Archive Category: Pictures

The Blackboard Blogger of Africa

Alfred Sirleaf is a blogger. Not just any blogger - no sir, Alfred is an analog blogger. He runs the "Daily News," a news hut in the middle of Monrovia, the capital of a Liberia, a country on the west coast of Africa. The lack of electricity doesn’t even faze him:

Alfred serves as a reminder to the rest of us, that simple is often better, just because it works. The lack of electricity never throws him off. The lack of funding means he’s creative in ways that he recruits people from around the city and country to report news to him. He uses his cell phone as the major point of connection between him and the 10,000 (he says) that read his blackboard daily.

Not all Liberians who read his news are literate, so he makes use of symbols. Whether it’s a UN or military helmet, a poster of a soccer player or a bottle of colored water to denote gas prices, he is determined to get the message out in any way that he can.

Link | A 2005 article on NYT on Alfred Sirleaf - via Onelargeprawn

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Would You Take a Vacation to Afghanistan?

The Buddhas of Bamyan, the City of Screams, the Minarets of Ghazni, the Blue Mosque - these are just some of the incredible sites of Afghanistan.  Astonishing lakes, ancient destroyed cities and breathtaking landscapes may persuade you to think a little differently about this war torn but still spectacular country.  Perhaps in ten years we will talk about our visits to Afghanistan as casually as we do our vacations to Florida.

Although it is not considered safe for tourists at the moment, many look forward to being able to visit Afghanistan in the near future. Why? Take a look at some of the remarkable places you would be able to visit and decide for yourself. Would you take a vacation to Afghanistan?

Link - via webphemera

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by taliesyn30.

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Green Roofs: Style + Sustainable = 17 Sweet Designs

Green roofs have become about more than just sustainable architecture - they have become new, long-unused canvasses for artistic expression and creative design.

This collection of green roof designs shows the possibilities of not only environmental architecture but of making something beautiful out of one of the most ubiquitous bare surfaces in the world - the roof - as we move into the future of sustainable design.

We’ve always thought we had roofs covered. They had to be barren, hostile places the rain and the wildlife slid from before they could do any damage. Nature had no place on our roofs. Except…we couldn’t have been more wrong. A green roof may required a little extra engineering behind the scenes, but it’s far better than its non-living counterparts for regulating house temperature, filtering out pollutants, scrubbing the surrounding air, controlling stormwater run-off, absorbing sound and many more factors that impact our quality of life. A green roof is a healthy roof.

link

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A Complete Photo Guide to Newcastle Including Amazing Abandoned Places

ILuvNUFC is prolific blogger on all kinds of odd and interesting things but his crown jewel is his photography site in which he has seemingly documented every last corner of Newcastle Upon Tyne - quite possibly the most any one person has photographed any one place on the web.

Some of his most compelling images are of deserted buildings in the area like St. Mary’s Asylum and the Cherry Knowle Hospital, which he has also catalogued extensively. Best of all, he includes a heckuvalot of juicy historical facts along with the images.

link

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How the Other Half Lives On: The Abandoned Halves of Paired Townhouses

Ever wonder what happens if a conjoined twin perishes while still attached to their sibling? In much the same way, Camilo Jose Vergaga explores the results of having one half of a building deserted while the other half remains inhabited.

In some cases, one half has undergone radical renovations and looks entirely different than its mate. In other cases, the old one has been cut from the new, leaving a lopsided half on its own. Sometimes the impacts cut deep as one half rots and and is filled with squatters while the other is maintained.

More than your typical urban decay images of abandoned places, this juxtaposition of occupied and unoccupied shows the stark before-and-after contrast - the then as well as the now, side by side in a way rarely seen.

In poor neighborhoods, when someone is taken to the hospital or otherwise leaves their home the neighbors and police tend not to watch out for the place in order to prevent problems. As the population of Camden continues to decrease these mismatched pairs only grow in number.

link

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Joel Scilley’s Audiowood Turntable

Joel Scilley of Audiowood combines his love of music and woodworking into an amazing work of art: behold his custom turntable "Barky" made from a raw-edged slice of log!

