| GoodBye! The Journal of Contemporary Obituaries Chief copyboy Steve Miller hosts this edifying and entertaining quarterly zine devoted to the recent dearly departed. Packed with dozens of biographies of folks who took the "you're only here once" philosophy to heart, Goodbye! also features plenty of morbid crowd pleasers. The latest issue pays tribute to pioneering composer Iannis Xenakis, beat poet Gregory Corso, and Glenn Hughes, the Village People biker with the huge handlebar moustache. A section titled Darwinian Events will test your capacity to sympathize, while Deaths by Mayhem covers the "Whoa!...Brutal" department. For some color on the obituary writer's life, check out Mr. Miller's address to the Third Great Obituary Writers Conference, June 3, 2001, in (where else?) Las Vegas. |
| Research Matters at Harvard University In the laboratories at Harvard, researchers and scientists are "turning artifacts of the imagination into facts of life." This site offers a peek into these labs, and allows you to read about the research as it happens, whether it's the latest news on medical treatment, technological advances, or space exploration. Divided into six categories -- Mind, Body, Society, Earth, Space, and Technology -- the site's in-depth look at innovative research will fascinate and amaze. |
| HistoryWorld This interactive resource offers a vast array of tools designed to "make history make sense." The database of over 400 articles is searchable by period and theme so you can get an overview of the history of painting from cave art to 18th-century British watercolours, or zero in on the Napoleonic wars. Take one of the over 200 tours to explore themes and movements throughout time, or choose among some 300 timelines to gain a broader perspective of historical events. Once you've learned all there is to know, join the History Club and post your own essays, or test your smarts with a round of Whizz Quizz, an online competition staged every hour. |
| neumu Barely a month old, this online magazine combines art galleries, music reviews, interviews, and other visual treats with a crisp, flawless design to create an incredible repository of all that is cool. Started by music journalist Michael Goldberg, formerly of Addicted to Noise and Rolling Stone, the site's lack of advertising is a breath of fresh air. And, if we can believe what we read, the site's creators have no plans to introduce ads in the future. Yes, it's true -- an ultracool site that offers well-written, interesting content in an aesthetically appealing format. They obviously "get it," and here's hoping you do too. |
| BBC Bookcase This brilliant site functions as its name suggests -- like a family's bookcase that represents the varied interests of each reader. The site is a potpourri of literary news, features, and games, and even offers an animated history of books guided by none other than Bill Shakespeare himself. Its editorial offerings are unpretentious yet informative and appeal to avid readers of all genres. From the would-be romance novelist, to the aspiring poet, there's a lot of practical advice here for beginning writers as well. So why not have a spot of tea with some scones, and let the BBC engage your imagination? |
| StreetStudio: Enos & Ghukfvin Itinerant photographers Clay Enos and Stephan Ghukfvin have embarked on a year-long quest to shoot portraits in every neighborhood of every borough of New York City: "Treating everyone we photograph as someone special, we are endeavoring to capture the diverse faces, fashions and attitudes that comprise this great city." After setting up their portable studio on a sidewalk, they grab people off the street for portrait sessions: "As people walk by, we ask them to stop for a moment, pose, and then carry on." Take folks in their street clothes and photograph them against a white background? Sure, it's been done before, but it's a formula that works. |
| Netizen's Guide to Flame Warriors Illustrator Mike Reed has created a comic rogue's gallery of online belligerence. If the Net is an information superhighway, then flamers are its everyday road warriors, raging in their own peculiar ways on newsgroups, message boards, mailing lists, and in chatrooms. Reed catalogs their flaming antics: the ubiquitous ALL CAPS shouter, the passive-aggressive Bliss Ninny, and the befuddled Mr. Garble. Don't miss this collection of archetypal Internet androids, archivists, trollers, and yuk yuks. |
| British Pop Culture in the 1960s David "Digger" Barnes spent his youth absorbing the sights and the sounds London in the '60s and early '70s; now he runs a web site devoted to the best of '60s British pop culture. From the all-pervasive influence of the Beatles in music, fashion, and film to one of the most controversial moments of World Cup history, Barnes shows how Britain bounced back from the drab post-war years to invade America's pop sensibilities. The site overflows with pictures, biographies, film reviews, TV summaries, MIDI files, ad posters, fashion shots, star interviews, and trivia about the era. This is the real deal, no imitations or parody. Austin Powers, eat your heart out! |
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