Neatorama

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• 4 Famous Sets of Sisters Who Changed History
• Nintendo Boardwalk Cabinets
• Ridiculously Large Sushi In Japan
• A Tron Cycle For Your Favorite Kiddo
• Renaissance Tortoise Is Ready For Battle
• The Beef Jerky Potato Chip
• Cats With Owl Faces
• Scientist And Artist Create Bulletproof Skin Out Of Woven Silk
• Portal Fan Film Is Quite Good Actually
• Animated Sheet Music
• Trojan Deer
• Pileus Iridescent Cloud
• Nyan Cat Theme on an Ocarina
• The Original Scarecrow Costume from The Wizard of Oz
• Alien Invasion Glow-In-The-Dark Goo
• Swapping Children to End Tribal War in Vanuatu
• Winking Grizzly Bear
• 33 Awesome Hotel Rooms
• 6 Helpful Things Schools Made You Stop Doing
• South Korean Exam Village
• Amazing Sand Sculpture Pictures
• 7 Unethical, But Brilliant Experiments
• The Boring, Mundane Things We Do In Video Games
• Googly Eye Shoes
• Brokeback Seinfeld
• George Lucas Makes More Changes To The Star Wars Films
• Movie Titles in Movies: Part Deux
• Generation Vexed
• Facebook “Like” Buttons Now Illegal in German State
• Knit Your Own Mini Ninja

