display font (13. 761)

Though the lapidary angle is a bit of a red herring—still a useful heuristic as the idea occurred to the author whilst strolling through a cemetery, a profound and timeless repository of typefaces and fashion conserved and preserved better than the ephemera of an age, wondering at the lack of a certain kind of popular letterform ornament and how the inscriptions on the gravestones might look in that style—we enjoyed very much learning about Tuscan Letters, courtesy of Language Hat. Properly a special subcategory of what’s called a reverse-contrast or reverse-stress typeface or custom lettering (called Italienne auf Deutsch), where horizontal lines are more prominent over the usual balance or emphasis with vertical strokes for text that stands out—due to printing slugs mimicking script as written by right-handed scribes with a quill making the up-down marks relatively heavier, no one is certain how the toponym figures into typography—some theorising it was an invention of Victorian font foundries to evoke the cultured language and literature (see previously) of that region and lend an element of classicism despite no examples of the ornate, steroidal serifs that we recognise and associate with circuses and side-shows and the Wild West. Click through for a gallery of historic billboards and signage, with local vernacular, of the decorative family of fonts.

synchronoptica

one year ago: courts challenge legality of Trump’s tariff scheme (with synchronoptica), redevelopment plans for Gaza plus the geometrical property of rupertness

two years ago: union label plus assorted links worth the revisit 

three years ago: anthropomorphised food mascots plus twenty-plus years of badgers

four years ago: a misquoted rebuttal, a banger from Madonna plus more links to enjoy

five years ago: your daily demon plus the Battle of Actium (31 BCE)

six years ago: even more links, vaccine development efforts at cross-purposes, Stuttgart’s transit map plus scandal for the Scots language version of Wikipedia 

day one hundred seventy-nine (13. 760)

The US house of representatives pass a funding bill to avoid a government shutdown before the midterm elections, although only punting the issue to the second week of December. Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll abruptly resigns following a falling out with Secretary of War Hegseth over support for Ukraine and drone development—possibly to join the campaign of vice president JD Vance, whom recently came out as pro-apocalypse, that he would be comfortable ushering in the End Times. The US launches a fresh round of strikes on Iran, targeting sites near the Strait of Hormuz—promising heavier attacks should Tehran retaliate. Pezeshkian suggests that the Islamic Republic would “immediately reciprocate” if Washington honours its commitments under the MOU. Though appearing limited in scale at first, the American raids turn deadly with several civilians killed, including the members of a wedding party, prompting the Revolutionary Guard to launch ballistics on US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq and Jordan—adding that these attacks will stop once the host nations expel US troops. Despite threats and the escalation in fighting that precludes any diplomatic settlement, operational constraints and depleted munitions likely mean that Trump’s only tool is economic strangulation. IDF bombs southern Beirut.

9x9 (13. 759)

it-narratives: the imagined inner lives of inanimate objects  

inwats: the history and use-case of the 1-800 number  

du big bang à mardi matin: Claude Cloutier’s overview of the evolution of life on Earth in his signature animation style reminiscent of aquatint printing  

shadowology: more art installations from Vincent Bal—see previously  

the decade you’ve been waiting for: Paste magazine’s contention top hundred songs of the 80s—via MetaFilter, see previously  

after the fire: Los Angeles residents moving entire homes to burnt out, vacant lots as a cheaper alternative to rebuilding 

it’s fantastic! it’s futuristic! it’s fatalistic! it’s science fiction: a 1973 BBC Omnibus documentary by Harley Cokeliss  

escape claudes: two chatbots placed in a recursive loop—see previously 

hack’s law: the hidden maths of rivers that calm the waters—via Kottke

synchronoptica

one year ago: a visit to Geraberg (with synchronoptica), woodblock printer Sekino Jun’ichirō plus the branding of the US Civil Defence Corps

two years ago: a pivotal moment in the Star Trek timeline, aspiring travel-writers, assorted links worth revisiting, a trip to Schwickershausen plus the largest aerospace exhibition 

three years ago: ten-thousand digits, danger signs, the Goring Gap plus more links to enjoy

four years ago: a banger from Tina Turner plus legibility and semi-vowels

five years ago: an attempt was made with AI for a mash-up, the Carrington Event (1859), the Cod Wars (1958) even more links plus reskilling as a swan

six years ago: a Banksy-sponsored rescue boat, Church rejects modernism plus saints named Hyacinth 

day one hundred seventy-eight (13. 758)

