We all secretly suspected that Fox News was behind climate change denial, but new research actually proves that tuning into Fox News, Rush Limbaugh or other conservative media makes people suspicious of climate scientists and therefore less likely to believe climate change is real, The Guardian reports. The study, published in the Public Understanding of Science, lists five major methods by which conservative media sways their followers.

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Post tags: Climate Change, climate change denial, climate change science, conservative media, conservative news media USA, Fox News, global warming, media in the US, pseudo science, Rush Limbaugh

Remember Real Life Barbie Girl? Me too. And how could I forget? The images have been burned into my memory forever. But now it appears there’s more to Real Life Barbie Girl aka Valeria Lukyanova: outerspace. She’s an alien! That explains everything nothing. But don’t take my word for it! You’ll have to watch Space [...]
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If you can keep a house in your pocket, why not store a tent in your sneakers? The Sibling Collective created a pair of sneakers called Walking Shelter that store a simple tent in mesh netting attached to the back. While the concept is functional, it’s hard to imagine that people would actually wear these [...]
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In the latest of a string of attempts to clamp down on air pollution, the Chinese government has banned outdoor barbecuing in Beijing, much to the chagrin of many citizens. China’s capital is notorious for poor air quality—the US Embassy’s air quality readings infamously went off the charts to “crazy bad” territory at one point—and recent headlines have said the choking air pollution even cuts life expectancy of the northern Chinese by 5.5 years.

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Post tags: air pollution, barbecue, barbecue ban, Beijing barbecue, Beijing pollution, china, China air pollution, outdoor barbecue ban, shao kao

'Send Me To Heaven' is a real Android app (Apple denied it) that measures how high you throw your phone in the air. It's like a game. A game where the equipment costs $400 and breaks every time you don't win. Basically, the best kind of game.

S.M.T.H. (Send Me To Heaven) is a sport game. Player throws his phone as high as he can. The higher, the better. The phone registers the height and uploads result to leader boards. World Top 10, Week Top 10 and Day Top 10 lists are available. Hints: Be careful not to injure yourself or others. Be always aware that there is enough space above you and around you. Do some training to learn right skills to get best results. Switch on GPS on your phone and allow the App to use location to be able to take part in local competitions. Known issues: Game works only on ARMv7 phones. Some phones show wrong results (usually 0 meters) when they rotate.

Listen -- I've probably gone through six phones in the past three years and I'm not even purposefully throwing them. I just drink a lot and refuse to use a case. That said, I'm the king of throwing food really high in the air and catching it in my mouth. It's taken years of practice to get this good though. You ever been hit in the tooth by a Skittle from thirty-feet up? It feels like a hockey puck. Never been hit in the mouth by a hockey puck before? Smile real big and I'll hit you with a frozen chicken breast. Hit the jump for some sort of video.

This is a worthwhile video of Dash the skateboarding dog riding the bowls at some skatepark and performing a couple kickflips. He doesn't actually do them in the air though, he does them on the ground, which, while technically not a true kickflip, is still really impressive CONSIDERING HE'S A F***ING DOG. I hope his owners feed him that really nice wet food. Hit the jump for the video, it really is worth a watch.

This is the High Roller, a $600 Big Wheels trike made for adults. It comes with an adjustable seat to accommodate riders from 5'2" to 6'6" and up to 275-lbs. It also comes with a front brake, a bell, tassels, and plastic rear wheels for EXTREME DRIFTING ACTION. Man, I remember riding my Big Wheels so much when I was a kid I wore all the way through the plastic tires, eventually making it unrideable. Then I'd just sit on it in the driveway PRETENDING to ride it. I met some of my best imaginary friends that way. Hit the jump for several more shots of the MY BIRTHDAY IS ON MONDAY. PLEASE ORDER ACCORDINGLY.

3d printing is commonly viewed as an expensive emerging technology – however a new study by Michigan Technological University (MTU) shows that purchasing a 3d printer may actually make sound financial sense. The study found that a savings of up to $2,000 a year can be made by printing small everyday household objects instead of purchasing them from stores.

