The Wordsmith's Forge

Art

Sat, 30 May 2026 01:49:54 GMT

Stunning Mosaics Made by Londoners with PTSD Offer Pieces of Healing in Community Artwork

Tucked away in the parks and alleyways of East London lies one of the city’s most vibrant collections of public art.

What makes it all the more special is the mending of mental health maladies that transforms its volunteer artists.

The sometimes sprawling, Roman-inspired masterpieces are the work of the Hackney Mosaic Project and its founder Tessa Hunkin.

I suspect that the fitting of tiles into a mosaic offers similar benefits as stacking-sorting games like Tetris. Since PTSD is fundamentally a "stuck" problem, processes that focus on organizing things can jostle the brain into sorting memories into the "past" category.

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Birdfeeding

Sat, 30 May 2026 01:45:33 GMT

Today is partly cloudy, humid, and hot.

I fed the birds. I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 5/29/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 5/29/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 5/29/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

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Follow Friday 5-29-26: Music

Sat, 30 May 2026 01:32:34 GMT

Today's theme is Music.

( Read more... )

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Education

Fri, 29 May 2026 16:19:03 GMT

The Monty Hall Problem: Why Switching Doors Wins 2/3 of the Time

The host does not open a door uniformly at random. The host opens a door that he knows hides a goat, and he never opens the door you initially selected. These constraints are not incidental — they are the entire source of information in the problem. The host's action is not a random event that preserves symmetry between the remaining doors. It is a deliberate, knowledge-guided action that breaks that symmetry in a precise and quantifiable way.

I've heard the claim before, but this explanation of how it works is the best I've seen.

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Wildlife

Thu, 28 May 2026 19:09:21 GMT

Adorable tiny blue octopus found nearly 6,000 feet beneath the Galápagos

A mysterious little blue octopus discovered nearly 6,000 feet beneath the waters of the Galápagos Islands has officially been identified as a brand-new species. About the size of a golf ball, the tiny creature stunned researchers during a deep-sea expedition when it suddenly appeared on camera, crawling across the ocean floor near an underwater mountain.

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Birdfeeding

Thu, 28 May 2026 19:07:52 GMT

Today is partly sunny, humid, and hot.

I fed the birds. I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 5/28/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

I've seen a male cardinal at the hopper feeder.

EDIT 5/28/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

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Community Thursdays

Thu, 28 May 2026 05:48:40 GMT

This year I'm doing Community Thursdays. Some of my activity will involve maintaining communities I run, and my favorites. Some will involve checking my list of subscriptions and posting in lower-traffic ones. Today I have interacted with the following communities...

* Commented on "Just One Thing" in awesomeers.

* Commented on "Check-In Post - May 27th 2026" in get_knitted.

* Commented on "TV Tuesday: Waiting for the Break" in tv_talk.

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Vocabulary: Xenofiction

Thu, 28 May 2026 04:12:06 GMT

Xenofiction tells a story from the perspective of a nonhuman character. Some have humans only in the background; others have none at all. Alien-only science fiction is a small branch of that genre, but animal fiction is a very large branch of children's and young adult literature.

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Recipe: "Pico de Gallo Meatloaf"

Thu, 28 May 2026 01:37:33 GMT

Today we made Pico de Gallo Meatloaf using what we found at the Spring Vendor Market in Sullivan. The result is excellent. If you don't make your own or have a favorite brand, watch for something similar at a street fair. This time of year, people often see pico de gallo, salsa, and other condiments where you can sample several before choosing what you want.

( Read more... )

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Nature

Wed, 27 May 2026 18:06:58 GMT

Scientist Discovers New Species of Wildflower That Only Grows in New Jersey

In the Pine Barrens region of southern New Jersey, Temple University researcher Sasha Eisenman helped identify the long mistaken plant as unique to the state—a discovery that could help protect it for years to come.

In research published in Phytotaxa, Eisenman confirmed the plant is distinct from its closest known relatives, and formally named it Triantha × novacaesariensis—a Latinization of New Jersey.

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Birdfeeding

Wed, 27 May 2026 18:03:52 GMT

Today is cloudy, warm, and damp. It rained early this morning and the grass is still soaked.

I fed the birds. I haven't seen much activity today.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 5/27/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 5/27/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a male cardinal, and a fox squirrel.

