Whalers’ logbooks show rapid drop in strike rate in north Pacific due to changes in cetacean behaviour https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/mar/17/sperm-whales-in-19th-century-shared-ship-attack-information

A series of paintings and sketches created by JRR Tolkien while he was writing The Lord of the Rings are to be included in the epic fantasy novel for the first time since its publication in 1954. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/mar/25/jrr-tolkiens-own-illustrations-appear-in-lord-of-the-rings-for-the-first-time

A live stream of an eagle's nest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTAsANPVqB8

Glynnis MacNicol on surviving a year without touch. https://gen.medium.com/surviving-a-year-without-touch-de91f6844927

"The last time ships got stuck in the Suez Canal, they were there for eight years and developed a separate society with its own Olympic Games."https://www.vice.com/en/article/akd5zg/the-last-time-the-suez-canal-was-blocked-a-utopian-communist-micronation-was-formed-at-sea

Why so many novels feature golden retrievers https://crimereads.com/why-do-so-many-novels-feature-golden-retrievers/

Old Bay is more than just your favorite spice — it’s a story of the discrimination that Jewish immigrants faced, their perseverance against such hate, and their contribution to the American identity and kitchen.
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/the-nosher/the-jewish-roots-of-old-bay-seasoning/amp/

A man discovered 15,000 bees in his car. But he didn’t notice until he started driving. https://www.boston.com/news/national-news/2021/04/01/a-man-found-15000-bees-in-his-car-after-grocery-shopping

NASA’s Sonification Project lets you listen to stars and black holes https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chandra/news/data-turned-into-sounds-of-stars-galaxies-black-holes.html

Century-old chocolates were found in a wartime helmet. The Cadbury treats were commissioned by Queen Victoria to boost morale during the Boer War. https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/chocolate-boer-war-scli-intl/index.html

A Scottish castle is, perhaps, the ultimate trophy property. They are rare; according to the conservation organization Historic UK, there are just over 100 in Scotland. They are also very expensive. https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/scottish-castles-are-rare-huge-and-very-expensive-147396

In a new national poll released today by Data for Progress and Equal Citizens, 67% of Americans say they support H.R.1 For the People Act, even after being provided opposition messaging. This support continued across party lines: a majority of Republican (56%), Independent (68%), and Democratic voters (77%) also support H.R.1.

For transparency I'm not familiar with the organization doing the polling, but they include the exact questions and surveyed plenty of people.

https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2021/1/22/majority-support-hr1-democracy-reforms

Places to watch ducks if you're sick of everything https://sickofthis.xyz

The polite, socially acceptable name by which it's currently known is the medlar. But for the best part of 900 years, the fruit was called the "open-arse" – thought to be a reference to the appearance of its own large "calyx" or bottom. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210325-the-strange-medieval-fruit-the-world-forgot

Over the years, these opportunists have cultivated a strategy optimized for the social era. They drip anti-science skepticism into Facebook groups and Instagram stories and posts, where algorithms reward content that elicits strong emotional reactions, further amplifying the misinformation.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-04-01/covid-vaccine-and-fertility-facebook-s-platform-is-letting-fake-news-go-viral

Paul Simon explains the song writing process for Simon and Garfunkle's hit 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFt0cP-klQI

Look, is the seller a vampire? https://slate.com/human-interest/2021/03/baltimore-sexy-funeral-goth-house-realtor.html

You may forget but
let me tell you
this: someone in
some future time
will think of us.

—Sappho