electoral collage (13. 078)

Via Nag on the Lake’s Sunday Links, we are referred to this hypothetical map (see previously)—which albeit premised on a lot of assumptions, like the United States actually annexing Canada as its fifty-first state and continuing to having free and fair elections—illustrates what the addition of the nation’s population would mean demographically and for the political landscape. It was long assumed Washington, DC might become a state jointly with Puerto Rico but now that the latter has turned less conservative, establishment Republicans don’t want to take the risk of ceding minoritarian rule. Assuming also rules governing the apportionment of representatives as outlined in their constitution and redistricting procedures controlled by individual states hold, the enlarged America (with different scenarios played out) would decidedly skew blue in favour of the Democrats and blunt the outsized power and influence of senators from rural, low-population polities. More at the links above.

always try to be nice—but never fail to be kind (13. 077)

Miss Cellania directs us to a treasury of rather profound words to live by compiled from the various regenerations of the Gallifrean and companions, many of the sagest quotations attributed to writer Steven Moffat who joined the series after its sixteen year hiatus in 2005 but there are jewels to be found across the continuum. “Should there be another, I’ll explain to you in great detail whick of the many time laws I am not allowed to transgress.” “Life’s like that—best thing to do is to just get on with it.” “Some people live more in twenty years than others do in eighty.” “Nine-hundred years in time and space and I’ve never met somebody who wasn’t important.” “There’s no point in being grown up if you can’t be childish sometimes.” “And if there is any hope for any of us in this giant explosion in which we inhabit then surely that’s it: intellect and romance triumph over brute force and cynicism.” What’s your favourite? Click through for the video compilation with eras and episodes cited. Would you like a jelly-baby?

señor coconut (13. 076)

By turns curses and blessed, we are introduced to the concept album by the eponymous cultural appropriator, a techno and euro-dance producer by the name of Uwe Schmidt (aka Atom Heart), titled El Baile Alemán (The Dance of the Germans) that sought track by track to force and fuse two polar opposite genres with Latin covers of Krautrock standards—calling it electrolatino, it’s Kraftwerk meets Buena Vista Social Club. Issued in 1999 on his private label Rather Interesting, a catalogue of his solo projects under various aliases, Schmidt was inspired to experiment after living in Costa Rica for six months, having exported the rave canon he’d helped to create.

høstutstillingen (13. 075)

Aspiring artist hailing from the historic city of Stavanger, Aage Stor-stein (*1900—†1983) studied in Paris in the 1920s, where inspired by Picasso developed his own unique style of Cubism executed in soft pastels and later exhibited there and his native Norway as well, eventually securing a teaching post at the National Academy of Fine Arts. Winning a competition to decorator the west gallery of the city hall of Oslo, Storstein’s frescos of the landscapes and mythologies of the country can be found there. More works and history from ultrawolvesunderthefullmoon at the link above.

synchronoptica

one year ago: assorted links to revisit (with synchronopticæ), a hike up the Hohe Schuhe plus a trivia break down of all fifty US states

twelve years ago: a visit to Döllbach, selling shame plus out with the Christmas tree

thirteen years ago: reflexive verbs 

fourteen years ago: floating a financial transaction tax plus combating predatory practises in online credit

fifteen years ago: mitigating thaw-induced flooding 

sixteen years ago: naming winter storms 

let that be your last battlefield (13. 074)

