Every year, the beautiful countryside around Nishikan ward, Niigata Precture, Japan holds the Wara Art Festival. Artists gather to carefully assemble huge, vibrant sculptures of animals made from straw wrapped around wooden frames. Colossal describes the origin of this captivating event:

Traditionally, the byproduct is used as livestock feed, for compost that revitalizes the soil, and to craft household goods like zori sandals, although farmers increasingly have found themselves with a surplus as agricultural technology and culture changes. This shift prompted a partnership between the people of the former Iwamuro Village, which is now Nishikan Ward, and Tokyo’s Musashino Art University (known colloquially as Musabi) in 2006. At the time, Department of Science of Design professor Shingo Miyajima suggested that the unused straw be used in a collaborative art project between the university and local farmers, resulting in the first Wara Art Festival in 2008.

Core 77 introduces us to the simple but ingenious Paddle Pump. It's a paddle that has a built-in pump so that maneuver your canoe while bailing out the water. Or, in the case of the above video, extract water from the leaky pontoons of a seaplane. New Atlas talked to the inventors about the origin of the idea:

"The inspiration was actually born from seaplanes," says John Hartz, who co-created the Paddle Pump along with its main inventor, Dan Dufault. "Seaplane floats are typically made of riveted aluminum and over time will leak, so part of the pre-flight is to pump out each float compartment. Paddles are also necessary equipment, because you can't motor all the way into the dock and there is no reverse. So this idea was an easy blend of both of those needs."

Nissin's iconic Cup Noodle dried ramen turns 50 this month. To celebrate, Nissin is selling sodas flavored like its most famous ramen flavors. Sora News 24 describes the how these ramen flavors translate into sweet soda:

As the names suggest, each flavour reproduces the flavour of its corresponding Cup Noodle, only in carbonated drink form. The Cup Noodle Soda is said to be a ginger ale-style soda that contains the aroma of salty sauce and pepper, while the Cup Noodle Seafood Soda uses a cream soda-style base with a “hidden” hint of seafood. The Cup Noodle Curry Soda is a cola-style soda finished with curry spices, and the Cup Noodle Chili Tomato Soda is a tomato-style soda with a refreshing tingle that gently stimulates the taste buds.

Question: should the ramen be paired with the corresponding soda, or should one mix them up?

Photo: Cup Noodle

(Nathan Olsen)

How do you know that the cantina that you're working in is a rough place? It's not that some guy gets his arm chopped off. It's that everyone treats it like a normal event and not a major crime.

It was stressful enough that even Doikk Na'ts, a Dorenian Beshniquel player in the Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes, slips and calls his elegant instrument from a more civilized age a "space clarinet."

-via Super Punch

You forgot that the Dungeons & Dragons game starts in two hours and you're the gamemaster. Sure, you could just toss some goblins at the players, but if you're going to have a village encounter in the countryside or even make a map, you'll need some placenames. VillageBot is here to help.

There are at least 18,804 village names in England. VillageBot will spit them out to you in helpful lists like this one:

That will do in a pinch. Now you can focus on pretending to have a plot for your players to ignore.

-via Nag on the Lake

Paleontologist Lisa Buckley is fascinated with birds. So in addition to her scientific research, she applies makeup to match the fashions of the world's most beautiful birds. Buckley calls her art "Bird Glamour".

Can you hold your beer? No, I am not asking if you can chug a brew and not throw up. I mean can you physically hold a full glass stein of beer with your arm fully extended in front of you? That's the task involved in the sport of steinholding. If you're good, then you can complete with the US Steinholding Association. The rules are rigorous. Takeout highlights the most important requirements:

If any amount of beer spills or drips off of the stein, the competitor is disqualified. (During outdoor competitions or humid conditions, judges should be sure to differentiate between dripping resulting from condensation or sweat, and dripping resulting from beer spillage.)

Athletic compression clothing is acceptable, however stiff or supportive clothing (such as a bench press shirt) may not be worn.

The thumb may not rest on top of the stein handle; it must rest on the other fingers.

Limited arching of the back is tolerable, however only minimal leaning is acceptable. In the vertical plane, the competitor’s elbow must never cross behind the front of the hips or the front of the ankle of either foot.

-via Dave Barry | Photo: US Steinholding Association

Taquille is a Peruvian island in Lake Titicaca. The 1,300 people who live there have some unique cultural traditions developed over centuries of semi-isolation from the mainland. One of those developed from knitting.

Both men and women knit, but men in particular knit woolen caps called chullos. The colors and patterns are codes that describe the wearer. Women evaluate potential mates based on the quality of their knitted chullos. BBC Travel interviewed residents about this practice:

According to Alejandro, the sign of good partner is one who can make a pin-tight chullo – one knitted so well that it is able to hold water over large distances when turned upside down. Would-be fathers-in-law often test the chullos of their daughters' potential husbands in this way. Alejandro proudly explained that his chullo could hold water for up to 30m without losing a single drop, and was impressive enough to attract his wife, Teodosia Marca Willy, 44 years ago.

