Miscellaneous items I found of interest during the week.
If you enjoyed this, you might also like the Duck Rabbit podcast at https://play.acast.com/s/duck-rabbit/duck-rabbit-relationships.
‘Majority’ of Irish Land Commission records to finally be transferred to National Archives
The Ottawa Public Library Surplus
In 2023 the OPL ran a surplus of $1.87 million, or 3 percent of total expenditures. Those are taxes for services paid for but not received.
Google researchers unveil ‘VLOGGER’, an AI that can bring still photos to life
Also see this. Much like the DeepStory facility that MyHeritage introduced a couple of years ago, it’s creepy!
Oats and oatmeal aren’t bad for you, as some claim
“A grain which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people.” Link.
A giant-sized enigma
April’s BBC History magazine has a short article on what my father’s cousin called “the rude man” when we stopped in to view the hillside calving at Cerne Abbas in Dorset. It reports that the snail shells that make up his white body may have been cut between AD 700 and 1100, which would make it the only known Anglo-Saxon creation of its kind.
Thanks to this week’s contributors: Anonymous, Brenda Turner, Friday’s Family History Finds, Sunday Thompson, susan Mills-Zorzes, Teresa, Unknown.
I’m puzzled about the library surplus. Why would they then approve an increase to their budget for 2024? “OTTAWA – City Council has approved the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) 2024 budget of $61.115M, which includes funding for operating and capital activities, an increase of $2.37M over 2023.” (https://biblioottawalibrary.ca/en/city-council-approves-ottawa-public-library-2024-budget#)
Link to Vlogger story actually goes to the Irish Land Commission article.