Check out the rest of his turntables: Link - via cribcandy

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Obama-Fingers Fried Chicken Tenders

Obamamania is a boon for businesses trying to cash in on the new President’s popularity - and while we opt to skip most of ‘em on Neatorama, I find this one fascinatingly irresistible to post: German frozen food company is marketing fried chicken tenders (with a tasty curry sauce) called "Obama Fingers."

Not wanting to miss the boat, a German food company has now gotten into the act. Sprehe, a company that has all manner of frozen delicacies on offer, has come up with a new product it calls "Obama Fingers." Far from being real digits, though, the "fingers" in question are "tender, juicy pieces of chicken breast, coated and fried," as the product packaging claims.

Fried chicken, in other words. With a curry dip.

"We noticed that American products and the American way of eating are trendy at the moment," Judith Witting, sales manager for Sprehe, told SPIEGEL ONLINE. "Americans are more relaxed. Not like us stiff Germans, like (Chancellor Angela) Merkel."

Charles Hawley of Spiegel Online has the story: Link - via Miss Cellania

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Holi: The Festival of Colors

Early March saw the annual spring Festival of Color, or Holi, in the Hindu world.  If you are a clean freak, then Holi may not be for you.  As part of the festival it is people’s religious duty to splatter, smatter and smother as many others as possible with colored paint and water.  As religious festivals go, this is one of the messier.

If you live in a large, multi-ethnic city virtually anywhere in the world it is a possibility that in the last week you have seen groups of people in parks merrily spattering each other with paint. While you might be excused for thinking that it is a new form of corporate team building - and what a great one that would be - you would be wrong. The throwing of multi-colored water and powder is in fact the popular Hindu spring Festival of Colors, also known as Holi.

Link - via webphemera

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by taliesyn30.

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7 Phenomenal Wonders of the Natural World

Mother Earth, although slowly deteriorating, still keeps on giving us beautiful pieces of art.

The list shows us that after all this time trying to create wonderful Obra Maestras, Mother Earth still beats us at making the most awe-inspiring creations. Doesn’t it make you feel bad for taking our environment for granted and polluting it continuously?

Blue holes are giant and sudden drops in underwater elevation that get their name from the dark and foreboding blue tone they exhibit when viewed from above in relationship to surrounding waters. They can be hundreds of feet deep and while divers are able to explore some of them they are largely devoid of oxygen that would support sea life due to poor water circulation - leaving them eerily empty. Some blue holes, however, contain ancient fossil remains that have been discovered, preserved in their depths.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by pax.

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Fire Rainbow

First thought: "Is this Photoshopped?"

The answer, my friends, is, "No."
Fire rainbows, scientifically known as circumhorizon arcs, can be seen during summer solstice when it is close to noon, around two handspans away from the sun.

The arc is produced by plate oriented crystals and is a close relation to the circumzenithal arc. Light rays enter the almost vertical crystal side faces and leave via the lower horizontal face (ray path 3-1). The refraction of the almost parallel sun’s rays through faces inclined at 90° produces pure, bright and well separated prismatic colours ~ purer than those of the rainbow. The colours are at their best when the crystal tilts are smallest. Large crystal tilts produce more pastel hues.

Link

(Photo: Marc Sorensen)

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by pax.

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Japanese Homeland Security Advisory System

Quick - who knows the US government’s current national threat level? (It’s been elevated or yellow for quite a while, with domestic and international flights being with high or orange).

Dan Piraro pointed out that Japan has a much more meaningful security advisory system, but apparently he forgot that we also have this: the Elmo Terror Alert Level

For more Bizarro, check out Dan’s website and blog.

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Underwater Panorama of the New Amedee Coral Reef

Ever wonder how a fish sees its environment? It’s probably pretty close to this panorama by Richard Chesher over at 360 Cities. Be sure to right click and select "stereographic projection" (it’s nearly 360 degree field of view all at the same time).

The photo really doesn’t do it justice - definitely check out the larger version here: Link - Thanks Jeffrey Martin!

