When people talk about literary loves, they mention Rhett and Scarlet, Heathcliff and Catherine, or Romeo and Juliet. It's about time some more modern love stories joined them. The Best Damn Creative Writing Blog assembled a list of modern novels with great love stories. If you haven't read these, this might be the nudge you need! For example: The Solitude of Prime Numbers.
When Alice and Mattia first meet in grade school, they realize that they have one thing in common–they are not yet ready for love. Both have been shaped by profound childhood tragedies that crippled their trust in the world around them. But years later, they eventually learn to trust each other enough to overcome their awkwardness. The Solitude of Prime Numbers is an absolutely flawless literary debut from one of Italy’s most promising new authors and the romance between Alice and Mattia–unconventional though it may be–is one for the history books.
Meet the lovers of nine more modern novels you may want to explore. Link
In another example of strangers collaborating to share information online, Minnesotastan asked for an explanation for a confusing passage in the novel Free Air:
She rarely lost her way. She was guided by the friendly trail signs -- those big red R's and L's on fence post and telephone pole, magically telling the way from the Mississippi to the Pacific. (p.69)
At first glance, "L" and "R" would seem to mean "left" and "right", but that wouldn't help someone drive across the country. A commenter knew that "L" stood for the Lincoln Highway. With the help of reddit, we find out that "R" designates the Yellowstone Trail. Why they chose that letter instead of a "Y" is still a mystery. Link
It has been 150 years since the US Civil War began. How should we mark the anniversary? The first recorded reunion of Civil War soldiers (Union only) took place a mere ten years after the beginning of the war. The anniversaries in the first 50 years after the war were dedicated to healing the wounds that still divided the North and the South. Then in 1936, there was something new for the commemorations.
In 1936, the 75th anniversary of the war, we see the first example of a new phenomenon: The Civil War reenactment, as the Battle of Bull Run was refought on the actual site, although not by enthusiasts studiously attired in period garb, but 1,500 U.S. soldiers and Marines of 1936, who were ordered to fight like it was 1861. The 75th anniversary was held in the midst of the Great Depression—and the forces of the New Deal were marshaled on the Manassas battlefield, as well. According to national parks historian John Reid, hundreds of workers from the Civilian Conservation Corps worked to prepare the battlefield for the reenactment and served as ushers to the surprisingly large crowd of 31,000 spectators—only 5,000 of whom were able to be seated in the wooden stand constructed by the CCC and the National Park Service for the event.
The 100th anniversary was supposed to be a big deal, but it fizzled out for various reasons, which you can read about at Smithsonian. Link
The cat was walking around the second story ledge of an apartment building, apparently not wanting to jump down and unable to get inside. YouTube user MrsChantrea says,
Suddenly I saw this cat outside the window and decided to film it because it was cute, didn`t dream of it doing something like this!
This photograph of a liquor store was taken in Minneapolis in 1939, and recently posted to Shorpy. Interesting, but... what is that futuristic thing sticking up out of the car parked in front?
The first comment on the picture identified the car as a new 1939 Mercury, and the second commenter asked about the flashy antenna. It didn't take long for someone to find another car with the same gadget, and another to find an advertisement for the exact radio and antenna. This kind of collaboration and information sharing is one of the things that makes the internet so addicting. Link -Thanks, Marilyn Terrell!
During the Cold War, the US military developed top secret aircraft at the Air Force facilities at Groom Lake, also known as Area 51. Decades after the projects were finished, these designs remained classified. Although these planes were "technology demonstrators" and were never put into service, they were crucial for testing systems and technologies that are part of modern military and civilian aircraft alike. Read the stories and see photographs of three of these projects (one of which only exists in photographs, as the planes are still missing) at UrbanGhosts. http://www.urbanghostsmedia.com/2011/04/top-secret-technology-demonstrator-aircraft-declassified/
One thing we should always remember is that the the earth is spinning around while the stars stay relatively constant in the sky. YouTube member bulletpeople took a beautiful existing time-lapse video of the stars and edited it to show the stars as static in the sky, which highlights the rotation of the earth. -via reddit
Figure 1. Battle between Lapiths and Centaurs (Centauromachy) at the wedding of Perithoos with Hippodameia (Vase 5th century b. Chr.)
by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Dr. H.C. Reinhard V. Putz Institute of Anatomy, Ludwig Maximilian University Munich/Germany
This study concerns itself with the systematics of Centaurean anatomical conditions. These are bound to be highly peculiar, combining, as they do, an animal trunk (the equine component) with a human trunk sans legs (the human component). (See Figure 8.)
