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April 22, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: April 22, 2024\PAL-puh-bul\ adjective
What It Means
Something described as palpable is obvious and notable. Palpable may al...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: April 22, 2024\PAL-puh-bul\ adjective
What It Means
Something described as palpable is obvious and notable. Palpable may al...
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FREEArt Appreciation Art CurioFree1 CQ
Seems he was making waves rather than going with the flow. American artist John La Farge painted this dramatic scene of a Daoist master after learning about he philosophy in Japan. A Rishi Stirring Up a Storm depicts a man dressed in blue robes standing by the sea. Blue-green waves can be seen crashing in the background under a dark, gray sky. La Farge visited Japan in 1886 and studied Daoism under Okakura Kakuzō, a Japanese writer and philosopher. Inspired by the philosophy and by Japanese woodblock prints, he created richly textured waves by layering transparent watercolor to create a sense of depth. While the painting is a tribute to his Daoist studies, he may not have been the best student. He apparently mistook “Rishi” to be a title that could be given to anyone, when it was really the Japanese pronunciation of Liezi (Master Lie), the honorific name of Daoist philosopher Lie Yukou. Maybe La Farge was too busy doodling during his lessons.
A Rishi Stirring Up a Storm, John La Farge (1835–1910), 1897, watercolor and gouache over graphite, 10.75 x 15.31 in. (27.3 x 38.9 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio.
[Image credit & copyright: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1939.267. Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation, public domain.]Seems he was making waves rather than going with the flow. American artist John La Farge painted this dramatic scene of a Daoist master after learning about he philosophy in Japan. A Rishi Stirring Up a Storm depicts a man dressed in blue robes standing by the sea. Blue-green waves can be seen crashing in the background under a dark, gray sky. La Farge visited Japan in 1886 and studied Daoism under Okakura Kakuzō, a Japanese writer and philosopher. Inspired by the philosophy and by Japanese woodblock prints, he created richly textured waves by layering transparent watercolor to create a sense of depth. While the painting is a tribute to his Daoist studies, he may not have been the best student. He apparently mistook “Rishi” to be a title that could be given to anyone, when it was really the Japanese pronunciation of Liezi (Master Lie), the honorific name of Daoist philosopher Lie Yukou. Maybe La Farge was too busy doodling during his lessons.
A Rishi Stirring Up a Storm, John La Farge (1835–1910), 1897, watercolor and gouache over graphite, 10.75 x 15.31 in. (27.3 x 38.9 cm.), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio.
[Image credit & copyright: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1939.267. Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation, public domain.] -
FREETravel Daily Curio #2859Free1 CQ
Pack it in, pack it out—for real this time. Hikers and other outdoor enthusiasts live by the creed “leave no trace,” but Everest hopefuls have famously disregarded this tenet, leaving a mountain of waste next to the actual mountain. Now, authorities in Nepal are putting their foot down. In addition to sending in the army to remove trash (much of which is human waste) as they do every year, they’re implementing new rules for mountaineers to curb the amount of trash that gets left around the peak.
Every year, Nepali troops remove trash left behind on Everest, but it’s a daunting, never-ending task. Scores of climbers from around the world converge at the base of the Himalayan mountain, sometimes spending weeks waiting for their chance to summit. In that time, they leave behind literal tons of trash, and without plumbed lavatories on site, that means a lot of feces. There’s also the matter of trash that gets left behind on the way to the summit, like oxygen tanks that get discarded as they empty. On a more grisly note, there are also deposits of human remains along the path, frozen in time, still clad in bright mountaineering gear. Recovering bodies can be dangerous and expensive, so most people who die on Everest are left where they fall. They are so numerous and distinct against the stark, snowy backdrop that some bodies serve as landmarks on the way to the peak.
Nepal alone has approved well over 300 climbing permits so far this year, and more will surely come from the Tibetan side, which means more waste and potentially more casualties. To address the issue, the governments of Nepal and China have begun efforts to remove bodies and existing trash. All climbers will now be required to carry out their poop in special bags that will be issued to them. Each climber will be given two poop bags filled with chemicals to solidify waste, and each bag can be used 6 times, which should be enough for the two weeks that most climbers spend at base camp. With climbing permits going for $11,000, those are going to cost more than most designer bags!
[Image description: Mount Everest against a blue sky.] Credit & copyright: W. Mason Fuller, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, W. Mason Fuller at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide.Pack it in, pack it out—for real this time. Hikers and other outdoor enthusiasts live by the creed “leave no trace,” but Everest hopefuls have famously disregarded this tenet, leaving a mountain of waste next to the actual mountain. Now, authorities in Nepal are putting their foot down. In addition to sending in the army to remove trash (much of which is human waste) as they do every year, they’re implementing new rules for mountaineers to curb the amount of trash that gets left around the peak.