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The Crate Sphere

For the Adelaide Fringe Festival, a team of artists known as the Crateman Crew created this Katamari-esque sphere of milk crates:

The crate sphere was designed to be rolled down the street as the final act in the parade. Comprising of 688 milk crates and being over 4.5 meters high, it had an estimated weight of over 700 kilograms. It was hoped that upon seeing us struggle with the beast, members of the audience would join in, and help us roll the sphere to a glorious end!

Unfortunately the reality was somewhat different.

Wooster Collective has what happened next: Link

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Cactus-Inspired Designs

Image: Fedrus

Artists and designers get inspiration from a lot of things - even plants. Take cactus for instance. Here’s a round-up of succulent designs inspired by cact (this one above is fit for your house guests that won’t leave!): Link - via Cribcandy

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Video Clips Made Into De-Motivational Posters

The Internet has provided us with some pretty memorable moments in online video over the years - some of them amazing, some ridiculous, and some downright silly. It’s about time that these moments are captured in the ever-popular form of de-motivational posters …

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by buzzdiggity.

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Ice Invaders

Did you spend a good portion of your childhood (and your allowance) playing video game blasting 2-dimensional aliens to smithereens? Well, here’s a fun "Ice Invaders" ice tray that brings back pleasant memory. The silicon tray freezes water into the shape of a retro alien ice cubes.

We’ve just gotten our shipment of the Ice Invaders for the Neatorama Online Store: Link - just $7.45 each.

Update: We’ve also gotten new inventory of the 2-Carat Cup and Fuzz - the Crime Scene Scarf (both which sold out in about a day last time!)

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New York in Black and White

This extensive collection of photographs of New York City starts at around 120 years ago and includes aerial mapping shots, news photos, and work by many acclaimed photographers. This picture shows Times Square as it was in 1922. Link -via the Presurfer

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Is That Abraham Lincoln?

A New York photography expert has unveiled what he believes is one of the last photographs of President Abraham Lincoln before he was assassinated in 1865.  Only 130 photographs of President Lincoln were ever taken, and before this discovery, none with him in front of the Executive Mansion.

The purported find came after Ulysses S. Grant VI, the great-great-grandson of the former president and Civil War general, recently spotted a tall figure in the background of a photograph of the White House in a family album. Keya Morgan, the collector and Lincoln aficionado who has since bought the photograph, helped identify the man as Lincoln.

The AP says Grant also discovered a handwritten note on the back of the photo that reads, “Lincoln in front of the White House.” It was apparently written by Gen. Grant’s youngest son.

The figure in the photo is very tall and bearded, although his facial features are obscured. Lincoln was 6-foot-4.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Geekazoid.

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Pet AT-AT

Photo: NickIsConfused [Flickr]

Photographer Nick Drummond has a neat Flickr photoset of ATilla, his "pet" AT-AT. The best thing about having your very own Star Wars All Terrain Armored Transport Walker? It’s easily house-trained, of course! Link - via Super Punch

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Shooting Prohibited Sign

Unfortunately, I’m sure that some idiot will see that as a challenge instead … - via Rue the Day and Miss Cellania

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Model-Morphosis

Fashion photographer Greg Kessler takes pictures of runway models before and after makeup. The Moment, the New York Times fashion blog, posts these together so you can slide back and forth from one image to the other. Scroll down at the site to see models from various fashion shows. Am I the only one who thinks they look better without makeup? Link -via Everlasting Blort

(image credit: Greg Kessler)

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Kite-Assisted Aerial Photography

Suspending a camera from a kite is not a new idea, but Charles C. Benton, professor of architecture at UC Berkeley has "taken it to new heights."   The equipment and techniques shown in this video are certainly too elaborate for the casual photographer, but many of the principles and the ideas involved may be adaptable for amateurs.

- via crainium

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Minnesotastan.

