Searching For Alaska, A Linkfest

Awareness of the outside world. “‘In Alaska, it’s Denali,’ Murkowski said in a statement on Thursday. “This isn’t a political issue — Alaskans from every walk of life have long been advocating for this mountain to be recognized by its true name.’ ” Anchorage Daily News: Murkowski introduces bill to keep Denali as the name of North America’s tallest peak, Samuels, February 13, 2025.

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Alaska that is NOT the US state.

Asteroid

19148 Alaska. JPL, Small-Body Database Lookup: 19148 Alaska (1989 YA5). “Asteroid 19148, Alaska, was discovered on December 28, 1989 by Eric W. Elst at Haute Provence Observatory in Saint-Michel-l’Observatoire, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France. It has a period of 5 years, 192 days.” Mark Andrew Holmes: Alaska.

Street in Washington DC

Walk Score: Alaska Avenue Northwest. No one in DC would refer to it that way. They would say “I live on Alaska.” In other news, “Walk Score’s mission is to promote walkable neighborhoods. Walkable neighborhoods are one of the simplest and best solutions for the environment, our health, and our economy.” WS: About. Preach!

Book character

Alaska Young in Looking For Alaska, by John Green (Dutton 2005). Author website, John Green: Looking for Alaska. Book was made into a miniseries, IMDB: Looking For Alaska. Book was banned/challenged in several places by parents who have forgotten they used to be teenagers. Marshall Banned Books 2024 – Looking for Alaska. Note, “Marshall University does not ban books! The information is provided to let people know what has been banned/challenged elsewhere.” ibid. YA book. Have neither read nor watched. The title kept coming up when I was surfing for Alaska books.

Dessert

NPR: Baked Alaska: A Creation Story Shrouded In Mystery, Silver 2016.

“The best guess is that Charles Ranhofer, a Parisian pastry chef working at New York’s famous Delmonico’s restaurant, introduced it circa 1867, either to celebrate or to poke fun at New York senator William H. Seward’s purchase of Alaska from the Russians.” Fine Dining Lovers: A Short History of Baked Alaska 2021.

“Baked Alaska has become a generic term for myriad combinations of ice cream, cake, and meringue served toasted or, for a more dramatic presentation, flambéed.” Tasting Table: The Origin Story Of The Baked Alaska, Matte 2022.

Names

“The SSA data also shows that ALASKA is used as a girl’s name 100% of the time.” MyNameStats.com: First Name ALASKA.

“The state with the most people named ALASKA is Michigan where 29 people have this name.” MyNameStats.com: Last Name ALASKA.

Places

Geotargit: How many places are named Alaska?

Valeria & Valise: The Atlas of Alaska: All the Places Named Alaska in the World 2024.

Other

Geography, People, Arts-entertainment-and-media, Ships, Other-uses: Wiki: Alaska (disambiguation).

Inspiration

Currently ettending UChicago Graham School, Alaska: Indigenous, Russian, American.

Onwards!
Katherine