Friday links

A selection of weird nativity sets.

Pachelbel's Canon In D Performed By Train Horns.

National Geographic’s 100 best photos from 2019.

One of my favorite Christmas stories - 'Twas the Overnight Before Christmas: The Merry Tale of How Air Cargo Deregulation Led To Amazon.

How robocalls became America's most prevalent crime.

Darwin Awards: a cumulative list.

ICYMI, most recent links are here, and include advice from c. 1200 on surviving the winter (spoiler -  lay off the purging and blood-letting, and keep your hands and feet covered in wolf grease), the anniversary of Australia's Great Emu War, the pre-Seinfeld origins of Festivus, and a pairing guide for pop-tarts and fine whiskies.

Video: molten aluminum vs. bullets

Potential Darwin Award (wiki) candidate:

From the youtube comments:

“Contrary to popular belief, grenades are actually very safe if they don’t have a hand throwing them. They require the hand to increase their velocity in order to prime the explosives enough for full combustion.”

Lots more at Darwin Awards, h/t IMAO.

Monday links

Yesterday, October 25, was the anniversary of three major battles: Agincourt, the charge of the Light Brigade and Leyte Gulf: history, maps, Shakespeare, and documentaries, including one that contains Thomas Edison's 1890 recording of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, reading his own poem Charge of the Light Brigade.

The Science of Little House on the Prairie.

Dead Men’s Teeth: A History of Dentures.

Video: Halloween pumpkin carving tricks.

Instructions for servicemen serving overseas: How The Army Handled Cultural Sensitivity Training in WWII.

Once a book was published and galley proofs were in hand, there was no further use for the original manuscript, so Charles Darwin, father of 10, gave his kids the manuscript of On the Origin of Species to draw on. Here are the surviving pages, complete with drawings.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, and include lots of Halloween-related links, why more firstborn kids need glasses, a gallery of photos from hot-air balloon festivals, a 400 ft long baguette and a pizza nearly a mile long, and recycling penicillin from patients urine.