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S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Originally from Karachi, Pakistan, Abbas has an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering & computer science from Johns Hopkins University, and a graduate degree in philosophy from Columbia University. He lives with his wife, Margit Oberrauch, and their feline friend, Frederica Krueger, near the small, very beautiful city of Brixen in the Italian Alps. Email: s.abbas.raza.1 [at] gmail.com

Website: https://3quarksdaily.com/

This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, May 7, 2026 4:00AMMonday, May 4, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Reflection selfie in the window of a train I was about to catch at the station in Franznesfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Apr 30, 2026 4:00AMMonday, April 27, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

A solar powered lantern on our balcony after dark. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Apr 23, 2026 4:00AMMonday, April 20, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

The dandelions are back. I like them. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Apr 16, 2026 4:00AMMonday, April 13, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

This guy was just walking calmly on the sidewalk. Presumably he could fly to wherever he’s going but he prefers to have a bit of a stroll, I guess. And here is ChatGPT’s comment: “That appears to be a scarlet tiger moth or a very close relative in the tiger moth family (Arctiinae). Looks like…

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Apr 9, 2026 4:00AMMonday, April 6, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Remnants of a celebration on the streets of Brixen, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Apr 2, 2026 4:00AMWednesday, April 1, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

On the road. In front of my house. Very mysterious. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Mar 26, 2026 4:00AMMonday, March 23, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

One end of the new pedestrian bridge across the river Eisack in Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Mar 19, 2026 4:00AMThursday, March 19, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Three mountains. Looking northward from Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Mar 12, 2026 4:00AMMonday, March 9, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Lichen growing on a rock near the river in Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. ChatGPT told me: “Typical foliose lichens expand roughly 0.5–2 mm in radius per year. If this patch is, say, 10 cm across, it could easily be 25–100 years old.” It was about 10 cm in diameter. So could be older than I am.…

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Mar 5, 2026 4:00AMMonday, March 2, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

I have given myself a halo and am now the saint of manholes. Also, my ears are not that big, I am wearing ear muffs. 🙂 Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Feb 26, 2026 4:00AMMonday, February 23, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

A new pedestrian bridge across the river Eisack in Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Feb 19, 2026 4:00AMThursday, February 19, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

I decided to use this week’s photograph to recommend a book rather than post a visually interesting image as I usually try to do. So here’s a low-resolution self-portrait by webcam showing a book which I have found to be an extremely clear-headed discussion of a lot of issues swirling around in the anxiety induced…

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Feb 12, 2026 4:00AMMonday, February 9, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Two construction cranes in Brixen, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Feb 5, 2026 4:00AMMonday, February 2, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

People come and go. Walking on the snow. Talking of Michelangelo. In Brixen, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photo

Posted on Thursday, Jan 29, 2026 4:00AMTuesday, January 27, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Rocky cliff with a dusting of snow (and more snow falling) in Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Part of the winter Olympics will be in South Tyrol, starting next week, so this is good. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Jan 22, 2026 4:00AMMonday, January 19, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Islands of ice form around the rocks in the river Eisack on very cold days as it passes through Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Jan 15, 2026 4:00AMMonday, January 12, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Frozen edge of a stream in Brixen, South Tyrol. It seems the level of the water went down a bit after the freezing, as it is an inch or so below the frozen part. Anyway, it looked cool to me. Pun intended, I guess! Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating…

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Jan 8, 2026 4:00AMMonday, January 5, 2026 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Leaves pressed into a dirt road by passing vehicles and/or people in Franzensfeste, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Jan 1, 2026 4:00AMMonday, December 29, 2025 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

Sign in the Alter Schlachthof restaurant in Brixen, South Tyrol. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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This Week’s Photograph

Posted on Thursday, Dec 25, 2025 4:00AMMonday, December 22, 2025 by S. Abbas Raza (Weekly Photo)

A glass ashtray turned the weak winter sunlight from the window into this rainbow on a wooden cutting board on our kitchen counter. Enjoying the content on 3QD? Help keep us going by donating now.

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3QD Design History and Credits

The original site was designed by S. Abbas Raza in 2004 but soon completely redesigned by Mikko Hyppönen and deployed by Henrik Rydberg. It was later upgraded extensively by Dan Balis in 2006. The next major revision was designed by S. Abbas Raza, building upon the earlier look, and coded by Dumky de Wilde in 2013. And this current version 5.0 has been designed and deployed by Dumky de Wilde in collaboration with S. Abbas Raza.

3 Quarks Daily

3 Quarks Daily started in 2004 with the idea of creating a curated retreat for everything intellectual on the web. No clickbait, no fake news, not just entertainment, but depth and breadth —something increasingly hard to find on the internet today. If you like what we do, please consider making a donation.