Curio Cabinet
- By Date
- By Type
May 14, 2024
-
FREEMusic Song CurioFree2 CQ
It was written on the recommendation of a movie star and named for one of the world’s most iconic rock songs—that’s a lot for one musical! On this day in 2002, We Will Rock You, a musical based on the songs of legendary rock band Queen, opened at London’s Dominion Theatre. Its 12-year run made it the Dominion's longest-running musical. Perhaps more impressive is the way the musical got started. It’s title is obviously based on Queen’s 1977 rock anthem We Will Rock You, a bare-bones yet pulse-pounding song featuring Freddie Mercury’s signature yowling vocals atop rhythmic claps and stomps. As for the musical’s inspiration, it came from a meeting between Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor and actor Robert De Niro, whose daughter was a Queen fan. De Niro asked if the band had ever considered making a musical based on their songs. Afterward, May and Taylor teamed up with playwright Ben Elton to craft a story set 300 years in the future, in which counterculture youths fight to overthrow the corporate overlords that control their society. It seems like just the sort of romantic sci-fi story that Mercury himself would have loved.
It was written on the recommendation of a movie star and named for one of the world’s most iconic rock songs—that’s a lot for one musical! On this day in 2002, We Will Rock You, a musical based on the songs of legendary rock band Queen, opened at London’s Dominion Theatre. Its 12-year run made it the Dominion's longest-running musical. Perhaps more impressive is the way the musical got started. It’s title is obviously based on Queen’s 1977 rock anthem We Will Rock You, a bare-bones yet pulse-pounding song featuring Freddie Mercury’s signature yowling vocals atop rhythmic claps and stomps. As for the musical’s inspiration, it came from a meeting between Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor and actor Robert De Niro, whose daughter was a Queen fan. De Niro asked if the band had ever considered making a musical based on their songs. Afterward, May and Taylor teamed up with playwright Ben Elton to craft a story set 300 years in the future, in which counterculture youths fight to overthrow the corporate overlords that control their society. It seems like just the sort of romantic sci-fi story that Mercury himself would have loved.
-
FREEBiology Daily Curio #2872Free1 CQ
The story of Earth isn’t one of life or death, but life and death. Perhaps nothing encapsulates that idea as well as the recent discovery that deadly cosmic radiation was once responsible for giving complex life an evolutionary boost. Life on Earth is partly possible due to the planet’s magnetic field, which prevents dangerous levels of cosmic radiation from entering the atmosphere. But around 590 million years ago, the magnetic field almost collapsed, allowing radiation to pour in and reach the surface of the planet. This weakening of the magnetic field lasted around 26 million years, and the field was one thirtieth the strength it is today. For decades, scientists believed that this should have been catastrophic to early organisms on Earth, and perhaps it was, because biodiversity was in decline during this time. Oddly enough, though, the weakening of the field also coincides with the Ediacaran period, which is defined by a massive leap in the diversity of multicellular life.
It may seem paradoxical, but it’s actually not. According to recent findings by Earth scientists at the University of Rochester, the weak magnetic field led to a boost in the amount of oxygen in the seas and atmosphere by allowing solar winds to knock hydrogen ions loose. With less hydrogen to bond to, more oxygen remained free to be used by increasingly complex, energy-hungry, multicellular organisms. In this oxygen rich environment, a wide variety of multicellular organisms appeared and disappeared in a sort of early evolutionary arms race. For much of the Ediacaran period, biodiversity continued to decline as many evolutionary lines died off, but the survivors of this period came to dominate the Cambrian period, which saw an explosion of diversity. The Cambrian explosion also saw the first insects and early animals, complex lifeforms with high metabolic requirements that could not have been met without the oxygen created in the preceding period. Life really has its ups and downs.
[Image description: A fossil from the Ediacaran, the first of three periods that made up Earth’s Neoproterozoic Era.] Credit & copyright: Smthsonian, Tribrachidium heraldicum Glaessner & Daily, 1959. CC0, Public Domain.The story of Earth isn’t one of life or death, but life and death. Perhaps nothing encapsulates that idea as well as the recent discovery that deadly cosmic radiation was once responsible for giving complex life an evolutionary boost. Life on Earth is partly possible due to the planet’s magnetic field, which prevents dangerous levels of cosmic radiation from entering the atmosphere. But around 590 million years ago, the magnetic field almost collapsed, allowing radiation to pour in and reach the surface of the planet. This weakening of the magnetic field lasted around 26 million years, and the field was one thirtieth the strength it is today. For decades, scientists believed that this should have been catastrophic to early organisms on Earth, and perhaps it was, because biodiversity was in decline during this time. Oddly enough, though, the weakening of the field also coincides with the Ediacaran period, which is defined by a massive leap in the diversity of multicellular life.
