PicoBlog

Earlier this month I was buzzing to be asked to do a #AD for CeraVe. As you know, I only work with brands I love, but to work with a brand that is such a part of your daily routine, feels that bit extra special. My brief was a 15 second video on TikTok, that would have “paid media” behind it. This means that L’Oréal (the owners of CeraVe) pay to promote the video on social media.

I am currently a postdoctoral researcher in astronomy at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics in Sweden. In the last two years, I have been harassed and discriminated against on multiple occasions by other astronomers in the international community for my choice to work with exoplanet pioneer Geoff Marcy. Geoff Marcy was accused of sexual harassment in 2015 and subjected to a public shaming, after which he apologized and retired from the University of California, Berkeley.

Having briefly discussed how we imagine God's action in the world, that we need to do some work in dispelling mechanistic visions of petitionary prayer, "magic domino" type thinking, we can now turn toward our deeper desolations: the pain and disillusionment of unanswered prayer. Personally, I think this is a huge issue. I can't tell you how many times people have shared faith struggles with me, even leading to an eventual loss of faith, which started with prayers for loved ones that went unanswered.

Welcome back! Season 4 of the Threads of Conversation podcast is underway, and we’re starting off strong. My first guest is none other than Brenda Weischer, aka. @brendahashtag, fashion’s favourite monochrome multi-hyphenate. She’s the founder of secondhand fashion platform Disruptive Berlin, the fashion editor at 032c, and a tastemaker to thousands thanks to her ever-expanding social media following. With her distinctive aesthetic, dry sense of humour and enthusiastic attitude, Brenda has cultivated a loyal community of fans who look to her for style inspiration, advice and education.

Just over a year ago I left London for the small town of Frome in Somerset. I grew up in the Dorset/Wiltshire/Somerset borders so it felt something like coming home. Moving here has been one of the best things I’ve ever done. Frome is such a special place with a thriving arts scene and independent business community. It might be a small town but has recently made headlines in the National Geographic as Somerset’s most exciting market town and the New York Times for its work to combat loneliness in the community.

Welcome to the Brown History Newsletter. If you’re enjoying this labour of love, please do consider becoming a paid subscriber. Your contribution would help pay the writers and illustrators and support this weekly publication. If you like to submit a writing piece, please send me a pitch by email at brownhistory1947@gmail.com. Don’t forget to check out our SHOP and our PODCAST. You can also follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

A new mini store was recently completed. No, not one of those mini stores. This mini store is even more mini — it’s a 1:64 scale model of Apple Garosugil in Seoul, carefully crafted in exquisite detail. I chatted with the creator of the diorama to learn more about this wonderful creation. Responses have been lightly edited for clarity. Juyeong first began building dioramas in 2020, and over the past two years gave the hobby full attention.

Tired of Firefox and Chrome based web browsers? Annoyed by their massive bloat, obscene memory usage, and years (nay, decades) of what can best be described as legacy schmutz? Yearning for something truly new? A browser with a brand new engine, written from scratch? Something fast, light, and nimble? Well, my good sirs and madams, you are in luck! Andreas Kling — the evil genius and mastermind of the Serenty OS project — has just ported the Serenty OS web browser to Linux using Qt!

Happy Thursday! It’s time for a new issue of Animation Obsessive. We’re looking at one of the most renowned stop-motion films ever made: Jiří Trnka’s The Hand (1965). To the extent that people know Trnka’s work, it’s often this one. Made in communist Czechoslovakia, The Hand is a protest against power. There are only two characters: a humble potter and a conniving, brutal hand, which nudges and flatters and bribes and threatens our hero to sculpt a statue.