zungenbrecher

The constructed compounds of the German language can form quite lengthy and specific epithets that sometimes come across as jargon—especially among the longest examples.

Such words can also tell a story, however, like in this animated lesson from Mental Floss and Languagehat that demonstrates how to build a grammatically valid, and for the nonce, word telling of Barbara, famous for her rhubarb pies, and her adventures with bearded barbarians at the local bar. It sort of reminds me of a tongue-twister (Zungenbrecher), like Sally-sells-sea-shells-by-the-sea-shore, which is a similar sort of creation.

three-d or camera obscura

The ever-inspired Mental Floss presents an engrossing lesson in art history, through the lens of the Portrait Project's timeline of depictions of the Western world, where there is a very noticeable shift towards realism and perspective around the year 1400 from simple two-dimensional portrayals of people and things to a jaggedly more accurate picture that acknowledges size and shadow.
While I was expecting some sort of explanation like the latter rediscovery of the forgotten lensing technique of camera obscura—a pinhole projection of an image onto a screen, tabula rasa fit for tracing that ushered in, speculatively, a revolution in painting, portrait-studio quality representation. The article goes on to account how in medieval Europe general misery with the human-condition led to a shunning of the classic artistic techniques of accuracy with their minds on the here-after, and surviving simplicity was a revolt and expressive way to remind viewers that worldly existence was something flat.
I wonder if it was the case, like in the relatively concurrent Muslim world there was a proscription against the rendering of natural things, which led to the elaboration of calligraphy and abstraction, that led to abandonment and subsequent reconditioning contemporary with the Western Renaissance.

travelling matte

More documents leaked to the press by the Fugitive reveal that US intelligence has the capability and apparently the prerogative to track the whereabouts of some five billion cellular telephones, the world's human population, per day. As the Washington Post reveals, with an array of special-programmes under names like CO-TRAVLER, the National Security Agency is able not only to intercept communications but also to plot the location of the devices and their users even when the phone is not actively sending or receiving—American reporting hinging on the fact that indiscriminate surveillance, almost apologetically those unfortunate and misguided Americans abroad, has culled some native mapping and associations—inadvertently.
Making self-reflection the biggest transgression always makes me angry about this sort of coverage, which comes at the expense of the rest of the population, as if their privacy was a trifling thing. With such a universe of star-crossed paths to reference, of course, analysts can retrace steps and build quite telling profiles (or misconstructions) through the gleaned habits and contacts of individuals. Of course, we've all too willingly outfitted ourselves and our lifestyles with these homing devices and pay a handsome ransom for the shackles of convenience, presence and awareness and such clever and useful tools were not doled out like identity papers or cattle-brands for these ends alone. It does seem odd, ironic that there is so much glee over the state-of-the-art when that's all the tidier to survey, with or without industry cooperation.

schnäppchen or landlord

The German public and municipal leaders have been keenly aware of a shortage of affordable housing for some time now, a problem tackled by motions to outlaw entrepreneurial ventures like offering a spare room to rent or a couch to crash on (as an alternative to traditional hosteling and probably at the bidding of the hotel industry) but really exacerbated by industry-spin, I think, to convince potential investors to buy up blocks of flats and raise the stakes and the competition by appealing to their drive not to miss a prospect. It's something tantalising, like the venerated first time home-owner, to appeal to those with the means to have long crossed that goal and others off their list. The trend, which started with properties in the former East Germany, has continued to spread and in my second-city, I see quite a few rentals managed by consortium. I believe that the relationship between a tenet and his tenement ought to remain something personal, and not something akin to a health management organisation—ones HMO that defines ones health to ones hearth.

Off-shored holdings companies who have monopolised the market, becoming the country's biggest home-owner can indeed sell their tout as being a sound investment, since demand is high and supply getting more and more scarce. I think, however, the prospect is also quite a frothy one as unwilling renters go elsewhere and the business of buying up apartments will become just a nuanced bubble. I suppose housing in an urban area is always affordable, whether prestigious or functional—it's just that the clientele changes, from any given resident to a company far-deferred in a tax-oasis, well-cushioned against malingering factors, like deadbeats or inattentive superintendents or caring about the welfare of their colonies.

five minutes to midnight or loose-nukes

On the really interest-piquing and enthusiastic blog, known as Today I Found Out, there is thoughtful article on the story, which has been circulating like an urban-legend, regarding the what would not be considered a strong-password associated with the so-called Football, the nuclear launch device that the US president keeps on his person at all times.

At the height of the Cold War, with the world on edge, President Kennedy mandated that all nuclear missiles be fitted with a fail-safe device that could be operated remotely by the right level of authority, in order to prevent America's huge nuclear arsenal from falling under control of enemy hands and to put a stumbling-block before a potentially rogue commander, as the isolated silos enjoyed a significant amount of autonomy and it would only take one loon with an itchy trigger-finger to start World War III. Military leaders saw these counter-measures as emasculating and gave themselves a back-door by resetting the codes to 00000000. Missiliers were able to override any order to stand-down or simply initiate a count-down for decades until this story first broke in 2004. Security theatre has certainly evolved but seems it is nothing new. Be sure to check out the website for more synaptic tales.