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Webcam “Angel” in a Cozumel Scuba Club

Neatorama reader Nick Schwartz sent us this intriguing account of an "angel" captured on a webcam from a scuba club in Cozumel, Mexico:

"One of my bookmarks is a scuba club in Cozumel - which I have never been, but I’m from Buffalo, NY and its nice to see something tropical once in a while. So point of all this being, I opened the app and saw what looks to be an angelic figure walking through the scuba club. I don’t have any program to zoom in on this image but it’s certainly something interesting. Some say angel. Some say a bunch of coincidences coming together at the moment I opened it. "

… and soon after, the "angel" was gone:

What do you think? Is it an angel or just Buzz Lightyear showing up for a little night dive? Thanks Nick!

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Living with Eskimos

Photo: Scarlett Hooft Graafland

Photographer Scarlett Hooft Graafland spent 4 months living with the Eskimos in the remotest part of north Canada and documented her experience in her photograph series "You Winter, let’s get divorced."

James Read of Don’t Panic Magazine has an engaging interview with Scarlett and a few photographs to boot:

Okay, and how about igloos? You made an igloo for one of your photos, right?

I learned some igloo building, yes. It’s beautiful how such a structure works and how peaceful it is to sit inside one. It’s a real shelter from the cold, and the sound insulation is intriguing too. I was surprised that you could do this with such thin blocks of ice.

For my project Lemonade Igloo, I made frozen blocks of orange lemonade, cast them in wooden boxes, and asked traditional Inuit men to build an igloo out of the blocks. It took a whole day – you have to glue all the pieces together with snow and water to make a strong structure out of it. A big job.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by JJA.

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Group Bridge Jumping

Photo: russos

There’s an odd fad taking off (jumping off?) in Russia: jumping off a bridge en masse after tethering yourself to a rope! For even more fun, wait till the train is passing by … Link - via kottke

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Past War and Present Peace: the Siege of Leningrad Then and Now

It was a terrible time and difficult for us to imagine, when people froze to death and cooked soups from their belts and wallpaper glue just to stay alive. So how do we put ourselves in their shoes and see into the past? One man has assembled a collection of disturbing images from those dark days and collaged them with colorful images from present times. The results are spectacular, stark and thought-provoking.

“The Siege of Leningrad, also known as The Leningrad Blockade was an unsuccessful military operation by the Axis (Nazi) powers to capture Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) during World War II. The siege lasted from September 9, 1941, to January 27, 1944, when a narrow land corridor to the city was established by the Soviets. The total lifting of the siege occurred on January 27, 1944. The Siege of Leningrad was one of the longest and most destructive sieges of major cities in modern history and it was the second most costly.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Urbanist.

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Craig’s Other List: Guerrilla Art Project With a Twist

Bizarre notices have been popping up on lampposts around Melbourne. On the surface they seem like legitimate notices you’d see on community noticeboards: items for sale, lost and found, and invitations to join groups with those who have similar interests. But once you start reading them, you realise that something is amiss. The item for sale is the lamppost the note is attached to (”Meet me at midnight. You may need a spade.”). The lost item is a sweatband. (Reward for its return? “We could go and see a movie. G or GA only.”) The found item is a free newspaper with a half-done crossword (”So you should be able to identify it”). Oh, and they are all signed off by someone named Craig.

Link, via westonculture

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by westonculture.

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Limestone Quarry Blasts by Naoya Hatakeyama

Photo: Naoya Hatakeyama

Japanese photographer Naoya Hatakeyama has been chronicling limestone operations since the early 1980’s.  In 1995, using remote controlled cameras, he started taking pictures of blasting operations used in limestone quarries.  The result is an awesome display of the power and destruction required for mining these materials.

Link - via geology

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Geekazoid.

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Venice From Above

Absolutely stunning pictures of Venice taken from the air. The ‘city of water’ is located in northern Italy, spanning 118 islands in the Venetian Lagoon. If I didn’t know these pictures were real, I’d assume I was looking at shots from a new videogame or a medieval version of Waterworld.

Link - via Diskursdisko

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by diskursdisko.

Update 3/5/09 by Alex - Fixed to point to original link

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Urban Camouflage

Urban camouflage is a hilarious performance art inspired by the military ghillie suit. Check out the artist’s attempt to blend in … in IKEA in Stockholm of all places!

(Don’t miss the video clips)

Link - via swiss-miss

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by JKirchartz.

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