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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 12h

The 2025 Nobel Prize laureates were announced this week.

Established by the 1895 will of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, the awards recognize those who have conferred "the greatest benefit to humankind”.

Learn more ➡️ w.wiki/3j6p

Article of the Week: Nobel Prize. Granted "for the greatest benefit to humankind", the Nobel Prizes are the most prestigious awards available in the fields of physics, chemistry, literature, peace, and physiology or medicine. Image is a painting of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel sitting at a table.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 2d

Pumpkin spice contains no pumpkin. It blends cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and, sometimes, allspice.

First created to season pumpkin pie, the mix now perfumes lattes, cookies, and candles. Learn how simple combinations can define the taste of an entire season ➡️ w.wiki/FLhU

Pumpkin spice latte with whipped cream beside a glowing jack-o’-lantern and cinnamon sticks in low, moody lighting. Text says: Ready for a spicy season? Pumpkin spice is just one of the many seasonal spice blends that enhance cooking around the world.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 3d

Many routes survive as footpaths and place names, tracing journeys from remote settlements to consecrated ground. Walk through history and find your path to more knowledge ➡️ w.wiki/FLhS (2/2)

Large flat stone by a mossy dry stone wall with a plaque mounted above it. Text says: These routes were lined with resting stones and inspired folk tales about restless spirits and phantom funerals. This coffin stone in Cumbria, England, lies beside a corpse road once used to carry coffins for burial at St Oswald's Church.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 3d

Before local parishes had graveyards, some English villages used corpse roads to carry the dead from remote settlements to churches with burial rights. Processions crossed fields and moorland, pausing at coffin stones that still mark the way. 🧵⬇️ (1/2)

Dirt path leading to a stone building on a hill, bordered by dry stone walls. Text says: A corpse road is the name for an old path used to carry coffins from remote villages to a distant church which had burial rights.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 4d

From satirical magazine covers to surreal album art and infinity comic covers, this self‑referential motif invites us to look deeper into seemingly endless layers ➡️ w.wiki/FLhT (4/4)

A woman in a red dress holds a magazine displaying the same cover image in a recursive loop. Text says: The effect can be seen throughout popular media and advertising. Here, it appears on the cover of the satirical magazine Judge, from 19 January 1918.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 4d

Medieval paintings and altarpieces sometimes include smaller images of themselves within their own scenes, a form of mise en abyme. (3/4)

A gold-trimmed triptych shows Christ enthroned at the center, flanked by saints in Gothic panels. Text says: In the central panel of this medieval artwork there is a kneeling cardinal who is holding the artwork itself.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 4d

The 1904 Droste cocoa tin showed a nurse carrying a tray with a box of cocoa bearing the same image, becoming an iconic example of recursion. (2/4)

A vintage red tin with a nurse holding a tray that displays the same image recursively. Text says: The 1904 Droste cocoa powder package displayed a nurse carrying a serving tray with a cup of hot chocolate. The nurse’s tray included a box of cocoa with the same nurse image.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 4d

Seeing double? Triple? Infinite?

An image that contains a smaller version of itself creates the Droste effect. Named after a 1904 Dutch cocoa tin, it appears in art, advertising, and fractals. 🧵⬇️ (1/4)

A person on a couch holds a wooden frame showing a repeated recursive image of themselves. Text says: What is it called when an image includes a smaller version of itself again and again? The Droste effect, named after a Dutch cocoa tin, plays with repetition and invites the eye to peer into seemingly infinite layers.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 6d

Have you ever been to Frisland? How about Buss Island? Probably not, given they do not exist.

Phantom islands are places that exist only on maps, often appearing as errors, illusions, or unverified sightings by early explorers.

Discover a list of phantom islands ➡️ w.wiki/F6Rf

Historic map of the South Shetland Islands, labeling Livingston, Deception, and surrounding features in fine detail. Text says: Some places only exist in the minds of sailors or the ink of old maps. A phantom island is a landmass that appeared on charts for years – or centuries – before being proven not to exist.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 7d

Sometimes, the story lasts longer than a song.

Concept albums are collections of songs tied together by a narrative, theme, or musical motif.

Are you listening to any concept albums? Get the full story on their origins and history ➡️ w.wiki/FLhR

Article of the Week: Concept album. Do you shuffle or listen to an album all the way through? A concept album weaves songs into a single narrative or theme, creating a listening experience that unfolds from start to finish. Image depicts Taylor Swift performing on stage in a white lace dress, playing a banjo and singing into a microphone.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 8d

With a career spanning more than 60 years, Jane Goodall, a British primatologist and anthropologist, redefined our understanding of chimpanzees and, perhaps, humanity itself.

Learn about her enduring legacy ➡️ w.wiki/3hjR

Jane Goodall, an older woman with white hair and blue shirt, smiling.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 9d

The Tetris Effect shows how repetition shapes thoughts, dreams, and mental imagery. Brain scans link it to visual processing and memory. Even people with amnesia dreamed of falling blocks after playing, despite not recalling the game. Fit the pieces together ➡️ w.wiki/PEv

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 9d

In the 21st century, coffee shops have become offices and dating venues, especially in the United States. The US is the largest consumer of coffee by volume, while Northern and Western Europe lead in per‑capita consumption. Sip more knowledge ➡️ w.wiki/FLhQ (4/4)

A focused barista simultaneously pours two drinks during a coffee competition, with judges in the background. Text says: Coffee competitions take place across the globe with people trying to achieve national titles and then compete on the international stage. This includes the World Barista Championship – where baristas worldwide are judged on drink taste, presentation, technique, and cleanliness.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 9d

London coffeehouses of the 17th and 18th centuries began to gain political importance due to their popularity as places of debate, becoming associated with equality and the struggle for democratic rights.

