Dovi’s Digest Volume 132
Everybody loves a good comeback 🤠
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Ahlan! Welcome to Volume 132 of Dovi’s Digest.
There are moments in TV and movies that deliver a gut punch, no matter how many times you watch them. Even though I know the scene is coming, and I steel myself, I still tear up (surprise surprise, I’m a big ‘ol softy). I won’t list all my greatest hits, but notable examples include (Huge spoiler alert) the Iron Giant, Littlefoot’s mom in The Land Before Time (with the indelible quote that makes me misty eyed “Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely”), and of course Ellie’s death in Up. (An aside: after writing that last clause, I notice they’re all kid’s movies. Which is kinda messed up.)
However, there is one scene that messes me up Every. Single. Damn. Time. It’s the perfect confluence of a good arc, great cinematography, tearjerker music, and a classic bait and switch.
Ben’s death in Scrubs is a seminal moment in TV, killing off a well-liked character for what seems to be no reason (a trend that has continued since). The camera sweep that reveals the cemetery is masterful, and the haunting tones of Joshua Radin’s Winteroverlay it all, making me bawl every time (Joshua Radin in general makes me cry, in particular Closer, but that’s another story).
Ben, a carefree oddball with a polaroid camera, was ably played by Brendan Frasier at the height of his fame. He was the it man in Hollywood, appearing in movie after movie (mainly not great comedies but still. George of the Jungle gets honourable mention). He was cast as the star in The Mummy alongside Rachel Weisz and then suddenly disappeared from our screens. He remained a cult favourite, but largely fell into obscurity. GQ did a profile on him four years ago when there was clamour among fans to bring him back (linked here), but his real big comeback was released this year. About an obese and reclusive English teacher trying to connect with his estranged daughter, The Whale is now tipped as an Oscar winner, with quite a few awards in what I guess are the lower leagues.
There is a lot of wholesome joy on the internet for the return of Brendan Frasier, who has accepted the accolades and publicity with humility and grace. This week’s headline article is about him, and his unlikely comeback worthy of a movie all by itself.
There was a lot of love a few weeks ago about the maps in fictional worlds. So, this week I’m presenting to you a fictional map of our world that you’ve all seen before, but probably didn’t know how wrong it was. It’s what happens when we try place a globe onto a 2D medium.
The accompanying article explains why the Mercator projection is the go-to map and shows you the actual size of countries.
And here’s the explainer article.
Do you enjoy the Digest? Would you like it to get better? Then please consider sharing it, as the more articles I’m sent, the better it is. It only takes a few seconds, and all you need to do is click here 👇. Thank you!
There were TWO correct answers to last week’s brainteaser, and THREE for the week before. Well done to Daniel Rabinovitch, Yisroel Greenberg, and Myer Brom for V131, and to Josh Hazan, Chaim Ehrlich, and Myer Brom for V130. The answers and this week’s brainteaser are below.
If a wholesome comeback story doesn’t juice you, then I don’t know what will. Regardless, aside from that you can also learn why this year’s World Cup currently being held in Qatar was such a bad idea, the mysteries that still surround king tut who’s tomb was uncovered one hundred years ago this month, why (and how) people mail themselves places, the fragility of the North Pole, a new element that’s never been found on Earth, BuzzFeed’s rise and fall once people realised it basically plagiarised everything, and how to visualise infinity. Enjoy!
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming,
Have a great week,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
How Brendan Fraser Made It All the Way Back
When GQ last met him, Brendan Fraser was speaking candidly for the first time about his supposed disappearance from Hollywood. Now, four years later, he’s an Oscar favourite— and a man reckoning in real life with the kind of comeback you only see in the movies.
The Many, Many Controversies Surrounding The 2022 World Cup, Explained
Since FIFA awarded the 2022 World Cup to Qatar in 2010, the tournament has been ensnared in a tangled web of scandals.
King Tut Mysteries Endure 100 Years After Discovery
A century after archaeologist Howard Carter’s momentous discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb, questions and controversy still swirl around Egypt’s most famous king
The Strangely Successful History of People Mailing Themselves in Boxes
It’s not easy, nor legal, nor permitted by any major shipping company, but that hasn’t stopped a very special group of people from trying.
The North Pole: One of Earth's Last 'Un-Owned' Lands
The journey to reach this elusive destination helps travellers grasp the power and fragility of our changing planet.
They Made A Material That Doesn't Exist On Earth. That's Only The Start Of The Story.
A metal previously only found in meteorites has been synthesised in a lab. It could help us save the world.
The Unbearable Lightness of BuzzFeed
(Courtesy of Yisroel Greenberg)
BuzzFeed built a digital media empire in part by aggregating viral content from social media. A decade later, what’s next?
How Big Is Infinity?
Of all the endless questions children and mathematicians have asked about infinity, one of the biggest has to do with its size.
Quote of the Week:
(Courtesy of Dovi Joel)
“We must believe in free will – we have no other choice.” – Isaac Singer
Facts of the Week:
In 1990, the Soviet Union paid for 3 billion dollars’ worth of Pepsi with warships.
Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Doctor Pepper were all invented by pharmacists
French pharmacists are all qualified to identify edible mushrooms.
Mushrooms are farmed in the catacombs under Paris.
There are 19 alligator farms in the US.
70% of all the birds on Earth are farmed poultry.
Clarence Birds Eye founded his company with $7, which he spent on blocks of ice and an electric fan.
The President of Rwanda is an Arsenal fan.
The woman's Football World Cup has only ever been won by democracies.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
(No attribution this week as I’ve seen it in at least five viral tweets)
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
You and a friend are discussing how you choose four-digit PINs. You establish that neither of you would ever use the digit 0.
“I like to choose four different random digits,” you say.
“I like to choose three different random digits,” they reply, “so one of the digits is used twice.”
Which strategy gives the largest pool of possible four-digit PINs?
Last Week’s Brainteaser and Answer:
What is behind the grey square?
Answer: a knight. Each number represents how many moves it would take said knight to reach that square.
Last last week’s Brainteaser and Answer:
Split the grid into four identical regions, such that each region contains a lion and a crown.
Answer:
What language is "Ahlan"?
Google translate, using 'detect language', tells me it's Malay, but it translates it to English as "Ahlan", so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ , as you would say.