Emma Nelson, Charles Hecker and Terry Stiastny unpack the weekend’s biggest talking points. Plus, Tyler Brûlé in Athens, Hannah Lucinda Smith in Istanbul and Monocle 24’s Andrew Mueller with a Eurovision update.
Monthly Archives: October 2022
Front Page: The New York Times – October 23, 2022
Using Adoptions, Russia Turns Ukrainian Children Into Spoils of War
Thousands of Ukrainian children have been transferred to Russia. “I didn’t want to go,” one girl told The New York Times from a foster home near Moscow.
For Trump’s Backers in Congress, ‘Devil Terms’ Help Rally Voters
In vilifying tweets and speeches, G.O.P. lawmakers who contested the election have far outpaced other Republicans and Democrats in fueling polarization.
Fears Over Fate of Democracy Leave Many Voters Frustrated and Resigned
As democracy frays around them, Republicans and Democrats see different culprits and different risks.
Views: The Scarborough & Whitby Railway Route In North Yorkshire, England
The line opened in 1885 and closed in 1965 as part of the Beeching Axe. The route, now a multi-use path, is known as “The Cinder Track”
The track was subsequently lifted in 1968, although speculation about a potential potash mine near Hawsker meant that the track from there to Whitby remained in place until 1972.
The line is now used as a bridleway for cycles, pedestrians and horses, known as the “Scarborough to Whitby Rail Trail”, “Scarborough to Whitby Cinder Track”, or simply “The Cinder Track”.
In the 1980s an area of the former line in the Northstead district of Scarborough was briefly used as football and cricket pitches.
In 2018 plans to spend £3.5 million to repair and improve the Cinder Track were backed by the borough council. The plans would see the route resurfaced, drainage improved and the creation of a new management body to oversee the development of the track. There is also the possibility of introducing a visitor centre, cafe and pay and display parking to generate ongoing funding to maintain the route. Work upgrading the track began in January 2020 and the first stage is now complete.
Previews: BBC Wildlife Magazine – November 2022
BBC Wildlife Magazine – November 2022
- Celebrating 150 years of Yellowstone National Park
- As Remembrance Day approaches, we celebrate the poppy bee
- Walking the Iron Curtain: how this no-go zone has become a wildlife haven
- After being hunted almost to extinction, southern right whales are making a mighty comeback
- Gillian Burke celebrates the hidden brilliance of seeds
- Mike Dilger on the overwintering geese
- Mark Carwardine on the need to be sympathetic to different nations’ conservation priorities
Home Design: ‘Land On Water’ – MAST Studio (2022)
Land on Water by Copenhagen-based Architecture Studio MAST
Land on Water
The system is based on simple flat pack modules made from recycled reinforced polymer. These are extremely strong and resilient and can be easily transported and assembled on location
The modules can be assembled in different configurations to provide floating foundations for floating infrastructure, public spaces or housing.
A growing acknowledgement of sea level rise and an increased risk of urban flooding has contributed to a sharp increase in interest in building on water, but current solutions, including polystyrene filled concrete foundations and plastic pontoons are inflexible, difficult to transport and highly unsustainable.
MAST has envisioned a new system of simple of flat-packed modules made from recycled reinforced plastic, that can be easily transported around the globe and assembled into countless configurations, providing a secure floating foundation. The system offers a sustainable and highly flexible solution for building almost anything on the water; from floating houses in Seattle, to floating campsites on Oslo fjord, to saunas on Hobart’s riverfront.
The system was inspired by gabion construction, an ancient technology which utilises mesh cages filled with rubble to create extremely sturdy, low cost foundations. In this case the concept is inverted; and the modular ‘cages’ are filled with locally sourced, up-cycled floatation supporting the weight of any structure built on top. they are also much more adaptable than existing solutions since floatation can be added or adjusted at any time if weight is added or shifted around above.
Land on water will provide a climate resilient and adaptable solution for the construction of new floating buildings worldwide but could also lead to an entirely new type of dynamic and organic off-grid floating community and an alternative to the large master-planned floating cities currently under development which repeat many of the mistakes made by urban planners in the middle of the 20th century.
South American Views: João Pessoa In East Brazil
João Pessoa is a coastal city near the mouth of the Paraíba River in eastern Brazil. Its old town is known for its baroque and art nouveau architecture. The 16th-century São Francisco Church has Portuguese painted tiles in its courtyard and an ornate, gold-adorned chapel. Tambaú and Cabo Branco beaches are lined with bars and nightclubs, plus shops selling local woodcarvings and pottery.
Video timeline: 1:35 Panning wide sunset landscape of famous place of the city of Joao Pessoa at Brazilian Paraiba State. , 2:06 Touristic city of Joao Pessoa, 2:43 Downtown Joao Pessoa Paraiba, 3:12 Historical downtown city of Joao Pessoa at Brazilian Paraiba State. Medieval buildings at the Historic center, 3:31 Downtown Joao Pessoa.
Books: The New York Times Book Review – Oct 23, 2022
Cormac McCarthy’s New Novel: Two Lives, Two Ways of Seeing
Ken Burns Wishes More People Would Call Willa Cather a Great American Novelist
“What about ‘O Pioneers!’ or ‘My Ántonia’?” asks the documentarian and author of the forthcoming photo book “Our America.” “For that matter, what about Gabriel García Márquez? We do not have a copyright on the word ‘American.’”
Paul Newman’s Humanity and Star Power
When the actor appeared in the movie version of “Nobody’s Fool,” Richard Russo saw another side of him.
Walks: Church Street In Burlington, Vermont (4K)
The Church Street Marketplace is an uncovered outdoor pedestrian shopping and dining mall in Burlington Vermont us consisting of the four blocks of Church Street between Main and Pearl Streets. Major retailers include five national chain stores as well as local retailers of clothing, home-wares, books, and other goods. It is the site of festivals throughout the year.
Burlington is a city in northwestern Vermont, on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, south of the Canadian border. Downtown, shops and restaurants line pedestrianized Church Street Marketplace. North of downtown, the Ethan Allen Homestead Museum is a former home of the Revolutionary War hero. The vast Shelburne Museum, south of the city, houses American folk and decorative art in a collection of historic buildings.
2022 Journeys: ‘The Beauty Of Australia & Vanuatu’
and we traveled all over the continent. We visited Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory, and Queensland and at the end of our journey, we went for 8 days to the tiny Pacific nation of Vanuatu.
Filmed in August 2022.
Swiss Views: Autumn 2022 In Lauterbrunnen (8K)
of the most impressive trough valleys in the Alps, between gigantic rock faces and mountain peaks. With its 72 thundering waterfalls, secluded valleys, colourful alpine meadows and lonely mountain inns, the Lauterbrunnen Valley is one of the biggest nature conservation areas in Switzerland.
The very name ‘Lauter Brunnen’ (‘many fountains’) suggests the magnificence of this landscape. There are 72 waterfalls in the Lauterbrunnen Valley, the most famous being the Staubbach Falls. Plunging almost 300 metres from an overhanging rock face, they are one of the highest free-falling waterfalls in Europe. In 1779, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe visited the valley, and was inspired by the roaring waters to write his well-known poem ‘Spirit song over the waters’
Filmed on October 18, 2022
Boomers Daily 