at document scale. I took the 8.5-by-11-inch FBI pages, which were heavily redacted and punctuated with officious markings and handwritten margin notes, and splashed them with bright pink spray paint and pastel rhinestones. The spray paint points to graffiti and "tagging" (an act of reclamation), to my own lexicon of redactions and the unknowable. The crystal adornment is an impossible and tiny act of healing. I also figured pink glitter would be a kind of kryptonite to J. Edgar Hoover's tortured ghost. [Sadie Barnette]

The dispute over portable art was, however, as nothing to that which preceded the acceptance of parietal art — images painted or engraved on the walls and ceilings of caves. Today, we know that parietal art is not confined to deep caves; that was only true of the first discoveries. ... That most of the parietal art known today is of this kind may be a result of the effects of natural weathering on art in exposed places — though we cannot be certain about this point. [mind in the cave: consciousness and the origins of art (g)] previously

In the Grand Hall, miles of new grout secure 29,000 Guastavino ceiling tiles, while in the south concourse a glass roof now protects original brickwork (miraculously intact despite flooding). All throughout Michigan Central Station, stonework has been refreshed or replaced, lighting faithfully reproduced, and period details revived thanks to some 1.7 million hours of work. "They poured their memories and love for Detroit into this project" [Architectural Digest] previously

included within a recent announcement by the the Internet Archive is a list of banned books. this is a great resource! started reading & only got as far as Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe [gbooks]. there's apparently also a film. looking forward to exploring further! thank you Internet Archive folx ❤️❤️❤️

The manifesto opens with the kind of pun Vonnegut could never resist. "Gentlemen," the professor writes, "As the first superweapon with a conscience, I am removing myself from your national defense stockpile. Setting a new precedent in the behavior of ordnance, I have humane reasons for going off." The manifesto goes on for another page and a half. The tone is Norbert Wiener's, [wiki] but the politics are even more overt. [sciencefriday]

this post is inspired by a recent comment by torokunai linking current thinking about Machine Learning to Kurt Vonnegut's first published novel. the FPP quote is from an unpublished earlier work (Vonnegut is one of my favorite writers, having discovered Sirens of Titan at a young age). Westworld [fanfare] came to mind, thinking about all of this. happy to see that was by design: "Westworld co-producer Jonathan Nolan has credited Vonnegut with inspiring the show's player piano, referring to it as a touchstone image of the show's first season." [the conversation; playlist, denofgeek] Nine Inch Nails (inspiration for the post title [wiki]) when the simulacra starts to fray at the edges, things begin to rock [season 3, content note: violence] Common People, originally (bonus: cover by Star Trek's Captain Kirk) Westworld previously on the tech [illanoise.edu]

"You asked to be read in on something big, and the day has come. The Moonrakers Investigative Unit has elevated my current work to critical" [Rogue 2⇔A rebellion built on hope. Save the Rebellion. Save the dream.]

"Having worked out the different stages of this development we are now in a much better position to understand how the word silly could have developed from 'blessed' or 'blissful', which were very positive (especially in the Middle Ages), into something as negative as its present-day meaning of 'foolish'. The key is to realise that while the development as a whole is very drastic, the individual steps are not. Thus, 'blissful/blessed' is not that far removed from 'innocent/harmless'. More precisely, blissful or blessed people and things are often also innocent and harmless, and (again particularly in a medieval mindset) vice versa." [pdf: Lancaster] previously

Coined by the United Nations Environment Programme in 2009, "blue carbon" refers to the carbon dioxide sequestered and stored by coastal habitats such as mangroves and seagrass beds. These highly efficient ecosystems occupy just 0.5% of the seafloor but contribute over 50% of oceans' carbon burial, sequestering even more carbon by area than rainforests. [Japan Times] previously; UN environment programme

archaeological dig at the site turned up over 2,000 artifacts, including remnants of longhouses and evidence of a Native American village [pop mechanics]

WCCB Charlotte: "These folks are out here trying to build development and housing, but the regulatory environment in North Carolina prohibits that," North Carolina State Senator Michael Lazzara said. The Department of Cultural and Natural Resources confirms the only development in the state being held up by these rules is the one owned by his donors.

"freedom, as Rosa Luxemburg said, is 'freedom for the other fellow.' The same principle is contained in the famous words of Voltaire: 'I detest what you say; I will defend to the death your right to say it.' If the intellectual liberty which without a doubt has been one of the distinguishing marks of Western civilization means anything at all, it means that everyone shall have the right to say and to print what he believes to be the truth, provided only that it does not harm the rest of the community in some quite unmistakeable way." [George Orwell, via NYT; previously]

newspeak, translated [openculture; content note, previously]