How Much Sleep Do You Actually Need?

On average we sleep 24 years during our lifetime. Adults need between 7.5 and 8 hours of sleep per night. But many people can function with 6 hours of sleep, and there also some who need 9 hours or more. Sleep loss can take a toll on your health, energy and even your mood. Too much sleep isn't good either. Are you over or under sleeping?



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15 International Banknotes That Show Queen Elizabeth's Aging Process

image credit: Howard Lake

Queen Elizabeth II has, of course, been pictured on British currency for much of her reign, but she has also appeared on the money of various British Commonwealth states and Crown dependencies.

With such a long reign and so many nations issuing money with her image on it over the years, there are enough banknote portraits to construct a sort of aging timeline for the Queen.

The Most Liked Cereal In Every US State

Everyone has a favorite cereal they eat for breakfast or just as a snack. There are literally hundreds of different types of cereal to choose from. Entire aisles in the grocery store are devoted to the stuff. It seems as though no matter your taste, there's a cereal for you.

Movoto looked at Facebook data to figure out America's favorite cereal and this is what they came up with categorized by state.

(thanks Bryan)

Florida Keys Webcam Captures Sea Turtles Hatch

Using infrared lighting, a live-streaming, high-definition 'turtle webcam' positioned on a beach in the Florida Keys recorded the hatch of about 100 baby loggerhead sea turtles on Friday, July 25, just before 9 p.m.



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(thanks Cora)

Tiger Farming: Trading In Extinction

The tiger is an endangered species. Poaching for fur and body parts and destruction of habitat have simultaneously greatly reduced tiger populations in the wild. In the last 100 years, we have lost 97% of all wild tiger in the world. Instead of 100,000, as few as 3,000 live in the wild today.

With out of control breeding of captive tigers stimulating demand for their parts and products across Asia, do wild tigers stand a chance?

The Photography Of Jack Delano - The Man Who Colored The Forties

image credit: No known copyright restrictions

Jack Delano (1914-1997) was an American photographer. Delano was born as Jacob Ovcharov in Voroshilovka village in the Russian Empire and moved, with his parents and younger brother, to the United States in 1923.

Jack Delano's pictures of ordinary American life in the 1940s made him world famous as a photographer. He was also a trained musician, a composer, an illustrator and latterly a film and documentary maker.

The Ice Cream That Changes Colour As You Lick It

While some physicists may be working on string theory or quantum mechanics, Spanish physicist Manuel Linares from Barcelona has decided to turn his attention to something else entirely - ice cream. He has announced that he has invented a 'magical' ice cream that changes colour as you lick it.

Dubbed 'Xamaleón,' the ice creams tastes like a mix of fruits and was created during a cooking course attended by Mr Linares in Barcelona. The formula, which remains a secret, is made entirely from natural ingredients.

(thanks Cora)

Gánovce

Gánovce is the name of a village in Slovakia. Visual artist Taras Gesh filmed the village from different angles. He made sketches, took photos, recorded sounds and put them all together in this mesmerizing kaleidoscope.



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(via Everlasting Blort)

Poor Bob

(via Bad Newspaper)

Is Your Country A Cat Or A Dog Country?

We all know there are only two types of people in the world: cat people and dog people.

But data from market research firm Euromonitor suggest that these differences extend beyond individual preferences and to the realm of geopolitics: it turns out there are cat countries and dog countries, too.

Our Neighbor, Mr. Rogers

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Frederick Rogers (1928-2003) was an American educator, Presbyterian minister, songwriter, author, and television host. Rogers was most famous for creating and hosting Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, which featured his gentle, soft-spoken personality and directness to his audiences.

You may like it when clowns throw pies and slap each other in the face, but Fred Rogers was appalled. He thought TV could have a lot more to offer than pie fights and other silliness. So he moved to New York and got a job at NBC, working first as an associate producer and later as a director.

Cowtown Keeylocko

Ed Keeylocko's biological mother abandoned him on someone's doorstep. An African-American with red hair and swamp green eyes, Keeylocko grew up feeling different, a self-proclaimed minority of minorities.

