Biomechanical Mike Stand Gets a Gleaming Grip [Wired]
Unearthed: giant Palouse earthworm not seen for last 20 years [ Metro ]
Japanese Scientists Create Elastic Water [theblogismine]
Chinese Man eats 1,500 lightbulbs [ Spluch]
Friday, April 30, 2010
Top Link Latte for 30 April 2010
Biomechanical Mike Stand Gets a Gleaming Grip [Wired]
Unearthed: giant Palouse earthworm not seen for last 20 years [ Metro ]
Japanese Scientists Create Elastic Water [theblogismine]
Chinese Man eats 1,500 lightbulbs [ Spluch]
10 Fun Things to Do in Sydney, Australia
Sydney, Australia, offers a world of opportunities for fun and adventure. Here's a list of at least ten things you don't want to miss when you come to the land of Oz.
1. Beautiful Sydney Harbour Bridge. You can, of course, take the pedestrian or cyclist's route, but the real fun is in making the effort to get to the top and the wonderful view once you get there. The entry price varies according to the day of the week. Being attached to solid ground by a harness and the shaking of the bridge due to the rushing traffic below tends to be a bit frightening for the faint of heart. However, if you're not easily scared, this is a great opportunity to get some exercise and some Beautiful to boot.
3. Visit Darling Harbor. Located in the Central Business District of Sydney, Darling Harbour is a place of recreation and entertainment. There are numerous distractions here, including museums, entertainment centers, a casino, the Sydney Aquarium, and Sydney Wildlife World.
4. Visit Taronga Zoo via the ferry and cable car. The zoo cares for 2,600 animals, including several Australian Birds and species.
5. Visit Sydney's oldest pub Fortune of War, which was established in 1828. Located in the historic locale of The Rocks, Fortune of War maintains a rustic charm in its décor and personable, friendly service.
6. Try the local cuisine. Known as Bush Tucker, the local cuisine incorporates some ingredients that may come across as strange. But if you've never tasted a kangaroo or a crocodile before, how do you know you won't like it? The locals love it, and the kangaroo comes highly recommended.
7. Visit Manly Beach, which is a 40 hour ferry ride from Sydney, and Bondi Beach. Both of these are extremely popular with the locals and tourists.
8. Experience the wine tasting tours that take you through the Hunter Valley region. Far more, than simple servings of wine and cheese, these tours incorporate a range of interesting activities, including exploring the vineyard, speaking with winery owners, and sharing a meal or two with the other travelers.
9. Visit the Blue Mountains. Rather than a mountain range, the Blue Mountains is more of a plateau featuring large eroded gorges. When viewed from a distance, the mountains appear to be tinged with blue, hence, the name.
10. Visit Katoomba Scenic World. The most famous attractions are the Scenic Railway and Scenic Skyway. The railway is purportedly the steepest in the world. Scenic Skyway, which is also cable driven, features a floor that changes from opaque to transparent, so those in the cabin have the sense of flying over the gorge.
Photo: Charlie BrewerTags:
Chinese Man eats 1,500 lightbulbs
Wang Xianjun, living in the Xitan community in Linshui County, Sichuan province, is a complete and total "eccentric" in the eyes of his neighbors. It is common for people to have rice or steamed buns for the breakfast, but Wang likes to eat an extra light bulb. The 54-year-old man started eating light bulbs at the age of 12, and has eaten approximately 1,500 bulbs over the past 42 years.
Wang regards himself as open-minded. When he was 12 years old, he accidentally swallowed a fish bone, and his parents became very worried. To their surprise, Wang did not feel uncomfortable at all. Then out of curiosity, he boldly picked up a piece of broken glass, and felt no adverse effects after eating it.
From then on, he began practicing eating light bulbs. He only dared to eat a small piece of glass at the beginning, but as time passed, he became addicted to eating bulbs. However, he does not eat bulbs every day. He sometimes only eats bulb splinters at breakfast, and at most, one bulb each time.
Source:- Metro Via Rexfeatures
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Man claims no food or drink for 70 years
Indian military scientists are studying an 82-year-old who claims he has not had any food or drink for 70 years.
Prahlad Jani is being held in isolation in a hospital in Ahmedabad, Gurjarat, where he is being closely monitored by India's defence research organization, who believe he may have a genuine quality which could help save lives.
He has now spent six days without food or water under strict observation and doctors say his body has not yet shown any adverse effects from hunger or dehydration.
Mr Jani, who claims to have left home aged seven and lived as a wandering sadhu or holy man in Rajasthan, is regarded as a 'breatharian' who can live on a 'spiritual life-force' alone. He believes he is sustained by a goddess who pours an 'elixir' through a hole in his palate. His claims have been supported by an Indian doctor who specializes in studies of people who claim supernatural abilities, but he has also been dismissed by others as a "village fraud."
