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The Apprehension Engine: An Instrument Designed to Play the Music of Nightmares
Movie composer Mark Korven wanted to craft the perfect sounds for horror movies, but the instruments he needed didn’t exist, and he was tired of using the same digital samples. To produce the original effects needed for evoking breathtaking moments of suspension, he teamed up with guitar maker Tony Duggan-Smith to craft an original instrument that would better aid in manufacturing fear. The Apprehension Engine is that tool, a mechanism built with several bowed metal rulers, spring reverbs, a few long metal rods, and other attachments that allow for spooky interludes and effects.
“A normal instrument, you are playing it and expecting it to have a sound that is pleasing,” said Korven to Great Big Story, “but with an instrument like this, the goal is to produce sounds, that in this case, are disturbing.”
The Apprehension Engine expresses the emotions that cannot be expressed in other ways, triggering fear with intense sonic methods. You can listen to more music by the machine tuned to provoke horror in the video below. (via Great Big Story)
Rock Sculptures Suspended Within Bell Jars by Their Own Weight by Dan Grayber

Cavity Mechanism #12 w/ Glass Dome. 2013. Mixed. 23″ x 13″ x 13″. All images via Dan Grayber.
Dan Grayber‘s works exist at the intersection of sculpture and physics, pieces carefully designed to solve the problems created by their own existence. The sculptures each include a rock suspended within a glass enclosure, the rock’s weight perfectly balanced by the mechanisms, systems, and pulleys that surround it.
Grayber relates this play of tension and balance to personal relationships, which serves as another influence to his work outside of visual interests in industrial design, construction machinery, and the children’s game Cat’s Cradle.
“Cavity Mechanism #6, from 2009, [seen below] is one of the most obvious pieces to speak about interpersonal relationships that I’ve made,” said Grayber to Venison Magazine. “There are two identical mechanisms inside of a glass display dome, and one small cable that runs between the two mechanisms. This cable holds all of the tension between the two mechanisms, and they both need to remain in place to maintain the tension. I was really thinking about co-dependence when I made the piece. If either mechanism were to slip, or the connection between them to break, it would cause both to fail.”
You can see more of Grayber’s experiments in equilibrium on his Instagram and Facebook. (via Boing Boing and Makezine)

Cavity Mechanism #21. 2016. Mixed. 13″ x 14″ x 14″

Cavity Mechanism #24. 2016. Mixed. 13.5″ x 6.5″ x 6.5″

Cavity Mechanism #18. 2015. Mixed. 11″ x 5″ x 5″

Cavity Mechanism #23. 2016. Mixed. 7.5″ x 5″ x 5″

Display Case Mechanism #6. 2016. Mixed. 24.5″ x 16″ x 11″

Display Case Mechanism #6. 2016. Mixed. 24.5″ x 16″ x 11″

Cavity Mechanism #20. 2016. Mixed. 29.5″ x 12″ x 12″
Sheena Liam’s Flowing Thread Embroidery
During the quieter moments of the day, when model Sheena Liam is somewhere between travelling and photoshoots, she picks up her embroidery hoop and creates portraits of girls with flowing thread hair. The project has enabled Liam to explore her own taste for art direction, and each embroidered piece appears as an inventive contemporary approach to a traditional craft. Liam’s simple line drawings, created with a needle and thread, are layered with a technique of allowing the thread to sit loose against and beyond the canvas. This graces Liam’s work with another dimension, through the impression of flowing hair. The girls in each frame embrace this new possibility of interaction–they appear to be readjusting the thread, cutting it with tiny scissors and even dipping the ends in noodle soup. This endearing play with portraiture is explained by Liam as bringing “a certain sort of soul to the pieces.”







All images © Sheena Liam
Polluted Water Popsicles: Faux Frozen Treats Highlight Taiwan’s Water Pollution Problem

via @bebeelai
Focused on environmental change rather than flavor, art students Hung I-chen, Guo Yi-hui, and Cheng Yu-ti from the National Taiwan University of the Arts concocted a line of “frozen treats” titled Polluted Water Popsicles. The group collected polluted water from 100 locations in Taiwan, first freezing the collected sewage samples and then preserving their creations in polyester resin.
At first glance the visually pleasing treats seem to imitate the aesthetic of recent craft and artisanal food trends. However on closed inspection you can identify the trash contained within each mold—bits of plastic, bottle caps, and wrappers lying within the popsicles’ murky waters.
The project is intended to spread awareness about water pollution and its deep effect on our world’s population. The 100 pieces, which also included designed wrappers, was nominated for the Young Pin Design Award and featured in the New Generation of Design Exhibition this May at the Taipei World Trade Center. You can view more of the creatively designed inedible works in the video below. More information about the project can be found on the group’s Facebook. (via Mashable and Quartz)

via @fengfeng210

via @_rokaro_
Towering Murals by Blu on the Streets of Italy Confront Environmental and Societal Woes

La Cuccanga, 2017
From climate change to capitalism run amok, street artist Blu (previously) pulls no punches in his soaring multi-story murals on the streets of Italy. While mixed with a healthy dose of sarcasm and humor, the inspiration behind each artwork is anything but funny as he translates searing critiques into aesthetically beautiful paintings. For instance a 2016 piece criticizing housing problems in the Celadina district of Bergamo, Italy depicts cramped residents as a brightly hued rainbow but leaves a small group of authorities in the lower right completely devoid of color. Collected here is a selection of murals from the last year, you can see more detailed shots by flipping through his blog. You can also get an idea of how he works—perched on a tiny suspended seat—in this short GIF.

