The smallest frog in the world is the Monte Iberia Eleuth (Eleutherodactylus iberia). It was first discovered in 1996 on Mount Iberia, from which the animal gets its name, and exists in only two small regions of Cuba. Much remains unknown about this small creature.YouTube l...
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
The Meerkat - Sun Angel Of Africa
image creditThe Meerkat - if any species of animal had a right to be a little irritated by the name we have gifted them, this is one. Of course, they are blithely unaware of any names we might choose to call them, but this small mammal from the heart...
The Hobbit House Of Montana
image creditSteve Michaels is the proprietor of the Hobbit House. One day, he was building a small underground guest home for family and friends when the contractor's son mentioned that it looked like a Hobbit House. From then on, all of his attention...
Barbed Wire, From Cowboy Scourge To Prized Relic Of The Old West
image creditWhy would anyone pay $500 for a rusty piece of barbed wire? Well, if the 18-inch long specimen is the only known example of a patent from 1907, some folks might pay even more than that. This isn't the stuff you see today by the side of the...
Century Style Dance
A viral for Westfield Stratford City, London, UK. The film is a 100 year countdown to the grand opening of Westfield Stratford City on September 13th 2011, and celebrates a century of East London fashion, dance and music. The film was shot over 4 days in east London locations with hundreds of costume...
David 'Honeyboy' Edwards Dies At 96
image creditDavid 'Honeyboy' Edwards, believed to have been the oldest surviving member of the first generation of Delta blues singers, died last Monday at his home in Chicago. He was 96.His career spanned nearly the entire recorded history of the blues,...
Ten Incredible Planters Created From Old Light Bulbs
image creditCan light bulbs be anything but functional glass baubles? There are artists that prove that bulbs have a secret life that only green-fingered repurposing can shine a light on.(via Dark Roasted Ble...
The Science Of Sleeping
What goes on in your mind when you're in bed? When you sleep your body rests and restores itself. However, sleep is an active state that affects both your physical and mental well-being. Sleeping is a natural cycle of activity in the brain and consists...
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Where Did The Windows XP Default Wallpaper Come From?
image from Google MapsDoes the above image look familiar? It should be if you've used or are still using Windows XP. It's one of the most famous wallpaper images showing a blissfully relaxing vista of green rolling hills and a bluer than blue sky.The...
The Story Of The Most Misused Social Security Number Of All Time
The most misused Social Security Number of all time was 078-05-1120. In 1938, a wallet manufacturer decided to promote its product by showing how a Social Security card would fit into its wallets. A sample card, used for display purposes, was inserted...
High Speed Video Of Popcorn Popping
Color high speed video shows a close up of popcorn popping on a hot plate.YouTube link(thanks Co...
Human Brains Are Primally Wired To Notice Animals
image creditSurrounded by technology and urbanity we may be, but the human brain remains profoundly hard-wired for responding to animals. When people are shown pictures of animals, specific parts of their amygdalas - a structure central to pleasure and...
The Secret Lives Of Metal-Detector Guys
image creditThey are specters from our collective childhood, observed from behind half-finished sandcastles. They move purposefully along the beach, captivating young onlookers with the promise of magical treasure. They are metal-detector guys. The archetypal...
Birth And Dissipation Of Hurrican Irene
Over the past week, Hurricane Irene has battered Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, North Carolina, and the major metropolitan areas of the Northeast U.S. At peak intensity, Irene reached Category 3 hurricane status with sustained winds of 125 mph.This animation of visible and infrared imagery taken every 30...
Danes Are The Most Satisfied Europeans
Over two thirds of Europeans are satisfied with their lives in spite of the euro crisis and fears surrounding the single currency. This is the conclusion of a new study by the non-profit BAT-Foundation for Future Studies for which more than 15,000 members...
Monday, August 29, 2011
The Strange History Of Ramen Noodles
image creditRamen is a Japanese noodle dish. It consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles served in a meat or fish-based broth, often flavored with soy sauce or miso, and uses toppings such as sliced pork, dried seaweed, kamaboko, green onions, and occasionally...
