Dovi’s Digest Volume 264
Shoving them in 🍽️🌭🤢
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Hello all! Welcome to Volume 264 of Dovi’s Digest!
For the last month, I’ve been in London, and contrary to popular assumptions, for the most part the weather has been beautiful. Nice and warm, without a cloud in the sky, London on a summer’s day is a great place to be. There are flowers everywhere, pubs set up outdoor tables, the parks are all full, and the sun sets at 10pm, so you can get in a swim even after work. It’s wonderful. Just last week I took an afternoon off, grabbed a cap and a book, and went to go sit on Hampstead Heath (a wild park in London) and sat in the sun by a lake for hours, living my best life. To top it all off, the summer season really started on Monday, when Wimbledon began.
But the real start of summer in popular culture is the 4th of July. The Americans know how to celebrate independence, and they bring the vibes with barbeques, beach parties, and fireworks, all with the stars and stripes flying high in the wind.But there is one thing that stands above all others on the 4th of July as the most American thing. A source of national pride like no other.
I am of course talking about the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. For those of you not in the know, it’s very simple. You have ten minutes to eat as many hot dogs as you can (buns included). There are no utensils, no condiments (although ketchup and mustard are provided), and no vomiting (known in the business as a “reversal of fortune”).
The best of the best is Joey Chestnut, who has won it a record 16 times since 2007 and is favoured to win it this year. He also holds the world record, with 76 hot dogs (which is more than one every 10 seconds).
But how did these bottomless pits find this talent? And possibly more importantly, why on earth do they do it? It’s all in this week’s headline article.
In this week’s added extras:
Two dozen of the world’s most unusual landscapes.
The weirdest and possibly best cover of “Bridge over Troubled Water” you’ve ever heard.
In the 1950s, Motorola tasked the American illustrator Charles Schridde with visualising “the home of the future”, says Moss & Fog. The results are as gripping for what they get wrong as what they get right, and most importantly, they “still look cool”. To see more, click here.
JPMorgan’s annual summer reading list for the wealthy.
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 was ONE correct answer to last week’s brainteaser. Well done to Jeff C! The answer and this week’s riddle are below.
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming.
Have a great weekend,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
Clear Eyes, Full Plates, Can't Puke. Inside Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.
In recent years, the "sport" of competitive eating has expanded from a Coney Island freak show into an international, well, freak show. Jon Ronson hit the contest trail with some of the circuit's deepest stomachs—men who devour unholy amounts of chicken wings in minutes flat; women who make stupid money mowing down quesadillas—and returned with a tale that answers the only question that really matters: Why?
I Spent Three Years Inhaling Tacos and Corn Dogs in Eating Contests. Here’s Why I Stopped
As Fourth of July weekend comes around, I’m reminded of my previous life turning to local eating competitions for a large helping of something that never quite satisfied me.
What Makes Someone Cool? A New Study Offers Clues.
(Courtesy of Jackie L)
Six traits can determine your ‘it’ factor, according to researchers who measured coolness around the globe.
I Stopped Using Passwords. It’s Great—and a Total Mess
Passkeys are here to replace passwords. When they work, it’s a seamless vision of the future. But don’t ditch your old logins just yet.
Is Cheese Giving You Nightmares?
For centuries, folklore and popular wisdom have linked poor eating habits and indigestion to nightmares and restless sleep.
Taliban Bride
Women in Afghanistan are prisoners in their own homes. This is the story of Marjan, married at 12 to a Taliban fighter.
Watch It Burn
Two scammers, a web of betrayal, and Europe’s fraud of the century.
Quote of the Week:
“The day I decided that my life was magical, there was suddenly magic all around me.” – Marabeth Quin
Word of the Week:
Éclaircissement
ay-klair-seess-MO(NG) /ˌeɪklɛːˈsiːsmɒ̃/
Noun
An enlightening explanation of something, typically someone’s conduct, that has hitherto been obscure or inexplicable.
"When the éclaircissement comes there will be a scene."
Can you spell it? Because 13-year-old Faizan Zaki can, and he spelled it to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Do you know a word you think others should know about? Submit it here!
Facts of the Week:
Edward VIl had a golf bag made from an elephant's penis.
Donald Trump's golf bag contains high-powered rifles, as well as clubs (pre-presidency. No idea what’s in there now).
The average plastic bag gets used for 12 minutes but takes up to 1,000 years to biodegrade.
Eating a bag of crisps a day for a year is equivalent to drinking five litres of cooking oil.
Snakes that eat snakes can eat snakes that are 139% of their own length.
The smallest known snake is the size of a toothpick.
In 2017, snakes were observed hunting in packs for the first time.
Snakes are not allowed on American Airlines planes as emotional support animals.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
How many squares are in the image below?
Last week’s brainteaser:
Here is a notorious puzzle known as the “potato paradox.”
Fred brings home 100kg of potatoes, which consist of 99% water. He then leaves them outside overnight so that they consist of 98% water. What is their new weight?
Answer:
50kg. Here’s why.