A Bit More Detail

[PHOTO] Dufferin/St. Clair Library

Wed, 27 May 2020 13:06:46 GMT

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[PHOTO] Media wall, Toronto Reference Library

Sat, 14 Mar 2020 16:49:35 GMT

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[NEWS] Twenty news links

Tue, 24 Dec 2019 02:49:19 GMT

NOW Toronto looks at the Pickering nuclear plant and its role in providing fuel for space travel.

In some places like California, traffic is so bad that airlines actually play a role for high-end commuters. CBC reports.

Goldfish released into the wild are a major issue for the environment in Québec, too. CTV News reports.

China's investments in Jamaica have good sides and bad sides. CBC reports.

A potato museum in Peru might help solve world hunger. The Guardian reports.

Is the Alberta-Saskatchewan alliance going to be a lasting one? Maclean's considers.

Is the fossil fuel industry collapsing? The Tyee makes the case.

Should Japan and Europe co-finance a EUrasia trade initiative to rival China's? Bloomberg argues.

Should websites receive protection as historically significant? VICE reports.

Food tourism in the Maritimes is a very good idea. Global News reports.

Atlantic Canada lobster exports to China thrive as New England gets hit by the trade war. CBC reports.

The Bloc Québécois experienced its revival by drawing on the same demographics as the provincial CAQ. Maclean's reports.

Population density is a factor that, in Canada, determines political issues, splitting urban and rural voters. The National Observer observes.

US border policies aimed against migration from Mexico have been harming businesses on the border with Canada. The National Post reports.

The warming of the ocean is changing the relationship of coastal communities with their seas. The Conversation looks.

Archival research in the digital age differs from what occurred in previous eras. The Conversation explains.

The Persian-language Wikipedia is an actively contested space. Open Democracy reports.

Vox notes how the US labour shortage has been driven partly by workers quitting the labour force, here.

Laurie Penny at WIRED has a stirring essay about hope, about the belief in some sort of future.

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[BLOG] Some Friday links

Sun, 22 Dec 2019 10:45:53 GMT

Charlie Stross at Antipope shares an essay he recently presented on artificial intelligence and its challenges for us.

P. Kerim Friedman writes at {anthro}dendum about the birth of the tea ceremony in the Taiwan of the 1970s.

Anthropology net reports on a cave painting nearly 44 thousand years old in Indonesia depicting a hunting story.

Architectuul looks at some temporary community gardens in London.

Bad Astronomy reports on the weird history of asteroid Ryugu.

The Buzz talks about the most popular titles borrowed from the Toronto Public Library in 2019.

Caitlin Kelly talks at the Broadside Blog about her particular love of radio.

Centauri Dreams talks about the role of amateur astronomers in searching for exoplanets, starting with LHS 1140 b.

John Quiggin at Crooked Timber looks at what is behind the rhetoric of "virtue signalling".

Dangerous Minds shares concert performance from Nirvana filmed the night before the release of Nevermind.

Bruce Dorminey notes new evidence that, even before the Chixculub impact, the late Cretaceous Earth was staggering under environmental pressures.

Myron Strong at the Everyday Sociology Blog writes about how people of African descent in the US deal with the legacies of slavery in higher education.

Far Outliers reports on the plans in 1945 for an invasion of Japan by the US.

L.M. Sacasas at The Frailest Thing gathers together a collection of the author's best writings there.

Gizmodo notes the immensity of the supermassive black hole, some 40 billion solar masses, at the heart of galaxy Holm 15A 700 million light-years away.

Russell Arben Fox at In Media Res writes about the issue of how Wichita is to organize its civic politics.

io9 argues that the 2010s were a decade where the culture of the spoiler became key.

The Island Review points readers to the podcast Mother's Blood, Sister's Songs, an exploration of the links between Ireland and Iceland.

Joe. My. God. reports on the claim of the lawyer of the killer of a mob boss that the QAnon conspiracy inspired his actions. This strikes me as terribly dangerous.

JSTOR Daily looks at a study examining scholarly retractions.

Language Hat shares an amusing cartoon illustrating the relationships of the dialects of Arabic.

Language Log lists ten top new words in the Japanese language.

Lawyers, Guns and Money looks at the dissipation of American diplomacy by Trump.