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Post tags: 3d printed cases, 3d printed jewelry, 3d printed toys, 3d printer, 3D printers, 3D printing, 3d-printed objects, buccaneer, Buccaneer 3D printer, desktop 3d printer, green design, green technology, pirate3d, Shapeways, sustainable design

I murder plants regularly. Each time I bring one home, I promise to keep it alive. Medium light, medium water? How hard can it be? Very! Doh! Koubachi is a free app that saves your plant’s information and cares for it thanks to a fancy Plant Care Engine. The system takes into account the plants’ species, the current season, your geographic location, and most importantly, the water cycle duration from the calibration. That’s right, your phone will let you know when it’s time to water, mist or give it fertilizer, via a notification. I wonder if it’s too late for my orchid and two English ivy…

The UK’s Centre for Alternative Technology just released a new report showing that a Zero Carbon Britain is possible by the year 2030. The report states that the decarbonization of the UK could be achieved by increasing the country’s wind power output and other renewable energy sources – however the UK is already in danger of not meeting its 2020 energy goals due to the consequences of the global recession.

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Post tags: "sustainable energy", 2020 energy, 2030, 2030 energy, alternative energy, alternative power, Centre for alternative technologies, UK, UK 2020 energy targets, wind power uk, zero carbon britain

Keri Muller’s artworks and installations stand out for their beautiful forms, and the fact that they’ve been made from books and other debris salvaged from the recycling pile. “I try to give the books another chance to tell a story,” Muller says. Her works include ‘Africa Reinvented’, as well as temporary installations found worldwide—the most recent being ‘Forests of the Future’ created for TEDx Cape Town. Her aim is to create designs and art from what is normally perceived as rubbish, provoking viewers to think about waste and materials in new ways.

The article above was submitted to us by an Inhabitat reader. Want to see your story on Inhabitat? Send us a tip by following this link. Remember to follow our instructions carefully to boost your chances of being chosen for publishing!

 

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Post tags: Africa Reinvented, art installations, book art, eco artworks, eco-art, green art, green materials, Keri Muller, recycled art, Recycled Materials, TEDx Cape Town

This is an infographic about intelligence and alcohol consumption. Basically smarter people are more likely to drink more. Unless you're me, in which case you're more likely to be dumb and drink more. I can can barely tie my own shoes but I can make a case of beer disappear like a f***ing magician. Thanks to Pamela and Jack, who were both involved in making the infographic so please direct any complaints to them.

This is a video of Eric Buss's Bubble Wrap Bike (aka the Pollutionmobile), a bicycle that dispenses and pops a strip of bubble wrap as you ride it. Neat idea, Eric, but I've been developing a bike that dispenses meals for the homeless as you ride it. What can I say, I'm a dreamer. Still, mad props if you can rob a bank and manage to use this thing as your getaway bike. Hit the jump for a brief video of the bike in action.

Photo via Shutterstock

Using a new climate simulation tool, a team of US and Chinese climate scientists have predicted that the Arctic will ice-free by 2058. Their research, which was published in a  National Academy of Sciences paper called Reducing spread in climate model projections of a September ice-free Arctic shows that, starting in 2058, the continent will no longer have ice in September – the period when the Arctic begins to freeze over.

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Post tags: Arctic, Climate Change, global warming, ice caps, ice free, national academy of sciences, Reducing spread in climate model projections of a September ice-free Arctic

Residents in Los Angeles are getting paid some green to go green by getting rid of their green (lawns, that is). The city’s Department of Water and Power is paying homeowners to tear up their water-hogging lawns in favor of more drought friendly options in a bid to save water. Their efforts have already paid out to 850 property owners who have collectively removed 1.5 million square feet of grass.

