Library Signs

Library Meeting Room sign

 

An oft-stated library axiom is that people don't read signs. I guess libraries need to be more creative with their library wording to get patrons' attention. Herewith some interesting and often amusing library library signage:

 

• BuzzFeed's Passive Aggressive Library Signs.
• Library signage a Pinterest user would like to see in their library.
• Another Pinterest user has a list of strange and useful library signs.
• And lastly, Smashing Magazine has a gallery of elegant and interesting library signs from around the world.

Check this (oddball thing) out!

Black Lab by Michelle Buntin [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Libraries lend more than just books and media, but some libraries take material loans to interesting lengths. The following links list interesting things you can check out at some libraries, such as guide dogs, tools, fishing poles, and even people!

 

• The Open Education Database website has a nice pictorial list of 11 surprising things you can check out of libraries.
• NPR recently presented, "Weird Public Library Stuff."
• USA Today has an article entitled, "Libraries offer weird things to draw new borrowers."

Vollis Simpson, Maker of Wonderful, Whimsical Whirligigs, Dies at 94

Vollis Simpson (Gerry Broome, AP)

Whirligigs by Vollis Simpson in NC (Gerry Broome, AP)

Wikipedia describes whirligigs as, "pinwheels, buzzers, comic weathervanes, gee-haws, spinners, whirlygigs, whirlijig, whirlyjig, whirlybird, or plain whirly. Whirligigs are most commonly powered by the wind but can be hand or friction powered or even powered by a motor."  The most famous whirligig maker of all was Vollis Simpson, who created some massive and creative wind-driven whirligigs with which he  populated his farm. This whirligig farm, located in Lucama, North Carolina, contained over 30 large whirligigs, most of which are currently undergoing restoration. More than just whimsical or artistic, however, whirligigs can often be useful as energy producers or weather vanes among other practical functions. Vollis Simpson, a creative inventor/artist/tinkerer/ who lived his life among the beautiful things he built and loved. 

 

From Windmills to Whirligigs / ©Science Museum of Minnesota 1996

 

Pinwheel by Nevit Dilmen (Own work) - Wikimedia Commons

 

A Great Pink Sea Snail Minus its Home?!

The pink slug

The Great Pink Sea Snail

The recent discovery of these giant pink slugs in Australia made me think of the Great Pink Sea Snail in Dr. Dolittle, but the slugs are much slimier and less friendly-looking since they don't have the shell. The shell definitely makes a gastropod look more inviting! But we continue to hope a Great Pink Sea Snail may someday emerge from its watery abode.

The Harp Sponge and a Tiny Little Frog (Way Tiny!)

 

A strange new species of carnivorous sponges was discovered last year and has been added to the top ten newly identified species of 2012. The Harp Sponge simply looks unearthly and was discovered living at a depth of about two miles under water off the California coast. There are some other interesting species on the top ten list as well, among them a glow-in-the-dark cockroach, but nothing looks quite as unreal as the Harp Sponge. The cutest new discovery, though, is a frog which is considered the smallest known vertebrate in the world - Paedophryne amauensis. The LA Times has a nice gallery of the top ten list of newly identified species of 2012.

Photograph of a paratype of Paedophryne amanuensis (LSUMZ 95004) on U.S. dime (diameter 17.91 mm)
Rittmeyer EN, Allison A, Gründler MC, Thompson DK, Austin CC - Wikimedia Commons, 2012

 

The First .COM

Today's post was almost going to be about the Ides of March, but in researching that date, I happened upon an interesting bit of internet history. The very first commercial internet domain name was registered on March 15, 1985 - symbolics.com. The company that registered it, Symbolics, Inc. is no longer in business and the domain was transferred to XF.com in 2009. While symbolics.com was the first domain ever registered, the very first one to be created was Nordu.net, which served as the identifier of the first root server, nic.nordu.net. Nordu.net was created just three months before symbolics.com was registered through the normal domain registration process. TechCrunch has a fascinating article about this history as well as the current status of symbolics.com. Today, this domain exists as a mere marker of its history, although the owner has posted some interesting information about his personal role in acquiring symbolics.com. He has also created an enlightening infographic depicting internet trivia and statistics. Alas, everything has its day and then must pass gracefully into the aether.

Bridge of Light

 

This beautiful art installation looks like it could have been built by Cisco Systems since it resembles their logo. It's sort of like a static fireworks display which you can watch all night long!

"It will be very slow but noble television."

By Ryan Mahle from Sherman Oaks, CA, USA (Flickr.com - image description page) [CC-BY-2.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Firewood TV (Reuters). I totally understand the appeal of this TV show (NYT) - I could sit and watch it all day long!

