Via Present /&/ Correct, we are directed to the International Organisation for Standardisation’s (ISO, see also) Online Browsing Platform (OBP) that publishes an annual catalogue of pictograms and other deliverables (coordinates, vocabulary, terminology, industry norms) for manufacturers and municipalities to license (most, however, have been made freely available to the public) commercially for a nominal fee. The annex of ISO 7000 is a registry of systematised and universal icons appearing on machine parts, cables and consoles with different subcategories covering building construction, surgical instruments and implants, woodworking, fishmeal and identification documents.
Wednesday 24 April 2024
Sunday 31 December 2023
9x9 (11. 230)
unwound: a cartoon that speaks to the time-dilation of the Winterval—and the year in general
politics or otherwise: year’s end Can’t Let Goes from NPR’s podcast contributors
fast-forward: a century of New Year’s men’s party fashionsaitana lopez: the virtual, machine-generated influencers stealing jobs from humans
cap d’agde: the restoration of the Art Nouveau Chateau Laurens—a palace also known for its connections with Catharism
like a fridge in reverse: a visualisation of the science of heat-pumps—via Nag on the Lake’s Sunday Links
fondue chinoise: a variation on the Swiss holiday tradition inspired by the Asian hot pot
favourite global tech stories from publications not named rest of the world: like Bloomberg’s Jealousy List, staff compiles articles they wish they’d written—via Waxy
cartoon cryptozoology: explore a chaotic archive of the earliest animations
Saturday 19 August 2023
8x8 (10. 951)
egress: the oldest door in Britain, a side-entrance to Westminister Abbey—via Strange Company
hold on to my fur: another collaboration with the Kiffness—this time with a talkative orange cat from China
isokon estate: Lawn Road Flats housed those displaced by WWII and its share of espionage
i want to believe: vintage UFO photos taken by Eduard Albert “Billy” Meier in Switzerland in the mid-70s made iconic when featured on the X-Files up for auction—via Things Magazinemeow-practise: a limited-run series in the tradition of American day-time soap opera classics like General Hospital and All My Children but with a feline twist
countdown: both Russia and India have Moon missions next week with the goal of being the first to reach the lunar south pole—via Super Punch
no dark sarcasm in the classroom: impressively, researchers recreate Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall” by analysing listeners’ brain scans but we wonder—like in the above duet—there isn’t an element of backmasking and suggestion—via Kottke
ingress: the oldest known cat door at Exeter Cathedra
synchroptica
one year ago: the daguerrotype process is gifted to the world (1839)
two years ago: the Ninety-Five Theses as an email, the Treaty of Rawalpindi (1919) plus the Lithuanian sun goddess
three years ago: the launch of Sputnik 2 (1960) plus the album cover art of Milton Glaser
four years ago: more Brexit omnishambles plus the Pan-European Picnic of 1989
five years ago: assorted links to revisit
Sunday 9 July 2023
6x6 (10. 869)
kherson herbarium: botanists risked their lives in war-torn Ukraine to save a unique plant collection—see also
public access: cute stuffed animals jam to vintage records at Otto’s Shrunken Head Tiki Bar & Lounge
mctrains: a look at the fast food giant’s failed venturesfรถhnkrankheit: alpine downdrafts attributed to outbreaks of madness—via Strange Company
msg sphere: a colossal orb covers an events venue in Las Vegas
weedwork: a tour of the first cannabis coworking space in New York City
synchronoptica
one year ago: Tron (1982), the first animated adaptation of The Hobbit, Chroegraphy for Copy Machine (1991), the Charles Bridge of Prague (1357) plus assorted links to revisit
two years ago: past life regression for pets, the presidency of Millard Fillmore plus transiting through Denmark
three years ago: more adventures along the Moselle plus independence for the Republic of Palau (1981)
four years ago: electromagnetic pulse experiments (1961) plus the minimal republics of Rubรฉn Martรญn de Lucas
five years ago: spider ballooning, salterns from above, the Brexit Bulldog resigns plus artist Joshua Reynolds
Tuesday 4 July 2023
contrafactum (10. 855)
Lyrics written by Andover, Massachusetts seminarian Samuel Francis Smith to the melody of the British royal anthem, God Save the King, the above adaptation reworking the tune from a symbol and trapping of monarchy to a statement about American democracy, “My Country, ’Tis of Thee,” was first performed for Independence Day celebrations in 1831 and became one of the two de facto national anthems (along side the patriotic number “Hail Columbia”—the march of the vice-president) until the adoption of the “The Star-Spangled Banner” exactly a century later. The implementation of the tune and musical salute (which also exists in Latin, peace-time and Republican—God save the Guillotine—versions) for another national song, however, was not new and contrafacta arrangements were used, usually connected with royal ceremony, and still used in Liechtenstein (Oben am jungen Rhein), Norway (Kongesangen) and Switzerland (Rufst du, mein Vaterland, until 1961 when replaced the National Hymne) formerly used in the kingdoms of Prussia, Saxony, Bavaria and imperial Russia.
