Tuesday links

July 9 is Nikola Tesla's birthday: bio, some science and engineering, Tesla coil music, Tesla vs Edison rap battle.

What a Conservative Learns In College:

...as a conservative at my small, Minnesota-based liberal arts institution, I’ve spent the last four years defending myself against personal and political attacks from professors and peers alike. 

Raising the American Weakling - there's been a 20 percent decrease in grip strength in one generation.

The 47 names Disney considered for the 7 dwarfs.

How to Buy Your Kid's Way Into College.

Why Are Monkey Butts So Colorful?

ICYMI, most recent links are here, and are Independence Day related - history, movies, music, inspirational speeches, the science of barbecue and of fireworks, more.

The 47 names Disney considered for the 7 dwarfs

In the 1930s, as Disney began work on the movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (an adaptation of Snow White by the Brothers Grimm), the writing team compiled the following list of potential names for the seven dwarfs - characters who, in the original story, were unnamed.

As we now know, Bashful, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy were picked. The name of their leader, Doc, was chosen at a later date, although I don't see Happy on this list, either.

By the way, in 1912 the story had been adapted for the Broadway stage, and the names chosen for the dwarfs were Blick, Flick, Glick, Snick, Plick, Whick, and Quee.

Here's the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Original Theatrical Trailer from 1937:

And here are the options they compiled (What the heck is Neurtsy? And why leave off Sleazy and Smutty?):

1. Awful
2. Baldy
3. Bashful
4. Biggo-Ego
5. Burpy
6. Daffy
7. Deafy
8. Dippy
9. Dirty
10. Dizzy
11. Doleful
12. Dopey
13. Dumpy
14. Flabby
15. Gabby
16. Grumpy
17. Hickey
18. Hoppy
19. Hotsy
20. Hungry
21. Jaunty
22. Jumpy
23. Lazy
24. Neurtsy
25. Nifty
26. Puffy
27. Sappy
28. Scrappy
29. Shifty
30. Shorty
31. Silly
32. Sleepy
33. Snappy
34. Sneezy
35. Sneezy-Wheezy
36. Sniffy
37. Snoopy
38. Soulful
39. Strutty
40. Stuffy
41. Swift
42. Tearful
43. Thrifty
44. Weepy
45. Wheezy
46. Wistful
47. Woeful

via Lists of Note

Friday links

June 30, 1934 was the Night of the Long Knives, Hitler's purge of those standing in his way.

22 Real Places That Inspired Disney Animated Movies.

That time the FBI tested for Bigfoot.

June 28 is the anniversary of both the event that started and the treaty that ended World War One.

Bathing Machines Of The 19th Century.

The Real Story of the Green Book, the Guide That Changed How Black People Traveled in America - “It was much harder to navigate in the North and the West because you didn’t have the signs.” 

Medieval medical schools.

ICYMI, most recent links are here, and include is the anniversary of the 1815 Battle of Waterloo, some really huge spiders, Chinese scientist-recommended pick up lines (personal favorite - "Your smile is a naughty goblin"), and the history of adhesives.

1957 Disney PSA - Our Friend the Atom

I occasionally run into things that I want to make my grandkids watch in their spare time, so I thought I'd start posting them.

Book by Heinz Haber, who narrates the PSA

Check out this 1957 lecture/cartoon from Disney entitled Our Friend the Atom (accompanying book) on the history of the discovery of atoms (back to Aristotle), putting atomic energy to use (structure of power plants), and the potential benefits of radioactive isotopes (the way radioactive isotopes are depicted as a sparkling, magic dust sprinkled as plant fertilizer and in animal feed is rather disturbing). I realize that the physics is outdated, but it's a fascinating introduction to the subject. 

There was absolutely no sense, in 1957, of any potential downsides (other than the bombs which would "make friends of our enemies"); the idea of problems such as Chernobyl (wiki, excellent recent book and HBO miniseries) were not even considered. 

