A motley collection of ideas
Used books do not need sterilizing, but they do need sensible handling. Since the COVID years, no shortage of dubious “disinfection” methods has appeared, from alcohol sprays to ozone generators—many of them more dangerous to paper than to microbes. In practice, the only truly serious risk is not infection, but the chance of bringing home … Read more
On the edge of the Danube Bend, near Vác, there is a place where history doesn’t live behind museum glass—it sometimes lies right in front of your boots. The Vác–Cigány Valley archaeological site, based on field surveys, shows settlement traces from the Middle Neolithic and the Late Copper Age—and what is most striking for a … Read more
The literal English translation of the Hungarian phrase “DVD-játékos” would be “DVD gamer,” which does not mean some bloke raised on the game consoles of the 2000s who insists on physical discs. Rather, people jokingly used it for a “DVD player” because, years ago, the machine-translated Hungarian user manual of a Chinese device — later … Read more