(Video link here.) Above, a trailer for Deceptive Practice, the new documentary about brilliant sleight-of-hand master Ricky Jay. For a totaly entertaining read, check out this 1993 New Yorker profile of Jay by Mark Singer.

For those of us haunted by the instantaneous life changes that occurred  to so many wounded in the Boston bombing, The Times’ heartening article about new technologies and therapies for amputees.

And a fund you can contribute to for those most affected by the bombing (prosthetics and rehab costs A LOT).

17 projects from Pinterest that people tried to do and FAILED

From beyond-brilliant chef Thomas Keller, the difference between passion and desire (via Swiss-Miss)

It’s not about passion. Passion is something that we tend to overemphasize, that we certainly place too much importance on. Passion ebbs and flows. To me, it’s about desire. If you have constant, unwavering desire to be a cook, then you’ll be a great cook. If it’s only about passion, sometimes you’ll be good and sometimes you won’t. You’ve got to come in every day with a strong desire. With passion, if you see the first asparagus of the springtime and you become passionate about it, so much the better, but three weeks later, when you’ve seen that asparagus every day now, passions have subsided. What’s going to make you treat the asparagus the same? It’s the desire.

While we’re speaking of chef’s, watch the first installment of PBS’ series The Mind of a Chef for free.

And a weekend’s lifetime’s worth of interesting things to explore at the just launched Digital Public Library of America, a project to make the holdings of America’s research libraries, archives, and museums available to all Americans.

 

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