Every year, Nepali troops remove trash left behind on Everest, but it’s a daunting, never-ending task. Scores of climbers from around the world converge at the base of the Himalayan mountain, sometimes spending weeks waiting for their chance to summit. In that time, they leave behind literal tons of trash, and without plumbed lavatories on site, that means a lot of feces. There’s also the matter of trash that gets left behind on the way to the summit, like oxygen tanks that get discarded as they empty. On a more grisly note, there are also deposits of human remains along the path, frozen in time, still clad in bright mountaineering gear. Recovering bodies can be dangerous and expensive, so most people who die on Everest are left where they fall. They are so numerous and distinct against the stark, snowy backdrop that some bodies serve as landmarks on the way to the peak.
Nepal alone has approved well over 300 climbing permits so far this year, and more will surely come from the Tibetan side, which means more waste and potentially more casualties. To address the issue, the governments of Nepal and China have begun efforts to remove bodies and existing trash. All climbers will now be required to carry out their poop in special bags that will be issued to them. Each climber will be given two poop bags filled with chemicals to solidify waste, and each bag can be used 6 times, which should be enough for the two weeks that most climbers spend at base camp. With climbing permits going for $11,000, those are going to cost more than most designer bags!
[Image description: Mount Everest against a blue sky.] Credit & copyright: W. Mason Fuller, Wikimedia Commons. This work has been released into the public domain by its author, W. Mason Fuller at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide. -
7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
The United Auto Workers union is trying to organize foreign vehicle factories in the South, and today, workers at a Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, Tennes...
The United Auto Workers union is trying to organize foreign vehicle factories in the South, and today, workers at a Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, Tennes...
April 21, 2024
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FREEBiology PP&T CurioFree1 CQ
Would you like the ability to regrow your limbs while staying young forever? Sounds like you want to be an axolotl. These amphibians have become such pop-culture darlings in the past few years that they’re one of the few non-fluffy creatures commonly found in stuffed-animal form. While there’s no doubt that axolotls are cute, they also happen to be some of the strangest (and most threatened) creatures on earth.
Axolotls are amphibians (aquatic salamanders, to be exact) but their life cycle is much different from other amphibians’. The vast majority of amphibians undergo metamorphosis in order to reach adulthood, such as frogs, which begin life as tadpoles. Even most other salamander species begin life in the water with feathery gills similar to axolotls’, but eventually lose them when they mature and move onto land. Researchers have found that, while axolotls can be forced to change into an “adult” form if they are exposed to large amounts of iodine (a chemical element that triggers metamorphosis in some other amphibians) they do not survive long after the forced metamorphosis. One trait that axolotls do share with some other salamander species is the ability to regenerate body parts. They’re extremely good at it, in fact. Not only can axolotls grow new tails or legs should they lose one, they can even regrow internal organs and bones, including the heart, brain, and spine.
Social media could easily convince someone that axolotls are common. In a way, it’s true: they are common in the pet trade. In the wild, though, they’re practically extinct—and their range was never very big to begin with. In fact, wild axolotls have only ever been found in two freshwater lakes in the Valley of Mexico: Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco. These lakes offered unique habitats for axolotls that some pet owners find difficult to emulate. The waters are dark and, most importantly, cold. Axolotls thrive at temperatures of around 55 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, which would be much too cold for many other amphibians. Unfortunately, people have never been content to leave axolotls alone in their cool, dark homes. The salamanders’ first bout of bad luck came when the Spanish conquered the Aztec Empire and partially drained the lakes, killing many axolotls. Lake Chalco was completely drained in the 1970s, relegating all remaining wild axolotls to Lake Xochimilco. Their problems weren’t over, though: in the 1980s, the lake became polluted with wastewater and in the early 2000s, tilapia were introduced to the lake. These fish compete with axolotls for food and eat their eggs. On top of all that, people living near the lake had no qualms about eating axolotls, if the chance arose. Today, there are only around 50 to 1,000 wild axolotls left on earth, all of them relegated to a single, polluted lake.
While the pet trade can lead to ecological disaster for some animal species, it may actually help save axolotls. Plenty of people from all over the world breed captive axolotls, which means that the species has managed to maintain a large gene pool. This could bode well for efforts to re-introduce axolotls to the wild…assuming that their natural habitat is made fit for them again. In order for any such effort to succeed, Lake Xochimilco would have to be cleaned of pollution, rules about waste dumping would need to be passed and enforced, and large numbers of tilapia would need to be removed from the lake. Were all those things to happen, there’s a good chance that wild axolotls would take to the lake like fish…or, rather, like salamanders to water.
[Image description: A gray axolotl in an aquarium.] Credit & copyright: Vassil, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.Would you like the ability to regrow your limbs while staying young forever? Sounds like you want to be an axolotl. These amphibians have become such pop-culture darlings in the past few years that they’re one of the few non-fluffy creatures commonly found in stuffed-animal form. While there’s no doubt that axolotls are cute, they also happen to be some of the strangest (and most threatened) creatures on earth.
