Charles Dibdin can be regarded as the first-ever pop star in the history of music; he wrote his own songs, performed his pieces, and marketed himself extensively. He also arguably pioneered the concept of merchandise. He sold, among other things, his pieces’ sheet music at his performances. These song sheets were autographed and had lyrics and musical scores for two popular instruments, ensuring that his music would spread far and wide even outside of his performances. Read full article here
Oddities
The Curious Case of the Ancient Brain
In 2008, archaeologists examining the University of York discovered something strange: the decapitated head of an Iron Age man and his very shrivelled but very much intact brain. How a centuries-old brain was preserved is still unknown, but research suggests that it could have been because of brain diseases like dementia. The Yorkshire man’s brain’s proteins were bunched up together, much like how dementia causes brain proteins to bunch up into plaques. This bunching up, or aggregation, could continue even after death, turning regions of the brain into hard masses. Read full article here
Merv
September 30, 2022
