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Until the music can return to its roots with freedom of expression and dignity, the Festival au Desert has become a Festival in Exile. - Festival au Desert’s website after the 2012 event

All photos by Alexandra Causse

Regret is a toxic bedfellow. A half-dozen years ago, I was given the chance to make the early January trek to central Africa to experience the annual Festival in the Desert outside Timbuktu, Mali. My friends knew I had a festival fetish and this particular event in the desert had been called “Burning Man” meets “One Thousand and One Nights,” an otherworldly experience that captured the Tamashek tradition of nomadic clans meeting to celebrate in the middle of the desert. Few festivals in the world had more “street cred” with festival aficionados than this one, even though it’s a relatively young festival (first year was 2000). But, of course, life got in the way and I opted out.

Given the political situation in Mali, this festival started getting smaller and, finally, the organizers pulled the plug on it two years ago given the unsafe conditions. Instead, the festival toured Chicago in mid-September of this year, and then New York City, and is heading to Scandinavia later this month, and Morocco in November, ensuring that Tuareg and African music can still find a robust audience.

Like Berlin’s Love Parade or the Basant Kite Festival in Pakistan, Festival au Desert was becoming a ghost, a festival with an expiration date. Then, just a few days ago with virtually no fanfare, the Festival au Desert announced that it was coming back to life January 9-11, 2014 due to the improving political landscape. The new Malian President has declared that this festival is Mali’s premier tourist and cultural attraction and an important symbol for celebration and unity. Yet, just last week, Tuareg separatists suspended participation in the peace process again. The political sand dunes of the desert are constantly shifting and, just months ago, Timbuktu was under siege after a successful military coup by extreme Islamists. Who knows whether there will be a hostile climate three months from now when the Festival au Desert is reborn.

Should I stay or do I go? You’ve got to be an optimist, or an idiot, to travel to a country in civil war just to experience a festival. Yes, I could see nearly all of these African musicians somewhere else in the world. Their music that blends western instruments like drums, bass and electric guitar with African instruments like the ngoni, kamele n’goni, djembe and balafon, have led to Malian music becoming the darling of the world music movement. Yet, music isn’t exclusively for the ears. A festival is a sensual experience that includes the majestic beauty of the desert, tea ceremonies with wafting spicy aromas each morning, and eating grilled goat while sitting around a fire circle. You can’t experience this in a world music club in Manhattan.

My friend Alexandra Causse, who made the Mali trek a few years ago, says, “The music is amazing, it is love at first ‘sound.’ You watch camel races in the afternoon, you relax with the Tuaregs and hear their nomadic tales, you catch an improvised show here, a dance there. There was so much ritual and elegance at dinner even though we were sitting on the ground, in the sand, and eating with our hands. I felt like I was eating at a 5-star restaurant. Here are a couple of photos I took as soon as I arrived.” (Alexandra shared her beautiful photos for this post.)

Serendipity likes to be noticed. I’m pondering this Mali trip as I travel to Dublin. The most famous film about Festival au Desert is the recent documentary, Dambé: The Mali Project, the story of a cross-cultural musical adventure over 3,000 miles by two Irish musicians. The similarities between African and Celtic music have long been noted, but this film speaks to the unifying, healing qualities of music amongst those who don’t have a common traditional language.

Watch this short video of Liam and Paddy’s journey and tell me that you don’t want to join me…

 

 

Grüner See (Green Lake) is a lake in Styria, Austria known for its shimmering, emerald-green hue and its fluctuating depth throughout the year, at times leaving a park completely submerged in it. Being that the water for the lake is provided mainly by runoff from the surrounding karst mountains, it is at its fullest (about 10 meters deeper than usual) in the spring after the sun has melted the snow off nearby glacial summits, which is typically sometime in June.

The site has proven to be an attraction for divers, inviting them to plunge in and explore the spectacular underwater park, fully adorned with a bridge and a bench. There are even submerged trees in the crystal-clear waters that gives it a magical look. Photographer and diving enthusiast Marc Henauer was able to experience the underwater park firsthand and capture some enchanting images while down there.

