Yes, there’s an Irish Baron who was once a steak-eating bodybuilding death metal fan. His name is Randal Plunkett, the 21st Baron of Dunsany. Initially, Plunkett had absolutely no interest in land, but he decided to turn over 300 hectares of his estate back to nature. This action is part of an environmental mission to recreate a vanished landscape in a swath of County Meath, 20 miles north-west of Dublin:

According to the UN, the world needs to rewild and restore an area the size of China to meet commitments on nature and the climate – but not everyone applauds Ireland’s pioneering effort. “You’d be surprised when you live in a castle how many times people think you’re an idiot,” says Plunkett, the 21st baron of Dunsany.

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Plunkett says vindication has come in multiple forms. Before, the estate had just three types of grass, now it has 23. “I didn’t do it, the birds did.” Trees regenerated and multiplied – oak, ash, beech, Scots pine and black poplar. “I see a lot of saplings growing that I haven’t planted.”

Lush, diverse vegetation attracted butterflies and other insects – “it’s like a buffet for them” – which drew more birds, including rarely seen woodpeckers, barn owls, red kites and sparrowhawks.

“I heard the call of a corncrake. I had to Google it to know what it was.” There have also been sightings of snipe and stoats and an unconfirmed report of red squirrels.

Image credit: Patrick Bolger

I wonder if it can turn back time. Google scientists claimed to have created a time crystal in a quantum computer! To be more specific, these experts claim to have used a quantum processor for a useful scientific application: to observe a genuine time crystal. Now before anyone rushes to the Google headquarters with demands to go back in time, time crystals are no less than a new ‘phase of matter:’

Understanding why time crystals are interesting requires a little bit of background in physics – particularly, knowledge of the second law of thermodynamics, which states that systems naturally tend to settle in a state known as "maximum entropy".  

To take an example: if you pour some milk into a coffee cup, the milk will eventually dissolve throughout the coffee, instead of sitting on the top, enabling the overall system to come to an equilibrium. This is because there are many more ways for the coffee to randomly spread throughout the coffee than there are for it to sit, in a more orderly fashion, at the top of the cup. 

This irresistible drive towards thermal equilibrium, as described in the second law of thermodynamics, is reflective of the fact that all things tend to move towards less useful, random states. As time goes on, systems inevitably degenerate into chaos and disorder – that is, entropy.

Time crystals, on the other hand, fail to settle in thermal equilibrium. Instead of slowly degenerating towards randomness, they get stuck in two high-energy configurations that they switch between – and this back-and-forth process can go on forever.  

Image credit: Nathan Dumlao (Unsplash) 

You may have seen ‘memory palaces’ being used by fictional characters in different TV shows or movies, with BBC’s Sherlock’s main character making use of his mind palace any chance he gets in the show. Memory palaces can exist outside of fiction, and we can build our own! These ‘special structures,’ alternatively called the Method of Loci, tap into our brain’s ability to store lots of location-based information. Popular Science details when and how we could build our personal memory palaces. Check the full piece here! 

Image credit: Valdemaras D. (Unsplash) 

Heraclitus, also known as the ‘Obscure,’ the ‘Riddler’ or the ‘Dark One,’ was one of the Greek philosophers that predated Socrates. The ‘Riddler’ has influenced Plato, Aristotle, Jung, Kafka, and so many others. His oddly dark nicknames came from the cryptic and often paradoxical nature of his work. Speaking of his work, the Herclitean philosophy believed that everything is constantly changing. The philosopher defended the unity of opposites (the idea that opposite things are identical), and was the first philosopher in Greece to use Logos in his theory to describe the cosmic order. To learn more about him, check the Collector’s full piece here! 

image credit: The British Museum

In an old yet charming video filmed during the 1990s, a king penguin can be seen trotting his way home to the fish market. This is LaLa, who left the cold regions of his home and ventured to a hot and humid town in Japan where he became a companion of a local resident. LaLa, as captured in the video, can be seen venturing to the local fish market with his penguin-shaped backpack every day: 

So, how did LaLa find himself in Japan? As the story goes, he was found trapped in a fishing net with an injured beak and wing. A fisherman discovered LaLa and kept him on the boat with him. When the man returned, he brought the bird to the Nishimoto family. They took care of his injuries and nursed him back to health. LaLa never left his caregivers, and so they built a refrigerated room for him under their house.