The LRB Blog looks at the many problems in Sparta, Greece, with accommodating refugees, for everyone concerned.

Marginal Revolution links to a paper suggesting the decline of the one-child policy in China has diminished child trafficking, among other crimes.

Sean Marshall, looking at transit in Brampton, argues that transit users need more protection from road traffic.

Russell Darnley shares excerpts from essays he wrote about the involvement of Australia in the Vietnam War.

Peter Watts talks about his recent visit to a con in Sofia, Bulgaria, and about the apocalypse, here.

The NYR Daily looks at the corporatization of the funeral industry, here.

Diane Duane writes, from her own personal history with Star Trek, about how one can be a writer who ends up writing for a media franchise.

Jim Belshaw at Personal Reflections considers the job of tasting, and rating, different cuts of lamb.

The Planetary Society Blog looks at a nondescript observatory in the Mojave desert of California that maps the asteroids of the solar system.

Roads and Kingdoms interviews Eduardo Chavarin about, among other things, Tijuana.

Drew Rowsome loves the SpongeBob musical.

Peter Rukavina announces that Charlottetown has its first public fast charger for electric vehicles.

The Russian Demographics Blog considers the impact of space medicine, here.

The Signal reports on how the Library of Congress is making its internet archives more readily available, here.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel considers how the incredibly isolated galaxy MCG+01-02-015 will decay almost to nothing over almost uncountable eons.

Strange Company reports on the trial and execution of Christopher Slaughterford for murder. Was there even a crime?

Strange Maps shares a Coudenhove-Kalergi map imagining the division of the world into five superstates.

Understanding Society considers entertainment as a valuable thing, here.

Denis Colombi at Une heure de peine announces his new book, Où va l'argent des pauvres?

John Scalzi at Whatever looks at how some mailed bread triggered a security alert, here.

Window on Eurasia reports on the massive amount of remittances sent to Tajikistan by migrant workers, here.

Arnold Zwicky notes a bizarre no-penguins sign for sale on Amazon.

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[URBAN NOTE] Fifteen Niagara Falls, Ontario links (#niagarafalls, #niagarafallscanada)

Sat, 14 Dec 2019 11:50:16 GMT

A new storyboard in Niagara Falls displays the importance of railways to the city. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

Niagara Falls city council is considering the idea of linking casinos by aerial car. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

Global News reports on a drug bust that saw two people arrested in Niagara Falls.

The Niagara Falls Review reports the number of reported homicides in Niagara Region tripled in 2019, to six.

The immersive live nativity hosted by a Niagara Falls church sounds interesting. More is here.

A recent discussion at Niagara Falls city council was dominated by discussion of housing issues and of homelessness. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

Most revenues from the casinos of Niagara Falls have been directed to the infrastructure of the city. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

City council in Niagara Falls has approved the construction of a 72-storey hotel. Construct Connect reports.

In November, the mayor announced the old city hall and courthouse in the downtown of Niagara Falls was scheduled to be demolished. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

The Bath House Hotel once was intended to be a centrepiece of local tourism. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

Carrie Bosco writes about the experience of a customer service associate working at the Niagara Falls Public Library, over at the Niagara Falls Review.

The Niagara Falls Public Library in winter is a happening place for locals. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

A Chinese developer hopes that a proposed $C 1.5 billion dollar project in south Niagara Falls will still go forward. The Niagara Falls Review reports.

Niagara Falls is going to have a hard time replacing city historian Sherman Zavitz. The Niagaa Falls Review reports.

Niagara News reports on the Winter Festival of Lights in Niagara Falls.

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[URBAN NOTE] Ten Montréal links

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 17:34:09 GMT

The Map Room Blog links to some old maps of Montréal.

Major English-language newspapers in Montréal, including the Montreal Gazette, are no longer being distributed to Québec City clients. CBC reports.

Radio-Canada employees' union is concerned over cost overruns in the construction of a new headquarters for the French-language chain. CTV NEws reports.

La Presse notes how the to-be-demolished Champlain Bridge is a home for, among others, falcons.

The Bibliothèque Saint-Sulpice, after the latest delay, will have been closed for nearly two decades. La Presse reports.

The Montreal Children's Library is celebrating its 90th anniversary with a fundraiser. CBC reports.