Be sure to check out the video, below, of divers journeying through the lake.

via [Fubiz]

This is the Picobrew (I see you!) automatic home brewing system. Currently an already-funded Kickstarer project, the $1,600 tabletop device brews "high-quality all-grain beer" with the touch of a button (and the addition of water, grain and hops). You just add the ingredients according to your own (or a Picobrew community) recipe, and three and a half hours later your keg is ready to disconnect, ferment for a week, and PARTY TIME. Just be sure to invite me over for inaugural keg stands. "This is craft beer, GW, not Bud Light." Hey -- sometimes craft beers like to be keg standed too, you know. It's like me, sure I LOOK like the kind of guy who only attends black tie events, but-- "You're wearing athletic shorts." Well sure, you caught me on my way to the gym. "With a 40 of Old English?" What are you, my personal trainer? Hit the jump for the Kickstarter video about the system, then start saving your money so you can buy one and start brewing me some beer like I deserve.

Seen here eyeballing two hunks, Galdalf the Grey demonstrates his 'You Shall Not Pass' spell on the Bow Bridge in Central Park. SPOILER: Everybody passes. One dude even casts a Harry Potter spell on him as he goes by. If there had been an actual Balrog on one end of that bridge it would definitely be picking Hobbits out of its teeth right now. Keep going for the video.

Meet Blair McMillan. Blair McMillan is a man. A man with a sick mustache and mullet and the dream to become a real life Kenny Powers torture his family for the next year by only living with technology from 1986 or earlier. Shhhhhhh -- you hear that? That's the sound of a printing machine stamping his kid's faces on milk cartons after they've run away from home.

Blair and his girlfriend Morgan, 27, are pretending it's 1986. And they're doing it because their kids - Trey, 5, and Denton, 2 - wouldn't look up from their parents' iPhones and iPads long enough to kick a ball around the backyard. That's why their house has banned any technology post-1986, the year the couple was born. No computers, no tablets, no smart phones, no fancy coffee machines, no Internet, no cable, and - from the point of view of many tech-dependent folks - no life. "We're parenting our kids the same way we were parented for a year just to see what it's like," Blair said.

Oh, so the kids are only 2 and 5. Well that's different, I thought they were older. I guess I should have read the source article before starting to write, but you know what -- I didn't go to college for journalism. I went to college for...actually, why did I go? "To experiment with drugs and women?" Yes! Congratulations, you just earned a bachelor's in Geekologie Writerologie. Thanks to Marie, who wants to live a whole year with only technology from the future. NOW YOU'RE TALKING.

Since almost every one of her columns for Al Jazeera English goes viral, you may have heard of Dr. Sarah Kendzior, a PhD anthropologist who left academia and has transformed into a ferocious social critic who takes up the cause of economic exploitation around the world. Her intellectual voice is the equivalent of a Les Paul through a 100 watt Marshall amp – broad, powerful and piercing because of its rigor and lack of compromise. Her main theme is that our intellectual regime – whether the professoriate or the media – has become a thin cover for concentrated wealth dressed as cognitive merit. The proliferation of no-pay internships and endless credentials is a covert way to make sure only those with existing privilege are taken seriously. She is ripping those assumptions apart piece by piece through relentless research, analysis and writing.

Or as she puts it, “Kendzior is Polish for ‘bullshit detector.’”

Check out this interview with a Turkish media outlet that explains her recent work. I highly recommend you kick around her site and read her many articles from just this past year.

The utter seriousness and contrarian pose of her writing is what happens when institutions fail and truly talented individuals – not the mealy-mouthed, obsequious scions of privilege – are discarded and left to their own devices. Their analytical techniques are then aimed at rooting out the corruption of the institution itself.

These days, Dr. Kendzior will have no shortage of corruption and ridiculousness to keep her writing. Tune in for the fireworks. I suspect she is only warming up.

The post Exploitation Should Not Be a Rite of Passage is from Eric Garland

Belgian artist Ben Heine has gained recognition for his Pencil Vs Camera series, in which the clever illustrator superimposes a drawing on a sheet of torn paper over a real-life background. As a continuation of the series, Heine has recently ventured into new territory that allows him to enter his drawings, thereby reversing the components of his work that are drawn illusions and real-life objects or figures.

Working with a large-scale sheet of paper, set up like a cyclorama in a photo studio, Heine adds drawings of scenes and subjects with the illusion of depth. He proceeds to interact with his handcrafted creations, heightening the deceptive impression of three-dimensionality.

