LEGO Jurassic Park

Lego version of the first Jurassic Park movie:



And here's a making of video:



via Metafilter

Friday links

Spring is here, although it doesn't feel like it in the DC area. Here's Vivaldi, science, myths, "spring spheres" and more. Related, for spring celebration purposes, here's Richard Feynman’s Ode to a Flower.

Epic 1970s French Space Comic Art.

Check out this Catalog of Crazy Customized Coffins.

From 1921, here's the Intelligence Test That Thomas Edison Gave to Job Seekers.

Microbiology takes on the important issues: Scientists Find a Way to Cut Wine Hangovers. And when they're not busy studying hangovers, Scientists make “species-appropriate” music just for cats. Listen here!

The Beatles' Worst Experience.

ICYMI, Tuesday's links are here, including the average temperature of all the water on the Earth’s surface, weird children's books, what happened to the ringwraiths after the Ring was destroyed, and lots of St. Patrick-related stuff.

It's Rimsky-Korsakov's birthday - quotes, bio, Flight of the Bumblebee and a lame joke

Even before this I had known and worshipped his operas; but as editor of the scores in print I had to go through Glinka's style and instrumentation to their last little note ... And this was a beneficent discipline for me, leading me as it did to the path of modern music, after my vicissitudes with counterpoint and strict style. 

~Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (My Musical Life)

Apparently [Rimsky-Korsakov] is now passing through this crisis, and how it will end will be difficult to predict. Either a great master will come out of him, or he will finally become bogged down in contrapuntal tricks.

~Peter I. Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) (letter to Nadezhda von Meck, ca. 1873) 

Rimsky-Korsakov - what a name! It suggests whiskers stained with vodka!

~Musical Courier, New York, 27 October 1897

Today, March 18, is the anniversary of the birth of Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (wiki) (1844-1908), the best known of the group of late-19th-century Russian nationalist composers known as "The Five" or "The Mighty Handful."* 

Born to an aristocratic family in Tikhvin, east of St. Petersburg, Rimsky-Korsakov showed significant musical talent while still a boy, but at 12, he entered the Russian Imperial Navy as a cadet and remained a naval officer - at first at sea and later as Inspector of Naval Bands - until 1884. While composing at sea in his spare time, Rimsky came under the influence of the older members of "The Five," imbibed their interest in Russian folk themes, and saw the first public performances of his work around 1865. 

In 1871 - still a naval officer - he became a professor of composition and orchestration at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and pursued an academic career until his liberal sympathies during the 1905 revolution caused him to be relieved of his positions. Nonetheless, he counted among his students Alexander Glazunov, Igor Stravinsky, Serge Prokofiev, and Ottorino Respighi. 

Rimsky composed prolifically in many forms: more than a dozen operas, three symphonies, and many orchestral works, including the popular Scheherazade and Capriccio Espagnole. A brilliant orchestrator and editor, he prepared performing versions of many of the works of his "Mighty Handful" colleagues, most notably Mussorgsky's opera Boris Godunov and his Night on Bald Mountain. A musical conservative to the end of his life, Rimsky-Korsakov exclaimed to Serge Diaghilev after hearing Claude Debussy's opera Pelléas et Mélisande,

"Don't make me listen to all these horrors or I shall end up liking them!"  

* N.B. The other four members of "The Five" were Alexander Borodin (1833-1887), C ésar Cui (1835-1918), Mily Balakirev (1837-1910), and Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881). Conspicuous by his absence was Tchaikovsky, who was influenced largely by Western European music. 

Here's Flight of the Bumblebee:

And a really lame Rimsky-Korsakov joke:

A neophyte radio announcer was confused when he was told to play the Ave Maria by Bach-Gounod. An older colleague explained that this merely meant that the music was originally by Bach but arranged by Gounod. The next day, the young announcer found Scheherazade on his play list. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. He confidently announced, "Next we will hear Scheherezade, written by Rimsky and arranged by Korsakov."

Tuesday links

Saint Patrick’s Day: origin, history, quotes, poetry, videos, and how to make your own green beer.

15 Last Survivors Of Famous Events.

What Happened to the Ringwraiths Once the Ruling Ring Was Destroyed in the Lord of the Rings books?

Slow motion video of stuff bouncing off gelatin.

What is the average temperature of all water on the Earth’s surface?

30+ Of The Weirdest Children’s Books Ever - this is an open list, so you can add your own.

ICYMI, last Tuesday's links are here, and include Chuck Norris' 75th birthday, Pop Rocks recipes, photo contest winners, and why people want to eat babies.

Sharknado 3 update: in addition to Ann Coulter as VP, David Hasselhoff to play Finn's father

SyFy announced Tuesday that David Hasselhoff (wiki) has been added to the cast of the third film in the hit franchise, with the “Baywatch” star tapped to play Gilbert Shepard, the father of “Sharknado” hero Finn Shepard (Ian Ziering).

The “Knight Rider” actor joins a cast that also includes Bo Derek as the mother of Tara Reid's character April, “Shark Tank” star Mark Cuban as President of the United States and Ann Coulter as the Vice President.

NSYNC singer Chris Kirkpatrick, talk show host Jerry Springer and wrestler Chris Jericho have also been confirmed to make cameos in the movie.

via Daily News.

More about Sharknado 3 and the previous movies here.

Slow motion video of stuff bouncing off gelatin

Using dynamic breaking to slow down a falling object's impact.