Condoleezza Rice, Gaddafi's 'Darling Black African Woman'
As citizens ransacked the sprawling lair of Colonel Gaddafi, for the first time discovering the extent of riches enjoyed by their bloodthirsty tyrant, a number of unusual items have been looted. Perhaps the most surprising, however, was the album, filled...
Blackfoot Decorated Tipis Circa 1900
image creditIn 1896 American photographer Walter McClintock west for a federal commission investigating national forests. McClintock became friends with the expedition's Blackfoot Indian scout Siksikakoan. When the commission completed its field work,...
BeetleCam Captures Animals Close Up
BeetleCam is a homemade gadget that allowed two British brothers (Matthew and William Burrard-Lucas) to bring you stunning images of Africa's most dangerous wildlife. The spectacular closeups of lion prides, elephant herds and huge cape buffalo's were all made possible by the remote-controlled gizmo...
Species Count Put At 8.7 Million
image creditThe natural world contains about 8.7 million species, according to a new estimate described by scientists as the most accurate ever. But the vast majority have not been identified - and cataloguing them all could take more than 1,000 years.The...
The Curse Of The Crying Boy Painting
On September 4, 1985, the British tabloid newspaper The Sun reported that a firefighter from Yorkshire was claiming that undamaged copies of a painting of a crying boy were frequently found amidst the ruins of burned houses. By the end of November, belief...
Cars Parked Inside Homes: Pretty Or Pretty Weird?
image creditCars parked inside homes. To some it may seem ridiculous or even a bit snobbish. To others who cannot bare to have their beautiful ride out of their sight, their cars serve as the best accessory, adding to the decor of the house either by...
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Is Your Blog Smarter Than A 5th Grader?
Do you write like Shakespeare or Britney Spears? This test evaluates your blog's language and tells you what grade reading level it falls into using the Flesch-Kincaid test. The Presurfer's reading level is College! Is Your Blog Smarter Than A 5th G...
The 11 Greatest Ray Harryhausen Monsters
image from 20 Million Miles to EarthRay Harryhausen is an American film producer and special effects creator. He created a brand of stop-motion model animation known as 'Dynamation.' With a plethora of films under his belt ranging in genres from sci-fi...
Bill Posters Will Be Prosecuted
image creditThe British Museum says Bill Posters will be prosecuted.Who is Bill Posters?And why will he be prosecut...
My Little Top Gear
A worryingly well-executed video mashup of the My Little Pony cartoon and Top Gear. Jeremy's morphed into Rarity, Hammond's Fluttershy, James is Pinkie Pie and the Stig's Twilight Sparkle.YouTube link(via Autostra...
Kizhi Pogost - Multi-Storey, Multi-Cupola, Single-Block Masterpieces
image creditAlmost three hundred years ago the Russian inhabitants around Lake Onega decided that they needed two new churches - the old ones had burned down in a fire. It was decided that the island in the middle of the lake, Kizhi, would be the ideal...
The Oldest And Largest Ship That Sails The World
image creditSpanish training ship Juan Sebastian Elcano is one of the oldest and largest ships that sail the world, and soon to be 100 years old. The ship has visited over 68 countries and 181 different ports, passing 12 times through the Strait of Magellan,...
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Duck Tron
Tron is a 1982 American science fiction film. DuckBrand.com is a company that sells duct tape. They made a Tron-style advertisement.Vimeo l...
Capsule Hotel
image creditThere are a lot of strange hotels in the world. One of the strangest is the Capsule Hotel at the boulevard of Scheveningen near The Hague in the Netherlands. Your room is a bright orange survival pod which once saw service on an oil rig platform.Originally...
26 Cool Fire Hydrants
image creditA fire hydrant is an active fire protection measure and a source of water provided in most urban, suburban and rural areas with municipal water service to enable firefighters to tap into the water supply to assist in extinguishing a fire....
Internet Speak Has Made It Into The Chambers Dictionary
image creditWhile some may say the likes of 'OMG' have no place in a civilised language, others beg to differ. Now the acronym looks set to stay after being immortalised in the latest edition of the Chambers Dictionary. The somewhat irritating expression,...