In one of his latest drawings—actually, the one that kicked off this new avenue of his project—features Heine feigning a reaction to a giant hand holding a gun. To further realize the authenticity of the image, the artist even cut off part of the sheet at the end, allowing the barrel of the gun to jut out. It'll be a treat to see what else the clever artist has in store for the future.

Ben Heine website
Ben Heine blog
via [22 Words]

This is a video of Mike Tyson playing Mike Tyson's Punch-Out on the NES for the first time, almost 26 years after its original release. Apparently Mike didn't care to see what the hell he was putting his name on back in the day. It was kind of weird to watch though, because Mike acts like a child trapped in an adult's body. Plus dude gets his ass handed to him by Glass Joe for awhile. Glass Joe! Apparently he did manage to finally beat him on his first try though, but the video was produced by Fox so I'm confused how this fits into the conservative agenda. Hit the jump for the video.

This is the Cuddle Mattress, a foam mattress that's been sliced into horizontal strips so you can put your arm underneath a lover without them cutting off your blood flow and preventing you from being able to tweak their nips in the middle of the night. Admittedly, a good idea, but the problem is this: it won't work with a fitted sheet. And don't tell me you're supposed to sleep directly on the foam because that's disgusting. And do you know how much nastiness is going to collect in those cracks? Pet dander, sex toys, crumbs from the one time your special someone made you breakfast in bed a year ago -- you name it. It's like your bed is now made out of thirty little couch cushions. That said, I still want one. But it better come with an unconditional money-back guarantee that covers everything including peeing in your sleep and being too embarrassed to sleep on it anymore. Hit the jump for a couple more shots of why you should just always call little spoon.

Milan was hit with an incredible spectacle on October 1st that confused pedestrians and locals into thinking that a submarine had crashed up onto the streets through the ground. The mind-boggling display, like something out of an action-adventure or sci-fi flick, turned into an investigation scene as paramedics, police, and firefighters rushed to the site. However, it was all just a publicity stunt.

The whole scene was a public promotion for Europ Assistance Italia, an insurance company. The installation and the entire performance, including actors who scrambled to barricade the "disaster" and faux sailors emerging from the crashed submarine, was orchestrated by ad agency M&C Saatchi for their Protect Your Life ad campaign.

The clever installation even utilizes the powers of social media with a simple hashtag printed on the vessel that reads #L1F3, prompting people to repeat it on digital networking platforms and spread the word. Since the submarine surfaced, passersby have been tweeting, sharing photos through Instagram, and videos via YouTube of the extravagant exhibition, quickly circulating the new of the fantastic stunt.

Social media activity about the #L1F3 submarine can be followed through the Protect Your Life website.

Top photo via URDesign

tommydellafrana92


Jolanda Restano


Marta Giglio


Luca Collacciani


John Clyde


Andrea Riscassi


Giacomo Biraghi


kimpaci70


kimpaci70

Protect Your Life website
via [Neatorama]

 

On September 28, 2013, Jeb Corliss, one of the world’s foremost and best-known wingsuit pilots and BASE-jumpers, successfully completed what he says, ‘was the hardest thing I’ve ever done’.

Dubbed the Flying Dagger, Corliss jumped out of an airplane and flew through a narrow crack in the Jianglang mountains in China’s Zhejian Province at approximately 100 mph (160 km/h). The fissure is only about 60 feet (18 m) wide at the top and 15 feet (4.5 m) at the bottom.

 

 

 

The stunt was extremely technical and saw Jeb fly more than 900 ft through the mountain’s ‘three fingers’. After emerging through the crack, Corliss had to deploy his parachute at just 300 ft of altitude.

 

 

In a video interview with NBC’s Behind the Wall, Corliss said of the jump:

“That was the single most technical jump from exit, to going through, to deployment, to then turning, to getting to the landing area. Literally split second every single step of the way. And when I landed at the landing area and I wasn’t hurt, I was like, ‘that is about as close to as impossible… I cannot believe that just happened.’”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources

- Jeb Corliss on Facebook
- NBC’s Behind the Wall – US daredevil Jeb Corliss: ‘I started crying’ after surviving ‘flying dagger’ stunt
- Pelican Blog: The Flying Dagger – Pelican Pro Jeb Corliss Takes on Jianglangshan Mountain
- GoPro

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stingrays

While we'll always be big fans of wildlife photography in general, there's nothing quite like seeing hundreds, thousands and even millions of animals congregating like this. Whether these photographers have captured animal migrations, where major animal groups travel long distances in search of food, or whether these animals have come together to form huge breeding colonies, one can't help but sit back in awe at the way Mother Nature works her magic.

