Daily Links 1-24-14

Happy Friday! Here are few links to start off your weekend right: the story behind Pixar, Winnie the Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and more.

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This is a fascinating history of the Pixar Animation Studios. One of the interesting things is that the company didn't entirely start out as an animation studio. However, it's safe to say it's currently the best one in the business.

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If it seems like your Top 40 radio station is playing the same songs all the time it's because they are. What amazed me is the frequency with which they repeat songs. When I worked in Top 40 radio many years ago the rule was a song that was ranked in the Top 10 was repeated every 2 hours and 15 minutes. I'm sure that it's much more frequent now.

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The origin of Winnie-the-Pooh and writings by A. A. Milne on happiness. Believe it or not, the famous bear actually appeared in a book of poems a full two years before the first Pooh book was published.

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Glenn Harlan Reynolds discusses education and his new book with The Atlantic.

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Did you know that you can view the original manuscript for Alice In Wonderland (including illustrations from Lewis Carroll) online?

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How to make perfect bacon. I'm normally in too much of a hurry to try a procedure like this but it looks like it could be good. Lately, I've been using a bacon tray I found at Wal-Mart for around five bucks that allows me to cook it in the microwave. Plus it pulls the grease away from the bacon and allows me to reuse it for another application.

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Ever wonder why we put money in piggy banks? Here's your answer.

Daily Links 1-1-14

Happy New Year! Here is a bookish roundup of links to start your new year off right.

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This is surprising: through the first eight months of 2013, sales of e-books were only up slightly but sales of hardcover books were increasing by double digits.

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Copyright news: a court ruled last week that the bulk of the Sherlock Holmes stories have now fallen into the public domain as the copyrights have expired in the United States. This will, of course, make it easier for the materials to be published here.

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Scientific evidence that reading is good for you:

Being pulled into the world of a gripping novel can trigger actual, measurable changes in the brain that linger for at least five days after reading, scientists have said.

The new research, carried out at Emory University in the US, found that reading a good book may cause heightened connectivity in the brain and neurological changes that persist in a similar way to muscle memory.

The changes were registered in the left temporal cortex, an area of the brain associated with receptivity for language, as well as the the primary sensory motor region of the brain.

Neurons of this region have been associated with tricking the mind into thinking it is doing something it is not, a phenomenon known as grounded cognition - for example, just thinking about running, can activate the neurons associated with the physical act of running.

The neural changes that we found associated with physical sensation and movement systems suggest that reading a novel can transport you into the body of the protagonist,” said neuroscientist Professor Gregory Berns, lead author of the study.

“We already knew that good stories can put you in someone else’s shoes in a figurative sense. Now we’re seeing that something may also be happening biologically.”

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Life lessons from Winnie-the Pooh:

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A wonderful photo gallery of 62 of the world's most beautiful libraries.

Codrington Library, Oxford University, England

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Finally, here's my favorite books I read in 2013.

Daily Links 10-9-13

Why men should read more fiction, some amazing historical photos, advice to young boys, it's not enough to love your job, and more in today's roundup of links.

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This is an interesting article that makes the case that men should spend more time reading fiction.

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The real Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh in 1927

More really interesting historical photos here.

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Some sage advice to young men....from 1933!

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Loving your job is not enough:

Loving what you do is not enough. The love we talk about when it comes to our work is fleeting. You can fall out of love through boredom or distraction, but pride runs much deeper. Pride doesn’t come and go with how fun things are. Pride is what gets you through the tough times when you just want to quit. Pride is the understanding that what you do and how you do it is a reflection of your character.

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Stuff you may not know you can still buy.

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15 really cool kitchen hacks for store-bought foods (Hat tip Food Riot)

Weekend Links 9-7-13

In case you missed it, some of the links featured here during the week:

Don't Let Social Media Ruin Your Marriage

Tips for Teenage Girls on Social Media

Nutella Cake (with recipe and photos)

Ten Questions to Help You Identify Your Calling/Vocation

World War I prisoner asks for leave to visit dying mother, agrees to return to prison (and does)

Test your grammar skills: You Can't Write Proper English Under Pressure

Are you a Calvinist?

Life Lessons from Winnie the Pooh

Daily Links 9-5-13

A story of honor, the dangers of cohabitating, partisan journalism, and advice to teenage girls using social media in this morning's links.

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The most amazing books we have ever read as a family were the Winnie the Pooh books. The best thing about them is that they are chock full of life lessons.

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This is an amazing story of honor from World War I:

Captain Robert Campbell, aged 29, was captured just weeks after Britain declared war on Germany in July, 1914.

But after two years in Magdeburg Prisoner of War Camp the British officer received word from home his mother Louise Campbell was close to death.

He speculatively wrote to Kaiser Wilhelm II begging to be allowed home to visit his mother one final time.

Incredibly the German leader granted the request allowing the professional office two weeks leave - as long as he returned.

The only bond he placed on the leave was Capt Campbell's ‘word' as an army officer.

He returned to his family home in Gravesend Kent in December 1916 and spent a week with his cancer-stricken mother.

He then kept his promise by returning to his German prison - where he stayed until the war ended in 1918.

Thanks to my lovely bride for the tip.

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It would seem logical to live together before getting married. But it isn't. Eric Metaxas explains.

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Jake Tapper is by far one of the best reporters on television. The Washington Post Magazine recently published an interview that is well worth reading. An excerpt:

I’d like to think that people on both the left and the right think that I’m fair. The media keeps evolving in this way, where television channels and anchors and reporters pick sides. And that’s not healthy. One of the problems with the media landscape today is that there is a reluctance to get people who will ask tough questions even if they are fair, even if they are smart and serious and substantive questions. That’s why certain politicians from certain parties favor certain channels or reporters.

Believe me, there is nothing wrong with partisan journalism. That’s how journalism started; I’m not criticizing it for existing — it should exist. The issue is when it’s presented as, These are just the facts. That blurring of opinion and more factual journalism that doesn’t pick sides. It can be challenging if you are not in the business of reaffirming the worldview of more ideological viewers. But I think there is an audience of viewers and journalists and politicians who respect the need for anchors who you don’t know who they voted for for president.

Hat tip: Get Religion

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 Some wise words for teenage girls using social media.