November 2020
November 30, 2020
Comforting Hand Pillow
Madeline Robertson was recently granted a patent for a pillow with a foam hand sewn onto it. She explains that the hand (or 'tactile object,' as she refers to it) "provides tactile sensory feedback to the user designed to comfort the user."It reminds me of that robotic hand for people who have no one to hold their hand on walks we recently posted about.
Patent No. 10806281: Substrate having a therapeutic tactile object attached
Posted By: Alex - Mon Nov 30, 2020 -
Comments (0)
Category: Inventions, Patents, Sleep and Dreams
Space Race
This is what the passengers would see on a 1990s amusement park ride dubbed "Space Race." It's intriguing to compare state-of-the-art then to now.Contemporary article on the ride here.
Posted By: Paul - Mon Nov 30, 2020 -
Comments (2)
Category: Fairs, Amusement Parks, and Resorts, Spaceflight, Astronautics, and Astronomy, Special Effects, 1990s
November 29, 2020
Dyr bul shchyl
The Russian artist Alexei Kruchenykh invented the Zaum language in 1913. He described it as "a language which does not have any definite meaning." From what I can gather, it was gibberish sounds strung together.Dyr bul shchyl, also written by Kruchenykh, was the first (but not last) poem written in Zaum.
ubeshshchur
skum
vy so bu
r l ez
You can hear Kruchenykh reading the poem aloud in the first clip. There's a more modern interpretation of it below.
Knowing Russian, or any other language, won't help you understand the poem. But according to Russian language expert Lucas Stratton, "critics have interpreted Dyr bul shchyl as an arrangement of sounds associated with a coming storm."
Posted By: Alex - Sun Nov 29, 2020 -
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Category: Languages, Poetry, 1910s, Cacophony, Dissonance, White Noise and Other Sonic Assaults
The Language of Deseret
I was unaware that Brigham Young created a new alphabet for his followers. "However, the alphabet failed to gain wide acceptance and was not actively promoted after 1869."Here is a page at the official Mormon site that tells of it.
Here is an encyclopedia entry with the full alphabet.
Posted By: Paul - Sun Nov 29, 2020 -
Comments (5)
Category: Eccentrics, Inventions, Languages, Religion, Nineteenth Century
November 28, 2020
Church challenge
1941: Patrick Gunn, 46, left a note in the church collection plate challenging the priest, Monsignor Edmund J. Reilly, to a fight in the street.I found a photo of the Monsignor. He doesn't look like the fighting type.
Wilmington News Journal - Mar 24, 1941
Monsignor Edmund J. Reilly
source: FindAGrave.com
Posted By: Alex - Sat Nov 28, 2020 -
Comments (1)
Category: Religion, Violence, 1940s
Follies of the Madmen #494
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Nov 28, 2020 -
Comments (1)
Category: Business, Advertising, Slavery, Bondage and Indenture, Nineteenth Century
November 27, 2020
Farrah’s Glamour Center
Part of the 'Farrah mania' of the late '70s.In 2011, it became part of the Smithsonian's popular culture history collection.
Posted By: Alex - Fri Nov 27, 2020 -
Comments (0)
Category: Celebrities, Toys, 1970s
John Cage’s “Inlets”
I can almost smell the burning pine cones!
Full explanation and history here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Nov 27, 2020 -
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Category: Music, Avant Garde, 1970s, Cacophony, Dissonance, White Noise and Other Sonic Assaults
November 26, 2020
How to make a turkey ornament out of used pantyhose
The Great Pantyhose Crafts Book (1982) explains how to make all kinds of things out of used pantyhose. For the Thanksgiving table, it offers instructions for a pantyhose turkey ornament.I imagine a pantyhose turkey would add a touch of class to any Thanksgiving gathering.
You can read the entire book for free via archive.org.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Alex - Thu Nov 26, 2020 -
Comments (1)
Category: Crafts, Underwear, Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving 2020!
Posted By: Paul - Thu Nov 26, 2020 -
Comments (0)
Category: Food, History, Holidays, Myths and Fairytales
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