In the stunning photo above, German conservation photographer Florian Schulz captured thousands of stingrays swimming through the ocean in Baja California Sur, Mexico.

As he states, "During an aerial expedition I came across something I had never seen before. Not even my pilot, who has surveyed this area for 20 years, had seen anything like it. As we got closer we started to discover its nature: an unprecedented congregation of rays. The group was as thick as it was wide, all heading towards the same direction. I have asked around why this took place but no one has been able to explain it to me. After such a unique sighting, I realise there are so many marvels in the oceans that we are yet to understand."

Monarch Butterflies

Photo by WWL

Bats

Photo by Greg du Toit

Wildebeest

Photo by Burrard Lucas

Elephants

Photo by Nuria Ortega

Snow Geese

Photo by Phil Goble

Sardines

Photo by Alexander Safanov

Long-tailed Ducks

Photo by Simon Perkins

King Penguins

Photo by Andy Rouse

Walruses

Photo by Chukot-TINRO

Flamingos

Photo by Martin Harvey

Beluga Whales

Each year in July, hundreds of beluga whales congregate to mate and give birth in the mouth of the Cunningham River in Canada. During high tide, they swim upstream with their backs barely covered by the shallow water and their stomachs rub the small rocks of the riverbed.

"Flying in a Twin Otter aircraft with the door off, I was able to achieve a clear shot of this natural wonder. It was one of the highlights of my career as a professional photographer," stated Norbert Rosing.

This is the giant slip and slide launch ramp built at the Ohio Dreams Action Sports Camp in Butler, Ohio. The ramp is usually used to practice ski jumping into the pool below but now they've added slip n' slides for people with less Olympic ambition. It looks like fun. Fun, and a great way to hurt yourself. And how much fun can a person really have if there isn't a risk of injury? You ever played Monopoly before? Not crazy fun, right? But have you ever played Monopoly on fire? You'll be smiling for weeks! Or recovering. Go directly to jail, do not pass go, do add more lighter fluid. Continue for the video, I especially liked the guy at 1:20 who does a barrel roll.

RETROACTIVE WARNING: Picture of guy growing a nose on his forehead and he's not even pretending to pick it. Meet 22-year old Xiaolian. Meet 22-year old Xiaolian, but don't stare, because he's growing a new nose on his forehead after his original was damaged in a car crash and, because he refused medical treatment, an infection made it unrepairable. Honestly, I probably would have done the same thing. "But GW, you lost an arm!" Just throw it in my bookbag, I'll deal with it when I get home.

After several months, the infection had corroded the cartilage of the nose, making it impossible for surgeons to fix it leaving no alternative but to grow a new nose for replacement. The new nose is grown by placing a skin tissue expander onto Xiaolian's forehead, cutting it into the shape of a nose and planting a cartilage taken from his ribs. The surgeons said that the new nose is in good shape and the transplant surgery could be performed soon

Hey, if I had a busted nose I'd grow one on my forehead too. Actually, I'd ask if they could grow it in an armpit or something first, but if my head was the only option, I'd do it. I'd even grow a friend's nose if they asked me to because I'm so caring. I'm not growing any penises on my head though, I don't care how bros we are. Alright I'll do it! Thanks to Lisa and Thomas S, who don't want to grow anything on their foreheads except crisp $10,000 bills.

San Francisco-based facial hair enthusiast Isaiah Webb is Incredibeard, a simple man with an extraordinary mission to grow out his beard and shape it into unique designs. The 29-year-old creatively transforms his manly tuft of hair into some truly bizarre works of art. From constructing a bowl for his ramen to crafting five beer cup holders, all right under his chin, Incredibeard exhibits his creative prowess.

In an interview with Mashable, the man behind Incredibeard admits that he hasn't been clean-shaven in about 15 years, but only really began growing his beard out 18 months ago. The decorative and, at times, efficient displays are each designed by Webb himself and styled by his wife, Aphan. In fact, it was his wife who urged him to grow his beard and pursue this unusual undertaking. Now, Incredibeard reveals a new styled beard every other Monday—an event he dubs #Monbeardday.