4 Famous Sets of Sisters Who Changed History Posted: 25 Aug 2011 05:11 AM PDT Earlier this month was National Sisters Day, which got me thinking about famous sibling duos. I thought it would be fun to share a list of the most famous of these sister pairings, but to be fair, there are so many famous pairs of sisters out there that it would be impossible to list them all. That's why I've decided to leave out most of the contemporary examples you're probably already familiar with, like Paris and Nikki Hilton and Venus and Serena Williams. I've also left out all of the popular sister singing groups from the last hundred years because there are so darn many of them between the Pointer Sisters, The Andrews Sisters and the gals from Heart. That being said, here are some sisters who impacted history. The Graeae These not-so-attractive ladies are probably some of the earliest examples of famous sister groups, even if they aren't exactly real. The Graeae were three ancient goddesses from Greek mythology who shared one eye and one tooth amongst the group. While they were actually archaic goddesses, when they interacted with humans, they  usually took the form of old witches. Perseus stole the eye of the witches when they were passing it amongst themselves and used it to force the Graeae to tell him where the three objects he needed to kill Medusa were hidden. Thus, the Graeae were instrumental in the killing of Medusa, who was one of their sisters. Even if these siblings aren't real, the story has been so long-lasting that it's hard to imagine it not having any impact on European history to some extent. Source The Trung Sisters Around the same time that tales of Jesus were starting to be spread through the Middle East, two Vietnamese sisters were kicking butt, leading a revolt against the Chinese oppression of their country. It all started when Trung Trac fell in love and married a man named Thi Sach. The Chinese rulers of Vietnam were making assimilation into their way of life mandatory and when Thi Sach took a stand against the repression of his culture, he was executed. His death was supposed to be a warning against all those who would consider rebelling, but instead it spurred his wife and sister-in-law, Trung Nhi, to take up his cause and fight against the Chinese. The two sisters were raised learning martial arts and studying the art of warfare, so when it was time to start a rebellion, they were ready. In 39 AD, the two women repelled a small Chinese unit from their village and started to assemble a large army of rebels –mostly women according to popular legends. Within a few months, they already had taken back over 60 citadels from the Chinese and had liberated the kingdom of Nam Viet. The two were named as queens of their free country and they were able to keep the territory free from the Chinese for over two years. The Trung's victory was short-lived though. It wasn't long before the Chinese amassed a massive army and decimated the women's forces. One legend claims the Chinese were able to win the battle by fighting naked, embarrassing the female warriors so they willingly left the battlefield. Another story says that a pregnant woman on the front lines, Phung Thi Chinh, gave birth to her baby, scooped it up in one arm and continued to fight with the sword in her other hand. Despite their most valiant efforts, the female fighters were outnumbered. To protect their honor and avoid capture by the Chinese, the Trung sisters committed suicide by drowning themselves in the Hat River. Their remaining fighters carried on the battle until they were killed or until they killed themselves. While much of the story is more legend than truth, the Trung sisters are still highly revered in Vietnam as heroes of the first resistance movement in their independence from China. There is even a holiday honoring the day they committed suicide and temples throughout the country are dedicated to their memory. Source The Grimke Sisters The Grimke Sisters were some of the first women to publicly act in American social reform movements. While many revolutionaries were raised by progressive parents who taught them to question the way things are, Angelina and Sarah Grimke were the opposite. Their father, the chief judge of the Supreme Court of South Carolina was a strong proponent both of slavery and of the subordination of women. The girls were raised on a massive plantation, where they saw the worst parts of slavery on a regular basis. When Sarah was only five, she tried to run away so she could escape somewhere without slavery. She later taught her personal slave to read although this was against the law at the time. Sarah was a bright girl who studied constantly and wanted to become a lawyer. Unfortunately, when her parents learned that she wanted to attend college, they forbade her to study any more. Since she could no longer continue her education, Sarah begged to become godmother to her youngest sister Angelina. From that point on, the two were extremely close. The two started working for the abolition movement in 1835 and soon learned just how powerless women were when it came to politics. Angelina caused a scandal when she wrote her first abolitionist work, as it urged southern women to reject slavery because it allowed their husbands the opportunity to cheat on them with their black slaves. Discussing such a sensitive subject in such a brazen manner was considered outrageous at the time. As if that weren't enough, the pair urged racial acceptance, not just the banning of slavery –something even many abolitionists were against. Every letter they wrote and every speech they gave was fought by criticisms, but the sisters stood strong. They pressed on and eventually, they became the first women to address the Massachusetts state legislature in 1838. Their appearance caused a scandal, but inspired a number of young women to follow them. Eventually, they attracted thousands of women in New England to join the abolitionist movement and thousands of men and women would travel from miles around to see the girls give public speeches. In 1838, Angelina got married to abolitionist and women's rights supporter Theodore Weld. While the couple initially planned for Angelina to stay active in politics, when she delivered a baby, she found herself too busy to be a public speaker any more. Sarah moved in with the couple and also chose to retire from the public sphere. While they no longer spoke publicly on the matter, the girls continued to write and edit abolitionist newspapers and pamphlets. At one point, the girls started a boarding school and many abolitionists sent their children there to learn about politics and slavery without the racial prejudices of other schools at the time. After the Civil War, the Grimke girls learned that their deceased brother had three mixed-race sons with one of his slaves. The girls took in the oldest two of the children and provided them with education and support. After years of support for the abolitionist and feminist movements, the girls lived long enough to see the slaves freed and to see the 15th Amendment passed. At almost 80 years old, Sarah and her sister were able to vote for the first time in 1870. Source The Podgorski Sisters You can change the world in a number of ways and while Stefania and Helena Podgorska may have only saved the lives of 13 individuals, they are still heroes who could very likely inspire other groups of brave rebels. The girl's father died in 1938, so Stefania had to start working in a grocery store owned by a Jewish family called the Diamants when she was only 15. It wasn't long before Poland was invaded by both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union and the town of Przemysl was right at the dividing line between the two nations. The Germans took the girl's mother and their brother to a forced labor camp to support the Third Reich, leaving a 16 year-old Stefania to care for her 6 year-old little sister. They also took the Diamants to a newly-formed ghetto. Stefania took a job as a machine-tool operator and paid rent for the apartment where she and Helena lived. In 1942, the Germans began to liquidate the Przemsyl ghetto, sending the Jewish residents to concentration camps. Fortunately, two sons of the Diamants escaped from the train that was scheduled to take them to the Belzec extermination camp and made their way to the Podgorska's home. While the two girls were scared, they knew they had to help, so they let the boys stay in the attic. The older boy, Max, asked Stefania if he could bring his family to stay in the attic and she said yes. Because the attic was too small for so many people, Stefania soon rented a detached cottage with a larger attic. She and Helena moved in first and the rest of the family and their friends followed. Soon there were 13 people living in the girl's attic. Unsurprisingly, the young girls quickly ran out of money to feed and house all of their visitors, so the girls began knitting sweaters and Stefania took orders for them from everyone she knew. She would even trade clothes for food when she couldn't get enough money together. The family lived next to an SS officer for a long time, but everyone worked hard to stay quiet and not alert suspicion. Even so, the girls were terrified and shocked when a German officer knocked on their door one day and ordered them to vacate their home in the next two hours. Their fugitive tenants begged them to run away, but Stefania refused and the officer soon returned, informing the girls that he changed his mind and would be taking a home on the other side of the house. A few months later, the Soviet Army took over Przemysl and the Jewish attic-dwellers were free. Stefania married one of the Diamant's sons and emigrated to the US. Helena remained in Poland, married and eventually became a physician.  In 1979, the two were flown to Jerusalem and honored as the Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem for their heroism during the war. Source As I said in the beginning, I did decide to leave out most of the contemporary famous sisters and any music acts, so if you'd like to take this time to talk about your favorite famous female siblings, go right ahead. Also, if you have any fun anecdotes involving your sisters, feel free to share them here.

