Neatorama

World’s Heaviest Man Goes on a Trip, Thanks to Forklift and Flatbed Truck Posted: 16 Aug 2008 01:38 AM CDT Manuel Uribe, once the world’s fattest man, left his home for the first time in five months today, thanks to a forklift and a flatbed truck: Manuel Uribe traveled to the shore of a lake in northern Mexico without ever leaving his specially designed bed. A forklift hoisted the bed onto the truck, which then hauled him to the lake, where he snacked on fish and vegetables and joked with a local boat operator. Looking at the boatman’s small craft, Uribe joked, "Too bad I can’t get on it — it would sink." Link (Photo: Monica Rueda/AP) Previously on Neatorama: Heaviest Man in the World | World’s Fattest Man Lost Half of Body Weight on Low Carb Diet

Norway Knighted a Penguin Posted: 16 Aug 2008 01:36 AM CDT Photo: Edinburgh Zoo Norwegian King Harald the Fifth has just knighted … a penguin! That’s right, a penguin named Nils Olav, the honorary member and mascot of the King’s Guard since 1972, is not Sir Nils Olav to you: Penguin Nils Olav has been an honorary member and mascot of the Norwegian King’s Guard since 1972. Over the years, he has been promoted through the ranks after being adopted by Royal Guard who visited the zoo. During the ceremony, Nils had a sword dubbed on each side of his head, where his shoulders should be, to confirm his regimental knighthood. A crowd of several hundred people joined the 130 guardsmen at the zoo. A citation from King Harald the Fifth of Norway was read out, which described Nils as a penguin "in every way qualified to receive the honour and dignity of knighthood". What’s even more intriguing is that the original Nils Olav died in 1980 - the penguin knighted today was his replacement: Link - via On Deadline Previously: Norwegian Army Promotes Penguin

Wasp Mantidfly Posted: 15 Aug 2008 09:43 PM CDT Is it a mantid, a wasp, or a fly? Answer: none of the above. This is a Wasp Mantidfly (Climaciella brunnea), which is more closely related to a green lacewing than any of its namesakes. Although this picture is featured on Iowa Voices, it was taken in Illinois. Link -Thanks, Matt!

Elevator Psychology Posted: 15 Aug 2008 09:35 PM CDT (YouTube link) Is there a law somewhere that says we all have to face the same direction in an elevator? Apparently so, since we all obey that law. This old clip from Candid Camera is funny because we all understand it. In real life, the behavior is a little more ambiguous, as seen in the elevators of the London Underground that have doors on both sides of the elevator. Link

Dog Cloner in More Trouble Posted: 15 Aug 2008 06:50 PM CDT Joyce Bernann McKinney, who made headlines by having her pit bull cloned (previously on Neatorama), has left South Korea without the five cloned puppies she commissioned from a biotech company. Publicity over the cloning led to her identification as a fugitive from a British court in 1977. She had been accused of the kidnap and rape of a 21-year-old Mormon missionary. McKinney denied the charges, saying that the relationship was consensual. The case was never brought to trial, as McKinney fled to the US after making bail. Now, a lawyer has identified McKinney as a fugitive from a criminal case in Tennessee. The Tennessee charges stem from McKinney’s arrest in November 2004 after being found in a van with the teenager. According to prosecutors in Carter County, an area in north eastern Tennessee, she instructed the boy to burgle a house and was charged with criminal conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. McKinney had allegedly told the teenager she needed money to help her three-legged horse. A representative of the South Korean biotech company said she had left for the US last week, but does not know where she is. Link -Thanks, Heather!

Gymnast Honored in Butter Posted: 15 Aug 2008 01:16 PM CDT US Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson won a silver medal in the all-around competition yesterday in Beijing, but she has an even bigger honor awaiting her back in the States. Johnson’s likeness is on display at the Iowa State Fair, carved in butter! Butter Shawn Johnson will share the spotlight with the butter cow in the Agriculture Building Aug. 7-17. Butter sculptor Sarah Pratt of West Des Moines plans to incorporate a balance beam into Johnson's pose, and possibly an American flag. The butter cow is a tradition at the fair. There has been an Iowa State Fair butter cow since the early 1900s, according to fair officials. Johnson will join an elite butter list that includes Tiger Woods, Elvis, Grant Wood's "American Gothic," Leonardo da Vinci's "Last Supper," actor John Wayne and country singer Garth Brooks. Pratt said she and Iowa fair organizers discussed options such as Indiana Jones and the 50th anniversary of the Doctor Seuss classic "The Cat in the Hat" before picking Iowa's 4-foot-81/4 Olympic favorite. Link -via YesButNoButYes

Terrorist Teapot Posted: 15 Aug 2008 01:07 PM CDT This might not be the most tasteful home accessory ever, but it will sure draw attention! The Terrorist Teapot glares at you from underneath a ski mask tea cozy. Link -Thanks, Thomas Barker!

