A lesser Paul McCartney track prompts some deeper Beatles-related thoughts at Popular.
Read MoreFarewell to 1983’s Popular hits.
Tweet Nothings, Part 2
My twitterings archived here again, because I can.
The world almost ended on 8 November 1983 [via Mefi], a date with particular resonance for anyone who’s been remembering the year with Popular. If it had all gone mushroom-shaped, the very last number-one song we’d have heard would have been: Billy Joel’s “Uptown Girl” in the UK; Kenny Rogers’ and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream” in the US; Spandau Ballet’s “True” in Canada; and Culture Club’s “Karma Chameleon” in Australia and New Zealand.
Little Baa
It’s a little perplexing to see this press release from my very own institution, which unwittingly provides fodder for creationists:
Edinburgh researchers studying Soay sheep on the island of Hirta, St Kilda, have shown that the animals’ average body size has decreased by five per cent over the past 24 years. ... The reduction in body size opposes the trend that would be expected from evolutionary research. Large sheep have the most offspring, and body size is inherited from one generation to the next, so sheep should tend to become bigger over time. Researchers say that in the case of the Soay sheep, the dwarfing effect of the animals’ environment has been greater than the opposing effect of evolution.
More Popular comments. I’ve skipped Rod Stewart’s “Baby Jane” because it went nowhere in the Australian charts, and it was a struggle to remind myself how it went, even after watching the video.
Am I Hot or Not?
Gorgie City Farm, Edinburgh, on Saturday. Phew, what a scorcher.
6 July 2009 · 
x2 · Journal
June 2009