Years after the release of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, players still find some things that are fairly new or unknown to the player base. Reddit user RogueRequest2 has stumbled onto a quest they’ve never encountered before. For the record, RogueRequest2 has put over 600 hours into the RPG. Upon sharing their discovery with the Internet, the player base responded with complete surprise: 

"600+ hours, never encountered this troll before," wrote RogueRequest2 (via WeGotThisCovered). As you can see below, the meeting in question involves Geralt and a troll who likes to cook with various body parts.

It's hard to understand everything the troll is saying without subtitles, but I think the main takeaway is that he enjoys juicy elf heads in the same way you or I might chomp down on a fresh tomato. Lovely. 

While this encounter is clearly super rare, there are a few players who've stumbled across it. It's called Harassing A Troll, and is an unmarked secondary quest tucked away in a corner of Velen. It's easy for players to miss, given that it doesn't show up on the map at all.

"I guess I never explored over there for some reason," RogueRequest2 said. "I just keep finding stuff and it's pretty awesome."

Image Credit: CD Projekt RED

Mexican photographer and art director Felix Hernandez was commissioned by Audi Middle East to shoot images of their $40,000 Q2 crossover for Audi magazine. Hernandez, instead of shooting with the actual car, created a small-scale desert, roadway, and a 1/43 scale model of the Q2. This artistic choice does not come as a surprise, as the photographer is known for his miniature photography:  

Felix normally works with 1/18 scale models. This was the first time he was using a 1/43 model and he claims to have “learned a lot in the process.” A smaller model meant that he needed to make the car look full-sized against realistic-looking backdrops and sets. He used foam core, LEDs and sand paper to build the indoor roadway. For the desert, Felix used polvo fino powder mixed with water and moulded into miniature sand dunes.

Image credit: Felix Hernandez 

Japan created special kimonos to celebrate the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Through its Kimono Project, the county paid tribute to every country who competed in the recently-finished event. Every country was represented by a unique kimono and obi, so that means that Japan created 213 kimonos-- that’s a lot! The Kimono Project took six years to complete, and was led by designer and founder of Imagine One World (the organization who launched the project) Yoshimasa Takakura: 

Also included are "countries that Japan has diplomatic relations but without Olympic committees, including Niue and Vatican City," says Kimono Project spokeswoman Orie Shimizu.

The kimonos and obis are not on public display, as was initially planned, due to COVID-19 restrictions. However, they will be shown during Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan.

Shimizu confirmed that the full set for each country cost around ¥2 million ($18,300), consisting of the kimono, obi, and smaller accessories. They have all been handmade with traditional methods, each taking between one and two years to craft.

"We wanted to show that Japanese elaborate dyeing and weaving techniques are not just ancient art forms, but a living art that we still have today, with many artisans active throughout Japan," Shimizu says.

Image credit: SoraNews24

Wildlife camera crew Samulin Matkassa were holed up in a bear bind in Finland when they happened to witness a bear brawl. Two  bears showed up near the team and their hidden cameras. Samuli Kiiveri, Olli Pietilä, and Tuomas Manninen were only expecting a glimpse of a single bear, but their expectations were blown away by what they witnessed: 

Shortly after arriving on the scene, two of the large bears decided they didn’t like each other.

“Two of the bears were pretty much the same size and they started to roar very loudly to each other and moments later they engaged in a fierce brawl,” the crew says. “According to experts, they wouldn’t fight so brutally over food only. It is about the dominance of the area, because females prefer stronger males.”

Locals later told the crew that there had only been a single report of a bear fight of this magnitude in the wildlife area over the past decade and a half. Luckily for Samulin Matkassa, they were able to capture the rare sight with multiple cameras and from super close range.

“The whole scene, starting with the extremely loud roars followed up by a big fight, was an experience that left the whole film crew speechless and even confused for a while,” Samulin Matkassa says. “Truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

Image credit: Samulin Matkassa 

With every instance of mankind’s success in exploring the deep recesses of space comes another instance of failure or disaster. Since humans are traveling in uncharted territory, there is a big risk in attempting to explore with our limited knowledge. Long-time planning  could reduce the risks, but it is understandable that not everything will go according to plan. World Atlas lists ten of history’s worst disasters that happened as a result of mankind’s continuous study of space. Check the full list here. 