Axolotls are amphibians (aquatic salamanders, to be exact) but their life cycle is much different from other amphibians’. The vast majority of amphibians undergo metamorphosis in order to reach adulthood, such as frogs, which begin life as tadpoles. Even most other salamander species begin life in the water with feathery gills similar to axolotls’, but eventually lose them when they mature and move onto land. Researchers have found that, while axolotls can be forced to change into an “adult” form if they are exposed to large amounts of iodine (a chemical element that triggers metamorphosis in some other amphibians) they do not survive long after the forced metamorphosis. One trait that axolotls do share with some other salamander species is the ability to regenerate body parts. They’re extremely good at it, in fact. Not only can axolotls grow new tails or legs should they lose one, they can even regrow internal organs and bones, including the heart, brain, and spine.
Social media could easily convince someone that axolotls are common. In a way, it’s true: they are common in the pet trade. In the wild, though, they’re practically extinct—and their range was never very big to begin with. In fact, wild axolotls have only ever been found in two freshwater lakes in the Valley of Mexico: Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco. These lakes offered unique habitats for axolotls that some pet owners find difficult to emulate. The waters are dark and, most importantly, cold. Axolotls thrive at temperatures of around 55 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit, which would be much too cold for many other amphibians. Unfortunately, people have never been content to leave axolotls alone in their cool, dark homes. The salamanders’ first bout of bad luck came when the Spanish conquered the Aztec Empire and partially drained the lakes, killing many axolotls. Lake Chalco was completely drained in the 1970s, relegating all remaining wild axolotls to Lake Xochimilco. Their problems weren’t over, though: in the 1980s, the lake became polluted with wastewater and in the early 2000s, tilapia were introduced to the lake. These fish compete with axolotls for food and eat their eggs. On top of all that, people living near the lake had no qualms about eating axolotls, if the chance arose. Today, there are only around 50 to 1,000 wild axolotls left on earth, all of them relegated to a single, polluted lake.
While the pet trade can lead to ecological disaster for some animal species, it may actually help save axolotls. Plenty of people from all over the world breed captive axolotls, which means that the species has managed to maintain a large gene pool. This could bode well for efforts to re-introduce axolotls to the wild…assuming that their natural habitat is made fit for them again. In order for any such effort to succeed, Lake Xochimilco would have to be cleaned of pollution, rules about waste dumping would need to be passed and enforced, and large numbers of tilapia would need to be removed from the lake. Were all those things to happen, there’s a good chance that wild axolotls would take to the lake like fish…or, rather, like salamanders to water.
[Image description: A gray axolotl in an aquarium.] Credit & copyright: Vassil, Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. -
7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
When the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was built in the ’70s, it was a chance for workers to prove themselves on a massive construction project. Foll...
When the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was built in the ’70s, it was a chance for workers to prove themselves on a massive construction project. Foll...
April 20, 2024
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: April 20, 2024\JIN-jer-lee\ adjective
What It Means
An act or manner described as gingerly is very cautious or careful.
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with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: April 20, 2024\JIN-jer-lee\ adjective
What It Means
An act or manner described as gingerly is very cautious or careful.
//...
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9 minFREEWork Business CurioFree5 CQ
This week, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission finalized regulations to ensure that most employees around the country are entitled to unpaid time off...
This week, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission finalized regulations to ensure that most employees around the country are entitled to unpaid time off...
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FREESports Sporty CurioFree1 CQ
Keep up the pace—no, not like that! A half-marathon in Beijing recently went viral for its unusual finish, and now the results of the race have been canceled after an investigation. On April 14, during the race organized by World Athletics, four runners were in the lead: Robert Keter and Willy Mnangat of Kenya, Dejene Hailu of Ethiopia, and He Jie of China. But it’s how the race finished that had people questioning the results. As the pack of four approached the finish line, He Jie took the lead after seemingly being waved forward by the other three. As he crossed the finish line, his competitors seemed to trail behind at a leisurely pace. When asked about the race, Mnangat explained that he allowed Jie to win, “because he is my friend,” and that he wasn’t racing competitively during the event. Elaborating, he said, “I don’t know why they put my name on my bib/chest number instead of labeling it as a pacemaker. My job was to set the pace and help the guy win but unfortunately, he did not achieve the target, which was to break the national record.” Yet the Beijing Sports Bureau and World Athletics weren’t completely convinced, and both organizations investigated the race. In the end, the scores for all four runners were canceled along with their trophies, medals, and bonuses. Was it a case of poor sportsmanship or too much of it?
