Luxagraf

Interesting things found around the Webernets and stored on ma.gnolia

Tombs of the Grand Masters of the Knights … 12/14/07

Nothing gets the conspiracy fan tongues wagging like the Knights of Malta (the Knights Templar might be the one exception to that rule), but in this case these are just really cool and somewhat macabre watercolor sketches of their tombs. In 1523, after a continual onslaught by the Ottoman forces, the … Filed Under: Art, History, Mystery, Mysticism, Mythology comments on Tombs of the Grand Masters of the Knights of Malta

The 53 Places to Go in 2008 12/14/07

The Times bills this with the line: “From Laos to Lisbon, the travel choices for global nomads have never been more varied.” Yes, Laos is number one, very disappointing, but luckily only 6 percent of Americans actually have passports so there’s little chance it will be overrun. However, just to be … Filed Under: Journalism, New York Times, Reviews, Travel comments on The 53 Places to Go in 2008

Anthony Bourdain on how to Find Good Food … 12/14/07

Anthony Bourdain’s tip for finding good food wherever you’re headed: provoke the nerds. The question at hand was how to find good restaurants, and his answer was to take the city you want to go to and just google up some restaurant names that serve the dish you’re after. Then got … Filed Under: Cooking, Culture, Food, Internet comments on Anthony Bourdain on how to Find Good Food Anywhere

Buried Treasure Mystery: The Money Pit at … 12/14/07

There’s really nothing that takes you back to childhood like the romance of searching for pirate treasure. Well, maybe that depends on your childhood, but for me that’s what happens when I read about buried treasure, which admittedly isn’t often. And that’s largely because most treasure is underwater, difficult to find … Filed Under: Archaeology, Bizarre, History, Maps, Mystery comments on Buried Treasure Mystery: The Money Pit at Oak Island

Coast To A Writing Career 12/06/07

Hilarious bit from my former Wired editor Paul Boutin. Sarcastic and tongue in cheek as this may be, there’s an element of truth in it and somewhat mirrors my own career. Hey Paul, wanna give me the hookup at the Times? Filed Under: Humor, Writing comments on Coast To A Writing Career

Travelling In America, Where Everyone’s A … 11/08/07

Filed “we gotta get out of this place.” Here’s the story of what it’s like to be a foreign traveller visiting the United States. Contrasting this with my own experiences abroad is downright frightening. Nepal, for instance, may have a shady human rights record, but frankly they wouldn’t dream of treating … Filed Under: Absurd, Culture, Future, Human Rights, Paranoia, Photography, Society, Travel comments on Travelling In America, Where Everyone's A Suspect

BibliOdyssey: Dagbok East India Trading Co… 11/08/07

BibliOdyssey has dug up another stellar set of illustrations. And there’s going to be BibliOdyssey book, so the nerdery can live on the coffee table, not just the computer screen. Anyway these great natural history illustrations are from the Swedish East India Company (I guess everybody had an East India Company, … Filed Under: Art, Books, History, Nature, Research, Travel comments on BibliOdyssey: Dagbok East India Trading Company

Mustaches of the Nineteenth Century 11/08/07

Just when you think the internet might have actually overlooked a thing or two, you stumble across something like this: Mustaches of the Nineteenth Century. And don’t forget the subhead: A Daily Celebration of The Golden Age of Upper Lip Hair. Although somewhat tongue in cheek, there actually appears to be … Filed Under: Absurd, Blog, History, Research, Society, Trivia, Wacky comments on Mustaches of the Nineteenth Century

Man Booker Prize Shortlist To Be Free Down… 11/08/07

Frankly I’m surprised they got the publishers to agree to do this, given that industry’s consistent lack of understand of digital media. Of course I’ve never really met a Man Booker novel I actually liked, but hey maybe the shortlist has some worthy candidates that got over looked. From the Times … Filed Under: Authors, Books, Copyright, Reading comments on Man Booker Prize Shortlist To Be Free Downloads

The World’s (Un)Luckiest Man 10/18/07

This a quite simply one of the most amazing stories I’ve ever heard. A Croatian music teacher named Frane Selak has managed to survive a simply remarkable number of accidents and near death incidents, including falling out of a plane. The train carrying Selak in 1962 inexplicably jumped the tracks and … Filed Under: Amazing, Trivia comments on The World's (Un)Luckiest Man