Ever wonder what the world would look like without humans? Empty cities, vast space. What about how the internet would look without words? Go to WordlessWeb.com and find out. I find it eerie, foreboding almost, as if all communication was suddenly cut off. Someone else might find it comforting, a release from the bombardment of material on the internet. You?
To reconnect with the past, we often look to our old photographs: birthday parties, childhood bedrooms, school playgrounds all come alive for us through pictures. The website Dear Photograph takes this reconnection one step further. Contributers revisit the site of the photograph, stand in place of the photographer, and capture an image of a long-ago image. Present and past collide.
It's not just a greeting card holiday. The tradition of honoring mothers, or the maternal spirit, has its roots in ancient times. The Greeks, Romans, and Egyptians celebrated their maternal deities, England got into the tradition in the 1600s, and America even has a "Mother's Day Proclamation of 1870." So when you give Mom a kiss and some chocolate Kisses, you are carrying on an ancient tradition of showing love for those powerful women who watch over us and carry us through.
Evelyn Johnson, the record holder of the most hours logged by a female pilot (over 57,000), died Thursday. Affectionately known as "Mama Bird," she began flying in 1944, and put her aviation skills to use as a teacher, training more than 5,000 pilots, many of whom are your pilots on commercial planes today. Johnson managed an airport in Morristown, Tennessee, and stayed active well into her 102 years on this earth (and in the sky).
You think that having a globally recognized company named after you might make you sit back on your laurels.
But not the man behind Apple’s newest improvements: Tomlinson Holman. Name doesn’t sound familiar?
How about THX? Those giant silver letters that slice and boom toward you in the theater, ensuring that the sound quality of the movie you are about to view will be crisp and powerful.
Don't forget to check out our blog section The Scene, over here on the right, which lets you know about fun, wacky, and occasionally educational events happening around the country, updated weekly.
National Doodle Day is May 10. Celebrities have been doodling and uploading their drawings to doodledayusa.org, not just for creative kicks, but for a good cause. These doodles will be available for auction on eBay to raise funds for those suffering from Neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder of the nervous system. Check out the doodles, and maybe bid on one May 10-20! The above drawing is by Meryl Streep, and is, of course, awesome.
At this moment, fashion's best are gathering at the Met in NYC for this year's Costume Institute Gala. The event will raise money and celebrate the opening of the exhibit "Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations," which presents the work of these two great Italian fashion designers, now through August at The Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Happy Cinco de Mayo, everyone! We all love the parties, but do you know anything about the origins of the holiday? Read up and educate your friends over those margaritas today.
May 14, 2012