What's a guy supposed to do when he feels like he doesn't belong anywhere? Well, when you're Ed Keeylocko, you build your own town. Cowtown Keeylocko is 40 miles southwest of Tucson, Arizona.



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(thanks Cora)

USB Squirming Tentacle

Show your love for Cthulhu with the USB Squirming Tentacle. Simply plug it into your USB port and it will fill your computer with unspeakable evils. Just kidding, it doesn't store any data.

The USB Squirming Tentacle will draw a small amount of power from your computer, enabling it to squirm and wiggle like an Elder God trying to escape your laptop.

25 Creative Buildings Around The World

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Architects in cities around the world are working hard to create unique designs to bring in tourism revenues to their city and attract attention to their work. Many people are taking notice of this trend, and looking to support it by taking trips to see such buildings in person.

Here is a list of 25 creative buildings from all over the world that quickly caught our attention with their interesting designs and just might be worth visiting.

Fuel Truck Sharp U-Turn

How to make a fast U-turn.



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(thanks Cora)

Mr. Phelan's Building

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The Phelan Building is a 11-story office building in the downtown shopping district of San Francisco, California. It has a triangular shape reminiscent of the Flatiron Building, with its tip at the meeting point of O'Farrell Street and Market Street. It is a San Francisco Designated Landmark.

The building was designed by William Curlett and built in 1908 by James D. Phelan on the place of the first, original Phelan Building, damaged by the 1906 earthquake and fire.

53 Surreal Places You Need to Visit Before You Die

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There are many places on Earth that look other-worldly. Some are just beautiful and some are weird. You might not believe your eyes, but here are 53 surreal places you need to visit before you die.

15 Unusual Starbucks Stores From Around The World

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For coffee lovers, Starbucks is a heaven on earth. This Seattle based coffee shop now has numerous chains across the globe and is probably the most visited one too. You may spot a Starbucks quite easily, especially with its distinctive green awnings and mermaid logo.

Then, there are theme restaurants that are becoming quite popular around the world. Starbucks has also taken the same route and it has opened its doors in quite unexpected locations, with unusual designs. Take a look at some of the unusual Starbucks stores existing around the world.

Baklava

Baklava is a sweet pastry made of layers of filo filled with chopped nuts and sweetened and held together with syrup or honey. The origin of baklava is hotly contested, but this restaurant in Gaziantep, Turkey has been making it since 1887.



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(thanks Cora)

China Creates Right-Angled Running Track

Sports officials in northeast China build a rectangular running track - with right angle corners - in order to ensure their stadium is ready for the visit of Communist Party leaders.

Stadium officials explained that their original track had once featured curves but said its rubber surface had become severely worn down from overuse. When senior Communist Party leaders recently announced plans for a last-minute visit to the stadium, a quick makeover suddenly became necessary. Painting right angles was faster than painting curves.

Mars Rover Opportunity Breaks Record For Miles Roamed

image credit NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Mars rover Opportunity has outdone itself by driving further than any other off-Earth vehicle in history. NASA announced that the 10-year-old rover hit 25 miles, which breaks the previous record set by the Soviet Union's Lunokhod 2 rover.

While often in the shadow of its popular sibling Curiosity, Opportunity has exceeded expectations by living on the inhospitable planet for more than 10 years. The rover landed on Mars in 2004 and has since been hard at work exploring the surface of the planet.

Locked Up

Locked Up is a video by Gabriel Grapperon and his third year's project at Supinfocom Arles.



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(thanks Cora)

Satanic Leaf-Tailed Gecko Wears The World's Most Unbelievable Camo

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The Satanic Leaf Tailed Gecko is a species of gecko indigenous to the island of Madagascar. It was first described in 1888 by George Albert Boulenger and is also known as the eyelash leaf tailed gecko or the fantastic leaf tailed gecko.

This masterfully camouflaged little lizard, with a leafy tail complete with missing chunks that look to have rotted away, is a testament to natural selection.

