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2014/07/10

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Magnetic Magneto Helmet

Posted: 10 Jul 2014 04:00 AM PDT

Twins Alexandra and Evgenia made this marvelous X-Men helmet that gives a bit of realism to any Magneto cosplay. It's made of foam coated with glass fiber and putty. There are neodymium magnets embedded in the top.

The helmet may not block telepathy, but it could help you escape from prison if your guard has too much iron in his blood.

-via Crafting the Marvel Universe

How a Chemist Lights a Barbeque

Posted: 10 Jul 2014 03:00 AM PDT

YouTube Link

NurdRage is back with this video on how to light a fire in the grill in a big way. I doubt you'll try this at home, so I don't think the standard warning applies here. <Beavis voice>Fire! Fire!</Beavis voice>

Public Library Issues <i>Adventure Time</i> Library Cards

Posted: 10 Jul 2014 02:00 AM PDT

(Photo: Andrew Federspiel)

It's always adventure time when you have a library card! And with your library card barcode number on the back, you can access from your treehouse many digital resources from before the Mushroom War.

The Burbank Public Library of Burbank, California is celebrating its one hundredth anniversary. To mark the occasion, it's issuing library cards showing characters from popular children's television shows, including Regular Show and Dora the Explorer.

Hey, Ice King! We've already talked with you about searching for, uh, "princesses" on the public access computers! You're now banned from the building.

-via Super Punch

Do You Have What It Takes To Find This Hidden Swimming Pool in the Middle of a Desert?

Posted: 10 Jul 2014 01:00 AM PDT


Social Pool (2014) by Alfredo Barsuglia

It's nice to take a dip in the cold crisp water of a swimming pool when it's hot outside, so it's doubly nice to go swimming when you're in the middle of a desert. The trick is, you've got to find the hidden pool.

Austrian artist Alfredo Barsuglia constructed Social Pool, an eleven-by-five feet wide swimming pool in the Mojave desert in southern California, open to anybody to use provided that they can find it. The pool's location is guarded by secret GPS coordinate, and is locked when not in use (you can ask for the key as well as the GPS coordinate at the MAK Center for Art and Architecture in Los Angeles).


The Social Pool is covered and locked when not in use.

"It's really hard to find," Barsuglia said to LA Times, "There is no road. There is no fence. There is no sign. There is no trail. You just come on it. I'm sure some people won't find it."

Barsuglia created the Social Pool as an art installation about "the effort of people make to reach a luxury good." Swimming pools, said Barsuglia, is often a hallmark of wealth. "I'm interested in the way that these are often integrated into the architecture of a house. And, often, people will have a pool, but they don't even get into it. They just like to show that they have it. It shows they don't have to think about water."

Who'd make the trek into the Mojave desert just to find such a thing? Juliet Bennett Rylah of LAist made the journey and wrote about it:

There is something distinctly and uniquely pleasant about this pool. Maybe it's that you're entirely alone with just a couple close friends. There's no one to hear you and nothing to overhear. Maybe it's that there's an element of danger. You passed some abandoned trailers on your way—who's to say you won't run into Walter White or the villains of The Hills Have Eyes? What about snakes and scorpions? Or maybe it's the supposed lawlessness. You're not supposed to drink on Venice Beach or run around naked, but nobody really seemed to be policing Social Pool.


The key to the Social Pool

Rylah noted that it took two and a half hours to drive from the museum to the pool, and that she had to travel through a lot of open desert and unpaved road to reach the Social Pool.

Do you have what it takes to find this hidden pool in the middle of the desert?

Japanese Doctor Who

Posted: 10 Jul 2014 12:00 AM PDT

(YouTube link)

If this isn’t a genuine low-budget Japanese knockoff of Doctor Who, it’s an ingenious recreation of one. It’s got Cybermen (Power Rangers in black), a Dalek named Dalekor, some cheesy kung-fu moves, and the ultimate weapon: the Sonic Screw Sword! Every details screams 1970s, doesn’t it? But this is a modern video by British artist and filmmaker Joshua Kahan. Sure to be an instant classic. -via The Daily Dot

Viral Bikini Photo Shows a Woman Boldly Baring Her Colostomy Bag

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 11:00 PM PDT


(Photo: Bethany Townsend)

Bethany Townsend has had Crohn's Disease since the age of 3. When she was 11, she had 16 inches of her intestines taken out. 4 years ago, her intestines ruptured. She had an MRSA infection that almost killed her.

