Author: Anna Green

It’s hard to make a living as an artist, and as rents rise and arts jobs dwindle, creatives from New York to New Delhi are being priced out of their homes and studios. But at least one city is trying to change that. CityLab reports that London Mayor Sadiq Khan and Deputy Mayor for Culture Justine Simons are trying to make London affordable for artists again by developing “Creative Enterprise Zones.”

Khan and Simons are still settling on specific plans for the creative zones, but they may establish subsidized live-work spaces for lower income artists and creatives, or make certain studio complexes off limits to residential developers. Simons is also reportedly considering a plan to help more established artists purchase their own studios, in particular by helping them navigate a labyrinthine loan application system that can be particularly challenging for those without full-time jobs. 

Simons tells The Evening Standard that artists in London earn, on average, £10,000 ($13,300) annually—well below what’s considered a living wage. Simons and Khan believe the key to preserving London’s thriving arts community is as simple as ensuring artists can afford to live there. Neighborhoods like Hackney Wick and Southeastern Peckham, which have long had a high concentration of artists, are becoming increasingly pricey—in part because the artists, themselves, have made them “cool.”

“At the moment artists and creative people are like the advance party—they find the stranger, weird places that no one sees much value in, they bring them to life, the area becomes valuable and then they are priced out of the market,” Simons told The Evening Standard. “What we want to create is an area where creative people can put down roots and that would be a creative enterprise zone. That’s working with local authorities, developers with the creative community and residents. It’s putting a spotlight and a ring around an area.”

[h/t CityLab]

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The Waste Shark is like a Roomba for the ocean. A small aquatic drone that can vacuum up 1100 pounds of floating trash, the Waste Shark was designed by Richard Hardiman of RanMarine to keep the Earth’s oceans clean. Now, Popular Science reports, it’s embarking on its first official mission: To pick up trash in the waters around Rotterdam before it travels too far out to sea.

Hardiman is providing the Port of Rotterdam Authority in the Netherlands with four Waste Shark prototypes, which will patrol Rotterdam’s waters through the end of the year. The sharks, which are approximately the size of a passenger car, pick up trash in a 14-inch “mouth” that extends below the surface of the water. They’re autonomous, which means they’re able to patrol for trash 24/7 without oversight.

Hardiman hopes that the Waste Sharks could eventually help make ocean trash a thing of the past. In a statement he explained, “It may sound like a strange thing to say for an entrepreneur, but my mission will only truly be accomplished when I’m ‘out of business.'”

[h/t Popular Science]

The Waste Shark is like a Roomba for the ocean. A small aquatic drone that can vacuum up 1100 pounds of floating trash, the Waste Shark was designed by Richard Hardiman of RanMarine to keep the Earth’s oceans clean. Now, Popular Science reports, it’s embarking on its first official mission: To pick up trash in the waters around Rotterdam before it travels too far out to sea.

Hardiman is providing the Port of Rotterdam Authority in the Netherlands with four Waste Shark prototypes, which will patrol Rotterdam’s waters through the end of the year. The sharks, which are approximately the size of a passenger car, pick up trash in a 14-inch “mouth” that extends below the surface of the water. They’re autonomous, which means they’re able to patrol for trash 24/7 without oversight.

Hardiman hopes that the Waste Sharks could eventually help make ocean trash a thing of the past. In a statement he explained, “It may sound like a strange thing to say for an entrepreneur, but my mission will only truly be accomplished when I’m ‘out of business.'”

[h/t Popular Science]

These days, businesses seem to open and close in the blink of an eye. In some areas, it’s rare to see a store that’s been open for more than a few years—let alone a few decades. But despite the instability of running a business, some stores have managed to stick around for a seriously long time. In some places, shoppers buy books or bicycles from the same store their grandparents and great-grandparents frequented—or eat at restaurants that once fed ancient soldiers and explorers. These stores are some of the oldest continuously operating stores in the world—all have broken some kind of record for longevity, whether they’re the oldest store of their kind in the world or their country, and all are still in their original locations.

