Theo Honohan
@theohonohan.bsky.social
"The subtlest and most pervasive of all influences are those which create and maintain the repertory of stereotypes."
Jean Paul Jungmann,
Dyodon (pneumatic house), 1967
Dyodon (pneumatic house), 1967
December 4, 2025 at 12:05 AM
Jean Paul Jungmann,
Dyodon (pneumatic house), 1967
Dyodon (pneumatic house), 1967
Goodbye to Stoppard.
The opening sequence of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) is far from any effect possible on the stage: Two horsemen in a rocky wasteland (like a Bruegel?); then the camera, panning with the horses hooves, spots a coin on the path.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f6g...
The opening sequence of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) is far from any effect possible on the stage: Two horsemen in a rocky wasteland (like a Bruegel?); then the camera, panning with the horses hooves, spots a coin on the path.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f6g...
December 3, 2025 at 6:36 PM
Goodbye to Stoppard.
The opening sequence of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) is far from any effect possible on the stage: Two horsemen in a rocky wasteland (like a Bruegel?); then the camera, panning with the horses hooves, spots a coin on the path.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f6g...
The opening sequence of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) is far from any effect possible on the stage: Two horsemen in a rocky wasteland (like a Bruegel?); then the camera, panning with the horses hooves, spots a coin on the path.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f6g...
These books were printed in duotone, which is a long-established high-quality process for reproducing photographs.
The 2007 Jonathan Olley one was printed in Verona by (I believe) ebs-bortolazzi.com.
The 1962 Paul Strand book was printed by Druckhaus Einheit, Leipzig, East Germany(!).
The 2007 Jonathan Olley one was printed in Verona by (I believe) ebs-bortolazzi.com.
The 1962 Paul Strand book was printed by Druckhaus Einheit, Leipzig, East Germany(!).
December 1, 2025 at 10:21 PM
These books were printed in duotone, which is a long-established high-quality process for reproducing photographs.
The 2007 Jonathan Olley one was printed in Verona by (I believe) ebs-bortolazzi.com.
The 1962 Paul Strand book was printed by Druckhaus Einheit, Leipzig, East Germany(!).
The 2007 Jonathan Olley one was printed in Verona by (I believe) ebs-bortolazzi.com.
The 1962 Paul Strand book was printed by Druckhaus Einheit, Leipzig, East Germany(!).
William Alexander,
Planetarium, the Principal Present Given to the Emperor of China, 1793
Watercolour, British Library, WD 961 f.42.
Planetarium, the Principal Present Given to the Emperor of China, 1793
Watercolour, British Library, WD 961 f.42.
December 1, 2025 at 8:33 PM
William Alexander,
Planetarium, the Principal Present Given to the Emperor of China, 1793
Watercolour, British Library, WD 961 f.42.
Planetarium, the Principal Present Given to the Emperor of China, 1793
Watercolour, British Library, WD 961 f.42.
A document ID that's got padding characters in it: past time to retire these, surely, if only in favour of a delimiter like the hyphen en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibcode
November 29, 2025 at 11:56 PM
A document ID that's got padding characters in it: past time to retire these, surely, if only in favour of a delimiter like the hyphen en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibcode
This is an interesting section through St Paul's. I don't know where it was published.
November 29, 2025 at 11:36 PM
This is an interesting section through St Paul's. I don't know where it was published.
I'm doing research into the experience of planetariums. It has led me to this page from a romance novel which seems funny – not a difficult read, shall we say
November 29, 2025 at 11:05 PM
I'm doing research into the experience of planetariums. It has led me to this page from a romance novel which seems funny – not a difficult read, shall we say
Tieranatomisches Theater, Berlin
tieranatomisches-theater.de/en/the-build...
tieranatomisches-theater.de/en/the-build...
November 29, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Tieranatomisches Theater, Berlin
tieranatomisches-theater.de/en/the-build...
tieranatomisches-theater.de/en/the-build...
The story here is that the book started out as a box set of 15 smaller books, each on a specific architectural element. That was pretty boring and cheap-feeling (I bought it in Venice though).
November 25, 2025 at 6:18 PM
The story here is that the book started out as a box set of 15 smaller books, each on a specific architectural element. That was pretty boring and cheap-feeling (I bought it in Venice though).
'By rotating around the longitudinal axis, the "dumbbell" also allows the precession to be displayed.' So the longitudinal axis must be the ecliptic axis. In the course of a day, rotation can't be on the dumbell's axis but on must be via the large bearing. Hard to square with images like this one.
November 23, 2025 at 9:50 PM
'By rotating around the longitudinal axis, the "dumbbell" also allows the precession to be displayed.' So the longitudinal axis must be the ecliptic axis. In the course of a day, rotation can't be on the dumbell's axis but on must be via the large bearing. Hard to square with images like this one.
I don't fully understand how they solved the latitude problem:
"The separation of the fixed star sphere into two for the northern and southern sky and the division of the projectors for the sun, moon and planets into two frames results in the "dumbbell" shape still used today."
"The separation of the fixed star sphere into two for the northern and southern sky and the division of the projectors for the sun, moon and planets into two frames results in the "dumbbell" shape still used today."
