Dovi’s Digest Volume 94
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Привіт друзі (Pryvit druzi, aka Hi friends), welcome to Volume 94 of Dovi’s Digest.
When I wrote last week’s intro there were nearly 200,000 Russian troops amassed on the Ukrainian border, and that was it. However, we woke up to the news of a full-scale invasion. Many people expected the Ukrainians to capitulate and to hand everything over in a few days. This has not been the case. The army (and the territorial defence force) have fought like dervishes, holding up the Russian advance. There have also been multiple examples of Ukrainians having absolute balls of steel, from carrying landmines, stealing tanks, and even some soldiers who were asked to surrender by the navy, and instead told a Russian warship to “go f**ck yourself” before being bombarded.
I could go on about this, but this isn’t a political newsletter, and in fact, people use it as an escape.
So instead, I’m going to talk about high-fives. They’ve become an integral part of our culture. Whether it’s saying hello, saying well done, or celebrating something, the high-five has become ubiquitous. It’s amazing how widespread it’s become, especially because it’s less than 50 years old. No matter where you are in the world, chances are, if you go up for one, the person will reciprocate. Even Borat knows high-five! Its history is a little murky, with many claimed sources, but the two most popular ones are from basketball or baseball teams in the late 1970s. (Side fact, one of the main progenitors, Wiley Brown, only had four fingers.) The origin seems to be from the “low-five” which has been part of African American culture since the 1920s. It’s spawned multiple variations, like the “high ten”, the “up in space”, and the “too slow”.
Which brings us to this week’s headline article. The Wikipedia article for the high-five is one of my favourites. It reads like it was written by some aliens observing humans. Thankfully, along with the text explanations, there are handy pictures describing the steps and the variations. But where do those pictures come from? And who are the people in them? This article finds the people and uncovers the love story shown in those pictures. Before you ask, my favourite pic (as well as the author’s) is the “too slow”, mainly because of the explanation at the bottom (finger guns!!).
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 Ariel Subotzky, Ryan Subotzky, and Josh Friedlander. The answer and this week’s riddle are below.
Don’t care for physical expressions of celebration and joy? I hear it. Thankfully there are other articles that will grab your attention. Read about how Ukrainian culture is so much more than “soviet”, it’s rich and complex in its own right (also, it’s Kyiv, not Kiev), how a lack of scavengers is threatening some burial rites, some sexy, sexy cuttlefish, why the Paralympics aren’t fair (special shout out to this one, really answered some questions for me), Amish drug dealers, and the movement to free the last captive orca (aka killer whale) in Washington state. Enjoy!! (The articles, not the captive orca. That’s just heart-breaking.)
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming,
Have a great week,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
The Adorable Love Story Behind Wikipedia’s “High Five” Photos
Nearly 14 years later, the tale of this iconic couple can finally be told.
It’s Not “The” Ukraine
The country is much more than a sphere of influence.
Death In the City: How A Lack of Vultures Threatens Mumbai's “Towers of Silence”
(Courtesy of Tobias Jona Simon)
In exclusive Malabar Hill, the city’s dwindling Parsi community continues with the Zoroastrian tradition of disposing of dead bodies by exposing them to scavenger birds. How much longer can this 3,000-year-old tradition survive?
Australia's X-Rated Underwater Show
Each year, the small South Australian town of Whyalla becomes home to one of the most spectacular underwater events: the spawning of the giant Australian cuttlefish.
Paralympic Classifications Are Meant to Level the Playing Field. Do They?
(Courtesy of Yisroel Greenberg)
Parasports — just like non-disabled sports — are rife with inequities.
Growhouses, Pot Fields and Biker Gangs: The Secret Lives and Crimes of Amish Drug Dealers
Just because you avoid modernity, doesn’t mean you abide by the law.
The Race to Free Washington’s Last Orca in Captivity
A southern resident’s violent capture off Whidbey Island was the original sin of a now-defunct local industry. Decades later, an effort to bring her home is on the verge of an improbable breakthrough.
Quote of the Week:
“Under the present brutal and primitive conditions on this planet, every person you meet should be regarded as one of the walking wounded. we have never seen a man or woman not slightly deranged by either anxiety or grief. we have never seen a totally sane human being.” – Robert Anton Wilson
Facts of the Week:
The odds of being bitten by a shark, bear, or snake in any three-year period is 893 quadrillion to one.
Lima Bean plants attacked by spider mites release a burst of chemicals that attract insects which then eat the spider mites.
The tea mite, Tuckerella japonica, has been lurking in cups of tea for 3000 years.
There is only one species of tea plant.
Tea leaves uncurl when hot water is poured on them, in a process known as the “agony of the leaves”.
The world's largest amphibian makes a sound like a crying baby.
The call of the male Túngara frog of Central America sounds like a Star Trek phaser.
Parrots use Alexa to order items from Amazon.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
I am an alloy.
Change one letter and I am pastureland.
Change another letter and I am a hard, transparent substance.
Change a further letter and I am a group of pupils.
Change one final letter and I am a confrontation.
What was I and what did I become?
Last Week’s Brainteaser and Answer:
A hiking group walk from one town to another.
On the first day they cover one eighth of the total distance.
The next day they cover one third of what is left.
The following day they cover one quarter of the remainder
and on the fourth day half of the remaining distance.
The group have 15 miles left to walk.
How many miles have they covered?
Answer:
They have 15,57 (or 15 and 4/7)
Random fact: 'Finger guns' are illegal in Pennsylvania.