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Shipping profits during the pandemic

2023-06-29

"In 3 yrs from 2020 to 2022, the shipping industry generated as much profit as in previous six decades combined." Just incredible the way that the pandemic created ripples through different industries.

Robert Oppenheimer learned Dutch in 6 weeks

2023-06-23

The Rest is History is doing Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, this week.

Here's a fact that blew my mind: he learned Dutch in just 6 weeks in order to give a technical lecture at a university in the Netherlands.

This makes me feel way less proud of the three years I've spent getting to A2 in German...

Nigerian beer fact of the day

2023-06-22

Nigeria drinks more Guinness than Ireland and is the second leading market in the world, behind the UK.

via CNN

Somewhat related:

The Guinness Book of World Records was started by a Guinness executive in 1951 to settle a debate: what is the fastest game bird in Europe.

Diabetes in India

2023-06-22

I found this to be astounding:

A study by the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation and Indian Council of Medical Research has found that over a quarter of India's population is either diabetic or in the pre-diabetic stage, with 101 million people living with diabetes and another 136 million in the pre-diabetes stage. The study also found that 35.5% of the population has hypertension, 28.6% is obese according to BMI measures, and 39.5% has abdominal obesity. The study is one of the largest ever attempted, with over 113,000 participants across 31 states and union territories in the country, and is highly representative of the Indian population. The findings can be used by states to develop health policies to target non-communicable diseases.

That is from News Minimalist, easily my favorite new media of 2023.

Plant families

2023-06-13

Squash, zucchini, cucumbers, and watermelons are all from the same plant family: cucurbits.

Tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, and peppers are all from the same plant family: solanaceae.

via my friend Matthew