(via Neatorama)

British Piers

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The first British pier opened 200 years ago this month in Ryde, on the Isle of Wight. Photographer Simon Roberts spent three years documenting the country's remaining piers, which are now the subject of a fascinating touring exhibition on show at 11 coastal museums and galleries.

(via Everlasting Blort)

Inside San Franciso's Fire Department, Where Ladders Are Made by Hand

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San Francisco's Fire Department is one of the few left in the US that still uses wooden ladders. Each is made by hand at a dedicated workshop. Some have been in rotation for nearly a century. Hang on: Wouldn't a wooden ladder burn? Yes. They go up in flames.

(thanks Cora)

Colnago C60 Frame

Colnago is a manufacturer of high-end road-racing bicycles founded by Ernesto Colnago in 1954 near Milano in Cambiago, Italy. The hand built Colnago C60 is truly a masterpiece. Carbon star shaped tubes, lugs, keeping the ability to customize the ride.



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(thanks Cora)

Goat Reaches Fruit By Balancing On A Donkey

Now this is true friendship! A donkey allows his goat friend to balance on top of him while reaching for fruit in a tree.



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(thanks Cora)

Formula One Drivers Do Insanely Specific Exercises To Keep Death At Bay

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Try telling a Formula One driver that driving a car is for the fat and lazy. Despite the fact that they effectively earn a living by sitting in a car, the strength and endurance required of a F1 racer is pretty incredible.

There are lateral G-forces which can make the driver feel as though there is an extra 25 kg (or 55.12 lbs) on his neck. There are also longitudinal G-forces acting on the driver, plus additional forces from car acceleration and deceleration mid-drive. There's the extreme heat found in the F1 cockpit, especially at the hotter rounds of the championships, also puts a vast straight on the body. How do F1 drivers adapt to these conditions?

The Dandelion

Dandelions are native to Eurasia and North and South America. The name comes from French dent-de-lion, meaning 'lion's tooth.' This video about the dandelion is from the BBC's documentary series The Private Life of Plants.



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(thanks Cora)

Dewi The Dragon: Guardian Of Castle Harlech

image credit: Clive Roberts

Harlech Castle was constructed atop a spur of rock next to the Irish Sea by Edward I of England to seal his victory over Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the last sovereign Prince of Wales. Although the sea has retreated and no longer protects the castle a new guardian has recently arrived.

Where water once protected Harlech, now it is fire. Dewi the Dragon, resplendent in his scaly coat of steel, is the new sentinel of the still magnificent medieval castle and guards the town's inhabitants from harm.

Gentle Brain

Gentle Brain is an interactive piece about the fleeting nature of digital pleasures. Commissioned by the wonderful Etterstudio for MUDA, Museum for Digital Art, opening in Zurich in the late of 2014.

Rollie The Armadillo

Rollie, a southern three-banded armadillo, likes to play. This video was taken at the New Zoo and Adventure Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA.



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The Republic Of Kruševo: The Makedonium Monument

Kruševo is a town in Macedonia and home of the Makedonium. It was officially opened on August 2 of 1974, on the 30th anniversary of the Second Session of the Anti-fascist Assembly for the National Liberation of Macedonia.

The Makedonium occupies 12 acres and has the shape of a round dome with oval windows. The complex also consists of a plateau with series of sculptures named 'Breaking the Chains,' symbolizing freedom won in the liberation wars.

(thanks Juergen)

These Lego Creations Perfectly Represent Each Of The 50 United States

image credit Jeff Friesen

Jeff Friesen puts us all to shame with his fantastic Lego dioramas. Hailing from Nova Scotia, he started building Lego representations of U.S. states in 2013, using nothing but the Lego in his daughter's collection.

Hard work and a clever imagination resulted in an incredible project that contains all 50 states, each capturing a very defining aspect of the place's history, geography or culture.

(thanks Cora)

A Hamster And His Tiny House

No hamsters were harmed. He regulary likes to play in the dolls house and got lots of strokes for being such a good actor.



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(thanks Cora)

23 Creative Ways To Reuse Old Plastic Bottles

DIY recycling projects are always cool, especially when you can turn your trash into something new and useful. The PET plastic that most plastic beverage bottles are made of is a fairly useful material - it's resilient, flexible, transparent and food safe.