Incredibeard on Facebook
Incredibeard on Instagram
via [Neatorama]

Just a few weeks ago, men flocked to the 2013 Beard and Mustache Championships in New Orleans boasting all kinds of wild styles ranging from full beards to thin Dali mustaches. Along with the participants, Las Vegas-based photographer Greg Anderson also traveled there in order to document the spectacle of colors, styles, curls, twists, and braids throughout the competition. This extensive series of portraits features a wide range of dynamic personalities conveyed through each image.

Every year, the fun event provides a platform through which men are invited to show off their individuality through their personal works of facial hair art. The judges divide the mustaches, partial beards, and full beards into eighteen separate categories, with a gold, silver, and bronze medalist for each group. With such a comprehensive list of options, the event welcomes a large variety of proud participants, ready to exhibit their elaborate and creative facial decor. In the photographs, not only do the men boast incredibly complex designs, but their personalities come shining through in the selection of clothing, accessories, and amazing expressions. In fun-loving fashion, the competition website asks the question, "Does the man make the beard or does the beard make the man?"

Greg Anderson's website
2013 Beard And Mustache Championships website
via [PetaPixel]

As of August 2013, visitors to Universal Studios Orlando are invited to step into a giant Springfield USA, the hometown of the Simpsons family. For years, the theme park has been developing the section of the park in honor of the series, which has been on the air since 1989! Basically a life-sized set, the area includes all kinds of references to the show as well as large statues of the well-known characters including Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart, Maggie, Chief Wiggum, and Barney Gumble. Mike West, an executive producer with Universal Creative, says, "For longtime fans, it's the realization of a dream. We tried to make it as authentic as possible."

Located in Fast Food Boulevard are memorable places like Krusty Burger, Duff Brewery, The Frying Dutchman, and Moe's Tavern. There is a large statue honoring Jebediah Springfield, a Kwik-E-Mart convenience store and gift shop, and a large waterfront area. The town has been developed around a central point, the Simpsons Ride, which invites passengers to ride along with the main characters as they enjoy an adventure through Krustyland theme park. To complete the day, visitors can pose on a replica of the family sofa, creating their own version of the Simpsons to remember forever.

via [Fubiz], [Business Insider]

Tales You Lose is a creative art project by Frankfurt-based Brazilian designer Andre Levy (aka zhion) that started on Instagram. The unconventional artist began painting over the figures on various international coins collected from his travels, transforming presidents and monarchs into pop culture icons. The ongoing series features anyone from Cat Woman and Wolverine to Cinderella and Ronald McDonald.

Levy creatively transforms ordinary currency into pop culture portraits, artistically raising their value. Though we may see his adjustments as turning an ordinary object into art, the designer says: "Coins are actually massively-reproduced little sculptures. This project brings individual character to each replica, and makes us think: Are we able to like one cent more than others, just by injecting new stories in it?"

Tales You Lose blog
Tales You Lose on Facebook
via [Junkculture]

While we've all seen our fair share of hyperrealistic and photorealistic art, or paintings and sculptures that look amazingly like photographs, it's not too often that we come across photos that look like paintings. Throughout the five-plus years we've been around, we've seen these unbelievable photos pop up here and there and today, we decided to give them all one home. Here, then, are ten fascinating photos that look unbelievably like an oil, acrylic or watercolor painting. Enjoy!

Photographer Oscar Ruiz is behind the shot, above, of a housing development in Mexico. Back in May, it was picked as the photo of the day by National Geographic. "A few years ago when I was working as a helicopter pilot for a local radio station, we were required to fly around all of Mexico City chasing news and traffic. I remember flying up to the highway that connects Mexico City with the neighboring state of Puebla, and on my way back this housing complex that seemed to go on forever caught my attention. I decided to circle around to observe from up close what I later found out was the recently built San Buenaventura complex, which is located in Ixtapaluca, on the eastern outskirts of Mexico City.

"The exceptional afternoon sun reflecting those thousands of recently painted small homes just looked so beautiful, and the lower I flew the better the angle, so I just got out my camera, opened the sliding window on my Bell helicopter, and snapped a couple of shots."

