Tertiarymatt

by Darlene Cavalier

Darlene Cavalier, founder of SciStarter, swabs the Liberty Bell for microbes in Philadelphia.

Thanks to the Independence National Historical Park for giving me access to the Liberty Bell. I had a lot of fun collecting microbes from this national treasure in my hometown!

Happy to announce that the microbes from the Liberty Bell have been selected to fly on the International Space Station where their growth rates will be analyzed and compared to their counterparts back at the UC Davis lab! We will be announcing each selected microbe over the course of the next two weeks, with Philly first. This research is part of Project MERCCURI, a citizen science project from UC Davis, Science Cheerleader and SciStarter, to examine the diversity of microbes on Earth and on the International Space Station.

Check out this particular microbe’s very own trading card! Here’s an excerpt:

Where we found it: On the Liberty Bell (Philadelphia, PA)

Why it’s awesome: This is an important industrial organism, used for the production of penicillin, vitamins, various drugs, and numerous enzymes

Fun fact: The species name of this microbe means “big beast” and it is among the largest bacteria ever discovered

In addition to the microbes from the Liberty Bell, six other microbes from Philadelphia were selected by UC Davis researchers to blast into space for research at the International Space Station. Here are links to images and more information about the microbes collected from the following sites in Philadelphia and selected to fly on the International Space Station:

Chemical Heritage Foundation
Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia 76ers
The Franklin Institute
The Academy of Natural Sciences (microbes collected by St. Peter’s School students)
St. Joseph’s Preparatory School
WHYY studio

A total of 48 samples were selected from across the country.

Here’s more information about this project:

Davis, CA. (Jan. 30, 2014) — Microbes collected from Philadelphia landmarks will soon blast into orbit for research and a microgravity growth competition on the International Space Station (ISS). This citizen science project, known as Project MERCCURI, investigates how microbes from different places on Earth compare to each other and to those found on the International Space Station.

Led by the Science Cheerleaders (current and former NFL and NBA cheerleaders pursuing science and technology careers), thousands of people across the United States participated in the project. Several Pop Warner cheer teams swabbed practice fields, shoes, and cell phones for microbes. Other people collected microbial samples at NFL, NBA, and MLB stadiums; from schools; from landmarks like the Liberty Bell, Sue the T-Rex, the statue of Ben Franklin in Philadelphia, and the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum; and during events including Yuri’s Nights, a series of gatherings across the country to commemorate the first human in space.

The microbes they gathered were examined by the “microbiology team” in the laboratory of Dr. Jonathan Eisen at the University of California at Davis. The team selected 48 microbes (SEVEN of which are from Philadelphia!), which, with approval from NASA, are to ride the SpaceX Falcon 9 to the Space Station for further research. The rocket is scheduled to launch from the Kennedy Space Center in early March.

The public will be able to follow Project MERCCURI as it continues over the next several months via the web site SpaceMicrobes.org. The site will include updates from the research on the Space Station including results of the “microbial playoffs” growth competition. The site also features free interactive visualization tools, lesson plans for teachers, and even trading cards that include photos and the details of each microbe selected for the project, as well as their importance.

In addition to the research in space, thousands of additional samples collected by the public are being analyzed further at UC Davis and by the lab of Dr. Jack Gilbert at Argonne National Laboratory. The microbes found in these samples are being assayed using DNA sequencing technology, and the resulting data will be made available to the public and also integrated with results of the Earth Microbiome Project. Scientists hope to gain insights into what is living at the ISS, how microbes vary between different places on Earth and in space, and to compare growth of microbes on Earth and in microgravity. Philadelphia 76ers fans will have the opportunity to participate in this part of the research during Science at the Sixers night on 2/18 when the 76ers host the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“We are in the midst of a revolution in our ability to study the hidden world of microbes found throughout the planet,” said Jonathan Eisen, Professor at UC Davis and leader of the microBEnet (microbiology of the built environment network) team doing the microbiology side of Project MERCCURI. “One area of growing interest is in studying the microbes living right around us – in our buildings – on our phones – and elsewhere. The Science Cheerleader group has allowed us to get thousands of people to not only think more about the microbes among us, but to also participate in a microbial diversity research project. And those people have helped us get more samples than we have been able to obtain previously.”

