Today, we’re revisiting a classic Monty Python skit. The scene is the 1972 Munich Olympics. The event is a football/soccer match, pitting German philosophers against Greek philosophers. On the one side, the Germans — Hegel, Nietzsche, Kant, Marx and, um, Franz Beckenbauer. On
Once our basic physical needs for sustenance and shelter are met, most of our psychological suffering is a problem of selfing — contracting the scope of reality to the pinhole of the self and using that to explain, always painfully, the actions and motives of others, the course
"Existential loneliness and a sense that one’s life is inconsequential, both of which are hallmarks of modern civilizations, seem to me to derive in part from our abandoning a belief in the therapeutic dimensions of a relationship with place."
Potoooooooo was an 18th-century British racehorse whose name was pronounced like “Potatoes” (Pot-eight-Os).
A whole new meaning to "printing from your laptop." 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 Longevity and Obsoletion Impress Upon Alexander Endrullat’s
“Presolar grains” (microscopic crystals that are older than the Sun) harvested from meteorites may help determine how our solar system was formed .
An open letter criticizes the institution for allegedly altering displays in its Middle East galleries after complaints from a pro-Israel group.
Bradley Barber remixes Lego sets into other things , e.g. the Millennium Falcon from Back to the Future DeLorean parts, an AT-AT into the USS Enterprise, and a Pirates of the Caribbean ship from the parts of a Lego bonsai tree set. He is not alone in this pursuit; you can find
The Pentagon reportedly banned photography at briefings because the Secretary of War complained about “unflattering” photos.
This is great: Channel Surfer is “a retro TV guide that turns YouTube into live cable TV. Each channel plays videos on a deterministic schedule — like real TV, you tune in mid-show.”
coulou’s vinyl cafe (no. 4) - rainy day selections . “what’s up lovely humans, super excited to be sharing this new vinyl sessssion with you all.”
"The Mind Squad and editorial staff like theirs—people who understood and loved the music—would create a new, vibrant, and deeply informed style of cultural journalism that defined an era."
Alma Allen gets mega-gallery representation, Marina Abramović forays into balloon art, and more industry news.
This week: women’s strike in Argentina, graffiti dialogues in Brooklyn, UK museums hold human remains from former colonies, mini Tudor paintings, mapping The Met, and more.
The Void Would Very Much Like You to Stop Screaming Into It . “I think we can both admit at this point that the screaming isn’t working. The screaming isn’t making you feel any better.”
The non-commercial Greenpoint-based space Subtitled NYC models the tentative ways we make do in everyday life.
Clive Thompson wrote about coding with AI agents . “Software developers point out that coding has a unique quality: They can tether their A.I.s to reality, because they can demand the agents test the code to see if it runs correctly.”
A pair of hounds chase a hare across a snowy plain — will it get away? In Mario Kart terms, the dogs have the weight and max speed advantage while the hare is maxed out in acceleration, handling, and traction. Tags: dogs · video
“We took an ancient vice…put it on everyone’s phone, and made it as normal and frictionless as checking the weather. What could possibly go wrong? ” I *hate* the extent to which gambling has infested everything; it’s not going to end well.
“I use my entire body when painting, so I need to align it with my mind beforehand.”
Ballot Guessr : “GeoGuessr for politics. See a Google Street View image, guess how the county voted in the 2024 presidential election.” (633/1000 on my first try…but I borked one of the guesses bc I forgot there was a time limit. 🙃)
Opening this month, this presentation puts the two photographers in direct conversation, exploring how both see their work as advocacy. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7
AI Is Rewiring How the World’s Best Go Players Think . “Players now train to replicate AI’s moves as closely as they can rather than inventing their own, even when the machine’s thinking remains mysterious to them.”
A printable zine: 50 Ways To Meet Your Neighbor . “32. Picking up trash, generally, is a good way to meet neighbors. People notice. 33. Winter: Shovel someone’s sidewalk. It’s also great cardio.”
Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Richard the Third begins with the eponymous character uttering the famous line “Now is the winter of our discontent.” It ends at the Battle of Bosworth Field, by which point his villainous schemes have come to ruin and his desertion by Lord Stanley
Unreasonable commitment is unreasonable. It happens before there’s a guarantee it will work. It’s out of proportion to what others think is standard. Unreasonable commitment is dedication, persistence, care, energy, connection and investment that doesn’t seem to make sense. You
"As the cost of living continues to spiral upward, the Trump Administration is gutting the government agency built to protect Americans from financial ruin."