Another in our irregular collections of links to interesting or amusing items you may have missed.

It is still amazing how little we know about the natural world. With the advent of very miniaturised electronics and batteries scientists are now able to track bird migrations in detail. And there are surprises, like this cuckoo going the wrong way round Africa.

Meanwhile back on dry land in our rivers there’s an increasing suggestion that bringing back beavers would reduce flooding. There are pilot releases already in place, and the beavers are doing well enough to breed regularly.

And talk of beavers reminds me of the recent story that some medieval underwear has been unearthed in an Austrian castle. There’s a second, follow-up, report here. It’ll be interesting to see if the dating evidence actually holds up.

But then the medieval male obviously needed the underwear to hold their padding as it seems erectile dysfunction was as common then as now.

Coming back to earth with another bump, this church in Fulham is in desperate need of funds to repair its 15th century clock tower — which featured i the film The Omen — and keep the bells ringing.

Which brings us nicely to a couple of London items …

Mapping various aspects of London seems to be all the rage at the moment with the recent availability of Londoners’ life expectancy plotted on the tube map and a map of the capital’s most frequent surnames (use the slider to find the first to fifteenth most common names) by area. There are lots more interesting London maps at mappinglondon.co.uk

Finally, it seems that London could well soon get a new model of black cab. If the fuel efficiency and emissions figures hold up I’m guessing it’ll pretty quickly displace the iconic TX4 taxicab.

More diversions into the weird world of things you may have missed — with the exception of what may or may not be Higgs’s bloody boring boson!

First off, here’s something really unexpected and absolutely excellent: an early printed book that contains rare evidence of medieval spectacles!

Apparently Wordsworth was right: daffodils do cheer us up! Which is more than his verse does! 🙁

But then again I think I could have saved a lot of money and told the researchers that two glasses of wine a day improves quality of life for middle-aged.

While still on colours, here’s an interesting piece of how we gave colours names which is allied to how we see them and what it did to our brains. And don’t miss part two.

Here’s a different type of seeing: some amazingly detailed weather records from the Lake District in the first half of the 19th century by John Fletcher Miller.

And finally … so you thought you/your man had an amazingly weird appendage? Not compared with the Echidna!

This week’s selection of links to items spotted recently which you may have missed. And you really didn’t want to miss this juicy selection …

First up here are some awesome illuminated manuscript cookies. Just where does one get edible ink and paper for an inkjet printer?

How is it that we see dark, even when we close our eyes, because apparently the eye gives off more “black body radiation” than there is daylight? It’s all down to Quantum Mechanics. Interesting for you scientists; awesome for the rest of you that someone even investigated this!

Apparently the government may be about to (re)introduce obscenece laws allowing the persecution of buzzards. The birds are allegedly stealing too many pheasants from the idle rich who now want to shoot the buzzards as well as the pheasants.

Why are tomatoes so tasteless these days? Well the scientists think they’ve found out what adds the taste (and it wasn’t obvious!) so they can now breed better commercial varieties. In the meantime the advice seems to be to grow your own.

So just why are harps harp-shaped? It’s physics again.

A Drink to Help You Orgasm? Fantastic idea; shame about the marketing hype.

OK so extended breastfeeding is the norm in most human and primate societies. So why are all you western girlies weirdly not doing it? Ah, I see, not enough Neurogasm. 😉

What? An American designer who hopes his better vibrator can rejuvenate the American sex life? Only if it comes in a plain brown wrapper.

So apparently the urge to sext naked self-portraits is primal. Yeah right; so our distant ancestors had mobile phones!? But seriously, where’s the f***ing problem? Nudity is neither unnatural nor unwholesome — actually just the opposite. If people want to show themselves off, well fine, isn’t that their privilege?

Besides it seems Rihanna (“a nubile chanteuse, m’lud”) is spending a lot of time and energy sharing round what’s between her legs. Again, where’s the problem? Isn’t it her prerogative. Good for her for knowing what she wants and not being afraid to go for it. It’s a pity more of us aren’t so unbuttoned.

A further selection of items recently spotted which you may have missed.

This week it seems to be mostly about sexuality, in the broadest sense. But first a couple of miscellaneous items.

The first is a report of a venomous snake which can kill, but even if it doesn’t it can seriously mess with your hormonal system and (partly) reverse puberty.

For the aficionados of history and things touristy, as well as bookshops, there is now a small bookshop in the Wellington Arch at London’s Hyde Park Corner. The Arch itself is also open and well worth a visit, if only for the views. IanVisits reported recently and I mentioned it a couple of times a few days ago.

And now for all the “sex stuff” …

… although the first is also historic. Here’s a report of vulva shaped Medieval pilgrim badges.

In further revelations, researchers claim to have worked out a woman’s ‘sexiest time’. 11pm on Saturday since you ask!

And yet more researchers claim to have shown that, for men, red is not a proxy signal for female genitalia. Think I could have told them that!

Here’s an interesting article on society’s attitudes towards childless women. Why is it that everyone is supposed to have children? Why can’t we accept that some don’t want to, and some can’t. And many who can’t accept that’s the way life is. And then there’s society’s attitude to men who aren’t fathers: we get just as much incomprehension, although not as much cattiness. In my view the childless are legally discriminated against in the workplace with the law requiring that parents have the right to special/extra leave which isn’t available to the childless, who have to mop up the extra work. Besides not having children is possibly the most eco-friendly thing one can do — rapidly followed by not having a car and not flying.

Finally a piece by Kate Takes 5 on book clubs and Brazilians. Why do women (and some men too!) feel the need to remove all their pubic hair? Sure beats me!