“A lot of people ask us *why* we’re sending microbes into space,” said Dr. David Coil, a microbiologist at UC Davis. “Understanding how microbes behave in microgravity is critically important for planning long-term manned spaceflight but also has the possibility of giving us new insight into how these microbes behave in built environments on Earth.”

“This initiative is not just about significant research,” said Darlene Cavalier, a former 76ers cheerleader and Founder of Science Cheerleader and SciStarter, both based in Philadelphia. “It’s about engaging the public in that research. Microbes that were collected at Georgia Tech are taking a ride on the International Space Station. They’re the subject of research by microbiologists and astronauts. We hope that inspires youngsters as well as adults to become more aware of and involved in science.”

Project MERCCURI is coordinated by Science Cheerleader, SciStarter.com, and UC Davis, in conjunction with the Argonne National Laboratory. The Project is made possible by Space Florida, NanoRacks, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

###

Note to editors: To arrange interviews with the research team at UC Davis, members of the Science Cheerleader or SciStarter teams, or with local groups that participated in collecting the microbes, please email Claire LaBeaux, claire@prclaire.com.

Image: Courtey of Darlene Cavalier

This post originally appeared on the Science Cheerleader blog.

The post Liberty and Science for All: Project MERCCURI [UPDATE] appeared first on CitizenSci.

For my new “Matter” column in the New York Times, I look at the latest advance in our understanding of Neanderthal DNA. Neanderthals and humans interbred about 40,000 years ago, and their DNA is still in human genomes today. Scientists are mapping those Neanderthal genes we carry, and figuring out which ones have benefited us and which have made us sick.

One thing I didn’t have room to discuss is a question that I keep asking and to which scientists always respond with intriguingly noncommittal answers: Are Neanderthals members of our own species? Are they Homo sapiens? Are they a subspecies–Homo sapiens neanderthalensis? Or are they a separate species–Homo neanderthalensis?

For much of the 1900s, many scientists saw Neanderthals as the ancestors of living Europeans. But then in the late 1900s, some researchers argued that living humans descended from a small group of Africans that expanded out to the rest of the world. The discovery of Neanderthal DNA has wonderfully muddled that dichotomy. Humans and Neanderthals, the DNA suggests, share a common ancestor that lived 600,000 years ago. After hundreds of thousands of years, they came into contact and interbred. The fact that we carry some Neanderthal DNA shows that their hybrid offspring could have children of their own. One could argue that this ability to breed means that we belong to the same species. Perhaps we’re just subspecies that came to look different because we adapted to different conditions–Africa versus Eurasia.

But the latest evidence adds a new twist. Many genes from Neanderthals appear to have reduced the number of offspring that hybrids could have. That would explain why big segments of the human genome are free of Neanderthal DNA.

Why these genes were harmful isn’t yet clear, but the clues are fascinating. Take FOXP2, a gene involved in language in humans. Neanderthals have FOXP2 as well, but natural selection appears to have eradicated their version from the human gene pool. Did humans with the FOXP2 have trouble speaking? There are other clues that Neanderthal genes created infertile male hybrids. These effects didn’t have to be catastrophic to lead to the disappearance of Neanderthal genes. They might have just eroded away over many generations.

There are no known reproductive barriers between any living humans, no matter how distantly related they are to each other. These barriers are crucial to the origin of new species (although they can still allow some populations to interbreed even after millions of years). So perhaps we can say that Neanderthal, while not a separate species, were well on their way to separating.

Back in late November, the whiskey media received news from Diageo of the Orphan Barrel Whiskey Project, a new series of old and rare limited-edition whiskeys from their warehouses. It’s something we’ve seen from Diageo before, but these are American whiskeys, not Scotch or Irish.

Many of you are aware that Diageo owns and operates the George Dickel distillery in Tennessee. They do not, however, own an operating bourbon distillery.  They own the Bulleit brand, but it’s an open secret that Bulleit bourbon has been produced at the Four Roses distillery in Kentucky; Bulleit Rye is sourced from MGP in Indiana.

