Yacht Tours: The 40-Meter ‘Oasis’ From Benetti (Video)

We all love to hear a success story, and the Benetti Oasis is one of the greatest success stories in yachting history. When the project was first presented to the public it was met with great appreciation but not with as many orders as one may expect. By the time I filmed this video no less than THIRTEEN units had been sold though. THIRTEEN! Quite incredible for a yacht of this size, and a testimony to Benetti’s ability to keep producing yachts that the market wants to buy.

Sailboat Racing: ‘Onboard AC75 Action’ From Prada ACWS Series, New Zealand

Some of the best bits of AC75 onboard action from the PRADA ACWS Auckland, December 2020.

The 36th America’s Cup presented by Prada will be contested by the winner of the 2017 America’s Cup, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron represented by their team, Emirates Team New Zealand, and the winner of the Prada Cup, the challenger selection series which takes place in January–February in 2021.

Architectural Tours: San Francisco Contemporary Atop Mount Sutro (Video)

Commanding panoramic views from an advantageous point on Mount Sutro, 150 Glenbrook Avenue holds the iconic and singular position of San Francisco’s highest residence above sea level.

Atop one of the city’s famed seven hills can be found an alchemy of site and design from the groundbreaking studio of John Maniscalco Architecture. A gently sloping, corner lot with panoramic views from the Salesforce Tower crowned skyline to the distant hills of the East Bay and Marin Headlands. Major visual landmarks include Alcatraz Island, Golden Gate Bridge, and San Francisco City Hall.

An interplay of hand selected materials and ever-changing natural light creates an enchanting series of visual moments throughout the day and into the evening twilight.

Signaling the work of a creative master and a confident step forward in the historic lineage of Bay Area modernist architects, 150 Glenbrook captures a moment in time of contemporary San Francisco architectural design. 150 Glenbrook presents a rare opportunity to join a select group of homeowners who, through their passion for design and craft, are creating a historic architectural moment to be valued for decades to come. visual focal point in the main living room. Each room is a wonderful discovery of its own and a singular experience of light, texture, and passion.

2021 Public Domain: F. SCOTT FITZGERALD’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ (Podcast)

NPR’s Scott Simon reflects on the legacy of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. The literary classic’s copyright expired on the first day of 2021.

The copyright on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby expired on the first stroke of 2021 and the book entered the public domain.

The classic 1925 novel of love foiled, ambitions foisted, class and betrayal sold fewer than 25,000 copies before Fitzgerald died. It has since sold nearly 30 million. I gave our daughter the copy I had in high school when she read it last year. The Great Gatsby has been turned into stage productions, an opera, five film versions, a Taylor Swift song and inspired innumerable prequels, spinoffs and variations.

In the public domain, Gatsby may now become even more familiar. Two new editions are about to come out and who knows what kind of projects — a Gatsby rom-com? Gatsby joins The Avengers? — might now get a green light, which recalls the imperishably eloquent last passage of the book: “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us.”

Gatsby’s Jazz Age Long Island may not look like a microcosm of contemporary America. Neither does Don QuixoteThe Scarlet LetterMacbeth or Their Eyes Were Watching God. We want young readers to be able to see themselves in stories; but literature can also show us that people we don’t think are much like us at all turn out to have some of the same heart, blood and dreams. That can be the power of empathy in art.

Cook Books: ‘Family Meal’ By Designers/Illustrators (Support NYC Restaurants)

We were a website, and now we’re a cookbook. We’re a project by illustrators and designers to help raise money for New York restaurants and their employees. We’re 38 recipes from 38 restaurants for you to cook at home. And we’re a $20 donation for every book sold to New York City restaurants, through ROAR’s employee relief fund. 

You can read more here.

Catastrophic Events: History’s ’15 Largest Tidal Waves & Tsunamies’ (Video)

The largest tidal waves, tsunamis, and other types of waves throughout history. Never turn your back to the sea.

  • #1 Lituya Bay, Alaska – On the night of July 9, 1958, an earthquake along the Fairweather Fault in the Alaska Panhandle loosened about 40 million cubic yards (30.6 million cubic meters) of rock high above the northeastern shore of Lituya Bay. This mass of rock plunged from an altitude of approximately 3000 feet (914 meters) down into the waters of Gilbert Inlet (see map below). The impact force of the rockfall generated a local tsunami that crashed against the southwest shoreline of Gilbert Inlet. The wave hit with such power that it swept completely over the spur of land that separates Gilbert Inlet from the main body of Lituya Bay. The wave then continued down the entire length of Lituya Bay, over La Chaussee Spit and into the Gulf of Alaska. The force of the wave removed all trees and vegetation from elevations as high as 1720 feet (524 meters) above sea level. Millions of trees were uprooted and swept away by the wave. This is the highest wave that has ever been known.
  • #2 Krakatoa tsunami – The 27 August 1883 explosion of Krakatau Volcano in Indonesia is one example of an eruption-caused tsunami. The eruption generated a 30m tsunami in the Sunda Strait which killed about 36,000 people, as it washed away 165 coastal villages on Java and Sumatra.
  • #3 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami occurred at 07:58:53 in local time on 26 December, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. It was an undersea megathrust earthquake that registered a magnitude of 9.1–9.3 Mw, reaching a Mercalli intensity up to IX in certain areas.

Documentary: ‘The Battle Over Antarctica’ (Video)

The world’s major powers agree: the resources of Antarctica should be exploited peacefully. They have promised to promote peace and scientific research in Antarctica, and to protect its environment. But is this spirit real, or just a lot of talk?

This documentary features interviews with researchers, activists, diplomats, and military personnel from Spain, Russia, Portugal, Chile, Argentina, and the United States. There’s been much debate over how to share control of resources in Antarctica, which is the world’s oldest ecosystem. Critics say that behind the scenes, a game of high-stakes poker is underway. Could this competition end in armed conflict? Or will Antarctica serve as a model for peaceful international cooperation? This film addresses these complicated issues with in-depth analysis, accompanied by magnificent images of the Antarctic landscape. The documentary’s soundtrack was composed by Javier Weyler, former drummer of the Welsh rock band, the Stereophonics.

Collections: The Amazing Classic Cars Of Germany’s Michael Fröhlich (Video)

From 0 to 100 km/h in 2.4 seconds – that’s how fast the Elektrus can accelerate, making it one of the fastest electric cars in the world. It’s just one of the many exceptional cars in Michael Fröhlich’s collection. The German multi-millionaire collects and designs cars of all types; from vintage vehicles to curious custom-builds that more resemble works of art. He even owns one of the Queen’s old Rolls Royces, but he’s deliberately letting that fall apart…

Website

Journeys: Camping And Cooking In ‘High Atlas Mountains, Morocco’

High Atlas, also called the Grand Atlas, is a mountain range in central Morocco, North Africa, the highest part of the Atlas Mountains. The High Atlas rises in the west at the Atlantic Ocean and stretches in an eastern direction to the Moroccan-Algerian border. 

The Atlas Mountains extend some 2,500km across northwestern Africa, spanning Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, separating the Atlantic and Mediterranean coastline from the Sahara Desert. Actually a series of ranges with diverse terrain, climates and wildlife, the Atlas are dotted with Berber villages and riven with canyons and ravines. The highest peak is 4,167m Toubkal, which lies within Morocco’s Toubkal National Park.