1. MORAVIAN BOOK SHOP // THE OLDEST BOOKSTORE IN AMERICA

Founded in 1745, the Moravian Book Shop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania is the oldest continuously operating bookstore in America (the Bertrand Bookstore in Portugal opened 13 years earlier, and is generally considered the oldest in the world). While the Moravian started out as a place to buy and print religious texts, it changed with the times, and now sells every book under the sun out of its (significantly expanded) 15,000 square foot shop. Bookstore employees say the shop sometimes feels haunted by its lengthy past—literally. Rumor has it, a friendly ghost haunts the shop, occasionally reminding employees to turn off appliances they’ve left running.

2. ST. PETER’S STIFTSKELLER // THE OLDEST RESTAURANT IN AUSTRIA

St. Peter’s Stiftskeller claims to have been mentioned in a document published all the way back in 803 CE. If that’s true, it’s most definitely the oldest continuously operated restaurant in Austria—and may even be the oldest restaurant in the world. Located within the walls of St. Peter’s Abbey in Salzburg, the restaurant and inn hosted French troops during the Napoleonic wars and is rumored to have served everyone from Christopher Columbus and Charlemagne to Bill Clinton and Clint Eastwood.

3. PEARSON CYCLES // THE OLDEST BIKE SHOP IN THE WORLD

Located in Sutton, London, UK, Pearson Cycles was established in 1860 and has been in the Pearson family for five generations. Founded by Thomas Pearson—who originally opened a blacksmiths, but quickly switched to selling bicycles—the shop is now run by Pearson’s great-great-grandsons Will and Guy Pearson. In 2011, when the historic bike shop opened its second location, Will Pearson told The Telegraph, “We have a slow roll-out program; one store every 150 years.” The shop holds the Guinness World Record for oldest bicycle shop in the world.

4. NISHIYAMA ONSEN KEIUNKAN // THE OLDEST HOTEL IN THE WORLD

Founded in 705 CE in Japan’s Yamanashi Prefecture, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan has been run by the same family for 52 generations. The hot spring inn, which is located at the foot of the South Japanese Alps, has served everyone from ancient samurai to modern vacationers for more than a millennium. Known for its luxurious rooms and warm mountain streams, the hotel holds the Guinness World Record for world’s oldest hotel.

5. TEMPLE SLUG // THE OLDEST WATERBED STORE IN THE WORLD

Temple Slug can’t compete with the other stores on this list for longevity, but it has spent an impressive amount of time selling a product that’s largely considered a passé fad. The futon and waterbed store in Kansas City, Missouri claims to be “the oldest waterbed retailer in continuous business.” They’ve operated out of the same shop under the same management since 1970, and now proudly serve the grandchildren of their original customers. (The other candidate for oldest waterbed store is Odds ’N’ Ends in Richmond, California, which opened in 1969, but that store recently became an online-only company.)

6. ANTICA PIZZERIA PORT’ALBA // THE OLDEST PIZZERIA IN THE WORLD

Originally founded as a food stall in 1738, Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba opened its Naples, Italy restaurant in 1830. Widely credited as the oldest pizzeria in the world, the historic restaurant used lava rocks from Mount Vesuvius to line its ovens. Though Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba by no means invented the pizza, its founders helped transform the cheap street food into a fine dining experience.

7. SANTA MARIA NOVELLA PHARMACY // THE OLDEST PHARMACY IN THE WORLD

Established by Dominican monks in 1221, Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy has been providing the city of Florence, Italy with homemade medicines, soaps, and colognes for almost 800 years. Still situated in its original building, the pharmacy features vast painted ceilings, a museum, and of course, plenty of products to sample and purchase. Its most famous product, according to Atlas Obscura, is a smelling salt called Aceto dei Sette Ladri (Seven Thieves Vinegar), which was, according to legend, used by grave robbers to protect themselves from infection during the plague.

