“A column of bluish light as bright as the Sun streaked through cloudless skies above the Taiga forest. Minutes later, local herdsmen and recent settlers saw a brilliant flash followed by the sound of explosions, like an artillery barrage from a great battle raging over the horizon. An ashen cloud rose in the distance, and could be seen from hundreds of miles away. And then – silence.
The place: the Podkamennaya (Lower Stony) Tunguska River in central Siberia, northeast of Lake Baikal; the time: 7:14 a.m. on the morning of June 30, 1908.

Within minutes the “Tunguska Event,” the largest asteroid impact in modern recorded history, was over.

What Hit Siberia 100 Years Ago? Tunguska Event Still Puzzles Scientists

“Why Jane Eyre? The most important thing about JE is that it is an excellent read, full of romance and fab characters and a burning building at the end - something that fitted in well with what I had planned. The other point about JE is that it is a very familiar piece of work - I think most people have a good idea that it is a romantic Victorian novel even if they haven’t actually read it. It gave me problems too. I was stalled on the writing for about three years as I couldn’t see how I could commit literary heresy and put words into Jane’s mouth. I got round the problem by skirting it completely, coward that I am - I think I gave her only two lines - and short ones at that!”

An Introduction To The Eyre Affair@Jasperfforde.com

“Long before technology was developed to predict the weather, people had to rely on observation, patterns and folklore to avoid being caught off guard by the elements. If your plans, livelihood or even your survival depend on the weather, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to become familiar with some of these methods, especially since you never know when you might be out of touch with the local weather report. These methods aren’t foolproof, but they have their usefulness, and if you don’t have a forecast on hand, what do you have to lose by trying them?” Link@wikihow.com

“The Black Bear is a stocky, large animal, one of the largest mammals in North America. Adults reach a length of 5 to 6 feet, height at the shoulder of 2 to 3 feet, and weigh 200-300 pounds. Although called a “black” bear, colors can range from black to the occasional cinnamon brown. Although appealing and generally harmless, Black Bears can injure humans when provoked and should be treated with caution.The American Black Bear is found throughout North America in habitats ranging from swamps to desert scrub. Black Bears were once found through out North America, mostly in forests, but also in deserts and swamps.”

Ursus Americanus Eremicus@The Smithsonian Book Of Mammals
Bears in Texas and Northeastern Mexico@TPW.com

Este es un disco de b-sides & outtakes. Si no conocen a Lloyd Cole, es probable que sea mejor empezar con algo de su material anterior para familiarizarse con este genial singer-songwriter británico. Nevertheless, la marsopa dejó instrucciones de finalmente ponerles una canción de él, y se decidió por esta; pues evoca un par de buenos recuerdos veraniegos y trae al magnífico Robert Quine en la guitarra.

Lloyd Cole - Alright People (mp3)
Etc
Megaworld, 2001
Cómprenlo@waterloorecords.com

“Think of a nucleus as a party. The protons are like the type A, cliquish people at the party–constantly talking bad about one another when afar, but all lovey-dovey when up and close. The neutrons are the type-B’s, pretty nonpartisan about people from afar, but agreeable enough (if a bit dull) when up close. There is an optimum mix of these two kinds of people, the perfect party mixing the right number of type A’s and type B’s. Too small of a party? Boring! Too big? Unwieldy! Having too many type A’s, with too few type B’s to smooth things out? Disaster. Too many type B’s? Dull disaster. You’ve been at a bad party that suddenly got better, either by someone coming or going. The sense of relief, the release of nervous energy, is palpable.” Nuclear Power@dearscience.com

“As a young child (or perhaps even an adult) who hasn’t dreamed of living in a tree house? Some structures are built on trees or hung from trees, but some unusual tree houses are even grown from trees or built right into a tree. Some people live in trees as a luxury, some to help save the environment and others out of tradition or necessity. Here are ten incredible tree house designs that range from functional to fanciful, sustainable to strange and affordable to incredibly expensive.”

Amazing Tree Houses@weburbanist.com

“The Cold War has been over for two decades, and many of this article’s current readers have never lived under the shadow of nuclear annihilation. Nevertheless, a nuclear attack is still a very real threat. Global politics are certainly no more stable than they were in the Cold War, and human nature has changed none in the last two decades. “The most persistent sound which reverberates through man’s history”, as one wrote, “is the beating of war drums”. For as long as nuclear weapons exist in the armories of human beings, there will always be the danger that they will be used.” Link@wikihow.com