Now Townsend has to wear two colostomy bags. Her stool collects in these bags, which she must regularly empty and clean.

Some people who have had colostomies prefer to hide their medical appliances. They feel embarrassed by them. But Townsend is not one of those people. She explains that "Finally after three and a half years, I decided that my colostomy bags shouldn't control my life."

This past December, she took a vacation in Mexico with her husband. She didn't wear a bulky suit which concealed her colostomy bags, but a bikini. Her husband took a photo and posted it on Facebook. It's gone viral and encouraged other people to stop feeling embarrassed about their colostomies.

Tour Barcelona in "Flow Motion"

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 10:00 PM PDT

Vimeo Link

This fantastic video by photographer Rob Whitworth is what he calls a "flow motion" look at Barcelona, Spain. Whitworth says,

"In few other cities is it possible to walk from spectacular location to spectacular location. I had a fantastic time adventuring around Barcelona's winding streets making this film."

By Whitworth's own account, the video took him 363 hours of work, which involved 75 hours of logistics and travel, 31 hours of location scouting, 78 hours of shooting and 179 hours of post-production. He used 26014 RAW files, 817 gigabytes of data and four Nikon DSLRs.

Keep up with Whitworth at his website, on Facebook or on Twitter. 

"Human Props" Who Stay in Luxury Homes But Live Like Ghosts

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 09:00 PM PDT

(Photo: Tampa Bay Times)

The Mueller family consists of Bob and Dareda and their three grown sons. They used to live in a luxurious house and horse ranch in Missouri until the recession wiped them out. They still live in an opulent home. But it doesn't belong to them and they now work at a McDonald's. That's because in addition to flipping burgers, they are showhome managers.

The house they now live in is owned by a wealthy woman who wants to sell it. Her realtor wants the house always ready to be shown to prospective buyers.

The Muellers pay a mere $1,200 per month to rent this mansion. To get that rate, they have to keep the house in pristine condition, ready to be shown at a moment's notice. They also must be prepared to move out immediately if the house sells.

It's a demanding lifestyle because the realtor has specific and detailed standards for how everything in the home is arranged. Drew Harwell of the Tampa Bay Times reports:

When the Mueller family sits for dinner, the leftover broccoli and crepes are already wrapped in plastic, the kitchen is beyond spotless, and the rest of the home is so tucked-away tidy it looks like they just moved in. In a way, they have: Every inch of furnishing, every little trinket and votive candle, sits precisely as designers placed it five months ago. [...]

The home must remain meticulously cleaned and preserved: the temperature precisely pleasant, the mirrors crystalline clear. If a prospective buyer wants to see the home, they must quickly disappear. And when the home sells, they must be gone for good, off to the next perfect place.

Why does this market exist? Because a lived-in home sells faster than an empty home:

That they do everything an owner would do — sleeping, making memories, learning the home's quirks and secrets — imbues an otherwise-empty home with an unmistakable energy, say executives with Showhomes Tampa, the home-staging firm that moves them in. It also helps the homes sell faster, and for more money.

"They have to live a very different, very difficult life," said Kim Magnuson, a sales director. Added franchise owner Linda Saavedra, "The home managers act like human props … and (with buyers) it's like magic. It works phenomenally well."

A showhome manager can live in an opulent home for the same price as a much smaller apartment. But it can be hard to enjoy that house because everything that the manager does inside of it is regulated and inspected:

All surfaces must be regularly cleaned; weeds eradicated, car oil spots removed. Clothes in closets are to be organized by color, and contestable items — heavily religious books, personal photos — must be removed or neutralized. Every item has a rule, and everything must be exact: the rotation of pillows, the fold of towels, the positioning of toothbrushes. Even the stacks of novels casually left on the bookshelf are placed and angled with pinpoint detail.

Gatherings of more than 10 people require approval, and managers must always be prepared for surprises. Dareda has raced across town to get the home "show ready": lights on, soft music playing, Febreze Fluffy Vanilla subtly spritzed. She said, "You just think … by golly, we're going to just go do what it takes." A training manual states, "Our motto is 'A SHOWING IS NEVER REFUSED.' "

Now if you're asking yourself, "What did I just read?!" take comfort in that you're not alone.