McCain and Obama as a Pile of Words Posted: 15 Aug 2008 12:52 PM CDT John Schwenkler wrote an interesting short piece for the Boston Globe by putting together profiles of the US presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama, drawn from the most-used words from their respective blogs: It’s nothing major: just a use of Wordle to pull out the most prominent words from the official McCain and Obama campaign blogs, and then some brief analysis of a few of the most interesting ones. But it is sort of fun, and I do think it’s genuinely revealing of at least some important aspects of the state of the debate. It’s interesting to note that in both McCain’s, and naturally, Obama’s, blogs the most often used word is "Obama," but the tone of McCain’s blog is decided more negative. Link - via Upturned Earth

Eric Lafforgue’s Photos of North Korea Posted: 15 Aug 2008 12:35 PM CDT One of my favorite photographers, Eric Lafforgue (previously on Neatorama here), went to North Korea for two weeks in April 2008 and snapped some really cool (government-approved) photos: The pictures you will see are not stolen ones, it’s just what i’ve seen during my trip and what the governement wants or allows to show to tourists. When you’re in North Korea, you have always with you two guides, everywhere you go. Link - more at his Flickr photoset (The small thumbnail above is "Kim," a ghostly pale army woman in Pyongyang. Photo: Eric Lafforgue)

How Did that Manta Ray Get There? Posted: 15 Aug 2008 12:34 PM CDT There’s something fishy - literally - in San Francisco: a manta ray found on the sidewalk. alilrusky of Exprience Project has the story: Link

Secret SEGA Archive Posted: 15 Aug 2008 12:34 PM CDT Photo: SEGA of America When the folks of SEGA America blog went on a tour of the product development department in the SEGA HQ, they found this secret room full of just about every game and console ever made by the video game company! Link | Hi-res Flickr photos

Human Chain Blockades … Garbage Truck! Posted: 15 Aug 2008 12:00 PM CDT Angry that the garbage men refused to pick up backlog of rubbish after workers’ strikes last month, residents of West Yorkshire resorted to a little civil disobedience: Angry residents annoyed at binmen who refused to pick up a backlog of rubbish left after strikes last month barricaded a refuse lorry and its crew in their street. Children and parents from the quiet cul-de-sec formed a human chain around the large truck to stop it driving away while another resident blocked the road with his car. The defiant families, angry after watching waste build up since the council strike on July 16 and 17, told the rubbish collectors: ‘You shall not pass.’ What is it with the British and garbage? Link

Stumpy the Tail-less Whale is No Fail Whale Posted: 15 Aug 2008 11:58 AM CDT Stumpy, a humpback whale nicknamed because of its lack of a tail, was sighted today off the coast of Australia - some 20,000 km (12,400 mi.) from where he was first sighted years ago. And in a coincidence worthy of a cosmic joke, Stumpy was first spotted by one Mr. Short: The boat’s skipper Allan Short said he last saw the disfigured whale as a yearling in Hervey Bay in 2001. Scratch marks on its side indicate it was injured in a killer whale attack, Mr Short said. "When we first saw Stumpy in Hervey Bay in 2001 we thought for sure he wouldn’t survive without his tail," he said. "It’s a 20,000-kilometre return journey when they migrate and that is an amazing feat for a whale without a tail." Link

“Second Brother on the Right” Olympic Torch Guard is a Chinese Sex Symbol Posted: 15 Aug 2008 11:56 AM CDT A handsome yet unnamed young guard of the Olympics torch as it made its way around the world has become a Chinese Internet hero and sex symbol! Known only as "Second Brother on the Right" because of his customary position by the flame, the young man with boyish looks and cropped hair is an Internet sensation and nationalist hero. "They praised him for his 360-degree handsome look, well-built body in perfect proportion, refined and exemplary postures, smile and courtesy to torch bearers, his pals and audience, and determination to safeguard the Olympic spirit," reads his entry in the Wikipedia web database. [...] "My dear Second Brother on the Right, please marry me!" begged one girl on a site with 542 pages of odes and photos to the nameless hero. But he better watch out - other guards have also been idolized: "Second Brother" is not the only hero among the torch guards, who, by contrast with their status at home, were sometimes vilified in the West for being unquestioning representatives of stern Chinese authority. Other guards have been given nicknames such as "Leading Handsome," "Ravishing Hand," "Kindness" and even "Noodle Soup." Link - via Oddly Enough

Stinky Open Landfills? Spray Perfume on the Garbage! Posted: 15 Aug 2008 11:55 AM CDT Open landfills in Mumbai, India, have been so stinky that municipal workers resorted to desperate means: spraying the garbage with perfumes! Mumbai has a population of nearly 18 million, and generates 8,500 metric tonnes of rubbish every day. Nearly 500,000 people live near rubbish landfills. Officials say that the stench from the landfills in Deonar and Mulund was so great that local residents started protesting. So the authorities hit upon the novel idea of dousing the landfills with perfume to kill the stench. A herbal perfume diluted with water is sprayed over the landfills almost every day. The perfume costs $114,000 for 42,000 litres, which is required to "perfume" the landfills for between six to eight months. "Perfuming the garbage has helped. Residents are complaining less. This will continue till we find a long-term solution," said senior municipal engineer A Karim. Link - via Arbroath

Scrambled Text Posted: 15 Aug 2008 08:17 AM CDT You’ve seen the text that explains how the human mind can read scrambled words, as long as the first and last letter of each word is correct. Now you can scramble a webpage in the same manner! This picture is of the previous post on Neatorama. Can you still read it? Use the application to convert text on a site of your choosing. Link -via b3ta

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