A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Hello all! Welcome to Volume 182 of Dovi’s Digest.
I’ve made some very questionable decisions in my life. Some fashion related (although I will never apologise for my banana t-shirt, the haters know who you are), some poor life choices (dropping out of university in the middle of my final year), some health related (what’s the worst thing that could happen drinking the tap water in Mexico?).
One decision that I’ve never regretted (although many of my loved ones, and even those who dislike me have misgivings about) is doing Movember for many years. For the uninitiated, Movember is an annual fundraiser for both treatment and awareness of testicular cancer. The idea is to raise money by growing a moustache during the month of November (thus the name, a portmanteau of moustache and November). For many years, I loudly and proudly grew my “mo”, taking the vicious mockery in my stride. I raised thousands for the cause, and all for the low sum of looking like a creep for 30 days a year.
I haven’t done it in a while now, and the global reach of Movember has waned (this is most likely correlation and not causation). Moustaches have become more common as well, no longer the domain of only hipsters and old men.
But when did the moustache first come about? How did it separate itself from the beard? If these burning questions plague you, then this week’s headline article is for you.
Thank you to everyone who submitted a word last week! Many titillated and bewitched. Have a word that enraptures you? Submit it here.
In your added extras: a magic trick that not only amazes you, but takes you on a journey as well. Have a look at the gorgeous new surreal bookshop that opened in China, and after looking at that, see how animals look at you with this ranking of animals by their eyesight.
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 THREE correct answers to last week’s brainteaser, Well done to Chaim Ehrlich, Ariel Subotzky, and Hazel Levine! The answer and this week’s puzzle are below.
Aside from hairy faces there are many other things to learn. Read about why Bing is making SpongeBob do 9/11, learn where all those trendy baby names disappeared off to, go off the grid with the story of a man who went guerilla warfare on big oil, find out what the world is like without time, take a look at Japan’s culture of beautiful trucks, and sail off to the ends of the earth with the first woman to try sail nonstop around the world. Enjoy!
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming.
Have a great weekend,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
A Hairy History of The Moustache
It’s autumn and that means it’s ‘Movember’, the time of year when many men stop shaving and let their moustaches grow free. But what’s the history of the moustache?
Bing Is Generating Images of SpongeBob Doing 9/11
Microsoft's Bing Image Creator lets beloved characters fly planes toward tall buildings, illustrating the struggles of generative AI models have with copyright and filtering.
These Baby Names Were Everywhere in the 90s. Now They've Almost Vanished.
For 14 years, these names reigned supreme — what happened?
The Machine Breaker
Inside the mind of an “ecoterrorist”.
A Brain Injury Removed My Ability to Perceive Time. Here's What It's Like in A World Without It
The brain’s perception of time is abstract. Here's what happens when it gets seriously distorted.
Dekotora: The Decorated Trucks of Japan – A Photo Essay
Photographer Julie Glassberg has been documenting the misunderstood alternative culture based around brightly coloured and neon-lit decorated trucks in Japan.
Alone at the Edge of the World
Susie Goodall wanted to circumnavigate the globe in her sailboat without stopping. She didn’t bargain for what everyone else wanted.
Quote of the Week:
“There are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.” – Oscar Wilde
Word of the Week:
(Courtesy of Ariel Subotsky)
Quixotic
/kwɪkˈsɒtɪk/
Adjective
adjective: quixotic
extremely idealistic; unrealistic and impractical.
"a vast and perhaps quixotic project"
Facts of the Week:
A passenger aircraft without windows would be 50% lighter.
56% of France’s military aircraft are unfit to fly.
In 2006, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan was incapacitated by jellyfish attack.
Nomura's jellyfish can weigh up to 440 pounds.
A Danish scientist has invented jellyfish crisps.
Wolves returned to Denmark in 2017 for the first time in 200 years.
In 2017, deer were seen eating a human body for the first time.
The first shark attack recorded in British waters took place in 2017 and left its victim with a cut on his thumb.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
You are on your way to visit your grandma, who lives at the end of the valley. It’s her birthday, and you want to give her the cakes you’ve made.
Between your house and her house, you have to cross seven bridges, but there is a troll lurking under every bridge. Each troll insists that you pay a troll toll. Before you can cross their bridge, you have to give them half of the cakes you are carrying. But as they are kind trolls, they each give you back a single cake.
How many cakes do you have to leave home with to make sure that you arrive at Grandma’s with exactly two cakes?
Also: You can’t end up at Grandma’s house with a half-eaten cake. She wouldn’t like that.
Last Week’s Brainteaser and Answer:
What string of three letters can be placed before and after ‘‘ERGRO” to form a new word?
_ _ _ E R G R O _ _ _
Answer:
Und (underground)
Thanks for reading Dovi’s Digest!