Here's the whole thing (just over 50 minutes):

If you'd like smaller chunks, you can watch it split into 5 parts of approx 10 minutes each. Here's the first - the others will be listed along to left.

Related: 1954 film: How a Clean, Tidy Home Can Help You Survive the Atomic Bomb.

Thursday links

April 25 is ANZAC Day, the anniversary of the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli: here's some history, restored footage, a documentary, and a Lego re-enactment.

The history and invention of Jell-O.

Without the Great Calculator Race of the 1970s, there would be no iPhone.

It's Oliver Cromwell's birthday - his excellent speech throwing out the corrupt Parliament is evergreen, plus the posthumous travels of his head, and bonus Monty Python.

The Dark Origins of the Tale of Snow White. 

Sick of exercising? Plastic Surgeons Can Now Sculpt Belly Fat Into a Weird Chiseled Six-Pack.

ICYMI, most recent links are here, and include coverage of the annual Sasquatch Calling Festival, the McDonalds Monopoly Fraud (from 1995 to 2001, there was only one real winner - Uncle Jerry), photos of the live-action models for Disney's 1959 "Sleeping Beauty", and film of the 1906 earthquake and fire destroyed that 80% of San Francisco.

Thursday links

T'was the eighteenth of April in seventy-five: The midnight ride of William Dawes and Samuel Prescott (and Paul Revere)

Coverage of the annual Sasquatch Calling Festival.

Behind the Scenes Photos of Live-Action Models For Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" (1959).

On April 18, 1906, an earthquake and fire destroyed 80% of San Francisco: here's a documentary, Library of Congress footage of the destruction, and side by side film of Market Street four days before the earthquake compared to afterward.

The Village Where They Pelt a Man in a Monster Costume With 30 Tons of Turnips.

The McDonalds Monopoly Fraud: from 1995 to 2001, there was only one real winner - Uncle Jerry.

ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and include beer can history, how to dismantle a nuclear missile, Leonardo DaVinci's resume, tax-related links, and the anniversary of Lincoln's assassination (with a televised eyewitness report from 1956).

Thursday links

A day that will live in infamy: It's the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor: some history, contemporaneous newsreels, and a Monty Python re-enactment.

The voice actress who played Snow White was forbidden by Disney from appearing in films, radio, or television.

How rats conquered New York

If spiders worked together, they could eat all the humans in a year.

This ‘smart condom’ will give insights into your sex life that you probably didn’t want.

Do emotions related to alcohol consumption differ by alcohol type?

ICYMI, Wednesday's links are here, and include the feast day of St. Nicholas of Myra (aka Santa Claus), how Civil War soldiers gave themselves syphilis while trying to avoid smallpox, a famous French fartist from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and a selection of weird nativity sets.

Friday links

The 47 names Disney considered for the 7 dwarfs.

Happy Bastille Day! Here's an old Jonah Goldberg article on the subject: The French are Revolting.

Museum discovers three cases of Madeira wine from 1796 in cellar. The wine was stocked in anticipation of John Adams’ presidential election.

The 100 Greatest Props in Movie History, and the Stories Behind Them.

A history of the closet.

ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and include how barbed wire changed the West, Nikola Tesla's birthday, the Japanese soldier who refused to surrender for 29 years, the history of the equals sign, and correlation is not causation: charts of weird things that correlate with each other.

Italian grandmothers getting magical Disney princess makeovers (NSFW language)

Remember the Italian grandmothers trying Olive Garden for the first time (see below)? Now they're getting Disney princess makeovers. Some NSFW language:

Buzzfeed:


“Who the f*ck made this?” The Olive Garden tasting:

Supercut of Animated Disney Villains Falling

Presumably because they don't want to show the bad guys actually dying, Disney tends to have their villains, once they're defeated, take a long fall. Here's a supercut - watch full screen:

More info at youtube, via Laughing Squid

Tuesday links

Last weekend was Turkey's Camel Beauty Contest and Camel Wrestling Festival.

Top 10 Biggest Design Flaws In The U.S.S. Enterprise.

