Tag: europe

Posted in Science & Nature

A Beautiful City

Posted on by Jinavie

What makes a city or town aesthetically pleasing? Places such as Prague, Florence and Santorini are famous for their picturesque cityscape. Instead of specific famous buildings or tourist spots, postcards from these areas could just show any part of the city and they would still be beautiful. What sets these places apart? How is it that despite all our technological development, modern cities can’t compare to the beauty of cities that are hundreds or thousands of years old?

Korean architect Yoo Hyun-Joon proposes a theory regarding two factors: material and shape. Consider the following matrix using the two:

Out of these four, the combination that we find the most beautiful is when a city has simple materials but complex shape. For example, Santorini is made only of stone buildings painted white and blue. But because it is built on a volcano, the ground is uneven and the building shapes differ to accommodate for this. Florence is almost entirely made of bricks. Traditional Korean houses were made only of wood. This is because in the old days, due to labour costs and poor logistics, cities were usually built with materials abundant in the surrounding area. Instead of varying materials, architects would challenge the limit of materials with varied shapes.

Nowadays, thanks to trade and globalisation, it is much easier to obtain materials from all over the world such as glass, concrete and steel. Furthermore, we can use industrial vehicles to change the terrain to flatten the ground and we use tall rectangular buildings to maximise space. Thus, we end up with the ugly, chaotic combination of many materials and simple shape.

The solution to making a beautiful city is simple then – create a building restriction that unifies the building material to one. A good example is Newbury Street in Boston, USA. This shopping district is famous for its classy red brick appearance, thanks to a building restriction that ensures every new shop built on the street must have the side of the building facing the street built using red bricks.

Of course, just unifying the building material to any one thing does not solve the issue. For example, cities made of only concrete rarely are as appealing. What is important is to use local materials that best represent the context of the city and the land it was built on.

Posted in History & Literature

Honeymoon

Posted on by Jinavie

It is customary for a newlywed couple to embark on a romantic vacation to celebrate their marriage. This is known as a honeymoon. The word originates from the Scandinavian region – the home of the Vikings. The Vikings had a tradition (as did many other European cultures) where a newlywed couple would drink mead for a whole month. The reason being, it was believed that mead was good for stamina and would facilitate fertilisation. Ergo, the honeymoon’s original purpose was to provide a time for the couple to make a child. Ironically, alcohol has the effect of inhibiting not only the cerebral cortex (causing sexual disinhibition), but also testosterone, leading to erectile dysfunction. Thus, drinking like the Vikings on your honeymoon would be very counterintuitive if you are thinking of making a child (or just love). Furthermore, it may endanger your marriage right from the start.

Whatever the origin of the word, a honeymoon is indubitably the sweetest time for a couple as they celebrate their promise for eternal love and look forward to a future they will build together. Perhaps the true meaning of “honeymoon” is a metaphor for the sweetness of a newly developing romance.

Posted in History & Literature

Zodiac: Taurus

Posted on by Jinavie

Taurus is the Zodiac sign for those born between April 21 and May 20. The symbol for Taurus is a giant ox.

The model for Taurus is none other than the king of gods, Zeus. Zeus often came down to the human world for fun, but one day he set his eyes on a beautiful princess by the name of Europa. Europa often played on the farm with the herd of cows. Zeus fell head over heels for her and plotted how he could profess his love to her (alternatively, rape her). He decided to transform into an ox and hid among the herd. Europa was drawn to this magnificent, white ox that could even sing. She was fascinated by it, caressing it and even riding on its back. At that moment, Zeus dashed for the sea and jumped in with Europa on his back. He swam across oceans until they reached the island of Crete. There, he transformed back to his usual form and told her how he was madly in love with her. She accepted his love and the two lived happily on Crete. To honour her, Zeus named the land across the ocean they crossed Europe, thus naming the continent that we know so well.

(Part of the Zodiac series: https://jineralknowledge.com/tag/zodiacs/?order=asc)

Posted in Psychology & Medicine

Trepanation

Posted on by Jinavie

When and what was the first surgery performed by mankind? Many would believe it to be a simple procedure such as suturing a wound. But would you believe that the earliest surgical procedure was brain surgery in 6500BC? Surprisingly, this is true.