India's Defence Research Development Organisation, whose scientists develop drone aircraft, intercontinental ballistic missiles and new types of bombs. They believe Mr Prahlad could teach them to help soldiers survive longer without food, or disaster victims to hang on until help arrives.
"If his claims are verified, it will be a breakthrough in medical science," said Dr G Ilavazhagan, director of the Defence Institute of Physiology & Allied Sciences.
"We will be able to help save human lives during natural disasters, high altitude, sea journeys and other natural and human extremities. We can educate people about the survival techniques in adverse conditions with little food and water or nothing at all."
So far, Mr Prahlad appears to be standing up to scrutiny. He has not eaten or drunk any fluids in six days, and similarly has not passed urine or a stool in that time. He remains fit and healthy and shows no sign of lethargy. Doctors will continue observing him for 15 days in which time they would expect to see some muscle wastage, serious dehydration, weight loss,and fatigue followed by organ failure.
It is common in India for Jains and Hindus to fast, sometimes for up to eight days, without any adverse affects, as part of their religious worship. Most humans cannot survive without food for 50 days. The longest hunger strike recorded is 74 days.
According to Dr Sudhir Shah, who examined him in 2003, he went without food or water for ten days in which urine appeared to be reabsorbed by his body after forming in his bladder. Doubts were expressed about his claim after his weight fell slightly at the end of the trial.
Source:- Telegraph Via Metro
Baby Crying Festival in Japan
Children crying contest in Japan
Crying Sumo' contest: Japanese wrestlers compete to see who can make a baby bawl first
So much for the argument that leaving a baby to cry can result in brain damage.
These Japanese sumo wrestlers believe the exact opposite: That a good long wail can be healthy for babies.
That, at least, is the theory behind the bizarre 'crying sumo' or Nakizumo festival held at the Sensoji Temple in Tokyo earlier this month.
University club sumo wrestlers hold babies aloft in the contest and try to make them cry. Whichever baby cries first, is the winner.
If both babies cry at the same time, the one bawling loudest is declared victor.
The babies are persuaded to tears by a sumo judge, who orders them to 'nake, nake' ('cry, cry') as the wrestlers growl and make faces.
Of course, even the best laid plans sometimes go awry, and the babies end up laughing instead. At that point the wrestlers don ferocious masks, which usually finishes the job.
The babies are held aloft so that their cries are closer to heaven. During the 400-year-old competition, their parents pray for the good health of their children.
Evil spirits are supposedly driven away during the festival, which takes place across Japan.
Childcare expert Dr Penelope Leach made headlines last week when she claimed that fresh research proves that long periods of crying can damage developing brains, leading to learning difficulties later in life.
Source:- dailymail Via Zing
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Girl survives worlds deadliest box jellyfish sting Australia
A ten-year-old girl has become the first person ever to have survived sting an attack from a lethal box jellyfish, the world's most venomous creature.
Rachael Shardlow was stung by the creature while swimming in the Calliope River, near Gladstone, in Queensland, Australia.
Rachael's 13-year-old brother pulled her on to the riverbank. She told him she could not see or breathe, and fell unconscious with the jellyfish's tentacles still strapped to her limbs.
Zoology and tropical ecology associate professor at James Cook University, Jamie Seymour, says the girl's survival after such an extensive sting is unheard of.
'I don't know of anybody in the entire literature where we've studied this where someone has had such an extensive sting that has survived,' he told ABC news in Australia.
'When I first saw the pictures of the injuries I just went, 'you know to be honest, this kid should not be alive. I mean they are horrific.
Usually when you see people who have been stung by box jellyfish with that number of the tentacle contacts on their body, it's usually in a morgue.'
Associate professor Seymour says the university is interested to see how long it takes for Rachael to recover, as well as whether there are any long-term effects.
'From our point of view it's really useful information that you very seldom, if ever, get your hands on,' he told the Aussie TV station.
Rachael's father, Geoff Shardlow, says his daughter has scarring as well as some short-term memory loss.
'We've noticed a small amount of short-term memory loss, like riding a pushbike to school and forgetting she's taken a pushbike,' he said.
'The greatest fear was actual brain damage [but] her cognitive skills and memory tests were all fine.'
Mr Shardlow says it is vital there are more jellyfish warning signs erected throughout central Queensland.
Source:- ABC News
staples city
Artist peter root staple cityscape a look at his latest work ‘ephemicropolis’, a metropolis made completely from stacks of metal staples. the piece consists of over 100,000 staples that were assembled over a time period of 40 hours. the stacks were each broken into different sizes, designed to represents everything from small scale buildings to large skyscrapers. the largest stacks are about 12 cm high, while the some buildings consist of only a single staple. the whole installation takes up a floor space of about 600cm x 300cm. unlike root’s previous project potato landscape, ‘ephemicropolis’ won’t start to grow mould any time soon.
Source:- designboom via peterroot
Video:- vimeo.com
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