Dovi’s Digest Volume 65
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Hi all! Welcome to Volume 65 of Dovi’s Digest.
The Digest (capital “T”, capital “D”) was borne out of boredom and laziness. As many of you know, the Marvel worthy origin story of DD began one rainy Thursday night, when I was struck with a ray of brilliance. Instead of sending out one article at a time to whole lotta people, I can COMBINE the articles, and save myself oh so much time (literally seconds every week!). Out of these depths a weekly newsletter was formed, moulded only by my imagination and the amount of time I was willing to devote to it.
For many of us, the last 18 months have been a little bit of blur. Moving from bedroom to kitchen to dining room endlessly, waiting for things to reopen. We treated those nearest and dearest to us like plague-carrying vermin, fastidiously sanitised and washed our hands (which, regardless, you should always do), and wore as many masks as our ears could hold. We weren’t sure what the future would hold, and how it would look. It was against this backdrop that a particular sort or journalism arose. This fell broadly into two camps. Either “Look how good it was, lets reminisce”, or “Is this the end of (insert industry here)?” aka “This is the hellscape that will await us”.
I have read and rejected many articles of these ilk, mainly because they were no longer relevant (i.e. we went back to the same hellscape). However, there were some that stood out for me. In this week’s edition I have shared two of my favourites, one from each side of the divide. Because of my well documented wanderlust, long train journeys are something that I would love to do sometime (think the Trans-Siberian Railway), and now that countries are starting to open, we can see whether the Guardian got it right, and if tourism will rebound.
Besides for these two, the articles this week are your usual heterogeneous blend. There is a wonderful piece on the beauty of abandoned worlds in Roblox, very high lobsters and whether they experience pain (when they’re high. It’s well documented that they very much feel.), walkways high in the sky, as well as a few others. I hope you enjoy!
There were FOUR correct answers to last week’s brainteaser, well done to Josh Friedlander, Eli Berkow, Gilad Amar and Liron Gordon!! The answer (and explanation, which is courtesy of Eli Berkow) and this week’s riddle are below.
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming,
Have a great week,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
The End of Tourism
The pandemic has devastated global tourism, and many will say ‘good riddance’ to overcrowded cities and rubbish-strewn natural wonders. Is there any way to reinvent an industry that does so much damage?
THC: The High Crustaceans
If you give a lobster enough THC, will it notice that it is boiling to death?
Switzerland's Gravity-Defying Solution
Switzerland's 15th-Century farmers and vintners had a dangerously creative solution to irrigating their mountainous land that's still in use today.
How a Teen Punk Led a Movement for Disabled People Online
From Tumblr to TikTok, young disabled people are deciding how to represent themselves.
Money and Modern Life
Sociologist Georg Simmel diagnosed the character of modern city life: finance, fashion and becoming strangers to one another
The Enduring Romance of the Night Train
The beguilements of the sleeper car have never seemed sharper than on the eve of a global lockdown.
I Know a Place
Beauty and solace in the abandoned world of Roblox.
Quote of the Week:
“When your mother asks, “Do you want a piece of advice?” it is a mere formality. It doesn't matter if you answer yes or no. You're going to get it anyway.” – Erma Bombeck
Facts of the Week:
Puffins’ beak glow in the dark.
Birds have special feathers that continually disintegrate into powder, making their other feathers waterproof.
Rolls Royce phantoms have Teflon-coated umbrellas installed in the doors.
A new umbrella drone keeps you dry without you having to hold it.
A pluviophile is someone who loves rainy days.
Malneirophrenia is a bad mood caused by a poor night's sleep.
Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia is the fear of the number 666.
A cumlin is Scots for a pet cat that decides to go and live with new owners.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
(Courtesy of Josh Hovsha)
Headline of the Week:
(Courtesy of Elliot Jebreel)
Brainteaser of the Week:
On each row place a three letter word can be attached to the end of the word to the left, and to the beginning of the word to the right, to give a longer word in each case.
When completed, the centre letters of the added words will give a type of bird reading downwards.
What is it?
FIRED _ _ _ LEST
MARROW _ _ _ ALLY
POST _ _ _ LESS
COUNTER _ _ _ HOLE
TOPS _ _ _ SKIN
HEAR _ _ _ ANT
Last week’s Brainteaser and answer:
A snail travels to his favourite vegetable patch at 110cm per hour.
After munching through the veg, it returns, over exactly the same distance at 73.3333cm per hour.
What is the snail's average speed over the return trip?
Answer:
88cm per hour.
For simplicity, let's assume the total distance is 110 cm. Therefore the outbound journey takes one hour.
The Return trip is 73.3333 cm/h over 110 cm therefore 110 / 73.3333 = 1.5 hours.
Total time therefore is 2.5 hours and total distance is 220 cm therefore 220 / 2.5 = 88cm per hour.