The Boy Cornered
@theboycornered.bsky.social
Science & philosophy. Cognitive bias, fallacies & paradoxes. Scams, cons & pseudoscience. Codes, puzzles & cryptic crosswords. Randomness, determinism, luck, time, fate, coincidences & memories. Absurdism & existentialism.
April 3, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Reading the superb Freddie Mercury biography "Somebody to Love” and now I'm noticing Queen everywhere... a waterjetting van "Under Pressure”, songs in TV adverts, Lady Gaga's birthday😅 Absolute Baader–Meinhof phenomenon! #queen #freddiemercury #baadermeinhof
March 28, 2025 at 8:56 AM
Reading the superb Freddie Mercury biography "Somebody to Love” and now I'm noticing Queen everywhere... a waterjetting van "Under Pressure”, songs in TV adverts, Lady Gaga's birthday😅 Absolute Baader–Meinhof phenomenon! #queen #freddiemercury #baadermeinhof
Crossword clue: Islam (13). The answer is “Muhammedanism” which is not a word I've ever come across before #crosswords #islam
March 28, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Crossword clue: Islam (13). The answer is “Muhammedanism” which is not a word I've ever come across before #crosswords #islam
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” — Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus
February 13, 2025 at 11:25 AM
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” — Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus
Google's example of how the word "saddo" might be used😆
January 20, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Google's example of how the word "saddo" might be used😆
The decision whether to keep or throw out an item all comes down to the size/worth ratio. The more space something takes up, the greater its usefulness or sentimental value needs to be.
January 16, 2025 at 5:10 PM
The decision whether to keep or throw out an item all comes down to the size/worth ratio. The more space something takes up, the greater its usefulness or sentimental value needs to be.
Superb that so many old churches in rural villages are left open when not in use. Allows anyone, irrespective of religiosity, to look around and enjoy a peaceful moment in a beautiful building.
January 14, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Superb that so many old churches in rural villages are left open when not in use. Allows anyone, irrespective of religiosity, to look around and enjoy a peaceful moment in a beautiful building.
“Now I am eking out my days in my corner, taunting myself with the bitter and entirely useless consolation that an intelligent man cannot seriously become anything, that only a fool can become something.”
January 11, 2025 at 10:10 AM
“Now I am eking out my days in my corner, taunting myself with the bitter and entirely useless consolation that an intelligent man cannot seriously become anything, that only a fool can become something.”
We often ask the futile question “Why me?” when afflicted by something negative. It perhaps implies that a higher power has decided your fate, but the universe works in a whimsical way #luck #randomness
[image: Brian Clegg’s ‘Dice World’]
[image: Brian Clegg’s ‘Dice World’]
January 8, 2025 at 2:02 PM
We often ask the futile question “Why me?” when afflicted by something negative. It perhaps implies that a higher power has decided your fate, but the universe works in a whimsical way #luck #randomness
[image: Brian Clegg’s ‘Dice World’]
[image: Brian Clegg’s ‘Dice World’]
A good friend sadly died a year ago today, aged just 37. Still can't get my head around the fact that he isn't aware that he died and that he's not here anymore. Never experienced this peculiar feeling as strongly before #Death #MementoMori
January 7, 2025 at 8:42 PM
A good friend sadly died a year ago today, aged just 37. Still can't get my head around the fact that he isn't aware that he died and that he's not here anymore. Never experienced this peculiar feeling as strongly before #Death #MementoMori
Find these YouTube videos of winter scenes with melodious tunes quite meditative
The Charming Victorian Inn | Dark Academia Retreat in the Chill of Winter | DarkNight Scare
YouTube video by 𝔻𝕒𝕣𝕜ℕ𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕊𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕖
www.youtube.com
January 7, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Find these YouTube videos of winter scenes with melodious tunes quite meditative
The glorification of #GavinAndStacey seems a bit excessive but it was an excellent finale episode – never boring and full of humorous quirks. Predictable storyline, but what else could they have done to create a satisfactory conclusion?
December 26, 2024 at 12:19 PM
The glorification of #GavinAndStacey seems a bit excessive but it was an excellent finale episode – never boring and full of humorous quirks. Predictable storyline, but what else could they have done to create a satisfactory conclusion?
Always listen to the album ”Tigermilk” on Christmas Eve – just a thing I've done since 2007! Peaks with the ethereal ”Electronic Renaissance” #BelleAndSebastian
Belle & Sebastian :: Electronic Renaissance
YouTube video by Sean Razavi
www.youtube.com
December 24, 2024 at 1:39 PM
Always listen to the album ”Tigermilk” on Christmas Eve – just a thing I've done since 2007! Peaks with the ethereal ”Electronic Renaissance” #BelleAndSebastian
Insane that Voyager 1 – the most distant man-made object from Earth – is still functioning after 47 years and at four times the distance of Pluto🤯 #SpaceExploration
December 17, 2024 at 10:28 PM
Insane that Voyager 1 – the most distant man-made object from Earth – is still functioning after 47 years and at four times the distance of Pluto🤯 #SpaceExploration
Entranced by the way #BoyGeorge sings his lines – ”And in our world of plenty we can spread a smile of joy. Throw your arms around the world at Christmas time” – then breaks out a smile in #DoTheyKnowItsChristmas. What a voice😊 #BandAid
Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas? (Official Video) [4K]
YouTube video by Live Aid
www.youtube.com
December 17, 2024 at 3:14 PM
Entranced by the way #BoyGeorge sings his lines – ”And in our world of plenty we can spread a smile of joy. Throw your arms around the world at Christmas time” – then breaks out a smile in #DoTheyKnowItsChristmas. What a voice😊 #BandAid
Why do baristas and checkout assistants insist on handing over change with coins on top of the banknote? It inevitably causes the coins the slide off the polymer surface. Perhaps it's visibility: will customers think they're being secretly short-changed if the coins are hidden? #etiquette
December 15, 2024 at 11:37 AM
Why do baristas and checkout assistants insist on handing over change with coins on top of the banknote? It inevitably causes the coins the slide off the polymer surface. Perhaps it's visibility: will customers think they're being secretly short-changed if the coins are hidden? #etiquette
Such stories are nice but extremely trite. There's no single ‘secret’ to longevity for anyone. Multiple lifestyle choices help are key, but #luck still plays a part: some people are ultra-fit and die at 60; some smoke every day and live to 100.