November 23, 2025 at 9:50 PM
I don't fully understand how they solved the latitude problem:
"The separation of the fixed star sphere into two for the northern and southern sky and the division of the projectors for the sun, moon and planets into two frames results in the "dumbbell" shape still used today."
"The separation of the fixed star sphere into two for the northern and southern sky and the division of the projectors for the sun, moon and planets into two frames results in the "dumbbell" shape still used today."
The priorities of planetarium designers were such that the first projector could simulate the precession of the equinoxes, but only the view from the latitude of Munich.
Planetary motions were handled by a stack of projectors on the ecliptic axis, and the "star ball" was mounted on that axis too.
Planetary motions were handled by a stack of projectors on the ecliptic axis, and the "star ball" was mounted on that axis too.
November 23, 2025 at 9:21 PM
The priorities of planetarium designers were such that the first projector could simulate the precession of the equinoxes, but only the view from the latitude of Munich.
Planetary motions were handled by a stack of projectors on the ecliptic axis, and the "star ball" was mounted on that axis too.
Planetary motions were handled by a stack of projectors on the ecliptic axis, and the "star ball" was mounted on that axis too.
The Pope weighs in on the "logic of algorithms" www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Opposing the probable (boring, managerial, speculative) to the possible (exciting, artistic, creative) is something people do, but I haven't seen it theorized extensively.
Opposing the probable (boring, managerial, speculative) to the possible (exciting, artistic, creative) is something people do, but I haven't seen it theorized extensively.
November 23, 2025 at 7:20 PM
The Pope weighs in on the "logic of algorithms" www.vatican.va/content/leo-...
Opposing the probable (boring, managerial, speculative) to the possible (exciting, artistic, creative) is something people do, but I haven't seen it theorized extensively.
Opposing the probable (boring, managerial, speculative) to the possible (exciting, artistic, creative) is something people do, but I haven't seen it theorized extensively.
The Rotation of Domes
articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1883Sid...
articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1883Sid...
November 21, 2025 at 10:58 PM
The Rotation of Domes
articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1883Sid...
articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1883Sid...
November 21, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Plan of the Alhambra
November 21, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Plan of the Alhambra
November 18, 2025 at 6:47 PM
November 18, 2025 at 3:59 PM
"Men can be provincial in time, as well as in place." (In this case, seemingly the Bell Labs of the late 40s? God bless the commenter, anyway) news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4592...
November 17, 2025 at 9:09 PM
"Men can be provincial in time, as well as in place." (In this case, seemingly the Bell Labs of the late 40s? God bless the commenter, anyway) news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4592...
November 16, 2025 at 5:47 PM
The model rocket company Estes produced a kit in 1979 that took a Kodak 110 film cartridge for aerial photography. It took one photo per flight, so you'd need to fly the rocket at least 12 (and up to 20 or 24) times before sending the cartridge off for processing.
www.dembrudders.com/history-and-...
www.dembrudders.com/history-and-...
November 16, 2025 at 5:32 PM
The model rocket company Estes produced a kit in 1979 that took a Kodak 110 film cartridge for aerial photography. It took one photo per flight, so you'd need to fly the rocket at least 12 (and up to 20 or 24) times before sending the cartridge off for processing.
www.dembrudders.com/history-and-...
www.dembrudders.com/history-and-...
![Painting: Arthur Streeton, Sheep country [or The Grampians from the plain], c.1920](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:b2t4xsc2doon5nbg7fpsskdc/bafkreidf5nm6vr5nawi5rmy6gz5xczikgnag5njvlymlznzt33azdpc6eq@jpeg)
November 15, 2025 at 11:35 PM
A machine in the garden www.theguardian.com/science/2015...
!["The Murchison radio-astronomy observatory. This is the most radio-quiet observatory on the planet. Photograph: Craig Kinder/SKA" A colour photo of one of the dishes of "the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP)[, which] consists of 36 white-painted dish antennas, each about 39 feet across, spread over a circle approximately 3.7 miles in diameter" in the Australian outback.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:b2t4xsc2doon5nbg7fpsskdc/bafkreifup74mcrasbwzaqsc3l33zwbw7zg5berswrwqyfrw2awsicq7ivm@jpeg)
November 15, 2025 at 11:35 PM
A machine in the garden www.theguardian.com/science/2015...
I should remark that the quantity Ian Jack describes has the same units as the cant deficiency. Depending on your point of view, this may seem pretty close to accuracy. granta.com/the-1210-to-...
On balance, Jack probably shouldn't have told this just-so story which oversimplifies the dynamics.
On balance, Jack probably shouldn't have told this just-so story which oversimplifies the dynamics.
November 15, 2025 at 11:11 PM
I should remark that the quantity Ian Jack describes has the same units as the cant deficiency. Depending on your point of view, this may seem pretty close to accuracy. granta.com/the-1210-to-...
On balance, Jack probably shouldn't have told this just-so story which oversimplifies the dynamics.
On balance, Jack probably shouldn't have told this just-so story which oversimplifies the dynamics.
He's on Instagram: www.instagram.com/p/DNYcr4pOayw/
November 15, 2025 at 10:38 PM
He's on Instagram: www.instagram.com/p/DNYcr4pOayw/