A friend sent me this photograph of octopus eggs, with the baby octopii clearly visible inside the egg sac. I don’t know where it first appeared. Click the image for a larger view. I’ve never seen so clear a view of those baby critters, although I’ve run (or swum) into them on the coast of… Continue reading Fascinating!
Tag: Amazing
You think you’re tough? Try removing your own appendix!
I recently came across a fascinating article about a Russian doctor who cut out his own appendix, after being left with no alternative. During an expedition to the Antarctic, Russian surgeon Leonid Rogozov became seriously ill. He needed an operation – and as the only doctor on the team, he realised he would have to… Continue reading You think you’re tough? Try removing your own appendix!
Sunset over the Northern plains
Courtesy of Daily Timewaster, here’s a beautiful time-lapse video of sunset over Bowdon, North Dakota, in 2017. The videographer, Mike Olbinski, writes: We were chasing northeast of Bismarck, North Dakota and as storms were dying out, we decided to go for a lone cell on the backside of a line of storms. We knew it… Continue reading Sunset over the Northern plains
I’d like to try cooking them
I was amused to read that clay tablets, many thousands of years old, containing ancient Babylonian recipes have been decoded, and researchers are trying to prepare the dishes they describe. The instructions for lamb stew read more like a list of ingredients than a bona fide recipe: “Meat is used. You prepare water. You add… Continue reading I’d like to try cooking them
Saturday snippet: the opening battle of the Red River War in 1874
Today’s snippet is taken from the autobiography of legendary Western scout and Indian fighter Billy Dixon, as recorded by his wife during the last year of his life, and completed by her after his death in 1913. It’s titled “Life of Billy Dixon, Plainsman, Scout and Pioneer“. Dixon (shown below) was one of the great… Continue reading Saturday snippet: the opening battle of the Red River War in 1874
An amazing find in naval and military history
I was amazed to read about a recent discovery in England. A sketch hand-drawn by Admiral Lord Nelson showing his plan for victory at Trafalgar has been discovered tucked inside the pages of a scrapbook after nearly 200 years. The map was found by Martyn Downer, a historian who is an expert on Nelson, in… Continue reading An amazing find in naval and military history
An historic way of life to a different, slower drumbeat
Courtesy of Old Salt Blog, I was interested to come across a novel, centuries-old method of shrimp fishing – on horseback. Intrigued, I looked for more information, and found this longer, more detailed view of the same “industry” in Belgium. I found it equally interesting. It’s fascinating to think that such an ancient method of… Continue reading An historic way of life to a different, slower drumbeat
I bet that got dust up his intakes . . .
An Algerian Mig-29 made an extraordinarily low pass over Mecheria airfield a few days ago. If he’d towed a lawnmower behind him, I reckon he’d have got a full bag of grass cuttings in no time at all . . . The heavy smoke from the engines is a hallmark of the Mig-29, just as… Continue reading I bet that got dust up his intakes . . .
Flying through the water – literally
Here’s a fascinating video taken earlier this month of thousands of Mobula rays in the sea off Baja California. They look like birds flying, but they’re swimming, using a flying motion. You can read more about the event here. I’d love to see that in the flesh. Peter
A remarkable man
I recently came across a video interview of a British Army veteran who, at the age of 94, jumped into Normandy, France, as part of this year’s 75th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day Landings in 1944. It surprised me to see it, because I’d met him before, more than 30 years ago. This interview with… Continue reading A remarkable man