georgium sidus

Writing for Æon magazine, historian of astronomy Stephen Case guides us on a fascinating and convoluted process on how the naming conventions of the planets came to be through the lens of the discovery of what we now know as Uranus by William Herschel in March of 1781–the first new planet since antiquity and in (relatively) quick succession what we now call Neptune by Urbain Le Verrier. Whereas Uranus had been marauding through the night sky unrecognised for the planet it is and mistook for a star of the firmament and initially reported as a comet and left to the discoverer’s son to champion, Neptune existence was mathematically derived and then verified through observation, the only standing precedent for naming rights came from the Galilean moons of Jupiter named the Stars of the Medici after Galileo’s patrons.
To the extent that one bothered to differentiate the satellites at all, co-discoverer Simon Marius, astronomer royal of the Margraviate of Ansbach, suggested that they be named after their planetary analogues: the Mercury of Jupiter and so on—before ultimately being named for paramours of Zeus. The elder Herschel had named his discovery after George III, somewhat of a consolation for loosing the American colonies, a decision his son and intellectual heir regretted but was adamantly against the counter suggestion by Le Verrier that they name the planets after themselves. The younger Herschel found a way out of this impasse by returning to the subject of naming satellites—specifically for those orbiting Saturn, a couple of which he had discovered himself. Mythologically awkward to name the moons after family members of the Titan who deposed his father—Ouranos, Uranus incidentally—and devoured his children, Herschel proposed naming the moons after peer giants and giantesses. The matter was settled and extended to keeping the planets named after Greco-Roman gods—rallied by choosing to call a newly isolated element uranium after the ancient sky deity. By dint of the sheer number of Cronian satellites, giants from other pantheons are admitted as well. Though arguably installing an Anglo-American hegemony among the stars, the International Astronomical Union while not neutral does promote inclusion in its work. Though eschewing the honour himself, the Hawaiian term (whose own legends are enjoying more representation) for Uranus is Hele’ekala, a loan word for Herschel.

brothers and sisters, welcome to the temple of the gnostic sonics

BLDGBlog has a nice memory and appreciation of recently and very much prematurely departed DJ, reporter, zine publisher, remix artist and record producer Andrew Weatherall (*1963). The pioneering Weatherall whose eclectic tastes and experimentation helped forward the rave and acid house scene bore at least two famous tattoos on opposite forearms: Fail We May but Sail We Must. Sample some of his sets below and more at the link above.

level-up

Pasa Bon! refers us to a tragically underreported 1997 interactive installation from Berlin-based artist Hans Hemmert of the art collective Inges Idee that outfitted guests with platform shoes, chosen from the rack to elevate all to the height of two meters before socialising. As distant as this experiment seems and how much of human interaction is not necessarily conducted in person, it seems very resonant to get a new perspective and place others on equal-footing.

it’s entirely possible that you might have trouble remembering a time before christian sonic the hedgehog fanart

Via tmn, the above headline, excerpt certainly grabbed our attention, not knowing what sort of rabbit hole we might be prizing open—and we’re relieved to find how for all its power and reach domestically, Corporate Christian America, has a heretofore unbridgeable handicap when it comes to popular culture, though the Good News Gospel and prosperity theology has enjoyed a long-term ally in that liminal space between casual engagement, aficionados and fandom of video game franchises. As strange as it seems, given religion’s aggressive way of inserting itself into the conversation, there’s an unexpected place to gain a purchase that strikes as sincere (despite cynical origins during in the consoles’ competition for supremacy—see also), inevitable and self-perpetuating in the way that gamification is both habit-forming and highly specific yet forgiving at the same time.

n95

Though for the present it’s conceptual and more of a dystopian joke rather than something that one can order just yet with the veneer of restraint and corporate responsibility and not diverting from the stocks of emergency protective gear that medical professional need, perhaps when this epidemic passes, one can equip oneself for the next with facial masks that allow one to unlock their devices (and remain recognisable to surveillance protocols—and perhaps alternately hide from them) without removing that prophylactic. The masks are custom-printed using non-toxic dyes that do not alter the mask’s efficacy nor respiration—as the manufacturer claims. Biomarkers are a bad idea for authentication purposes in general and surgical masks are not designed for keeping the healthy free from contagion but rather to help the ill from spreading it further.

self-checkout

Though not much is disclosed by way of the methodology behind how these hacked barcode scanners reinterpret the different patterns as techno beats, the duo Electronicos Fantasticos certainly have found a unique medium of expression and look like they’re having a blast making music. Frontman DJ Ei Wada (aka Crab Feet) also has a long career of transforming old household appliances and superannuated technology into musical instruments and together, in collaboration with Nicos Orchest Lab, they have been musical directors of fashion shows and other multimedia experiences. See more performances at Design Boom at the link up top.

burgruine henneberg

Taking advantage of the nice weather, H and I ventured to the nearby village of Henneberg, named for the castle ruins above and in turn the ancestral seat of the eponymous royal house (see previously here and here).

The late eleventh century compound was within the next generations built up to its height by Count Poppo (see also here) with palace, belfry (Bergfried), residential suite with cabinet (Kemenate), defensive walls and cisterns and was abandoned as official residence in the late eighteenth century, the last of the male line having died off without heirs roughly a century beforehand.
One bit of rather gruesome legend associated with Henneberg involves the Countess Margarete and her three-hundred and sixty-five children—a Dutch noble woman, daughter of Florens IV of Holland and Zealand and Mathilde of Brabant whom entered into a political union in 1249 with Count Hermann (Poppo’s son), in hopes of securing his elevation to Holy Roman emperor of the Germans, a ploy which despite the landed connections ultimately failed. Margarete died in childbirth—which was not an uncommon occurrence—but reportedly was cursed to bear as many children as there are days in the year after insulting the mother of twins with words of incredulity and accusing her of adultery out of envy of her own childless condition. Returned to her parents in Loosduinen, a district of the Hague—not anywhere near here (though the caretakers of the ruin and club of local medieval enthusiasts and reenactors call themselves that)—Margarete gave birth to this impossible brood, varying described as mice or crabs, before all dying.
Neglected and falling into disrepair by the 1830s, the ducal court of Saxe-Meiningen wanted to raise the foundations and build a pleasure palace but those plans were overcome by other events. From the end of World War II to 1989, the castle was part of the inter-German border’s restricted zone (Sperrgebiet) until 1989 due to its commanding view of the surrounding region and into West Germany.

topless meeting

Filed for University of Pennsylvania venerable archive of lingual observations, Language Log, we are introduced to an exemplary achievement in borrowing with the above Japanese term—トップレス‐ミーティング, toppuresu mītingu. A contraction of laptop-less, it refers to a holding a conference free from electronic distractions, mobile phones included—which reportedly can be especially onerous for a business culture where meetings are recurrent and lengthy and perhaps meant as a chance to catch a bit of shut-eye. See more examples at the link up top.