7 THINGS WORTH KNOWING / 26 October 2026

Little Discoveries

Design · Philosophy · Plants · Curiosities · Words · Food · Cultures & peoples. 7 discoveries in this edition.

Ingo Maurer: a light bulb becomes the whole lamp

In depth · 3 min read

With Bulb in 1966, Ingo Maurer enlarged a familiar shape and brought an ordinarily functional object into the foreground of design.

In depth · 3 min read

A sentence by Bergson raises a question about lived time: making something means passing through a process that is not already complete.

In depth · 3 min read

Coleus carries colour in its leaves, but different cultivars need different care: the label matters as much as the windowsill display.

In depth · 3 min read

Polarized sunglasses and an LCD screen reveal a property of light that the colour of an image cannot describe on its own.

In depth · 3 min read

The Italian word paesaggio connects a territory with its view and representation; comparison with French helps us follow its linguistic history.

In depth · 3 min read

Two names on a spice shelf can hide one botanical origin: nutmeg and mace come from different parts of the same fruit.

In depth · 3 min read

Irish uilleann pipes receive air from bellows: listening to this music also means noticing gestures, instruments and teaching passed between people.

Original writing and illustrations made with AI assistance. Each discovery includes its sources. Our editorial method