Mangled Horses, Maimed Jockeys:
On average, 24 horses die each week at racetracks across America. Many are inexpensive horses racing with little regulatory protection in pursuit of bigger and bigger prizes. These deaths often go unexamined, the bodies shipped to rendering plants and landfills rather than to pathologists who might have discovered why the horses broke down.
Oof.
Fun video of a woman from France trying to figure the definition of hipster. Of the many definitions I’ve seen, I think this one might be my favorite.
Photographic Specimens by Michael Mapes. Here’s an example, but to really appreciate it be sure to click through for the side view:
The Geek Shall Inherit the Earth. "The superhero origin story of Joss Whedon goes like this…"
Pretty cool video on Photobooth, a tintype portrait studio.
The NFL: The No Future League. "The fact of the matter is this. The average American lives to be 75. The average pro football player lives to be 55. And statistics suggest that the longer a player stays in the game, the more likely he is to die at a young age."
India’s Vanishing Vultures. “There were so many vultures then that you can’t even think they could decline,” he said. “Oh, don’t remind me of those days; it is so painful for me. Just to imagine that they would become rare was impossible. What happened to them? What have we done with them? Now there are dogs. They eat anything, live or dead. There are dogs on the ground but the skies are empty.”
Wow, Matthew Cusick’s map collages are fantastic. I think this might be my favorite:
Can You Make Yourself Smarter?. Hopeful. I always like to hear that we might be able to train something long thought immutable.