8. C.O. BIGELOW // THE OLDEST PHARMACY IN AMERICA

There are two stores that claim the title of oldest pharmacy in the United States: Carl’s Drug in Greencastle, Pennsylvania, and C.O. Bigelow in New York City. Carl’s Drug claims to have opened its doors in 1825, and, despite a few ownership and location changes on the way, it still sells to the people of Greencastle. The other contender, C.O. Bigelow, sold medicines and salves from its storefront in New York City’s Greenwich village since 1838. Though it’s not nearly as old as Santa Maria Novella, its nearly 200 years in the heart of the bustling Big Apple mean that plenty of important people have passed through its doors: Over the years, the shop has served the likes of Thomas Edison (who allegedly nursed an injured finger there), Samuel Clemens (a.k.a. Mark Twain), filmmaker John Waters, and the glam rocking New York Dolls.

9. R J BALSON & SON // THE OLDEST BUTCHER SHOP IN THE UK

The Balson family of Bridport, England has been in the meat business since 1515, when John Balson started selling meat at a local market. The family set up their permanent location in 1880, and is still selling meats and specialty sausages from the same shop. The owner writes on the website, “The family joke is that we’ve just never made enough money to be able to retire.” The shop was featured on a 2014 BBC program on Britain’s oldest family businesses.

10. THE OLDEST SWEET SHOP // THE OLDEST CANDY STORE IN THE WORLD

The appropriately named Oldest Sweet Shop (originally called “The Old Sweet Shop”) was founded in 1827 in the town of Pateley Bridge in England. Today, it’s owned by former bank manager Keith Tordoff, who’s been running the business for a mere two decades. “To me, sweets are all about the memories. You remember sweets from your childhood just like you remember a song. You remember the sweets your grandparents gave you, or giving a packet of Lovehearts to a girl you liked,” Tordoff told The Telegraph in an interview. “We had a 97-year-old woman come in to the shop and say the last time she was here she was 5 years old. She said apart from the position of the counter, it hasn’t changed.”

If YouTube videos have taught us anything, it’s that kids today don’t understand old technologies like rotary phones and Walkmans; nor do they have the patience for old computers. But foods from the past are, apparently, a very different story. Bon Appétit recently recruited a group of kids to test out popular sandwiches from the last hundred years—and, to everyone’s surprise, the kids, by and large, enjoyed them all.

Delving into America’s culinary history, Bon Appétit identified the most popular sandwich of each decade from 1900 to 2013. While most of the sandwiches are still eaten today, each peaked in popularity in a different decade: For instance, the video reveals that, in the 1910s, the French dip was the toast of the town, while the people of the 1950s couldn’t get enough of pastrami on rye. The video provides a fascinating, though brief, history of American sandwich fads, while its crew of kid sandwich-testers show that good food stands the test of time.

[h/t Boing Boing]

Banner Image Credit: Bon Appétit, YouTube

There’s nothing quite like curling up and relaxing in a cozy bed. Mashable reports that RSPCA Victoria recently asked local pet owners to donate their old pet bedding to the shelter, to give the cats and dogs a soft place to sleep as they wait to be adopted. In the video above, the shelter animals receive their new beds—and they couldn’t be more overjoyed. Their reactions, which range from genuine tail-wagging excitement to mild curiosity, are sure to warm your heart—and make you want to curl up for a cat nap, yourself.

[h/t Mashable]

Banner Image Credit: RSPCA Victoria, YouTube

The Great Wall of China has been standing proudly for thousands of years—but now, it needs your help. CNN reports that the wall has fallen into disrepair and the China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation has launched an online crowdfunding campaign to raise money for restorations.

Stretching 13,000 miles across northern China, the Great Wall was built in stages starting from the third century BCE and reaching completion in the 16th century. To some degree, though, it’s always been under construction. For centuries, individuals and organizations have periodically repaired and rebuilt damaged sections. However, the crowdfunding campaign marks the first time the internet has gotten involved in the preservation of the ancient icon. The China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation is trying to raise $1.6 million (11 million yuan) to restore the wall, and has so far raised $45,000 (or 300,000 yuan).

Fundraising coordinator Dong Yaohui tells the BBC that, although the Chinese government provides some funds for wall repairs, it’s not enough to fix all of the damage: “By pooling the contribution of every single individual, however small it is, we will be able to form a great wall to protect the Great Wall,” he said.

