brilliant mistake

November 27

“ For the last eight years, my hands have been tied,” said one E.P.A. official who requested anonymity for fear of retribution. “We were told to take our clean water and clean air cases, put them in a box, and lock it shut. Everyone knew polluters were getting away with murder. But these polluters are some of the biggest campaign contributors in town, so no one really cared if they were dumping poisons into streams. ”
Toxic Waters - Clean Water Laws Are Neglected, at a Cost in Suffering - Series - NYTimes.com

November 26

Power cord obtained. Am duly thankful.

November 25

“ The down side of coming off junk was that I knew I would need to mix with my friends* again in a state of full consciousness. It was awful: they reminded me so much of myself I could hardly bear to look at them. ”

*or family, as the case may be

Forgot laptop power cord at home while packing for Thanksgiving. The battery isn’t even dead yet and I’m feeling withdrawal symptoms.

Trainspotting - John Hodge, Irvine Welsh

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(via )(via Gizmodo)

November 23

The first protons collide in the LHC. Earth not destroyed.

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Sideshow Preemies

How did I not know about this? Premature infants provided entertainment as a Coney Island summer amusement for 40 years, starting in 1903. Dr. Martin A. Couney used gas-heated glass incubators to simultaneously rear and exhibit the babies. Sideshow barkers solicited outside, and visitors paid admission to file past rows of tiny preemies ensconced in the “peanut roasters.” A team of wet nurses provided milk, and could be summarily fired for eating the wrong food, such as a hot dog.

Winter preemies were SOL, since the show closed for the winter. Serves them right, being born in a non-revenue generating time of year.

Bonus Trivia: Cary Grant was once a barker for the show.

November 22

David Littschwager, Larva of the slender mola, Ranzania laevis

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The Hollow Earth

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“A blast of highly explosive magnesium flash powder allowed photographers Longley and Martin to photograph underwater life for the first time. When the men wanted to take a photograph, they clicked the camera’s shutter, which tripped a battery on a raft they dragged behind them. The battery, in turn, triggered the magnesium powder explosion, which illuminated the sea down to 15 feet (4.6 meters).”

William Longley and Charles Martin invent underwater photography in 1926.

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“ Maybe armies of sexbots will scuttle around the streets of these metropolitan superbrains, desperately humping any available USB port. It’s fine by me as long as I can still send emails. ”
Cybersex in Swindon? Count me out | David Mitchell | Comment is free | The Observer

November 20

Josef Spacek, Vessel Architectonics of Leaf of Lime

Spacek gets bonus points for use of the word “architectonics.”

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David Millard, Urania riphaeus (Sunset Wing Moth Scales)

The tiny scales on the moth’s wing surface. Its colors do not come from pigment. Rather, the cuticle of the scales and their shape act to scatter certain wavelengths and reflect back others.