Courtesy of our faithful chronicler, we are reminded that the Star Trek: TOS (S3:E15), first broadcast on this day in 1969, portrays the Enterprise crew entangled in an intractable alien racial war when they the encounter a fugitive and a belligerent, irreconcilable pursuer. During an atmospheric decontamination mission to planet Ariannus, their work is interrupted as the ship leaves orbit to intercept a shuttlecraft stolen from nearby Star Base IV. In pursuit, they realise that life support systems are failing and tractor beam it into the shuttle bay. Recovering in sickbay, the thief identifies himself as Lokai of Cheron, and whilst grateful for the rescue becomes elusive and combative when questioned about his motives. En route back to the planet, sensors detect that the Enterprise is being pursued by a cloaked vessel—whose pilot appears on the bridge just before the apparent moment of impact. The new arrival, with similar colouration as Lokai, announces he is Commissioner Bele there to arrest the other alien, whom he has been chasing for fifty thousand Earth years for instigating a revolt against the enslaved population of Cheron and changing the ruling order. Lokai seeks political asylum with the Federation of Planets but Bele, mentally commandeers the Enterprise and rebuffs all efforts to stop him. To wrest back control, Kirk and Spock initiate the self-destruct sequence (the first time it’s used on the franchise), with Bele surrendering with only seconds to spare. Displeased with the idea of outside arbitration and appalled that his bounty might be treated equally to him, Bele attempts to assert his superiority by pointing out how he is black of his right side while Lokai and his people are white. After the mission is completed on Ariannus, the Enterprise heads back to the star base with the two captives but Bela again telekinetically seizes the helm, disabling self-destruct, and heads towards Cheron, Lokai afraid of the consequences of rendition, begins to fight his enslaver, their minds clashing and nearly destroying the Enterprise in the process. As they approach Cheron, sensors reveal, to the shock and dismay of Lokai and Bele that there are no life signs on their planet and their civilisation through aeons of internecine warfare has been annihilated since their chase began. Unable to persuade them otherwise, despite being the endlings of their kind with no structure to prosecute or reward their mutual enmity, Kirk decides to leave them both on their dead planet. Non-canonical sources state that Lokai and Bele have set up bases on opposite ends of their desolate homwworld and continue to fight one another—Star Fleet and the Romulans, the planet located just on the Federation side of the neutral zone, were generally avoided even before the civil war as the species were characterised by unnaturally long life-spans and unpredictable powers, all consumed by hatred.

mint and mentee (13. 073)

Whilst familiar with some of these eponyms and etymologies, like the off-spring of Aphrodite and Adonis, narcissism and tantalising, we didn’t know that the word money was also derived from the Greco-Roman gods—an epithet of the queen of the gods, Iūno Monēta, also the Latin equivalent of the Greek goddess of memory called Mnemosyne, the mother of the Muses that give us music and museum, though in Juno’s case it probably meant singular rather than to remind, the mint (also of the same derivation) and treasury were housed in her temple on Capitoline Hill and she was regarded as the protectress of economic stability and her priests sought fiscal counsel through their prayers. We also did not recall the mythological character of Mentor—an trusted friend of Odysseus whom he entrusted his son, Telemachus’, care and education to during the decades he was absent fighting the Trojan War. Mentor is sometimes suspected to be Athena in disguise. More from Mental Floss at the link above.

milestone ground (13. 072)

Recent excavations of a Romano-Briton grave of a young woman in the northern Cotswolds have uncovered an item unique in the archaeological record with no comparable artefact yet found in this delicate bone box with sliding lid and decorations similar to the circle and dot pattern of Roman dice. Finely crafted from the femur of a deer, researchers conjecture the petite object might have been a compact for makeup or a precious ointment but who knows? This nameless woman could have been a skilled assassin and kept her poisons in this precious keepsake buried with her. Learn more from The History Blog at the link up top.

synchronoptica

one year ago: Dr Who intertitles (with synchronopticæ), a pristine ancient tomb plus familiars on trial 

twelve years ago: rebus sentences 

thirteen years ago: the US treasury secretary’s signature plus avatars and entitlement

fourteen years ago: prolefeed 

slanguage (13. 071)

From New Orleans, the American Dialect Society is announcing its pick for overall informal word of the year for 2025 (see previously) but again their categories of contenders deserve special consideration with creative neologisms and portmanteaux ranging from amphifa (for frog costumed protesters) and affixes related to Charlie Kirk, to the political like DOGE, disappeared and the Kavanaugh stop referring to the supreme court justice’s option on a case that foreigners could be barred from entry into the US based on their social media history, to digitally rallying around a hypothetical movement known as the Great Meme Reset supposedly instigated by Gen Z at the turn of the year, with rage-bait among the most useful along with valid cashout for a justified mental breakdown and most likely to endure with glaze, bestowing effusive compliments, and -vibe as a combining form. What do you think will be the overall winner?