Keep up the pace—no, not like that! A half-marathon in Beijing recently went viral for its unusual finish, and now the results of the race have been canceled after an investigation. On April 14, during the race organized by World Athletics, four runners were in the lead: Robert Keter and Willy Mnangat of Kenya, Dejene Hailu of Ethiopia, and He Jie of China. But it’s how the race finished that had people questioning the results. As the pack of four approached the finish line, He Jie took the lead after seemingly being waved forward by the other three. As he crossed the finish line, his competitors seemed to trail behind at a leisurely pace. When asked about the race, Mnangat explained that he allowed Jie to win, “because he is my friend,” and that he wasn’t racing competitively during the event. Elaborating, he said, “I don’t know why they put my name on my bib/chest number instead of labeling it as a pacemaker. My job was to set the pace and help the guy win but unfortunately, he did not achieve the target, which was to break the national record.” Yet the Beijing Sports Bureau and World Athletics weren’t completely convinced, and both organizations investigated the race. In the end, the scores for all four runners were canceled along with their trophies, medals, and bonuses. Was it a case of poor sportsmanship or too much of it?
April 19, 2024
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
Bitcoin is trading well above where it did in 2023. Friday or Saturday, something called the “bitcoin halving” is supposed to happen — an event that occurs r...
Bitcoin is trading well above where it did in 2023. Friday or Saturday, something called the “bitcoin halving” is supposed to happen — an event that occurs r...
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FREEMind + Body Daily CurioFree1 CQ
You can enjoy this snack on the go, just don’t forget your napkin! As the weather warms, plenty of people around the world will be reaching for doubles, a street food created in the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. These delicious, saucy (somewhat messy) fried sandwiches manage to meld sweet, savory, and tart flavors together at once—and, though they’ve been around for almost a century, we know exactly who invented them.
Doubles are fried, open-faced sandwiches made from two pieces of fried dough called baras. The dough is stuffed with spicy, curried chickpeas and topped with a variety of sauces and spices. Some of the most common toppings include mango chutney, coriander sauce, diced cucumber, or a combination thereof. In some ways, doubles serve as a culinary expression of Trinidad and Tobego’s diverse population. Baras, chutneys, and currys have their roots in Indian and other South Asian cuisines, while chickpeas are an important staple in African cuisine. This melding makes sense, considering that Trinidad and Tobego is home to many people of Indian, West African, Chinese, and Indigenous Caribbean descent.
The invention of doubles is widely credited to the husband and wife team of Emamool and Raheman Deen, who began selling single baras topped with curried chickpeas to Indian sugar estate workers in Princes Town some time in the 1910s. Eventually, the Deens added chutneys to the baras, and coined the term “doubles” when customers began requesting two baras instead of one. The first, true doubles were sold by the Deens in 1936.
Doubles didn’t remain a family secret for long, though. Soon, other street vendors in Princes Town began selling the food, and it quickly grew popular enough to spread throughout the entire country, with some vendors even choosing to sell doubles and nothing else. Though some people today choose to make their doubles at home, the dish is still most famous as a street food. Doubles can and often are eaten any time of day, usually by working people in a hurry, but also by late-night partiers who consider them an excellent accompaniment to alcohol. Able to be enjoyed as a breakfast food and a midnight snack, you could say that doubles are double-delicious.
[Image description: Chickpeas in a silver pan.] Credit & copyright: Kyle Killam, PexelsYou can enjoy this snack on the go, just don’t forget your napkin! As the weather warms, plenty of people around the world will be reaching for doubles, a street food created in the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. These delicious, saucy (somewhat messy) fried sandwiches manage to meld sweet, savory, and tart flavors together at once—and, though they’ve been around for almost a century, we know exactly who invented them.
Doubles are fried, open-faced sandwiches made from two pieces of fried dough called baras. The dough is stuffed with spicy, curried chickpeas and topped with a variety of sauces and spices. Some of the most common toppings include mango chutney, coriander sauce, diced cucumber, or a combination thereof. In some ways, doubles serve as a culinary expression of Trinidad and Tobego’s diverse population. Baras, chutneys, and currys have their roots in Indian and other South Asian cuisines, while chickpeas are an important staple in African cuisine. This melding makes sense, considering that Trinidad and Tobego is home to many people of Indian, West African, Chinese, and Indigenous Caribbean descent.
The invention of doubles is widely credited to the husband and wife team of Emamool and Raheman Deen, who began selling single baras topped with curried chickpeas to Indian sugar estate workers in Princes Town some time in the 1910s. Eventually, the Deens added chutneys to the baras, and coined the term “doubles” when customers began requesting two baras instead of one. The first, true doubles were sold by the Deens in 1936.