This new public sphere extended to coffeehouse culture in Vienna, Austria. (3/4)

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 9d

The history of coffee dates back centuries, first from its origin in Ethiopia and Yemen. In the 16th century, coffeehouses appeared in Ottoman Turkey, becoming spaces for conversation and commerce that soon spread to Western Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean. (2/4)

Ottoman-era illustration of a bustling coffeehouse with men gathered to drink, converse, and listen to music. Text says: Coffeehouse culture spread widely through the former Ottoman Empire, where Turkish coffee remains dominant. Scholars note that coffeehouses were key social institutions, often as important as the drink itself.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 9d

1 October is International Coffee Day. And you can see from the history of coffee culture that it is an international treasure. 🧵⬇️ (1/4)

People working and socializing in a cozy coffee shop with rustic decor and hanging paper decorations. Text says: Coffee houses have shaped revolutions and relationships for centuries. From Ottoman espresso to Hong Kong's Yuenyeung, on International Coffee Day we take a sip of history and culture to see how one bitter bean became a social catalyst.

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Reposted by Wikipedia

Wikimedia Foundation @wikimediafoundation.org · 10d

Wikipedia, the go-to reference for billions of people, has been named one of the most iconic companies in Internet history by The Webby Awards 🎉

Learn how the encyclopedia and its volunteer movement became the "web’s public memory" ➡️ www.webbyawards.com//webby30/most-iconic-companies-wikipedia/

Hand holding the Wikipedia puzzle globe. Text says: Wikipedia is one of the most iconic companies in Internet history. New honor by The Webby Awards recognizes the free encyclopedia as the "web’s public memory, written by everyone"

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 11d

Researchers have found similar effects with follower counts, professional success, and even self-reported happiness. On average, your friends might seem more popular, more accomplished, or more connected because of how networks work.

Share with your friends ➡️ w.wiki/7Zfa (3/3)

Text says: Mathematically, friend counts are averaged in a way that gives more weight to highly connected people. Unless everyone has the same number of friends, the average of your friends’ friend counts will likely be higher than yours.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 11d

This happens because people with lots of connections show up in more social circles. That makes them more likely to be someone else’s friend, even if they are not typical. They skew the average. The effect shows up across networks, both online and off. (2/3)

Circular node-link diagram showing directional relationships between labeled nodes of varying sizes and colors. Text says: Diagram of a social network of 7-8-year-old children, mapped by asking each child to indicate two others they would like to sit next to in class. The majority of children have fewer connections than the average of those they are connected to.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 11d

Statistically speaking, your friends probably have more friends than you do. The friendship paradox is a real, documented phenomenon in social network theory. It shows that most people technically have fewer friends than the average of their friends’ friend counts. 🧵⬇️ (1/3)

Four women in hijabs smiling and embracing outdoors. Text says: Most people have fewer friends than their friends do. The math checks out, even if it feels impossible.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 12d

The right to seek, receive, and share information is a recognized human right protected under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This human right is at the heart of Wikipedia's mission to spread free knowledge. Learn more ➡️ w.wiki/F6Rj

Text says: 28 September is the International Day for Universal Access to Information. A United Nations recognized observance established in 2019 to promote the right to seek, receive, and share information. A day aligned to the mission of Wikipedia.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 13d

In 1582, Kaga Province fell, and the movement lost its final stronghold.

Learn its unique history ➡️ w.wiki/F6Rg (3/3)

Traditional painting of Oda Nobunaga seated cross-legged in green and white robes. Text says: In 1570, daimyō Oda Nobunaga began a campaign against the Ikkō-ikki that led to its downfall, besieging the Hongan-ji headquarters at Ishiyama Hongan-ji and attacking ikki strongholds throughout Japan.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 13d

Power increasingly shifted to the Kanazawa Midō, a religious-political institution that coordinated rule through committees of monks and landholders.

By the 1530s, the Kaga ikki had exiled its internal rivals and abolished the traditional office of military governor entirely. (2/3)

Text says: By the 1540s, the Kaga ikki had centralized power under the Kanazawa Midō, a council of local samurai and Hongan-ji priests. Authority flowed through district leaders called hatamoto, each overseeing networks of villages and temple allies.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 13d

It began with a rebellion.

After a falling out with the military governor Togashi Masachika, Ikkō forces overthrew him in 1488. Kaga ikki was part of a larger movement known as the Ikkō-ikki: uprisings led by followers of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism, low-ranking samurai, and local farmers. 🧵⬇️ (1/3)

Map of Japan with Ishikawa Prefecture highlighted in red. Text says: For nearly 100 years, a province in medieval Japan was ruled not by a warlord, emperor, or noble house, but by a coalition of monks, farmers, and warriors.

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Wikipedia @wikipedia.org · 14d

Meet interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS ☄️

This large, icy comet, first seen in July, is hurtling through our Solar System – it is only the third interstellar object that has passed through it.

Learn more about this billion-year-old cosmic visitor ➡️ w.wiki/Ex87

Article of the Week: 3I/ATLAS. Researchers believe this interstellar comet hails from either the Milky Way’s thin or thick disk and may be at least 7 billion years old – older than the solar system. Image depicts a white bulb-shaped comet moving through space against a backdrop of stars.

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