Amazing Living Bridges

The living bridges of Cherrapunji, India are made from the roots of the Ficus elastica tree.

These are made of tree roots that people have encouraged to grow and intertwine to form durable foot bridges! For a more extensive gallery of these, see the rootbridges blog which highlights the bridges in Cherrapunji, India. There are also root bridges in other parts of the world, notably in Iya Valley, Japan. These bridges call to mind certain Elven Kingdoms of lore :)

Animal Bridges

Wildlife overpass Trans-Canada Highway in the Banff National Park, Canada - photo by Qyd, Wikimedia Commons

I recently read about a study conducted by Clemson University students which produced some distressing results highlighting the dark side of some humans. The students conducted the study in order to help turtles which are killed crossing roads. I won't go into the details of the study, which can be reviewed here, but it did lead me to some good things that people are doing to help wildlife cross roads safely. Many jurisdictions around the world are building animal bridges which are contrived to resemble woodlands so that wildlife can safely and fearlessly use them. Some remarkable images of these bridges have been posted on the Twisted Sifter blog, and additional images can be viewed via a Google image search on wildlife bridges. So, a sad commentary on the dark side of human nature in turn revealed the good side that also resides in all of us. Thank God.

Welcome the New Cosmic Dawn!

Hawaiian sunrise over the Haleakala summit by Tamugreg public domain img. Wikimedia Commons

It's not the end, after all, but a new beginning - a whole new cycle to either repeat or create history! So, herewith some interesting stories about this topic, as well as recommendations from various sources on how to spend this time:

1.  NASA's take on the Mayan Calendar.
2.  NYT's how to prepare, regardless of the nature of this event.
3.  WP's report on the cosmic dawn.
4.  TIME's story on the original cosmic dawn.
5.  Dayton Daily News' 10 things to do at the end.
6.  Edmonton Journal's 7 things to do.
7.  The Village Voice's what to do about the end.
8.  Babble's 10 things to do with your kids before the end. (some of these sound fun)
9.  Timeout's 50 things to do (this will keep you so busy you won't know it's all ended!).
10. Talk Tech's 23 techie things to do before it all ends.
11.  And finally, what to do if we're all still here (rats! this looks too hard).



The original cosmic dawn - Hubble Space Telescope image of NGC 7049 - NASA

Amazing Video Hoax

"Golden Eagle Snatches Kid"

 

This is an amazing video depicting what appears to be a huge eagle snatching a toddler, but it's all done with CGI. The film was produced by students at the Centre NAD, a Canadian animation and design school. News of this hoax came out recently when a media professor admitted that film students created the footage using CGI. A very clever and impressive production!

Billionaire Birth Signs

Just read an interesting article on Warren Buffett in the NY'er, which goes into some detail about his personal traits and philosophy. Although I was already aware of his famous traits of frugality and simplicity, the article goes into more detail about his love of routine and stability. Hamburgers, french fries, and vanilla ice cream comprise his staple diet! This made me wonder a bit more about billionaires in general and what zodiac sign might predominate among them. It turns out, according to a survey cited in Forbes, that a good 12 % of billionaires are Virgos, including Buffett. This is considered a fairly high percentage for any one sign since there are twelve altogether. And Virgo traits do include frugality, love of service, being detail-oriented, and hyper-critical. The Forbes article also lists other billionaire signs - Sagittarius is the least prevalent among them.  Not that I believe in all this, of course :P , but as a Virgo, I can't help but feel somewhat flattered to be in this company, at least personality-wise. Money-wise, it's a whole other story, alas...


Random Book Dispenser

 

Designer/animator/director Craig Small came up with an inventive idea for The Monkey’s Paw, an antiquarian bookstore in Toronto. For two dollars, the Biblio-Mat will randomly dispense a book which is yours to keep and read. It's perfect for someone who wants to read something but doesn't know which title to choose. It's a kind of haphazard readers' advisory service in a box. The dispenser itself resembles a huge cigarette box, but its contents are much healthier. And the music in the video is as quirky as the dispenser! 

"Don't Rush, Look Before You Flush!"



Star Toilet Paper


This is definitely in the category of what will they think of next? Well, we know libraries in many places are in dire straits, but soliciting ads to place on toilet paper - really? A library in New York is doing just that and hoping to attract advertising revenue for its coffers. I have to admit, though, that the company that sells these printed rolls of TP came up with a pretty clever idea. At least this graffiti isn't on bathroom walls!