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Post tags: grass removal, grass removal initiatives, grass removal plan, green landscaping, los angeles department of water and power, Los Angeles lawn removal, Los Angeles removing grass, Los Angeles removing lawns, Los Angeles saving water, Los Angeles Water, Los Angeles water initiative, saving water, water preservation, xeriscaping

The WISE Hall at 1882 Adanac St. is a non-profit heritage social organisation that has been rocking out in East Van since the early 1960′s. A new neighbour has been complaining about noise (10 times via phone and email in four months - welcome to Vancouver) so the management and the Nimbus School of Recording Arts have teamed up to do their best at soundproofing the joint. They’ve set up an Indiegogo drive - “Keep the Wise Alive” is the name - to give local arts and music lovers the opportunity to kick in a few bucks to help. Some background:

Over the years, the WISE has evolved and diversified beyond the original UK traditions and culture to embrace the entire east side social, arts and culture community. Operating a rental and performance hall upstairs and a member’s social lounge downstairs, the WISE Hall is an affordable and accessible space for the whole community to gather, perform and celebrate.

For the last 50 years, the WISE has been a venue that has supported and hosted a wide array of artistic, cultural, political and social events. From book launches to Burlesque, flea markets to fundraisers and Salsa to Sunday Gospel, the WISE has been host to it all. The Hall has also had many notable and amazing artists grace her stage, including, but certainly not limited to: Long John Baldry, Carole Pope, Don Ross, The Toasters, Gaye Delorme, Ray Condo, SNFU, Garnet Rogers, Cousin Harley, Sal Ferreras, Neko Case, Ladyhawk, Veda Hille, Rich Hope, Carolyn Mark and Youth Brigade.

From concerts and performances featuring the best BC artists, to being the shoot location for Jeff Wall’s 2012 ‘Band and Crowd’ the WISE has been a venue that is near and dear to many members of the diverse community of Vancouver’s east side.

In 2013, The WISE Hall was named one of Vancouver’s 125 Places that Matter by the Vancouver Heritage Foundation and Vancouver 125; the plaque will be dedicated later this summer.

Yeah, and then came this one neighbour dude. Sheesh. So they’re looking to raise $10,000. They’ve already raised $4,800, and they have 27 days left to raise the rest. Let’s do it!

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Honour Bound details the many cool things that we feel honour bound to check out because they either represent Vancouver exceptionally well or are inherently super awesome in one way or another

(via) This building in the Kunsthofpassage area of Dresden, Germany sports a beautiful labyrinthine series of funnels cascading down one of its walls. Urban legend has it that they play music whenever the rain pours down through them, but we’ve seen a few videos of the contraption (including the one above), but none of them have ever revealed any of the supposed “music”. Maybe it’s really pianissimo and too delicate to discern in the rain. Either way, it would be cool if an architect, an engineer, and a musician got together to make this happen properly in Vancouver, where it rains from time to time and there’s a deficit of whimsical exterior decoration. Maybe they could add a giant poodle, too.

OTHER CIVIC IMPROVEMENT SUGGESTIONS

On Saturday, July 20th, Trout Lake will be taken over by the 2013 Illuminares Lantern Festival. Imagine a public space full of art ON FIRE and then, you can imagine Illuminares.

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the iconic community festival, and this edition will be marking that milestone with the theme ’25 Light Years’.

Drawing over 20,000 people a year to John Hendry Park, the Lantern Festival is a spectacle for all ages and one of the Don’t-Miss events of Vancouver’s summer.  Most importantly, Illuminares started as a community festival and it remains one to this day, relying on public participation to create its special kind of magic.

The event officially begins at 6:00pm on Saturday and there will be areas available for the public to install their illuminated works, along with performers and musicians. The main event, The Procession around the lake, begins at 9:30 and is a great sight to see.

If you want to participate and build your own lantern, there are still two workshops available on Thursday and Friday from 5-8pm at the Trout Lake Community Centre. A small lantern costs $5, and medium: $10, Large: $15.

For more information about the event, click here.