Doubles didn’t remain a family secret for long, though. Soon, other street vendors in Princes Town began selling the food, and it quickly grew popular enough to spread throughout the entire country, with some vendors even choosing to sell doubles and nothing else. Though some people today choose to make their doubles at home, the dish is still most famous as a street food. Doubles can and often are eaten any time of day, usually by working people in a hurry, but also by late-night partiers who consider them an excellent accompaniment to alcohol. Able to be enjoyed as a breakfast food and a midnight snack, you could say that doubles are double-delicious.
[Image description: Chickpeas in a silver pan.] Credit & copyright: Kyle Killam, Pexels
April 18, 2024
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
From the BBC World Service: The European Commission has given TikTok 24 hours to provide more information on its new app, which pays users to watch videos, a...
From the BBC World Service: The European Commission has given TikTok 24 hours to provide more information on its new app, which pays users to watch videos, a...
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3 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: April 18, 2024\KWAH\ preposition
What It Means
Qua is a preposition used in formal speech or writing that means “in the cap...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: April 18, 2024\KWAH\ preposition
What It Means
Qua is a preposition used in formal speech or writing that means “in the cap...
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FREENerdy CurioFree1 CQ
There may not be little green men on their way to invade planet Earth, but if there is alien life, it could be purple. At least, that’s what microbiologists from the U.S. are saying in a paper published in the International Journal of Astrobiology. Earth is full of lush, green forests and verdant plains of grass. However, there was a time that the color of life on Earth was purple, not green. Plants and algae use chlorophyll (which is green) to get energy from the sun via photosynthesis, but they weren’t the first to use solar energy to thrive. Rather, bacteria and single-celled organisms relied on retinal light-harvesting, which uses a molecule called retinal to process sunlight into energy. This process has some benefits, like absorbing energy-rich green light instead of reflecting it, like plants do. Absorbing green light, incidentally, makes living things that use retinal light-harvesting appear purple. In fact, these purple microorganisms are still common on Earth. It could be, then, that similar life would evolve on other planets, and that purple life forms would become the most visible in the absence of plant-like life. This could be a game-changer for astrobiologists looking for life on other planets through surface biosignatures, because their efforts are currently based on looking for the color green. Figuring out a way to detect purple could increase their chances, especially since, unlike plants, purple life can thrive in environments with low light and low oxygen. Our own, Earthly plants must be green with envy.
[Image description: A digital illustration of purple stars against a purple background] Credit & copyright: Curious team member’s own work.
There may not be little green men on their way to invade planet Earth, but if there is alien life, it could be purple. At least, that’s what microbiologists from the U.S. are saying in a paper published in the International Journal of Astrobiology. Earth is full of lush, green forests and verdant plains of grass. However, there was a time that the color of life on Earth was purple, not green. Plants and algae use chlorophyll (which is green) to get energy from the sun via photosynthesis, but they weren’t the first to use solar energy to thrive. Rather, bacteria and single-celled organisms relied on retinal light-harvesting, which uses a molecule called retinal to process sunlight into energy. This process has some benefits, like absorbing energy-rich green light instead of reflecting it, like plants do. Absorbing green light, incidentally, makes living things that use retinal light-harvesting appear purple. In fact, these purple microorganisms are still common on Earth. It could be, then, that similar life would evolve on other planets, and that purple life forms would become the most visible in the absence of plant-like life. This could be a game-changer for astrobiologists looking for life on other planets through surface biosignatures, because their efforts are currently based on looking for the color green. Figuring out a way to detect purple could increase their chances, especially since, unlike plants, purple life can thrive in environments with low light and low oxygen. Our own, Earthly plants must be green with envy.
[Image description: A digital illustration of purple stars against a purple background] Credit & copyright: Curious team member’s own work.
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FREEUS History Daily Curio #2858Free1 CQ
The internet never forgets anything… even things that happened before the internet! Recently, videos of a certain event held in Cleveland, Ohio, have gone viral online—never mind that the event took place back in the 1980s. The colorful incident was known as Balloonfest, and it involved just the sort of drama (and disaster) that the internet loves. In 1986, the United Way of Greater Cleveland wanted to drum up interest and attract young people toward volunteer work and philanthropy. Their method of choice was to break a world record set by Disneyland the previous year when the theme park released 1.2 million helium-filled balloons as part of their 30th anniversary celebrations. Thus, Balloonfest was born, with the goal of releasing 1.5 million balloons, down from an ambitious 2.2 million from the original plans. Terminal Tower and the public square below were chosen as the location, and the date was set for September 27, but not everything went according to plan. On the day of the event, as 100,000 people gathered to witness the flight of the balloons, organizers decided to release them earlier than scheduled due to an incoming storm. The balloons were set free from the giant net that had held them all morning, and at first the view was spectacular. Things quickly took a literal downturn, though. Instead of floating off into the sky as intended, the balloons were pushed down by a wall of cold air. What ensued was sheer chaos—balloons drifting over highways at car-height caused several accidents; a local sued the organizers for spooking her prized horses, which injured themselves in their confusion. Tragically, balloons falling over Lake Erie may have hampered rescue efforts meant to save two fishermen who had been reported missing. Since then, Balloonfest has been mocked as a short-sighted effort, though it did accomplish its intended goal of raising interest in philanthropy. Environmentalists also complained that the event was akin to mass littering, and the Guinness Book of World Records even removed balloon releases as a category for its 1988 edition. Balloonfest still has some defenders, though, who say that it helped put Cleveland on the map. No matter how you slice it, though, the event involved the literal release of 1.5 million non-biodegradable balloons. From an environmental standpoint, that blows.
