[AH] Five r/imaginarymaps #alternatehistory maps: Turks, Prussia, Prussia-Poland, Austria, Bavaria

• This r/imaginarymaps map imagines the creation, via migration in the 13th century, of a Turkic Christian minority akin to the Gagauz concentrated in northwestern Germany. Nice map, if questionable borders.
• What would have happened if, as nearly occurred in 1762, Prussia was crushed by its neighbours and divided? r/imaginarymaps shows the outcome.
• Could there ever have emerged, after the partitions of Poland, a dual-nation kingdom of Prussia-Poland? r/imaginarymaps shows this country.
• This r/imaginarymaps map imagines a southern Germany unified under Austria, separate from the sphere of Prussia in the north.
• Could a union of Bavaria with the German-speaking lands of Austria after 1919 have worked? r/imaginarymaps shows it.

[BLOG] Some Friday links

• Architectuul looks at the divided cities of the divided island of Cyprus.
• Bad Astronomer Phil Plait shares an image of a galaxy that actually has a tail.
• Maria Farrell at Crooked Timber talks about her pain as an immigrant in the United Kingdom in the era of Brexit, her pain being but one of many different types created by this move.
• The Crux talks about the rejected American proposal to detonate a nuclear bomb on the Moon, and the several times the United States did arrange for lesser noteworthy events there (collisions, for the record).
• D-Brief notes how the innovative use of Curiosity instruments has explained more about the watery past of Gale Crater.
• Bruce Dorminey notes one astronomer’s theory that Venus tipped early into a greenhouse effect because of a surfeit of carbon relative to Earth.
• Far Outliers looks at missionaries in China, and their Yangtze explorations, in the late 19th century.
• Gizmodo notes evidence that Neanderthals and Denisovans cohabited in a cave for millennia.
• At In Media Res, Russell Arben Fox writes about his exploration of the solo music of Paul McCartney.
• io9 looks at what is happening with Namor in the Marvel universe, with interesting echoes of recent Aquaman storylines.
• JSTOR Daily looks at the Beothuk of Newfoundland and their sad fate.
• Language Hat explores Patagonian Afrikaans.
• Lawyers, Guns and Money reports on how mindboggling it is to want to be a billionaire. What would you do with that wealth?
• The Map Room Blog shares a visualization of the polar vortex.
• Marginal Revolution reports on the career of a writer who writes stories intended to help people fall asleep.
• The New APPS Blog reports on the power of biometric data and the threat of its misuse.
• Neuroskeptic takes a look at neurogenesis in human beings.
• Out There notes the import, in understanding our solar system, of the New Horizons photos of Ultima Thule.
• Jason Davis at the Planetary Society Blog notes that OSIRIS-REx is in orbit of Bennu and preparing to take samples.
• Roads and Kingdoms shares a list of 21 things that visitors to Kolkata should know.
• Mark Simpson takes a critical look at the idea of toxic masculinity. Who benefits?
• Starts With A Bang’s Ethan Siegel explains why global warming is responsible for the descent of the polar vortex.
• Window on Eurasia notes how the pro-Russian Gagauz of Moldova are moving towards a break if the country at large becomes pro-Western.
• Arnold Zwicky looks at the art of Finnish painter Hugo Simberg.

[URBAN NOTE] Five cities links: Hamilton, Detroit, Luxembourg, Lisbon, Comrat

• Mark McNeil at the Hamilton Spectator notes that real estate prices in Hamilton, often thought of as Toronto’s less expensive bedroom community, are also rising very quickly.
• The VICE article takes a look at the man who created Detroit’s African Bead Museum.
• The former red-light district of Luxembourg City is also maneuvering to take advantage of the post-Brexit resettlement of Europeans financiers. Bloomberg reports.
• Architectuul looks at how architects in Lisbon are trying to take advantage of their changing city, to help make it more accessible to all.
• The Guardian has a photo essay focusing on Comrat, a decidedly Soviet-influenced city that is the capital of the autonomous region of Gagauzia, in Moldova.

[BLOG] Some Wednesday links

• blogTO notes that a Toronto family known for its Christmas lights display may be forced to ratchet back by city inspectors.
• Centauri Dreams notes the apparent discovery of Kuiper Belt objects around white dwarf WD 1425+540.
• The Dragon’s Gaze links to one paper examining the possible orbital inclination of Proxima Centauri b, and points to another one speculating about upper limits to the masses of other exoplanets orbiting P_roxima Centauri.
• Lawyers, Guns and Money links to interviews with different historians noting how close the United States is to a scenario from 1930s Germany.
• The LRB Blog notes that the actions of the American deep state to undermine elements of the Trump Administration seen as potentially threatening will certainly also undermine American democracy.
• Personal Reflections’ Jim Belshaw looks at reasons for the continuing gap in life outcomes between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.
• The Power and the Money’s Noel Maurer links to a paper looking at the effect of Huey Long’s populism on Louisiana’s economy, noting that he had little effect on the markets. This suggests that counting on the markets to reign in populists before the crash may be a mistake.
• Strange Maps links to a map and history of the Gagauz of Moldova.
• Torontoist looks at the continuing decline of live music venues in Toronto.
• Towleroad notes the origins of Der Spiegel‘s cover art showing Trump with the severed head of lady liberty in a Cuban exile’s work.
• Window on Eurasia notes differences between how Russians and Americans think about ethnicity and citizenship in their diverse societies.