Disney movies always end with the Happily Ever After. Except Fox & The Hound. That one was sad as hell. I… I don’t wanna talk about it! But yeah with the exception of the one which emotionally scarred me for life, Disney movies always ending on a happy note. But what about the bad guys? Their careers are ruined! And it’s probably impossible to collect unemployment. Enter Disney Villain Résumés by the Oh My Disney blog. Peep CVs by Ursula, Jafar, Captain Hook, Gaston, Scar, and more! Wait a second — didn’t most of these turds totally die at the end? Pretty sure most of em died. And our economy is suffering way too bad for us to be handing out jobs to dead people. You know I’m right. YOU KNOW I’M RIGHT!

 

What’s an overgrown mustache without a bow tie resting a few inches below it? A big fat nothing, that’s what. No bonafide hipster is spotted out on the scene past dark without proper attire…well at least that was the case last week, I’m not exactly ahead of the curve over here. Anyway, if you want to really stand out, skip the ironically ugly thrift store versions or overpriced made-in-Brooklyn styles for this 3D Printed Bow Tie. Not only is this design approach so very now, the manly accessory also doesn’t need tying! Just slot it in on the top button of your shirt and head out the door.

Get your head out of the gutter, I meant three-in-one! Thanks to Instagram, I have been inundated with images of people and families camping this summer. After a 15 year hiatus, I’m craving a campground trip. But if things have changed so drastically in that time, that I need some sort of full body sleeping bag, count me out. The Doppelganger Wearable Sleeping Bag is a jacket, a coat, and a sleeping bag, in one. The uppermost part is the jacket, then there’s a section that provides some leg protection. Once you’re ready to hit the ground, simply extend the bottom blue part and you’ve got yourself a sleeping bag. Hope you aren’t claustrophobic!

This is the carbon fiber 'Vessel' bathtub designed and built by Splinter Works. It mounts between two walls, drains through a hole in the floor, and probably costs more than a car. Obviously, it's going on the Christmas list.

At 2.7m long, Vessel is longer than a regular bathtub, leaving plenty of room to share the experience. Custom sizes are available but it is also designed so that it can be trimmed up to 20 cm to allow for flexible installation. Pictured here in black, it also available in red, blue, yellow, pink, bronze and pure silver.

What a relief! For a second there I was afraid I'd have to get a custom built bathroom to accommodate one. I'm joking, I still will. You think the walls in this place could actually support a full bathtub? I tried hanging a picture once and now my roommate wolf-whistles at me through the hole in the wall whenever I'm undressing. I'M NOT A PIECE OF MEAT, DEREK. Hit the jump for a couple more shots.

They might look more like Star Wars AT-ATs than bathrooms, but these new flood-proof, prefab beach buildings are causing quite a splash at several NYC beaches. Garrison Architects designed and implemented the modular structures at beaches in the Rockaways, Coney Island and Staten Island, where bathrooms, lifeguard stations and offices were destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. Read on to take a tour of these solar-powered, naturally ventilated new units!

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Post tags: BKLYN Designs, eco design, environmental sustainability, flood-proof construction, Garrison Architects, Green Building, green design, green nyc, Hurricane Sandy, Inhabitat Local New York City, inhabitat nyc, jim garrison, new york city, nyc beach buildings, nyc prefab, post-Sandy construction, prefab beach buildings, rockaways, sustainable design

Okay so they're not all power-ups, but they are all items from Mario games. I just didn't want to run the title onto two lines because sometimes I get real OCD about things like that and this was one of those times. Per artist Elizabeth Sherry:

Since making mock classical paintings is kind of my thing, I thought it would be fun to branch out from portraiture. It occurred to me that Mario had a lot of vegetables and flowers, such as may be found in a regular old-fashioned still life, and so I painted this. Every single thing in this painting came from a Mario game - even the vase.