It may seem paradoxical, but it’s actually not. According to recent findings by Earth scientists at the University of Rochester, the weak magnetic field led to a boost in the amount of oxygen in the seas and atmosphere by allowing solar winds to knock hydrogen ions loose. With less hydrogen to bond to, more oxygen remained free to be used by increasingly complex, energy-hungry, multicellular organisms. In this oxygen rich environment, a wide variety of multicellular organisms appeared and disappeared in a sort of early evolutionary arms race. For much of the Ediacaran period, biodiversity continued to decline as many evolutionary lines died off, but the survivors of this period came to dominate the Cambrian period, which saw an explosion of diversity. The Cambrian explosion also saw the first insects and early animals, complex lifeforms with high metabolic requirements that could not have been met without the oxygen created in the preceding period. Life really has its ups and downs.
[Image description: A fossil from the Ediacaran, the first of three periods that made up Earth’s Neoproterozoic Era.] Credit & copyright: Smthsonian, Tribrachidium heraldicum Glaessner & Daily, 1959. CC0, Public Domain.
May 13, 2024
-
FREEArt Appreciation Art CurioFree1 CQ
This sure beats an ID card on a lanyard. During the Ming dynasty (14th to 17th century), Chinese officials were given elaborate, woven badges to show their rank. The piece above depicts a white bird flying over water, surrounded by vibrant flowers hanging from tree branches. The image is made of different colored threads in the overall shape of a square. Rank badges such as these were worn on the front and back of military robes. The image denoted a person’s rank through iconography, with birds representing civil officials and terrestrial animals representing military officials. The red circle on the upper left is the sun, which represents the emperor, and shows the official’s allegiance to him. More than a form of identification, these were also intricate works of textile art. This type of tapestry is called kesi, and dates back to the Tang dynasty (7th to 10th century). Kesi combined silk and metal threads to create detailed images, and some kesi even had different images on both sides. Now those are some sharp threads!
Rank Badge (buzi), 1736–95, Silk, satin weave; silk, gold metal thread, and peacock feather embroidery, 12.25 x 12.25 in., The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright:The Cleveland Museum of Art. Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1948.70. Public Domain, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation.]This sure beats an ID card on a lanyard. During the Ming dynasty (14th to 17th century), Chinese officials were given elaborate, woven badges to show their rank. The piece above depicts a white bird flying over water, surrounded by vibrant flowers hanging from tree branches. The image is made of different colored threads in the overall shape of a square. Rank badges such as these were worn on the front and back of military robes. The image denoted a person’s rank through iconography, with birds representing civil officials and terrestrial animals representing military officials. The red circle on the upper left is the sun, which represents the emperor, and shows the official’s allegiance to him. More than a form of identification, these were also intricate works of textile art. This type of tapestry is called kesi, and dates back to the Tang dynasty (7th to 10th century). Kesi combined silk and metal threads to create detailed images, and some kesi even had different images on both sides. Now those are some sharp threads!
Rank Badge (buzi), 1736–95, Silk, satin weave; silk, gold metal thread, and peacock feather embroidery, 12.25 x 12.25 in., The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
[Image credit & copyright:The Cleveland Museum of Art. Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1948.70. Public Domain, Creative Commons Zero (CC0) designation.] -
FREEBiology Daily Curio #2871Free1 CQ
If you’re reading this, you certainly know your ABCs, but so might some cetaceans. Sperm whales are known for communicating underwater using a series of clicks and popping sounds, and researchers at Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative) have just found that these noises show signs of a complex lexicon that uses an alphabet-like system. Seeing as how they have the biggest brains on the planet, it shouldn’t be any surprise that sperm whales are incredibly smart. Scientists have long wondered, though, whether the complex sounds these animals make could qualify as a type of language. Language itself is defined by its complexity, and a universal trait of language is the way that words can be combined in different ways to convey different meanings. That’s different from, say, a dog knowing what “sit” or “roll over” means. In their case, they merely associate those sounds or the tone with which they are spoken with specific actions, but they can’t understand variations on those commands unless they’ve been trained to recognize them. Sperm whales, on the other hand, seem to be capable of a kind of speech with grammar. Researchers from Project CETI used AI to analyze recordings of communicating sperm whales, and they found patterns in the clicks and pops that seem to be the components of a phonetic alphabet. Specifically, the whales vary the length, tempo, and rhythm of the clicks to form what the researchers are calling “codas.” Codas are the equivalent of human words or sentences. So far, they’ve identified around 156 distinct codas. When the whales converse with each other, they repeat certain codas and modify them with “ornamentation,” a distinct sound at the end of the coda, to change its meaning. Researchers say that whales have likely been speaking for far longer than humans have, and that among whales, it’s not rude to talk all at the same time. Their family reunions must get pretty loud.
