seth from somewhere

Rob, top five musical crimes perpetuated by Stevie Wonder in the ’80s and ’90s. Go. Sub-question: is it in fact unfair to criticize a formerly great artist for his latter day sins, is it better to burn out or fade away?

Everybody loves lists.  I can name my top five albums during my undergrad years on command (Yoshimi, Alien Lanes, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, My Aim is True, Washing Machine).  They can expose a person’s film snobbery or simply summarize things to do for a weekend.  Best yet, lists generate passionate debate on topics of great interest.  Historians have compiled numerous lists of the best American presidents.  Best soccer rivalries in the world?  Good luck sorting that out, hooligans.

Perhaps one of the most famous lists was compiled by Philo of Byzantium, the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  Only the Pyramids still remain but the list continues to fascinate, so much so that an organization conducted “the largest poll on record” to compile a new list of seven wonders.  The New7Wonders Foundation undertook a project that ultimately lead to over 100 million votes from over 220 countries, resulting in the New 7 Wonders of the World.

With such success, the New7Wonders Foundation has embarked on a quest to compile another list, the New7Wonders of Nature.  Over 400 natural wonders were pared down to 77 nominees.  A panel of experts recommended 28 as finalists based on unique beauty, diversity and distribution, ecological significance, historical significance, and geo-location (equal worldwide representation).  The final New7Wonders of Nature will be announced in 2011.

Any list, by its very nature, overestimates some and slights countless others.  Here is my list of notable exclusions from the 28 finalists.

(more…)