Exploring The Eerie Underworld of Belgium's Abandoned Crypts
image creditTreading deep underground, German photographer Sven Fennema explores the realm of the dead - a place where people were buried long ago. The labyrinthine tunnels of the old, abandoned crypt of the cemetery of Laeken in Belgium lie before him,...
Friday, August 26, 2011
Be Carefull Pulling Out
After being stopped by a police officer for driving to fast, be carefull pulling out.YouTube link(thanks Co...
The Oak Island Money Pit
image creditOak Island is a 140-acre island in Lunenburg County on the south shore of Nova Scotia, Canada. Oak Island is noted as the location of the so-called Money Pit and the site of over 200 years of treasure hunting. Repeated excavations have reported...
10 Great Philosophers Who Were Mentally Disturbed
image creditThose who ask the difficult questions, like Why are we here? From where do we derive morals? and What does it all really mean, when you get right down to it? have given humanity amazing philosophical insights and ethical guidance.Unfortunately,...
The 10 Oldest Buildings In The World
image creditMany buildings haven't lasted for more than 200 years. Modern technology has increased exponentially over the years, but I still have some doubts that today's Wal-Marts could stand as long as these gems of the ancient wor...
Do Not Fall Asleep At Mike E. Winfield's Comedy Show
A guy falls asleep at Mike E. Winfield's comedy show. See what happens.YouTube link(thanks Mat...
The Origins Of Weird State Park Names
image creditDo you know where Big Bone Lick State Park got its name from? Or Saddleback Butte State Park? Big Bottom State Memorial Park? Ha Ha Tonka State Park? When you see these names, you tend to say to yourself, 'Does that mean what it sounds like?'...
You Know You're A Designer When...
You know you're a designer when... you look at the mirror and see there's a pimple on your face and you just want to press 'Stamp' and do the 'alt+click' on your fa...
Top 10 Manliest Musicals
The top ten best musicals, of the manly kind. Musicals need defending. Not because they're not great, but because they're the sort of movies that will have your editor raising his eyebrows if you want to do a list about them. Here are ten great movie...
Thursday, August 25, 2011
500 People In 100 Seconds
Eran Amir made a stop-motion within a stop-motion video created using 500 people in Israel holding 1500 photos. The music is 'Malinkovec Valzer' by Maxmaber Orkestar.YouTube link(via Laughing Squ...
The Inside Scoop On The Fake Barf Industry
image creditHave you ever stopped to contemplate the existence of rubber barf? It opens up enough philosophical quandaries to make your head spin. Who would ever think of such a thing? Why would he feel the need to manufacture it?Fortunately, Stan and...
20 Cool And Creative Sofa Designs
image creditA collection of cool and creative sofa designs from all over the wor...
Cadillac Ciel Concept Car
image creditCadillac has chosen the backdrop of this week's classic car festivities in Monterey, California to debut a new concept convertible called the Ciel, which means 'sky' in French. The four-seat, four-door drop top was designed to be the ultimate...
Walking The Park
Yesterday I posted a video about some art project called Walking On Infinite Grass. Here's another take on that. It's a class project from the Dalhousie school of Architecture. The project was meant to look at the idea of manufactured environments, like the ubiquitous North American lawn.YouTube l...
Steve Jobs Resigns As CEO Of Apple
image creditApple co-founder Steve Jobs has resigned as chief executive of the technology giant and will be replaced by chief operating officer Tim Cook. Mr Jobs, who underwent a liver transplant following pancreatic cancer, said he could no longer meet...
10 Unusual Restaurants Found Around The World
image creditThere are a lot of unusual restaurants in the world. Restaurants were the waiters are monkeys, or robots, or children. Restaurants situated in trees, in ferris wheels, on islands only reachable by boat, or below sea level.10 Unusual Restaurants...
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Walking On Infinite Grass
I don't know what to think about this. I guess it must be art.YouTube link(via Everlasting Blo...
