Happy Friday! It’s a big day here. But first, some links from others.

From Cassandra: A new and intriguing theory about Easter Island.

From Zazoo: Possibly the most messed-up U.S. map you’ll ever see. I’m excited to discover I now live near so many unsettled territories.

The beautiful, otherworldly art of Kay Nielsen, who briefly worked for Disney.

And now, the announcement: It’s time for March Mammal Madness! The 2020 bracket is here, and here’s a recap of what we’ll be doing all through March. Expect a lot of scattered goofiness on here as a direct result. (Also some random rodent-biased trash talking on Twitter via my alter ego.)

Have a safe and spiffy weekend, everyone. We’re off on Monday again (this will be happening for a few weeks, due to various dental adventures) but we’ll see you next week.

Normally I wait until Monday to share the art-related links, but today is an exception because 1) we’re going to be out on Monday and 2) tonight is Surrealist Film Night at the Dali Museum! (Of course they’re showing Un Chien Andalou.) It’s part of the ongoing Midnight in Paris exhibit, which has all sorts of fun extras.

Also from Monday’s links: Check out Cheap Old Houses on Instagram. Some of the houses look awful on the outside but are still amazing once you get in the door.

NIOSH tried AI crowdsourcing to help code their injury narratives, and it worked pretty well! No report on whether anyone was injured during the process.

Forget the Dewey Decimal System. Forget Library of Congress headings. Now there’s…Subject Savvy? (I think this is akin to bookstore organization, but I’m not completely sure.)

Hi there. Things are stupid busy today, so I will drop this amazing video here for now and possibly return with more substance soon!


 

Hello! Let’s take a quick random walk through history, shall we?

First off: the wonderful mosaic patterns of Tunisia. 

Next, here’s Charles Hemstreet’s Nooks and Corners of Old New York, published in 1899 but focusing on much older buildings and streets in lower Manhattan.

From there, we go to a WWI reenactor who makes her costumes as historically accurate as possible, and honors the real life WWI surgeon Dr. Anna Tjomsland.

And finally, in the present day, let’s read about the great Buenos Aires bank heist of 2006!

Hola and happy Friday!

But wait.

Could it be a Friday with no links from others? And no links of our own? Yes! (It must be February.)

We're off on Monday as well, but will be back on Tuesday, hopefully armed with some links to share. Have a safe and spiffy few days, everyone. See you next week.

How do you decide if a photo on social media is real or fake? NYT Open has a two-part series delving into the conundrum facing news organizations and readers alike.

Meanwhile, there are now pigeons in Vegas wearing tiny MAGA hats. (This is real, amazingly enough.)

The University of Saskatchewan has developed an app to guide readers through The Canterbury Tales, and Terry Jones was a contributor!

As March Mammal Madness approaches, we’re checking out public domain images, and I’m happy to report that Creative Commons has a much improved website and search engine.

Today: Map fun! And Stevie Nicks, also for fun.

Do you know where the Middle East is? I mean, could you draw a border around the region? Probably not, and you’re not alone. 

Found for genealogy, but interesting for everyone: Map of US shows how the states were formed, and also has a separate page for each state which shows how the counties formed, plus a lot more.

What’s the oldest operating company in the world? Well, it dates back to 572 AD. Yes, really! This fantastic map shows the oldest company in (almost) every country. (Special shoutout to Sean’s Bar, operating in Ireland since 900.)

If maps don’t interest you, perhaps the early artwork of Stevie Nicks will? It’s a bit pre-Raphaelite in places.