Friday, April 29, 2016

Happy Friday! Thanks to everyone for reading and sending in links.

From Julie: Oh, you know, just discovering a Roman villa underneath your garden, complete with mosaics. Just another day in the life.

From Cassandra: Is there a true difference between sativa and indica? 

Also from Cassandra: The inventions of 1866 ran the gamut from wonderful to inexplicable.

Seen on Set helps you track down furniture glimpsed on television shows. Good for retro shows in particular!

Our Friday Folderol video looks at obscure superheroes from the comics. Thrill (briefly) to the exploits of John Fearless VI, for example!




Have a spiffy weekend, everyone. See you next week.

Thursday, April 28, 2016

From my mom: The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu! There’s even a book about them. This is why you shouldn’t underestimate librarians. (Unless you are megalomaniacs bent on world destruction. In that case, underestimate away.)

Library Cat’s book is out, although he himself has gone into hiding. (Come back, Library Cat, the world misses you.)

If you feel as though the modern world is a bit of a car crash, you can peruse this collection of 1930s car wrecks, courtesy of the Boston Public Library. It may not make you feel better, but it’s a distraction, at least.

Also a distraction: Goose Cam! A pair of Canadian geese have set up a nest on the roof of BioWare in Edmonton.

Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Today, we’re thinking about travel. And maps.

If Christianity was taken out of the equation, what would be each state’s majority religion? Some states are surprising.

If you’re traveling across the United States, the Flyover Country app can tell you all sorts of useful information.

Also, if you’re traveling, here’s a detailed map of lead exposure across the nation. My county’s as bad as Flint. Wow.

In another continent, in another century…here are images of Giza throughout the years. I especially love the photographs.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Over a hundred years ago, three lighthouse keepers vanished from a Scottish island. Was it just a terrible storm, or something more eerie?

What would your (terrible) Victorian-era profession be? Mine was working with “night soil.” Ugh.

This 1932 map of Harlem nightlife is fantastic. I especially like that there’s a place called the Radium Club.

Scientists are beginning to study hypnagogia, otherwise known as that weird state between wakefulness and sleep when anything seems plausible.

Monday, April 25, 2016

Monday once more. However, it’s also World Penguin Day, which balances it out a bit.

Shakespeare was buried four hundred years ago. While we’ll probably never know the cause of death, that hasn’t stopped people from speculating. 

Three cheers for Dorothy Parker, whose name you might know, and for Violette Leduc, whose name you may not know. Both were fiery, fierce women worth knowing.

Do you consider yourself a futurist? Are you up to speed on these words and phrases?

Friday, April 22, 2016

Well, it’s been a week, hasn’t it?

Happy Earth Day, and let’s be nicer to the planet.

 It’s also the first day of Passover. 

And also, Shakespeare’s birthday is tomorrow, and you can join in on this crowdsourcing project regarding his life and times!

Cities around the world honored Prince by lighting up the night in purple, and the good people of Hamilton celebrated him as well:



And for our Friday Folderol, we give you more cat museums! Have a spiffy weekend, everyone. See you next week.



 

Thursday, April 21, 2016

I found Librarian Shipwreck this week and it’s wonderful, go take a look. Here’s how to defend yourself with a book. Plus, bookguns!

The Pulitzers for journalism have been awarded, and Bill Lucey is here with the details.

Imagine ditching your entire (print) library and starting over. Now imagine giving your library away all over Manhattan. It happened!

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Here’s a blast from the past for anyone who was on the net back in its early days: Remember the Evil Overlord List? Hooray!

A planned pipeline could destroy the mysterious Marfa lights. Man, pipelines get in the way of everything.

Last week we showed abandoned homes off the coast of Florida; this week, we show abandoned hotels in the Sinai Desert. Both are futuristic in a post-apocalyptic sort of way.

The LAPD uses aerial surveillance. Here’s what it’s like in the brave new world of “panopticops.”

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

The Islam and Science Fiction site (which is wonderful, you should be reading it all the time) is sponsoring an Islamicate Science Fiction Short Story Competition. Spread the word!

If you are more into athletics than literature, fear not, there’s something for you as well. Gallowglass Academy is putting on the Second Annual International Pugilism Symposium, featuring such classes as “Punch Him in the Face, Throw Him on His Head.” That’s hard to resist.