103-year-old reveals surprising secret to long and healthy life
The anti-oxidant health benefits of wine are well known - but one 103 year-old credits her daily small tipple for helping keep her young at heart.
www.express.co.uk
December 11, 2024 at 10:20 AM
Such stories are nice but extremely trite. There's no single ‘secret’ to longevity for anyone. Multiple lifestyle choices help are key, but #luck still plays a part: some people are ultra-fit and die at 60; some smoke every day and live to 100.
Love that Finnish word ‘sisu’: stoic determination, tenacity of purpose, resilience and hardiness in the face of adversity. Originates from ‘sisus’ meaning ‘guts’ or ‘the intestines’ #sisu
Sisu: The Finnish art of inner strength
The concept of sisu has no direct translation, encompassing extreme perseverance and dignity in the face of adversity. But can it be learnt?
www.bbc.com
December 6, 2024 at 3:50 PM
Love that Finnish word ‘sisu’: stoic determination, tenacity of purpose, resilience and hardiness in the face of adversity. Originates from ‘sisus’ meaning ‘guts’ or ‘the intestines’ #sisu
Excessive #footnotes in books are infuriating. They’re hard to simply ignore (because they’re usually of interest) but it really disrupts the flow of reading. Often the information is relevant enough to be woven into the main prose. Worst is when they extend over two pages!
December 5, 2024 at 9:18 AM
Excessive #footnotes in books are infuriating. They’re hard to simply ignore (because they’re usually of interest) but it really disrupts the flow of reading. Often the information is relevant enough to be woven into the main prose. Worst is when they extend over two pages!
Mind-bending. The clues in a recent puzzle contained only cryptic wordplay; thus omitting the simple definition of the answer normally included as part of a #crypticcrossword clue. However, each clue also serves as the definition of the answer to the following clue🤯 #TwoRonnies
When does a cryptic crossword become a work of Genius?
A recent Guardian puzzle achieved something that even the paper’s crossword editor thought impossible. And the clue to solving it lay in a Two Ronnies sketch
www.theguardian.com
December 4, 2024 at 4:00 PM
Mind-bending. The clues in a recent puzzle contained only cryptic wordplay; thus omitting the simple definition of the answer normally included as part of a #crypticcrossword clue. However, each clue also serves as the definition of the answer to the following clue🤯 #TwoRonnies
Most of my favourite American TV shows have suffered a decline in quality because they’ve continued for far too many episodes and series. Leave people wanting more or they’ll inevitably get bored. Love these but never completed the first three: #24 #HouseMD #Dexter #PrisonBreak #HIMYM #BreakingBad
December 4, 2024 at 2:52 PM
Most of my favourite American TV shows have suffered a decline in quality because they’ve continued for far too many episodes and series. Leave people wanting more or they’ll inevitably get bored. Love these but never completed the first three: #24 #HouseMD #Dexter #PrisonBreak #HIMYM #BreakingBad
Just discovered ‘Fifteensquared’. Not au fait with crossword blogs but it seems like a high-quality resource for #crypticcrosswords with detailed reviews, clue explanations and general help
6 months of the Quick Cryptic Crosswords – Fifteensquared
www.fifteensquared.net
December 3, 2024 at 8:47 PM
Just discovered ‘Fifteensquared’. Not au fait with crossword blogs but it seems like a high-quality resource for #crypticcrosswords with detailed reviews, clue explanations and general help
Can never get into doing #crosswords online. Just doesn't have the same satisfaction of filling in the grid in a newspaper with a decent pen ✍️
December 3, 2024 at 11:17 AM
Can never get into doing #crosswords online. Just doesn't have the same satisfaction of filling in the grid in a newspaper with a decent pen ✍️
Shocking programme. Subsequent governments aren't to blame and don't want the extra work/expense of remediating predecessors’ decisions. With little public coverage, they get away with it. That cover-up line: “Delay and deny, until they die”.
Britain’s Nuclear Bomb Scandal: Our Story review – how the UK’s atomic testing programme devastated lives
Britain’s Nuclear Bomb Scandal: Our Story review – how the UK’s atomic testing programme devastated lives
Trauma, terror and potential medical effects that last for generations – those who experienced the fallout of nukes in Australia and the Pacific tell their horrifying tale
Grenfell, the Post Office, infected blood, Hillsborough … Britain has witnessed a…
dlvr.it
November 29, 2024 at 4:04 PM
Shocking programme. Subsequent governments aren't to blame and don't want the extra work/expense of remediating predecessors’ decisions. With little public coverage, they get away with it. That cover-up line: “Delay and deny, until they die”.
I've always spent an incredible amount of time wallowing in nostalgia. Perhaps it’s the antidote to my anxiety – which is a fear of *future* events. There is security in the memories of unchangeable good things from my past, despite the wistful longing they bring #anxiety #nostalgia
November 28, 2024 at 11:49 AM
I've always spent an incredible amount of time wallowing in nostalgia. Perhaps it’s the antidote to my anxiety – which is a fear of *future* events. There is security in the memories of unchangeable good things from my past, despite the wistful longing they bring #anxiety #nostalgia