synchronoptica
one year ago: nebulas were known as guest stars
two years ago: Occupied Austria (1945) plus flowers in the woods
three years ago: American Top 40 (1970), Nixon’s Honor America Day (1970) plus more on spelling conventions
four years ago: Annual Reminder (1969) plus the Sky Disc of Nebra discovered (1999)
five years ago: more adventures on Lake Garda
Monday 19 June 2023
8x8 (10. 820)
north american aerospace defence command: cache of Cold War era briefings and slide show presentations scanned and shared on the Internet Archive—via Super Punch
yellowhammer: Alabama enshrines an official state cookie
clipart: AI generated images disrupting the portfolio of stock photos that helped create it
playlist: fish music may help revitalise coral reefslui, sait juste ken: a clever double-entendre in French ad-copy for the Barbie movie
the killer rabbit caerbannog: more on the trope of deadly bunnies in medieval manuscripts—see previously
apple core: computer giant taking on venerable Swiss Fruit Union, other in a trademark dispute—via Slashdot
sci-fi edition: Poseidon’s Underworld reviews a 1979 issue of Starlog
Sunday 30 April 2023
www (10. 709)
On this day in 1993, the decision was made to release the hypertext markup language that underpins the world-wide web into the public domain, making it freely available for anyone to use for any purpose, and facilitating navigation on the developing internet—rejecting the option that inventor Tim Berners-Lee (see above) along with the research laboratory at CERN had to license the browser-based infrastructure, believing that keeping the platform as open and decentralised as possible was the only want to encourage growth and maximise participation. It’s a challenge to try to imagine how the world might look had this pivotal decision gone the other way, turning a public utility, a public good into a commodity. Much more at the links above.
Friday 28 April 2023
mikiphone (10. 702)
Via Strange Company, we are directed to the engineering, miniaturisation marvel of the early 1920s in the first pocket phonograph—long predating but seemingly not prefiguring other mobile players that came decades later. Designed by brothers Miklรณs and รtienne Vadรกsz and licensed for production by Maison Paillard of St Croix, formerly of the music box industry, it required a bit of self-assembly and a some hand-cranking to get the turn-table to spin. More, including a demonstration at Danny Dutch’s Blog at the link above.
Saturday 15 April 2023
❤️♣️ (10. 675)
These space cards from 1964 tell the long history of humanity’s progress in freeing themselves of the bounds of gravity—with the iconography of the suit of hearts representing the human aspect, clubs the sciences, spades technical applications (I especially like this sequence from bows and arrows to rockets and satellites) and diamonds modern elements of aerospace exploration. More at the links above.
Sunday 12 March 2023
7x7 (10. 606)
the festival of the horse and the boys ploughing match: rambunctious ancient traditions and their modern observance across the British Isles—see previously
depth: AI generated journal entry prompts cinematic adaptation: a literary guide to tonight’s Academy Awards
l’hiver en suisse: travel posters by illustrator Emil Cardinauxindigenous futurisms: a look at non-Western visions of the future through the lens of unique cosmologies
acceptance speech: the unexpected and gracious win for Marisa Tomei in 1993 for My Cousin Vinny
stable diffusion: researchers claim an AI can interpret brain-scans and recreate images of what subjects see
wild isles: BBC criticised not broadcasting final episode of David Attenborough series on habitat loss over apparent fears of right-wing backlash—coupled with another furore over media bias
Monday 16 January 2023
9x9 (10. 424)
j.t. iv: the compilation “Cosmic Lightning” of a tragically forgotten outsider rock artist
tees valley: a dialect map of England from the University of Leeds
bundesministerin der verteidigung: German defence secretary steps downcourtlife: Queen Victoria’s illustrated journals—see also—via Messy Nessy Chic
mlk: Stevie Wonder’s campaign to make Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday a national holiday
wef: global leaders gather in Davos
buona sera: actor, photojournalist and sex symbol Gina Lollobrigida passes away, aged 95
scare-fox: accidentally Art Brรปt predator-deterrent
atomic rooster: a classic from the spin-off band of Crazy World of Arthur Brown
Thursday 24 November 2022
salient factor (10. 331)
Whereas the American term panhandle or bootheel might be more prevalent in certain contexts, salient is the universal descriptor for the elongated, peninsular protrusion of a national or sub-national jurisdiction into another—in turn taken from the strategic lingo of otherwise a bulge that projects into enemy territory. While falling short of the imposition of exclaves and enclaves, notable European examples include the province of Trieste, Schaffhausen in Germany and Inn, Lugano and Mendriso in Switzerland as well as on a state or department level the Gironde and Lower Franconia with many other places vying to extend their influence.