EDIT 5/27/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 5/27/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I am done for the night.

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Good News

Wed, 27 May 2026 05:21:45 GMT

Good news includes all the things which make us happy or otherwise feel good. It can be personal or public. We never know when something wonderful will happen, and when it does, most people want to share it with someone. It's disappointing when nobody is there to appreciate it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our joys and pat each other on the back.

What good news have you had recently? Are you anticipating any more? Have you found a cute picture or a video that makes you smile? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your life a little happier?

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Conservation

Wed, 27 May 2026 03:41:02 GMT

Man Gathers Up Family Acres Home to Moose and Mountain Lion and Returns Them to Indian Tribe

Though Verbrugge, who lives alone at 72 years old in the forest, has no heirs to pass the property to, he found a suitable inheritor in the Kalispel Indians, who said they would carry the responsibility of keeping the land in good health forward with “profound gratitude.”

As to the land itself, the Little Spokane River runs through it, along with several creeks home to bull trout. In a subdivided and developed area, Verbrugge’s woodland is a haven for elk, deer, moose, wolves, cougar, bobcat, and eagles.

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Today's Adventures

Wed, 27 May 2026 03:11:23 GMT

Today we went up to Danville.

( Read more... )

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Birdfeeding

Tue, 26 May 2026 16:03:27 GMT

Today is cloudy and mild, but supposed to get hotter later on.

I fed the birds. I haven't seen much activity yet.

I put out water for the birds.

I've seen a green tiger beetle by the barrel garden. :D

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Poetry Fishbowl on Tuesday, June 2

Tue, 26 May 2026 05:10:06 GMT

This is an advance announcement for the Tuesday, June 2, 2026 Poetry Fishbowl. This time the theme will be "Fun with Language." I'll be soliciting ideas for linguists, translators, interpreters, historians, diplomats, refugees, explorers, partners, teachers, clergy, leaders, superheroes, supervillains, alien or fantasy species, failure analysts, ethicists, activists, rebels, other people who get into interesting linguistic situations, translating, interpreting, reading, researching, revising theories, conversing, traveling, inventing languages, parenting, teaching, adventuring, leaving your comfort zone, discovering things, conducting experiments, observation changing experiments, troubleshooting, improvising, adapting, cleaning up messes, cooperating, bartering, taking over in an emergency, saving the day, discovering yourself, studying others, asking for help and getting it, testing boundaries, coming of age, learning what you can (and can't) do, sharing, preparing for the worst, expecting the unexpected, fixing what's broke, upsetting the status quo, changing the world, accomplishing the impossible, recovering from setbacks, returning home, libraries, laboratories, meeting rooms, ruins, liminal zones, trading posts, port cities, schools, churches, supervillain lairs, nonhuman accommodations and adaptations, farmer's markets, starships, alien planets, magical lands, foreign dimensions, other places where languages mix, alphabets, pictograms and other symbols, lost languages, ancient tomes, mysterious texts, misnomers and mistranslations, recordings, the record that breaks the record player, puzzling discoveries, sudden surprises, the buck stops here, trial and error, intercultural entanglements, enemies to friends/lovers, interdimensional travel, lab conditions are not field conditions, superpower manifestation, the end of where your framework actually applies, ethics, innovation, problems that can't be solved by hitting, teamwork, found family, complementary strengths and weaknesses, personal growth, and poetic forms in particular.

Among my more relevant series for the main theme:

The Bear Tunnels features numerous tribal languages.

Clay of Life is Jewish fantasy with occasional bits of Hebrew or Yiddish.

The Daughters of the Apocalypse spans a variety of languages, including a split before Before and After English.

Eloquent Souls presents a setting where soulmarks are common, but they don't always appear in the same language.

Fiorenza the Wisewoman is Italian fantasy with bits of Italian.

Frankenstein's Family features two scientists running a valley in historic Romania, with languages including Dacian, English, French, Hungarian, Romanian, and Latin.

Hart's Farm is a free love community with a few really exotic characters, set in Sweden with occasional tidbits from other languages.

Not Quite Kansas includes demonic and angelic writing.

Peculiar Obligations features a mix of Quakers, pirates, and other people speaking diverse languages.

