face-value (13. 546)

A pair of back-to-back podcasts had an interesting that addressed the subject of minting money from different angles and both touching on seigniorage from Planet Money and 99% Invisible presented an interesting correspondence. First the Indicator episode explored the pros and cons of introducing a commemorative two-hundred fifty dollar bill for the upcoming US birthday celebration, which notwithstanding actual and potential hurdles over decorum and legality, would be a boom for criminal activity, money laundering and tax avoidance—the EU got rid of its largest denominated five-hundred euro bill, nicknamed the bin Laden and favoured by smugglers and traffickers for its portability. Most other governments have followed suit and there is even pressure to remove the current largest American note, the one-hundred dollar bill by the same reasoning, though the argument that the US treasury cites for keeping it is that the some twenty billion outstanding, through seignorage, a promissory note redeemable and fungible at any time, the positive return or carry for issuing money, represents a two trillion dollar, interest-free loan for the US, as long as they stay in circulation, particularly internationally—or stored in a vault, or in the next example, lost in the couch cushions, mellowing in a change jar or held as collectors’ items. As 99% Invisible reports, though public reaction to the debasing of American coinage from 1964 to 1965 was frictionless acceptance of face-value despite that specie had been removed and replaced with a slug clad with a shiny coating, the price of metal meant minting incurred more demurrage, depreciation, and so inspired by the commemorative issues, like the Kennedy half-dollar or the 1976 bicentennial quarters, the mint got permission, not wholly out of civic pride, in 1999 to produce twenty-five cent pieces honouring each state—and eventually Washington, DC and the territories over a ten year period, the government earning a profit for each that went coin that went into a collection, the mint itself only absorbing the fractional production costs.

@bitnic (13. 545)

Building off of the concept of distribution lists developed for IBM mainframes to handle email aliases, software engineer Éric Thomas studying at École Centrale Paris released the stable version of his modified application, with his own code, LISTSERV with automated features that allowed subscribers to join or leave groups without human administration as postmasters, edit templates and create auto-replies for system and welcome messages. Still foundational architecture, Thomas’ programme also included the first double opt-in methods and spam filters for junk- and grey-mail (bulk mailers at one point solicited but now considered a nuisance).

synchronoptica

one year ago: the menhirs of Bretagne (with synchronoptica) plus the Quiberon peninsula

two years ago: Lukmanier pass plus arriving at Lake Maggiore

three years ago: assorted links worth revisiting 

four years ago: a banger from The Knack, Logan’s Run plus the sterling area

five years ago: harvesting solar power plus Mid-Summer celebrations

six years ago: more links to enjoy, satisdiction plus scratching an itch

la mano de dios (13. 544)

Held on this day, the quarter final-match of the 1986 World Cup, pitting Argentina against England—the Falklands War still a recent memory and fuelling the heated rivalry between the two nations, included two of the most memorable goals in the history of football. Both scored by team captain Diego Maradona, first came the Hand of God manoeuvre, technically a foul though unpenalised, as none of the referees on the pitch could see him dribbling the ball towards the goalpost, which Maradona admitted in 2005 was not fair-play, some outlets saying the apology came too late but on balance still acknowledging the importance of the symbolism of an act of cheating caught on film as a defiant reassertion of sovereignty and dignity, the embodiment of viveza criolla, native cunning—the legacy being cited in other famous plays that providential strain the rules of the game and lapses in judgment, including by Lionel Messi and more recently in the New York Knickerbockers’ win attributed to divine intervention. Four minutes later came the Goal of the Century, with Maradona overtaking four English outfielders during a sixty-yard dash and kicking a ball past the goalkeeper, Argentina would go on to win the finals, defeating West Germany.

day one-hundred thirteen (13. 543)

Keir Starmer tenders his resignation as prime minister and leader of Labour, following a series of political crises and rifts internal to the party over economic and immigration policy and election strategy after the success of conservative Reform UK in the general election. Starmer is expected to be replaced by Andy Burnham before the end of parliament’s summer recess. The Iran delegation leave Switzerland after a day of productive talks, with a sixty day waiver on oil sanctions granted and agreeing with the US in principle to a roadmap for peace, allowing the IAEA to inspect its nuclear facilities. With secretary of state, Rubio headed to the region to allay security fears, it remains unclear what US vice president Vance and special envoy Witkoff and Kushner have accomplished, the president’s son-in-law preoccupied with massive demonstrations in Albania over a planned property development deal that would damage fragile swampland and corruption in the government that acquiesced to this project in the first place. Sticking-points regarding Iranian restitution and possible conditions being placed on unfrozen assets also remain—though the negotiations have settled on an island of optimism that a final peace settlement could be in place by February.