Slate’s Vault takes a look at the tickets medical students used to attend dissections back in the 1800s. It’s all a bit more refined than the modern day.

However, blood transfusions are much better understood today than in Bram Stoker’s time, fortunately; here’s an essay about blood (and Dracula) in Victorian London.

Monday, April 18, 2016

Happy Monday, all.

Why do we love bad art so much? Well, there are a lot of reasons.

Someone is creating bedrooms in the Berlin subway, and it’s wonderful.

Have you heard of Corita Kent? She was a nun who became a pop artist, and you’ve probably seen her work.

A new book on Thomas de Quincey examines the life of the opium eater.

What’s the quietest place in the United States? It’s a place where you can hear the clouds. Well, maybe.

Friday, April 15, 2016

Happy Friday! We’ve gone back to Fridays for our video Folderols, because we can’t resist the alliteration of Folderol Friday.

 From Cassandra: The mysterious “deep learning” scientists. (I can’t help but think of MST3K’s “deep hurting.”)

From Zazoo: A cat café is coming to Brooklyn! 

Not from Julie, but relevant to her neck of the woods: Doreen Valiente, often called the mother of modern witchcraft, was also one of the Bletchley Park codebreakers. 

For this week’s video, we talk about invading birds! It’s too late to defend yourselves, they’re already here. And they seem okay, actually.




Have a spiffy weekend, everyone! See you next week.

Thursday, April 14, 2016

It’s National Library Week! (The same week as Squirrel Week? My interests are aligning.)

The American Libraries Association says this year’s theme is “transforming libraries.” I checked, and yes, several libraries are running Transformers marathons.

Jessamyn, librarian extraordinaire, created a search engine for Flickr photos which are free to use. This is incredibly helpful.

In non-library news, Batiparis examines the historical buildings of Paris – you can zoom in on buildings, browse by date, and generally wander about the city virtually. So cool.

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

Hey! It’s Squirrel Week! And the Washington Post is celebrating it properly! 

If you like Brutalist architecture but can’t really afford an entire building, fear not; you can now experience Brutal London in miniature.

Radiooooo brings you music from around the world, through the decades. It’s a great way to explore.

Did you know the internet is haunted? Well, it is. Like most things, really.

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

This morning, I fell down the rabbit hole of Russian Futurism. See: Vladimir Mayakovsky and David Burliuk, among many others. I also found a repository of Dada manifestos! 

In modern Russia, meanwhile, a brave (?) spelunker has explored Chernobyl. 

Off the coast of Florida, some gorgeous dome buildings are falling into the ocean, for future explorers to discover.

Have you seen Edward Sheriff Curtis’s photos of Native Americans? There are several levels of discussion to be had, as this Dangerous Minds article explains.

Monday, April 11, 2016

Hello! Welcome back. Sorry we were gone for a bit, we’re much better now. On to the Monday art links!

- Google Cultural Institute introduces you to Bruegel’s paintings in a strange, 3-D sort of experience that’s fascinating.

- Vantablack is the ultimate black. There is nothing more black. Goths, take note.

- There’s a link between Art Nouveau and deep sea creatures. How cool is this?

- Meet Tony Conrad, the trailblazing musician you may not know, but who has influenced generations of artists and musicians.

- The search goes on for the “true” Emily Dickinson, woman of eternal mystery.

Thursday, April 07, 2016

Wednesday, April 06, 2016

Hi there. The stomach flu from hell has been keeping me away from Folderol; back tomorrow, hopefully. In the meantime, we've moved the Folderol video to Wednesdays for a short time. Enjoy!


 

Friday, April 01, 2016

In France, they give each other chocolate fish today for Poisson d’Avril. I like that better than the pranks. At any rate, no April Fool’s shenanigans here today, but if you’re into that you can check out the Museum of Hoaxes or keep up with this year’s goofiness via the Guardian’s liveblog.

From Cassandra: The meteor showers are coming, huzzah!

Also from Cassandra: the joy of Sufi Islam, and the fear behind Trump supporters.

For this week’s Folderol, we present some memorable Opening Days for the baseball season.


Have a spiffy weekend, everyone! See you next week.