Photographer Michael Brandt captured these painterly rolling hills at the Palouse Valley, Washington, USA. This particular photo is looking towards Tekoa Mountain from Steptoe Butte. "The rainbow picture was taken at a place called Steptoe Butte - it's an amazing geographical landmark right in the heart of the Palouse. It is a large butte that offers outstanding panoramic views of the very unique rolling hill landscape known as the Palouse, that gives photo fans endless compositions and ever changing landscape throughout the seasons. From late April through to early September photographers from around the world make a trek individually or through photo tours to visit this unique region."

Photographer Andre Ermolaev is behind this gorgeous aerial shot of Iceland's volcanic rivers. "Iceland is a wonderful country; I would even say that it is a true paradise for all the photo shooting-lovers. But what has become a real discovery for me is the bird’s eye view of the rivers flowing along the black volcanic sand. It is an inexpressible combination of colors, lines, and patterns. The photo represents the mouth of the river falling into the ocean. A little bit upstream there is a yellow-colored brook flowing into the river, but yellow currents fail to mix with the main water flow. One can estimate the scale judging by the car tracks that are clearly seen on the black sand. This is just a river, just a volcano, just our planet."

James and Kelly Stone took this gorgeous shot of dunes dotted with trees at Lassen Volcanic National Park. "Painted Dunes can be seen atop Cinder Cone at Lassen Volcanic National Park in California. The colors are a result of volcanic activity. The beauty is breathtaking. The vision, as you can see, is like an oil painting. God's tapestry on Earth."

Doesn't this man look like he's rowing in a lake full of paint? This is actually a real photograph of a heavily polluted lake in Anhui province, Taiwan. The green substance on the top of the water is algae. The photograph, by Jianan Yu, is of Chaohu Lake, one of eight rivers and lakes in China that the country plans to treat under ta $7.4 billion construction plan.

Photographer Chaluntorn Preeyasombat calls this photo Clearing Storm. "Huangshan Mountain, Anhui, China. Taken from the Beginning-to-Believe Peak after morning snowfall. The lingering fog made the scene look like Chinese painting."

California-based photographer David Orias is behind a series of wave photographs that look remarkably like oil paintings. Orias uses long exposures and a telephoto lens to capture these stunning shots. He states, "Southern California has its fire season and sometimes this creates conditions of eerie orange light in the morning as the sunlight is filtered and scattered by smoke particles. This creates unusual and to some viewers unrealistic colors. I take the baseline colors and work with them to create a fine art appeal."

Graphic designer Denis Collette has a series called "My Waterbox," a collection of images that show reflections in a river and lake near his countryside cottage. He said, "I like the creativity of the water and like to be surprised. I have taken thousands of photos of reflections and they are all unique. The reflections are generally of trees, wild flowers, weeds, wild vegetation, the sky and the clouds. But the photo changes depending on the wind, the light, the stream, the level of the river and sometimes the depth of the river. It always fascinates me. The water ripples make them look like oil paintings by Van Gogh, Turner, Riopelle or Monet."

Painted Ladies is a beautiful shot of three women in rainbow-colored tulle by photographer Barbara Cole. The self-taught photographer not only challenges our reality, she does it all using Polaroid film! "I fell in love with Polaroid film sometime late in 1987," Cole says. "I had been experimenting with the Polaroid Spectra camera and Tungsten light and I loved the mood that its warm colours and creamy palette evoked. In the end, however, it proved too difficult to work within the limitations of this simple point and shoot camera and I abandoned it..After some exploration, I found someone who was able to adapt the SX-70 camera to work with my studio lighting and techniques. Then, I carefully manipulated the surface image to add dimension and introduce a painterly quality I loved."

This last photo, taken in Namibia, shows a dune tinted orange by the morning sun admist camel thorn trees. Photographer Frans Lanting explains his shot, "It was made at dawn when the warm light of the morning sun was illuminating a huge red sand dune dotted with white grasses while the white floor of the clay pan was still in shade. It looks blue because it reflects the color of the sky above. ... The perfect moment came when the sun reached all the way down to the bottom of the sand dune just before it reached the desert floor. I used a long telephoto lens and stopped it all the way down to compress the perspective."

This is the conceptual Phonebloks cell phone. It consists of a single main board with modular components (including the screen) that can be switched out at the user's desire. Plan on using your phone as a camera for the day? Add a nicer camera module. Are you a grandma who only carries a cell phone hoping your grandkids will call? Remove everything and add a giant battery pack. The hope is that all the big phone manufacturers will compete to make the best components available, the problem being that none of the big phone companies will bother. Just keeping it real.