CBC Montreal looks at how, even without a stadium, legendary mayor Jean Drapeau brought major league baseball to his city.

The anti-gentrification University of the Streets group has some interesting ideas. CBC reports.

The city government of Montréal is looking into the issue of the high retail vacancy rates in parts of the city. CBC reports.

At CBC Montreal, Ontario-born Jessica Brown writes about her struggles with employment in her adopted city.

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[URBAN NOTE] Seven city links: Pierrefonds, Edmundston, Saskatoon, Louisville, Belfast, Jerusalem ..

Wed, 27 Nov 2019 00:44:59 GMT

Ending free coffee for municipal employees in the Québec community of Pierrefonds created massive controversy. CBC reports.

The mayor of the Francophone city of Edmundston in New Brunswick has encouraged immigrant Québec students hurt by immigration changes to come to his community. CTV News reports.

The price of crystal meth in Saskatoon is apparently as low as $3 a bag. Global News reports.

Guardian Cities notes how Louisville, low on trees, is trying to regreen the city as a way to deal with rising temperatures.

Open Democracy considers if the DUP is about to lose its strongholds in Belfast.

Guardian Cities looks at the Jerusalem neighbourhood of Kafr Aqab, a place where Palestinians can access their metropolis (and their partners).

CityLab shares photos of the wonderful new public library of Helsinki.

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[BLOG] Some Tuesday links

Tue, 26 Nov 2019 23:08:04 GMT

Bad Astronomy's Phil Plait shares a stunning photo taken by a friend of the Pleiades star cluster.

The Buzz, at the Toronto Public Library, shares a collection of books suitable for World Vegan Month, here.

Henry Farrell at Crooked Timber considers, with an eye towards China and the Uighurs, how panopticon attempts can stray badly on account of--among other things--false assumptions.

Gizmodo considers how antimatter could end up providing interesting information about the unseen universe.

Joe. My. God. reports from New York City, where new HIV cases are dropping sharply on account of PrEP.

JSTOR Daily shares a vintage early review of Darwin's Origin of Species.

Language Hat examines the origins of the semicolon, in Venice in 1494.

Erik Loomis at Lawyers, Guns and Money shares a critical report of the new Jill Lepore book These Truths.

The LRB Blog reports from the Museum of Corruption in Kyiv, devoted to the corruption of the ancient regime in Ukraine.

Marginal Revolution shares a new history of the Lakota.

The NYR Daily looks at the photography of Duane Michals.

The Russian Demographics Blog looks at population trends in Russia, still below 1991 totals in current frontiers.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel explains why some of the lightest elements, like lithium, are so rare.

Window on Eurasia shares the opinion of a Russian historian that Eastern Europe is back as a geopolitical zone.

Arnold Zwicky considers Jacques Transue in the light of other pop culture figures and trends.

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[BLOG] Some Friday links

Sat, 23 Nov 2019 18:37:56 GMT

(A day late, I know; I crashed after work yesterday.)

Antipope's Charlie Stross has a thought experiment: If you were superwealthy and guaranteed to live a long health life, how would you try to deal with the consequence of economic inequality?

Vikas Charma at Architectuul takes a look at the different factors that go into height in buildings.

Bad Astronomy notes S5-HVS1, a star flung out of the Milky Way Galaxy by Sagittarius A* at 1755 kilometres per second.

The Broadside Blog's Caitlin Kelly shares photos from two Manhattan walks of hers, taken in non-famous areas.

Centauri Dreams looks at habitability for red dwarf exoplanets. Stellar activity matters.

Maria Farrell at Crooked Timber shares words from a manifesto about data protection in the EU.

Dangerous Minds shares photos from Los Angeles punks and mods and others in the 1980s.

Bruce Dorminey notes a ESA report suggesting crew hibernation could make trips to Mars easier.

Gizmodo notes that the Hayabusa2 probe of Japan is returning from asteroid Ryugu with a sample.

Imageo shares photos of the disastrous fires in Australia from space.

Information is Beautiful reports on winners of the Information is Beautiful Awards for 2019, for good infographics.

JSTOR Daily explains how local television stations made the ironic viewing of bad movies a thing.