But Diageo does own the Stitzel-Weller distillery (mothballed around 1992), where they have stocks of bourbon aging, some distilled at Stitzel-Weller and some from other distilleries. They also once owned the existing Bernheim distillery (from around 1992 to 1999, when they sold it to Heaven Hill) and a different, older Bernheim distillery (theirs into the late 1980s).

So, in theory, future Orphan Barrel whiskey releases could be sourced from a number of operating and mothballed/demolished distilleries, including Stitzel-Weller, Bernheim (current and older), Dickel, Four Roses, MGP, or their Gimli, Manitoba distillery where Crown Royal is produced. There might even be some additional sources that I have omitted, but for the sake of (relative) brevity, let’s leave it at that.

The first three releases, all bourbons, are about to hit the shelves. The press release states that they were bottled at the Dickel distillery, but they weren’t made there. These won’t be the only three releases; at least, this is Diageo’s thinking at present. The two that were mentioned in the November release (Barterhouse and Old Blowhard) are being released first. A third one, tentatively called Rhetoric, will follow on a month or two later. These bourbons will only be sold in the U.S.

I recently had the opportunity to taste all three (along with another separate new Diageo bourbon release called Blade & Bow). All three Orphan Barrel bourbons have identical mashbills: 86% corn, 6% rye, and 8% barley. Whiskey geeks reading this will identify this as the formula from whiskey made at the Bernheim distilleries.

The youngest of the three is Rhetoric, clocking in at 19 years, followed by Barterhouse at 20 years and Old Blowhard at 26. If you do the math, you will discover that Old Blowhard was actually produced at the old Bernheim distillery. This is from the last remaining stocks. There will be no more Old Blowhard releases, according to Diageo. The suggested retail price of $150 is great when compared to other older bourbons and ryes these days—especially from mothballed and demolished distilleries. (Think Pappy Van Winkle and Stitzel-Weller.)

Barterhouse is from the existing Bernheim distillery. My sources at Diageo say there might be another batch release of Barterhouse, and perhaps Rhetoric, down the road. Barterhouse, at a suggested retail price of $75, is also very attractively priced, considering its age.

But how do they taste? My informal tasting notes are below. Because they are informal, and not official Whisky Advocate reviews, I have not assigned a rating to them yet. This will come at a later date and eventually be published in the magazine.

There’s a sliding scale in flavor profile, with the Barterhouse being the sweetest of the three, Old Blowhard brandishing the most dry oak influence, and Rhetoric somewhere in the middle. I list them in that order, not by age.

Barterhouse 20 year old, 45.1%, $75

Surprisingly lacking in oak intensity, given its age. Very creamy and soothingly sweet, with notes of honeyed vanilla, crème brûlée, sultana, orange creamsicle, peach cobbler, and a subtle array of tropical fruit. Soft and mellow on the finish. It’s very easy-drinking and should be enjoyable under most moods and circumstances. Very nice indeed!

“Rhetoric” 19 year old, 45%, $TBD

Situated between Barterhouse and Old Blowhard in oak influence (and flavor profile in general). Firm spice, botanicals, and dried fruit delivered on a bed of caramel. There’s a kiss of honey to marry with the resinous oak grip, with polished leather and a hint of tobacco on the finish. This whiskey does indeed show its age with the oak presence (much more than Barterhouse), but the sweet notes make a valiant effort to keep the wood influence in check.

Old Blowhard 26 year old, 45.35%, $150

Old Blowhard indeed. The most intense of the three Orphan Barrel releases.  Very robust, with leather, tobacco, and roasted nuts. Quite spicy and resinous too. There’s toffee, maple syrup, and caramel struggling to sooth all this robustness, but the oak maintains the upper hand, I’m afraid.  A digestif, perhaps, after a large meal? Unless you are purchasing for a piece of bourbon history, my advice would be to try it before you buy, as it is very woody.

I did not take notes on the new Blade & Bow offering, but this is a younger, more standard offering that will be a regular stock item, bottled at 45% and sold for around $40. I did not ask the source.

