Neatorama

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• Overwhelming Favorites Win Hot Dog Eating Contest
• Fish Sandals For Summer
• Guy Turns His Lawn Mower Into A Tank
• I Love the USA?
• Fight Scenes In Movies Broken Down
• Hilarious Software Fails
• Casinos Use Psychology To Make You Want To Play More
• A Brief History of Giant Rock, America's Most Bonkers Landmark
• 60+ Painting Prompts To Combat That Creative Block
• The Mississippi Town Where Elvis Tribute Artists Are Made
• Tocatta
• SciFiQ: A Program Which Was Used To Write Science Fiction Stories
• "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" as an Irish Pub Ballad
• The Existential Threat
• Will Smith, King of Fourth of July

Overwhelming Favorites Win Hot Dog Eating Contest Posted: 04 Jul 2020 03:11 PM PDT While many Independence Day festivities were cancelled this year, the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest went on, albeit without a live audience. To discourage onlookers, the location of the competition was kept under wraps. But the outcome was no surprise: Joey Chestnut won, and set a world record ...again. Joey Chestnut gobbled down 75 weiners and buns in 10 minutes to win his 13th title. Somewhere around the 8-minute mark, Chestnut made history by eating his 1,000th career dog. The Coney Island tradition allowed betting this year. The coronavirus crisis forced some changes, too. Spectators weren't allowed to watch in person. Competitors were separated by clear barriers. And the people bringing them fresh supplies wore masks. Miki Sudo won her seventh title in the women's division, downing 48.5 hot dogs, also a world record. Will anyone ever out-eat these two champions? Chestnut's most serious rival, Matt Stonie, who won the title in 2015, couldn't attend due to coronavirus travel restrictions in California. The lopsided competition affected the betting odds, with Chestnut going in as a -1000 favorite, and Sudo's odds were at -500.

Fish Sandals For Summer Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:10 PM PDT Just when you thought that this year couldn't get any crazier, here comes a fashion trend this summer that would surely drive you nuts and make you feel disappointed, frustrated, and angry: fish sandals… and people are loving it! Are these even comfortable to wear? I got to give it to the person who thought of this, however. He or she is… creative. Check out the photos of people wearing it over at Sad And Useless. (Image Credit: Sad And Useless)

Guy Turns His Lawn Mower Into A Tank Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:10 PM PDT You may feel that mowing your lawn is a chore, and let's face it: it really is a chore. But maybe there's a way to not make lawn mowing feel like a chore, but instead something to look forward to. This guy may just have found a way to do just that. Using his carpentry skills, Jason Hibbs from Bourbon Moth Woodworking transformed his dull lawn mower into a cool tank. And now, not only can this mower-turned-panzer cut grass, it can also shoot potatoes from its potato cannon! Lawn mowing has never been this exciting! You can watch his full video on how he created this over at his YouTube channel. He also has a short version if you can't watch the whole thing. Via Gizmodo (Image Credit: Bourbon Moth Woodworking/ YouTube)

I Love the USA? Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:10 PM PDT A woman named Angie Remsen has found a T-Shirt in Thailand that states its love for the United States of America. The design drawn inside the heart, however, does not bear the likeness of the American flag. But maybe the shirt wants to tell us something else, like "The United Kingdom loves the USA", or something of the sort, but what are your thoughts about this one? (Image Credit: Angie Remsen/ Engrish.com)

Fight Scenes In Movies Broken Down Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:10 PM PDT Fight scenes are one of the major elements in action films, and they just might be one of the most difficult things to get right in the movie. Everyone on the set should cooperate — the actors, the directors, the cameramen, the crew, and the stuntmen. The result of these people working in harmony is a beautiful fight choreography. Actor and martial artist Scott Adkins breaks down fight scenes from different films (some of which he had participated in). Which of these scenes hurt a lot? And which of these hurt a little? Which actors hold back their punches and kicks, and which do not?  Answers on this YouTube video made by GQ Sports. (Image Credit: GQ Sports/ YouTube)

Hilarious Software Fails Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:10 PM PDT Softwares and apps are by no means perfect, and so it wouldn't be surprising if, at some point in time, they fail to deliver what they promised. At other times, however, they deliver more than what you expect them to do. They unintentionally hurt your feelings sometimes as well. Bored Panda compiles photos of all of these instances. Check them out over at the site. (Image Credit: Bored Panda)