A staple of Greek mythology, Centaurs have made many appearances throughout the centuries and even in our own time. They are represented by numerous sculptures and images in museums. True, when speaking of Centaurs, we have to rely on two- and three-dimensional models—here as many other instances in biology—because there has not yet been a sighting of a live specimen. However, the majority of extant graphic documents show a degree of verisimilitude and accuracy that makes them appear quite trustworthy, at least as regards the outward appearance of those beings. Figure 2. Hypothetical skeleton of Centaurs.
Historical Background
As we know from the ancient Greeks, the Centaurs are the offspring of the ill-fated relationship of Ixion, the king of the Thessalian Lapithes, and a cloud with the features of Hera, the wife of Zeus. At the wedding of Perithoos, king of the Lapithes, the drunken Centaurs sought to ravish the Lapithes’ wives. In the ensuing battle (the Centauromachy), they were driven from Thessalia to the Peloponnese. Quite understandably, Centaurs and Lapithes became mortal enemies on that day.
Materials
Since neither fossils nor living specimens of Centaurs have hitherto been discovered, the present study must be founded upon artistic renderings of its subject matter. These are abundant; collectively, they offer us a wealth of data. The most ancient depictions of Centaurs may be found on Grecian vases (see Figure 1). Greece and Rome have provided us with impressive sculptures. Medieval sources, on the other hand, are primarily scriptorial. Artistic renderings of Centaurs soared at the onset of the Modern period. Judging by the number of sculptures extant, Centaurs must have enjoyed remarkable popularity in the Renaissance. They have also inspired sculptors of more recent times.
Methods
This is a foundational survey of the Centaurean body and its organs. We present no statistical analyses. The sizes of sets of specimens are widely heterogeneous and can by no means be considered evenly distributed as regards their characteristics.
Nomenclature
The classic Centaur consists of two body parts, which meet at a right angle. The vertical or anterior part shows all the characteristics of the species Homo. For simplicity’s sake, however, we will simply refer to it as Anterior (A). The horizontal part is the posterior one. In classic Centaurs, this quite obviously belongs to the species Equus. We will simply call it Posterior (P). For the purpose of the present study’s phylogenetic considerations, and in order to improve legibility, species-related epithets will be attached to these terms. When describing and discussing classic Centaurs, therefore, the anterior part of the body will be referred to as Human Anterior (HA); the posterior part, as Equine Posterior (EP).
The anterior (HA) of the classic Centaur consists of a human element constituted by a head, a neck, a thorax with upper extremities, and an abdomen. The presence of a pelvis cannot be established with certainty. At any rate, the outward appearance indubitably and undeniably shows that HA—down to the umbilical region—possesses that human plasticity that is described in any modern anatomical atlas (e.g. Putz and Pabst, 2005). In contrast, EP consists of a near-complete horse’s trunk with a tail and four extremities. Again, the plasticity of the trunk allows us to accept as standard the equine anatomy that is exhaustively documented in the relevant literature (e.g. König and Liebich, 1999).
January 3, 1942: After ringing in the New Year, the five Sullivan brothers from Waterloo, Iowa, enlisted in the Navy. The brothers were George, 28; Francis, 27; Joseph, 24; Madison, 23; and Albert, 20.The brothers all joined the Navy, which (along with the rest of the military) discouraged family members from serving together in a highly dangerous area. It was not forbidden, though, and the brothers wanted to stay together. So they requested permission to serve on the same ship, the USS Juneau, a new light cruiser. It first took them to fight in the North Atlantic and the Caribbean, and then set off for Guadalcanal in September.
FIGHTING SPIRIT
The Battle of Guadalcanal was one of the most important fights of World War II. Japan wanted control of the island to build a strategic base, and U.S. and Allied forces waged a campaign to stop them. The entire battle lasted two months, and the USS Juneau was just one of the ships involved.