Kotaku reports on the last days of Kawasaki Warehouse, an arcade in Japan patterned on the demolished Walled City of Kowloon.

Language Hat notes how translation mistakes led to the star Beta Cygni gaining the Arabic name Albireo.

Language Log reports on a unique Cantonese name of a restaurant in Hong Kong.

Robert Farley at Lawyers, Guns and Money links to an analysis of his suggesting the military of India is increasingly hard-pressed to counterbalance China.

The LRB Blog notes the catastrophe of Venice.

Marginal Revolution notes a paper suggesting states would do well not to place their capitals too far away from major population centres.

Justin Petrone at North! remarks on a set of old apple preserves.

The NYR Daily looks at how the west and the east of the European Union are divided by different conceptions of national identity.

Jim Belshaw at Personal Reflections reports from his town of Armidale as the smoke from the Australian wildfires surrounds all. The photos are shocking.

Emily Lakdawalla at the Planetary Society Blog lists some books about space suitable for children.

Drew Rowsome reviews the Canadian film music stand, inspired by the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike.

The Russian Demographics Blog shares a paper noting that, in Switzerland, parenthood does not make people happy.

The Signal notes that 1.7 million phone book pages have been scanned into the records of the Library of Congress.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel explains the concept of multi-messenger astronomy and why it points the way forward for studies of astrophysics.

Strange Maps looks at how a majority of students in the United States attend diverse schools, and where.

Strange Company explores the mysterious death of Marc-Antoine Calas, whose death triggered the persecution of Huguenots and resulted in the mobilization of Enlightenment figures like Voltaire against the state. What happened?

Towleroad hosts a critical, perhaps disappointed, review of the major gay play The Inheritance.

Understanding Society's Daniel Little looks at the power of individual people in political hierarchies.

Window on Eurasia shares an opinion piece noting how many threats to the Russian language have come from its association with unpopular actions by Russia.

Arnold Zwicky explores queens as various as Elizabeth I and Adore Delano.

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[URBAN NOTE] Fifteen Kitchener-Waterloo items (#waterlooregion)

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 12:24:26 GMT

Work on the second stage of Ion expansion, south into Cambridge, will not even start until 2028, and is expected to cost at least $C 1.36 billion. Global News reports.

This proposal for regular two-way GO Transit rail connections between Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo, frankly, is desperately needed. The Record reports.

A cyclist faces charges for careless driving leading to a collision with a LRT in Kitchener. CBC reports.

A GoFundMe campaign for a woman hit by a train in Kitchener has raised more than $C14 thousand. The Record reports.

A school bus driver has been charged for stopping his vehicle dangerously close to a rail crossing in Cambridge. The Record reports.

Waterloo Region is a successful testbed for virtual doctor visits. The Record reports.

The Charles Street bus terminal in downtown Kitchener is not going to be redeveloped for at least a couple of years. The Record reports.

Waterloo Region hopes to create more than 600 affordable new homes, in five developments, over the next decade. CBC reports.

The number of single food bank users in Kitchener-Waterloo has doubled over the past five years. CBC reports.

Waterloo is spending $C 3 million to renovate and modernize a handsome old Carnegie Library. CBC reports.

A pop-up in Kitchener, Vivid Dreams, is charging customers up to $C 20 to use one of a dozen backgrounds for their Instagram photos. CBC reports.

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The new digital lab at the Kitchener Public Library sounds great! The Record reports.

Andrew Coppolino at CBC Kitchener-Waterloo takes a look at some of the different cuisines and restaurants in Waterloo Region featuring noodles, here.

Andrew Coppolino at CBC Kitchener-Waterloo looks at the pastel de nata, the Portuguese egg custard, as an emerging commercial snack in Waterloo Region.

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[PHOTO] Panorama shot, Toronto Reference Library interior

Mon, 18 Nov 2019 04:49:27 GMT

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[BLOG] Some Wednesday links

Wed, 13 Nov 2019 18:50:13 GMT

Bad Astronomer notes a new study explaining how climate change makes hurricanes more destructive.

Centauri Dreams shares a mosaic photo of the sky with Alpha Centauri highlighted.

The Crux shares a paper explaining why the bubonic plague rarely becomes mass epidemics like the Black Death of the 14th century.

