Dovi's Digest Volume 20
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual and physical needs
Hi All, and welcome to Volume 20 of Dovi’s Digest.
Last week, I briefly mentioned that I had tendinitis in my hands. Firstly, thank you to the people who messaged to a) ask if I was serious and then b) see how I’m doing. Thankfully it is coming right slowly, and I will soon be back typing at 12 words a minute. The reason I mention this is that it seems one of the causes is gardening, which I’ve been doing quite a bit of during the lockdown. As some of you may know, in my spare time I’ve been growing all sorts of chillies. This was the inspiration for the first article on this week’s list. I can definitively tell you that 1) the process of how the peppers are rated on the Scoville scale is very cool and 2) the Reaper is disgustingly hot. It’s approximately 500 times hotter than a jalapeño and 70 times hotter than Tabasco sauce. To put that into some sort of perspective, think of the temperature difference between 1 and 70 degrees. There are apparently other, hotter, varietals in the works, but they’re not yet stable. Here’s another article on the Reaper that I enjoyed.
In a really jam-packed edition, we also have the story of “Lady Death”, one of the most badass people you’ll ever read about, epic races across continents, a very, very privileged young man and an amazingly audacious Amazon scam.
There were many (7!) correct answers to last week’s riddle. Well done to Bradley Mervis, Max Benjamin, Dan Rab, Eli Berkow, Josh Berman, David Greenway and Dovi Flax. This week’s riddle is a bit tougher, and before I hear cries of “foul!”, yes, I know it’s a reprint. However, no one got it that week. I trust you won’t cheat and check the answer, and if you do, I won’t be angry, just disappointed.
A little bit of housekeeping: The document that I have cross referencing articles with contributors is unfortunately no longer extant. If you have sent me an article in the last few weeks, I’d really appreciate you resending it.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve been slowly building up a small collection of great tweets that I’ve seen, to be included in a new section called “Tweet of the Week”(obviously). If you’ve seen any great ones, I’d love it if you sent them my way.
As always, please keep forwarding the Digest to people who you think would enjoy it, as building the base allows me to expand the digest too.
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming!
All the best
Dovi
And now, the articles:
In Search of the World’s Spiciest Pepper
The race to grow the most insanely hot pepper is on. But the road to fiery fame and fortune is paved with trash talk, deception, even performance enhancers.
Transcontinental Race: How Fiona Kolbinger Became the First Female Winner
All it took was 4000km across Europe in 10 days.
Why Red Means Red in Almost Every Language
The confounding consistency of colour categories.
What happens when a meme becomes a terrorist movement?
Lady Death: Lyudmila Pavlichenko, the Greatest Female Sniper of All Time
With 309 confirmed kills, she became a heroic figure to the Soviets – but the American media didn’t know what to make of her.
How Four Brothers Allegedly Fleeced $19 Million From Amazon
The scheme involved 7 000 $94 toothbrushes, according to law enforcement.
The True Story of the Heartthrob Prince of Qatar and His Time at USC
When a Qatari Sheikh came to live in L.A., an entire economy sprouted to meet his wishes. “His highness doesn’t like to hear no” one associate told a professor.
Quote of the Week:
“The first piece of luggage on the carousel never belongs to anyone.” – George Roberts
Facts of the Week:
In northern Italy, cheese is acceptable as security on a bank loan.
In Brazil, fish skin is used to bandage burns.
Cartoon of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
Every day at noon, a ship leaves Le Havre for New York and another ship leaves New York for Le Havre. The trip lasts 7 days and 7 nights. How many New York-Le Havre ships will the ship leaving Le Havre today meet during its journey to New York?
Last week’s Brainteaser and answer:
What number should replace the question mark?
24…8.5
35…15.6
18…8.125
68 …?
Answer:
48.75. The Answers are made by multiplying the digits (48), then dividing them (0.75) and writing those answers together.
Did someone forward you this email? Lucky you, they obviously think you’re clever.
Is there something you particularly liked or didn’t like? Let me know at dovisdigest@gmail.com