Wednesday 16 November 2022
st bernard (10. 308)
As Design Boom reports, researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL, รcole polytechnique fรฉdรฉrale de Lausanne) have created a an edible drone prototype that can be dispatched to stranded hikers and mountain-climbers to provide a life-sustaining emergency meal whilst waiting for help to arrive. Acknowledging the limitations on payload for most aerial craft—usually only up to thirty percent of their own weight, developers concocted a way to make the structure part of the delivery with rice-cake wings.
Saturday 12 November 2022
w³ (10. 297)
Though somewhat overshadowed by the achievements and recognition of colleague Tim Berners-Lee and his proposal for a hypertext system to connect many of the departments and projects of CERN in 1989 and which contained the kernal of the idea, credit for the World Wide Web also goes to fellow computer scientist Robert Cailliau for their joint proposal put forward on this day in 1990 for the World Wide Web. Not only did Cailliau come up with the logo and co-programmed the first web browser (MacWWW) with Nicola Pellow, he was instrumental in taking the concept out of the laboratory and releasing it into wilds, running several parallel projects to ensure interoperability and make the underlying structure more robust and cross-compatible, secured funding and organised a series of conferences and steering committees.
Friday 11 November 2022
menas of egypt (10. 293)
Early third century wonder-worker and Coptic soldier in the Roman army martyred for refusing to recant his Christian faith, Menas (โฒโฒโฒโฒ โฒโฒโฒโฒ—Amen), is commemorated on this day, corresponding to 15 Hathor on the Egyptian calendar. Garnering a posthumous reputation for intercession on any number on ailments, Abu Mina, the site where his body was buried (according to legend, the camels bearing his corpse stopped twice in this exact location and refused to move further) after being dismembered by fellow soldiers became a popular pilgrimage—following Constantine I (previously) sending his ill daughter, Flavia Valeria Constantina—later known as Saint Constance, destination with terracotta flasks with the saint’s iconography taken as souvenirs and found from Heidelberg to Cheshire and all points in between. Protector of the falsely accused, peddlers and travelling salespersons, Menas is the patron of the city of Heraklion, Koblenz and many Swiss villages in the north Alps.
Friday 7 October 2022
la fin de la fรฉe verte (10. 201)
The production or sale prohibited until the first of March of 2005, as a result of a referendum that took place in 1908, absinthe containing thujone, wormwood was banned in Switzerland on this day in 1910, prompted by a rather sensational murder that made headlines all over Europe and informed and heightened a moral panic associated with the drink. A heavy alcoholic named Jean Lanfray, a labourer who worked at a vineyard in the canton of Vaud, murdered his family in a drunken rage. Though Lanfray drank up to five litres of wine daily and as a lunch time refreshment on the day of the violent killings partook of seven glasses of wine, six cognacs, a brandy coffee, two crรจme de menthes, then two shots of absinthe as a digestif after a sandwich, vintners were hoping to shift the blame squarely on the latter.
Monday 15 August 2022
ferragosto (10. 062)
Originating from the Roman holiday Feriae Augusti instigated by Caesar Augustus, Octavian, to reward
Saturday 18 June 2022
you gotta to say yes to another success
On this day in 1983 the Zรผrich electronic music duo Yello, a collaboration between Boris Blank and Dieter Meier with contributions from Carlos Perรณn—probably most recognised for their 1985 single “Oh Yeah” whose whump-whump has featured in several film and television soundtracks, notably Ferris Bueller’s Day Off or their 1988 “The Race,” released singles from their titular third studio album as three-dimensional picture discs complete with 3D glasses (see also), leading with the opening track below.
Tuesday 24 May 2022
ancient aliens
Opened to the public on this day in 2003 (bankrupt and shuttered three years later and three years after that rehabilitated as a children’s theme park—named Jungfrau after the alpine mountain it is framed by), Mystery Park in Interlaken was designed by Chariots of the Gods? author Erich von Dรคniken and included several pavilions featuring what the pseudoscience proponent described as the great unsolved mysteries that could only be explained by the theories he espoused on paleo-contact and ancient astronauts, including the Mayan calendar, the pyramids of Egypt and monoliths like Stonehenge explaining how the achievements of the primitive past must be linked to extraterrestrial encounters, his showmanship being chiefly responsible for the popularity of this rather narrow and dim view of a world just beyond record.
Sunday 24 April 2022
the snake in the tunnel
Following a referendum in France the day before that admitted the UK, Ireland and Denmark into the Common Market, on this day in 1972 at a summit in Basel the members of the European Economic Community agreed to install an exchange system to limit fluctuations in rates in order that the basket of European currencies would be consistent with the US dollar. With the titular nickname (Schlange im Tunnel, le Serpent monรฉtaire europรฉen), the arrangement was the first attempt to peg the Mark, the Franc and the Pound Sterling to one another that ultimately led to the creation of the euro and was precipitated by the Nixon Shock of the previous year with the repeal of the Bretton Woods system. This coordination, cartel was a method to control appreciation and depreciation and retain relative stability until the following year when the dollar began to float freely and member nations diverged in their response.