Archaeologists have found a large amount of skulls with a large, round hole in them. Some of the oldest skulls with holes were found in France, where 40 skulls from the Neolithic era were excavated. Archaeologists believed these holes to be from a battle leading to a dent in the skull. However, these holes were actually the results of a surgery (signs of bone recovery can be seen around the edges of the hole, suggesting the patients were alive for some time even after the operation). These skulls all belonged to trepanation patients.

Trepanation is the surgical opening of the skull by drilling a hole in it. This is an ancient surgery that can be found throughout history. Hippocrates and Galen from ancient Greece both recorded detailed instructions on trepanation, ancient Incans performed the surgery and it was also common during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in Europe. These surgeries were most likely indicated for skull fractures where fragments were embedded in the brain. During the Middle Ages when it was better known that the brain was the seat of the soul, trepanation was used for psychiatric treatments too. For example, in 15th century Netherlands, trepanation was used to excise a so-called stone of madness that was supposedly the cause of insanity. Like this, it was believed that trepanation could release the demons and insanity trapped in the skull.

Although this operation sounds hilariously misled, it is still used in modern medicine. Of course, it is not known to treat insanity, but rather to treat brain bleeds. Extradural and subdural haemorrhages occur when a rupture of an artery in the brain causes a collection of blood in the skull, compressing the brain. This is a dangerous situation which can lead to a stroke or even death. One treatment of this condition is trepanation, or a burr hole, where a small hole is drilled in the skull to relieve the pressure, lowering intracranial pressure and stabilising the patient. Trepanation is an excellent example of how we can learn from the past and how medical knowledge from ancient times is sometimes still valid.

Posted in History & Literature

Pizza

Posted on by Jinavie

Pizza is a food that has a diverse range from cheesy, party-purpose takeaway pizzas to classy, traditional woodfire pizzas. Although it is considered an Italian food, the modern pizza could not have been born without America.

The Mediterranean countries have a long history of making flat breads such as focaccia and coca. But one of the most important ingredients in pizza, tomato, was introduced to Europe only in the 16th century from the Americas. However, Europeans thought for some time that the fruit was poisonous and did not use it for cooking purposes. But by the 18th century, the poorer population in Naples, Italy began creating a dish consisting of flat bread with tomato paste, giving birth to the pizza. Pizza was not a luxury food to start with, but rather a poor man’s food as it was simple and cheap to make. There is even a story of how King Ferdinand 1 disguised himself as a commoner to sneak into Naples to indulge in some pizzas – a food banned from the royal court.

Nowadays, it is common to see at least 5 or more toppings on pizza for a rich taste, but the traditional pizza never has more than three toppings (this is still true in Italy). For example, the two main types of pizza considered as the “true pizzas” by Neapolitans, are: the marinara pizza (tomato, garlic, oregano and sometimes basil) and the Margherita pizza (tomato, mozzarella, basil). The story behind the Margherita pizza is that it was served to the Queen Margherita of Savoy (Queen of Italy at the time), thus the name. The pizza represented the Italian flag by using three ingredients: red tomatoes, white mozzarella cheese and green basil. As the Kingdom of Italy had only been formed a couple decades before this, the pizza was highly symbolic (Italy was very passionate about its flag to promote the unification of the various regions after the Kingdom formed). Today the two pizzas are the most popular pizzas in Italy and are officially protected products as “traditional Italian foods”.

The current record for the largest pizza was a pizza made in Johannesburg, South Africa, that had a diameter of 37.4 metres and made of 500kg of flour, 800kg of cheese and 900kg of tomato puree.

Posted in History & Literature

Capuchin Crypt

Posted on by Jinavie

In Rome, Italy, there is a small church called Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini. The church itself is not that different to the many beautiful churches in Rome, but it is special because of what lies beneath it. After walking down two staircases underground, one is faced by a door leading to the Capuchin Crypt.

Once inside the crypt, one can see why it is so famous – it is an ossuary, the burial place of human skeletons. The Crypt is made of six small chapels, each decorated with the skeleton of over 4000 bodies. Ribcages are organised into hearts, thigh bones are used to frame pictures and tailbones are used extensively with skulls to produce elaborate works of art. Even the bones of the fingers are used to create elaborate patterns on the wall. The chapels also have intact skeletons still dressed in brown friar habits (religious robes) from the 17th century. They also contain the remains of babies.

