David Tschumperlé's GREYCSTORATION is a very cool (and free) image processing algorithm.
Our algorithm can also be used to perform image inpainting. It consists in filling image regions specified by the user (through an inpainting mask image), by non-linear interpolation.
Sun pillar seems to be vertical rays of sunlight, but it's actually caused by falling ice crystals. This photo is taken by Jim Kirkpatrick & Brigitte Heiter-Kirkpatrick - see more at the always awesome Astronomy Picture of the Day.
The Koontz Coffee Pot was built by Bert Koontz in 1927 ... But with declining traffic on the Lincoln Highway, the Coffee Pot went from lunch stand, to Greyhound station, to seedy bar in the 1970s, to a diner which closed in the mid-1980s. It sat abandoned and deteriorating ... for many years.
Miraculously, Bert's great nephew (Dick Koontz), with assistance from Lincoln Highway supporters, arranged for the Pot to be relocated across the street at the Fairgrounds.
http://www.lhhc.org/content/subpag/pot.htm | Another Link
Way before email, during World War II there was v-mail or Victory Mail:
There was no real secret to the v-mail process; in fact it was simple, the soldiers wrote their letters on a form provided and it was then photographed onto microfilm which was simply flown to the USA. A reel of 16mm microfilm could contain 18,000 letters and in terms of bulk and weight the roll of film took up only a fraction of what 18,000 real letters would take. Upon arrival in the USA the letters were printed from the film and then posted onward to the addressee.
There's something fishy about that woman - turned out she's smuggling live fish!
"During the search customs officers became suspicious after hearing 'flipping' noises coming from the vicinity of her waist," the Australian Customs Service said in a press release. "An examination revealed 15 plastic water-filled bags holding fish allegedly concealed inside a purpose-built apron."
On display at the Takashimaya Department store in Tokyo: a $1.72 million Christmas cake:
A total of 223 diamonds including a 5-carat, heart-shaped stone adorn the double-layer, marzipan-coated fruitcake, designed by Tokyo-based sweets chef Jeong Hong-yong.
If you're trying to break into a convenience store, don't go through the ceiling:
"We all think back to Christmas and Santa Claus coming down the chimney. It doesn't work that way," said Assistant Chief Greg Hoggart, Orlando Fire Department. The man may be thinner than Santa Claus, though he's not quite as skillful.
The suspect was identified as 37-year-old Lonnie Shields. Firefighters think he may have been stuck for six hours. He's being treated for minor injuries at Orlando Regional Medical Center, after which he'll be charged with commercial burglary.
