This blog is now rarely updated, but remains as an archive of bits and pieces I've collected from around the internet. To see what's caught my eye more recently, find me on twitter.

Thursday 28 June 2012

#161;

The evolution of evolution - these images chart the development of Darwin's On the Origin of Species as he published updated editions


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Code Club - I wish there had been something like this while I was at school... and someone to force me to join...


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And two just for fun:

and animation anatomy:

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This week's long(ish)form articles:

What Facebook Knows - There's no shortage of paranoia and fear-mongering (not that those fears are necessarily unfounded) about Facebook's data collection habits, but this is a very interesting insight into what they're trying to do with it.

Snowbound - a surprisingly touching account of a trip to Savoonga: the community at the end of the earth, struggling with very modern issues of depression and identity-crisis.

Wednesday 6 June 2012

#160; Fishing and measuring

Nice visual explanation of overfishing. I mostly like the animation style, but the part about the (in)efficiency of fish farms is particularly interesting:

Via Flowing data, which also has the more dramatic "story of sushi"

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Absolutely unbelievable wildlife footage. More at the youtube channel

via

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My iPad has come in to its own since I downloaded the Longform app, which shoots brilliantly selected long articles at you. It's productive procrastination at its best. One gem is the story of Daniel Kish - the blind man who 'sees' with sonar.
"The first thing Daniel Kish does, when I pull up to his tidy gray bungalow in Long Beach, California, is make fun of my driving. “You’re going to leave it that far from the curb?” he asks. He’s standing on his stoop, a good 10 paces from my car. I glance behind me as I walk up to him. I am, indeed, parked about a foot and a half from the curb."
Bewilderingly impressive.

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This is a fantastic animation. Equally engaging is the Making Of, if that's your thing

THE EAGLEMAN STAG from Mikey Please on Vimeo.


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This video about measuring the universe is well worth a watch, if because it is one of the best examples I've seen of crystal clear communication of fairly complex ideas. Deceptively smart.

Measuring the Universe from Royal Observatory Greenwich on Vimeo.