Suggested Readings | AEON | LowTechMagazine | MIT Press Reader
To wrap up this month of March I recommend three articles for those inclined to enjoy long reads.
“Shortly after his return from Washington, Sequoyah presented this next invention to the Cherokee National Council: a set of numeral signs. Unlike the Hindu-Arabic, or Western numerals 0123456789, Sequoyah’s numerals had principally a ciphered-additive structure.”
Sequoyah and the Almost-Forgotten History of Cherokee Numerals from MIT Press Reader
“In the mid 20th century, whole cities’ sewage systems safely and successfully used fish to treat and purify their water. Waste-fed fish ponds are a low-tech, cheap, and sustainable alternative to deal with our own shit — and to obtain high protein food in the process.”
Urban Fish Ponds: Low-tech Sewage Treatment for Towns and Cities from Low Tech Magazine.
“In 1777, the Académie de Besançon proposed an essay competition with the following question: ‘How can educating women contribute to the improvement of men?’ Such competitions were popular at the time. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s career as a writer had taken off when he won the Académie de Dijon competition with his Discourse on the Sciences and Arts in 1749. Other famous writers of that time entered and won academic competitions, such as Brissot, Marat and the Abbé Grégoire. Manon eagerly submitted a piece to the competition.”
Vive Madame Roland from AEON
Thumbnail Image: Paul Klee - Fish Magic via Wikipedia Commons /Philadelphia Museum of Art, Public domain