Even though it’s a bit, well…jarring to see Dostoevsky and Chaucer on the same list as Stephenie Meyer, it’s worth the discomfort just to witness Iain Hollingshead poke a finger in the eye of gasbags like James Joyce and Margaret Mitchell.
Best line? On Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time: “No, you haven’t read it either.”
Among many, many questionable entries just added to the online edition of the Oxford English Dictionary is the graphic heart symbol. As in “I ♥ NY.”
Sigh. Graphic designers—like guitar players and quarterbacks—already get the girls. Do they really need more validation?
On a recent photo shoot for one of our clients, I came across this message from a fourth grader. He was kind enough to pause for a brief moment so I could share it with all of you.
Prediction: this will fail, if only because the manufacturer makes some pretty big assumptions.
AdFreak asks the important question: “Can you really expect someone to like the flavor of something based on whether they’re straight or gay?”
For the most part, I remain indifferent about the mashup genre. But this—The Big Lebowski meets Quincy Jones—is, I have to admit, pretty sweet.
http://vimeo.com/21073409
From the always-worthwhile-but-too-infrequently-updated Bright Cloudy Day.
Our writer, the very man in charge of this blog, recently discovered that the Lone Canary wine label has changed. Unfortunately, not for the better. Now I don’t want to question a man’s intent without fully understanding, well…his intent. But whatever it was, the new owners of this label make me wonder. And by “wonder” I mean “what the hell just happened?”
Since our firm worked on the original label design—including the logo and label copy—I can come to only one conclusion: the owners’ taste really is just in their mouths. Your thoughts?
One wine, two labels—new (left) and original (right).
It’s official: as of 4:21 p.m. PDT yesterday, spring is here. Which means it’s time for a little Stravinsky.
From Esa-Pekka Salonen’s debut live recording at the Walt Disney Concert Hall—and his first recording as principal conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic—here’s the final movement from The Rite of Spring:
[audio:https://helveticka.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Danse-sacrale-LElue.mp3|titles=Danse sacrale (L’Elue)]This, my friends, is what’s called a “truism”: a self-evident, obvious truth. It could even be considered somewhat tautological. But then, that’s what makes it brilliant.
Turns out yesterday’s post about the sublime Low Country Blues is the last word‘s 200th. And we forgot to celebrate.
Think about that for a sec: 200 bits of wisdom from the finely tuned minds at AMD World Headquarters, regularly squirted into the ether for your edification and enjoyment. Seems to me we deserve an award or something.
But no—it’s all about you, the reader. (Seriously, there’s only one of you.) Which is why we remain committed to bringing you the latest in breaking news, vigorously defending sound writing practices, and offering insightful commentary on the latest developments in the world of graphic design.
Here’s to another 200 posts!
Aries Mateus Architects—proud owners of the awesomest website home page ever—have designed a truly remarkable nursing home in Alcácer do Sal, Portugal. Photos by Fernando Guerra.
The logo for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London has created quite a stir. Turns out that, if you’re the Iranian government, the stylized numerals resemble the word “ZION,” which refers to Jerusalem and, by extension, Israel. And since Iran opposes Israel’s existence, they filed a protest, urging other Muslim nations to do the same.
The only thing that I might protest, however, is the fact that organizers reportedly spent $800,000 on the logo’s design development. In this tough economy, AMD would gladly have accepted the assignment for a mere $600,000.
Last year around this time I offered a sawbuck to anyone who could explain why we engage in this Daylight Savings Time nonsense. Naturally, I kept my money—on accounta nobody actually knows.
But wait. It’s a lot worse than that. (Cue ominous music.) Daylight Savings Time, it turns out, kills.
The Denver Post has published some remarkable photographs from the collection of John C. H. Grabill. Shown is one entitled “The Great Hostile Camp”—a Lakota camp on or near the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1891.
This is why the United States of America is the greatest country on earth:
“For the next three days, 26 experts will examine, sniff and taste more than 30,000 pounds of cheese and butter. The best cheeses in 73 different classes will be awarded gold medals.…In addition to the contest, nationally recognized cheese sculptor Sarah ‘The Cheese Lady’ is working on a salute to the Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers.”
It’s been a while since we last flexed our grammar muscles here at the last word. And since few things are more gratifying than showing off for the ladies, here’s the latest exercise in pedantry: e.g. versus i.e. (Hint: they’re not interchangeable.)
e.g. is short for exempli gratia, a Latin phrase that means “for example”
i.e. stands for id est, which is Latin for “that is”
You see? Both serve to clarify, but each has a different meaning. The surest way to avoid eliciting scorn* from the nearest know-it-all, therefore, is to stick with the English.
*Check out the 1995 film Get Shorty to see what I mean. Or click here to read the actual quote, which includes an F-bomb here and there.
UPDATE: “&c.” is simply a variant of “etc.”—the “&” a sort of ligature formed by the joining of “e” and “t.”