We like to think of this week's selection of picks not so much as a "selection of picks" as a collection of voices in our heads. Voices that say things like "Try this site," and "You'll really enjoy that URL." We're okay with this, everyone hears voices in their heads; it's just that some people listen better than others. And plenty of keen listeners have wound up in Bethlem Royal Hospital, or Bedlam, the oldest mental asylum in the world. The Museum of London presents an online exhibit about Bedlam that features creepy sepia daguerreotypes of "acute mania" victims, Ward Nine-ish Hogarth paintings, and downright awful treatment procedures (hobbling, anyone?). Stare into the manic eyes of "WG," a strangely handsome patient who resembles a gas-huffing Gary Oldman. Or, learn about Richard Dadd, who dismembered his father then painted whimsical fairy paintings for the next twenty years. Drop in on Bedlam, and be thankful for your sanity. Oh, and welcome to Picks.
Of course, when the "voices" are a little too loud and life loses its essential meaning for us, we have a tried and true solution. We don't pick up the latest in pop-psychology or try to buy ourselves happiness -- no, we turn to the pithy morals of Aesop's Fables. Many of you are surely familiar with old Aesop's short stories and words of wisdom, written over 2500 years ago. For instance, in "The Ant and the Grasshopper" a lazy grasshopper learns from an industrious ant that "It is best to prepare for the days of necessity." The site holds 393 fables, indexed by title and moral. When we browse the collection, suddenly we are sated with such morals as "Clumsy jesting is no joke," "A man is known by the company he keeps," and "Union gives strength." It's the place to go when you want sharp insights, gentle humor, and lessons in life.
Try as we might, we were unable to find a moral in the story of this next little creature, the doodlebug. See, the Antlion Pit offers Wild Kingdom-type videoclips of antlions capturing prey, global maps of their territories, and tips on observing the critters in the wild. Watch as the dastardly antlion digs his deathtrap, waits motionless for days at a time, then rips wayward ants to pieces. Investigate antlion research centers from the sand flats of Albuquerque to the shifting dunes of South Africa. Learn about antlions in poetry and literature, including ancient Navajo myths, Anglo Saxon riddles, and the famous "Ask the Doodlebug" passage from Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer. Find the answer to the age-old question, "Is it an antlion or an ant?" And just in case you were curious about how to catch a doodlebug's attention: "an ant tossed into the pit will stir the antlion into action immediately." Wait. Maybe there is a lesson here: It sucks to be an ant.
If you've been on the freeways lately, you know that people like to go very, very fast. In fact, for years engineers have been trying to come up with ways to go even faster, on land and in the air. You'll remember that on October 14, 1947, Chuck Yeager, flying a bright orange X-1 airplane, became the first person to break the sound barrier. Going Mach 1.0 and Beyond, he flew into history. Last Tuesday, on the 50th anniversary of the flight, Yeager repeated his performance. And the day before a car called ThrustSSC was the very first to exceed the sound barrier on land. Visit Thrust News to read about driver Andy Green, the history of the record, and the story of the car itself. Goodbye speed limits, hello sonic boom.
Prefer to conjure up the image of a time and place where things seemed a might slower? A time when folks sat around smelling the wisteria, sipping mint juleps, and watching the golden sun bob gently on the shimmering waves of the muddy Mississippi? Then mosey on down to the Legend of Steamboatin', a site dedicated to the grand tradition of those big boats that prowled the rivers of the South and Midwest. Steamboatin' contains a gallery of still active boats, including the Lady Luck, a full-scale replica of the original 1860's model, and the Delta Queen, the "last remaining historical steamboat available for overnight cruises." There's also a clickable map of a typical vessel (including smokestack, hull, and paddlewheel), and a little of the steamboat's early history, when it was the predominant means of transportation between faraway cities. Check out steamboatin', then y'all come back for the next pick, y'hear?
Hi ho, Browser! Away! Away to Westerns.com, where you'll find streaming video of full-length cowboy movies from the golden age of the silver screen. Even if you're unfamiliar with the gunslingers portrayed by Ray Corrigan, Gabby Hayes, Hoot Gibson, you'll no doubt recall Clayton Moore's classic, kerchiefed Lone Ranger. You'll need Microsoft's NetShow to watch the video, but for the plug-in-impaired, there are still some tidbits to tide you over, including movie stills, sounds, and trivia. (Did you know that actor Rex Bell, who starred in the classic Stormy Trails, was lieutenant governor of Nevada from 1954-1962? Neither did we.) Dust off your Stetson and gallop on over to Westerns.com, if for no other reason than to listen to RealAudio of John Wayne calling some poor cowpoke "a dim-witted nailbender." Yee-haw!
On an unrelated note, we've been spending quality time at El Museo del Barrio, a museum dedicated to the "richness of Latin American arts and cultural history." We particularly enjoyed the current exhibit, a look at The Taino World, "the dominant culture in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, Jamaica and the Bahamas from about 1200 AD to the arrival of Columbus in 1492." Among other things, you can read about daily Taino life, class structure, and spirituality. Read up, too, on cohoba, a powerful hallucinogen used to contact the supernatural realm. There's also a complete list of Taino images which we found to be an easy way to navigate the site. The actual exhibit at El Museo del Barrio, in New York City, runs through March 29 of next year.
As long as you're exploring New York online, be sure to stop by HarlemLive, an Internet publication put together by the youth of this famous neighborhood. You'll find book and movie reviews, a photo gallery with pictures of old Harlem, and a walking tour of West Harlem. The latest issue also includes a story of a board game based on Harlem history and culture that has grown into a life-size event with three-foot houses and giant dice. While you're there, be sure to say hello to HarlemLive's impressive young staff. If you've never been to uptown Manhattan, take the "A Train" and soak up all that this rich New York neighborhood has to offer.
Finally, if you're the type of person who likes to analyze statistics, then there's a 50% chance that you'll get a kick out of Dave's Browser Poll. And even if you don't, you'll be helping Dave do important research. (This year's Nobel Prize committee carelessly overlooked his work.) So check out Dave's question and, as always, take your pick(s).
You can also get Yahoo!'s Weekly Picks delivered to you via NetDelivery