Mummy Appears to Open and Close Her Eyes

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 08:00 PM PDT

Rosalia Lombardo died in 1920 just days before her second birthday. Her body was embalmed and interred in the Capuchin catacombs in Palermo, Italy. Rosalia became known as “Sleeping Beauty” because her well-preserved body has shown little sign of deterioration in the 94 years since she died. It was only five years ago that the secret formula that embalmer Alfredo Salafia used to preserve her corpse was discovered. Shortly afterward, her glass-topped coffin was placed inside a sealed glass enclosure containing nitrogen to prevent decay. What’s really strange is that she appears to open her eyes several times a day. Could Sleeping Beauty be ready to awaken after her 100 year sleep? Officials say there’s a perfectly logical explanation.

"It's an optical illusion produced by the light that filters through the side windows, which during the day is subject to change," Dario Piombino-Mascali, curator of the Capuchin Catacombs, said in a statement Thursday.

He noted the mummy was moved slightly and shifted to a horizontal position in a humidity-free glass coffin. The new position makes it easier see Rosalia's eyelids.

"They are not completely closed, and indeed they have never been," Piombino-Mascali said.

Another myth busted -I was under the impression that the catacombs were underground. Anyway, an article at io9 addesses the creepy phenomena of Rosalia’s eyes and the amazing embalming formula that has kept her looking so lifelike after all this time. -via Science Chamber of Horrors

Amazing Martial Artist Does a Quadruple-Target Spinning Kick

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 07:00 PM PDT


(Video Link)

This taekwondo practitioner jumps, spins 540 degrees, kicks 4 different targets, then lands.

I stomped on a spider last week. That skill scales up, so I could probably do this, too, right?

-via Geekologie

Diver Rescues Sea Turtle, Gets a Thanks

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 06:00 PM PDT

(YouTube link)

Off the coast of Mexico, a diver untangles a sea turtle from a hank of rope. Instead of making a quick escape, the turtle hangs around long enough to say his thanks and pose for the camera. -via Laughing Squid

Twisted Sifter's Top 50 Pictures of the Day for 2014

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 05:00 PM PDT


8. Follow the Leader
Image: Matt Hutton


The first half of 2014 has already blown by, and Twisted Sifter has selected the crème de la crème of their Pictures of the Day thus far.

Enjoy these spectacular images and see the rest at this post at the Sifter. 


41. Awestruck at the Aquarium
Image: Royce Hutain (dopplerizer on reddit) 

17. The Mast Walk
Photograph by Jeff Smallwood 


46. My Little Sanctuary
Image: Karen (jumbokedama on Flickr)

10. The 1920s Selfie
Image: The Byron Company via The Museum of the City of New York  

Death Star Meets Pixar

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 04:00 PM PDT

This seems to me to be a perfectly logical explanation of how the Death Star was able to stay in a stable low orbit despite not being completely built.  

The tattoo belongs to redditor mayflowers5, who is an avid Star Wars fan and says the movie Up is very meaningful to her. She was inspired by this artwork by Shane Parker. The ink was done by Kenny Brown at Jack Brown’s Tattoo Revival in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

-via Geeks Are Sexy

Pilot Buys Pizza for the Whole Plane

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 03:00 PM PDT


Image: Lori Marie Torres for 9News

Getting your plane delayed because of weather is not unusual, but this is: Frontier flight 719 from Washington, D.C. to Denver was diverted to southern Wyoming for a few hours because of bad weather. When his plane touched down in Cheyenne, pilot Gerhard Bradner was hungry and wanted to order some pizza. But instead of ordering just for himself, the pilot decided to order 50 pies from Dominos - enough to feed the whole plane - and paid for it out of his own pocket.

Asked why he did it, Captain Bradner said to KUSA-TV that it was his duty. "If the need arises you need to take care of your family; you need to take care of your passengers. They are my responsibility the moment they step on the aircraft until they get off the aircraft," said the pilot.

Bradner said that his coworkers had since nicknamed him "Pizza Guy." Read the full story over at KUSA-TV.