Image credit:  NASA 

Hawaii is a popular tourist destination. This is advantageous for locals, as it provides them a livelihood. However, because of tourists not sticking to the rules set by locals, they tend to damage popular sites. Social media posts that show visitors touching endangered Hawaiian monk seals, hiking on forbidden trails or going off designated paths are just few of the several instances of foreigners’ faux pass against locals: 

Some residents are taking matters into their own hands, using social media as a tool to try to divert tourists away from sensitive areas as well as to educate people how to responsibly visit and interact with the wildlife and other natural wonders in the islands.

“When tourists come to visit these places, leave the geotag unavailable,” advises Melissa Akoni, who has become well known for her efforts to promote the responsible use of Hawaii’s resources.

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The Honolulu Police Department said it issued more than 70 citations and made five arrests related to trespassers on the trail in the second half of June alone, Hawaii News Now reported.

“When it comes to Haiku Stairs, there is no middle ground,” Nathan Serota, a spokesman for the Department of Parks and Recreation, said in a telephone interview. “It’s illegal to go on the stairs. Period.”

Image credit: Civil Beat/2021

Get your shit turned into gold! A South Korean researcher has created a toilet that turns human waste into power. Where does the money come in, you ask? Well, it’s the bonus incentive. Every use of the special toilet scores you the currency developed by Urban and environmental engineering professor Cho Jae-weon. The virtual currency, called Ggool (‘honey”), can be used to buy items within Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST): 

The toilet first pumps your excrement into an underground tank, which means it uses less water right off the bat when compared to a traditional toilet. Microorganisms then break down the waste into methane, a usable source of energy.

In short, it’s a delightful new method of turning sewage into power.

“If we think out of the box, feces has precious value to make energy and manure,” inventor Cho Jae-weon, an urban and environmental engineering professor at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), told Reuters. “I have put this value into ecological circulation.”

The toilet could turn roughly a pound of solid human waste, the average amount a human poops in a day, into an impressive 50 liters of methane gas, according to Cho. That means it can generate half a kilowatt hour of electricity, enough to drive an electric car for three quarters of a mile.

Image Credit: Google Images|The Byte

He looks so happy! Animals, like humans, deserve to be spoiled on their birthdays, right? Especially if they reached a milestone in their life! Cornish Seal Sanctuary’s rescue seal Yulelogs celebrated his 32nd birthday with a giant ice cake filled with fish. Yulelogs’ birthday is a milestone for him, as male grey seals tend to only live around 25 years: 

Yulelogs was rescued back in 1989 as a tiny pup. The marine park that saved him eventually closed, and Yulelogs was released back into the wild.

"However, after such a long time in captivity, he had no idea how to feed himself and had become too used to humans," says the Cornish Seal Sanctuary on their website. "Three months after his release, Yulelogs was rescued by the RSPCA after receiving calls from concerned members of the public saying he had been chasing people with buckets on the beach, believing they contained fish."

Image credit: Cornish Seal Sanctuary 

The usual tourist destinations for reliving the wonders of the ancient world are Petra, Angkor Wat, and the Coliseum. God knows there’s a lot more areas to explore that could provide more and varying contexts to the ancient world! BBC’s Husna Haq dove deep in the question-and-answer site Quora to look for opinions on some of the most impressive ancient structures in the world. Check Haq’s list of some unknown wonders here! 

Image credit: Thinkstock

In a bid to bring in tourists, people from Gyoda, Japan create massive artworks in their rice fields every year. The tradition started in 2008, and they also managed to earn a Guinness World Record for creating the world's largest rice field artwork in 2015! The process in creating these beautiful images is a long and arduous process, as Roya News details: 

A design is selected early in the year, with planting happening around May. In 2019, the theme honoured the Rugby World Cup, hosted by Japan.

This year's image was intended to highlight Japan's cultural heritage, on the assumption that crowds of foreign visitors would be in the country for the Games.

"We wanted to show the Japanese arts of Ukiyoe (woodblock prints) and Kabuki (theatre) in a rice paddy field, which itself is also an important part of Japan's culture," Gyoda city official Shuhei Tagashira told AFP.

"We wanted to present Japan to the world."

It hasn't worked out that way, with foreign spectators barred and most Games events happening without even domestic fans allowed in the stands.

But on Friday, there were still people taking in the view from an observatory 50 metres up that offers a bird's eye view of the piece.

Image screenshot via Flipboard