"She saw good skills apparently in my chullo. I used to make a really good hat; I was a good knitter," he said.

The girls look for the best chullo. So if you're wearing a good hat, you've got more [chances] to get a girlfriend earlier and faster," added Juan, explaining that it's often a community spectacle when the father-in-law checks the knitting quality of would-be grooms. "[When] the father-in-law [pours] the water in the chullo, then the groom has to be able to show the water in the chullo to everyone that is gathering there. All the family gathered have to be able to see the water in the hat," he said.

-via Messy Nessy Chic | Photo: Inter-American Foundation

David Colhoun and a friend climbed a seemingly vertical slope on the Dark Shadows wall west of Las Vegas. They were using ropes and pitons and had reached about 275 feet above the ground when a free climber -- someone who uses just feet and hands -- asked if he could pass by. He had things to do and the slow-moving Colhoun was getting in his way.

Watch the nerve-wracking ascent of this incredibly brave and skilled man.

-via Twisted Sifter

Why do we men strive to accomplish great things? Why do we conquer obstacles and push ourselves to acts of daring-do?

To impress women, of course.

Bobby Sheldon, a single man in 1905 in the town of Skagway, Alaska, was no different. There were few ladies to go around, and so the competition was steep. Sheldon favored one lady who enjoyed rides in the horse-drawn buggy of a local doctor. Sheldon decided to outdo the doctor by building a car.

Sheldon had never seen a car in person before, but he had seen pictures in magazines. He assembled a functional car from locally available materials. Today, that car, pictured above, is in an antique car museum in Fairbanks. Sheldon accomplished much in his life, such as becoming Alaska's first road commissioner, but he never sufficiently impressed the object of his affections. Atlas Obscura shared the story:

“When he donated the car in 1931, one of the local reporters asked him ‘Mr. Sheldon, did you marry this girl?’ He said, ‘No, but three other fellows have since then,’” Vinton says, adding that the woman’s mother had told her to stay “‘away from Bobby. He’s a genius, but they’re only one step away from insanity’.”

Photo: Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum

It's not just a clever gimmick. At Kuma no Te -- Bear Paw -- in Osaka, Japan, customers are never required to have face-to-face or skin-to-skin contact with an employee. For people who find such sensory stimulation unpleasant, that's a strong selling point. Sora News 24 explains:

As it turns out, this style of service, where customers collect their orders from a hole in the wall, is ideal for staff as well. And for those wanting to work but unable to, due to mental health challenges and sensitivities connected to face-to-face contact, contactless services like these can open up all sorts of new opportunities for employment. [...]

With face-to-face contact being a stress trigger for a number of their clients, Mental Health came up with the brilliant idea of setting up a cafe where staff don’t have to see or be seen by customers. And the problem of skin-to-skin contact was also solved with fluffy bear gloves, which staff use to hand out drinks and sweets through the small opening in the wall.

Photo: PR Times

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Brodie Moss is an adventurer who enjoys kayaking on the open ocean. He's Australian, and is thus unafraid of any snake smaller than a telephone pole.

There really is nothing to worry about. The snake is trying to mate with him, not eat him. So it's okay.

-via Dave Barry

Does it sound like a suspiciously too Irish thing to do? The technique was actually pioneered by the ancient Romans. Trails paved with layers of wool erode slower than other materials and are more environmentally friendly than synthetics. The Irish Times talked to Bryan Fennell, a recreation official in northern (lower-case n) Ireland:

The process involves a layer of fleeces being placed under four layers of stone.

“Over the last few years, walking has exploded as a sport in Ireland,” explained Mr Fennell. He said some walkers instinctively avoid muddy areas and spread out over blanket bog, not realising the damage they do as a result.

“What we want to do is create defined tracks,” he added. [...]

“The beauty of this technique is that you can shear sheep on the side of a hill and put the fleece directly into the track because the wool needs no treatment.”

-via Marilyn Terrell | Photo: Bryan Fennell

Storm the dog is interested in both the weather and treats. He strolled across the set while Anthony Farnell of Global News reported on the weather in the Toronto area. Farnell kept on this game, though.

Don't be alarmed by the seemingly low temperatures. The broadcast is using Celsius, not Freedom Units. 20°C is quite comfortable.

-via Amanda Brennan

Some of the video from this afternoon's goings on in Little Albro Lake #dartmouth @chronicleherald pic.twitter.com/wvluxC9EMa

— Halifax NewsP.J. (@HNewspj) August 27, 2021

Content warning: foul language

Police in Halifax, Nova Scotia responded to a report of a robbery at a restaurant. They soon found that the suspect was attempting to flee by swimming across Little Albro Lake. Look at a map to see what an ingenious escape plan this might have been.

An official police boat soon arrived on the scene. But additional naval assets were necessary to trap the suspect. Police improvised with a paddleboat, a canoe, and a paddleboard that were at hand. They soon surrounded and captured the amphibious suspect.

-via Super Punch