Hey folks, Jason Kottke here with the kottke.org newsletter. (Tell your friends? I mean, you don't have to. But you could?!) I've been off social media for the past week and I like it. It's been difficult to do my job without being on Twitter (and also, I have been on Twitter a bit, just not the usual timeline) and I miss seeing what friends are up to on Instagram, but boy do I love not being all-but-surgically attached to my phone. The phone is actually the main problem for me, not the social media. So yeah, no insights here – I figured being on my phone less would feel good and it has. 🤷‍♂️

Anyway, here are some things from the site from the past couple of weeks that I thought were worth a second look – or a first one if you missed them.

His Name Was Emmett Till

The little-known story of the barn where Emmett Till was tortured and murdered in 1955 is symbolic of how his story is remembered (or erased) in contemporary America. This is probably the best and most important thing I read all week.

See also: The first part of the Civil Rights documentary Eyes on the Prize is now available on HBO Max. They are also making a follow-up series that will "reflect on the legacy of the movement...and tie it to the present day."

Lora Webb Nichols' Photographic Chronicle of the 20th Century American West

For more than 60 years beginning in 1899, Lora Webb Nichols captured and collected about 24,000 photographs of life in a small copper-mining town in Wyoming. What an astonishing collection!

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"If It Doesn't Shine In Your Face, You Don't See Anything"

"She Changed Astronomy Forever. He Won the Nobel Prize For It." A fantastic video featuring astronomer Jocelyn Bell Burnell, who discovered pulsars as a PhD student and didn't receive recognition for it until decades later.

What Does Space Sound Like?

In this fantastic video, you can listen to some actual and theoretical sounds of space. For instance, if it weren't muted by the vacuum of space, the sound of the Sun burning would be as loud as a jackhammer here on Earth.

Minimalist Creative Funny Photography

Spanish photographers Anna Devís and Daniel Rueda cleverly use landscapes and architectural elements to create minimalist and fun portraits of themselves.

Thanks for reading. See you in a couple weeks.