Dorothy Wilding's portraits, especially those of the British Royal Family, are breathtaking. In fact, some of the photos she took of Queen Elizabeth II made their way onto Britain's postage stamps which were circulated between 1953 and 1967.
She also took many gorgeous portraits of other celebrities and famous people. Here is a collection of portraits she took of classic beauties between the 1920s and 1950s.
(Image credit: Dorothy Wilding/Vintages)
Let's face it, in many parts of the world, progress and development will come at a cost, whether it be in economic terms or in health and environmental terms. India's economy has been growing but with that is the increase in pollution as well.
But there are ways, argues Dean Spears, in which progress can happen without being detrimental to the environment and people's health. In his book, Air, he tackles the heart of that very issue.
As Spears shows, pollution is killing Indians, especially babies, and those it doesn’t kill it harms as seen in statistics on stunting and respiratory disease. Spears isn’t naive, however, he knows that manufacturing is also bringing tremendous benefits.
The issue, however, is that a lot of pollution in India comes from relatively low value activities like burning crops. Moreover, solar power in India is cost competitive with coal today, even before taking into account health benefits. Thus, the harms of pollution are tragic because they are unnecessary.
(Image credit: Marginal Revolution)
Egg & Chicken Hat Set for Kitty and Their Human
Halloween is right around the corner. Did you promise your feline overlord that you would dress in themed attire this year? Not to worry! The NeatoShop has you covered. We present to you the Egg & Chicken Hat Set for Kitty and Their Human from the NeatoShop. This claw-ver set features a egg hat for your cat and a chicken hat for you.
The Egg & Chickn Hat Set for Kitty and Their Human is an hen-trancing set and is purr-fect for you and egg-cellant fur-end. This costume set is truly paw-some!
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Apparel & Accessories. New items arriving all the time.
Don't forget to stop by the store to see our large selection of customizable apparel. We specialize in Curvy and Big and Tall. We carry baby 6 months all the way to 10 XL adult. We know that fun, fabulous, and cat loving people come in every size.
This Lady is helping @TrooperPesola slow drivers down on Finley Point. She’s running radar with her #SoloCup #FinleyPoint #SlowDown pic.twitter.com/zicvdRpCyc
— Timmy B (@timmyb48) August 18, 2019
Speeding down residential areas is a dangerous thing to do. You might end up crashing, or end up running over someone. This woman helps in preventing it by posting up on the narrow side of a road with her radar gun (which is, in actuality, is just a hair dryer).
Clever woman.
(Image Credit: Timmy B/ Twitter)
Synth pop became popular during the 1970s and later on, evolved into other forms like electropop, house music, and EDM. With its ambient beats and somewhat futuristic style, it gives one a chill vibe that kind of makes you want to dance.
One of the bands that focused their music on synth pop was Grauzone but they only lasted two years before they disbanded. In the short span that the they were together, they produced a popular synth pop classic called Eisbaer.
Grauzone are most famous for their amazing 1981 song “Eisbaer” (“Polar Bear”) which is an all time classic example of an early 80s new wave synthpop dancefloor magnet. “Eisbaer” made it to #12 in the German pop charts and #6 in Austria’s.
It’s one of those songs that you fall in love with before it’s halfway over. It’s something every working DJ needs in their repertoire. It is, I promise you, cannot fail dancefloor fodder.
(Image credit: Discogs)
A team from Science and Global Security put together a scenario of what could happen if a nuclear war broke out between the Russians and the US, starting with an attack on the NATO countries of Europe. The beginning is scary enough, but when the Americans get involved, we find out what a nuclear arsenal really is.
This four-minute audio-visual piece is based on independent assessments of current U.S. and Russian force postures, nuclear war plans, and nuclear weapons targets. It uses extensive data sets of the nuclear weapons currently deployed, weapon yields, and possible targets for particular weapons, as well as the order of battle estimating which weapons go to which targets in which order in which phase of the war to show the evolution of the nuclear conflict from tactical, to strategic to city-targeting phases.
The casualty count, estimated to be 90 million within just a few hours, does not include victims of radioactive fallout or lack of resources after the destruction. Read more about the simulation at the Science and Global Security website. -via Digg
Many people in history have tried to make connections between the climate and humans. Some of them were quite bizarre but then again, they didn't have the equipment or scientific instruments which we use to predict weather and make observations about trends and patterns in the climate. Here are some weird claims people made about the climate.
