(Image: Christian Science Monitor)

There's a town in eastern Turkey called Batman. It's located in a province named Batman. A river that flows through the province and near the town is called the Batman River.

Are the inhabitants die hard fans of Gotham City's caped crusader? No. A "batman" is an ancient unit of measurement equal to about 16.96 pounds. But the mayor of the city nonetheless accused Warner Bros. of ripping off the name of the town for the 2008 film The Dark Knight Rises. Nothing came of the accusation, especially because the town of Batman was called by a different name until 1957, long after Batman was an established comic book character. You can read more about the town and its strange name in Condé Nast Traveler.

-via Amusing Planet

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Danny Leon is a professional skateboarder in Madrid. He's 21 years old, but with the right makeup, he can look much older. In this promotional video for Red Bull, he's made to look about 80, then sent to a skatepark to try skateboarding for the first time.

He's cautious and slow at first. But then, to the amazement of the much younger skaters, he's incredibly skilled and dextrous. The video is in Spanish, but the scene is understandable even without a knowledge of that language.

Content warning: foul language (in English).

-via The Presurfer

At 8.8 centimeters (3.5 inches) from his top teeth to his bottom teeth, this man has the largest open mouth gape in the world. Bernt Schmidt of Wendlinger, Germany just took the Guinness World Record title away from American J.J. Bittner by a margin of 2 millimeters.

Congratulations, Mr. Schmidt! Now put your huge mouth to good use at the dinner table.

(Photo via Tonight I Bake Madness in a Birthday Cake)

(Photo via somethingwithanne)

(Photo via imgur)

Read and follow the instructions provided by the manufacturers of your clothing. They're usually correct. And even if they don't immediately apply to taking care of your clothes, the advice is still sound. Pandas are not for slapping.

22 Words rounded up 25 of the silliest washing instructions provided on clothing tags. Someone at these factories has a sense of humor.

Edit 7/8/15: More at funny clothing tags at Bored Panda.

High school students in Leonia, New Jersey noticed that eight ducklings had fallen into a storm drain. Their anxious and agitated mother stood nearby, unable to help. They summoned the police, who blocked off the flow of water, then reached down into the drain to scoop up the ducklings with a net. North Jersey reports:

To catch the remaining three, Garris said they called in Police Officer Erik Goodell, who at 6’6” and with “very long arms” was a natural for this unique rescue operation. The officers pried open the grate of the adjoining storm drain and used a cardboard box to block the entrance to the tunnel, said Garris.

After doing so, the officers were able to reach down and grab the last three ducklings, said Garris.

The officers then motioned the ducklings toward their mother, who had been hiding in some bushes during all the commotion, said Garris.

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-via Gifsboom

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Air conditioning: it's one of the greatest inventions in the history of humanity. This is especially true on a hot summer day.

When he rides with me, my dog likes to get as close as he can to an air vent. This dog, a black Labrador puppy, is experiencing that joy for the first time. He knows how to get the most out of it.

-via Tastefully Offensive

Why so shy? Don't hide behind your hand, even if it is so perfectly painted.

A friend of a redditor with an unrepeatable username painted Heath Ledger's Joker onto his hand. It's perfectly proportioned to serve as a mask. Later in the thread, he links to several other works by the same artist, most of which are painted sneakers.

It's a bowl of Cap'n Crunch cereal in the most literal sense possible. Amy of the sugar-packed and deep fried food blog Oh, Bite It! made this bowl out of Cap'n Crunch, marshmallows, and butter. It's pretty much Rice Krispie treats (except with Cap'n Crunch instead of Rice Krispies) molded into the shape of a bowl.

As a result, the entire meal, right down to the bowl, is edible. Amy fills hers with milk and Cap'n Crunch, but you could use it to eat pretty much any liquid at all. I suggest trying Taco Bell's Cap'n Crunch frosting balls mixed with chocolate milk.

(Photos: Claire Voon/Hyperallergic)

Sculptor Susanna Hesselberg titles her work When My Father Died It Was Like a Whole Library Had Burned Down.

The knowledge, experiences, and memories of a lifetime--enough to fill many volumes of books--vanish when a person takes his last breath. Hesselberg expresses this fact with haunting beauty in this unique sculpture. It is lined with books that descend into the ground, into darkness and the abode of the dead.

This is Hesselberg's contribution to this year's Sculpture by the Sea program in Aarhaus, Denmark. You can see other sculptures in the exhibit at Hyperallergic.

-via Colossal

Jon Almeda says that he's "a bit of an extremist." He used to make huge pieces on spinning pottery wheels. Now, he's gone all the way in the other direction. He uses tiny wheels to mold and sculpt clay pots using the traditional techniques, just scaled down very small. You can find more of his work on his Instagram page, including short videos in which Almeda demonstrates his production techniques.

-via Trenf

Leonardo Talarico, a designer from Italy, made this chair out of tofu. He dehydrated and then baked the tofu into hard shingles which remain stiff and solid even under heavy weight. It retains the natural colors of the source material. This chair would look nice in a modern home.

-via Lost at E Minor

(Image: KSL News)

From 1948-49, West Berlin was blockaded by the Soviet Union, which hoped to force the three Western occupying powers out of the city. In response, the air forces of the Western powers delivered essential supplies, including food and fuel, by air. The year-long Berlin Airlift kept West Berliners alive and free.

One of US Air Force pilots who participated in the deliveries was Lt. Gail Halvorsen. He wanted to provide some joy to the beleaguered children of West Berlin, so he began secretly dropping pieces of candy from tiny, handmade parachutes over the city, just before landing. Thus Halvorsen became known as the Candy Bomber.

That was 67 years ago. Halvorsen is now 92. He still flies now and then, including on Friday afternoon, when he dropped 1,000 chocolate bars on children in a park in Orem, Utah. 

The airdrop was made as part of a 3-day celebration for the Fourth of July. Halvorsen was a guest of honor at that celebration. When asked what the holiday means to him, Halvorsen replied, "The Fourth of July reminds me that if you want happiness in life, you serve others."

-via Popehat

What's all this doomsaying about libraries becoming obsolete? We know that libraries will thrive in the future because they're present in 23rd Century. In fact, Star Trek shows at least 3 librarians at work in the distant future.

In the original series episode "All Our Yesterdays," Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to a seemingly vacant planet orbiting a star about to go nova. They discover that they are in a library. Despite the desperate circumstances, the librarian, who introduces himself as Mr. Atoz, is ready to help them.

Lifelong character actor Ian Wolfe, who plays Mr. Atoz, does a remarkably good job of carrying out a reference interview under conditions of extreme stress. He is friendly, welcoming, an advocate for the utility of libraries, and maintains the confidentiality of his patrons.

Brooke Barker, an artist in Portland, Oregon, loves to draw and loves animals. She feels sorry for a lot of animals who lead a rough life. She illustrates those problems at Sad Animal Facts, which put an amusing spin on what our animal friends have to put up with.

(Photo: j0be)

He is imminently logical and fascinating. He's the interstellar man of mystery. He's Spock, the half human, half Vulcan science officer on board the USS Enterprise. Spock has inspired generations of trekkies to imitate him, including for cosplay. For example, here's Betty Page Spock by Madeline Masquerade next to Rosie the Riveter Kirk. Let's look at even more great Spock cosplays.