Nintendo Boardwalk Cabinets Posted: 25 Aug 2011 04:38 AM PDT Donald Kennedy imagined Nintendo characters in three old-fashioned boardwalk cabinets. Wario tells your fortune, Mario challenges you to grab a prize, and Elec Man (from Mega Man) shocks you with electricity. They light up and move, too. Artist’s Website -via Technabob

Ridiculously Large Sushi In Japan Posted: 25 Aug 2011 02:32 AM PDT A new sushi restaurant in the Aichi Prefecture of Japan has taken to making some outrageously massive rolls and nigiri. They also serve up some absolutely tiny pieces with each order to absolutely mess with the minds of anyone enjoying their treats. In the picture above, regular sushi has been included to give perspective to the other trays. You can watch a video of it at the link, but be warned the dialogue is in Japanese. Link Via InventorSpot

A Tron Cycle For Your Favorite Kiddo Posted: 25 Aug 2011 02:20 AM PDT This Tron Light Cycle scooter just might be the ultimate kid’s toy for those aspiring to raise their children with proper reverence for all things geek. I don’t know about you guys, but I wish I had one when I was a youngster. Unfortunately, it’s only a concept at this point, but let’s hope it moves in to production soon. Link Via Geeks Are Sexy

Renaissance Tortoise Is Ready For Battle Posted: 25 Aug 2011 02:13 AM PDT (Video Link) Angus here looks quite dashing in his kilt…like he could be the animal reincarnation of William Wallace. Via BuzzFeed

The Beef Jerky Potato Chip Posted: 25 Aug 2011 02:09 AM PDT Cherkees are beef jerky pieces with the texture of a potato chip.I’m honestly not sure if I should be terrified or excited by this concept because it’s so wrong, but it might just be the ultimate snack food. If you get a hold of them, let us know what they taste like. Link

Cats With Owl Faces Posted: 25 Aug 2011 02:04 AM PDT There are plenty of Photoshopped animal hybrids on the net, but BuzzFeed’s collection of cats with owl faces includes some pictures that look far more realistic than many of the rest. I don’t know about you, but these critters would certainly make awesome hunters. Link

Scientist And Artist Create Bulletproof Skin Out Of Woven Silk Posted: 25 Aug 2011 12:00 AM PDT Artists often come up with concepts and ideas that require help to reach the light of day, and whenever an artist teams up with a scientist the unlikely duo is most likely on the verge of making an incredible discovery. Case and point-the collaboration between Dutch artist Jalila Essaidi and Utah State researcher Randy Lewis has resulted in a bulletproof, skin-like material that has been fabricated from silk threads produced by a genetically modified silk worm. And the ultimate point of this exercise in left brain/right brain cooperation? To someday create a synthetic human skin and artificial tendons and ligaments. Read more on this fascinating development over at PhysOrg. Link