The reason why some skeletons are dressed as friars is that most of the bodies are those of Capuchin friars, buried by their order under a church according the regulation of the Catholic Church. In 1631, Capuchin monks brought 300 cartloads of deceased friars and buried them in the crypt. As monks died over time, bodies that were buried for the longest were exhumed to make room for the new bodies. This led to the accumulation of thousands of thirty-year old skeletons and so the monks decided to honour those friars by decorating the chapel with their bones. Among the buried are also bodies of poor Romans whose bodies no one cared for.

In the last chapel of the crypt, the Crypt of the Three Skeletons, the central skeleton stands out as it is enclosed in an oval of femurs (thigh bone) and holding a scythe and a scale. It is a symbol of death, reminding those that gaze upon it that all humans are mortal in the face of time. The room also contains a plaque with the following message in five different languages:

“What you are now we used to be; what we are now you will be…”

Posted in Life & Happiness

Get Psyched Mix

Posted on by Jinavie

The Get Psyched Mix is a list of 24 English rock & roll songs carefully handpicked by Barney Stinson. His intention was to create a mixed CD that steps up from the traditional rule that a mix CD must “rise and fall”; instead, it is all rise. This means that the mix allows for maximum psychitude with no time wasted, giving you that amped feeling to clear away all the worries and troubles of your life.
After listening through the entire mix, you will indubitably feel the need to high five or fist bump your bro and appreciate the beauty of life. Whenever you are down, the Get Psyched Mix will cheer you up without failure.

This is a modified, recompiled version by Jin Kim for even more psyche: (Youtube playlist here: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7ADC01CA52D35E52)

  1. Bon Jovi – You Give Love A Bad Name
  2. AC/DC – Highway To Hell
  3. Joe Esposito – You’re The Best
  4. Guns N’ Roses – Paradise City
  5. Europe – The Final Countdown
  6. Scorpions – Rock You Like A Hurricane
  7. Van Halen – Panama
  8. Poison – Talk Dirty To Me
  9. AC/DC – Thunderstruck
  10. KISS – Lick It Up
  11. Van Halen – Jump
  12. Bon Jovi – Livin’ On A Prayer
  13. Guns N’ Roses – Welcome To The Jungle
  14. Journey – Don’t Stop Believing
  15. Warrant – Cherry Pie
  16. Starship – We Built This City
  17. Pseudo Echo – Funky Town
  18. Billy Idol – Dancing With Myself
  19. Rick Springfield – Jessie’s Girl
  20. Twisted Sisters – I Wanna Rock
  21. Eric Clapton – Layla
  22. Kenny Loggins – Highway To The Danger Zone
  23. Queen – We Will Rock You
  24. The Proclaimers – 500 Miles

Posted in History & Literature

Black Death

Posted on by Jinavie

This disease, also known as Pest or the bubonic plague, was a vicious infectious disease that decimated medieval Europe. It is caused by the bacteria Yersinia pestis, usually transmitted by fleas. The symptoms vary from high fever, malaise, nausea and vomiting, headaches, muscle cramps, seizures, red rashes, coughing and swollen lymph nodes, and causes death within four or five days without treatment.
People did not know about the existence of bacteria back then (it would be 200 more years until Louis Pasteur would suggest germs as the cause of infections). Back then, they considered diseases to transmit through miasma, or bad air. Also, they believed that to prevent transmission, they required a stronger smell to counter it.

Plague doctors, who treated according to the miasma theory of disease, wore a special set of equipments that were known as beak doctor costumes. They wore an overcoat, hat, gloves and boots made from waxed leather, carried a cane to assess the patient and point things out, and a peculiar mask. The mask had a long beak like a bird’s, giving the doctors the nickname beak doctors. The masks had round, glass windows to see through, and two small nostrils at the end of the beak.

Why did they wear this strange mask? The beak was hollow and doctors filled it with flowers, herbs, vinegar and incense that produce a strong smell, so as to “purify” the air coming through the nostrils. 
Although the miasma theory has been falsified by germ theory, this gear was the first hazmat suit in history.

There is another fascinating fact regarding the Plague, miasma theory and beak doctors. It regards the nursery rhyme, Ring a Ring o’ Roses:

Ring-a-ring-a-roses,
A pocket full of posies; 
Atishoo! Atishoo! 
We all fall down. 

This nursery rhyme actually describes the Plague. The ring of roses refers to the red rashes and swelling of lymph nodes – a symptom of the Plague; the posies were herbs used to counter the miasma; coughing and sneezing were end-stage symptoms before death, which is shown in the final line.