D-Brief notes the new ESA satellite ARIEL, which will be capable of determining of exoplanet skies are clear or not.

Gizmodo consults different experts on the subject of smart drugs. Do they work?

JSTOR Daily explains why Native Americans are so prominent in firefighting in the US Southwest.

Language Log looks at evidence for the diffusion of "horse master" between speakers of ancient Indo-European and Sinitic languages.

Lawyers, Guns and Money notes the election of Chesa Boudin as San Francisco District Attorney.

The LRB Blog considers the apparent pact between Farage and Johnson on Brexit.

Marginal Revolution looks at a paper examining longer-run effects of the integration of the US military on racial lines in the Korean War.

The NYR Daily looks at how Big Pharma in the US is trying to deal with the opioid epidemic.

The Signal explains how the Library of Congress is expanding its collections of digital material.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel explains how future generations of telescopes will be able to directly measure the expansion of the universe.

The Volokh Conspiracy explains why DACA, giving succor to Dreamers, is legal.

Window on Eurasia notes that, after a century of tumult, the economy of Russia is back at the same relative ranking that it enjoyed a century ago.

Arnold Zwicky reports on an old butch cookbook.

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[PHOTO] SUV backing up in front of Bloor/Gladstone Library

Wed, 06 Nov 2019 16:12:14 GMT

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[URBAN NOTE] Seven Toronto links

Sat, 02 Nov 2019 22:35:18 GMT

Jamie Bradburn shares photos from his neighbourhood's East Lynn Pumpkin Parade, here.

Sidewalk Labs is going to release details of all the data it wants to collect. The Toronto Star reports.

NOW Toronto reports on the controversy in the NDP riding association for Parkdale-High Park over the nomination, here.

There is a napping studio in Toronto, offering people the chance to nap for 25 minutes at $10 per nap. The National Post reports.

CBC reports on a film about Little Jamaica, a neighbourhood along Eglinton Avenue West that might be transformed out of existence, here
Daily Xtra looks at the legacy of the Meghan Murphy visit to Toronto.

Spacing notes that the Toronto Reference Library has a large collection of Communist newspapers available for visitors.

The idea of Metrolinx paying for the repair of damaged Eglinton Avenue does make a lot of intuitive sense. CBC reports.

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[URBAN NOTE] Nine Montréal links

Wed, 30 Oct 2019 23:05:10 GMT

The 9th floor restaurant at the Montréal Eaton's looks like an architectural delight. CBC reports.

This bike repair shop in Greenfield Park looks cool. CBC repors.

I quite like the idea behind this rooftop garden in Saint-Henri. CBC reports.

Is building a baseball stadium for Montréal after the Expos went going to be as much of an issue, and in the same ways, as building a hockey stadium after the Nordiques was for Québec City? CTV News reports.

Renovictions are almost always a bad thing. CTV News reports.

A cooperative of artisans has banded together to operate a storefront location in Saint-Henri that none could afford individually. CTV News reports.

Amherst Street has been renamed Atateken, as part of reconciliation with indigenous peoples. CBC reports.

The plight of homeless indigenous people around Cabot Square is desperate. CBC reports.

La Presse notes a sharp fall in attendance at the Grande Bibliothèque over the past decade, a consequence of cutbacks.

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[URBAN NOTE] Ten Toronto links

Sat, 26 Oct 2019 22:16:01 GMT

blogTO looks at the Toronto of the 1950s, when Highway 2--Lake Shore and Kingston Road--was the way into the city.

Jamie Bradburn takes a look at a 1950 tourist guide to Ontario, specifically focusing on its descriptions of Toronto.

Jamie Bradburn looks at how, in the post-war era, dining at the Coxwell Kresge in-house restaurant was a thing.

blogTO notes how many in Leslieville are unhappy with the idea of the Ontario Line being built above-ground.

Samantha Edwards at NOW Toronto notes that there is going to be a Pride rally outside of Palmerston library where Meghan Murphy will be speaking.

Spacing looks at the connections between Nuit Blanche and the Toronto Biennial, for Toronto as an artistic city.

NOW Toronto shares some photos of Honest Ed's in its dying days.

