied toolset, some great effects and lots of flexibility.
Hazel's comment: Yet another wonderful time-waster for you!

People love hierarchies. When anarchists get together to form an anarchist association, the first thing they do is elect a governing committee... more
Arts & Letters Daily 13 March

Svalbard Global Seed Vault
from Librarians' Internet Index: New This Week
Background about this seed vault (opened in February 2008 in the permafrost in the mountains of Svalbard, Norway) "designed to store duplicates of seeds from seed collections from around the globe. ... If seeds are lost, e.g. as a result of natural disasters, war or simply a lack of resources, the seed collections may be reestablished using seeds from Svalbard." Features news releases, photos, and videos. From the Norway Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

Women in History: Historical Figures
from Librarians' Internet Index: New This Week
Profiles of famous American women, such as Louisa May Alcott, Clara Barton, Rachel Carson, Isadora Duncan, Sally Hemings, Dolley Madison, Annie Oakley, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Harriet Tubman, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Profiles vary in amount of information provided about the individual. A good starting point for ideas for school paper topics, as this listing includes women from a variety of time periods, professions, and fields of accomplishment. From Lakewood Public Library, Ohio.

Growth by itself is not enough. Seen from a moral standpoint, we must assess how growth, globally and within most countries, affects the economic position of the poor... more
Arts & Letters Daily 15 March

Hospital patients with a view of trees have shorter stays and need less pain medication than those without. Virginia Postrel on the patient's environment... more
Arts & Letters Daily 22 March

Search War Diaries online (UK)
from ResourceShelf by resourceshelf
From the site: Wouldn’t it be fascinating to discover what your First World War ancestor’s army unit actually did? War Diaries are official daily accounts kept by individual units. They give reports on operations, intelligence summaries and other material. They can help you piece together your ancestor’s life in the army in the First World War. Search the diaries at the National Archives, UK.

The student unrest in Paris and London 40 years ago filled Tom Stoppard with revulsion. The protesters were free: they had no idea how lucky they were... more
Oops -- probably Arts & Letters Daily but I picked up the remnant without acknowledgement.

Oldest recorded voices sing again
via BBC News Technology UK Edition on 28 March
An "ethereal" 10 second clip of a French folk song has been played for the first time in 150 years.