[Image description: Description ] Credit & copyright: George Chernilevsky, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.The internet never forgets anything… even things that happened before the internet! Recently, videos of a certain event held in Cleveland, Ohio, have gone viral online—never mind that the event took place back in the 1980s. The colorful incident was known as Balloonfest, and it involved just the sort of drama (and disaster) that the internet loves. In 1986, the United Way of Greater Cleveland wanted to drum up interest and attract young people toward volunteer work and philanthropy. Their method of choice was to break a world record set by Disneyland the previous year when the theme park released 1.2 million helium-filled balloons as part of their 30th anniversary celebrations. Thus, Balloonfest was born, with the goal of releasing 1.5 million balloons, down from an ambitious 2.2 million from the original plans. Terminal Tower and the public square below were chosen as the location, and the date was set for September 27, but not everything went according to plan. On the day of the event, as 100,000 people gathered to witness the flight of the balloons, organizers decided to release them earlier than scheduled due to an incoming storm. The balloons were set free from the giant net that had held them all morning, and at first the view was spectacular. Things quickly took a literal downturn, though. Instead of floating off into the sky as intended, the balloons were pushed down by a wall of cold air. What ensued was sheer chaos—balloons drifting over highways at car-height caused several accidents; a local sued the organizers for spooking her prized horses, which injured themselves in their confusion. Tragically, balloons falling over Lake Erie may have hampered rescue efforts meant to save two fishermen who had been reported missing. Since then, Balloonfest has been mocked as a short-sighted effort, though it did accomplish its intended goal of raising interest in philanthropy. Environmentalists also complained that the event was akin to mass littering, and the Guinness Book of World Records even removed balloon releases as a category for its 1988 edition. Balloonfest still has some defenders, though, who say that it helped put Cleveland on the map. No matter how you slice it, though, the event involved the literal release of 1.5 million non-biodegradable balloons. From an environmental standpoint, that blows.
[Image description: Description ] Credit & copyright: George Chernilevsky, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.
April 17, 2024
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Despite extensive sanctions, the International Monetary Fund has forecast Russia’s economy will grow more than any other rich nat...
From the BBC World Service: Despite extensive sanctions, the International Monetary Fund has forecast Russia’s economy will grow more than any other rich nat...
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2 minFREEHumanities Word CurioFree2 CQ
Word of the Day
: April 17, 2024\ser-kum-loh-KYOO-shun\ noun
What It Means
Circumlocution refers to the use of many words to say something th...
with Merriam-WebsterWord of the Day
: April 17, 2024\ser-kum-loh-KYOO-shun\ noun
What It Means
Circumlocution refers to the use of many words to say something th...
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FREEEconomics Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
World leaders aren’t the only ones reeling after Iran’s recent attack on Israel—the economy is feeling the shock too. Oil prices, in particular, spiked directly following the attack, though they dropped just as quickly once word got out that around 99 percent of the missiles fired in the attack had been intercepted. Still, fears of escalating violence persist, along with concerns that a mounting conflict could significantly drive up oil prices. After all, Iran exports around 1.5 percent of the world’s oil supply. Of course, the Middle East isn’t the only region engulfed in a conflict with the potential to affect the global economy. Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has already resulted in rising prices for commodities like food and energy. This is not only due to sanctions imposed on Russia by the U.S. and European nations but also a decrease in exports from both Russia and Ukraine. Recently, new sanctions were announced, which will prevent Russian aluminum, nickel, and copper from being sold on LME and CME exchanges. While this isn’t expected to raise global prices on industrial metals in the short term, the longer the invasion drags on, the more economic impact the world is likely to feel. It’s just one more reason to hope for a peaceful and swift end to these conflicts.
World leaders aren’t the only ones reeling after Iran’s recent attack on Israel—the economy is feeling the shock too. Oil prices, in particular, spiked directly following the attack, though they dropped just as quickly once word got out that around 99 percent of the missiles fired in the attack had been intercepted. Still, fears of escalating violence persist, along with concerns that a mounting conflict could significantly drive up oil prices. After all, Iran exports around 1.5 percent of the world’s oil supply. Of course, the Middle East isn’t the only region engulfed in a conflict with the potential to affect the global economy. Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has already resulted in rising prices for commodities like food and energy. This is not only due to sanctions imposed on Russia by the U.S. and European nations but also a decrease in exports from both Russia and Ukraine. Recently, new sanctions were announced, which will prevent Russian aluminum, nickel, and copper from being sold on LME and CME exchanges. While this isn’t expected to raise global prices on industrial metals in the short term, the longer the invasion drags on, the more economic impact the world is likely to feel. It’s just one more reason to hope for a peaceful and swift end to these conflicts.