Wow, who knew making mock classical paintings was somebody's "thing"? I've never really given much thought to what my thing is but if I had to answer off the top of my head I'd say boobies. No, butts. No, no -- boobies are definitely my thing. What's your thing? And you can't say boobies because I already called it. "Boo--" I SAID ALREADY CALLED IT. Thanks to Amie, who doesn't need power-ups because she's just that much of a badass.

Put it in her mouth! You know what helps keep your skin young and healthy looking? Keeping it moisturized and not baking yourself in the sun all the time. Also, $243/hour snail facials. Or at least a growing trend in Japan would have you believe so. Me? I'm smart enough to know frogs and toads are where it's at? You ever rubbed a frog on your face before? You were a weird kid.

The treatment involved allowing a special breed of African snails to travel around a customer's face. "The mucus left behind by the snails slows the aging of skin cells," according to a spokesperson for the Clinical Salon in Tokyo.

I call shenanigans. This is just another one of those ridiculous beauty fads like that one where you put your feet in the fish tank and the little fish eat the dead skin off your toes and give you hepatitis. Except this one costs $243/hour, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHY YOU AND I ARE GOING TO OPEN A SALON. I can always find snails climbing around on the side of the apartment building after it rains. We should also do bikini waxes. Hit the jump for a video news report.

Having carried two human beings to term (okay, this second one is still cooking away for now), I can say that pregnancy is definitely an experience worthy of envy. Sure, there’s some discomfort, but all in all, it’s really pretty cool. Thanks to Alice Kim’s project, you too could have a bump without having to get knocked up at all. The recent graduate of Kingston University designed a PVC maternity vest with a compartment on the front to carry seedlings and young plants. This isn’t just about taking some of the spotlight off of your newly pregnant co-worker. Her aim is to remind people of the care and attention that plants require to grow. Once your seedling blooms into a small plant, the surrogate parent of sorts can use Kim’s Plant Stroller to take it for a walk. And you thought dogs looked funny being pushed around like babies.

This is a tutorial from Instructables user mikeasaurus (of DIY plastic dinosaur high heels fame) of how to make your own plastic toy corn cob holders. Basically it involves sawing a plastic animal in half then filling them and hot-gluing store bought corn cob holders inside. Plus if you drill another pair of holes in each of the holders for the opposite prongs to rest in YOU CAN PUT THE ANIMALS BACK TOGETHER FOR STORAGE. How cool is that?! "Just a little." Jesus, well it's not like we're talking about jetpacks here. Hit the jump for several more shots including a chicken about to go to town on a triceratops cob.

Because bigger is better unless we’re talking about debt in which case smaller is ideal, Fred Flare is selling this Gigantic Red Party Cup. It holds 72 oz. Which, compared to a traditional red Solo cup which holds 16 oz, is a whole lot more drank. MATH! The thing is ceramic so you can use it again and again and again. I mean, assuming you don’t drink yourself into a coma the first time you use it. If that’s the case then you’ll just probably use it the one time.

If you share our love for things that look like other things, then you’re gonna love this Volkswagen Minibus Toaster. This cute little toaster not only looks like a VW minibus, but it burns the Volkswagen onto your toast. It comes from Volkswagen Japan and there were only about 5,000 of these babies made. So unfortunately it’s not available for sale anywhere… well anywhere but eBay. (Pretty much anything you can’t buy in a regular store is on eBay. Haunted grilled cheese sandwiches, human souls, beanie babies—they’ve got it all.) Of course for the price you could pick up a VW Tent which is also pretty groovy.

Africa’s Western black rhino was officially declared extinct in 2011, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The subspecies was last seen in 2006. The Northern white rhino is also “teetering on the edge of extinction,” and Asia’s Javan Rhino may not be far behind if strong measures are not taken to stem poaching and improve conservation measures. This news came after the IUCN conducted a review of 60,000 species of animals and plants in order to update the Red List of Threatened Species.

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Post tags: amphibian, fauna and flora, habitat destruction, IUCN, nature conservation, Northern white rhino, poaching, red list of threatened species, Southern white rhino, Western black rhino, Wildlife conservation