[BLOG] Some politics links

• The Power and the Money’s Noel Maurer is concerned with Trump: what would happen if a terrorist attack occurred under his rule, would he actually be able to save money from changing foreign basing, do terrorist attacks help him in the polls?
• Towleroad notes the advent of marriage equality in Greenland.
• Window on Eurasia notes legal challenges to Russian autocracy in regional courts, notes Tatarstan’s controversial support of the Gagauz, notes Protestants in Ukraine are strongly Ukrainian, and analyzes Russia’s response to the Brussels attack.
• The Financial Times‘ The World notes Poland’s use of public relations firms to deal with its PR problems.

[BLOG] Some Thursday links

• Centauri Dreams examines different ways in which starships can decelerate.
• The Dragon’s Gaze links to a paper examining the potential habitability of exomoons orbiting bright white main-sequence stars, between F5 and F9.5. Ultraviolet radiation is key.
• The Dragon’s Tales notes a Chinese ASAT weapons test.
• Joe. My. God. notes the Swedish language now has officially added the gender-neutral pronoun hen to its vocabulary.
• Language Hat notes an ambitious new project to digitize ancient Irish-language documents.
• The Power and the Money’s Noel Maurer is critical of the Democratic Party’s stance on abortion when it gets in the way of necessary policy, likening it to the Republican Party’s ongoing satisfaction of its base.
• The Planetary Society Blog notes the final interesting weeks of Messenger‘s survey of Mercury, with photos.
• Peter Rukavina remembers when in 1995 he was commissioned by the government of Prince Edward Island to set up a provincial website.
• Torontoist reacts with humour to the impending merger of Postmedia and Sun Media.
• Towleroad notes a lawsuit brought by a Michigan women against her former gym for being too trans-friendly.
• Understanding Society examines the mechanisms connecting experiments with policies.
• The Volokh Conspiracy argues against mandatory voting and mandatory jury service.
• Window on Eurasia observes a controversial election among Moldova’s Gagauz and looks at the extent to which Islam in Russia is not under the government’s control.
• Yorkshire Ranter Alex Harrowell goes on at length about the ridiculous Biryani project, a failed dirty tricks effort to sabotage the English Defense League and radical Muslims. Wow.

[BLOG] Some Monday links

• blogTO notes the development of a new shopping mall in Toronto’s Yorkville neighbourhood.
• The Dragon’s Gaze links to a paper examining the ability of the James Webb telescope to detect exoplanet transits.
• Joe. My. God. notes a breakthrough for GLBT rights protesters in Seoul.
• Language Log notes Google’s localization in Kazakh and observes Erdogan’s desire to revive Ottoman Turkish.
• Languages of the World looks at the Gagauz.
• The Power and the Money’s Noel Maurer shares the story of a poor Texan fallen into the cracks of Obamacare because of his state’s chosen policies.
• Savage Minds looks at early African-American anthropologist St. Clair Drake.
• Spacing Toronto examines the appearance of the Ku Klux Klan in the GTA in the 1970s and 1980s.
• Torontoist looks at the career of Joseph Shlisky, a Toronto-based Jewish cantor who tried to combine secular and religious careers.
• Towleroad suggests that Elton John and David Furnish might be getting married next week.
• Window on Eurasia notes that immigration has made Moscow the city with the largest Muslim population in Europe, and looks at security fears related to Central Asian migrant workers.
• The Financial Times‘ The World wonders if Netanyahu has triggered the end of his political career.

[BLOG] Some Thursday links

• Centauri Dreams considers “mirage” Earths, apparently Earth-like worlds with oxygen atmospheres produced by excessive early heating of their oceans.
• Crooked Timber notes a remarkable new book examining the genesis of Wonder Woman in the avant-garde politics of the 1930s US.
• The Dragon’s Gaze notes a paper examining the formation of close-orbiting rocky exoplanets.
• The Dragon’s Tales notes evidence that art in the hominid clan predates Homo sapiens, with an apparent artwork.
• Far Outliers notes Burma’s complex relationship with its ethnic minorities.
• Languages of the World’s Asya Pereltsvaig notes the complexities of Jewish nostalgia, ex post facto and otherwise, for the Soviet era.
• Lawyers, Guns and Money considers the idea of reparations to undocumented workers, for the income they lost due to their lack of status.
• Marginal Revolution considers if Chile is overrated as an economic model.
• Steve Munro notes the complexities and problems with Presto integration into the TTC.
• Why I Love Toronto considers inexpensive options for daters in the Annex.
• Window on Eurasia notes the radicalization of Crimean Tatars under Russian rule, considers the relevance of the Weimar model to contemporary Russia, and wonders if Gagauzia might undermine Moldova’s shift to Europe.

[LINK] The Gagauz

The position of the Gagauz, a rare Orthodox Christian Turkic nation concentrated in the south of Moldova. I just wish that I knew more about them–their origins, the process of consolidation, their current dynamics–than what’s in the above linked Wikipedia article.