As we come out of the age of Omicron and brace for whatever is next, this is a good reminder of how far we’ve come, and how quickly, in combating Covid–19.

If Covid vaccines had taken as long as the mumps vaccine to develop, the world would have had to face the Delta and Omicron waves with the vast majority of people on the planet armor-less against the virus that causes Covid.

“The previous fastest vaccine ever developed … would just be entering into the clinic now. And we’ve delivered 11 billion doses,” Hatchett noted. “That’s how much we’ve moved the needle.”

Why Covid–19 vaccines are a freaking miracle


Sometimes it takes awhile, but eventually the Internet asks all the good questions.

Norm’s tab, unlike Norm himself, isn’t a solid, unchanging, sedentary thing. Instead, it’s much more like the amount of beer Norm has in his glass. Sometimes it’s full, sometimes it’s empty and sometimes the set decorators make a continuity error and it changes without explanation.

How Much Was Norm’s Tab on Cheers?


I read a handful of pieces about Peter Jackson’s Get Back after I watched the series in December, but saved this lengthy piece until President’s Day weekend. It is worth the effort.

Art involves a kind of conjuring trick in which the artist conceals her false starts, her procrastination, her self-doubts, her confusion, behind the finished article. The Beatles did so well at effacing their efforts that we are suspicious they actually had to make any, which is why the words “magic” and “genius” get used so much around them…In Get Back, we are allowed into The Beatles’ process. We see the mess; we live the boredom. We watch them struggle, and somehow it doesn’t diminish the magic at all.

The Banality of Genius: Notes on Peter Jackson’s Get Back


I’ve never been to Montreal but know that winters there can be brutal. I had heard before how much of the city center (or centre) is built on a system of tunnels so you can navigate it on foot without ever stepping outside. I had never heard, though, of its snow removal system, which is designed to get the city functioning normally again incredibly quickly after a major snowstorm.

Déneigement Montreal


Finally, no matter what streaming service(s) you use, I’m sure they all frustrate/disappoint you somehow with their clunky, sometimes hostile, user interfaces. Apple geek John Siracusa pays out his wishlist for the minimum that these apps should offer us to improve their ease of use for the consumer.

An Unsolicited Streaming App Spec