Portal Fan Film Is Quite Good Actually Posted: 24 Aug 2011 11:46 PM PDT (YouTube Link) When the term Fan Film is used to describe what you’re about to watch, you normally don’t expect much from the film or the maker.  This film, entitled Portal: No Escape is unlike any fan film i’ve ever seen, because it’s downright quality-looks good, well written, stylish and entertaining throughout.  No Escape should definitely raise the bar for future fan films, and I would love to see this film, and quality fan films like it, turned into YouTube mini series one day. Why is it that this short film rocks and most big budget video game movies are terrible? I guess Hollywood needs to hire more fans to help make their films! -via BoingBoing

Animated Sheet Music Posted: 24 Aug 2011 06:41 PM PDT (Video Link) This is a simple but remarkably soothing video. Dan Cohen took the sheet music for Miles Davis’s “So What” and animated it, one note at a time. -via Joe Carter | Dan Cohen’s Website

Trojan Deer Posted: 24 Aug 2011 06:24 PM PDT Kristie Carlisle Duncan, a MFA student at the Savannah College of Art and Design, came up with this whimsical sculpture. It’s a mechanical deer piloted by tiny chickens. Not real ones, of course. But if this contraption rolls up to your front door, don’t let it inside. Link -via @Christopher Jobson

Pileus Iridescent Cloud Posted: 24 Aug 2011 06:16 PM PDT Esther Havens snapped this marvelous shot in Ethiopia. NASA says that it’s a pileus iridescent cloud, which is “a group of water droplets that have a uniformly similar size and so together diffract different colors of sunlight by different amounts.” Translation: the sky gods are happy and demand fewer virgin sacrifices this year. Link -via Geekologie | Artist’s Website

Nyan Cat Theme on an Ocarina Posted: 24 Aug 2011 06:07 PM PDT (Video Link) YouTube user docjazz4 plays the ocarina well enough to keep up with the rapid tempo of Nyan Cat — but only for a minute and a half. Keep at it! We need to hear at least three hours of this music without interruption. -via Geekosystem

The Original Scarecrow Costume from The Wizard of Oz Posted: 24 Aug 2011 04:17 PM PDT Image: National Museum of American History Tomorrow is the 72nd anniversary of the U.S. debut of "The Wizard of Oz," and The Smithsonian Snapshot sent us details: On Aug. 25, 1939, “The Wizard of Oz” debuted in theaters nationwide. Ray Bolger wore this straw-stuffed patchwork costume as the Scarecrow, one of the friends who accompanied Dorothy to the Emerald City in the 1939 Technicolor film. Designed by Gilbert Adrian, MGM’s premier costume artist, the straw-stuffed clothing fit loosely enough so that Bolger could perform his comedic dance number, “If I Only Had a Brain.” Not shown in this photo is the most troublesome part of Bolger's scarecrow outfit—a rubber face mask designed to simulate burlap. Under the hot lights on the set, the mask was stifling and it frequently had to be replaced. The mask did not last for more than a day—Bolger went through more than 40 masks during the shooting of the movie. Gwendolyn R. Bolger, Bolger’s wife, donated this costume to the Smithsonian in 1987 with a spare bag of raffia to stuff the costume. This item is one of 137 million artifacts, works of art and specimens in the Smithsonian’s collection. It is on display at the National Museum of American History. Thanks Jessica Porter! See also: The Wizard of Oz items from the NeatoShop | Movie Trivia: The Wizard of Oz

Alien Invasion Glow-In-The-Dark Goo Posted: 24 Aug 2011 04:17 PM PDT Alien Invasion Glow-In-The-Dark Goo – $3.95 How do you make glow in the dark goo even more fantastic to play with? You package it in a jar shaped like a 55-gallon drum and add a little alien figurine.  Get your Alien Invasion Glow-In-The-Dark Goo at the NeatoShop. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more highly entertaining Cubicle Toys. Link