In summary, my favorite of the three Orphan Barrel releases is Barterhouse. It’s very versatile, and the price is right for a 20 year old bourbon. Having said this, you may prefer Rhetoric when it comes out if you like more oak in your bourbon. It was my wife’s favorite. Old Blowhard is the rarest of the bunch, but whether you like it or not will largely depend on your oak tolerance. It’s my least favorite of the three, quite woody, and the most expensive.

The post Diageo’s Orphan Barrel Whiskey Project appeared first on Whisky Advocate.

diasporadash:

William Blake, Europe Supported By Africa and America, 1796. Engraving. Illustration from John Gabriel Stedman, Narrative of a Five Years’ Expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam in Guiana on the Wild Coast of South America; from the Year 1772 to 1777… 2 vols.

Remember in the olden days when your hair would cover your vagina because it was embarrassed for you?  At least when there wasn’t enough garland to go around (your vaginas).

Anyway this picture looks like an early prototype for a modern yogurt commercial.  Just three gals hanging out!  With yogurt! 

Meant to go see these guys with Annie.

Didn’t get a chance, but I will go see them in a month or so.

I DID see these guys with Annie. It was a good show. The end of their set was equipment destroyingly, spiritually loud.

A pretty interesting little video, rare footage, click through to see.  

And click through to this page by John Franch of the University of Illinois, where I found it.  It’s about the Crocker Land Expedition, a very sort of strange and tragic (Piugaattoq! Aleqasina!) expedition, stuck for four years before being rescued by famed Newfoundlander, Captain Robert Bartlett. 

I did like this bit, good ol’ Bartlett:

The third rescue attempt proved to be a charm. On July 31, 1917, the battered Neptune steamed into the harbor at Etah.

“Is that you, Bob?” an excited MacMillan cried out to the sturdy figure on the Neptune’s bridge.

“Of course!” Bartlett responded. “Who in hell do you think it is?”

Anyway, you’ll probably find yourself googling Donald Baxter MacMillan, Minik Wallace, Robert Bartlett, and others, it’s just one of those things.  

Best video quote: “we have no idea what’s going on here.”

I’ve been using Manga Studio 5 to draw the initial line art (“pencils”) for my webcomic, Family Man. I really enjoy the freedom to move elements around, resize, run multiple attempts, and use different line-colors, all without overworking or ruining an actual piece of paper.

It also makes inking much easier, since I can drop out the layers containing all my earliest, sketchiest passes and just reference these nice clean final lines.

Here’s page 305. You can see I reused some of the linework for a background element I’d drawn previously in the comic from the same angle (in blue). 

All of this was printed out, lettered, inked, and then scanned back in and digitally colored. 

From Drinks

[Photograph: Shutterstock]

Bad rye whiskey? Sadly, there is such a thing as bad rye; usually, the juice is so young, it has no nuance or subtlety, and all you get is fire and unpleasant fruity flavors. But enough about the not-so-good stuff. Let's talk instead of the stars of the budget-rye universe.

Good rye should be spicy, somewhat fruity, and a little more rugged than bourbon. A common analogy is to compare rye bread to corn bread, and use that comparison to point out the differences between rye and bourbon. (The analogy is imperfect, but it's a reasonable starting point.)

Rye is so hot right now that it's hard to find good 750-mL bottles for less than $20. So today I'm setting the limit around $25. Here are my 6 top picks, plus a few honorable mentions.

Rittenhouse Rye (100 proof, $23)

You knew I'd start here. And why wouldn't I? Even though Rittenhouse's price point has risen along with its star, this rye is still a great value. (Though I miss the days when I could get it for fifteen bucks.)

Rittenhouse is spicy, like you want a rye to be, with light woody notes from the barrel and hints of cocoa, vanilla, and caramel. There's something to the finish that almost suggests pastry. Rittenhouse is great on the rocks and in cocktails. It's the backbone for my favorite Old Fashioned, for example, and it's also excellent in a Manhattan. (The proof is high enough that you can be generous with the vermouth, and the drink won't get too sweet.) I also love Rittenhouse in a Boulevardier, the whiskey-based variation on the Negroni.

