Life in 2000 (as imagined in 1910)

“The National Library of France (BnF) has an amazing collection of prints from 1910 which depict life in the year 2000. They are credited to Villemard.”

Some of these inventions are right on the nose, but we’ll have to wait a bit longer for the others.   View Images

Optical Illusion Girlfriend

Unpopular Names Have Consequences

“Boys in the United States with common names like Michael and David are less likely to commit crimes than those named Ernest or Ivan…Results show that, regardless of race, juveniles with unpopular names are more likely to engage in criminal activitty.  The least popular names were associated with juvenile delinqency among both blacks and whites.”   Full Story

Gmail Adds Off-line Support

“One of Gmail’s most requested features – offline support – is now available in testing. In other words, you can now use Gmail without an Internet connection, just like you can with desktop mail clients like Outlook. “    Full Story

Amazon Set to Rekindle Its E-Book Reader

It’s nip-and-tuck time as Amazon’s popular e-book reader is set to get a face lift…Amazon will host a media event in the Morgan Library & Museum in New York City on Feb. 9.  The timing and the venue strongly suggest that Amazon will use the event to announce Kindle 2.0,  a slimmer and better-designed device.    Full Story

Get To Know An Artist – Chuck Close

Chuck Close is an American painter and photographer who achieved fame as a photorealist through his massive-scale portraits. Though a catastrophic spinal artery collapse in 1988 left him severely paralyzed, he has continued to paint and produce work which remains sought after by museums and collectors.   Some Art by Close

College Textbook Scam Continues

As a new semester commences, we must pity the poor college student trying to just pay tuition but then also must spend a ridiculous amount on “required” textbooks. They call us here at the library hoping against hope that we can save them a few bucks, only to learn that public libraries rarely purchase textbooks a) because of the price and b) because they tend to sprout legs and walk out of the building. I found an article from last year’s Wall St. Journal that blew the lid off this scam which, judging from the number of calls we receive for the “latest” edition of a $100 book, is still going strong.   Full Story

Mengele’s Brazillian Twin Town?

For years scientists have failed to discover why as many as one in five pregnancies in a small Brazilian town have resulted in twins – most of them blond haired and blue eyed.

But residents of Candido Godoi now claim that Mengele made repeated visits there in the early 1960s, posing at first as a vet but then offering medical treatment to the women of the town.    Full Story

Korean Fan of Death Mystery

This week, Esquire’s Answer Fella dispels an urban myth that may or may not leave you with hypothermia. 

“I just arrived in South Korea, and my colleague says that I can die if I sleep in a closed room with a fan on. He insists that “fan death” is an actual danger. What the hell?”

Find A Grave – It’s like IMDB for the Dead

For all those who have been searching for a good Necrology.

“What is a necrology? A necrology is a listing of people who have died during a specific time period. Find A Grave necrologies let you browse the names and faces of the 75 most famous people who have died during any year, back to 1900. They are listed by ‘fame ranking’.  Simply select a year and also a category (actors, sports figures, politicians, criminals, musicians, etc.).     2009 Necrology