Swapping Children to End Tribal War in Vanuatu Posted: 24 Aug 2011 03:16 PM PDT Tribal chiefs in the remote Pacific island of Vanuatu has taken a drastic step based on a tradition that has not been invoked in 200 years: a children swap to end a long-running tribal war. Seth Kaurua, from the Vanuatu Council of Chiefs, said the feud between the two tribes had been going on for 27 years, but the chiefs had to step in when it turned violent and several people were injured. "The practice on Tanna for resolving a dispute, whenever it turns to violence, is that we have to use our traditional way. "One tribe gives away a child, female or male, to the other tribe and the other tribe has to do the same." The aim of the exchange was to "build a bridge between the two tribes and make the relationship stronger." Mr Kaurua acknowledged that the practice may raise eyebrows outside the Pacific, but said it was "a normal part of our traditional life" in Vanuatu. Do you agree with the ethics of swapping children (even if it's for the greater good of the tribes?) Link

Winking Grizzly Bear Posted: 24 Aug 2011 02:15 PM PDT Jill Greenberg, the photographer who became famous (or more famous) by taking photos of crying kids, has turned her attention to something a bit more meaty. Like bears, for instance. This one to the left is a winking grizzly bear named "Koda," which she photographed in Frazier Park, Kern, California. Check out the entire series here: Link (Photo: Jill Greenberg)

33 Awesome Hotel Rooms Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:37 PM PDT BuzzFeed has a great list of cool hotel rooms, and while most of them have stunning interiors, I have to say that this cow-shaped room is the one that really caught my attention. It’s apparently in Belgium, but I couldn’t find much else about it. Anyone care to fill me in? Link

6 Helpful Things Schools Made You Stop Doing Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:33 PM PDT I’m sure just about everyone reading this was yelled at at least once in school for chewing gum, doodling, day dreaming or fidgeting, but as it turns out, science says those behavoirs are actually beneficial to your ability to learn. Learn how over at Cracked. Link

South Korean Exam Village Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:33 PM PDT If you were like me and avoided studying at the library in college because it was too intense, then you wouldn’t want to visit Exam Ville in South Korea. There about twenty thousand people live and study for law school entrance exams, civil service tests and a variety of other tests. One poor guy has been there for five years repeatedly trying to get into law school. Link – via Geeks Are Sexy (Photo: Matt Douma/LA Times)

Amazing Sand Sculpture Pictures Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:24 PM PDT I don’t know about you guys, but I am fascinated by sand sculptures. It’s just amazing that people put so much time and effort into creating something beautiful but extremely temporary. That’s why these photos from the World Championship of Sand Sculpting are so great -it’s a way to actually make these works of art last forever. Link

7 Unethical, But Brilliant Experiments Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:19 PM PDT There is so much we have yet to learn about our own world and society, but while we are able to design experiments to answer some of these questions, ethics prevents us from performing them all. Wired has a great list of experiments that could teach us a whole lot about our world, but simply can’t be performed because they’re just plain wrong. Link

The Boring, Mundane Things We Do In Video Games Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:17 PM PDT I’ve noticed a bizarre trend recently that in video games often seemingly mundane tasks are required of the player. In fact  in some online games the entire point is to work in a store or restaurant. (Seriously.)  That’s why I was delighted to see this post on the boring things we do in video games. What happened to fighting dragons and saving princesses? What are some boring things in games that you have played? An increasing number of games task the player with reading emails, texts and the like. In the almost constantly connected world we live in, email has pervaded nearly everything and that includes video games. Deus Ex is potentially the most well-known of "read your email" games out there, and the most recent one is apparently no slouch in this department, but many games over the years have taken this page from Deus Ex's playbook. Notably, Assassin's Creed allowed Desmond to view email exchanges between those folks at Abstergo, Alpha Protocol had the player reading and responding to emails and even Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor had messages being sent between the player and the various NPCs. One might think that after reading so many emails outside of games, reading them while inside, and from fictional sources might grow tiring. And yet, here we are. Link

Googly Eye Shoes Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:14 PM PDT Remember the Googly eye dress we featured on Neatorama a while ago? Well, the question to what shoes go with that has finally been answered. Behold the Déjà Vu high heel shoes by Christian Louboutin!

