I was quite blown away by the intricate details of Charles Clary's hand cut paper art. Design Milk recently caught up with him in this exclusive interview:

What do you enjoy most about working on these installations and why?

It’s pretty much a love/hate relationship with my work but I love everything about making my installations. Hate only comes in when I’ve spent 60 or more hours on one piece and it’s still not done. I mean each installation can have as many as 4000 individual cut sheets of paper, up to 30 panels, and over 14,000 spacers The whole process becomes very meditative, whether its cutting and sanding my supports, or spending days meticulously cutting paper, or cutting all the polystyrene spacers that go in between each layer everything takes so much time that I have to fall in love with it or I’d go crazy.

Link | Official website: Paper Extravaganza

(YouTube link)

The revolutionary movements of the Middle East, explained by the cast of the game Angry Birds in a retro-animation cartoon set to the tune of the Three Little Pigs. Does that make it all clear now? Of course, the real story isn't over yet. -via Buzzfeed

Shaun Sanders leads us through the different way US cities treat pedestrians, illustrated with pedestrian crossing signs. See the rest at Hipmunk Link -via Laughing Squid

(YouTube link)

In honor of Pixar's 25th anniversary, YouTube member NkMcDonalds put together a video montage of twelve feature films and 20 short subjects you know and love. -via Slashfilm

Previously: The Beauty of Pixar

A scientist in Russia, Vladimir Obryvkov of the Voronezh State University of Agriculture, found a stray five-eared cat and brought it home to his family.

The scientist, who has been studying animal anomalies for years, took the cat to X-ray its unusual ears but decided to take her home to his children.

Obryvkov said that the cat named Luntya also has big paws but her behavior does not differ from that of normal cats.

He also said that he wants to mate his new pet with a four-eared cat living in Vladivostok to create a new breed of these fluffy animals.

There may be a market for a breed with multiple ears, but who has time to scratch them all? Link -via Arbroath

We see “missing” and “found” posters all the time, but they usually are a source of sadness as a reminder that someone has lost a loved one or a pet. These nineteen posters featured on sidewalks around the globe are funny plays on the classic signs you’re used to seeing.

Cat Found

Is it just me or does this poster remind you of that old wives tale about the old woman who had a pet sewer rat and thought it was a dog? Image via Dig Your Own Grave

Possum Found

Here’s a great twist on the poster above. Image via Babyanimalz

Oregon Trail

Fans of the classic educational game are sure to recognize these types of options that come at a river (or street) crossing. Image by Jeff Wysaski, featured on his website Pleated Jeans

Have You Seen This Cat

I have to admit, this cat is pretty darn awesome. Anyone know what breed it is? Update: Thank you to Miss C and Sir P-S, who have pointed out it is a Pallas's Cat. Image created by Running Amok Zine via Lizzy Stewart [Flickr]

Egyptian Hieroglyphic Blocks - $49.95

Are ABC blocks too easy for your lil' genius? Worried that your tot is falling behind in Egyptology? Well, the NeatoShop to the rescue!

The Egyptian Hieroglyphic Blocks are a set of 28 carved wood blocks that will teach your kids ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic phonograms and the names of the Pharaos.

Perfect for your budding Egyptologist and regular toddlers who love to stack then knock things down: Link | More Alphabet Blocks | More fun Toy and Games

Killing ants is hard and dangerous work for wasps, so they've developed a rather clever method of getting rid of the pesky insect: they airdrop 'em. Julien Grangier of the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand discovered the strange behavior:

"The first surprise was to see that despite being 200 times smaller, the ants are able to hold their own by rushing at the wasps, spraying them with acid and biting them," Grangier said. "But the most amazing was to observe that wasps, apparently frustrated by having to compete with ants, will pick them up in their mandibles, fly off and drop them away from the food."

The researchers saw the involuntary ant flights 62 times at 20 different bait stations. The wasps didn't bother to take the ants far, usually dropping them only a few centimeters from the tuna. But that was enough. About 47 percent of the time, the discombobulated ants never made it back to the tuna. Even when the ants did make it back, the wasps beat them there 75 percent of the time.

Link

Looking for a new fridge? Your search is over as we've found the most perfect fridge ever manufactured by man. Behold, the Royal Wedding Fridge (they even got the right Prince):

The royal fridge and freezer, which is sold by GDHA, a U.K. distributor of GE appliances, features the more casual of the two official engagement pictures taken by photographer Mario Testino. The refrigerator is 5'9", which means you'd almost be looking at life-size versions of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Link - via J-Walk Blog

Remember Nick Pitera, the guy who sang the A Whole New World duet from Disney's Aladdin all by himself? Well, he's back with this: a one-man chorus singing a medley paying homage to a few of his Disney favorite films. And this time, he's got costumes!

Hit play or go to Link [YouTube]

Move over, Tiger Mothers, there's a new parental authority figure who offers a different idea of child-rearing than chaining your kids to the piano. Meet Alan Paul, who called himself Panda Dad:

During our first weeks in Beijing, we attended a talent show at our children’s British school and watched Chinese students ascend the stage and play Chopin etudes and Beethoven symphonies, while their Western counterparts ambled up and proudly played the ABCs under their flapping arms. It was enough to make anyone pause and ponder the way we are raising our kids.

But time in China also taught me that while some here view a Chinese education as the gold standard, many there are questioning the system, noting that it stifles creativity and innovation, two things the nation sorely needs. Further, having seen it in action, I have a strong aversion to hard-driving “Tiger” parenting, certain that is not a superior method if your goals are my goals: to raise independent, competent, confident adults.

Call me the Panda Dad; I am happy to parent with cuddliness, but not afraid to show some claw.

Link (Photo: George Lange)

Previously on Neatorama: Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior

Not happy with your life? Hang on, the best is yet to come ... if you live long enough, that is.

A new study revealed that the Golden age is when people achieve the peak of happiness:

A study published by the American National Academy of Sciences, based on a survey of 341,000 people, found that enjoyment of life dwindled throughout early adulthood but began an upward trend in the late forties, and continued to increase until reaching a peak at 85.

Andrew Steptoe, professor of psychology at University College London, said elderly people today benefit from better health and opportunities now than 30 years ago, adding that good health and a secure income were "very important" in old age. [...]

In addition, psychologists believe that in old age we become more selective with how we use our time, focusing more on doing things we enjoy and cutting out parts of life that make us unhappy.

Link

A pivotal moment in the history of Battleship board game was artfully commemorated by Tim Doyle in this limited print of The Sinking of The Milton Bradley: Link - via Popped Culture

Trivia for you: Milton Bradley, yes, the Milton Bradley who started the game company that bears his name today, invented what later became The Game of Life.

While you may not be able to understand exactly what they are saying, it's pretty easy to see they are commands regarding his voice volume.

Video link

Angelo Bramanti and Giuseppe Siracusa made this marvelous sculpture from vinyl records. Wouldn't it be cool to see portraits of musicians melted into their own records?

Looking around the artists' website, it would appear that they're fond of using old media storage formats to create works of art, such the skyline of Syracuse rendered in VHS cassettes.

Link | Artists' Website