(13. 542)

We are introduced to one of Clippy’s ancestors in this advertisement from the classifieds of a 1864 volume of The Telegrapher: A Journal of Electrical Progress courtesy of Cardhouse. Helpful like his descent, this security message hook promises to pay for itself many times over with the assurity and peace-of-mind that a missive won’t be lost or misplaced again.

synchronoptica

one year ago: a shipwreck beach (with synchronoptica) plus St Cado

two years ago: master medium Patience Worth plus a blocked alpine pass

three years ago: an Underground safety campaign plus a missing person case at the Vatican

four years ago: Man of La Mancha plus assorted links to enjoy

five years ago: your daily demon,  a vintage electric microcar, Galileo found guilty of heresy (1633) plus windowless homes

six years ago: Heritage Minutes, dad flavour plus canines who smell COVID

day one-hundred twelve (13. 541)

Despite yesterday’s indefinite postponement and Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz over deadly strikes in Lebanon (American forces in the region dispute this claim saying ship traffic continues to flow), diplomatic delegations scrambled to reach Lucerne to begin formal talks. Trump publically admits that the US is is four-weeks away from an even more debilitating oil shock. The US team consisting of the same ineffectual members, Vance, Witkoff and Kushner, dispatched in a succession of negotiations that quickly spiralled into war is in attendance. Israel announced it refuses to withdraw from its security zone south of Beirut, neither side directly represented in the talks. Discussions are expected to carry on for days with side sessions addressing maritime security, but the main focus is on the sticking points of deescalation and Iran’s nuclear programme—the proposal presently being to not allow inspectors and to dilute the existing stockpile to well below weapon-grade. Fuel sales are suspended in Crimea after a wave of attacks by Ukraine on the illegally annexed territory.

give us magnification vince (13. 540)

Via Marco McClean’s Memo of the Air, we enjoyed finding this vintage vinyl abridgement of the profoundly strange Disney feature The Black Hole as an audio LP. I remember such adaptations were popular and a way to tide one over with a teaser when a rewatch was something not so easily summoned up and an extra vehicle to showcase dialogue and sound effect through a radio drama that relied more on imagination than memory. The voice actors who played V.I.N.CENT. LF-396 (Vital Information Necessary Centralised Labour Force) and Old BO.B. LF-28 (Bio-sanitation Battalion), however, respectively Roddy McDowall and Slim Pickens, respectively, went uncredited in all versions. Sigourney Weaver was initially considered for the role of Dr Kate McCrea, the expedition’s ESP-sensitive scientist, but the casting director found her name too unusual going instead with actor Jennifer O’Neill, despite her reluctance to cut her hair for the zero-gravity scenes  Eventually relenting after the studio agreed that O’Neill could bring own hairdresser on set, Vidal Sassoon, she allowed her hair to be cropped short, easing the trauma by consuming several glasses of wine, resulting in a drink-driving accident after the first day of filming.  O’Neill was removed from the project and replaced with understudy Yvette Mimieux as the ship’ psychic.

9x9 (13. 539)

criterion collection: a roundup of dirigible-themed movies, featuring, among others, Fay Wray and Ronald Reagan as secret agent Brass Bancroft  

the camelot of africa: a tour Ethiopia’s Gondar castles 

binomial coefficients: some numbers in Pascal’s triangle make very few cameos and no one is sure why  

lost world: museum docent Louis Gratacap pioneered the genre—see previously  

fast-track enlargement: talks begin for EU accession for Ukraine and Moldova  

ger:gre: Monty Python’s Ancients v Moderns football match  

planetary-mass companion: the famous Pink Planet may be a failed binary star system  

a tisket, a tasket: an update on the headquarters building of Longaberger baskets—see previously  

sac pour mal de l’air: a collection of air sickness bags from a variety of airlines