Jack The Ripper - The Unusual Suspects
image creditJack the Ripper is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The concentration of the killings at the weekend, and...
The Dyatlov Pass Incident
image creditThe Dyatlov Pass incident refers to an event that resulted in the deaths of nine ski hikers in the northern Ural mountains on the night of February 2, 1959. It happened on the east shoulder of the mountain Kholat Syakhl. The lack of eyewitnesses...
All About Explorers
All About Explorers is a web site developed by a group of teachers with fake information to show students that not everything that they read on the internet is true. Although the Internet can be a tremendous resource for gathering information about a...
Through Their Eyes
Many of us walk through life caught up in our own view of reality, but if you take a moment and stop to look at the world around you, you may wonder what it looks like through someone else's eyes. Have you ever wondered how other people see things? Some...
Top 10 Best Space Food
image creditAlthough launching food in space is a necessity, it doesn't mean it has to be boring. The original space menu was bland, odorless and lacked texture, but times have changed and adding some flavor is essential for extended periods astronauts...
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Orange County Chopper Builder
Build your own chopper at Orange County Choppers. Start with a rolling chassis, then add wheels, a tank, a fender set, an exhaust system, and handle bars. Give the bike a paint job and pick a background. Here's the chopper I created.(thanks Frances...
United States Air Force Museum Virtual Tour
Take a 3D self-guided virtual tour of the entire United States Air Force Museum located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. You can navigate from gallery to gallery either by using a drop-down map or by following navigational arrows connecting...
The Huge Domesticated Savannah Cat
image creditCross-bred between a serval - an African wild cat - and a domesticated cat this unique animal gained popularity towards the end of the 20th century. They can weigh as much as 14 pounds, are very loyal like dogs and can be walked on a leash....
Ultimate Batting Practice - Skeet Ball
Two weeks ago I posted a video about a guy smashing pitchbacks like a video game. That was of course fake. As is his next video. He now crushes clay pigeons in target practice. It's good editing though.YouTube link(thanks Der...
Why Some Seconds Seem To Last Forever
image creditThough our perception of time can be stunningly precise it can also be curiously plastic. Some moments seem to last longer than others, and scientists don't know why. Unlike our other senses, our perception of time has no defined location...
The Strange History Of The Sunflower
image creditYou may not think that there is much to know about the sunflower. After all, the plant is virtually everywhere. Yet it has a something more than a simple, straightforward history and is more of a globe trotter than you may imagine. Its story...
When Algorithms Control The World
If you were expecting some kind warning when computers finally get smarter than us, then think again. There will be no soothing HAL 9000-type voice informing us that our human services are now surplus to requirements. In reality, our electronic overlords are already taking control, and they are doing...
Monday, August 22, 2011
Reverend Bruce Howard
It's Seattle televangelist Reverend Bruce Howard. It appears he's having fun.YouTube link(via Everlasting Blo...
Betty White Is America's Most Trusted Celebrity
Betty White, who played Rose Nyland in the 1980s hit The Golden Girls, has been rated as America's most trusted celebrity. A Reuters/Ipsos poll found that the 89-year-old star is the one we'd most want promoting our products. The top 3 most trusted celebs...
Top 10 Ghost Ships
image creditA ghost ship is a supposedly haunted or ghostly vessel, such as the Flying Dutchman. The same term is also used to describe derelict ships found adrift with their entire crew either missing or dead, such as the Mary Celeste or the Baychimo....
What's Your Favorite Number?
image creditBritish author Alex Bellos is known for his book 'Alex's Adventures in Numberland,' which is published in the US with the title 'Here's Looking At Euclid.'Alex wants to know your favorite number and why. His survey is part of a project he...
Airport Employs Holographic Staff
An airport in Paris, France has employed holographic staff to welcome passengers to boarding gates. Of course, this is nothing new. Airports in Luton and Manchester in the UK launched holographic staffs to help passengers through the security process.YouTube link(thanks Co...
Sleepers
image creditA collection of photographs of people everywhere lucky enough to find a few winks.(via ackacka...
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