[Image description: The gray tail of a sperm whale breaching the ocean’s surface.] Credit & copyright: Marion & Christoph Aistleitner. Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.If you’re reading this, you certainly know your ABCs, but so might some cetaceans. Sperm whales are known for communicating underwater using a series of clicks and popping sounds, and researchers at Project CETI (Cetacean Translation Initiative) have just found that these noises show signs of a complex lexicon that uses an alphabet-like system. Seeing as how they have the biggest brains on the planet, it shouldn’t be any surprise that sperm whales are incredibly smart. Scientists have long wondered, though, whether the complex sounds these animals make could qualify as a type of language. Language itself is defined by its complexity, and a universal trait of language is the way that words can be combined in different ways to convey different meanings. That’s different from, say, a dog knowing what “sit” or “roll over” means. In their case, they merely associate those sounds or the tone with which they are spoken with specific actions, but they can’t understand variations on those commands unless they’ve been trained to recognize them. Sperm whales, on the other hand, seem to be capable of a kind of speech with grammar. Researchers from Project CETI used AI to analyze recordings of communicating sperm whales, and they found patterns in the clicks and pops that seem to be the components of a phonetic alphabet. Specifically, the whales vary the length, tempo, and rhythm of the clicks to form what the researchers are calling “codas.” Codas are the equivalent of human words or sentences. So far, they’ve identified around 156 distinct codas. When the whales converse with each other, they repeat certain codas and modify them with “ornamentation,” a distinct sound at the end of the coda, to change its meaning. Researchers say that whales have likely been speaking for far longer than humans have, and that among whales, it’s not rude to talk all at the same time. Their family reunions must get pretty loud.
[Image description: The gray tail of a sperm whale breaching the ocean’s surface.] Credit & copyright: Marion & Christoph Aistleitner. Wikimedia Commons. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.
May 12, 2024
-
FREEWorld History PP&T CurioFree1 CQ
It’s one of the most tragic tales in all of history; a massive loss of knowledge that set humanity back by decades…right? Maybe not. The burning of the Library of Alexandria is certainly a dramatic tale, but in recent years many scholars have begun to question its validity. Not only do most accounts of the library’s burning come from many years after the supposed event itself, no one can even agree on who did the actual burning.
The Library of Alexandria, built some time around 331 B.C.E. in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the most massive and comprehensive libraries of its day. Part of a research institution called the Mouseion (which later came to include another, smaller library) the Library of Alexandria was likely the brainchild of Ptolemy I Soter, pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt, who began collecting papyrus scrolls for it long before a building was created to house them. His son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, is more likely to have overseen the actual construction of the library itself during his own, subsequent reign. It was an ambitious project. The idea was for a true, universal library—where all knowledge from around the world could be stored. To that end, Ptolemy II Philadelphus collected scrolls from wherever and whoever he could (scrolls, not bound books, were the way that written works were distributed, at the time.) The pharaoh might have been considered a hoarder of knowledge if not for one important detail —he made high-quality copies of almost every scroll he received and gave them back to the people who had provided the originals—usually historians or other scholars. After all, it would have caused bad blood and alienated Philadelphus from the scholarly world if he had simply taken these works for himself, without permission…and permission usually hinged on a copy being provided. This means that, though the Library of Alexandria housed an impressive collection of knowledge that made Alexandria itself famous as a city of learning, much of that knowledge also still existed outside of the library’s walls.
That’s lucky, since the library did eventually come to ruin. How, exactly, that happened is still a source of debate, despite the longstanding myth that the library was purposefully burned in a single day. At the height of its popularity, the library housed somewhere between 40,000 to 400,000 scrolls, but that popularity eventually waned. In 145 B.C.E., Ptolemy VIII Physcon, who had very different ideas about knowledge than his predecessors. His reign was a violent one, and included several massacres which saw many Alexandrian intellectuals killed or exiled. Scholars had been the lifeblood of Alexandria’s library, and without them it fell into decline. Then, there was a fire. The two most common stories about the library’s burning implicate either Julius Caesar or Caliph Umar, who led the Arab conquest of Alexandria in 642 C.E. The second story is easily dismissed, since other sources point to the library already being gone by the time of that particular invasion. As for Caesar, he may have burnt the library…but it was probably an accident. According to the ancient Greek philosopher and historian Plutarch, in 48 B.C.E., during Caesar’s civil war, Caesar set fire to a fleet of Egyptian ships in Alexandria’s harbor. Due to windy weather, the flames spread to the library, which burned with all the scrolls inside. However, many historians now believe that the library survived this accidental burning, and may have even been rebuilt afterward, since there are records of other historical figures visiting the library after Caesar’s war was over.
