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The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this edition: • Showing our age • Special delivery • Unfriendly wagers • A shore thing • Sale therapy
The gap between true and known
We have more agency and choice than we know. And sometimes, when the awareness of our freedom arrives, it’s too late to reclaim the opportunities we missed. Some of the walls around us are real—built by people who have no right to build them, who profit from our staying put.
Before Bill Nye, There Was Julius Sumner Miller: Watch Complete Episodes of His Classic Science Show, Why Is It So?, Free Online (1962–73)
“We are approaching a darkness in the land. Boys and girls are emerging from every level of school with certificates and degrees, but they can’t read, write or calculate. We don’t have academic honesty or intellectual rigor.” That quote may sound like a familiar lament today,
Penske Gobbles Up Vox Media
In better news: Frankenthaler Foundation climate grants, Meow Wolf on “The Simpsons,” Schomburg Center acquisitions, and more.
The Inner Worlds of Black Quilters
I am often reminded of the warmth of a quilt at my great-grandmother’s house, the weight of wool and polyester patchwork that dared you to try to break free.
The Side That Won the Civil War is Now Banning Books...
The Side That Won the Civil War is Now Banning Books About Why the Civil War Was Fought . “It is a well-known feature of civil society that nervous middle managers often act far more radically than top executives out of a sense of self-preservation.”
Animated Nellie Mae Rowe Biopic Coming to YouTube
Streaming of the 2023 film, which lovingly immortalizes the late self-taught Black artist's life and legacy, starts on July 2.
Record winter temperatures in Antarctic raise fears over...
Record winter temperatures in Antarctic raise fears over speed of climate breakdown . “This is absolutely crazy. It is also about 20C above normal for this time of the year. That is a huge anomaly.”
Required Reading
This week: the Obama Center opens in Chicago, painting with Urdu script, glamour as protest, the woman who popularized astrology, an artist’s ode to pigeons, and more.
Seattle Art Museum Workers Vote to Unionize in Landslide Election
The new union will represent over 130 full- and part-time employees across the institution’s three locations.
Monty Python: The Philosophers’ Football Match
As the World Cup gets underway here in the Americas, here’s a look back at a football battle for the ages: Germany vs. Greece in The Philosophers’ Football Match . Germany’s lineup included Nietzsche , Kant, Hegel, Wittgenstein, and Marx while the likes of Plato, Socrates,
“The prevailing emotions among scientists right now...
“The prevailing emotions among scientists right now are rage and shock.” U.S. Science Is in Chaos. “This compact that has existed since World War II, that made the U.S. the successful, prosperous nation that it is, is being dismantled.”
10 Art Events for Juneteenth Joy in NYC
David Hammons-inspired freedom flag workshops, a community art mosaic, late hours at the Bronx Museum, and more activities to mark the contemplative holiday.
The Founding Story Behind Japan’s Oldest Whisky Maker ....
The Founding Story Behind Japan’s Oldest Whisky Maker . “Success in the Japanese market required a lighter, more delicate flavor profile than Western spirits typically offered.” And so Suntory was born.
Supermountains, the Boring Billion, and Their Connection to Life on Earth
Twice in the Earth’s history, massive ranges of supermountains have formed on ancient continents . Studies like these point to something we do know for sure: from the highest peaks to the smallest cells, geology and biology are deeply intertwined. And while it’s often said
Heritage Groups Sue Trump Over “Garden of American Heroes"
The National Mall is “not a personal sandbox for each President to renovate however he likes,” preservationists argue.
Due to FIFA’s poor security practices, this person...
Due to FIFA’s poor security practices, this person stumbled into their wide-open broadcast portal w/ full access . “An attacker could have rickrolled the entire FIFA World Cup. Or played Subway Surfers gameplay. Live. On every TV network worldwide.”
The Whimsy and Heartbreak of America’s Garage Sales
"For $100, I bought bric-a-brac that explains a nation."
Sour Soda Studio Depicts a Saccharine World Where Humans Have Lost Control
The illustrator takes a playful and slightly unsettling view of some of the most pressing issues of the Anthropocene. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark has given away half a...
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark has given away half a billion dollars against a backdrop “where a growing number of billionaires are lashing out against philanthropy”.
The Brexit Catch
"Britain's fishermen became the folk heroes of Brexit. In Brixham, they were promised a brighter future. Did it ever arrive?"
Inspired by Ukraine, and Worried by China: Taiwan...
Inspired by Ukraine, and Worried by China: Taiwan Teaches Its Citizens How to Fly Drones . “I may not be a soldier, but if [a China invasion] ever happened here, as a citizen, I’d like to have the ability to help in some way.”
How Stamps Get Designed
Art director Antonio Alcalá, one of four art directors employed by the USPS, talks a little bit about the history behind US postage stamps and how they are designed and produced. [This is a vintage post originally from Dec 2016.] Tags: Antonio Alcala · design · stamps · USPS
Surreal Figures Step from Leonora Carrington’s Paintings into ‘Shape of Dreams’
The prolific artist's oeuvre extends far beyond the two-dimensional surface. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article Surreal Figures Step from Leonora
Assume You Will Be Hacked . “As AI tools have...
Assume You Will Be Hacked . “As AI tools have become extremely good at writing code, they’ve also become extremely good at pulling off cyberattacks. The result has been a change in the scale, speed, and sophistication of hacks…”
Necessary Losses: The Life-Shaping Art of Letting Go
"We cannot deeply love anything without becoming vulnerable to loss. And we cannot become separate people, responsible people, connected people, reflective people without some losing and leaving and letting go."
Why Lionel Messi is a genius on the football pitch .
Why Lionel Messi is a genius on the football pitch .