Brokeback Seinfeld Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:13 PM PDT (Video Link) It’s a love story about nothing…and it might be one of the funniest parody videos I’ve seen in a very long time. Via BuzzFeed

George Lucas Makes More Changes To The Star Wars Films Posted: 24 Aug 2011 12:48 PM PDT Fans are excited that the complete Star Wars saga is coming out on Blu-ray. However there are some concerns as Lucas has indicated he will include “surprises.” Some of these may be technical upgrades of audio and visual elements, but some will be disappointed that the original theatrical versions will not be included as well. The updates include some basic tweaks. The frame size will be adjusted for The Phantom Menace; so you can get more of the movie on your screen. The transfer technology has gotten better since 1999, so the the image can transfer more completely. Color timing is fixed in the original trilogy, and visual mistakes and debris were removed. Finally, the audio files have been cleaned up for the original trilogy. Sounds have been equalized, especially for A New Hope.  I understand those sorts of changes and applaud them. They make for a better viewing experience, and George Lucas always wants to provide that. Link

Movie Titles in Movies: Part Deux Posted: 24 Aug 2011 12:31 PM PDT In a lot of films there is that moment where a character actually says the name of the movie. This can either be cool or lame depending on the context. Now here are 110 titles being said in the film in 159 seconds. Which is your favorite title being said in a movie? Link

Generation Vexed Posted: 24 Aug 2011 12:28 PM PDT We've got the baby boomers, Gen X, then Gen Y and The Millenials ... what do you call young people of today? Tiffany Hsu and Shan Li of The Los Angeles Times coined the term "Generation Vexed" and they may have a valid point: Fewer than half of Americans believe that the current generation will have a better life than the last, according to a Gallup poll this spring. It was the most pessimistic showing for that barometer in nearly three decades. Another poll, of Americans ages 18 to 29, found that three-quarters of them expect to delay a major life change or purchase because of economic factors. The survey — released last week, just before the Standard & Poor's downgrade of U.S. debt — was by the nonprofit Generation Opportunity, headed by Paul Conway. "There's a generation here being formed under the crucible of unemployment, debt and lack of economic chances," said Conway, who was chief of staff at the Labor Department during the George W. Bush administration. "They're just seeking an opportunity to get in the game." During the fight in Congress this summer over the debt ceiling, frustrated college students banded together to form a coalition called Do We Have a Deal Yet? John Glass, 21, was one of more than 100 student body presidents who signed a public letter produced by the group. "Our generation is going to take the brunt of the force of the debt crisis," said Glass, a government major at St. Lawrence University in New York. "It's going to mean fewer jobs, higher interest rates, more debt. "We'll have to sacrifice," he said. "This is a raw deal for our generation." Link (Photo: Don Bartletti/LA Times)

Facebook “Like” Buttons Now Illegal in German State Posted: 24 Aug 2011 12:06 PM PDT Is Facebook’s “like” button violating German privacy laws by providing the social network with information on state websites? According to government officials they are and have removed them from all state websites. Facebook says nein! Last Friday, Thilo Weichert, head of the data protection agency in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, ordered that all state institutions remove Facebook "Like" functionality from their websites. Embedded Facebook "Like" widgets apparently pass information from the website where they live to Facebook headquarters back in the states. This, according to Weichert, is in violation of German and European privacy law. Facebook, of course, disagrees. A Facebook spokesperson, who remained unnamed by company policy, admitted that Facebook headquarters does receive information, such as IP addresses, from users on pages with the Like widget. He also pointed out that the information is deleted within 90 days, a time period that matches up with industry standards. Link

Knit Your Own Mini Ninja Posted: 24 Aug 2011 10:49 AM PDT Knit Your Own Mini Ninja – $11.95 Have you always dreamed of knitting your own army of mini ninjas, but just didn’t know where to start? You need the Knit Your Own Mini Ninja from the NeatoShop. This fantastic kit includes: booklet yarn felt darning needle knitting needles needle & thread and toy stuffing This is a perfect set for a beginning knitter who longs to take over the world. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more hilarious Toys & Games! Link

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