Ultimately, the library likely died due to a problem that still plagues libraries today: a lack of funding. During the Roman period, those in power simply stopped prioritizing the library’s upkeep, and it fell into disrepair. The Palmyrene Invasion of 270 C.E. likely destroyed the rest of the already-unkempt structure. Still, it’s unlikely that the loss of the library set humanity’s overall progress back, despite stories to the contrary. After all, much of the knowledge inside had already been copied. Then, as now, it pays to back up your work!
[Image description: A black-and-white illustration depicting the burning of the Library of Alexandria with a crowd of people rushing toward the flames.] Credit & copyright:
Ambrose Dudley (1867–1951), The Burning of the Library at Alexandria in 391 AD. Bridgeman Art Library: Object 357910, Wikimedia Commons. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1929.It’s one of the most tragic tales in all of history; a massive loss of knowledge that set humanity back by decades…right? Maybe not. The burning of the Library of Alexandria is certainly a dramatic tale, but in recent years many scholars have begun to question its validity. Not only do most accounts of the library’s burning come from many years after the supposed event itself, no one can even agree on who did the actual burning.
The Library of Alexandria, built some time around 331 B.C.E. in Alexandria, Egypt, was one of the most massive and comprehensive libraries of its day. Part of a research institution called the Mouseion (which later came to include another, smaller library) the Library of Alexandria was likely the brainchild of Ptolemy I Soter, pharaoh of Ptolemaic Egypt, who began collecting papyrus scrolls for it long before a building was created to house them. His son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, is more likely to have overseen the actual construction of the library itself during his own, subsequent reign. It was an ambitious project. The idea was for a true, universal library—where all knowledge from around the world could be stored. To that end, Ptolemy II Philadelphus collected scrolls from wherever and whoever he could (scrolls, not bound books, were the way that written works were distributed, at the time.) The pharaoh might have been considered a hoarder of knowledge if not for one important detail —he made high-quality copies of almost every scroll he received and gave them back to the people who had provided the originals—usually historians or other scholars. After all, it would have caused bad blood and alienated Philadelphus from the scholarly world if he had simply taken these works for himself, without permission…and permission usually hinged on a copy being provided. This means that, though the Library of Alexandria housed an impressive collection of knowledge that made Alexandria itself famous as a city of learning, much of that knowledge also still existed outside of the library’s walls.
That’s lucky, since the library did eventually come to ruin. How, exactly, that happened is still a source of debate, despite the longstanding myth that the library was purposefully burned in a single day. At the height of its popularity, the library housed somewhere between 40,000 to 400,000 scrolls, but that popularity eventually waned. In 145 B.C.E., Ptolemy VIII Physcon, who had very different ideas about knowledge than his predecessors. His reign was a violent one, and included several massacres which saw many Alexandrian intellectuals killed or exiled. Scholars had been the lifeblood of Alexandria’s library, and without them it fell into decline. Then, there was a fire. The two most common stories about the library’s burning implicate either Julius Caesar or Caliph Umar, who led the Arab conquest of Alexandria in 642 C.E. The second story is easily dismissed, since other sources point to the library already being gone by the time of that particular invasion. As for Caesar, he may have burnt the library…but it was probably an accident. According to the ancient Greek philosopher and historian Plutarch, in 48 B.C.E., during Caesar’s civil war, Caesar set fire to a fleet of Egyptian ships in Alexandria’s harbor. Due to windy weather, the flames spread to the library, which burned with all the scrolls inside. However, many historians now believe that the library survived this accidental burning, and may have even been rebuilt afterward, since there are records of other historical figures visiting the library after Caesar’s war was over.
Ultimately, the library likely died due to a problem that still plagues libraries today: a lack of funding. During the Roman period, those in power simply stopped prioritizing the library’s upkeep, and it fell into disrepair. The Palmyrene Invasion of 270 C.E. likely destroyed the rest of the already-unkempt structure. Still, it’s unlikely that the loss of the library set humanity’s overall progress back, despite stories to the contrary. After all, much of the knowledge inside had already been copied. Then, as now, it pays to back up your work!
[Image description: A black-and-white illustration depicting the burning of the Library of Alexandria with a crowd of people rushing toward the flames.] Credit & copyright:
Ambrose Dudley (1867–1951), The Burning of the Library at Alexandria in 391 AD. Bridgeman Art Library: Object 357910, Wikimedia Commons. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1929.
