Glass Wings Blog

The Glass Wings mailing list and blog is for general idle chit-chat about things we find interesting, especially humor, animation or other subjects relevant to the Glass Wings web site.

This French Pianist Has Been Playing For 102 Years And Just Released A New Album

Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:41:36 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.npr.org/2021/09/20/1036622670/107-year-old-french-pianist-colette-maze-new-album>

"PARIS — Colette Maze welcomes me warmly into her apartment on the 14th floor
of a building overlooking the Seine River. From her flowered balcony, she has a
view of the Eiffel Tower. She offers me a whiskey or a cognac — along with a

Welcome to Walled Culture

Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:38:57 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

https://walledculture.org/welcome-to-walled-culture/

"The modern world is digital. We meet people online, we buy things online, we
deal with the government online. But the digital sphere is not just the latest
version of the traditional, analogue world. It is fundamentally different. Once

Hong Kong few select powerful new ‘patriots only’ committee

Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:37:25 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/19/hong-kong-few-select-powerful-new-patriots-only-committee>

"A select group of a few thousand people have begun voting for a powerful
committee that will choose Hong Kong’s next leader and nearly half its
legislature after electoral changes imposed by Beijing to ensure only

Five things we learned about the state of the planet at the world’s biggest meeting of biodiversity experts

Sun, 26 Sep 2021 05:36:22 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://theconversation.com/five-things-we-learned-about-the-state-of-the-planet-at-the-worlds-biggest-meeting-of-biodiversity-experts-167751>

"Every four years, some of the biggest issues facing the planet are thrashed
out in a global meeting of conservation scientists. The International Union for
the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the global authority on the status of the

The world is hungry for solar panels. Why did we stop making them?

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 06:26:36 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-09-19/solar-panels-why-australia-stopped-making-them-china/100466342>

"Every day of the year, Australia installs about 1,000 rooftop solar systems;
those black rectangles appearing on rooftops everywhere represent billions of
dollars spent on silicon, glass and a little bit of metal.

‘You can’t close’: Melbourne’s last video store determined to stay open in streaming era

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 06:25:34 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/sep/19/you-cant-close-melbournes-last-video-store-determined-to-stay-open-in-streaming-era>

"Swan Street has been subject to dramatic gentrification since De Vreught saw a
sign in the window of a video store in 2000, reading “all VHS $5”.

MERCEDES-BENZ “FUTURE 2021”

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 06:23:56 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

https://vimeo.com/603867023

"Mercedes - Benz iconic G-Class turns Electric, told through the lens of a 70
sci fi trailer."

Bangkok's idle taxis turned into vegetable patches

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 06:22:42 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/bangkoks-idle-taxis-turned-into-vegetable-patches/ar-AAOyxKM>

"Thailand's tough Covid-19 restrictions have left the city's hectic streets
quiet, putting taxi drivers out of work.

East Bay tiny homes mean big changes for homeless residents

Sat, 25 Sep 2021 06:21:51 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/09/16/east-bay-tiny-homes-mean-big-changes-for-homeless-residents/>

"SAN LEANDRO — After months of sleeping in her Jeep, unable to shower
regularly, Donna Ohnstad was ready to give up.

Waste from one bitcoin transaction ‘like binning two iPhones’

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 06:10:11 +1000

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

<https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/sep/17/waste-from-one-bitcoin-transaction-like-binning-two-iphones>

"A single bitcoin transaction generates the same amount of electronic waste as
throwing two iPhones in the bin, according to a new analysis by economists from
the Dutch central bank and MIT.