Wednesday links

Interesting bit of history: the readers who entertained cigar factory workers in the early 20th century.

Teach Yourself to Echolocate - a beginner’s guide to navigating with sound.

A 16th-Century Guide to Pooping at King Henry VIII's Hampton Court Palace.

Happy Birthday, Rita Hayworth: here's an excellent compilation of her dancing, set to Stayin' Alive.

Patching Crumbling Walls with LEGOs.

Jet Engines on Trucks.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, and include the anniversary of the 1066 Battle of Hastings, how police will solve murders on Mars, an instructional video from 1960 on how to build your own fallout shelter, and a timeline of Bigfoot searches.

Wednesday links

It's Stonewall Jackson's birthday - here's the story of his left arm's separate grave (bonus: Lord Uxbridge's leg).

What People Say and What They Really Mean.

The Industrial Revolution: Why Britain Got There First.

French King Louis XVI was guillotined on this day in 1793. Here's Allan Sherman.

The Forgotten History Of How Automakers Invented The Crime Of 'Jaywalking'.

Robot Learns to Cook from YouTube Videos.

ICYMI, Tuesday's links are here, and include Turkey's camel beauty contest and camel wrestling festival, the top 10 design flaws in the U.S.S. Enterprise, anonymously sending envelopes fill of loose glitter to people you hate, and real places that inspired Disney animated movies.

Friday links

This video compilation will help you start your day with a smile: Dogs That Forgot How To Fetch.

10 Real Stories Behind Famous Food Mascots.

Motorcycle doing stunts on a Roller Coaster.

Funny Warning labels.

The Origin of the Myth of the Poisonous Poinsettia. Related, why we kiss under the mistletoe and how the plant got that strange name (spoiler - it literally means "dung twig").

Here are 24 Animals That Are Just Trying to Stay Warm This Winter.

ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and include how bourbon and Scotch tape are made, 1964 auditions from The Addams Family (and why their black and white living room was really pink), and the cost of 5,000 years of chewing gum.

Monday links

Today is the autumnal equinox - science, videos, quotes, poems, Vivaldi and Copernicus

13-year-old turns dead pet into 'Ratcopter'.

Fiddler On The Roof opened 50 years ago today; Zero Mostel singing If I Were A Rich Man will make your whole day. Plus, the Lego version.

Excellent gallery: Landscapes Dominated by Powerful Storms.

Parody of the Song Under the Sea From The Little Mermaid Highlights the Horrors of Deep Sea Life.

10 Most Expensive Cars in the World.

Photos of amputees with a sense of humor.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, including making and eating the worst of the Jello recipes from the 1950s, the evolution (devolution?) of toilet training. and lots of Talk Like a Pirate Day stuff.

Friday links

IBM’s 1937 corporate songbook is something of a hoot.

Weird Medieval Books.

Bloodletting, Bone Brushes, and Tooth Keys: White-Knuckle Adventures in Early Dentistry. “Dentures were often referred to as ‘Waterloo Teeth’ after those ripped from the bodies of dead soldiers."

Tomorrow is the 257th anniversary of the birth of the Marquis de Lafayette - some quotes, video and history.

How Movies Synchronize the Brains of an Audience.

Behold, A Rocket-Powered Motorcycle From The Early 20th Century.

ICYMI, Wednesday's links are here, including photos of LA when it was an oil field, the oak bucket challenge that 2,000 people died for, and some excellent royal epithets including (but not limited to) Fruela the Leprous, Alfonso the Slobberer and Wilfred the Hairy.

Thursday links

Supercut: Best/Most Memorable Catchphrases in TV History, Parts 1 and 2.

Gallery: Cars with Propellers.

Supposed and Filmed Locations of Fictional Places.

The Pink Floyd ballet, plus Pink Floyd: Story of "Wish You Were Here" (with lots of extras).

The Last Motorcycle Graveyard.

Man sues British Airways after booking mistake sends him Grenada instead of Granada.

ICYMI, Tuesday's links are here, including brain scorpions caused by basil-smelling, a bug that sucks its prey dry and wears their corpses, and Vonnegut's 1988 letter to the Ladies & Gentlemen of A.D. 2088. Plus, pictures of bunnies sticking their tongues out!