Remember - Pete's Newsletter - Issue #32
Photos of the Week
Venice under acqua alta (high water).
Song of the Week
David Bazan, singer-songwriter for Pedro the Lion, recalls the gift of a childhood bicycle and a lifetime that has past like a long summer afternoon.
Post of the Week
Patrick Collison, CEO and co-founder of Stripe keeps a running list of incredible feats accomplished in incredibly short periods of time. Here are some of my favorites:
The Berlin Airlift. On 24 June 1948, the Soviet Union initiated a blockade of Berlin. Two days later, the Berlin Airlift commenced. Over the following 463 days, the US, the UK, and France flew 277,000 flights with 300 aircraft to deliver the supplies required to support 2.2 million Berlin residents. On average, a supply aircraft landed every 2 minutes for 14 months. Source: The Candy Bombers.
The Spirit of St. Louis. In 1927, Donald Hall and Charles Lindbergh designed and built Spirit in 60 days. "To determine the amount of fuel the plane would need, Lindbergh and Hall drove to the San Diego Public Library at 820 E St. Using a globe and a piece of string, Lindbergh estimated the distance from New York to Paris. It came out to 3,600 statute miles, which Hall calculated would require 400 gallons of gas." Source: Ryan Airlines gave Lindbergh wings.
The Eiffel Tower. The Eiffel Tower was built in 2 years and 2 months; that is, in 793 days. When completed in 1889, it became the tallest building in the world, a record it held for more than 40 years. It cost about $40 million in 2019 dollars. Source: Eiffel's Tower.
News of the Week
Sacha Baron Cohen makes the case that the web's social networks have been weaponized as propaganda machines in a speech to the Anti-Defamation League.
"Those who make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire
Video of the Week
A captivating early film of street life in Paris during the Belle Époque (1890s). Looks and feels like a movie, but it is real. The editor slowed down the footage and added audio to improve its quality.