Toronto Life tells the story of Peperonata Lane, a west-end laneway that took its name from a popular neighbourhood pepper-roasting event.

blogTO notes a new movie being filmed in Regent Park, here.

blogTO shares photos of the new Garrison Crossing pedestrian bridge, here.

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[URBAN NOTE] Eight Toronto links

Thu, 24 Oct 2019 17:48:16 GMT

Samantha Edwards writes</> at NOW Toronto about the controversy surrounding the visit of transphobe author Meghan Murphy to give a speech at the Palmerston library, with authors even threatening a boycott of the network.

Natasha Tusikov writes at The Conversation about how Sidewalk Labs' proposals for the Port Lands would give it great and unaccountable political power.

blogTO looks at the 1945 proposal for a subway in Toronto, one with a west-east axis not on Bloor but further south on Queen.

blogTO looks at Sparkles, the nightclub at the top of the CN Tower that reigned over the Toronto scene in the 1980s.

Will the Scarborough neighbourhood of Brichcliffe-Cliffside by changed for the worse by new dense construction? The Toronto Star reports.

People who, in illegally climbing the Scarborough Bluffs, get trapped on said feature might soon be charged with the costs of their own rescue. blogTO reports.

The growth of popularity of specifically Toronto slang is fascinating. Global News reports.

Jamie Bradburn shares an old article on St. John's Norway cemetery, here.

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[PHOTO] St. Clair/Silverthorne Branch Library at night

Sun, 20 Oct 2019 15:27:15 GMT

The St. Clair/Silverthorn branch of the Toronto Public Library, on St. Clair Avenue in Earlscourt, looks great after its completed renovation.

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[BLOG] Some Friday links

Sat, 19 Oct 2019 00:21:17 GMT

Bad Astronomer Phil Plait notes how a photo of the Large Magellanic Cloud makes him recognize it as an irregular spiral, not a blob.

Centauri Dreams celebrates the life of cosmonaut Alexei Leonov.

John Quiggin at Crooked Timber takes issue with one particular claim about the benefits of war and empire.

The Crux looks at fatal familial insomnia, a genetic disease that kills through inflicting sleeplessness on its victims.

D-Brief looks at suggestions that magnetars are formed by the collisions of stars.

Dangerous Minds introduces readers to the fantasy art of Arthur Rackham.

Cody Delistraty considers some evidence suggesting that plants have a particular kind of intelligence.

The Dragon's Tales notes the expansion by Russia of its airbase in Hneymim, Syria.

Karen Sternheimer writes at the Everyday Sociology Blog about the critical and changing position of libraries as public spaces in our cities.

Gizmodo looks at one marvelous way scientists have found to cheat quantum mechanics.

Information is Beautiful outlines a sensible proposal to state to cultivate seaweed a as source of food and fuel.

io9 notes that, in the exciting new X-Men relaunch, immortal Moira MacTaggart is getting her own solo book.

JSTOR Daily notes how the now-defunct Thomas Cook travel agency played a role in supporting British imperialism, back in the day.

Language Log notes that the Oxford English Dictionary is citing the blog on the use of "their" as a singular.

Scott Lemieux at Lawyers, Guns and Money considers the grounds for impeaching Donald Trump.

The LRB Blog looks at the politics of Mozambique at the country approaches dangerous times.

Sean Marshall notes the southern Ontario roads that run to Paris and to London.

Neuroskeptic notes a problematic scientific study that tried to use rabbits to study the female human orgasm.

Steve Baker at The Numerati looks at a new book on journalism by veteran Peter Copeland.

The NYR Daily makes the point that depending on biomass as a green energy solution is foolish.

The Planetary Science Blog notes a 1983 letter by then-president Carl Sagan calling for a NASA mission to Saturn and Titan.

Roads and Kingdoms interviews photojournalist Eduardo Leal on his home city of Porto, particularly as transformed by tourism.

Drew Rowsome notes the book Dreamland, an examination of the early amusement park.

The Russian Demographics Blog shares a paper considering, in broad detail, how the consequence of population aging could be mitigated in the labour market of the European Union.

Strange Company reports on a bizarre poltergeist in a British garden shed.

Window on Eurasia notes the new strength of a civic national identity in Kazakhstan, based on extensive polling.

Arnold Zwicky, surely as qualified a linguist as any, examines current verb of the American moment, "depose".