Polychrome Heroics has ordinary humans, supernaries, blue-plate specials, superheroes, supervillains, primal and animal soups all trying to get along and figure out how to make a functional society. It spans a wide range of languages including Arabic, Dhivehi, English, Esperanto, French, and several tribal ones.

Or you can ask for something new.

Linkbacks reveal a verse of any open linkback poem.

If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. (If you're not available that day, or you live in a time zone that makes it hard to reach me, you can leave advance prompts. I am now.) Meanwhile, if you want to help with promotion, please feel free to link back here or repost this on your blog.

( New to the fishbowl? Read all about it! )

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Books

Mon, 25 May 2026 21:29:37 GMT

Coming Soon: 2026 Pride Bundles to Raise Money for the Queer Liberation Library and Transgender Law

It’s almost Pride again, which means it’s almost time for Duck Prints Press to launch our fourth-annual Pride Bundle charity drive! We’ve got three bundles this year: a general imprint bundle with 25 titles totaling 381 pages; an explicit bundle of 15 stories, 237 pages; and an art bundle with 10 artworks, 250 mb of digital artwork!

The General Imprint Bundle will cost $25 USD (60% off normal!). 40% of this sales price will go to our selected charities.

The Explicit Imprint Bundle will cost $15 USD (60% off normal!). 44% of this sales price will go to our selected charities.

The Art Bundle will cost $10 USD (66% off normal!). 24% of this sales price will go our selected charities.

Poke a bigot in the eye! Save up to buy some queer stuff. :D

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Affordable Housing

Mon, 25 May 2026 20:00:09 GMT

Prince William is Selling 20% of His Duchy Landholdings to Build Affordable Housing and Restore Nature

The Times reported that the offloading seems to be currently planned for Duchy property in Bath, Cornwall, Dartmoor, the Isles of Scilly, and Kennington in south London. Early estimates are that it could lead to 12,000 housing units by 2040, about one-third of which are expected to be affordable for the lowest income brackets.

Much of the estate’s lands are in rural areas, so money and attention will be devoted to reviving rural economies and communities, as well as developing environmental value in the form of carbon storage potential in peat bogs, woodland, and wetlands.

Daaaamn. I am impressed. Rich, powerful people rarely think about the poor let alone about displaced wildlife.

( Read more... )

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Activism

Mon, 25 May 2026 19:34:04 GMT

Force the Oppressor to make a Lose/Lose Choice

Social Change Toolkit: Dilemma Actions

A dilemma action is a strategic action that forces your opponent into a lose-lose situation.

Basically: You've given them only bad options. No matter what choice they make, it's valuable for your goals in some way.

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Exoplanets

Mon, 25 May 2026 19:29:41 GMT

Astronomers find an unusual exoplanet with cloudy mornings and clear evenings

This technique exploits transit geometry. As WASP-94A b crosses in front of its star, its leading edge appears first – the morning side, where air flows from the cool night side into the hot day side. Its trailing edge, which vanishes last, represents the evening side.

The Hubble Space Telescope couldn’t separate these regions. Its readings averaged the whole disk, leaving clouds and clear skies blurred together. JWST’s sharper instruments let researchers measure each half separately.

“What we saw was a real dichotomy between the weather on both sides of the planet, and huge differences in cloud coverage, and that changes our whole picture of the planet,” Sing said.

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Climate Change

Mon, 25 May 2026 17:50:54 GMT

What really causes heatwave deaths? Study of 3 billion people reveals the answer

“For example, a city in which everyone has air conditioning is not necessarily one in which there is no Systemic Cooling Poverty,” said lead author Giacomo Falchetta, a CMCC researcher.

“This shows that there are many factors that influence Systemic Cooling Poverty: transport, building materials, laws and regulations around work and exposure to heat, as well as access to services.”

( Read more... )

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Birdfeeding

Mon, 25 May 2026 17:10:19 GMT

Today is mostly sunny and warm.

I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds and watered a few plants.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I started trimming around the telephone pole garden. The grass is so tall that it's still wet (presumably from dew) midday on a hot sunny day. >_< I only got one side done.