Old Overholt (80 proof, $21)

Overholt is a little milder and softer than Rittenhouse, and it's a good rye for anyone who is used to drinking bourbon or very smooth Scotch. (Rye nerds might want something a bit more pungent.) Overholt is light and herbal, only mildly woody, and with a fruity aroma. Overholt appears in an episode of Mad Men, when Don Draper mixes an Old Fashioned for a hotelier he meets at a wedding. However, in that era Overholt was still a 100-proofer. I'd love to try some, if any of you find it at an estate sale or something.

Pikesville Supreme (80 proof, $19)

Most rye in the United States is produced in what's called the Pennsylvania style (also known as Monongahela style), based on a style common in early American rye distilling, when most rye was made in Pennsylvania. Pikesville is perhaps the last known example of another style: Maryland. This type of rye is lighter and grassier than the Pennsylvanians, and also smoother and somewhat sweeter. Pikesville, like Rittenhouse, is made in Kentucky by Heaven Hill. For those of you who can find it, it's a good bargain.

Redemption Rye (92 proof, $24)

The next three ryes on the list have two things in common: First, they're all distilled at MGP Ingredients in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, and bottled by people who didn't distill it. (I have no problem with this, but I do wish companies would be more transparent about it. In the end, however, I honestly doubt very many consumers other than whiskey geeks give a rat's ass.)

Next, they all have a 95% rye mashbill, which is quite high for a rye whiskey. (By law it must be 51% or higher.) But they're different ryes. I'll talk a little about why.

First, Redemption. Spicy, rich, fruity, and mildly sweet, Redemption simply tastes more rye-forward than, say, Rittenhouse or Overholt. Some people don't like it for that very reason, but though I still prefer Rittenhouse's better balance, I still really enjoy Redemption's rye punch. Redemption is about 2 or 3 years old; it's hard to pin down the bottler on exactly how old. I think it's fine on the rocks, but it's better as a mixer.

Riverboat Rye (80 proof, $24 for a 1L bottle)

Younger sibling to Redemption, Riverboat is aged for a mere two years. It's the same stuff that's in the Redemption bottle, but it's younger and unfiltered. A retailer in Rhode Island told me once that it's also aged entirely on the bottom racks in its warehouse, but I can't verify that independently. The same whiskey aged at different locations in the same warehouse can taste different thanks to temperature variations. Riverboat is definitely a young rye; it's good in cocktails, but not your best choice for serving neat.

George Dickel Rye (90 proof, $23)

The difference between this and Redemption and Riverboat is that the Dickel Rye is finished with the same charcoal filtering that Dickel Tennessee Whisky gets. Dickel is smoother and easier to sip than Redemption or Riverboat. It's not as spicy as other ryes and it presents some citrus and a bit of soot from the charcoal.

Honorable Mentions: Great Not-Quite Budget and Hard-to-Get Rye

There are some great ryes out there that just barely miss the $25-and-under mark...or that are simply unavailable right now. Sazerac (the 6-year-old variety, also known as Baby Saz), for example, costs about $30 in my market. I love it for, well, for Sazeracs, but it's also great on its own, either neat or on ice. And it makes a lovely Old Fashioned. Bulleit Rye is another product of Lawrenceburg, Indiana. In California you might find it for $22, but most other places, it can clock in at $30. It's rich and peppery, with some fruitiness. It complements the Bulleit Bourbon really well somehow, even though it's made in a different distillery and a different state.

One rye that I really miss is Wild Turkey 101 Rye; it's sadly (mostly) off the market. I was buying it when Rittenhouse was on a shortage, and it quickly became my second favorite rye. And I was getting it for about $21, so if it were available, I'd list it here.

Share Your Picks!

Tell me, what is your favorite rye whiskey under $25? What would you add to this list?

About the author: Michael Dietsch lives with his wife and kids in Brooklyn. His first book, Shrubs, is due in October 2014. You can reach him on twitter at @dietsch.

