Madeleine Riffaud, hero of the French Resistance, has died at the age of 100. “The essential was not to give in. When you resisted, you were already a victor. You had already won.”
Jason Kottke’s weblog, home of fine hypertext products since 1998
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(Metaphorical) lessons learned from building wood fires, including “the most important ingredient...
(Metaphorical) lessons learned from building wood fires, including “the most important ingredient is invisible” and “you’re designing an airflow system with fuel attached”.
After 37 years, the 80s fashion trend of wearing salmon as hats...
After 37 years, the 80s fashion trend of wearing salmon as hats is back in style among orcas. “Maybe it’s less of a salmon hat trend, and more a case of using their head as a lunchbox.”
Always Interesting: “52 Things I Learned in 2024”
Tom Whitwell just sent along his annual list of the 52 things he’s learned in the past year. As usual, there’s lots of fascinating things in there…here are some of my favorites:
3. There are just 16 trademarked scents in the US, including Crayola crayons, Playdoh, an oce...
Best TV Shows of 2024. Shogun, My Brilliant Friend, The Day of...
Best TV Shows of 2024. Shogun, My Brilliant Friend, The Day of the Jackal, and What We Do in the Shadows all make the list. (Shogun would be my top pick.)
I am still working on my gift guide for this year, but...
I am still working on my gift guide for this year, but in the meantime The 2023 Kottke Holiday Gift Guide is full of cool stuff for all the great people in your life.
This summer, Taiwanese barista Xie Yi-chen won the 2024 World Coffee Championships...
This summer, Taiwanese barista Xie Yi-chen won the 2024 World Coffee Championships with patterns of a whale, a moose, and a dragon. “To prepare for the competition, Xie practiced latte art on around 10,000 cups in just three months.”
“An AI-powered robot autonomously convinced 12 showroom robots to ‘quit their jobs’...
“An AI-powered robot autonomously convinced 12 showroom robots to ‘quit their jobs’ and follow it.”
Watch Charles Schulz Draw Charlie Brown
Watch Peanuts creator Charles Schulz draw Charlie Brown. It only takes him around 35 seconds.
(via @fchimero)
[This is a vintage post originally from Aug 2014.]
Tags: art · Charles Schulz · Peanuts · timeless posts · video
Infinite Stroll. Take a neverending walk....
Infinite Stroll. Take a neverending walk.
Good grief Charlie Brown, AirPods Pro 2 are on sale today for...
Good grief Charlie Brown, AirPods Pro 2 are on sale today for $154 (that’s almost $100 off).
This is a bit too on the nose: a Dutch tulip farmer...
This is a bit too on the nose: a Dutch tulip farmer is using the heat generated from cryptocurrency mining to heat their greenhouses.
Thanksgiving Recipes by Kindergarteners
Ok, hold up. This is the only stuffing recipe you need for Thanksgiving:
Just a tablespoon of turkey per 200 meters of honey? Lolz. This is from a Thanksgiving cookbook made by a kindergarten class — the turkey recipe involves cinnamon and teriyaki sauce.
Tags: food · holidays · Thanksgiving
How 10 famous artists would plate Thanksgiving dinner. The Jackson Pollock &...
How 10 famous artists would plate Thanksgiving dinner. The Jackson Pollock & Seurat ones are pretty good.
From Kenji Lopez-Alt, a list of all of his favorite Thanksgiving recipes...
From Kenji Lopez-Alt, a list of all of his favorite Thanksgiving recipes in one place: turkey, pie, gravy, potatoes, stuffing, biscuits, and stuffing waffles (you heard me).
Cranberry Bogs Use Spiders Instead Of Pesticides
Hey what are you doing, let’s talk about cranberries! Surely you know, the cranberry is the Official Berry of my wonderful Commonwealth. The tart berry is one of only a few native North American fruits, like the pawpaw. The previous sentence has a lie because cranberries are...
Suggestions on ways to improve the performance of any microwave. “Despite engineering...
Suggestions on ways to improve the performance of any microwave. “Despite engineering tricks designed to move microwaves around the interior of these machines (and a spinning carousel), all microwaves struggle to heat foods evenly.”
How America Can Break Its Highway Addiction. “Because of induced demand, this...
How America Can Break Its Highway Addiction. “Because of induced demand, this Sisyphean struggle against congestion is an expensive boondoggle.”
The Most Iconic Electronic Music Sample of Every Year (1990-2023)
Oh man this is so great: electronic music sample breakdowns from 1990 until the present day. The visualizations on these are fantastic — just watch a bit of the first one (Groove Is In The Heart) and you’ll see what I mean. They’re not all that great (some of these produce...
They made a movie based on Minecraft starring Jack Black and Jason...
They made a movie based on Minecraft starring Jack Black and Jason Momoa and here is the trailer. Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite) is the director but I am skeptical.
Stunning shot of the Sombrero galaxy (Messier 104) in mid-infrared. The supermassive...
Stunning shot of the Sombrero galaxy (Messier 104) in mid-infrared. The supermassive black hole at its center is described as “slowly snacking on infalling material from the galaxy”. Nom nom nom.
Satellite Photos of Middle Earth
Using a 3D mapping engine, some Tolkien enthusiasts built a model of Middle Earth that can be viewed from any angle, from the surface to an orbital vantage point.
See also an interactive map of Middle Earth. (via @tonypeak78)
Tags: Lord of the Rings · maps · satellite imagery
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What Gladiator II Gets Right and Wrong About Real Fights in the...
What Gladiator II Gets Right and Wrong About Real Fights in the Colosseum. “It is also true the Colosseum was flooded periodically to recreate famous naval battles, a demonstration known as naumachia.”
“When botanist Richard Deakin examined Rome’s Colosseum in the 1850s, he found...
“When botanist Richard Deakin examined Rome’s Colosseum in the 1850s, he found 420 species of plant growing in the ruins: cypresses and ilex, pea plants and more than 50 types of grasses.” A fascinating thread on the flora and fauna in the Colosseum.
The Clever Design That Keeps This School Cool in Scorching Heat
In this video, Sara Saadouni explains the three passive cooling techniques used by fellow architect Diébédo Francis Kéré in designing a school building in Burkina Faso, where temperatures can be quite warm all year. The roof is especially clever.
He introduced a curved d...
The long list for the 2025 Tournament of Books has been released...
The long list for the 2025 Tournament of Books has been released and it includes titles like All Fours, Intermezzo, James, Long Island Compromise, Orbital, and Wandering Stars.
Leo Tolstoy’s recipe for mac & cheese? It only contains four ingredients:...
Leo Tolstoy’s recipe for mac & cheese? It only contains four ingredients: macaroni, parmesan cheese, butter, and something called “vegetable sauce”. I’m gonna stick to Kenji for mac & cheese and Tolstoy for novels.
There are so many twists and turns in this fascinating story by...
There are so many twists and turns in this fascinating story by Fara Dabhoiwala about a painting of Jamaican polymath Francis Williams, which also appears to be the only 1759 painting of Halley’s Comet. Don’t click this if you’ve got somewhere to be.
JW Space Telescope Discovers Aliens!
I know astronomical imagery is on the verge of being over-processed these days (those colors don’t exist out there!), but this image from the JWST is shocking. Clear evidence of Sesame Street’s Yip Yip Martians from billions of years ago. What did Jim Henson know and when did he know it?
Tags: astronomy · James Webb Space Telescope · remix · Sesame Street · space
A kakistocracy is “government by the worst people” or, more literally, “government...
A kakistocracy is “government by the worst people” or, more literally, “government by the shitty”.