Casinos Use Psychology To Make You Want To Play More Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT Ever wonder why people can't stop gambling in casinos even when they're already losing everything? That's precisely because casinos were designed to make them want to play more. From the dark environment that makes them lose a sense of time to the 'near miss effect,' which makes the player feel as if they are "almost winning" rather than losing, thus further compelling continued play -- everything's planned. Moreover: In most entertainment venues, you give your money away in return for some entertaining product or service—a book, a show, a drink, a meal, etc. In a casino, giving away your money is the entertainment. What it buys you is an internal, psychological event—a fantasy. You think you're getting a chance to win big. Considering the odds, however, you're actually paying for a chance to lose. Human beings are not very good at understanding and weighing odds. Once the odds are above zero, however slightly, they resonate in our minds as meaningful. The gambler's enthusiasm about the tiny odds of a win is akin to the anxious person's dread regarding the tiny odds of a calamity. Read more about the psychology of gambling at Psychology Today. Photo by Heather Gill on Unsplash

A Brief History of Giant Rock, America's Most Bonkers Landmark Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT There's a big rock in the Mojave desert in San Bernardino County, California, that has a peculiar story. Not because of its origins or geography, or even its official designation, because it doesn't have one, but because of Frank Critzer. It's called Giant Rock, because desert living requires many things, but wild flights of poetic fancy aren't one of them. It's not a very special rock. There's nothing particularly interesting about it. There's certainly nothing remarkable nearby, except for the time machine. It's not even that giant in the grand scheme of things. It's just a fairly big rock. Over the years, it's also been a family home, a center of pilgrimage, the scene of a bloody standoff, a potential rival to Las Vegas, and the galactic antenna for the wisdom of interdimensional aliens. A few years ago part of it cracked and fell off. Nobody seems sure why it did that. The giant rock doesn't have to explain itself. Altogether, Giant Rock, or actually Frank Critzer, is pretty intriguing, and you can read that story at Cracked. (Image credit: Tomwhite56)

60+ Painting Prompts To Combat That Creative Block Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT When it comes to painting and doing artworks, the first step is always hard to take. However, we won't improve without practice! Thankfully, My Modern Met compiled a list of 60+ fun painting ideas we can try. Here are some painting ideas inspired by real life: Your favorite coffee mug A prickly pear cactus Your furry friend A tranquil lake scene Your eye and eyebrow (try observing from real life) A leafy tree Your childhood home A piece of cloth draped over a chair Fluffy clouds A bouquet of flowers in a vase... Meanwhile, here's a few from their list of good painting ideas inspired by the imagination: A person with flowers growing from their head; Create an image inspired by your favorite song A majestic unicorn with a rainbow-colored mane; Create a self-portrait in a Cubist style Reimagine a scene from your favorite Disney film Imagine a dog could walk and talk like a human. What would they say and do? Create your own repeat pattern… … or mandala-inspired design A cat in a fancy hat Your dream home Try painting with your fingers What are you waiting for? Pick up your art materials and start painting now! Photos by Rifqi Ali Ridho and Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash

The Mississippi Town Where Elvis Tribute Artists Are Made Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT Embed from Getty Images Elvis is everywhere in Tupelo, Mississippi. The town was the birthplace and childhood home of Elvis Presley, and has embraced that designation in a big way. Businesses that were part of his life are protected from destruction because of their history. The town is a tourist destination and a pilgrimage site for Elvis fans. It's also the site of a qualifying event for the the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Competition, with the ultimate winner crowned every August in Memphis. The Tupelo competition is one of many, but it stands out.   Each June in Tupelo, an average of 15-20 ETAs work their best snarled lips, swiveled hips, and wide range of vocals to channel Mr. Presley, from his early years rocking high-collared jackets and black-and-white striped shirts to the Peacock, Blue Swirl, and American Eagle jumpsuits of the 1970s. While the usual line-up is all-male, women are welcome to compete. The winner is guaranteed advancement to the Ultimate ETA Contest in Memphis, and gets an additional perk: enrollment in Elvis Boot Camp, an intensive two-day training, run by Downtown Tupelo Main Street, that's specially designed for Tupelo winners. Not only does it prepare them for competing at Graceland but assures that, when they do, these representatives of Elvis' birthplace shine. COVID-19 forced organizers to hold the 2020 festival online, but Tupelo plans to welcome back competitors in 2021. "As far we know, Tupelo is the only pre-qualifier that offers such a service," Brangenberg says. "Nine of our 12 winners have either gone on to win the Ultimate in Memphis that same year, or a year or two after repping us. We like to think our boot camp helped." The system is like the Miss America pageant, in that when a local winner becomes a state winner, the experts and resources of that state work to prepare their winner for the national competition. Tupelo has a reputation to uphold. Read about Tupelo and its commitment to Elvis Tribute Artists at Atlas Obscura.