Then I remembered that I only have a little bit of topsoil left. I was going to restock bagged goods but we haven't had a chance recently. *sigh* So it's either wait on that part for later, run out to get some, or try to haul the giant bag meant for the hollow by the garden shed clear across the yard. Probably wait, because trimming the grass and digging out weeds will take ... most of the day, I suspect.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more trimming around the telephone pole garden. I cleared the south end.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more trimming around the telephone pole garden. I cleared the west side. I still need to do some cleanup of the north end near the telephone pole, but that's mostly Asiatic lilies.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I finished trimming around the telephone pole garden. I cleared the north end. Next I need to dig around the edge and pull out encroaching weeds.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I started digging and pulling weeds around edges of the telephone pole garden. I cleared the east edge.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more digging and pulling weeds around edges of the telephone pole garden. I only got about halfway through the short south end before hitting a huge clump of grass and giving up. I need the shovel for that. :/

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more digging and pulling weeds around edges of the telephone pole garden. Using the shovel, I finished the south end and did part of the west edge.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more digging and pulling weeds around edges of the telephone pole garden. Using the shovel, I finished the west edge. The north doesn't need as much work in that regard, so I'm basically done with the edging. The middle still has a lot of weeds, but I'll do that another day.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- We picked up bagged goods from Rural King. They're out of suitable topsoil, so I just got 3 bags of potting soil; and I had to substitute a more expensive brand of compost.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I watered some plants around the house yard, mostly the barrel garden and the goddess garden.

EDIT 5/25/26 -- I dumped out the big bag of raised bed soil from Costco, sowed Bee Lawn Mix on it, and watered it. Then I dragged my trolley around several places where I've been cutting grass, gathered the cuttings, and strewed that over the top of the bare soil to discourage critters from digging in it.

The whole western sky is a pale sherbet orange, very pretty. :D I am done for the night.

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Monday Update 5-25-26

Mon, 25 May 2026 06:48:21 GMT

These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Poem: "Aim a Little Above It"
Poem: "Your Emotional Abilities"
Politics
Poem: "A Proper Community Is a Commonwealth"
Early Humans
Birdfeeding
Today's Adventures
Affordable Housing
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Honor
Gardening
Wildlife
Follow Friday 5-22-26: Active Communities on Dreamwidth Spring 2026 J-Z
Birdfeeding
Crafts
Science
Fossils
Vocabulary: Marla
Community Thursdays
Birdfeeding
Friending Meme
Poem: "Let’s Go on This Journey Together"
Conservation
Poem: "Where There Is No Respect for Life"
Today's Adventures
Read "Small Planet"
Birdfeeding
Cuddle Party

Poem: "Walnut Park" has 46 comments. Early Humans has 22 comments. Philosophical Questions: Pregnancy has 84 comments. Safety has 84 comments.

Last week's half-price sale in Polychrome Heroics went well. All sponsored poems have been posted.

"Let's Go on This Journey Together" belongs to Polychrome Heroics. It needs $151 to be complete. Linus struggles to deal with a broken arm.

"No Faster or Firmer Friendships" has 50 new verses. It belongs to Polychrome Heroics and needs $35 to be complete. Josué reads a funny poem to Maria-Vera.

The weather has been variable here. We got some rain a few days ago. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a male and a female cardinal separately, a starling, and a fox squirrel. I saw a ruby-throated hummingbird in the forest garden. Currently blooming: pansies, violas, sweet alyssum, marigolds, honeysuckle, snapdragons, lantana, million bells, blue lobelia, petunias, portulaca, nemesia, wild chives, columbine, mock orange, Washington hawthorn, blackberries, firecracker plant, privet, pineapple sage. One yucca is sending up a flower stalk. Green fruit: raspberries, blackberries. Ripe fruit: peas, mulberries.

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Science

Mon, 25 May 2026 05:22:15 GMT

Scientists uncover a hidden layer of inheritance beyond DNA

Most of what the team saw lined up with Mendel. About 93% of the methylation patterns followed his classic rules in some form. The remaining 7% did not.

That came out to roughly 522 sites where the tags broke from the script.

In addition, 54 of those sites showed something stranger: methylation tags in offspring that were nowhere to be found in either parent.

There are numerous ways that information can be encoded in the body, and expressed as needed.

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Content notes for "Aim a Little Above It"

Mon, 25 May 2026 04:44:00 GMT

These are the content notes for "Aim a Little Above It."

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