It's the stuff of legends and one man seemed to make it work.
Charles Kellogg (no relation to the cereal brand) made music of a different sort.
He held public performances that riveted audiences in the early 20th century.
They were largely imitations of nature and bird calls, which Kellogg had learned during his childhood, spending long stretches of time in the forest.
He claimed he could even attract bears to concerts in the wild with his abilities.
One of the highlights of his shows was to put out fires using a series of high-strung musical notes.
With the help of General Electric, this was put to the test in a public performance over radio.
Forty miles away, in San Jose, a gas burner with the flame going up to 2 feet high was extinguished with Kellogg's music.
Apparently, people living in homes held up lighted candles to the receiver and they were extinguished as well.
Strange that the technology was never developed further because using sound to put out fires would certainly be more eco-friendly than using water.
Kellogg documented his life in a book called 'The Nature Singer'
Only a thousand copies were printed.
The reality between myth and the truth will never be bridged.
The Economics professor wowing her online class
She's not another stamp-sized square in the classroom.
Emily Nix realized that the connect with her students was not coming through.
From the time the pandemic forced everyone to attend classes online, she scoured the internet for solutions.
Unhappy with the high costs of some of the standard ones, she built one herself.
When she explains concepts in economics, she seems to be writing directly on screen.
Her students love it and her classes have become a lot more engaging.
But things went way beyond her expectations she made a recording of her method and put it up on Twitter.
Within days, when she got over 50,000 views and solid appreciation from different sections of viewers, she knew she was on to something special.
The curious part is that lightboards have been around for years but the twist of projecting it on camera brings the teacher up close to students - much like the real classroom.
The lesson from this is that we need to step back and figure out new ways for digital classrooms to evolve.
And the solutions come from one-off experiments like this one.
From determined teachers who find new ways to teach and interact.
A marbles tournament, anyone?
Remember how passionately kids played with marbles a few decades ago?
The rules and distances were flexible.
You took aim with a big marble and scattered a pile.
Or launched them using the thumb as the anchor on the ground and the index finger as the propeller from the tip of the finger.
The games would go on for hours and rules were made up on the spot according to who had the most marbles or was the creative one.
Turns out that niche sports are a lot more popular than we realize.
Heard of frolf? No? That's golf played with a frisbee.
The objective is to arc the flight of the frisbee into a tapering basket broken into sections. The photos are in the article link.
These tournaments are broadcast, followed and enthusiastically discussed on social media.
The mainstream TV channels would probably look down on such pedestrian activities but if they manage to build a following, things will change.
The scent of money cannot be hidden for very long and once the business model is established; they will emerge from the shadows.
It's time we encouraged new communities around niches that become popular in future.
Marbles may even make a comeback in style.
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