The East · Society · People
Among the famous forebears of Boris Johnson is Ali Kemal Bey, a Turkish opposition politician of the early twentieth century, journalist and public figure, who for a brief time in 1919 even held a ministerial post in the post-war Ottoman government. As minister, he signed the order for the
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Art · Mores
Both of these images are called "The Charlatan". The word, derived from the verb "ciarlare", to chatter, to speak in a pompous manner, originally denoted street vendors who drew attention to their wares with colourful patter, wares that were often connected with the prolongation of life,
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Aristocracy · Archive · Monarchies · People
Alice, of course, modestly hinted that if the question of rescuing the unfortunate girls had anything to do with their future maintenance, lodging and provision, she would take all of it upon herself. Naturally, the matter lay quite elsewhere. And she was, of course, told that it was impossible. Princess
Cinema · Observations · Science
Some believe that the machine on Kalugina's desk in "Office Romance" is an Apple II, released in the same year as the film. It is not. For all the considerable resemblance between the two devices, what stands before the director of the statistical office is an
Archive · Art · Observations · Humour
Which Fruit or Vegetable Do You Feel Like Today? Costume sketches for the ballet "Amor", presented by Luigi Manzotti at La Scala on 17 February 1886. One would, of course, like to be a salad, but all one manages is a potato
Science · Mores · Humour
Laughing gas, now widely used in Western medicine as an analgesic and inhalation anaesthetic, first came into use in the 1800s precisely as a substance that provoked fits of merriment when inhaled. The British chemist Sir Humphry Davy, who was investigating the treatment of disease by gases, was the first
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Books · Moscow · Observations · Society · Humour
A flame war is raging around the Mayakovsky Library's post for Yesenin's birthday. I see a great many angry comments about the supposedly blasphemous treatment of the poet's legacy. What chiefly outraged the public, as I understand it, was the disclaimer "do not
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