Alien, Railroad, Basement, Cut, Handshake
The Biology Of Subnautica
Curious Archive | YouTube | 18th November 2021
A fascinating gambit: analyzing the biology of fake alien species created for the vast undersea exploration video game Subnautica. There's a crashfish, an "evolutionary oddity that is difficult to study due to its highly frustrating habit of exploding when anything gets close," as well as leviathans that support whole mini-ecosystems on the back of their shells (14m 55s)
This Tiny Railroad Across The Sea Has An Important Job
Tom Scott | YouTube | 15th November 2021
The Hallig islands in Germany are connected to the mainland via tiny water-bound railroads (similar to the one in Spirited Away). But why build an absurd-looking train-line instead of a road? Well, the rails are used to gradually build sea defenses into the tidal flats that they're on top of. Thus, they're essential in the prevention of flooding (4m 42s)
The Architecture Trend Dividing London's Elites
Vox | YouTube | 13th November 2021
London's uber-rich are digging beneath their homes to build underground lairs for swimming pools, movie theaters, wine cellars, gyms, art galleries, ballrooms, panic rooms, gun stores, and even playgrounds. Not everyone likes the fad; Queen guitarist Brian May caught wind of it when his next-door neighbors' excavation project caused gallons of black sewage to leak into his own home (6m 19s)
Editing As Punctuation In Film
Max Tohline | YouTube | 10th September 2015
Do punctuation marks have a cinematic corollary? The freeze frame can act as a peremptory period, "depicting the horror of time going on and on while the character is trapped in it." In Citizen Kane, a startling edit implies a seventeen year gap between "Merry Christmas" and "And a happy New Year"—a prime example of the cinematic comma (19m 59s)
🦒: Maggie Lieu On Space, Robotics And The Universe
China will land a live human on Mars by 2035, says Maggie Lieu, in conversation with Browser Bets. Plus: why Jeff Bezos sued NASA, and whether you can expect a robot to help around the house (41m 17s)
Absurd Video Of The Week
Two politicians refuse to release their handshake, with unexpected results
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