Tocatta Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor is illustrated perfectly with falling dishes, silverware, and food. This is not animated; as you can read about on the production page, Optical Arts really did drop and smash all those dishes, filming them with a high speed camera in order to get nice slow-motion footage. Then it was all edited together to perfectly match the music.  -via Metafilter

SciFiQ: A Program Which Was Used To Write Science Fiction Stories Posted: 04 Jul 2020 02:09 PM PDT Is the future of creative writing in the hands of AIs? A few years ago, Stephen Marche used an AI as an aid in writing a science fiction story. In an article, he recounted his journey on how a program called SciFiQ helped him write "Twinkle Twinkle" which he published in Wired. Our goal in that first experiment was modest: to see if algorithms could be an aid to creativity. Would the process make stories that were just generically consistent? Could an algorithm generate its own distinct style or narrative ideas? Would the resulting story be recognizable as science fiction at all? The answer to all these questions was yes. Using the same program, he's writing Krishna and Arjuna which is in its second iteration of the process. For this experiment, he has a narrower goal: For "Krishna and Arjuna," we narrowed the focus from science fiction to the subject of my immediate fascination: robots and artificial intelligence. And instead of providing the AI with my favorite robot stories, we gave it every great robot story ever written—many of which I have not read. This may seem like a technical detail, but it's huge. As a writer I usually read stories and internalize those influences; in this case I'd be submitting to the "influence" of material I'd never even seen.  According to him, the program has various features. For example, upon feeding the program's algorithm with various writings, it gave him a set of instructions on the story's plot. As he typed into its web-based interface, the program showed how many verbs, adjectives, and adverbs has been used compared to the criteria set by the writings that were fed into it. If the writing passed the criteria, it would turn into green. Aside from that, there are also word clouds summarizing common topics in the stories that were fed into the algorithm. Photos by Stephen Marche via MIT Technology Review

"The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" as an Irish Pub Ballad Posted: 03 Jul 2020 11:27 PM PDT It is a sad, mournful tale of a young Irish lad named Will who was taken from the land of his birth during the Great Potato Famine to a faraway land where he could begin anew. This is The Fresh Prince of Bel Air as sung by Stefan Murphy. Listen, drink a pint, and mourn a bygone age. -via Born in Space

The Existential Threat Posted: 03 Jul 2020 10:28 PM PDT "The Existential Threat" is a new song by Sparks, from their album A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip. It's about extreme psychological trauma, so of course they got Cyriak Harris to make the video. As you might guess, it's pure nightmare fuel. The lyrics are at the YouTube link. See more of Cyriak's work in our previous posts.

Will Smith, King of Fourth of July Posted: 03 Jul 2020 10:28 PM PDT Will Smith is a power player in Hollywood, a movie star with a long list of hit films on his resume, so it's hard to think of him as anything else. But those of us of a certain age remember that in 1990, he was a rapper who lucked into his own TV series. The trajectory of Smith's film career changed greatly in 1996, when the film Independence Day opened across the US on July 3rd. It showcased Smith's acting chops in a way that opened doors to all sorts of blockbuster roles to come.   As Vogue's Julia Felsenthal has pointed out, the irony of Smith's Hollywood coronation is that Emmerich had never considered his action-disaster spectacle to be star-driven. "One of the points we made was that we didn't want this to be a movie-star movie," the filmmaker said in 1996. "The movie was the star. We didn't need a movie star to make it more expensive. And it would complicate the marketing." And when crowds went in droves to see Independence Day, which premiered on July 3, 1996, the Will Smith they encountered wasn't radically different than the one on Fresh Prince. On paper, Steven Hiller was just another smartass with swagger, but Smith seemed more poised and grownup than the sitcom kid audiences knew. And unlike Smith's boisterous Bad Boys character, Hiller didn't come across as a self-conscious asshole — Independence Day was the first time Smith seemed fully comfortable on the big screen, imbuing Hiller with effortless charm and buoyancy. Smith relaxed, and so we did, too. Suddenly, he looked like a movie star, the thing he was always meant to be. Read about Will Smith's career and how Independence Day changed it at Mel magazine. -via Digg

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