May 11, 2024
-
FREECars + Motorcycles Sporty CurioFree1 CQ
Oh, the suspen…sion! The Indianapolis 500 is coming up soon to kick off this year’s season of IndyCar, but what should have been a strong start for one of the most high-profile drivers and his teammates has been stalled due to a cheating scandal. Back on March 10, Indy500’s reigning champ, Josef Newgarden, finished first with his teammates Scott McLaughlin and Will Power finishing third and fourth, respectively. However, IndyCar officials disqualified Newgarden and McLaughlin, and docked Power 10 points for using illegal software to manipulate the push-to-pass system. Also called P2P, the software is installed on all IndyCars and regulates the engine’s horsepower output. P2P made its debut in the 2009 season, and drivers are alloted up to 200 seconds of its use per race, gaining an additional 60 horsepower for 20 seconds at a time. Officials disable P2P on starts and restarts, but the three drivers for Team Penske were found to have bypassed this limit. Team Penske’s owner Roger Penske also suspended the team’s president Tim Cindric and three others: managing director Ron Ruzewski, Newgarden engineer Luke Mason and senior data engineer Robbie Atkinson. The suspended team members, led by Cindric, are accepting responsibility for the penalties, while drivers claim that they were misinformed about the rules regarding P2P. Nevertheless, the three drivers have also been fined $25,000 each and will forfeit their prize money from the race. With Newgarden’s disqualification, Pato O’Ward of McLaren Racing has now been awarded first place after originally finishing second. Now he’s second to none.
Oh, the suspen…sion! The Indianapolis 500 is coming up soon to kick off this year’s season of IndyCar, but what should have been a strong start for one of the most high-profile drivers and his teammates has been stalled due to a cheating scandal. Back on March 10, Indy500’s reigning champ, Josef Newgarden, finished first with his teammates Scott McLaughlin and Will Power finishing third and fourth, respectively. However, IndyCar officials disqualified Newgarden and McLaughlin, and docked Power 10 points for using illegal software to manipulate the push-to-pass system. Also called P2P, the software is installed on all IndyCars and regulates the engine’s horsepower output. P2P made its debut in the 2009 season, and drivers are alloted up to 200 seconds of its use per race, gaining an additional 60 horsepower for 20 seconds at a time. Officials disable P2P on starts and restarts, but the three drivers for Team Penske were found to have bypassed this limit. Team Penske’s owner Roger Penske also suspended the team’s president Tim Cindric and three others: managing director Ron Ruzewski, Newgarden engineer Luke Mason and senior data engineer Robbie Atkinson. The suspended team members, led by Cindric, are accepting responsibility for the penalties, while drivers claim that they were misinformed about the rules regarding P2P. Nevertheless, the three drivers have also been fined $25,000 each and will forfeit their prize money from the race. With Newgarden’s disqualification, Pato O’Ward of McLaren Racing has now been awarded first place after originally finishing second. Now he’s second to none.
May 10, 2024
-
FREEMind + Body Daily CurioFree1 CQ
Pucker up for some pie! As warm weather approaches, it’s only fitting to examine the history of what may be the world’s most refreshing pie: Key lime pie. While most pies, including most fruit pies, lean heavily into their sweetness, Key lime pie relies on a heavy dash of tartness to make it stand out from the dessert crowd. Despite a common myth, the “Key” in Key lime pie doesn’t actually refer to the Florida Keys. In fact, the pie’s origins might not lie in the Sunshine State…at least, not entirely.
Key lime pie’s famous, smooth, yellowish filling is made from a combination of egg yolks, sugar, condensed milk, and, of course, lime juice. The juice comes from Key limes which, though often grown in Florida today, were first cultivated in Southeast Asia. Key lime pies usually have a crumbly, graham cracker crust with a topping of either whipped cream or meringue and a lime slice or grated lime zest as a garnish. It’s sometimes served with no topping at all, though, making it quite the versatile dessert.
While legend points to Florida as the home of Key lime pie (and some Floridians even consider it the state dessert) it would be more accurate to say that the pie was invented in New York (besides, Florida already has an official state dessert: the strawberry shortcake.) Most food historians agree that today’s Key lime pie was based on a recipe for a lemon pie first published in a 1931 advertising brochure. The company that published the brochure, Borden, was based out of New York. To be fair, though, the next mention of a dessert similar to Key lime pie does come from a 1933 recipe in a Miami, Florida, newspaper—and that recipe actually used limes rather than lemons, so score one for the Sunshine State.
The truth is, regardless of where it came from, Key lime pie is one of the most unique American pies ever created. Whether you prefer it topped with meringue, garnished with lime zest, or with fresh lime juice squeezed over top, it’s sour, sweet, and scrumptious. Just mind all the crumbs from the graham cracker crust.
[Image description: A slice of key lime pie on brown paper.] Credit & copyright: Christina Nicole, PexelsPucker up for some pie! As warm weather approaches, it’s only fitting to examine the history of what may be the world’s most refreshing pie: Key lime pie. While most pies, including most fruit pies, lean heavily into their sweetness, Key lime pie relies on a heavy dash of tartness to make it stand out from the dessert crowd. Despite a common myth, the “Key” in Key lime pie doesn’t actually refer to the Florida Keys. In fact, the pie’s origins might not lie in the Sunshine State…at least, not entirely.
