Remember Your Mummy

On This Day In History
1988: Pan Am Flight 103 explodes over Scotland

Quote Of The Day
"They say you die twice. One time when you stop breathing and a second time, a bit later, when somebody says your name for the last time.
"I think this is at the heart of what Remembrance is. We provide a place where all 270 Pan Am 103 victims are remembered. We'll go on saying their names, and we will act forward in their honour"
(Professor Lawrence Mason, Jr. at the 30th Pan Am 103 Remembrance, Syracuse University)

A wonderful morning at the fascinating Egypt: Land Of Discoveries exhibition at the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Modern Art. Particularly fascinating were the animated CT scans of the unwrapped mummies on display. This video and this video show the process in operation. 

Does the mummy in the photo look familiar? It's me. In the foyer was a photo booth that lays your face on top of a mummy, an Egyptian cat statue or an Egyptian bird statue. Isn't it amazing what technology can do, for both serious academic and for trivial purposes.

In other news, I fell in love this morning. Until now, my favourite version of Dido's Lament was that sung by Klaus Nomi. However, this morning I heard this version by Jessye Norman which nudges Nomi into a close second. Intrigued to find out more about her, I watched this Hardtalk interview with her. I was stunned! How To Sidestep A Prescribed Narrative With Courtesy And Dignity 101. She made Stephen Sackur - no intellectual lightweight, certainly - look like an ant! A couple of times he came across as downright racist, although I'm sure he isn't.

The word “darling” can be devastating when used effectively.

Anyway, I now absolutely have to buy some Jessye Norman CD's and her autobiography.