BLDGBLOG’s Geoff Manaugh, contributing correspondent for the Financial Times, introduces use to the physics of the elementary particle called the muon (ฮผ), how like the more elusive and slippery neutrino penetrates temple and turnpike alike (and even volcanos or exploring ruins) and gives civil engineers a new inspection tool to assess the internal state of infrastructure, a sort of structural x-ray, to help triage, prioritise repair and upgrades and identify imminent failures.
Via tmn, our attention is again directed towards bespoke, luxury fallout shelters, bunkers, panic rooms flogged (also a punishment for criminal offences for the not so well-appointed) to the rich and powerful—only this time, the glamorous, underground residences, replete with fake skies over courtyards with swimming pools, private theatres, wine cellars, conference centres and showcase galleries and garages, or anything else the client can imagine, are being pushed on the influx of multi-millionaires resettling in the United Arab Emirates. What do you thinK? The firm offering such fantastical and secure retreats is a Swiss company called Oppidum—the Latin term for a fortified city. I thought only pharaoh in his pyramid could only be so entombed.
Capturing the best images of that last known planet, king Neptune, before plunging into the endlessly, inky interstellar void that we’ve been witness to in the past three decades since Voyager 2’s 1989 fly-by, through the JWST we discover that there is a lot happening in this distant, icy constellation. Far distant from the shepherding satellites that keep the brilliant ring in place, the seemingly bright star is the rogue moon Triton, appearing so dazzling due to the highly reflective composition of its surface. Much more to explore at Bad Astronomy with Phil Platt at the link up top.
a tale of two times: the gift of a European mechanised clock was respectfully declined by a Japanese lord raised in a culture of variable hours, via Strange Company’s Weekend Link-Dump
miner 2049er: Atari celebrates its fiftieth anniversary with game posters from Billy Butcher (previously)
sequestration: a scalable carbon-capture facility is setting up in Wyoming, aiming on drawing down five million tonnes of CO2 annually
the battle of the planets: the American syndication of the 1978 Japanese anime series Science Ninja Team Gatchaman
skyline: a free rooftop garden in central London—via Nag on the Lake’s Sunday Links (plus lots more to explore)
pyrotechnics: a look at how digital fireworks displays competed with the real shows—from the Tedium archives
est: US Department of Transportation to map out time zones ahead of the permanent switch to Daylight saving time after it learned that no such comprehensive map exists
trench run: we are not skilled enough to try this with our X-Wing drone
semester abroad: tips for affecting an RP accent, as one does
an army marches on its stomach: a trove of 1970s field rations—see previously—via Present /&/ Correctalgar do carvรฃo: a guide to the incredible Azores—see also
blowhole: sea platform harnesses wave energy by using it to pressurise air and powering a turbine—outperforming expectations
mappa mundi: an annotated, interactive fifteenth century world atlas—see also
5 bby: Star Wars fans invented their own calendar (see previously) over a quarter of a century ago and the latest series finally makes it canon
The veneration of the subject of art in late medieval Europe and other personalised in the form of a votive portrait—that is, when donors or patrons are included in the painting as with this work by Francisco de Zurbarรกn commissioned by a fraternity of monks, depicting a group of people sheltering under the outspread pallium of Mary, mother of Jesus (previously) is observed on this day in the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar. Our Lady of Mercy is known as Madonna della Misericordia in Italian, Virgen de la Merced in Spanish, Notre-Dame de la Merci in French and Schutzmantelmadonna in German with various local customs.
herbst: vintage Eastern Bloc matchboxes welcoming Fall
ฮฑฯฮฝฮฌฮบฮน: comedian Shari Lewis delivers One Minute Mythologies—via r/Obscure Media
wie ist dein name, mann: adapting Hamilton in German for the Hamburg stage—possibly a bit rough for those who committed the original lyrics to heart but Lin-Manuel Miranda is deeply involved tl;dr: an AI powered tool that provides a summary of long videos—via Web Curios
wolf hall: RIP historical fiction author Hilary Mantel
not in my backyard: good luck getting anything built in Sim Nimby (see also)—again from Web Curios
voting integrity: Russian soldiers in occupied regions of Ukraine undertake door-to-door balloting in the referenda to ensure citizens choose wisely
kirie: celebrating the onset of autumn with more of the Japanese art of leave carving
