With the current global situation, theme parks and other places like it have been forced to temporarily close their establishments. One such theme park is Walibi Holland in Biddinghuizen in the Netherlands. The fun, however, doesn’t stop in the place, as the theme park decided to offer their services to non-living things.
The park re-opened last May 25 with social distancing measures.
Watch the video over at CNN.
Cool!
(Image Credit: CNN)
When photographer Christian Spencer was taking pictures of the local wildlife in Itatiaia National Park in Brazil, he noticed something in the hummingbirds, particularly their wings. Apparently, their wings can bend light, much like how prisms work.
While observing the hummingbirds, Spencer noticed that if he shot them with the sun directly behind him, a prism-effect appeared on their wings, showcasing a full-range rainbow.
Spencer then took photos of these little creatures with the prism-effect in their wings, and these photos can be described as nothing short of being majestic.
Titled Winged Prism, this series of photographs by Christian Spencer shows nature’s mastery and perfection. Hummingbirds, known for the high speed in which they flap their wings, have always been a favorite for bird’s photographers. The small birds are also fast, being able to move from one spot to another at over 34 miles per hour (54.72 kilometers per hour).
Magnificent.
(Image Credit: Christian Spencer/ DesignBoom)
Melissa first met Oliver, a golden retriever, when he was still five years old, which was nine years ago. It was the day when Melissa moved into the neighborhood. Fast forward to this day, the now 14-year-old Oliver still visits Melissa’s house everyday, usually coming at around seven in the morning at the gate.
“He’s like a wandering old grandpa,” describes Melissa.
Oliver’s mother, Sue, has no problem with Oliver wandering around.
“From a puppy on, he’s just had this spirit where he’s wanted to kind of wander. And we’ve let him kind of do his thing because, at the end of the day, he always comes home,” says Sue.
More about this wholesome story over at The Dodo.
(Image Credit: The Dodo)
When Malaysian comedian Nigel Ng (previously), in his character named “Uncle Roger”, criticized the egg fried rice video from BBC Food, he made a follow-up video on his Instagram account, showing how to cook rice the Asian way. And the Asian way? Cooking rice with a rice cooker. “World War II is over, use technology!” he remarked.
Thanks to the power of modern technology, we can now cook the perfect rice through the use of rice cookers. But rice cookers aren’t as great before, and many Japanese companies have raced to invent the perfect rice cooker.
Know more about the history of rice cookers over at Atlas Obscura.
(Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Caroline Ewen was a serious cat lady in New York City. An original member of the Society to Befriend Domestic Animals, she worked to support a cat shelter and a nocturnal project to euthanize stray cats. But her claim to fame was that she kept between 80 and 180 cats in her own three-story brownstone home. The neighbors weren't happy at all, mainly due to the noise. They complained for years.
In August 1904, two of Caroline’s neighbors at 103 and 107 East 101st Street petitioned the Board of Health regarding the nightly concerts of 80 or more fat and sassy cats sheltered in the woman’s three-stone brownstone at 105 East 101st Street. “It is not that we object to Miss Ewan’s humane impulses in caring for all the stray and homeless felines of the neighborhood, but the noise of her pets is something wonderful,” the petitioners said. “It is enough to drive a strong man with a newly-signed pledge in the pocket to drink.”
According to petitioners Jacob Thorman and J. Kaplan, “There are bass cats and soprano cats, tenor cats and contraite cats, but there is no feline to drill them and make them sing in unison or harmony. I am fond of good music, but I do not consider eighty cats singing in eighty keys and eighty kinds of time good music.”
Ewen was forced to move elsewhere, but she continued to advocate for stray and unwanted cats for the rest of her life, and even after her death. Read about the devoted cat lady of East Harlem at The Hatching Cat. -via Strange Company
We are coming up on the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. The conclusion of the biggest event of the 20th century is celebrated on a specific day, which is different depending on where you are, but was actually a series of steps wrapping up the war. Still, the surrender of Japan on August 14, 1945, is a milestone we don't see in wars that have been waged since then. And you might be surprised at how much you don't know about how the war actually ended. For example,
6. The Soviet Union declared war on Japan less than a month before World War II ended.
At the Allies' Tehran Conference in November 1943, the Soviet Union had agreed to declare war on Japan three months after Germany's surrender to force an end to World War II while retaking occupied territory from Japan. That day came on August 8, 1945. About 1.6 million Soviet troops were swiftly dispatched to Japanese-occupied Manchuria (modern-day northeastern China). The USSR inflicted heavy losses during their engagements with Japanese forces in China, Korea, and the Kuril Islands.
You can't blame the Soviets for wanting a three-month breathing period -and it no doubt took most of that time to move troops across Eurasia. Read more about the many steps taken to officially end World War II at Mental Floss.
(Image credit: Office of the Chief Signal Officer collection)
If you cannot make up your mind what subject to make a film about, how about making a film about the struggle to decide? Or on the other hand, don't do that. Chico Jofilsan did just that, and the delightful animation that resulted ended up being strangely meta. -via Laughing Squid
What would be easier: adopting a new nomenclature in order to avoid spreadsheet errors or customizing MS Excel to accomplish the same?