[h/t CNN]

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In Virginia, burritos are taking to the skies. Tech Crunch reports that Chipotle and Alphabet are teaming up to deliver burritos by drone to hungry students at Virginia Tech. If the test program is successful, airborne burrito deliveries could one day become the norm.

Alphabet’s drone team, Project Wing, is running the experimental program on the campus of Virginia Tech starting next week and will recruit students and faculty to participate by ordering burritos from a set delivery area. Chipotle will prep food from a truck on campus, then load their tasty cargo onto Project Wing’s drones.

Since the U.S. has strict regulations on where it is appropriate to fly an unmanned aerial system (UAS), the entire test will occur on a closed test site. That means students won’t be ordering burritos from their dorm rooms, or watching drones deposit burritos on their classmates’ desks during lectures. However, the project may help Alphabet and Chipotle take major steps towards making drone food deliveries a reality, allowing Alphabet to work out the kinks of UAS delivery in a safe environment, and giving Chipotle a chance to figure out the best way to transport their foodstuffs.

An Alphabet spokesperson told Tech Crunch, “We’re increasingly optimistic about the potential for UAS to open up entirely new approaches to the transportation of and delivery of goods, including options that are cheaper, faster, less wasteful and more environmentally sensitive than what’s possible today with ground transportation.”

[h/t Tech Crunch]

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Not so long ago, the majority of the Earth was blanketed in forests and jungles, vast deserts, and sprawling savannas. But these days, the Earth’s wilderness is rapidly eroding. The Verge reports that, according to a recent study published in Current Biology, 10 percent of the Earth’s wilderness has disappeared in the last two decades alone.

Researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society analyzed satellite and survey data since the 1990s in order to measure the loss of the Earth’s untamed places. They defined wilderness as “biologically and ecologically largely intact landscapes that are mostly free of human disturbance.” By their definition, wilderness landscapes cease to be wilderness not when humans settle there—the researchers note that many indigenous peoples help preserve rather than erode wilderness—but when humans disturbed ecosystems with land conversion, industrial activity, or large-scale infrastructure projects.

They found that, globally, 1.2 million square miles of wilderness have disappeared over the last 20 years, with the greatest loss occurring in South America (about a 30 percent loss) and Africa (14 percent loss). Today, only 23 percent of the Earth’s terrestrial area is wilderness. That’s bad news for a few reasons: The erosion of wilderness could have a negative impact on wildlife, indigenous communities, and climate change. Additionally, destroying even a small chunk of an ecosystem can have a negative impact on the rest, since wilderness areas are interconnected and interdependent.

Study co-author Oscar Venter told PRI that while he expected some wilderness erosion, he was shocked by the study’s results. “The amount of wilderness loss in just two decades is staggering,” he explained. “We need to recognize that wilderness areas, which we’ve foolishly considered to be de facto protected due to their remoteness, is actually being dramatically lost around the world.”

[h/t The Verge]

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When we feel like cleaning our ears, many of us reach for a Q-Tip. But while the tiny cotton-tipped sticks may seem like the perfect earwax removal device, using them to get gunk out of our ears does more harm than good. In the short Business Insider video below, otolaryngologist Erich P. Voigt explains why sticking a Q-Tip into your ear isn’t just ineffective—it’s downright dangerous.

When we use a Q-Tip to remove ear wax, Voigt explains, we actually end up pushing wax toward our ear drum, where it can get stuck and harden. If you use Q-Tips too often, wax can end up hardening along the entire length of your ear canal, and you’ll end up with an inch-long “crayon amount” of wax.

Voigt is far from the only doctor who recommends keeping Q-Tips away from your ears: Otolaryngologist Stephen Rothstein gave similar advice in an interview with Slate back in 2013, explaining that the old adage “never put anything smaller than an elbow in your ear” has some real truth to it. “Buy Q-Tips if you want to make an ear doctor rich,” he quipped.

Fortunately, you don’t have to get rid of your Q-Tips completely. The versatile cotton swabs have plenty of uses, from cleaning faucets to unsticking zippers. Plus, they’re totally safe for cleaning the outer part of your ear, just as long as you don’t push them into your ear canal.

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