(Image credit: NASA/Unsplash)
Witnessing the calamities that are laying our world to waste can be heartbreaking and emotionally draining. It will take its toll on us and we will find ourselves not having enough energy and strength to take on the bigger issues we are facing like climate change.
But when the source of stress is the thing that bogs us down and keeps us discouraged, how then can we cope and find solutions to our problems? One way is to turn our emotional energy into a source of power.
Like a wind turbine taking in all of the wind—whether it passed over a manured field or a lavender meadow—all of these negative and positive emotions can be harnessed by our minds and expressed in positive, effective ways that help us take on climate conflict from a position of inner strength.
Even denial can be harnessed, if we take a little time to understand it with a compassionate lens.
We’ve come to know denial at its worst, the passive resignation we experience as wildfires spread and species disappear. Denial is also a powerful coping mechanism for releasing ourselves from the stress that comes with anger, grief, or overwhelm, with feeling like the problem is just too big. However, as clinical psychologist at Columbia University Wendy Greenspun is careful to point out, “the very thing that protects us also prevents us from taking action.”
She suggests that to break down our defense mechanism, we should connect with others and take on self-care strategies.
(Image credit: Mika Baumeister/Unsplash)
Learning to follow traffic rules and regulations isn't just so that you don't get caught violating them. It's for everyone's safety. But it wouldn't matter if somebody, who has no apprehension whatsoever about such rules, is given a license. That's the grievance driving instructors have with driving exams being used not just in Washington state, where people seem to find themselves having more road accidents when it rains, but also with the rest of America.
More collisions happen when roads are wet, the Washington State Patrol confirms. In particular, the first rain after it’s been dry for a while can bring all the leaked oils and fluids from cars to the surface, and it’s hard to get traction on a road that slick.
But if we’re being honest with ourselves, the answer might be simpler: We’re not that good at driving in the first place.
Bad behind-the-wheel behavior isn’t isolated to the Puget Sound region. Compared to the rest of the world, Americans are mediocre drivers at best, said Mark Hallenbeck, director of the Washington State Transportation Center at the University of Washington.
(Image credit: Ashwini Chaudhary/Unsplash)
This odd-looking installation of three concentric circles forming a wave-like pattern serves both an aesthetic and a practical purpose. The installation titled "Please Be Seated" was built by Paul Cocksedge and was designed to be a communal bench wherein people could lounge around the areas where the waves touch the ground.
Built in Finsbury Avenue Square alongside Make's Number One Broadgate office block in the City of London, Please Be Seated is made of three rings of benches that rise and fall in a wave-like pattern.
Each of the undulating forms – which increase in size and height from the smallest central element – are made from a steel structure topped with scaffolding planks.
"Every single aspect of this is tailored to its environment as well as the function it serves," said Cocksedge. "The curves raise up to create backrests and places to sit, as well as space for people to walk under, or pause and find some shade," he continued.
(Image credit: Broadgate/Mark Cocksedge)
China may be one of the largest countries in the world in terms of demographics but the situation might change in the next decades if it will not address the issue of its population. To be clear, the issue here is that China will have a long-term population decline which, experts say, could hamper its economic growth in the future.
Should fertility rates remain unchanged, then China could even shrink to 1.17 billion people by 2065, according to the China Academy of Social Sciences.
“From a theoretical point of view, the long-term population decline, especially when it is accompanied by a continuously aging population, is bound to cause very unfavorable social and economic consequences,” the report said.
(Image credit: Denys Nevozhai/Unsplash)
For the first time in 30 years, the LEGO group launches its very first brand campaign. The brand campaign, titled “Rebuild The World”, the toy company hopes to use their latest initiative to “help nurture the creative skills of the next generation”.
The global campaign was created by french agency BETC and features a live action-adventure film directed by multi-award winning collective traktor. It follows a rabbit being chased by a hunter with a bow and arrow, using LEGO creations to overcome a series of challenges.
The film is complete with surreal touches and a plethora of jokes only fans of the LEGO universe will understand. 2D-printed clothing, cars and trees look straight out of the box, and even the people bend their backs and rotate their heads right around, just like LEGO. Every character, animal and vehicle is based on an existing or past toy, so heads spin 360 degrees, everyday objects are outsized, and a boat can suddenly fly with a little help from a palm tree.