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FREESTEM Daily Curio #2857Free1 CQ
The robot uprising is coming, and their first targets are those dastardly feathered fiends—geese. Way up north, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities have brought on a robot they’ve named Aurora to keep airports clear of geese and other wildlife that can interfere with airplanes. Geese might not seem particularly menacing, but a single goose can bring down a plane if its body gets sucked into a jet engine—and the geese don’t exactly leave such encounters in fighting shape. Airports around the world are vigilant about keeping birds and other wildlife away from runways, with many employing other animals to keep tarmacs critter-free. Some places use falconers to chase away birds, while others turn to herding dogs for help. Some geese-infested locales have resorted to culling local populations, but officials in Anchorage, Alaska, have brought on Aurora, a four-legged robot made by Boston Dynamics. One of the company’s commercial offerings, Aurora is an iteration of their “Spot” models, though she has a bit of customization. To better frighten away animals, she is covered in interchangeable panels that mimic the look of coyote or fox fur. At about the size of a Labrador retriever, she can tread through deep snow, an ability that’s mandatory in snowy Anchorage. At $70,000, Aurora may seem like overkill, but some would argue that’s a bargain compared to the alternative. In 2023 alone, Alaska had 92 animal strikes (incidents where a plane hits wildlife), and aircraft are costly to repair. Not to mention that any one of those cases could have ended in tragedy. While most animal or bird strikes only result in superficial damage to the aircraft, more serious disasters can and do happen. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III’s famed emergency landing over the Hudson River in 2009 was actually caused by a flock of Canada geese. Birds of a feather, indeed.
[Image description: Two Canada geese in a grassy field with trees in the background.] Credit & copyright: Brett Sayles, PexelsThe robot uprising is coming, and their first targets are those dastardly feathered fiends—geese. Way up north, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities have brought on a robot they’ve named Aurora to keep airports clear of geese and other wildlife that can interfere with airplanes. Geese might not seem particularly menacing, but a single goose can bring down a plane if its body gets sucked into a jet engine—and the geese don’t exactly leave such encounters in fighting shape. Airports around the world are vigilant about keeping birds and other wildlife away from runways, with many employing other animals to keep tarmacs critter-free. Some places use falconers to chase away birds, while others turn to herding dogs for help. Some geese-infested locales have resorted to culling local populations, but officials in Anchorage, Alaska, have brought on Aurora, a four-legged robot made by Boston Dynamics. One of the company’s commercial offerings, Aurora is an iteration of their “Spot” models, though she has a bit of customization. To better frighten away animals, she is covered in interchangeable panels that mimic the look of coyote or fox fur. At about the size of a Labrador retriever, she can tread through deep snow, an ability that’s mandatory in snowy Anchorage. At $70,000, Aurora may seem like overkill, but some would argue that’s a bargain compared to the alternative. In 2023 alone, Alaska had 92 animal strikes (incidents where a plane hits wildlife), and aircraft are costly to repair. Not to mention that any one of those cases could have ended in tragedy. While most animal or bird strikes only result in superficial damage to the aircraft, more serious disasters can and do happen. Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III’s famed emergency landing over the Hudson River in 2009 was actually caused by a flock of Canada geese. Birds of a feather, indeed.
[Image description: Two Canada geese in a grassy field with trees in the background.] Credit & copyright: Brett Sayles, Pexels
April 16, 2024
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7 minFREEWork Business CurioFree4 CQ
From the BBC World Service: Economic growth in China, the world’s second biggest economy, beat expectations in the first quarter. Official data shows it’s be...
From the BBC World Service: Economic growth in China, the world’s second biggest economy, beat expectations in the first quarter. Official data shows it’s be...
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FREEMusic Appreciation Song CurioFree2 CQ
There was a whole lot of rock in this orchestra. On this day in 1972, legendary British rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) made their debut at a small London pub. Within a few short years the band, which specialized in classically-inspired rock music, was churning out hits, including their best-remembered song, 1977’s Mr. Blue Sky. It features a bouncy tune and very literal lyrics (it’s about the joy of seeing a blue sky after a period of bad weather) yet the layers of electronic instrumentation and intricate harmonies (which may well remind listeners of The Beatles) lend it a maturity that made it instantly popular. In a 2014 interview with Hi-Fi News & Record Review, songwriter Jeff Lynne said, “All the bits that come in and out, the backing vocals, the cellos sliding, all the little naughty bits, the sound effects, everything is exactly what I imagined ELO to be.” The song has been featured in commercials, as a T.V. show theme song, and is even played at the beginning of every soccer match featuring the Birmingham City Football Club. It seems that everyone everywhere can agree that nice weather is worth singing about.