Swedish Children's Book Gets Murderous Rather Quickly

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 02:00 PM PDT

According to internet rumor, this photo shows two pages from a Swedish children's book consisting of animal photos. Is the assassin goat urging you to indulge in your darkest desires? No! According to this online dictionary, "get" means goat and "killing" means kid--as in a baby goat. So despite the Swedish proclivity for burning straw goats, you should put the chainsaw back down. 

-via Hilary Simmons

Tiny Birthday For A Tiny Hedgehog

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 01:00 PM PDT

(YouTube link)

Everything is perfectly miniaturized of this little hedgehog’s birthday party! He and his tiny hamster friends enjoy a tiny little layer cake with tiny little sprinkles on top. How tiny is it? They use poker chips for plates! This video is from the same folks who brought us Tiny Hamsters Eating Tiny Burritos. -via the Presurfer

Chip & Dale Salt and Pepper Shakers

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 12:00 PM PDT

Chip & Dale Salt and Pepper Shakers

Don't be afraid to expose who you really are with the Chip & Dale Salt and Pepper Shakers from the NeatoShop. This adorable ceramic set is shaped like your favorite handsome chipmunk duo and held together by magnets.  They perfect for Disney fans who aren't afraid to bare it all. Let the Chip & Dale Salt and Pepper Shakers dance their way into your heart. 

Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Salt & Pepper Shakers. 

Link

Giants of the Canine World

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 12:00 PM PDT

Image Credit: Flickr User Niq Scott

This article takes a look at the largest canine breeds in the world. Each breed mentioned can range from gentle giant to formidable force in hunting and guarding, particularly if trained as such. 


Image Credit Flickr User dbking

The Saint Bernard originates in the Swiss Alps, where it was used in mountain rescue operations. These dogs grow up to thirty-six inches in height.


Image Credit: Flickr User Claudio Genari

The English Mastiff is the biggest of all dogs in terms of mass and dimensions. The males of this breed can weigh up to two hundred and fifty pounds. It is regarded to be the oldest dog breed in the UK. 


Image Credit: Flickr user Laertes

The Great Dane's history is thought to go back thousands of years. Drawings on ancient Egyptian tombs as well as artifacts as old as 2000 BC resemble the Great Dane. These dogs have friendly temperaments and get along well with people and animals.  


 Image Credit: Flickr user Blackburn Photo

The Newfoundland has been used for water rescue due to their musculature and webbed feet. They have friendly dispositions and are loving pets.

Read about more canine giants here.  

Waves of Grain

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 11:00 AM PDT

(vimeo link)

The “grain” in the title refers to wood grain. The waves are how the grain moves as you penetrate the wood. To get this strata-cut animation, filmmaker Keith Skretch planed off one millimeter of wood between each frame. He was left with a room full of sawdust and a fascinating video. The music is "The Big Gundown" by Ennio Morricone. -via Digg

10 Villains And Evil Organizations Badly In Need Of A P.R. Makeover

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 10:00 AM PDT

Being a part of a villainous organization may seem like a glamorous lifestyle, when you're not getting shot at or punched in the face by the good guys, but the average citizen doesn't see the glamour and fame, they simply see a group which threatens their way of life.

Who can blame people for being wary when you name your group the Legion of Doom or the Masters of Evil? Maybe it's time for a public relations makeover, so people won't know what to expect from your evil organization until it's too late:

The nefarious baddies who made io9's list of 10 Villains and Evil Organizations That Badly Need P.R. Makeovers have been too busy subjugating humanity, battling the forces of good and simply doing what they do best, to consider how their image is affecting their success as a whole.

They need to take a lesson from successful villains such as Richard Nixon, Walter White and the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man- paint a pretty picture of yourself to the public, and don't let them see the real you until you've sunk your claws in deep enough to leave a mark!

20 Misconceptions About Sex

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 09:30 AM PDT

(YouTube link)

This week’s mental_floss video is guest-hosted by Dr. Aaron Carroll of the YouTube channel Healthcare Triage. It’s about sex, and he’ll be talking about penises, erections, orgasms, and other stuff that your boss might not want to hear, so consider this NSFW. It’s not at all prurient, though. -via mental_floss

A Mysterious Jellyfish Tank Lights This City Street at Night

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 09:00 AM PDT

Imagine the delight and wonder of the residents and passers by of a vacant building in Liverpool, England when its industrial, metal shutter opens at 10pm to uncover a softly glowing aquarium full of jellyfish, their ghostly forms setting the night alight as they expand and contract. 