As such, there are probably countless applications for these bottles that will give them second lives. These 23 are a great place to start.

Malaysia Flight 17: The Unique Way The Dutch Mourn

For the past couple of days, a Dutch Hercules C-130 and an Australian Boeing C-17 have landed several times at Eindhoven Airport in the Netherlands with the remains of the people who were killed in the Malaysia Airlines crash.

On the news, you've probalby seen the thousands of people who jammed roadsides and overpasses, and the traffic that stopped along some highways. It's the way the Dutch population paid tribute to the solemn procession that rolled slowly to the city of Hilversum, where forensic experts were waiting to identify the remains.

Russell Shorto of Time Magazine describes why the Dutch mourn this way.

(thanks Michael)

How Gravity Makes Things Fall

Gravity is a natural phenomenon by which all physical bodies attract each other. It is most commonly recognized and experienced as the agent that gives weight to physical objects and causes physical objects to fall toward the ground when dropped from a height.



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(via Reality Carnival)

These Glorious Three-Wheeled Microcars

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Colored in all shades of a jelly bean, and looking like a retro-chick automotive candy, these lovely three-wheelers are a highly desirable catch for collectors today.

The early history of three-wheelers is no less illustrious and fascinating. After all, the very first automobile was a three-wheeler (Benz Patent Motorwagen in 1886).

11 Movie Titles That Became Part Of The Lexicon

image credit YouTube

It's no secret that our language patterns are influenced by the movies we watch. Movies are so influential, in fact, that a number of film titles have become part of the vocabulary even among people who haven't seen the movies in question.

Some of these terms didn't exist until the movies created them; others were already in the language but were popularized or got new definitions as film titles. In some cases, the movies themselves are unremarkable or forgotten, yet they live on in our daily conversations.

The Two Million Duck March

Jack Saranthat filmed this impressive footage of thousands of ducks blocking a rural road in Bang Len district, Nakhon Pathom Province, central Thailand. It's the ducks' routine going out with the owner searching for food in the paddy fields.



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(via PetsLady)

Goat Towers: An Idea Whose Time Has Come

image credit: Potjie

A set of towers, spread across the globe, have given goats the opportunity to make good on their evolutionary heritage and farmers a chance to leave an unforgettable impression on visitors. While we might be used to seeing goats grazing on a mostly two-dimensional pasture, the animals are not strangers to heights.

5 Spikiest Animals On Earth

image credit: Arthur Chapman

Spikes, spikes spikes... Here are some animals I bet you did not realise were equipped with such deadly weapons?

Naughty Nuns, Flatulent Monks, And Other Surprises Of Sacred Medieval Manuscripts

image credit Britsh Library

Flipping through an illustrated manuscript from the 13th century, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Jesus loved a good fart joke. Though we may still get a kick out of poop jokes, we aren't used to seeing them visualized in such lurid detail, and certainly not in holy books.

But in medieval Europe, before books were mass-produced and reading became a pastime for plebes, these lavish manuscripts were all the rage - if you could afford them. The educated elite hired artisans to craft these exquisitely detailed religious texts surrounded by all manner of illustrated commentary, known today as marginalia.

The Oystercatcher Catcher

This delightful animated story reveals that Pecker is no ordinary fedora-wearing private-eye.



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(thanks Cora)

The Inventor Of The High Five

image credit: Melanie Holtsman

The high five is ubiquitous. It's a gesture that permeates every social environment - the workplace, the bar, the middle school kickball field - and it seems to be appropriate in almost any situation.

Your friend got married? High five. You chugged an entire liter of IPA? High five. Since its inception, the hand-slapping maneuver has taken on multiple iterations and has never fallen out of style. But tracing the origins of the high five reveals a riveting, heroic, dark story that seems to be everything the joyous gesture is not.

10 Recent Archaeological Finds That Shed Light On Our Past

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Archaeological discoveries are constantly made, either on purpose or by accident. Some of these might be minor, yet others can reveal secrets about past civilizations and their way of life. And sometimes well just find a bunch of old poo and wine.'