The Phonebloks concept features the display portion of the phone, with a circuit board behind it showing a peg board-style design that the blocks can be inserted into. Each block has a designated place on the phone, and each is labeled with a symbol of its function, such as Bluetooth and battery. The phone is disassembled by removing two screws on the bottom of the handset, at which point the board can be removed and the blocks with it. In theory, a new block can be purchased and used to replace the old one, replacing a faulty component or updating an existing component to something more robust or higher capacity.

Admittedly, a progressive concept. And I would love to see a phone explode like a LEGO playset whenever it's dropped. "SEARCH THE FLOOR -- HAS ANYBODY SEEN MY WI-FI?" I really am all for it, I just don't see it happening. Still, I've been surprised in the past. Like just this past weekend my roommate actually brought a girl home. Whatever happened with her anyways, Derek? "That was my sister, bro." Okay, so maybe I haven't ever been surprised in the past. Hit the jump for a video about the phone and what you can do to help make it a reality.

So far, we've taken a look at some incredibly expressive owls as well as some personality-filled frogs. In our search to compile the most fascinating wildlife photography, how could we not post about monkeys? The highly intelligent animals are the main subject for many photographers because they're fun to shoot and they've got wild personalities to boot.

The website Light Stalking has a whole post dedicated to how to photograph monkeys which includes such helpful tips as "Monkeys Are Thieves!: If you leave anything just lying around, then expect it to be stolen" and "Monkeys Can Be Aggressive!: While they are very cute, any wild animal deserves respect for the small fact that it is physically capable of ripping your face off."

Today, we've put together 15 photos that show just how interesting these furred animals can be. While, for the most part, these monkeys look deep in thought, we've thrown in a few lighthearted photos, as well.

First photo credit: Look to the Heavens by Ann J. Sagel

In Dreams I Can Fly by Manuela Kulpa

Melancholy by Marsel van Oosten

Deep Thoughts by Claire Wadey

Introspection by Marsel van Oosten

Anxiety by Anton Jankovoy

I'm On a Diet! by Sid Verma

Wanna Play? by Marsel van Oosten

Thai Massage by Romain Mattei Photography

Seventh Heaven by Anton Chekalin

Monsoon by Michael Shmelev

Snowmobile by Marsel van Oosten

Sweet Dreams by Kiyo Photography

Zzz... by Kiyo Photography

Oh No, Not Again! by Marsel van Oosten

Sea Change is an eye-opening comparative series by photographer Michael Marten that reveals how visually different specific landscapes along the British coast are, dependent on whether they are at high or low tide. The collection, originally presented as diptychs, have been turned into gifs, making it all the more apparent how each environment transforms with the alternating rise and fall of the sea.

The coupled images in the series are each taken approximately 6 to 18 hours apart to truly capture the considerable contrast in scenery. The photographer says, "The tide comes and goes twice each day, but even when one spends a whole day by the sea it's easy to miss how dramatic tidal change can be."

While one frame shows a bustling beach filled with sunbathers and families enjoying their time out together on the sand, its accompanying scene is of a vast expanse of water, as though a beach never even existed in that spot. It is a dramatic eye-opener that enlightens viewers, showing the cyclical nature of tides, while simultaneously visualizing an ominous change.

Marten says of his series, "I hope these photographs will increase awareness of natural change, of landscape as dynamic process rather than static image… The pictures can also serve as a warning of climate change. The tide floods in and quickly recedes, but rising sea levels will flood our shores and not recede for thousands or millions of years."

Marten has released a book by the same name, which is available to purchase worldwide through his website.

Michael Marten website
via [Visual News, Brekend]

London-based Benjamin Lee is the clever mind behind the Twitter account Middle Class Problem, a feed through which he retweets all kinds of "problems" that people complain about through social networking. Each dramatic statement is made by a person suffering from what Lee calls "Real problems but not real actual problems, just middle class ones."

Reading through the tweets is a quick reminder of how easy life can be sometimes. One Tweeter complains that there is just too much orange zest in his brunch mimosa—oh the horror!—while another complains that having a cup of tea with soy milk was the "worst mistake she's ever made"—if that's the case then she is one lucky gal!

