Todays xkcd.
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The hover over killed me.
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Not me english. still not closer to my civil war.
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78 RPM records were in use from 1925 when the speed was standardized until 1960, when the last 78s were produced. This is 91 to 56 years ago. The US Civil War ended in 1865, 151 years ago. The midpoint between then and now is 1941, which is the height of the 78 Era.
TIL that tubas were used in early jazz not only because of Trad Jazz influence, but because recording equipment wasn’t sensitive enough to pick up the string bass. For a similar reason, Stroh Violins [cringes audibly] were also popular in recording studios.
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But it would quickly turn into the vinyl era for several reasons. First, because the Japanese were occupying the place where shellac came from during the war. That was coupled with a new policy state-side (which saw many industries so regulated to prioritize the war effort) which said that new records could not be made unless older records were recycled. The US government began using vinyl to ship recordings to the front lines (through V-Discs), because of the durability, which eventually translated into an industry wide shift to vinyl records (media companies had used vinyl for internal uses prior to this, but it had been too expensive for wide-scale use for sound recordings). V-Discs functioned as a proof of concept for the use of vinyl in sound recordings. Last, the material for pressing records with vinyl could be produced domestically by the plastics industry, while the materials for shellac records came from SE Asia.
If you go from the end of the CW to the beginning of the 78 era (as you define it) that’s 60 years. But if you go from 1950, when vinyl became the standard (prior to the speed wars), then it’s 66 years. So, XKCD is pretty much spot on, here.
I do know a bit about the record industry, actually! 
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Yeah goes well with this one.
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Fascinating background!
However, Rockabilly was released on 78s until the late 50s because a 45 player was considered a luxury item in the rural Deep South. The last 78s were released in 1960.
If you want to go earlier than that, records were played at speeds of 70-80 RPM between 1894 and 1925 when they were standardized at 78 RPM.
Yes, but the industry had shifted to vinyl in general by the early 50s. The fact that they were still producing 78s into 1960 doesn’t negate that point. Vinyl was a strong core of the industry by then and much more the standard.
Besides the speed isn’t really the point, the material is the point.
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I’ve run my fair share of US bills through the washing machine and in my experience they actually tend to come out looking and feeling better than before they went in. I can’t explain how that is given every other paper product seems to turn into an amorphous blob of some kind.
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Reminds me of the joke from a few years ago about how Nirvana’s Nevermind album was now old enough to drink.
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That’s really hard to say. This election’s 18-year-olds were 3 years old during 9/11. Although it’s an open question as to how much a 3-year-old can actually remember, they will all say they remember it, which confuses the issue. False memory is a very real thing.
Next election will be the first election with voters born after 9/11. Then I’ll feel old.
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Is it made of the sort of paper thats partially made of old rags and cloth? That might fair better than normal paper in the wash.
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I just checked the Bureau of Engraving and Printing web site and it says that currency paper is fabric-based (75% cotton and 25% linen to be precise). That explains why it does so well!
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I think these are worth having a look at.
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Remembering ≠ understanding.
I remember seeing a Protect and Survive PIF when I was 3, but I didn’t know what it was about at the time.
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I was talking about false memories, rather than the actual memory itself.
If they can remember it, great. However, they may remember hearing about 9/11, just not the day it happened, so it gets conflated into a false memory of 9/11.
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All paper was made of cloth (usually the last recycling stage of old rags*) until the advent of cheap wood-pulp-based paper in the 19th century. That’s why many 19th century books and newspapers are crumbling away from the acid in them, while paper from centuries earlier is holding up fine.
*Ragpicking was an occupation.
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Just after the switch I accidentally left a Canadian $5 bill in a jeans pocket. I don’t put my jeans in the dryer, but it was highly weird to pull out a perfectly intact (even dry – I guess the spin cycle got rid of clinging water) bill from damp, just-washed jeans.
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What are they like for doing lines with? If’n you crush your drugs by putting the note over it and scraping your card over the top, what happens? Also, will they cut the inside of your nose if you’re not careful?
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