Best Of MetaFilter

dance by bambe1964 (cc by-nd)

Put your dancing shoes on and take a trip around the world, in gusandrews's fascinating comment on the myriad ways social dance changes and spreads.

Doroteo Arango II reflects on one night at a famous dance club in London. "In 2002 I made a literal last minute decision, standing at the check-in line at the airport after a visit to my sister, to stay in London and see how long and how far I could make it with 100 pounds and basic English..."

Did you catch the incredible historical find, re-created Afro-Caribbean dance music from the 1600s?

What are some of your favorite transcendent, gives-you-chills performances? (And how about most amazing heart-in-your-throat sports moments?)

Conspire describes how this dancer's sign-language performance modifies lyrics and mixes languages to better serve the intended viewer.

Uneasy Dreams by Celeste (cc by-nc)

Theodolite asks a fascinating question: who are some famous artists, writers, historical figures, etc. whose reputations were revived by a single person?

Caution: I'm Hot by CarbonNYC [in SF!] (cc by)

The goal is to take this fiery, unstable chalice to the sugar counter without losing too many fingers to third degree burns. Once there you add roughly two sugars. I say "roughly" because there aren't actually any spoons - just one of those weird sugar jars with a funnel lid (which may, or may not, be clogged up) so you have to guesstimate.

garius on "caff tea."

Dessin illustrant la position du HMS Terror au lever du soleil le 14 juillet 1837 / Sketch illustrating the position of HMS Terror at sunrise, July 14, 1837 by BiblioArchives / LibraryArchives (cc by)

If you haven't checked it out, don't miss orrnyereg's wonderful megapost on the HMS Terror and the fate of the lost Franklin Expedition. (also, ChuraChura's tale of discovering her ancestor who was a member of two Arctic rescue expeditions to save Franklin!)

Nam June Paik - Megatron Matrix by Ryan Somma (cc by)

How did that bizarre avant garde show get broadcast, anyway? Mefi's own Dean 358 worked with pioneering video artist Nam June Paik, and explains how Paik's personal charm and enthusiasm got the art made and on the air. "...getting access to video equipment in the 1980s was a really big deal. Video edit suites took up lots of space and cost millions of dollars to build and operate. Getting access to a satellite...well, absolutely unthinkable."

Maria Frostic - Main Iceberg Lagoon by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (cc by)

How fake is fake in nature documentaries? sciatrix on why scientists stage photos of their mice, and ChuraChura reveals that butterflies love pee.

What should I watch, from a huge archive of Russian films? gusottertrout recommends some movies: "One of the great pleasures of watching Soviet cinema is seeing the differences in attitude towards common film tropes."

The real work of fake tears - pseudostrabismus tells us what it takes to film a movie scene with two actors crying: "Frankly it's a wonder actors can cry at all."

Where do tv chyrons come from? Jahaza explains who decides which words appear on screen during news broadcasts.

Paradise Riflebird, native Vireya by maxful (cc by)

I want to be a better manager. What did your best manager do? What about your worst?

I want to write in a realistic way about how people meet. How did you meet your significant other?

I want to understand typical people's day-to-day schedules, how they stick to plans, what are realistic daily goals. How did you spend your day?

Wallpaper Blue Jeans (Closeup / Nahaufnahme) by Thragor 2 (cc by)

Was the Olympic swimming pool crooked? Wade into some musing on the physics of pool design.

Speaking of world-class swimming, mce explains all about those modern ultra-high-tech swimsuits and the new rules they brought in (suits must be made of textile!).

Speaking of textiles, here's politikitty on what happened to Levi's? -- inside blue jeans manufacturing and the tradeoffs involved in making inexpensive stretchy comfy pre-faded jeans.

Speaking of discerning durability, how do I pick good quality fabric for sewing?

BUNCHIE by kanarienvogel

[Answer: Yes, yes, we are having the fun!]

filthy light thief proposes Happy Fun September in MetaTalk. Wheee!