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[URBAN NOTE] Five notes about cities: parks, productivity, suburbs, borders, libraries

Sun, 22 Sep 2019 22:45:45 GMT

CityLab looks at a new study examining the relationship between gentrification and new city parks.

Guardian Cities looks at the hardest-working cities in the world, and wonders if that duration of work is a good idea.

The Conversation looks at how population growth in Canada is increasingly concentrated in car-dependent suburbs.

VICE looks at how arbitrary municipal borders in built-up areas can have nasty effects on the lives of people caught up by them.

Rabble reports on how Canadian libraries are handling the opioid crisis.

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[URBAN NOTE] Five city links: Milton, Hamilton, New York City, Mexico City, Tel Aviv

Sat, 14 Sep 2019 21:45:28 GMT

MacLean's reports from the GTA suburban city of Milton, a key battleground in the federal election.

Hamilton police continues to be caught up in controversy over its handling of Pride. Global News reports.

CityLab profiles new murals being created in New York City's Harlem, on 125th street, here.

Guardian Cities considers some ambitious plans for remodeling Mexico City, with vast new neighbourhoods and airports, which never came off.

Atlas Obscura looks at a notable library of books and other documents in the Yiddish language, housed out of a decrepit bus terminal in Tel Aviv.

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[BLOG] Some Thursday links

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 14:26:51 GMT

The Buzz shares a TIFF reading list, here.

Centauri Dreams notes the growing sensitivity of radial velocity techniques in finding weird exoplanet HR 5183 b, here.

The Crux reports on circumgalactic gas and the death of galaxies.

Dead Things notes the import of the discovery of the oldest known Australopithecine skull.

Dangerous Minds reports on pioneering 1930s queer artist Hannah Gluckstein, also known as Gluck.

Gizmodo notes that, for an unnamed reason, DARPA needs a large secure underground testing facility for tomorrow.

JSTOR Daily looks at how Jim Crow laws affected Mexican immigrants in the early 20th century US.

Language Hat looks at a new project to study Irish texts and language over centuries.

Language Log shares some Chinglish signs from a top university in China.

Lawyers, Guns and Money shares an interview with Jeffrey Melnick suggesting Charles Manson was substantially a convenient boogeyman.

Marginal Revolution shares a paper suggesting marijuana legalization is linked to declining crime rates.

Susan Neiman at the NYR Daily tells how she began her life as a white woman in Atlanta and is ending it as a Jewish woman in Berlin.

The Planetary Society Blog looks at Hayabusa2 at Ryugu.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel celebrated the 230th anniversary of Enceladus, the Saturn moon that might harbour life.

Window on Eurasia notes how global warming is harming the rivers of Siberia, causing many to run short.

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[BLOG] Some Friday links

Fri, 31 May 2019 23:56:40 GMT

Matt Thompson at anthro{dendum} writes about the complex, often anthropological, satire in the comics of Charles Addams.

Architectuul looks at the photography of Roberto Conte.

Bad Astronomy's Phil Plait notes a new computer model suggesting a supernova can be triggered by throwing a white dwarf into close orbit of a black hole.

D-Brief notes how ammonia on the surface of Pluto hints at the existence of a subsurface ocean.

Bruce Dorminey notes how the bombardment of Earth by debris from a nearby supernova might have prompted early hominids to become bipedal.

The Dragon's Tales notes that NASA has awarded its first contract for its plans in lunar space.

Far Outliers notes the reactions, within and without the Soviet Union, to the 1991 Soviet coup attempt.

Matt Novak at Gizmodo's Paleofuture notes how, in 1995, Terry Pratchett predicted the rise of online Nazis.

io9 notes the impending physical release this summer of DVDs of the Deep Space Nine documentary What We Left Behind.

JSTOR Daily suggests some ways to start gardening in your apartment.

Victor Mair at Language Log claims that learning Literary Chinese is a uniquely difficult experience. Thoughts?

The NYR Daily features a wide-ranging interview with EU official Michel Barnier focused particularly, but not exclusively, on Brexit.

The Planetary Society Blog notes that an Internet vote has produced a majority in favour of naming outer system body 2007 OR10 Gonggang.