Here are 10 recent archaeological finds that shed light on our past.

(via Neatorama)

Take A Look Over The Watchmakers' Shoulders

Plenty of tradition and handcraft combined with high-tech. That is Nomos Glashütte from Germany. Known for its watch models like Tangente, Orion and Zürich. This short film gives you a first impression of what they do at Nomos Glashütte.



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The Monastery Of Wadi Qelt

image credit: Michael Panse

Wadi Qelt is a rocky canyon located in the Judaean Desert in the West Bank, originating near Jerusalem and terminating near Jericho, near the Dead Sea. In this isolated and barren valley, a 4th-century monastery clings precariously to the rock walls.

Originally built around a cave, the monastery grew in the 5th century under Greek Orthodox when its most famous monk and namesake Gorgias of Koziba inhabited the place. The monastery was named St. George after the most famous monk who lived at the site - Gorgias of Koziba.

The Girl Without A Ring Finger

Josef Lee is a designer, illustrator, animator and writer from Singapore. He writes short stories called 'Bedtime Stories for Adults' (although kids are welcomed to read them too).

Take a look into the wonderful world of one of those short stories.
This one is called 'The Girl Without A Ring Finger.'

Josef Lee's webpage.

Terrifying Swarm Of Flies Shows Up On Weather Radar

image credit National Weather Service

Once a year, the bugs emerge - millions of them. Every summer, they swarm en masse around the banks of the Mississippi River. It's mating season for mayflies. There are so many of them, in fact, that they can show up on weather radar.

This radar picture from the evening of July 20 shows clouds of mayflies leaving the Upper Mississippi River in Wisconsin and taking to the air to breed.

Theremin: How Science Fiction Got Its Sound

Bill Hammack (the engineer guy) discusses the theremin, and how it lead to one of the music industry's most fundamental assets, the electronic synthesizer.



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Godzilla Gets Legless In Tokyo

image credit: Héctor García

Something monstrous is stirring in the heart of Tokyo. Godzilla! However, you don't have to worry too much about the future of this great Asian metropolis.

Even if this very cool twenty five foot replica of the movie monster were to spring to life, he wouldn't get very far. Someone forgot to give him legs.

The Micronation Of Ladonia In Sweden

image credit: Håkan Dahlström

Lars Vilks is a Swedish artist who taught himself how to paint and sculpt. In a grand artistic maneuver in 1980, he sculpted a giant, tower-like sculpture made of 75 tons of driftwood, which he called Nimis. As a companion, about a decade later he also built Arx, a sculpture made of stone.

When local authorities finally found it, they ordered it to be removed, as it imposed upon the nature reserve. After a lengthy court battle, Vilks did what any rational person would do in protest.

Chinese Video Mocking Kim Jong Un

A Chinese video mocking Kim Jong Un has sparked a protest from North Korea. The video shows Kim dancing and Kung-Fu fighting. North Korea asked Chins to stop the video from spreading but Beijng was unable to oblige.

Other world leaders also make appearances, including President Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.



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People In Their 90s Are Living Longer

Who would have guessed that?

(via Bad Newspaper)

Watch Lightning Strike In Real Time

Lightning is a powerful sudden flow of electricity accompanied by thunder that occurs during an electric storm. On Earth, the lightning frequency is approximately 40–50 times a second or nearly 1.4 billion flashes per year. On Blitzortung.org you can see lightning strike in real time. Each lightning strike is marked with a white expanding circle.

(thanks Cora)

World Records From The Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, an organisation of 53 member states that were mostly territories of the former British Empire.

Apart from many Olympic sports, the games also include some sports that are played mainly in Commonwealth countries, such as lawn bowls, and netball. Here's an infographic with world records and global statistics from the Commonwealth Games over the decades.

How To Cool A Warm Drink In 2 Minutes

Chill your drink quickly. Works great with Coke, soda, beer, cans and bottles. Perfect for the summer when you need to cool a room temperature drink really quickly. All you need is a bowl, ice, water and salt.



