The Daily Valet. - 4/25/22, Monday

✔️ What Happened to This?

April 25, 2022

Monday, April 25th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

Where in the world would you like to travel? I’m waiting for Japan to re-open.

Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s edition is presented by

Today’s Big Story

What Happened to the World’s Fair?

How the ‘World of Tomorrow’ became a thing of the past

Sixty years ago, the “World of Tomorrow” was born. In April of 1962, the city of Seattle opened its very own world’s fair: the Century 21 Exposition. Spanning 74 acres in the urban heart of Washington, the celebration of human ingenuity arrived at a pivotal point in American history, at the height of the Cold War and the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union.

“World’s fairs are generally part of a reaction to social dislocation, political upheaval and deep anxiety about the future,” says Robert Rydell, a cultural historian and the author of All the World’s a Fair. “When they first began back in the middle of the 19th century, they were overwhelmingly perceived by both organizers and visitors almost as ‘world’s universities.’”

So what happened to them? We never hear about them anymore, right? How did the global cultural events that inaugurated broadcast television (New York 1939), built the Eiffel Tower (Paris 1889), and introduced the world to the Ferris Wheel (Chicago 1893) and Disney’s It’s a Small World (New York 1964) disappear? Actually, they haven’t: World’s Fairs haven’t gone anywhere. It’s just America that has moved on.

According to Smithsonian magazine, Century 21’s World of Tomorrow has pretty much become the world of today. “The U.S. emerged victorious in the Cold War and successfully shared the fair’s vision with the world: one of American ascendance, scientific progress and capitalist consumption.” Then, somewhat suddenly, world’s fairs seemed less necessary. The last time the U.S. hosted one was 38 years ago in New Orleans. Anyone remember that one?

In 2000, the U.S. didn’t even participate. The 2010 Shanghai fair, the largest ever, barely registered with the American public. In fact, the most recent World Expo took place in Dubai—it was, like so many other things, delayed because of the pandemic but just wrapped up last month. You probably heard nothing about it, right?

“The purposes of the fair have been taken over by other mediums,” one historian told Smithsonian. “The way they offered fantasy … is today so easy to get in other ways, whether it’s physical experiences like theme parks or movies and the internet.” But Mina Chow, director of the documentary Face of a Nation: What Happened to the World’s Fair? says that the mission might be more vital now than ever. “The world expo movement has always been about the best of human civilization,” says Chow. “Right now, we’re living through some of the worst of it ... the world’s fair is something that we need to celebrate why we belong together.”

↦ FYI: The next World Expo will take place in Osaka, Kansai, Japan between April 13 and October 13, 2025.

Macron Wins Re-Election in France

To Europe’s relief, the centrist incumbent wins but far-right gains

In just five years as France's president, Emmanuel Macron has gone from a young newbie in politics to a key world player and weighty decision-maker in the European Union who has been deeply involved in efforts to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

And now the centrist incumbent just won a second five-year term—the first French president to do so in a generation. In a victory speech at Paris' Champ de Mars on Sunday, Macron thanked his supporters and promised a more “independent France” and “stronger Europe.”

According to CBS News, Macron's victory spares France and its allies the seismic upheaval of a wartime shift of power to Macron's populist challenger Marine Le Pen, who quickly acknowledged her defeat Sunday night but still appeared on course for a best-ever showing for her fiercely nationalist far-right policies.

Le Pen's challenge to the country's mainstream order and the West's unity against Russia had officials in Europe and Washington anxiously following the election. She is sympathetic to Russian President Vladimir Putin and pledged to dilute French ties with the European Union, NATO and Germany—moves that experts say would have shaken Europe's overall security.

Partner

Mother's Day is quickly approaching. Are you ready? You are now.

The Last Learjet

The iconic brand is gone, but some business jets will be converted into military aircraft

It's the end of an aviation era: The final Learjet has been delivered.

The company's manufacturing plant in Wichita first opened in 1963, and built every one of the 3,055 Learjets (2,000 of which are still in service). The site will now become parent company Bombardier's U.S. headquarters as well as home to the new Bombardier Defense group.

