daf bit: Zevachim 85

There seems to be a general rule that once something is brought up to the altar (as an offering) you don't remove it (specifically, it does not descend). The mishna lists several exceptions to this rule, all of which seem to be things that should not have been brought up in the first place. This list includes: the residue of the omer (which is a wave-offering -- you bring it to the temple to acknowledge God, not to burn it), the two loaves, the showbread, the residue of the meal-offering, incense (which is offered on a different altar, not the main one), and assorted animal byproducts (like wool) if they weren't attached to the animal at the time. (85b)

The g'mara does not give any explanation of why somebody might bring these things up, and moves on fairly quickly to the next mishna, which is about things that accidentally fly off of the altar.

link round-up

Google Art Project appears to be collecting high-quality images from art museums around the world. I haven't explored much yet but it looks like it'll be nifty.

I thought this picture from APotD of the moon and Venus over Switzerland was a painting rather than a photo when I first saw it. Pretty!

I've often wondered what "X% chance of rain" really means -- anywhere in the geographic area during that time period, or something more specific? I found this answer informative.

The comic in a recent Language Log post made me laugh out loud.

Speaking of language, so did this 101-word story (link from arib). Go, read!

This elaborate prank on a phone company with terrible customer service is making the rounds. As nancylebov put it, some people deserve live muzak. (Hey, the Firefox spelling checker knows "muzak". But not "Facebook".)

Who knew Facebook was so complicated? -- a flow chart for one "what comment to post" decision tree.

Reminder: the Jewish Life and Learning project over at Area 51 is still looking for people interested in participating in a beta.