Lee pokes fun at both himself as well as the daily woes of many featured on the Twitter feed. The comments have also been paired with overdramatic photographs of horribly unhappy people, which transforms the dramatic flair of each absurd statement into a visually entertaining collection. In all seriousness, the series is actually a reminder to keep our lives in perspective. As difficult as life can seem at times, the fact that a salad bar doesn't have cous cous is really not as horrible as it first may seem.

Middle Class Problem Twitter Account
via [BuzzFeed]

 

Sworn Virgins of Albania (Albanian: burrnesha or virgjinesha) are women who take a vow of chastity and wear male clothing in order to live as men in the patriarchal society of northern Albania.

In a photo series and upcoming documentary entitled He/She/He, Jill Peters explains/a>:

“Sworn Virgin is the term given to a biological female in the Balkans who has chosen, usually at an early age, to take on the social identity of a man for life. As a tradition dating back hundreds of years, this was sometimes necessary in a society that lived within tribal clans, followed the Kanun, an archaic code of law, and maintained an oppressive rule over the female gender. The Kanun states that women are the property of their husbands. The freedom to vote, drive, conduct business, earn money, drink, smoke, swear, own a gun or wear pants was traditionally the exclusive province of men. Young girls were commonly forced into arranged marriages, often with much older men in distant villages. A family suddenly without a patriarch or male heir would find themselves in jeopardy of losing everything.
 
As an alternative, becoming a Sworn Virgin, or burnesha elevated a woman to the status of a man and granted her all the rights and privileges of the male population. In order to manifest the transition such a woman cut her hair, donned male clothing and sometimes even changed her name. Male gestures and swaggers were practiced until they became second nature. Most importantly of all, she took a vow of celibacy to remain chaste for life. She became a ‘he’.
 
Sworn Virgins still exist today, but as modernization inches towards the small villages nestled in the Albanian Alps, this archaic tradition is increasingly seen as obsolete. Only a handful remain.”

 

You can learn more about Albanian Sworn Virgins on Wikipedia. Below you will find five photos from Jill Peter’s fascinating series. You can see the project in its entirety on her official website. A trailer for He/She/He can be found at the end of the post.

[via PetaPixel, Slate, feature shoot]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you're looking for a little something to brighten up your day, come check out the cleverly placed street art by OakOak. The French street artist sees the city as his playground as he finds everything from stair rails and street lights to random markings on a wall to become a part of his clever creations. While at times he'll feature pop-culture characters like King Kong or Calvin and Hobbes, for the most part his whimsical works take on the form of animals found in some hilariously unexpected places.

OakOak's website

 

 

 

Seen here is an aerial black and white photo of the famous Cologne Cathedral during WWII. Kevin Trotman (The Rocketeer on Flickr) said he found the photo along with 19 others tucked inside a book that he bought for $1 at a library book sale.

Cologne Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church in Cologne, Germany. It is a renowned monument of German Catholicism and Gothic architecture and is a World Heritage Site. It is also Germany’s most visited landmark, attracting an average of 20,000 people a day. [Source]

Construction of Cologne Cathedral commenced in 1248 and was halted in 1473, leaving it unfinished. Work restarted in the 19th century and was completed, to the original plan, in 1880. It is 144.5 metres (474 ft) long, 86.5 m (284 ft) wide and its towers are approximately 157 m (515 ft) tall. The cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe and has the second-tallest spires and largest façade of any church in the world.

The cathedral suffered seventy hits by aerial bombs during World War II. It did not collapse, but stood tall in an otherwise flattened city. The twin spires are said to have been used as an easily recognizable navigational landmark by Allied aircraft raiding deeper into Germany in the later years of the war, which may be a reason that the cathedral was not destroyed. [Source]

 

 

 

 

Hot-Dog Legs is a hilariously quirky single-topic Tumblr blog that leaves viewers wondering what they're looking at—a first-person point of view of a pair of legs or two carefully placed hot dogs? It sounds silly and seems like it would be easy to decipher which is which, but browsing through the collection of images proves that it's a lot harder to tell the difference than you'd think!

The more you stare at one image, the more your mind wanders and goes back and forth between the two options. Even when the "hot dogs" seem too smooth and glistening to be legs, there's suddenly something about it that doesn't resemble the ballpark sausages you're used to seeing in buns. "Is that a knee?" you may find yourself wondering. Unfortunately, the blog keeps you guessing.

Hot-Dog Legs blog
via [Laughing Squid]