My friend Annie recorded a number of songs using her laptop and various instrumental bits and bobs. You should listen to them.

oliviarrrr:

Okay, so everyone seems to be hailing Lily Allen’s new song as a feminist anthem and if you wanna do that then that’s cool whatever it’s not for me to decide. But if you want a feminist song/video tackling misogyny and racism then you should definitely watch and listen to That’s Alright by Laura Mvula. Not only is it a good, catchy, singalong song that tells you it’s okay to be who you are, but the video itself demonstrates how black people in the media and entertainment industries are used as props, simple entertainment for white people. 

I especially like when she gets to the chorus and she’s singing “Who made you the centre of the universe?” at the all-white audience. A really brilliant yet underrated song and video.

Today’s random art: Renaissance-era nuns! Interesting challenge to design distinctive faces without additional hair and clothing cues.

Today’s random art: a lass from the Decameron.

Happy New Year all. Once again I deeply appreciate everyone’s patience with me the last 6-8 months. Posts and reviews have been sparse, and I’m working hard to get things rolling on Sour Mash Manifesto. Thanks for sticking with the site.

Now, let’s get 2014 started off with a new review of a Heaven Hill brand, Henry McKenna Single Barrel (10 year old) Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon Whiskey. Henry McKenna was said to have brought his family’s whiskey recipe from Ireland in the 1830’s, and established a distillery in Kentucky in 1855. Heaven Hill procured the Henry McKenna brand from Seagrams and began producing this whiskey in the mid 90’s. Let’s take a further look shall we?

Henry McKenna Single Barrel Bottled In Bond Bourbon (10 Years), Barrel #1025, 50% abv (100 proof), $30/bottle
Color: Deep Amber/Russet
Nose: Caramel, golden raisin, rustic corn, vanilla, root beer, and firm oak.
Palate: Classic bourbon flavors of caramel, butterscotch, vanilla, golden fruits with some spicy zip (cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper). Sturdy oak backbone provides some structure. Concentrated, sharp with a beautiful mouth feel.
Overall: This is a satisfyingly delicious bourbon – straight forward in delivery, and rich with rustic character. There’s a healthy dose of spice and heat on the palate to give this bourbon a little pop as well. If you enjoy the Evan Williams Single Barrel vintage dated releases – this 10 year old Henry McKenna has similar DNA, albeit with just a tad less finesse and grace. Outstanding value.
Sour Mash Manifesto Rating: 8.8 (Very Good)

What is malt whisky? Pretty simple question; almost stupidly simple. It’s whisky made from malt. If you put anything else in besides malt, it’s not malt whisky. That’s why single malt and blended malt Scotch whisky doesn’t have a “mashbill.” It’s 100% MALT. Just malt.

Barley

Well, then, what’s malt? We use the term generally to refer to malted barley: barley that has been wetted (“steeped”), allowed to germinate while being turned, and then kilned to drive off the moisture and kill the sprout (before it eats anymore of those valuable starches that will become the water of life).

But other grains are malted as well: rye and wheat, mostly, but other grains like oats and triticale can be malted, even corn. The Scotch Whisky Regulations wisely specify that barley malt must be used to make single malt and blended malt Scotch whisky, but the U.S. Standards of Identity have a few more loopholes for other malts. They note that “malt whisky” must be 51% malted barley and “rye malt whisky” must be 51% malted rye grain…but they don’t specify what the other grains must be. There’s also that odd little catchall phrase that they tuck in there: “…and also includes mixtures of such whiskies of the same type.”

I’m thinking that a whisky made from a mashbill of 51% barley malt, 35% rye malt, and 14% wheat malt would qualify to be labeled as “malt whisky” in the U.S., and that it could further have a fanciful name like “All Your Malts Are Belong To Us!” or “Malts-a-Million,” or simply “Malts Whiskey.”

If you’re wondering what got me thinking about this, it was a sample that came in for review from Wood’s High Mountain Distillery in Colorado, their Tenderfoot Whiskey. They’re calling it ‘our single-malt whiskey,” and it’s made with 77% barley malt, 10% wheat malt, and 13% rye malt. I guess it’s “single-malt” in that it’s all made at their distillery; me, I’d call it a “single-triple malt.”