Wired's Absurd Creature of the Week: The Beautiful Octopus Whose Sex Is All About Dismemberment.

Anonymously send glitter to people you hate (NSFW language).

Videophones from the Future Past.

22 Real Places That Inspired Disney Animated Movies.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, and include movie scenes that happened in real life, a close-up video of lava pouring into water, a huge mouse trap and ping pong ball chain reaction, and celebrities who look like mattresses.

Princess Rap Battles: Galadriel vs. Leia, Snow White vs. Elsa

Warning - PG-13 language.

Lord of the Rings or Star Wars?

The same people previously produced a Snow White vs. Elsa rap battle, although this one contains an F-bomb. I wish they wouldn't do that because it means lots of little girls (including my granddaughters) won't get to see it:

Breaking Bad meets Frozen: Do You Want to Build a Meth Lab?

The Breaking Bad/Frozen mashup you've been wishing for: Heisenberg seeking out Jesse, to the tune of Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

I especially like the bit at the beginning where he knocks the little girl aside because, "I am the one who knocks!" (I should know the girl's name, right? Because Grandma? But I don't)

You can download the song at Amazon or iTunes. Lyrics at the youtube page (warning - autoplay video).

Jesse's answer:



Related stuff:

Breaking Bad: The Middle School Musical.
Heisenberg vs Batman: Breaking Bad Rises.

Walter Blanco, the Colombian version of Walter White in a Breaking Bad remake.

Jonah Goldberg's excellent article re: Breaking Bad's Emmy, the evolution of television and the thin veneer of civilization.

Breaking Bad science articles by Popular Science  and Pacific Standard, and a Mythbusters episode.

via Neatorama.

Tuesday links

Quiz: Match these gorgeous 18th- and 19th- century patent models to their purpose.

Add some weasel brain to your cheese to keep rats and mice away: Advice from 1649. Related, sort of: here's a list of risk factors from 1799 for spontaneous combustion, plus more recent science.

Brutally Honest Disney Movie Posters

Because it's that time of the year: Famous Writers’ Report Cards: Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, Norman Mailer, E.E. Cummings and more.

Kentucky's $30 Million Castle.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, and include People Painted To Look Like Animals, Technologies That Replace Super Powers, the History of the Sunflower, and the History Of Light. (including how much light, historically, you could get for a day's work:

Antiquity: 10 minutes (candle)

1800s: 5 hours (kerosene)

Today: 20,000 hours (electricity))

If "Game Of Thrones" Characters Were Drawn By Disney

For Game of Thrones fans:

Bran and Hodor

Daenerys and her dragon

Jon Snow and Ghost

Tyrion

Cersei

Previous posts:

Game of Thrones infographic chronology: 4 seasons of the 4 main families and the Night’s Watch.

Peter Dinklage Summarizes Game of Thrones In 45 Seconds.

Super Mario Game of Thrones.

Video: Hodor (Kristian Nairn) Describes His Awkward Game of Thrones Nude Scene.

Game of Goats, A Yelling Goats Version of the Game of Thrones Theme Song.

Game of Thrones Wine Map: The Wines of Westeros.

Supercut of pithy quotes from Game of Thrones, Seasons 1-3.

Fallen behind on Game of Thrones, or want a refresher before Season 4? All 3 seasons recapped in 9 minutes.

Game of Thrones: new trailer and an interview with the actors on who should end up on the iron throne.

Deleted And Extended Scenes From Game Of Thrones Season 3 (NSFW - language)

The Game of Thrones Travel Guide.

Via Buzzfeed. See more of Fernando Mendonça's work here.

The Walking Disney: If Disney Characters Were in a Zombie Apocalypse

It's weird to see Anna from Frozen with an M4 carbine, but, hey, it's all about survival.

Pocahontas and John:

Snow White, Cinderella and Aurora from Sleeping Beauty:

Rapunzel and Flynn from Tangled:

Tiana (from Princess and the Frog):

Mulan:

Anna and Elsa (from Frozen):

More at the artist's page, via Kotaku.