Key lime pie’s famous, smooth, yellowish filling is made from a combination of egg yolks, sugar, condensed milk, and, of course, lime juice. The juice comes from Key limes which, though often grown in Florida today, were first cultivated in Southeast Asia. Key lime pies usually have a crumbly, graham cracker crust with a topping of either whipped cream or meringue and a lime slice or grated lime zest as a garnish. It’s sometimes served with no topping at all, though, making it quite the versatile dessert.
While legend points to Florida as the home of Key lime pie (and some Floridians even consider it the state dessert) it would be more accurate to say that the pie was invented in New York (besides, Florida already has an official state dessert: the strawberry shortcake.) Most food historians agree that today’s Key lime pie was based on a recipe for a lemon pie first published in a 1931 advertising brochure. The company that published the brochure, Borden, was based out of New York. To be fair, though, the next mention of a dessert similar to Key lime pie does come from a 1933 recipe in a Miami, Florida, newspaper—and that recipe actually used limes rather than lemons, so score one for the Sunshine State.
The truth is, regardless of where it came from, Key lime pie is one of the most unique American pies ever created. Whether you prefer it topped with meringue, garnished with lime zest, or with fresh lime juice squeezed over top, it’s sour, sweet, and scrumptious. Just mind all the crumbs from the graham cracker crust.
[Image description: A slice of key lime pie on brown paper.] Credit & copyright: Christina Nicole, Pexels
May 9, 2024
-
FREEPhysics Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
Time to shed a little light on a new discovery. Scientists at MIT have found that light alone (that is, without heat) can cause water to evaporate, according to a paper published in PNAS. While a watched pot supposedly never boils, the fact is that as long as enough heat is applied to water, it will eventually turn it into vapor. Heat excites the water molecules, causing them to separate from each other. Now, we know that light can do the same thing in a phenomenon called the photomolecular effect. The discovery was partially made by accident, when researchers noticed that hydrogel was losing its water molecules at a faster rate than anticipated when accounting for thermal energy, seemingly violating the law of conservation of energy. Hydrogel is a material that resembles gelatin and contains water molecules held in a lattice of thin membranes that form a matrix. Researchers found that when light hits the material, it causes the water on its surface to evaporate—notably, the rate of evaporation can be several times faster than with thermal energy. In their experiments, the scientists exposed water-laden hydrogel to various wavelengths of light—which is independent of thermal energy—and found that green light was most efficient at evaporation. The researchers hope that their discovery can lead to innovations in solar desalination and possibly lead to solar-based evaporative cooling. It’s a green light to the future.
[Image description: Water droplets on a green leaf.] Credit & copyright: Min An, Pexels
Time to shed a little light on a new discovery. Scientists at MIT have found that light alone (that is, without heat) can cause water to evaporate, according to a paper published in PNAS. While a watched pot supposedly never boils, the fact is that as long as enough heat is applied to water, it will eventually turn it into vapor. Heat excites the water molecules, causing them to separate from each other. Now, we know that light can do the same thing in a phenomenon called the photomolecular effect. The discovery was partially made by accident, when researchers noticed that hydrogel was losing its water molecules at a faster rate than anticipated when accounting for thermal energy, seemingly violating the law of conservation of energy. Hydrogel is a material that resembles gelatin and contains water molecules held in a lattice of thin membranes that form a matrix. Researchers found that when light hits the material, it causes the water on its surface to evaporate—notably, the rate of evaporation can be several times faster than with thermal energy. In their experiments, the scientists exposed water-laden hydrogel to various wavelengths of light—which is independent of thermal energy—and found that green light was most efficient at evaporation. The researchers hope that their discovery can lead to innovations in solar desalination and possibly lead to solar-based evaporative cooling. It’s a green light to the future.
[Image description: Water droplets on a green leaf.] Credit & copyright: Min An, Pexels
-
FREEWorld History Daily Curio #2870Free1 CQ
Who would have thought that Camelot was in Spain all along? Archaeologists have been studying a 1,000-year-old sword found in Valencia, an ancient weapon that seems to bear striking similarities to the “Sword in the Stone” of Arthurian legend. Originally discovered in 1994 under Chabàs Street, archaeologists were unable to identify, at the time, what culture the sword belonged to. Valencia has been occupied by a variety of different groups throughout its long history, and there wasn’t enough left of the sword to clearly indicate its provenance. What they did know was that the sword had bronze components and that the blade was made of iron and curved slightly.