The Power and the Money's Noel Maurer considers the possibility that foreign investors in Mexico might be at risk, at least feel themselves at risk, from the government of AMLO.

The Signal looks at how the Library of Congress archives spreadsheets.

Van Waffle at the Speed River Journal looks at magenta spreen, a colourful green that he grows in his garden.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel notes how we on Earth are carelessly wasting irreplaceable helium.

Window on Eurasia refers to reports claiming that a third of the population of Turkmenistan has fled that Central Asian state. Could this be accurate?

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[BLOG] Some Tuesday links

Wed, 22 May 2019 11:36:40 GMT

Architectuul notes the recent death of I.M. Pei.

Bad Astronomer Phil Plait notes what, exactly, rubble-pile asteroids are.

The Broadside Blog's Caitlin Kelly writes about definitions of home.

Centauri Dreams considers white dwarf planets.

The Crux notes how ultra-processed foods are liked closely to weight gain.

D-Brief observes that a thin layer of insulating ice might be saving the subsurface oceans of Pluto from freezing out.

Bruce Dorminey notes the critical role played by Apollo 10 in getting NASA ready for the Moon landings.

The Dragon's Tales notes the American government's expectation that China will seek to set up its own global network of military bases.

Andrew LePage at Drew Ex Machina reports on the Soviet Union's Venera 5 and 6 missions to Venus.

Far Outliers looks at the visit of U.S. Grant to Japan and China.

Gizmodo notes a recent analysis of Neanderthal teeth suggesting that they split with Homo sapiens at a date substantially earlier than commonly believed.

io9 notes the sheer scale of the Jonathan Hickman reboots for the X-Men comics of Marvel.

Joe. My. God. shares the argument of Ted Cruz that people should stop making fun of his "space pirate" suggestion.I am inclined to think Cruz more right than not, actually.

JSTOR Daily notes the wave of anti-black violence that hit the United States in 1919, often driven by returned veterans.

Language Hat shares a recognizable complaint, written in ancient Akkadian, of bad customers.

Language Log shares a report of a village in Brittany seeking people to decipher a mysterious etching.

This Scott Lemieux report at Lawyers, Guns and Money about how British conservatives received Ben Shapiro is a must-read summary.

Benjamin Markovits at the LRB Blog shares the reasons why he left his immigrant-heavy basketball team in Germany.

Marginal Revolution looks at one effort in Brazil to separate people from their street gangs.

The NYR Daily looks at how ISIS, deprived of its proto-state, has managed to thrive as a decentralized network.

Personal Reflections' Jim Belshaw tells of his experiences and perceptions of his native region of New England, in southeastern Australia.

The Planetary Society Blog notes how the Chang'e 4 rover may have found lunar mantle on the surface of the Moon.

The Power and the Money's Noel Maurer notes that while Argentine president Mauricio Macri is polling badly, his opponents are not polling well.

Roads and Kingdoms shares a list of things to do in see in the Peru capital of Lima.

The Signal examines how the Library of Congress engages in photodocumentation.

Van Waffle at the Speed River Journal explains how he is helping native insects by planting native plants in his garden.

Starts With A Bang's Ethan Siegel notes how scientific illiteracy should never be seen as cool.

Towleroad notes the questions of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as to why Truvada costs so much in the United States.

Window on Eurasia notes how family structures in the North Caucasus are at once modernizing and becoming more conservative.

Yorkshire Ranter Alex Harrowell notes how the distribution of US carriers and their fleets at present does not support the idea of a planned impending war with Iran.

Arnold Zwicky examines the tent caterpillar of California.

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[URBAN NOTE] Five library links: libraries, Ontario, costs

Thu, 09 May 2019 00:04:14 GMT

If you are a subscribing reader to the New York Review of Books, read this Sue Halpern review essay on the public library.

CBC Hamilton reports on how Ontario provincial cuts will hurt many libraries around Hamilton, especially rural ones.

Many libraries, in the area of eastern Ontario Kingston and Perth, will also suffer from the cuts. Global News reports.

This CBC As It Happens interview with Dayna DeBenedet, CEO of the Dryden Public Library, looks at how the cuts will hurt already underserved communities hardest.

Jane Gerster at Global News notes how the library funding cuts will have a much larger negative economic effect than many might think.

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