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12 Old Words That Survived By Getting Fossilized In Idioms

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English has changed a lot in the last several hundred years, and there are many words once used that we would no longer recognize today. For whatever reason, words were pronounced differently, or they became obsolete.

There are some old words, however, that are nearly obsolete, but we still recognize them because they were lucky enough to get stuck in set phrases that have lasted across the centuries. Here are 12 lucky words that survived by getting fossilized in idioms.

The World's Weirdest Plants

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The Starfish Flower (Stapelia variegata) from Africa looks like a brown and yellow starfish nesting in the sand. It also smells like a dead animal, as a result of which flies, thinking it's a lump of rotten meat, decide it is the perfect place to raise a family. As they lay their eggs on the surface, they inadvertently pollinate the flower at the same time.

Here is a list of the ten most peculiar plants and trees in the world.

Great Moments In Science (If Twitter Had Existed)

Twitter is the source of a great deal of modern news, and scientists are often encouraged to tweet about their research. So what if Twitter had been around during the times of historic scientific breakthroughs?

What if famous scientists were on Twitter, at the time of their greatest discoveries?

12 Uncommon Punctuation Marks You Should Start Using Right Now

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Your writing doesn't need the same tired punctuation marks. Inject a little bit of personalty into your writing with these uncommonly used punctuation marks. Or, actually, don't because you can't get them on a normal keyboard. Many of the designs were proposed by French writer Hervé Bazin in his 1996 essay 'Plumons l’Oiseau.'

Leave a mark on your writing with these wacky alternatives. Change your writing, change your life.

saVoir

Simon Gerbaud is a Frenchman living in Mexico since 2005. He's an illustrator and animator and a few years ago he started experimenting with common objects.

saVoir is an interactive installation made up of screens, computers and sensors where the audience can use the functions of their bodeis to create videos.



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Iconic Cars From Film And Television

A fun infographic showing original illustrations of some of the most iconic vehicles from movies and television shows.

Top 10 Heists And Robberies

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When it comes to the amount of sheer planning, creativity, and outright lunacy that goes into them, few crimes rival the high profile, multi-million dollar heist. And when you consider the colorful characters and criminal masterminds behind these robberies, it's easy why these crimes continue to be the subject of constant speculation and fascination.

Whether the work of teams of highly trained thieves, lowly bank managers, or even a powerful dictator, here are ten of the biggest and most bizarre heists and burglaries in history.

Kaiser Mustache Trainer

A 1901 advertisement for the Kaiser Mustache Trainer. It'll turn your sour soup strainer into a military style mustache.

(thanks Cora)

Who Or What Left This 60,000-Ton Ancient Artifact Under The Sea?

Put on your tin-foil hats and special anti-Illuminati underwear. A recently discovered mysterious ancient rock structure under the Sea of Galilee, possibly built in the same era as Stonehenge, has archaeologists stumped.

Researchers , from Ben-Gurion University, Tel Aviv University, University of Haifa and Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research, all in Israel, describe the cairn as a cone of unhewn basalt rocks, measuring approximately 70 meters in diameter and 10 meters tall.

Jerry The Goat

There's always one who's a little bit different than the rest. Like Jerry the goat.
He's more like: Wheeeeeeeeeee!



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Latest Trend: Men With Flowers In Their Beards

image credit: madprime

There's a new trend.
Men around the world are putting beautiful arrangements of flowers into their beards.
Why? I don't know.

The Cornish Beaches Where Lego Keeps Washing Up

image credit: TimWebb

A container filled with millions of Lego pieces fell into the sea off Cornwall in 1997. But instead of remaining at the bottom of the ocean, they are still washing up on Cornish beaches today - offering an insight into the mysterious world of oceans and tides.

On 13 February 1997 the container ship Tokio Express was hit by a wave, tilting the ship 60 degrees one way, then 40 degrees back. As a result, 62 containers were lost overboard and one of them was filled with nearly 4.8m pieces of Lego, bound for New York. Shortly after that some of those Lego pieces began washing up in both the north and south coasts of Cornwall. They're still coming in today.