Rye

It just makes me think. The Scotch Whisky Regulations were updated in 2009, and made some substantial changes. There have been no changes to the Standards of Identity in almost 20 years, nothing at all since the explosion of whiskey experimentation that has been taking place at distilleries big and small. We still don’t have good definitions to cover the unaged “white” whiskey (or the aged and filtered stuff, like White Owl and Jacob’s Ghost), the multiplicity of grains, and experimentation with wood.

So should the Standards of Identity tighten up, with sharper definitions designed to let consumers know more exactly what they’re getting? Should they stop insisting on new charred oak barrels for everything (everything with prestige, that is)? Should they have an outright “Experimental Whisky” category? While we’re at it, should they recognize that this is America, and start using the “whiskey” spelling in the regs?! There is increasing interest in changing the Standards of Identity: who gets to write those changes?

It’s Friday; have at it.

Barley image: © Lucash / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 / GFDL

Rye image: © LSDSL / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA-3.0 / GFDL

The post But Is It Malt Whisky? appeared first on Whisky Advocate.

Hm. Don’t think I ever posted this little convention doodle of Lucien…

Either all of these people are quite small or that’s one of the biggest dump trucks in the world. File under: this exists, this is the Liebherr T-284 Ultra Class Mining Truck, 261 tons of off-highway vehicle that’s the size of a house. This video was filmed at the 2012 Minexpo in Las Vegas.

Related watching: Have you ever seen a crane lift a crane? Have you seen an excavator climb onto a rail car?

via Doobybrain.

Here’s a fun, quick trick: How To Draw Your Hand In “3D”. What other things around the house or outside can you use this technique with?

Related drawing vids: how to draw the Penrose Rectangle and Pardon My Dust. Plus more optical illusions.

Whether you're an ID student working wood or an architecture student making foamcore models, you need a pencil to mark dimensions on the material prior to cutting it. And you quickly learn that on high-tolerance projects, a regular and unsharpened pencil can have you off by as much as 1/16th, or worse if you're a sloppy cutter; the things need to be kept sharp.

So next you figure mechanical pencils are the way to go for accuracy. But mechanical pencil leads always seem to break off when they're jostling around in your ArtBin or toolbox, and those little plastic tubes that hold the replacement leads like to disappear when you're pulling an all-nighter. Plus a mechanical pencil lead has the same problem as conventional pencils—they're worthless for marking on black foamcore or darker woods like walnut.

One potential solution is the Accutrax Pencil Blade, a piece of graphite shaped like a utility knife blade.

Swiss painter, sculptor, and photographer Markus Raetz creates lyrical art that explores illusion and perception. In the piece above, rotating leaves of cut metal reveal a “turning” head in the illuminated space between them. In Yes/No, below, your point of view changes the response given:

You can see more videos of Raetz’s work, including a 10m documentary, at Visual News.

In the archives: optical illusions, kinetic sculptures, and perception.

via Sploid.

carsonfellis:

still working on wallpaper for our book room; trying to come up with a color scheme we can all live with

gorgeous, like everything she touches 

Drawing of the day: a lad from the Decameron.

erikkwakkel:

19th-century tattoo still attached to its owner

This must be one of the most bizarre objects in the library of the Wellcome Institute for the study of public health - whose collections can now be browsed online. It’s a tattoo from the late 19th century. How is this possible, I hear you say. The answer is as straightforward as distasteful: the tattoo is still attached to the owner’s skin. Revolting? Yes. In fact, the level of grossness equals that of the book bound in human skin, which I posted on Tumblr around Halloween. At the same time, however, the tough sailor carrying flowers is a historical artefact. It shows, after all, that people in the 19th century were already into tattoos, which featured carefully picked scenes. Moreover, the themes back then were apparently not so different from today. How remarkable that a piece of the sailor’s owner still survives today. Who was he? Or could it have been a she? A woman standing, perhaps, in the harbour as her hubby sailed off to far-away lands?

Pic: London, Wellcome Library, Museum No A680 (late 19th century), found in the section devoted to historic tattoos on its image website.

I have been to the Wellcome and it is wonderful.