The Learjet, with its distinctive sloped nose, was one of the first private jet designs and became something of an icon. According to Robb Report, Frank Sinatra had one of the first. The plane was name-checked in Carly Simon's “You're So Vain,” and even showed up in the final episode of Mad Men. Like Kleenex, Learjet became a generic term for any light business jet.

Bombardier will now focus on its midsize Challenger line and the long-range Global Express planes. The company's creation of a defense segment means that it will be modifying its aircraft for military operations. It said that the U.S. Air Force has already ordered six Global 6000 jets as part of its Battlefield airborne Communications Node program.

↦ BUY: Depending on numerous factors, the average price for a pre-owned Learjet 45 is $2,521,800.

Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Deemed a Success

Biotech firm reports that the engineered bugs behaved as planned

Researchers have completed the first open-air study of genetically engineered mosquitoes in the United States. And Oxitec (the biotech firm running the experiment), says the results are positive.

The experiment has been underway since last April. Nearly five million engineered Aedes aegypti mosquitoes (an invasive species that can carry harmful diseases like yellow fever, dengue fever and Zika) were released in the Florida Keys over seven months. They modified the bugs to be non-biting and injected them with a gene that is lethal to female offspring, thus killing off about half of all new mosquitoes to reduce the overall population.

Researchers installed capture devices to collect both adult mosquitoes and eggs, according to Nature. They found that when the modified mosquitoes matured into adults, their behaviors were similar to their wild counterparts. And the modified gene that killed off female offspring only lasted for two to three months—about three generations of mosquitoes.

Oxitec now hopes to do further testing in Florida and California. In March, the EPA gave its blessing for them to release 2.4 million modified mosquitoes in the two states. Though the overarching end goal of the experiment is to slow the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases by reducing the overall population of the bugs, some experts fear that outcome might prove difficult to study.

↦ FYI: Did you know that mosquitoes swarm around these four colors the most?

In Other News

↦ First Senior U.S. Officials Known to Visit Ukraine Since Invasion

↦ Twitter Re-Examines Elon Musk’s Bid, May Be More Receptive to a Deal

↦ The Former Nintendo HQ in Kyoto Is Now a Very Stylish Hotel

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

My favorite pair of pants

Google's coming ‘Pixel Watch’

The worst car myths

Partner

These Aren’t Your Average Flowers

It's one of the easiest moves but it's also one of the classiest. After all, flowers are one of the all-time great ways to show your mother that you're thinking of her. It's an indulgent surprise that brings some of the outside in and reminds her why you're her favorite. And if you're going to send a bouquet of blooms, make sure they're good ones. She's worth it, right?

The Mommy & Mefresh bouquets of fiery roses,craspedia and solidago, $95

UrbanStems has the flowers your mom deserves. The modern brand offers the best of both worlds: Arrangements that are high on taste while prioritizing the freshest flowers. All for incredibly reasonable prices. How do they do it? Well, they source directly from the farmers—no middlemen, no local florists and no cutting corners.

And these aren't your average bouquets either. UrbanStems specializes in unique and stylish arrangements with unique and interesting flowers not found in your average bouquet (think ranunculus, snap dragons, thistle and garden roses). But you'll want to order soon to beat the rush, as they're predicting a sell-out by the top of May.

The Unicorn bouquet of vibrant roses, aster and Alstroemeria blossoms, $55

The Luna bohemian arrangement of delphinium, scabiosas and thistle, $65

↦ Browse: More Mother’s Day gifts from UrbanStems

Free Treat When you use the exclusive code VALETTREAT you’ll receive a free 3-pack of organic lollipops with any purchase.

What We’re Eyeing

Work pants are definitely having a moment. But as that moment stretches into summer, the heavyweight pants will become more and more uncomfortable. Buck Mason's new Craftsman pants ($115) offer a stylish West Coast solution. The pants are made from a light, 7.5 oz. cotton canvas with a sueded finish and a touch of stretch for easy movement. And they've been garment washed with enzymes for a soft, lived-in feel too.

↦ Want more? 5 stylish items to buy this week