More details on DesignBoom.
(Video Credit: LEGO/ YouTube)
This is the PAPERorgan, the latest project of Wolfram Kampffmeyer, a German artist who loves to use paper to create cool products. This product is a fully functioning modular organ powered by an inflated balloon.
The instrument can run for approximately 40 seconds on one balloon’s-worth of air, and plays a range of notes depending on how each user chooses to tune and expand their organ. For paper organ aficionados, Kampffmeyer clarifies that he has spoken with fellow instrument designer Aliaksei Zholner (previously) to ensure that his design and commercial product are not derivative or competitive.
Kampffmeyer is currently building awareness for the product and will be funding production on Kickstarter. Follow along with the journey on Instagram and Facebook, and sign up for email updates on PAPERorgan’s website.
Cool!
(Video Credit: PAPERorgan/ Instagram)
Traveling is one of the most exhilarating activities one can do in their lifetime, for the joy of exploring new and different locations, along with the feeling of being free and away from your responsibilities from home. However, there are certain risks to this fun and rewarding activity, such as security threats, according to Adam Dean, a senior security specialist. When we travel, we are vulnerable to security threats, along with having little to no privacy, Dean elaborates.
So how can we protect our privacy while traveling? USA Today lists down some helpful tips to avoid having our privacy compromised:
What to do about cameras
If the rental comes with cameras, ensure they aren't in a sensitive area by conducting a careful sweep. Report anything suspicious to the host immediately – and if you don't like what you hear, leave.
What to do about data breaches
a hotel clerk sometimes asks for your name and then announces your room number after you've checked in. You're better off handing the employee your ID when he or she asks for your name and asking the employee to write your room number on a piece of paper. Why? Because there are other people in the lobby, and they could be listening.
"I’ve seen my entire credit card number on hotel receipts," O’Rourke says. "Just to be sure, never leave the customer copy behind. You can destroy it later, but keep it under your control until you do."
What to do about nosy seatmates
"Consider getting a privacy filter that covers your laptop or tablet," he says. "These screens let the user see the content on the screen from a front-on view, while anyone trying to view the content from the next seat over will see a black screen and nothing else."Josh McCormick, the vice president of operations for Mr. Electric, an electrical installation and repair services company.
More ways to enhance your privacy when you travel
• Don't broadcast your itinerary on social media. Wait until you return to start posting vacation photos.
• Get a virtual private network. "The No. 1 danger, when it comes to privacy, is public Wi-Fi hotspots," says Dimitar Dobrev, a director for VPNArea, a VPN provider. A VPN can protect you.
• If your laptop or any storage devices are reviewed at customs or appear to have been moved in your hotel room, you should assume that your drive has been copied, says Bruce McIndoe, founder of WorldAware, a travel risk management firm. "Only take the bare essentials when you are traveling," he advises. "A travel laptop stripped of any nonessential files is a good strategy. Keep your laptop locked up when you are leaving your room. Do not leave it or any electronic devices unattended."
image credit: via wikimedia commons
In 2006, an elephant only 5 months old was found all alone by Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (SWT) in Kenya. The organization decided to hand-raise this elephant, which they named Loijuk, until she was old enough to be released back to the wild.
Despite the many years that have passed, Loijuk still has a close bond with her rescuers. Every month, she returns to the sanctuary to visit. This month, however, is different: she surprised her human family with a newborn calf in tow.
It was clear the proud elephant mom couldn’t wait to show off her baby. The calf, who has since been named Lili, was only hours old — likely born only the night before.
Loijuk has never forgotten the kindness of those who helped her. She even invited Benjamin Kyalo, the head keeper, to have a special moment with her newborn calf.
“Benjamin was able to get close to Lili (who nestled into his legs), stroke her delicate newborn skin and breathe into her trunk, thereby letting her know who he was via his scent,” Rob Brandford, executive director of SWT, told The Dodo. “Elephants have an incredible memory and sense of smell and our keepers will often breathe into the orphans’ trunks so they can recognize who they are.”
Check out the video over at The Dodo.
(Image Credit: Sheldrick Wildlife Trust)