These details couldn’t be linked to any culture in particular, but there was something unusual about this sword—it was embedded in the ground in an upright position when it was discovered, earning it the nickname “Excalibur.” Excalibur, of course, is the sword wielded by King Arthur of legend. In some versions of the legend, Excalibur was a sword that had been stuck in a stone, and a prophecy stated that whoever pulled it from its resting place would be crowned king of England. When a young Arthur lifted the sword from the stone, he was declared the new king. But in other versions of the story, the sword in the stone and Excalibur are not one and the same. While the former grants him the crown, King Arthur doesn’t acquire Excalibur until much later, when it’s given to him by the Lady of the Lake. The sword in Valencia, however, was likely never wielded by an Englishman at all. Instead, recent analysis shows that the sword likely belonged to an ancient Muslim warrior. Spain was once a part of Roman territory, but between 500 and 1000 C.E., control over the Iberian peninsula passed between the Byzantine, Visigoth, and Arab forces. By 1000 C.E., control of the peninsula was secured by an Arab caliphate, who called the region Al-Andalus. Centuries later, control of the peninsula returned to Iberian Christians who expelled the Muslim population. With so many people passing through, the area’s like a lost and found of bygone civilizations.Who would have thought that Camelot was in Spain all along? Archaeologists have been studying a 1,000-year-old sword found in Valencia, an ancient weapon that seems to bear striking similarities to the “Sword in the Stone” of Arthurian legend. Originally discovered in 1994 under Chabàs Street, archaeologists were unable to identify, at the time, what culture the sword belonged to. Valencia has been occupied by a variety of different groups throughout its long history, and there wasn’t enough left of the sword to clearly indicate its provenance. What they did know was that the sword had bronze components and that the blade was made of iron and curved slightly.
These details couldn’t be linked to any culture in particular, but there was something unusual about this sword—it was embedded in the ground in an upright position when it was discovered, earning it the nickname “Excalibur.” Excalibur, of course, is the sword wielded by King Arthur of legend. In some versions of the legend, Excalibur was a sword that had been stuck in a stone, and a prophecy stated that whoever pulled it from its resting place would be crowned king of England. When a young Arthur lifted the sword from the stone, he was declared the new king. But in other versions of the story, the sword in the stone and Excalibur are not one and the same. While the former grants him the crown, King Arthur doesn’t acquire Excalibur until much later, when it’s given to him by the Lady of the Lake. The sword in Valencia, however, was likely never wielded by an Englishman at all. Instead, recent analysis shows that the sword likely belonged to an ancient Muslim warrior. Spain was once a part of Roman territory, but between 500 and 1000 C.E., control over the Iberian peninsula passed between the Byzantine, Visigoth, and Arab forces. By 1000 C.E., control of the peninsula was secured by an Arab caliphate, who called the region Al-Andalus. Centuries later, control of the peninsula returned to Iberian Christians who expelled the Muslim population. With so many people passing through, the area’s like a lost and found of bygone civilizations.
May 8, 2024
-
FREEFinance Nerdy CurioFree1 CQ
It’s one of the biggest companies in the world, and it’s headed by none other than famed businessman Warren Buffett, but what does it actually do? Berkshire Hathaway is a massive, American-based, multinational conglomerate, meaning that it owns controlling stakes in many smaller companies. Yet, it had humble beginnings—at least compared to what it is today. The company that would become Berkshire Hathaway was founded in 1839 by American businessman Oliver Chace. It was a textile manufacturing company in Valley Falls, Rhode Island, appropriately called the Valley Falls Company. In 1929, the company underwent the first of many, many mergers when it combined with the Berkshire Cotton Manufacturing company to become Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates. The company gained the “Hathaway” portion of its eventual name in 1955, when it merged with another textiles business, the Hathaway Manufacturing Company. Warren Buffett came onto the scene in 1962, when he began buying stock in Berkshire Hathaway. Eventually, he came to control the entire company, but there was just one problem—the U.S. textiles industry was puttering out. Soon, with Buffett at the helm, Berkshire Hathaway began buying up other companies unrelated to the textiles industry, the first of which was National Indemnity Company. By 1985, Berkshire Hathaway had ceased its textiles operations altogether. Today, Berkshire Hathway owns large stakes in enormous companies like Coca-Cola, as well as entire businesses in the transportation, insurance, and retail industries, among others. So, as for what the company does, the answer really is “a bit of everything!”