Trump vows hard strike on Iran following first exchange of fire in a month after US military personnel in Jordan come under assault in retaliation for strikes on sea-mining operations on Larak island. IDF soldiers advance towards Damascus. At the invitation of treasury secretary Scott Bessent and the American president, the Russian finance minister Anton Siluanov attends the G20 hosted in Asheville, North Carolina, marking the first time since the start of the war on Ukraine that the pariah state had been given a seat at the table of the economic summit. Siluanov was not allowed to take part in the tradition group photo and instead posed with Bessent alone at the insistence of the other finance ministers. Separately, Putin reportedly expresses fear he will be defenestrated should he fail to win his war.

burg salzburg revisited (13. 757)

In Bad Neustadt an der Saale for a hair appointment and with some time to spare, I parked at my usual spot by Burg Salzburg and took a few moments to walk around the courtyard—of course it’s same as I remembered but I am guessing we hadn’t bothered going inside in years, usually just walking on the paths through the surround woods or along the dry moat, again with the contempt of familiarity and was glad for the spare minutes.

The large castle complex, originally containing seven independent palaces within the fortified curtain wall—a Ganerbenburg, a jointly inherited castle—standing on the edge of a plateau dominating the city below—and is still partially inhabited with not all areas open to the public. Most of the keep, covering an area of almost a hectare, however, is accessible beyond the drawbridge and barbican of the gatehouse. One of the residences has been converted into an Italian restaurant and there is a cafe and a chapel dedicated to St Boniface (built in the 1840s to replace the ruins of an earlier church) off-centre to the Bergfried.

Although presenting with all the elements that one might conjure up in the mental image of a generic castle, most of these commissions added during the twelfth century at the behest of the Bishops of Würzburg (see history above), Burg Salzburg is considered as a projection of power rather than a practical stronghold.

 

synchronoptica

one year ago: an MTV-like channel devoted to novelty songs (with synchronoptica) 

two years ago: the dissolution of East Germany plus a banger from George Harrison 

three years ago: assorted links to revisit 

four years ago: RIP Gorbachev, Street Fighting Man plus more Gorbymania

five years ago: more links to enjoy, numeracy plus vintage animated commercials

six years ago: more knock-off Halloween costumes, the Gdańsk Social Accords (1980), even more links, Lincoln Logs (1920) plus Tom Hiddleson as macaroons

day one hundred seventy-seven (13. 756)

The US initiates fresh airstrikes on Iranian missile launchers positioned on the strait island of Larak, claiming to observe the Revolutionary Guard preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines (an inefficient means to deploy them—Trump offers an AI-generated video of Kharg Island being “blown to smithereens!!”—into the Hormuz. The IRGC attacks US assets based in Jordan. The Supreme Leader urges Muslim nations to unite against their common enemies, America and Israel, vowing to avenge his father’s death. The US company Educational Testing Service confirms that it has suspended certifying its Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) in Iran as part of the latest sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Trump demands that all Canadian concerns doing business with the US relocate to America immediately. Iceland narrowly rejects resuming the accession process to join the European Union.

we got cool and hot (13. 755)

Unbidden and out of nowhere, I got “Soul Food to Go”—from The Manhattan Transfer—stuck in my head and in an attempt to exorcise it—or pass it on to someone else—I looked it up, having forgotten the claymation music video—studio of Will Vinton, who created the California Raisins and later working with computer animation, the M&Ms characters. From their 1987 tenth studio album as the follow up to their double releases in 1985 of Bop Doo-Wopp and Vocalese (named for the style of scat-like jazz singing where words are added to a soloist’s instrumental performance) which garnered the most Grammy nominations, twelve, second only to Michael Jackson’s Thriller, Brasil, marking the group’s foray into Latin music. The musical setting is from Brazilian artist Djavan’s song “Sina.” Officially retiring with a Christmas concert in 2023, there have been several incarnations of The Manhattan Transfer (named after the John Dos Passos’ seminal novel about the transition of New York’s working class from the Gilded to the Jazz Age) since its founding with each formation focusing on different genres from swing, pop, rhythm and blues, a cappella and American songbook standards. Just for you, the pleasures of the soul—come on, come in and check it out.

👅 (13. 754)

Inclined to screw up my face and stick out my tongue when doing a delicate or precision task, I can well imagine that this slim dental retainer with a pressure sensitive trackpad to be worn on the palette that personal experience is testimony to the accuracy of the tongue, clicking, scrolling, swiping and dragging—with a range of other haptic cues—to keep one’s pointer from being lost on the screen. Moving from the experimental phase with volunteer trials to public sales, we learn courtesy of Clive Thompson’s Linkfest—individuals with mobility limitation are the first priority, but the hands-free Mouthpad (see also this kiss-by-wire prototype which we are not sure went anywhere) but hundred of individuals have signed on to the waitlist to purchase the device, including professionals like surgeons, pianists, mechanics and technicians. The makers have also recognised the potential to incorporate it with other wearables for text to speech applications with augmented-reality spectacles. More at the links above.