Raining steadily here, though the weather forecast predicts a period of it being merely overcast this afternoon, before raining again just when one might think of going to the pub 
Happy invoicing!
- Everyday Misanthrope - "Everyday Misanthrope is a choose-your-own-misery simulation in which you gain catharsis from spreading everyday suffering." The perfect game for a rainy Bank Holiday, by Liz England: you are a miserable curmudgeon, and your aim is to ensure that everybody around you has a wretched time too. Runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux, and as it’s in Python and public domain, you can even modify the source if you want to make life hold even more tribulations
- Whatever happened to the Marshall County cop who hit a UFO? - John Enger tracks down former Sheriff's Deputy Val Johnson, who had a close encounter in 1979: ”Johnson's squad car is preserved in the Marshall County Museum with a plaque that says: "U.F.O. Car." People still come from miles around to see it. It's an annual display at the Marshall County Fair.”
- Showering, teeth brushing and donning underwear: the strange history of our daily routine - "From the moment we wake in the morning, we all take part in rituals that are millennia old. But when did we start cleaning our teeth and wearing underpants? And who invented the bed and the alarm clock? Greg Jenner of Horrible Histories fame investigates…"
- A design (to sign roads by) - "As an exemplary rational design programme, the road signs of Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert demand careful study. Despite poor application, inconsistent additions and muddle over the past four decades, their robust, flexible system – with its humane typeface and quirky pictograms – still functions throughout the length and breadth of Britain.” Keep the kids entertained as you sit in a Bank Holiday traffic jam by explaining the minutiae of the road sign you’ve been creeping towards for the past forty minutes.
- The rise of explorable explanations - ”It may be that I’m just late to the party, but the last couple of months some very interesting mixes of text and small, interactive graphics explaining quite complex mathematical, statistical and other concepts came into my view. Here I list some of these new and powerful explorable explanations.” Maarten Lambrechts on the rise of the kind of interactive tutorial I’ve featured here a number of times (including a couple of those he lists).
- How To Roast A Whole Pig Over An Open Fire - "This weekend, we roasted an entire pig at my house for a BBQ. Not only was it fun and visually-impressive to cook, but it was darn tasty too. You should try it! This is our method." A bit late for today unless you can source a freshly-slaughtered pig at short notice, but the crucifixion-like method of splaying the pig probably makes this more suitable for Easter weekend anyway
- I Married A Pot, Then I Killed Him - Journalist Yashica Dutt on reluctantly embracing an ancient Hindu tradition for removing malign astrological influences in case she should ever get married: ”Kumbh Vivaha or 'pot-marriage' is a commonly practiced Hindu astrological precaution in India. Men and women born under the slight or complete influence of the planet Mars—known as Mangliks, or 'Mars-cursed'—are said to be astrologically destined to wreck their marriages… The only preventative measure is to marry a pot prior to your marriage to an actual human. Or a tree. Sometimes even a dog. No sex is involved, if you were curious.”
- The Paleozoic Diet - "The Paleolithic diet is designed to reflect the eating habits of our Stone-Age ancestors, all of whom are presumed to have been hunter-gatherers. But did you know that there are TWO important “Paleos” in the Earth’s history?… we are pleased to announce a new and more scientifically rigorous Paleo diet, which we call the Paleozoic diet—the true or “Eupaleo” diet. It reflects the eating habits of the synapsid amniotes from which all mammals evolved.” Back to basics with Aaron Thier
- Debugging stories - A list of links to interesting tales of debugging, such as the bug that only appeared on Wednesdays and the disconcerting problems caused by radioactive cows from Chernobyl, maintained on Github by Dan Luu.
- Five Boys: The Story of a Picture, Five Boys: A Postscript - Fascinating research by Ian Jack into the true story of the boys who appeared in the famous “Toffs and Toughs” photograph which seemed to capture class differences in pre-war Britain: ”The two boys waited, the minutes ticked away. No sign of the car. Peter had started at Harrow barely three months before, at the beginning of the summer term; Tim had arrived the previous year… Tim, meanwhile, had other distractions. Three local boys were staring at him and a man stood on the edge of the pavement pointing a camera in his direction.”
Happy invoicing!
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