[Image description: An illustration of the Berkshire Cotton Manufacturing Company in Adams, Massachusetts, featuring several buildings and two large smokestacks.] Credit & copyright: Mason Machine Works, Taunton, Massachusetts, U.S.A. 1899 catalog, Wikimedia Commons. This image is in the public domain.It’s one of the biggest companies in the world, and it’s headed by none other than famed businessman Warren Buffett, but what does it actually do? Berkshire Hathaway is a massive, American-based, multinational conglomerate, meaning that it owns controlling stakes in many smaller companies. Yet, it had humble beginnings—at least compared to what it is today. The company that would become Berkshire Hathaway was founded in 1839 by American businessman Oliver Chace. It was a textile manufacturing company in Valley Falls, Rhode Island, appropriately called the Valley Falls Company. In 1929, the company underwent the first of many, many mergers when it combined with the Berkshire Cotton Manufacturing company to become Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates. The company gained the “Hathaway” portion of its eventual name in 1955, when it merged with another textiles business, the Hathaway Manufacturing Company. Warren Buffett came onto the scene in 1962, when he began buying stock in Berkshire Hathaway. Eventually, he came to control the entire company, but there was just one problem—the U.S. textiles industry was puttering out. Soon, with Buffett at the helm, Berkshire Hathaway began buying up other companies unrelated to the textiles industry, the first of which was National Indemnity Company. By 1985, Berkshire Hathaway had ceased its textiles operations altogether. Today, Berkshire Hathway owns large stakes in enormous companies like Coca-Cola, as well as entire businesses in the transportation, insurance, and retail industries, among others. So, as for what the company does, the answer really is “a bit of everything!”
[Image description: An illustration of the Berkshire Cotton Manufacturing Company in Adams, Massachusetts, featuring several buildings and two large smokestacks.] Credit & copyright: Mason Machine Works, Taunton, Massachusetts, U.S.A. 1899 catalog, Wikimedia Commons. This image is in the public domain. -
FREEBiology Daily Curio #2869Free1 CQ
It’s not easy finding healthcare in the middle of a jungle, unless you’re an orangutan. Great apes like chimpanzees and orangutans have been known for decades to use tools, but scientists have just observed the first recorded case of an orangutan using plants to treat a wound. Rakus is a male orangutan who lives at the Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia, and like other males of his species, his flanges are his pride and joy. Flanges are the flaps filled with fatty tissue on the sides of male orangutan’s faces. But misfortune struck Rakus when, during a fight with another male, he sustained an injury that left a gaping wound on his cheek. In most animals, even a flesh wound has the potential to be deadly because it can easily become infected, but Rakus had a trick up his hairy sleeve. Researchers at the park noticed that days after receiving the injury, Rakus was chewing on liana leaves. Lianas are a type of vine abundant in the area where Rakus lives, but the leaves are seldom consumed as food. Rakus was first observed chewing some of the leaves in a deliberate fashion, avoiding other plants while picking liana leaves from the vine. Then, he spit the leaves back out and pressed them against his wound. Rakus also took the time to convalesce, keeping physical activity to a minimum while regularly chewing and even swallowing more liana leaves. Upon analysis, researchers found that the leaves contained anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and antiviral compounds as well as antioxidants and cancer-fighting compounds. By eating the leaves, Rakus was essentially taking antibiotics while also applying them topically as a poultice. As to how he learned such medicinal skills, it’s likely that its benefits were discovered by orangutans long ago, and that knowledge of its use spread through the population via social learning, something that apes have shown themselves capable of time and time again in regard to tools and other skills. Orangutan medical school would certainly be a hoot and a holler.
[Image description: An orangutan with its arms crossed, staring downward.] Credit & copyright: Miguel Cuenca, PexelsIt’s not easy finding healthcare in the middle of a jungle, unless you’re an orangutan. Great apes like chimpanzees and orangutans have been known for decades to use tools, but scientists have just observed the first recorded case of an orangutan using plants to treat a wound. Rakus is a male orangutan who lives at the Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia, and like other males of his species, his flanges are his pride and joy. Flanges are the flaps filled with fatty tissue on the sides of male orangutan’s faces. But misfortune struck Rakus when, during a fight with another male, he sustained an injury that left a gaping wound on his cheek. In most animals, even a flesh wound has the potential to be deadly because it can easily become infected, but Rakus had a trick up his hairy sleeve. Researchers at the park noticed that days after receiving the injury, Rakus was chewing on liana leaves. Lianas are a type of vine abundant in the area where Rakus lives, but the leaves are seldom consumed as food. Rakus was first observed chewing some of the leaves in a deliberate fashion, avoiding other plants while picking liana leaves from the vine. Then, he spit the leaves back out and pressed them against his wound. Rakus also took the time to convalesce, keeping physical activity to a minimum while regularly chewing and even swallowing more liana leaves. Upon analysis, researchers found that the leaves contained anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and antiviral compounds as well as antioxidants and cancer-fighting compounds. By eating the leaves, Rakus was essentially taking antibiotics while also applying them topically as a poultice. As to how he learned such medicinal skills, it’s likely that its benefits were discovered by orangutans long ago, and that knowledge of its use spread through the population via social learning, something that apes have shown themselves capable of time and time again in regard to tools and other skills. Orangutan medical school would certainly be a hoot and a holler.
[Image description: An orangutan with its arms crossed, staring downward.] Credit & copyright: Miguel Cuenca, Pexels