011
Smith Stuff
Odds, ends and strange factoids to
mull over.021
Rocket Man
This is what it looks like when you
strap a jet engine to a sleigh.026
Dogged by Success
Cassius Coolidge is the most famous
American painter you’ve never
heard of.028
10 Things I Know
With the real-life astronomer who
inspired the film Contact.032
Fermenting Revolution
There’s more to fermenting than booze
and pickles. Just ask Tasmania’s
Adam James.037
The Gumboot
A history of the footwear that brought
Napoleon to his knees and Paddington
to his feet.039
Opinion: Robert Webb
The British comedian thinks
traditional masculinity needs
to grow up.040
Nothing But a Good Time
The ’80s revival overlooked an integral
part of the era: hair metal.045
Trigger Trash
One man’s trash is another man’s
target – and another’s artwork.contents
048
Into the Fold
A NASA scientist proves there’s more to
origami than paper cranes.056
Great Woman of History
Meet Hellé Nice: nude model, race-car
driver, not a Nazi.060
Here Be Monsters
Everything you wanted to know about
water monsters that don’t live in Loch Ness.064
Desert Sessions
In this refugee camp, an unlikely
music scene is growing between rock
and a hard place.070
Neon Dreams
Forget the faded carpets and suss
mattress stains; in the ’50s, motels
were high culture.076
Ink Piece
Brett Stewart makes tattoo machines
using some cutting-edge methods.078
If These Walls Could Talk
A group of architects and artists unravels
the truth behind the world’s conflict zones.082
The True History of the Illuminati
What do Bavarian book clubs, Playboy
magazine and British electro have to do
with the New World Order?086
Colour Vision
Grace Rawson knows New Zealand’s
landscape better than most; she’s coloured
the bulk of it in by hand.094
Signs of the Times
Forget the thumbs up: these unusual
gestures will help you say some very
specific things.100
The Accidental Ambassador
According to Georgia, Abkhazia doesn’t
exist. According to George, it does.105
Listen Up: Stephin Merritt
The Magnetic Fields frontman thinks a
certain Swedish pop star might just be
a blade runner.107
Opinion: Sandford Berman
In the perfect book cataloguing
system, this librarian would be filed
under ‘Radical’.108
Strange Medicine
Could a thousand-year-old remedy
hold the cure for our modern
medical woes?112
The Keyhole Surgeon
Aaron Smith can open just about
any lock – provided it’s really, really old.118
Full Body Portrait
Austrian artist Nychos sees deep into his
subject’s minds (and torsos).122
How to be a Hermit
What’s the hardest part about being a
hermit? The answer might bore you.127
Random Element
The 13th element has long bedevilled
mankind..........................................................................................................................................................