From ancient Egypt to the Persian Empire, an ingenious method of catching the breeze kept people cool for millennia. In the search for emissions-free cooling, the "wind catcher" could once again come to our aid. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210810-the-ancient-persian-way-to-keep-cool

>> Part of food labeling involves complying with regulation—disclosing any trace amount of the major allergens, for instance—and part of it is pure marketing, aimed at capitalizing on the public’s somewhat hazy understanding and strong desire to make a good, healthy, or sustainable choice.
https://thecounter.org/food-packaging-sustainability-gmo-organic-labels

My Amazon review of _Together We Will Go_ by J Michael Straczynski

A sometimes-uncomfortable novel that's nonetheless page-turning... but c'mon I had you at jms #cosobookclub

https://amzn.to/3t6qfrS

The first image of the completed restoration of Johannes Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window (around 1657-59) has been released by Dresden’s Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, fully revealing a hidden image of Cupid. https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/first-look-at-new-vermeer-painting-as-whole-hidden-cupid-finally-revealed

Hurricane Ida live from space (see the huge eye in the center) https://www.ventusky.com/

The Typewriter Revolution, a new exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland, celebrates the history of one of our favorite machines. https://www.nms.ac.uk/exhibitions-events/exhibitions/national-museum-of-scotland/typewriter-revolution/

It was in the wake of the First World War that passports became the official government documents we know today. https://www.cntraveler.com/story/how-the-us-passport-evolved-from-status-symbol-to-essential-travel-document

Merchants of the Bronze Age faced the same problem as merchants from London to Lisbon today: how to know you’re getting what you pay for in a transaction. https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/06/these-ancient-weights-helped-create-europe-s-first-free-market-more-3000-years-ago

The rainbow, which is still perhaps the most commonly known symbol for the LGBTQIA+ community, has gone through a cultural tug of war over the years. https://hyperallergic.com/669805/why-the-gay-pride-flag-still-matters/

Oh this is cool! https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2021/08/normalynn-ablao-crochet-food/

Whistled speech has arisen in at least 80 languages around the world, especially in rugged, mountainous terrain or dense forest, where ordinary speech doesn’t carry far enough. https://knowablemagazine.org/article/mind/2021/whistled-languages

Such model space habitats—about a dozen exist around the world—aim to test technology and practice mission protocols, as well as mimic the cramped, harsh living and working conditions astronauts will face if they travel to the Red Planet decades from now. https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/08/researchers-revive-dream-martian-habitat-arizona-miniature

Why did the Segway fail and scooters/e-bikes are thriving? https://uxdesign.cc/4-design-lessons-from-the-grim-fate-of-the-segway-cc5fb012887a

A couple of businessmen had the idea of opening a store where people could do their laundry. But would anyone want to wash their dirty underwear in public? https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2021/05/the-invention-of-the-laundromat/

“The findings lend scholarly weight to our anecdotal experiences," says Cheryl Henson of the Jim Henson Foundation. https://www.futurity.org/autism-children-puppets-attention-2615172/

What book did you like, a while back, but now seems to be forgotten?

I'll go first: Gael Baudino's series that begins with Strands of Starlight. It always reminds me that we are here to aid and comfort one another -- and that redemption isn't always simple.
https://amzn.to/3zkBwH7

"There aren’t huge numbers of news search engines anymore since the Facebook / Google juggernaut has kind of flattened everything. But good news: there’s still Bing News. And better news: it has RSS feeds!"

https://researchbuzz.me/2021/08/24/backstop-your-google-alerts-with-bing-news-rss-feeds/

This website explains online terms of service in a simple way. https://tosdr.org/