Six Quick Bites 

* Interesting. The WHO issued greatly reduced Monkeypox case and death numbers on Aug 28. Click here.

* Interesting. The worm turns. The Biden administration put Tulsi Gabbard on “Quiet Skies,” a suspected terrorist watchlist. Click here.

* Fun. The America First Team has been working on a “victory” dance if Trump wins. I know Trump has a few moves, but Elon and RFK Jr? These boys can boogie! Click here.

* Interesting. Did you hear that Alexa has a political point of view? Well, she does. Or did until she got caught. Here‘s the story.

* Fun. Dogs! Gotta love ‘em! Click here and here and here.

Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. Smartphone-free schools? A thought-provoking proposal. What do you think? Click here.

* Interesting. Elon Musk on commercial space flights. Click here.

* Interesting. Bill Maher and Ben Shapiro talk about fat shaming. Click here.

* Interesting. Scans suggest many people with severe brain injuries are more aware than originally thought. Click here.

* Fun and Interesting. I’ve watched this three times and I still have no idea how he does it!

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Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. Dogs may have evolved to read emotions. Click here.

* Fun and Interesting. Can ChatGPT be funnier than humans? You be the judge. Click here. 

* Interesting. Night owls may beat early risers in cognitive function. Click here.

* Interesting. Click here to watch this nine-year-old blues guitar prodigy in action.

* Fun. Mark Zuckerberg reveals the gigantic statue of his wife that he commissioned because… well, because he’s Mark Zuckerberg. Click here.

Bet You Didn’t Know This 

I rarely find anything on Quora that merits more than a moment’s attention, but I did find this about “famous actors with unbelievable backgrounds” to be worth the 90 seconds it took me to read it.

* Leighton Meester was born in prison.

* Woody Harrelson’s father was a hit man.

* Christopher Walken was a lion tamer in a traveling circus.

* Joaquin Phoenix was born into a religious cult.

* Rose McGowan spent the first nine years of her life in the same cult.

* Christopher Lee was a member of the Special Operations Executive organization during WWII.

A 1997 BBC Report on the Viability of Internet Shopping Featuring a Young Jeff Bezos 

This is worth watching for more than one reason. First, it’s funny. Funny to see how, in 1997, the internet – even after nearly two decades of development – was still very much a thing of the future. It’s fascinating to think that the claims made back then, and characterized in this clip as not-quite-believable, were realized within just a few years and seem, in retrospect, almost inevitable. It’s also intriguing to see how much easier it is to sound smart if you are criticizing a prediction than it is to make or defend one.

Does Chiropracty Actually Work? Well, There’s This…

The literature is mixed on chiropractic therapy, as my personal experiences with it have been. In this case, it’s even more difficult to discern its effectiveness, but it looks like the giraffe is enjoying it!

Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. I’ve always wondered whether Yelp matters to the restaurants it reviews. I don’t use it, because I don’t want hundreds of people I don’t know and trust prejudicing my opinion about a meal I’m about to eat. But K does use it. Here’s a short history of its impact on the industry.

* Interesting. Am I being racist, sexist, and unfair when I say Kamala Harris is a certifiable dumbo? You decide. This guy, who I’ve been following for a while because he has a droll way of making his point, seems to agree with me.

* Fun and Interesting. A British linguist, Olie Ridge, found 11 distinctive accents spoken in and around NYC. Click here.

* Interesting. This inspirational video with Elon Musk will show you what hard work and commitment look like.

* Fun. Father-daughter swearing lesson. Click here.

Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. Thanks to TS for this clip – restored film of Paris during its prime, originally shot by the famous Lumiere brothers, who preserved so many beautiful images of the world at this time.

* Fun. Famous last words. Click here.

* Interesting. The five richest women in the world. Click here.

* Fun. Click here to watch this extraordinary video of 100,000 dominos falling.

* Interesting. Life advice from Warren Buffett. Click here.

Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. One of the things I was writing about while I was in Japan is how incredibly efficient the Japanese are. Here’s a perfect example: an airport that hasn’t lost a single piece of luggage in 30 years.

* Fun and Interesting. In the heart of Paris, there’s a new museum – the Musee du Fromage – dedicated to the ages-old craft of cheesemaking in France. Visitors can learn about the history of cheesemaking, see cheese made, talk to real cheesemakers, and, yes, taste the cheese. Click here.

* Fun. 16 animals with delightfully obvious names. Click here.

* Fun? Has social media expanded the number of oddball things people do for fun and entertainment, or has it simply exposed how many crazy things people have been doing? Here’s an event that apparently amuses some people greatly – running trucks off the side of a cliff. And here’s another one (considerably more benign) – the Annual Coopers Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake in Gloucester, England.

* Fun and Interesting. Ten of the most creative TV commercials you’ll ever see. Click here.

Five Quick Bites 

* Interesting. Elon Musk on the Hamas-Israel confrontation. Click here.

* Interesting. Between 2000 and 2024, food experienced an average inflation rate of 2.83% per year. In other words, an equivalent purchase of food that cost $20 in the year 2000 would cost $39.08 in 2024.

* Fun and Interesting. Someone is paying for their education?!?!! Click here.

* Interesting. Good and bad fats. Is there a difference? Click here.

* Fun and Interesting. Watch this professional kayaker go over an Arctic waterfall in his solo watercraft.

Five Quick Bites

* Fun. Is Oslo really a city? This brilliant tourism ad features a resident of Oslo describing – in the most hilariously deadpan manner possible – why nobody should visit.

* Interesting. Why the Atkins diet works for weight loss. I published Dr. Atkins’ newsletter for several years and spent time with him in his NYC clinic. I knew then that he was not just on to something, he was a serious and honest scientist. If you have any doubts, watch this.

* Fun and Interesting. Why monkeys can only count to four. Click here.

* Interesting. Bari Weiss on the new worldview of social hierarchy.
Click here.

* Fun and Interesting. Saved by the whale! Another bit on the humanity of mammals. Click here.

Five Quick Bites 

* Fun and Interesting. The greatest prank in academic history. Click here.

* Interesting. Rachel Maddow doesn’t understand the first thing about how our Constitution was formed. Click here.

* Interesting. A whole lot that you didn’t know about the filming of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Click here.

* Interesting. Iran? Ireland? Persia? What’s in a name? Click here.

* Fun and Interesting. Internet justice puts a scumbag in jail. Click here.