Six Things, Volume 17

Featherbase | origami | stings | Dobble | Wisden | sloths

Apr 28, 2023

Thing 1 – Featherbase

I sang the praises of feathers in the very first volume of Six Things. And with the ‘talking about my book’ season just about to begin, I found myself today needing to look up the provenance of one of my small collection of feathers.

Thank providence for the internet. And specifically for the existence of Featherbase.

It is a treasure trove for bird nerds, of course, but also for anyone interested in spending a calming few minutes exploring natural beauty.

Thing 2 – Origami

The marvellous book The Meaning of Liff has this to say on folding:

Kalami (n.) – The ancient Eastern art of being able to fold road maps properly.

I never mastered Kalami, preferring to stuff the maps into the glove box willy-nilly.

I realise at this stage that I should probably offer an explanatory note on exactly what a ‘road map’ is/was for readers under the age of 35.

ANYWAY. As in so many areas (including the astonishing miniature sculptures from last week’s Six Things) I boggle at people’s expertise in areas where I struggle.

So naturally I found this film about origami enlightening, calming and extremely satisfying.

But impressive though these creations are, I wonder if they aren’t shaded by the ability of ladybirds to fold their wings away.

Thing 3 – Stings

A less pleasing aspect of insects is highlighted in Atlas Obscura’s exploration of the Pain Scale for Stinging Insects, which was compiled by Justin Schmidt, renowned entomologist and author of The Sting of the Wild, who died in February.

Some of them read a bit like wine-tasting notes.

“Rude, insulting. An ember from your campfire is glued to your forearm.”

“Rich, hearty, slightly crunchy. Similar to getting your hand mashed in a revolving door.”

“Caustic and burning. Distinctly bitter aftertaste. Like spilling a beaker of hydrochloric acid on a paper cut.”

Thing 4 – Dobble

I love Dobble.

No, wait. I HATE Dobble. Especially when playing it with people who, frankly, cheat by being much better at it than me.

Luckily, I am an excellent loser. Even-tempered, phlegmatic, ready to treat the twin impostors of triumph and failure with calm acceptance, generous congratulations for my opponents, and genuine appreciation of their superior skill.

ANYWAY.

This explanation of the maths of Dobble by stand-up mathematician Matt Parker is great – even I understood at least some of it.

And if the maths doesn’t grab you, how about the psychology? Read this and you will never lose again. Probably.

Thing 5 – Wisden

Take something you’re really interested in.

Imagine that every year someone compiles a complete guide to everything that has happened related to that interest. They ask the best writers to write about it, assemble all the events of interest pertaining to it, and highlight some of the notable occurrences. There are profiles of some of the activity’s major personalities, anecdotes about its cultural significance, what the Queen thought about it, how it was portrayed on social media, the best books and blogs and films and TV programmes about it, what the future holds

And then they pack the results into a 1616-page yellow brick.

That’s the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, now celebrating its 160th edition. It is a phenomenon of sports (or indeed any) publishing. There is nothing quite like it.

I get it for my birthday, devour some of the main content immediately, then consume the rest of it in little bits over the year.

If you know and like cricket, you’ll already understand. If you don’t, you’re probably cursing me for including it at all. But I feel it needs to be celebrated. So there.

Thing 6 – Sloths

Baby sloths – their big eyes, cute noses and gangly limbs already giving them a strong start on the cuteness scale – making noises.

Taken from a website called ‘The Kid Should See This’ but let’s face it, EVERYONE should see this.

Six Things