This is a nightly occurrence in this abandoned structure in the historic Toxteth area of Liverpool. Everyone benefits who catches sight of the luminous blue tank amid the darkened street of this mostly residential district, but they are not the only ones enjoying its presence. 

The jellyfish tank is actually an art exhibit presented by Gazelli Art House every evening at 53 High Park Street from now until July 27th. Artists Walter Hugo & Zoniel created the concept, which purposely has not been advertised so that neighborhood residents will experience the installation without preconceived notions. The Gazelli Art House is also streaming live video of the installation, entitled “The Physical Possibility of Inspiring Imagination in the Mind of Somebody Living," in their gallery space in London. Via Colossal. 

Images Credit: Gazelli Art House 
 

 

 

<i>The Lord of the Rings</i> in 90 Seconds

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 08:30 AM PDT

(YouTube link)

Maybe you’ve thought about finally getting around to watching The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but those are three really long movies, even without the Hobbit prequels. In the time it takes to watch them all, you could write a dissertation. Or at least it seems that way. For you, Miss/Mr. Impatient, Mashable has created a TL;DW version of the movies condensed into 90 seconds. Oddly enough, outside of what happens to Sean Bean, which is to be expected, there are no spoilers in this video. -via HuffPo

Flea Market Tapestries Turned into Video Game Art

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 08:00 AM PDT

The cheap tapestries were pleasant enough and may have conveyed a tasteful ambiance in a home. But they were also boring. So Gauvain Manhattan added images from classic video games, including Street Fighter, Castlevania, Pokémon, and Duck Hunt.

They're even more fascinating if you see what these tapestries looked like before he went to work. For example, before:

After:

That's a definite improvement.

-via Technabob

Hedgehog at the Dentist

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 07:30 AM PDT

Redditor trauma__queen took her hedgehog for a dental exam. This may seem a bit strange to Americans who don’t keep hedgehogs as pets, but it sure is cute! Now everyone wants to be a hedgehog dentist, or at least a veterinarian who looks at hedgehog teeth and wears a Rolex watch. -via Metafilter

Did You Know That You Use only 10% of Your Brain?

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 07:00 AM PDT

(John McNamee/Pie Comic)

That's actually a myth. You use all of your brain. Well, I do, anyway. I won't speak for you.

What if this myth was applied to other organs of your body? Could you produce 10 times as much insulin if you concentrated on your pancreas? No.

You could probably limit yourself to using only 10% of your bladder, but you'd have to take frequent breaks and it would be awkward to explain your experiment to other people.

The Nightly News with Libby and Sarah

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 06:30 AM PDT

(YouTube link)

Libby and Sarah have some very important news, especially for those of you in Canada, where it’s winter and tornados and earthquakes are expected to erupt. Be sure to take your fridge!

I remember doing this exact thing with my brother when we were young. I was Huntley; he was Brinkley. Too bad we didn’t have digital video effects! Or actually, it’s a good thing that we didn’t have the capability of recording it at all. -via Buzzfeed

Qwocktwo Is A Clock Perfect for Typography Nerds

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 06:00 AM PDT

What time is it? Time for some great design inspiration! And here it is in the form of a clever typography-based clock. The face comes in two colors -natural rust and gold leafing and the face is removable so you can even change out the battery and set the time easily.

The clock spells out the time for the viewer in plain English (and other languages too)  in a variety of fun phrases like "A Quarter Past Ten" or "It Is Five O'Clock."

See more cool pictures and read more about the limited edition design at Homes and Hues: The Qlocktwo Tells Time In Style

What If Ingmar Bergman Directed The Flash?

Posted: 09 Jul 2014 05:30 AM PDT

(Video Link)

Ingmar Bergman was known for many things as a director, but directing superhero movies isn’t one of them, and it’s doubtful the master filmmaker would have even known what a superhero is when he was making seminal arthouse films such as The Seventh Seal and Scenes From A Marriage.

Still, his style does lend a certain sense of emotional depth and existential awareness to the genre, and if this parody short by Patrick H Willems entitled What If Ingmar Bergman Directed The Flash? is any indication a Bergman style film about The Flash wouldn’t be half bad, although it may leave poor Barry Allen seeking psychotherapy!

-Via The Mary Sue
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