Exactly. So, The Verge reports, that's what geneticists are doing:
“It’s really, really annoying,” Dezső Módos, a systems biologist at the Quadram Institute in the UK, told The Verge. Módos, whose job involves analyzing freshly sequenced genetic data, says Excel errors happen all the time, simply because the software is often the first thing to hand when scientists process numerical data. “It’s a widespread tool and if you are a bit computationally illiterate you will use it,” he says. “During my PhD studies I did as well!”
There’s no easy fix, either. Excel doesn’t offer the option to turn off this auto-formatting, and the only way to avoid it is to change the data type for individual columns. Even then, a scientist might fix their data but export it as a CSV file without saving the formatting. Or, another scientist might load the data without the correct formatting, changing gene symbols back into dates. The end result is that while knowledgeable Excel users can avoid this problem, it’s easy for mistakes to be introduced.
Therefore the HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee has created a new system that has resulted in 27 new gene names in the past year.
-via Marginal Revolution | Photo: Pixabay
Inspired by the great stories of Disney films, Isabelle Staub re-imagined non-human female characters as walking, talking, humans, losing fins and paws in the process. Staub is a remarkably skilled artist and her whole Instagram feed is worth exploring. The distinctive style of her women is captivating.
SCAF, a French street artist, makes images that, when viewed from just the right angle, pop out of two dimensions and into three. Many show magical animals that seem to come to life and interact with passersby who are daring or foolhardy enough to approach. It's an exciting, surreal world inside SCAF's head.
Sometimes we can’t decide what to wear in or outside our homes. When undecided, some people turn to astrology for guidance. While it isn’t scientifically proven, there’s no harm in following horoscopes! Did you know that your zodiac sign can influence your style? Nylon has the details:
Goxip, a fashion and beauty search platform, partnered with astrologer Francesca Oddie to uncover why certain signs gravitate toward certain trends.
"Your horoscope affects what you wear since your horoscope reflects and defines your tastes. It defines your psychology and is your DNA," said Oddie in an official statement, provided by Goxip. "It's just intrinsic to who you are and the way you make decisions. The best way in life to be fulfilled is to really, really live out the truth of your horoscope."
Goxip has also picked out the most popular trends best suited for each sign.
Check out what you should look for based on your zodiac sign here.
image via Nylon
With most of us working or studying at home, we tend to find other hobbies to keep us distracted from the current situation. Many people have started baking bread, until it escalated as a major trend. Stress baking actually has a lot of benefits, so if you’ve seen your friends bake more treats that you imagined, know that it’s also mentally good for them:
That’s why channelling your focus on one thing, otherwise known as mindfulness, can be a necessary break for both your brain and body.
Harvard Medical School says mindfulness “teaches people to live each moment as it unfolds. The idea is to focus attention on what is happening in the present and accept it without judgment.” Allow yourself the time to bake without a deadline. Slowly measure each ingredient and notice its texture, colour and smell. You should make baking about the journey, not the destination.
Check out more benefits of stress baking here.
image via wikimedia commons
Collecting vintage jewelry is a difficult task. The market for these prized jewels are enormous, and some people might not know what to actually buy for their personal collection. Some would ask consultants to help them build their collections and obtain some rare pieces. Forbes asked jewelry expert Jill Heller to give some tips on what to look out for:
Buying vintage jewelry is an investment that can take a lot of time and research. It’s an intimidating process for people who don’t know the ins and outs of the business, so that’s where a jewelry consultant like me steps in. I tell my clients what’s worth spending money on and what’s not, and I help them build the right collection. I’m also their connection to a network of vintage dealers all over the world who give me access to exclusive pieces that aren’t available to the public.
image via Forbes
If you hate wearing slippers at home but also hate going barefoot, you might want to consider an alternative: sock shoes. FitKicks is a pair of super durable socks made from water-resistant athletic material, and they give you all the slip-on comfort of wearing socks around your house, but with extra support and grip. This popular $20-footwear has over a thousand reviews, as Southern Living has more details:
In theory, thanks to a sturdy rubber sole, they can also be just as useful for those pursuing active ventures like yoga and kayaking as they are for when lounging about the house, ice cream bowl in hand.
One reviewer raves, “I have four pair already and have my eye on another pair…I don’t like wearing shoes I’ve worn outside the house inside the home. These can be easily washed, so they are perfect.” Another shopper on her fourth pair says, “They’re addicting!” Proceed with caution, folks.
image via Southern Living
Do current events in your life have you feeling like you could use a little more space? Well, we have the perfect pouch for you. The Space Bag will have you feeling like a star.
The Space Bag features drawings of Cassini, Kepler, Juno, and Tess. It is a wonderful way to keep mission essentials organized.
Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great items. New stuff arriving all the time.
Don't forget to also stop by the shop to see our large selection of customizable apparel and accessories. We specialize in curvy and Big and Tall sizes. We carry baby 6 months all the way to 10 XL shirts. We know that fun and fabulous people come in every size.