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There was a whole lot of rock in this orchestra. On this day in 1972, legendary British rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) made their debut at a small London pub. Within a few short years the band, which specialized in classically-inspired rock music, was churning out hits, including their best-remembered song, 1977’s Mr. Blue Sky. It features a bouncy tune and very literal lyrics (it’s about the joy of seeing a blue sky after a period of bad weather) yet the layers of electronic instrumentation and intricate harmonies (which may well remind listeners of The Beatles) lend it a maturity that made it instantly popular. In a 2014 interview with Hi-Fi News & Record Review, songwriter Jeff Lynne said, “All the bits that come in and out, the backing vocals, the cellos sliding, all the little naughty bits, the sound effects, everything is exactly what I imagined ELO to be.” The song has been featured in commercials, as a T.V. show theme song, and is even played at the beginning of every soccer match featuring the Birmingham City Football Club. It seems that everyone everywhere can agree that nice weather is worth singing about.
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FREEEngineering Daily Curio #2856Free1 CQ
Waste not, want not, stay hot. In Finland, where winters are long and cold, an energy supplier is working on an underground thermal energy storage system that would run partially on waste heat. While the Finnish love their saunas, it takes more than a little steam to keep warm through the country’s brutal winters. In Vantaa, Finland, residents rely on Vantaan Energia to heat their homes through the frigid months, and soon they’ll be using heat generated from waste, then stored underground. The facility that will make this possible is called Varanto, and it will measure a whopping 38.85 million cubic feet and boast a total thermal capacity of 90 gigawatt hours (gWh). That’s enough energy to heat a medium-sized Finnish city all winter. Once completed in 2028, it will be the world’s largest seasonal heat storage system.
The advantage of systems like Varanto is that they’re resilient against fluctuations in demand since they store energy ahead of time. As Vantaan CEO Jukka Toivonen said in a statement, “The biggest challenge of the energy transition so far has been the inability to store these intermittent forms of energy for later use. Unfortunately, small-scale storage solutions, such as batteries or accumulators, are not sufficient; large, industrial-scale storage solutions are needed." In this case, thermal energy will be stored in three caverns located 330 feet under the surface in the bedrock. Each cavern will be 984 feet in length, 131 feet in height and 66 feet in width and will be filled with water. Throughout the summer, the water will be heated by waste heat from industrial sources and with renewable energy like wind or solar when there’s a surplus. Insulated and under pressure due to the weight of the ground above, the water will stay liquid while reaching a temperature of 284 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, during the winter, the water will be piped to individual homes and businesses to keep them warm. Imagine feeling the heat of the summer sun in the middle of a blizzard.
[Image description: Description ] Credit & copyright: StAnselm, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.Waste not, want not, stay hot. In Finland, where winters are long and cold, an energy supplier is working on an underground thermal energy storage system that would run partially on waste heat. While the Finnish love their saunas, it takes more than a little steam to keep warm through the country’s brutal winters. In Vantaa, Finland, residents rely on Vantaan Energia to heat their homes through the frigid months, and soon they’ll be using heat generated from waste, then stored underground. The facility that will make this possible is called Varanto, and it will measure a whopping 38.85 million cubic feet and boast a total thermal capacity of 90 gigawatt hours (gWh). That’s enough energy to heat a medium-sized Finnish city all winter. Once completed in 2028, it will be the world’s largest seasonal heat storage system.
The advantage of systems like Varanto is that they’re resilient against fluctuations in demand since they store energy ahead of time. As Vantaan CEO Jukka Toivonen said in a statement, “The biggest challenge of the energy transition so far has been the inability to store these intermittent forms of energy for later use. Unfortunately, small-scale storage solutions, such as batteries or accumulators, are not sufficient; large, industrial-scale storage solutions are needed." In this case, thermal energy will be stored in three caverns located 330 feet under the surface in the bedrock. Each cavern will be 984 feet in length, 131 feet in height and 66 feet in width and will be filled with water. Throughout the summer, the water will be heated by waste heat from industrial sources and with renewable energy like wind or solar when there’s a surplus. Insulated and under pressure due to the weight of the ground above, the water will stay liquid while reaching a temperature of 284 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, during the winter, the water will be piped to individual homes and businesses to keep them warm. Imagine feeling the heat of the summer sun in the middle of a blizzard.
[Image description: Description ] Credit & copyright: StAnselm, Wikimedia Commons. The copyright holder of this work has released it into the public domain. This applies worldwide.