Trivia (should have been 5 April)

Far Horizons: 1943
via Shorpy Historical Photo Archive – Vintage Fine Art Prints by Dave

March 1943
“Duoro, New Mexico. Rounding a curve in the sheep and cattle country along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe between Clovis and Vaughn, New Mexico”
Photo by Jack Delano, Office of War Information
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Dog Gone: Forgotten Schemes to Straighten the Thames
via Big Think by Frank Jacobs

I love dogs. Again: Isle of Dogs. A place so abject that it disguises its name as a declaration of affection to man’s best friend. Not to mention that its canine connection is tenuous at best, and that it wasn’t even an island for most of its history. Yet this forlorn corner of East London, famed mainly for its lack of distinction, could have been the focal point of Truly Great Things. If only Willey Reveley’s plan to straighten the Thames had come to fruition.
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via Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
Madness in civilisation
The history of madness is full of maddening assumptions. Most curious that a set of American diagnostic manuals is considered authoritative… more

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24 Incredibly Creative And Practical Uses for LEGO
via Lifehack by Siobhan Harmer

Chances are you’ve heard of and even owned some of the incredibly popular children’s toy LEGO in your lifetime! LEGO has been inspiring children for decades, allowing them to be creative and clever all at once, and encouraging kids to imagine what it’s like to be an architect, an engineer, an inventor or one of many other fantastic careers.
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George Johnson - The Whistling Coon - 1891 (The first recording by an African-American)
via 3 Quarks Daily by Rare Soul
George Johnson’s song Whistling Coon was one of the most popular of the Coon songs of the 1850-90s. While the records and the imagery that goes along with them are offensive, these are pioneering African-American recordings and songs. The amazing thing about the earliest of Johnson’s recordings is that each one was unique. Each record was recorded and cut ON THE SPOT, so he had to do each take perfectly, and was then paid for the session. He made a decent living, but there weren’t any copyright laws, or even any recorded industry at this point. It’s said he did this song 56 times in one day.
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via Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
Moral urgency of Anna Karenina
Tolstoy was in his time known as a nyetovshcik, a contrarian. His views – on love, family, intellectuals – are even more out of sync today. But they are no less urgent… more

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Unbroken, Louis Zamperini, and the Power of Forgiveness
via Big Think by Robert Montenegro

Last month [January 2015?] saw the release of the film Unbroken, which tells the real-life tale of Olympic runner Louis Zamperini’s harrowing experiences during World War II. Throughout the movie, Zamperini (played by Jack O’Connell) displays acts of resilience and determination that keep him alive in the face of adversity. It’s an incredibly inspirational story.
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GIFs of great black and white photographs morphing into color
via Boing Boing by Xeni Jardin
Have a look for yourself

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via Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
On translation
Literary translation is low-paying, painstaking labor. Why bother? It’s the best way to understand how language works… more

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Van Gogh’s Moment Of Clarity
via 3 Quarks Daily by Olivia Weinberg in More Intelligent Life

Mons is a city steeped in history. Located in the east of the Borinage, an area in the Walloon province of Hainaut in Belgium, it was a military camp for the Romans, a thriving hub during the Industrial Revolution and the site of the first major battle fought by the British and the Germans in 1914. Now, 101 years later, it is back in the firing line—as the European Capital of Culture.
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