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A newsletter for the terminally curious

“High quality esoterica, quirky inner musings, and one of the best advice columns on the internet. McKinley always digs up interesting content I can’t find anywhere else.”
  — Angus Hervey, Future Crunch

“It’s eclectic and personal in a way that kind of reminds me of the glory days of blogging — a delightful cabinet of curiosities. McKinley is an interesting thinker who spots interesting facts and occurrences, and says interesting things about them.”  
  — Rob Walker, The Art of Noticing

“I never know what I’m going to get in an issue of The Whippet, but I know it’s going to be good because McKinley is an excellent writer and curator.”  
  — Mark Frauenfelder, BoingBoing / The Magnet

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Recent Issues

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Tattoo from a Siberian ice mummy / Whippet newsletter header

The Whippet #187: Hooves, stripes, paws and antler tips

Saint of weightlifting, extreme brain weirdness, etymology, Siberian ice mummy tattoos, coping mechanisms

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Clouds and pillars of fire in the heavens, with "The Whippet" newsletter logo

The Whippet #186: Forms of Floral Larceny

Silence, hummingbirds, courtiers, clouds, good deeds

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venus flytrap with whippet newsletter banner

The Whippet #185: Shielded and flower-like

Anaesthetic works on plants! Why don't we use ether anymore! Crenellations! And so on

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The Whippet #184: The 2024/25 Demilitarised Zone

The Whippet #184: The 2024/25 Demilitarised Zone

A boundary is, by definition, the same thing as an interface. Even though they seem like opposites.

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llama face with whippet banner

The Whippet #183: If you are a stranger, act like one

Lamas are innately furious at dog-shaped animals from birth, and can be set to guard sheep from dingoes, coyotes, etc without training.

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gems with The Whippet banner

The Whippet #182: The Least Charitable Reader

Four elements, four precious gems, gravity, dark matter, a good snake, and the uncharitable reader in my head