this is not america

Via Boing Boing, comedian and musician (and frequent contributor to Quite Interesting) Bill Bailey gave an entertaining and informative presentation on the differences between major and minor keys and how the tonic tensions and resolutions affect the character of the tune being played. His rendition of the Star Spangled Banner (beginning at 2:02, previously) takes on a wholly different dynamic and indeed comes across a bit Russian.

waxing and waning

The design collective Whyixd has installed an ensemble of whirling LEDs to form a kinetic sculpture on the campus of National Chiao Tung University that illuminates the sky and delivers passers-by with a subjective experience of the lunar phases. Named like a bit of open-ended code, the project, “#define Moon_,” acknowledges that the perspective is unique for each viewer and something to take umbrage with, especially in light of the revival of the Space Race.

à la carte

Via Super Punch, we’ve found ourselves obsessing and delighting over this menu from an Italian restaurant whose selection of pizzas are named after the dates of significant events in the lives of the proprietor’s family. It’s a pretty endearing and make us wish we had a restaurant to commemorate special occasions. More to explore at Super Punch at the link above—a consummate connoisseur of premium tweets and other fine hypertext products.

atchison, topeka and santa fe

These portrayals of urban rail routes that are a distant memory as Underground strip maps (see also here and here) are a really striking aesthetic choice on the part of draughtsman Jake Berman that makes us at the same time pine for the amenities of the past and appreciate what we still have in Germany and the robust public transportation network that we have here. Do you have memories of a similar service in your town that is no longer there?  Check out more superannuated streetcar and train lines showcased on Atlas Obscura at the link up top.

iupac

Via Digg, the United Nations has declared 2019 to be the Year of the Periodic Table in recognition of the moment of insight that Dmitri Mendeleev had one hundred-fifty years ago in 1869 when he committed each of the sixty-nine then known distinct chemical elements on note cards and arranged them by properties in such a fashion as to predict, forecast the existence of yet unknown substances that would later fall neatly in place.
Not to discount the genius of the moment, the development of the familiar design was a lengthy process with many alternate proposals, visual cul-de-sacs (see also here, here and here) and effort that draws off the research and inspiration of many that came before and tried to communicate some essential quality about the building blocks of Nature. In addition to the symbolic chemistry that John Dalton proffered in 1803 to help limn his modern Atomic Theory, the Conversation takes a look at the other stages and versions—with some more radical deviations—that culminate with the iconic and instantly recognisable classroom model.

nengajo

We’ve been awaiting Spoon & Tamago’s annual posting (previously) of Japanese designer New Year’s greeting cards (nengajo, 年賀状) that honour both the civil, Gregorian calendar and the luni-solar year of the Boar.
There are many entries to check out as well as the archives from years past in addition to this charging beast from Benjo Graphics and an elegant miniature calendar page from artist Tatsuya Tanaka. The year of the Earth Pig begins 5 February and corresponds most closely with the Western sign Scorpio.

7x7

personality, wessonality: spot the celebrities at the 1986 All Star Party for Clint Eastwood

spargelzeit: a little education can be empowering for keeping the resolution to eat healthier, fresher foods

urban density: exploring the crowded high-rises of Hong Kong

ikumen: the rise of the Japanese hot dads is changing the traditional roles of parenting for the better

rubisco: botanists tinker with photosynthesis to make the process more efficient

fishbit and half-wit: an assortment of the dumbest smart gadgets premiered at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) technology expo

minor arcana: the Tarot deck-like miniatures of Robert Coutelas