Say WOW

Suborbital space tourism finally arrives | FCC prepares to run public C-band auction | The big four in the U.S. launch industry — United Launch Alliance, SpaceX, Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman — hope to be one of two providers that will receive five-year contracts later this year to launch national security payloads starting in 2022. | China’s launch rate stays high | The International Space Station is the largest ever crewed object in space.

 
Is Conversational AI a Good Fit for...
The power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been making waves in the hospitality industry. Considering rapid developments in AI-based hotel tech solutions, rising expectations of tech-savvy travelers, and challenges the industry faces, let’s explore the fit of conversational AI in guest communications, as well as its role and benefits. Beyond the Hype: Sophistication of Conversational The post Is Conversational AI a Good Fit for Guest Communications? appeared first on Revfine.com.

Read More

Facing Automation Fears: A Perspective for Hoteliers
For some, advancements in automation bring a profound sense of dread. Worrying about the big-picture societal challenges that may come with the widespread adoption of new, advanced generative AI tools is understandable. But instead of fretting about whatever dystopian worst-case scenario automation may bring, it’s time to take a step back for perspective and think The post Facing Automation Fears: A Perspective for Hoteliers appeared first on Revfine.com.

Read More

How AI Can Make a Difference to...
At first glance, AI and hospitality might not seem like the most natural fit. What makes hospitality unique is its human touch – the provision of experiences that are unique and special to the individual traveler. But AI doesn’t stop that. In fact, it can enhance it. Personalizing Stays and Streamlining Operations There are two The post How AI Can Make a Difference to Hotels Today appeared first on Revfine.com.

Read More

 
In Ukraine, Bakers Are Making Desserts Shaped...
There are chocolates shaped like American F-16 fighter aircraft, anti-tank hedgehogs—the defensive obstacles that surround many Ukrainian cities—made of caramel, chocolate, almond praline and peanut butter, and croissants inspired by political leaders supporting Ukraine. These are all wartime dessert creations of the teams at Kyiv’s Honey Café and Zavertailo Bakery. Ukraine’s bakers, pastry-makers, and chocolatiers have turned to culinary works of art to raise money for their military. Not only that, but they hope to create moments of levity...

Read More

The Mystery of the World’s Largest and...
Dear Indian Ocean, please don’t take offense, but: Why is your gravity hole so big? That question had been baffling scientists ever since the hole was discovered back in 1948. Now a team from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) thinks they have found the answer: The “hole” in the Indian Ocean is caused by fragments from the sunken floor of another, much older ocean. In a mysterious part of the Indian Ocean, the pull of gravity is much...

Read More

Five of Our Favorite Terrifying Podcast Episodes
There’s no secret: We here at Atlas Obscura love creepy stuff, and not just at Halloween time. Ghost stories, urban legends, mysterious happenings—we’ll take it. So to celebrate the longest possible time before another Halloween, this week we offered some of our absolute favorite creepy Atlas Obscura Podcast episodes, from a mysterious island where many dueled to the death to our own contributors’ most terrifying experiences in unusual places. So turn the lights off, get cozy, and prepare to...

Read More

 
Phở Hàng Trống in Hanoi, Vietnam
As the historical home of Vietnamese civilization, northern Vietnam is also the birthplace of the country’s national dish: the noodle soup phở. While the origins of phở are highly debated, the dish is believed to have originated in or around Hanoi, where it brought together the foods of Vietnam’s historic colonizers: rice noodles from the Chinese and beef from the French.  In diasporic Vietnamese communities around the world, it’s more common to find southern-style phở with big, bold broth...

Read More

Jerry's Hat Museum in Forrest, Illinois
Stained glassed and church pews mingle with baseball caps with what appears to be a religious shrine to headwear, is Jerry’s Hat Museum, located inside a former Church of God in Forrest, Illinois. Jerry Roth grew up in the quaint town of Forrest, to local crop farmers. He has great memories of this town and says returning to the friendly faces inspired him to want to stay. So upon his retirement, after 40 years of management at a computer...

Read More

'Sami Swings' in Louisville, Kentucky
Cave Hill Cemetery is famous as home to the graves of Muhammad Ali, Colonel Sanders, and Mr. Magic, but there is also a unique memorial dedicated to a little girl named Samantha Ann “Sami” McDonald. The faithful McDonald family was struck by a tragedy on May 2, 2006, when a three-year-old Sami accidentally rode her tricycle into the family pool. Her tombstone was installed in Cave Hill Cemetery, with a life-size bronze sculpture of her riding a swing, the...

Read More

 
Bún Chả Hàng Quạt in Hanoi, Vietnam
Vietnamese food was thrust into the international spotlight when the late chef and TV host Anthony Bourdain joined President Barack Obama for a $6 dinner at a local canteen in Hanoi. The now-famous meal? Bún chả, an iconic pork noodle dish, washed down with cold beers.  Bringing together bún (rice vermicelli noodles) and chả (pork patties), the dish is believed to have originated in the early 20th century in Hanoi—once described by 20th century Vietnamese food writer Vu Bang...

Read More

Ordering Off a 5,000-Year-Old Mesopotamian Menu
Among the campus buildings at Rice University in Houston, Texas, one curious structure stands out. The first feature you’ll probably notice is that it’s made of reeds; but these are not just any reeds. They arrived inside a 40-foot shipping container, harvested and partly assembled by master artisans in the marshlands of southern Iraq, where structures like this one have been made for centuries. It’s called a mudhif, and for Iraq’s Marsh Arab ethnic minority, it’s a traditional village...

Read More

Phở Xào Bà Thanh Béo in Hanoi,...
Longtime phở aficionados may know that the word “phở” not only refers to the composed noodle soup, but also the flat rice stick noodles—or bánh phở—that are used in the dish. These noodles, which are similar to those used in pad Thai, can be leveraged in numerous ways. For this beloved street vendor in Hanoi, they form the base of phở xào, or stir-fried phở. While there are many different versions of stir-fried phở, this eatery has been offering...

Read More

 
Hikō Jinja—Shrine of Flight in Yawata, Japan
In 1889, a Japanese serviceman Ninomiya Chūhachi invented the concept of hikōki, an unmanned model aircraft, after witnessing a gliding crow. He failed to earn support from military higher-ups, but continued to work on his idea and successfully created a functioning four-bladed propeller in 1891. Now determined to invent the world’s first manned aircraft, Chūhachi struggled to raise research funds after leaving the army to work at a pharmaceutical company. In 1908, he was sufficiently financed and about to start...

Read More

Golden Gates in Warrington, England
Warrington is a relatively average, unspectacular industrial town in northwest England. While most of the buildings and sights within Warrington are relatively modest, the Golden Gates in front of Warrington Town Hall seem like a glittering anomaly in comparison to their surroundings. The ironwork structure, which is about 16.5 meters wide and 7.6 meters tall, consists of four pillars with a gate between the central two pillars and elaborate screens connecting the central and outer pillars. Each column is...

Read More

From Cursed Coconuts to Santa Claus, 6...
The Tuesday after the first Monday in November became Election Day in the United States largely by default. When uniform day for presidential elections was set in the 19th century, the country was mostly a Christian, rural, agrarian society. Sunday was for worship, Wednesday was a market day, and because some people would have to travel long distances to the polls, Monday and Thursday were out, too. So, Tuesday it became—specifically a Tuesday that wouldn’t conflict with the farming...

Read More