Back in January, Newsweek listed Grand Rapids, Michigan as one of "America's Dying Cities." Mayor George Hartwell did not agree, and said as much. The city responded by producing an epic LipDub video to Don McLean's "American Pie," featuring 5,000 of the city's residents, recorded on May 22nd. Whether this makes any sense at all is up for debate, but you have to admit the video is a masterpiece of civic participation and timing. For their part, the Newsweek website distanced itself from the Dying Cities list by explaining it was content from a partner site. The $40,000 cost of the video project was underwritten by sponsors that are listed at YouTube. -via Metafilter
Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial beginning of summer, since many schools are out, pools are opening, employers are juggling everyone's vacations, and the weather is nice enough for a cookout. I hear there's a big car race this weekend as well. But let's not forget the original meaning of Memorial Day -to remember those who gave the last full measure in service to their country. If you're not familiar with the poppy symbol here, check out the story from the Veterans of Foreign Wars. And since you have some extra time, why not catch up on everything that's been happening this week at Neatorama!
In the What Is It? game this week, Berhard was the first of many with the correct answer; this is a trowel bayonet. Fafa had the funniest answer: a combination pizza server and zombie defense knife! Both win t-shirts from the NeatoShop.
Congratulation to the Chad Huskey and Maxx, winners of the Decipher the Doodle contest at NeatoBambino! You can see the winning answers in the update post. No one came anywhere near the correct explanation for the doodle (this frowning figure is Alex), so the two funniest entries won t-shirts!
Want more? Be sure to check our Facebook page every day for extra content, contests, discussions, videos, and links you won't find here. Also, our Twitter feed will keep you updated on what's going around the web in real time.
We told you the story of Tama, the cat who became stationmaster at a train station in Japan (one, two, three, four, five times). Her success at bringing in new customers has spawned a series of non-human stationmasters, including dogs, monkeys (previously), goats, rabbits, a penguin, a tortoise, and even lobsters! Shown is Wasao, stationmaster at Ajigasawa.
Japan has at least two stationmaster dogs, with the latest being a shaggy off-white Akita named Wasao. Already somewhat of an animal celebrity in Japan for his “busa-kawa” (ugly-cute) characteristics, Wasao was the ideal choice to be Tourism Stationmaster of Ajigasawa station in far-northern Aomori prefecture. Get that? TOURISM Stationmaster… they aren’t big on subtlety up in Aomori.
Read about all of them at WebEcoist. Link -via Fark
Being the older brother of Napoleon Bonaparte wasn't an easy job. Joseph wanted to be a writer, but instead had to rule Naples and then Spain. When Napoleon was defeated, Joseph set sail for the United States, where he eventually settled in ...New Jersey!
Bonaparte may have been dethroned, but he was still royalty. He built up the estate to reflect his social standing.
He constructed a vast mansion for himself, with a large wine cellar, floor-to-ceiling mirrors, elaborate crystal chandeliers, marble fireplaces and grand staircases. His library held the largest collection of books in the country at the time (eight thousand volumes versus the sixty-five hundred volumes of the Library of Congress).
The land surrounding the mansion was elaborately landscaped and featured ten miles of carriage paths, rare trees and plants, gazebos, gardens, fountains and an artificial lake stocked with imported European swans.
But life in the Garden State was not all fun and games. Joseph Bonaparte dealt with some who sought revenge against his name, the wife who would not immigrate with him, and even the Jersey Devil! Read all about Bonaparte's American life at mental_floss. Link
NPR posted overhead views of Joplin, Missouri before the tornado hit Sunday, and two days after the devastation. You can move a slider over the pictures to compare the two. Be warned, it's sad. http://www.npr.org/2011/05/26/136655052/before-and-after-a-birds-eye-view-of-joplin -via Bits and Pieces
What could be interesting about the business of renting storage units? The fact that they are used for so many other things besides storage! Renting a storage unit is cheaper than renting office space, retail space, a gym, or a home, so people make do.
The only other person here is Jai Rodgers, front man for the band Breath of Fire, and he’s about to make some serious noise.
Rodgers has the obligatory boyish face and long hair of a lead singer, which he hastily pushes out of his eyes as struggles to plug in his microphone. His band only has 45 minutes to practice before showtime and Jai is ready to get warmed up.
This corrugated metal box is the band’s first real practice spot. “We were paying $35 for two hours at a studio in Kailua. This place is a lot cheaper and we don’t have to make an appointment. Plus, we wanted to be able to store stuff after gigs at, like, 3 a.m.,” says Rodgers.
Honolulu Magazine has many other stories of people getting creative with rented storage units. Link -via Metafilter
