Without VFX, Iron Man 2 is the story of two men, with soft spots on their heads, getting into trouble in their pajamas.
“I wisely started with a map and made the story fit… the other way about lands one in confusions and impossibilities.” - J.R.R. Tolkien
Caraleigh
A map of the neighborhood I live in, circa the early 1900s.
Same map imposed on a satellite photo today.
After some brain-storming we decided to go with the theme of the Seven Deadly Sins (Envy, Gluttony, Greed, Lust, Pride, Sloth, Wrath) inspired in part by the cool mapping exercise by Mitchel Stimers and others at Kansas State University (here). After all, the Twitter data from which we were pulling reflects the commentary of daily life. What better source for uncovering the sins that lurk within the hearts and microblogging activities of Internet users? So we sat down and came up with range of terms that we thought did a decent job of representing a sin (e.g., the term Big Mac for Gluttony or honor student for Pride) and compiled them into a “sindex” for each each of the seven sins.
![upennrels:
From British Library Medieval and Earlier Manuscripts Blog: Map of the world from Ranulf Higden, Polychronicon, Royal 14 C. ix, ff. 1v-2r - ”Higden (d. 1364) was a Benedictine monk famous for writing the Polychronicon, a universal chronicle of world history…. Higden’s work is encyclopaedic, incorporating descriptions not just of historic events, but of customs, natural history and geography. In some manuscripts this included a map of the world. The one in Royal 14 C. ix is an early and elaborate example that may closely reflect Higden’s original version. As was the traditional medieval form for such maps, Jerusalem is in the centre, with Paradise above, in the east. Britain (shown here in red and labelled ‘Anglia’) is to the lower left, at the very edge of the known world….” [Read more]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mawsv0xAEs1rss48vo1_500.jpg)
From British Library Medieval and Earlier Manuscripts Blog: Map of the world from Ranulf Higden, Polychronicon, Royal 14 C. ix, ff. 1v-2r - ”Higden (d. 1364) was a Benedictine monk famous for writing the Polychronicon, a universal chronicle of world history…. Higden’s work is encyclopaedic, incorporating descriptions not just of historic events, but of customs, natural history and geography. In some manuscripts this included a map of the world. The one in Royal 14 C. ix is an early and elaborate example that may closely reflect Higden’s original version. As was the traditional medieval form for such maps, Jerusalem is in the centre, with Paradise above, in the east. Britain (shown here in red and labelled ‘Anglia’) is to the lower left, at the very edge of the known world….” [Read more]
“In the beginning Eru, the One, who in the Elvish tongue is named Ilúvatar, made the Ainur of his thought; and they made a great Music before him. In this Music the World was begun; for Ilúvatar made visible the song of the Ainur, and they beheld it as a light in the darkness. And many among them became enamoured of its beauty, and of its history which they saw beginning and unfolding as in a vision. Therefore Ilúvatar gave to their vision Being, and set it amid the Void, and the Secret Fire was sent to burn at the heart of the World; and it was called Eä.
Those of the Ainur who desired it arose and entered into the World at the beginning of Time; and it was their task to achieve it, and by their labours to fulfil the vision which they had seen. Long they laboured in the regions of Eä, which are vast beyond the thought of Elves and Men, until in the time appointed was made Arda, the Kingdom of Earth. Then they put on the raiment of Earth and descended into it, and dwelt therein.”
Mrs Bridget Driscoll, 44, of Croydon, Surrey, was a pedestrian crossing the grounds of the Crystal Palace. As she and her daughter May crossed the road on 17 August 1896, a car being driven by Arthur James Edsall of Upper Norwood approached. According to witnesses, the car hit Mrs Driscoll “at tremendous speed”, about 6 kilometres per hour. The inquest into Mrs Driscoll’s death lasted for about 6 hours, after which the jury returned a verdict of “accidental death”. No prosecution was made. The coroner at the inquest, Percy Morrison, stated, “This must never happen again.
“
| — | The world’s first car accident fatality, August 17th, 1896 |
Istanbul
I want to go to Istanbul. It’s one of those few places that I feel drawn to without ever visiting before, as if I spent my childhood there and I just haven’t returned in the last twenty seven years. London and Prague are the only other cities I really feel that with. So one down, two to go!