Porto Torres, 2016

Celadina, 2016

Catina, 2016

Alta Voracita, 2016
Still Photos of Jupiter Taken by the Juno Spacecraft Set in Motion by Sean Doran
NASA’s Juno spacecraft launched in 2011, arriving at Jupiter in July of 2016 to begin a series of what will eventually be 12 orbits around the Solar System’s largest planet. The path selected for this particular mission is a wide polar orbit, most of which is spent well away from Jupiter. But once every 53 days Juno screams from top to bottom across the surface of the gaseous planet, recording data and snapping photographs for two hours. It takes around 1.5 days to download the six megabytes of data collected during the transit.
Juno only takes a handful of still photographs each time it passes Jupiter, all of which are made available to the public. Lucky for us Sean Doran stitched together the images from Juno’s last transit (colorized by Gerald Eichstädt) to create an approximate video/animation of what it looks like to fly over the giant planet. Music added by Avi Solomon.
Hand-Sewn Hairstyles That Cascade From Embroidered Hoops by Sheena Liam
Fashion model and embroidery artist Sheena Liam hand sews images of women whose hair seems to gracefully dangle from each of her 2D surfaces, Liam using black thread as a substitute for her subjects’ long locks. The works are all completed and displayed on embroidery hoops, with hair styles extending from the women in french braids, messy buns, and long ponytails. In one particular design, tiny pieces of thread are seen attached to the wall below the hoop, creating the illusion that the embroidered woman above is messily trimming her bangs.
Liam creates relatable, solitary moments within each hand sewn hoop. You can see more of her elegant designs, as well as snapshots from her travels, on her Instagram. (via Teen Vogue)
Wandering Along The Moroccan Mountains With Nina Keinrath

Born in Vienna, Austria the 23-year-old film-maker and photographer Nina Keinrath chooses to capture the calmness of her surroundings.
‘Home Less’ By Photographer Nelson Garrido

In his picture series ‘Home Less’ photographer Nelson Garrido shows the impact of financial crisis on Portuguese properties. He shot just one picture a day while capturing various abandoned houses.
Your Guide to Boiling Pots
Nuno CruzJust like quantum mechanics
The Right Place
Real Life Tokyo vs. Anime Tokyo [Pics]
I have never seen The Garden of the Words, but as far as anime movies go, it’s apparently one of the most beautiful movies of the genre you can see. In the picture gallery below, you can compare some of the visuals of the film with their real life equivalent in Tokyo. Please note that in all of the pictures, the top section is from the anime, and the bottom one from a real photo of the location.
[Source: Nijipoi (Japanese) | Via GT]
The post Real Life Tokyo vs. Anime Tokyo [Pics] appeared first on Geeks are Sexy Technology News.
World’s Tiniest Rube Goldberg Machine is Made from Mechanical Watch Parts [Video]
I’m sure you’ve all seen plenty of Rube Goldberg machines on the web in the past, some of them as big as a whole warehouse. However, in this video, Seiko presents us what is probably the world’s tiniest Rube Goldberg machine, made entirely from mechanical watch parts.
The post World’s Tiniest Rube Goldberg Machine is Made from Mechanical Watch Parts [Video] appeared first on Geeks are Sexy Technology News.
When Scientists Attack
Illustrator Diego Sanches has put together a series of pixel art for a forthcoming game featuring famous scientists, each of whom has special attacks based on their work. They include Charles Darwin using evolution:
Stephen Hawking using a wormhole:
And Isaac Newton using gravity:
Check out Diego’s site for the full set of animation.
[Via: Nerd Approved]
The post When Scientists Attack appeared first on Geeks are Sexy Technology News.
This Microscopic View of a Spider Embryo is Strangely Adorable
Nuno Cruzhead crab!!!

Spider embryo. Molecular characterization and embryonic origin of the eyes in the common house spider Parasteatoda tepidariorum. Göttingen University.
Taken from recent research into the development of eyes in spiders, this microscopic image shows what a common house spider looks like as it develops inside an egg. For some reason, it’s disturbingly… cute? This little cthulhu-like spider embryo is nearing the final stage before hatching and appears to be stuck in a tiny self hug. You can learn more about the embryonic origin of eyes in common house spider over on BioMed Central. (via Reddit, Göttingen University)
Mind-blowing Black And White Street Photos Of Hong Kong In The 1950s Captured By A Teenager
These amazing street photos of Hong Kong catured by Self taught Chinese photographer Fan Ho. He arrived from Shanghai in 1949 and he fascinated by streets of Hong Kong. These Photos are part of his book “A Hong Kong Memoir“.
More Info : Modernbook (h/t: Wherecoolthingshappen)
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal - Divine Intervention

Hovertext: I eagerly await your email about how, actually, the rock must contain radioactive elements.
New comic!
Today's News:
Twenty Russians wanted for questioning in MH17 downing
One of about 20 Russian soldiers fired the BUK missile that brought down flight MH17 in July 2014, according to international research collective Bellingcat. All of the 20 soldiers know who gave the orders and who actually pressed the button, Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, said
The post Twenty Russians wanted for questioning in MH17 downing appeared first on NL Times.
The Filmomat Home Film Processing System
Nuno CruzWANT!!!
The death of film has been widely reported, but technologies are only perfected after they’ve been made obsolete. It may not be instant photography, but there is at least one machine that will take 35mm film and 5×7″ prints and develop them automatically. It’s called the Filmomat, and while it won’t end up in the studios of many photographers, it is an incredible example of automation.
The Filmomat is an incredible confabulation of valves, tubes, and pumps that will automatically process any reasonably sized film, from 35mm to 5×7 color slides. The main body of the machine is an acrylic cube subdivided into different sections containing photo processing chemicals, rinse water, and baths. With a microcontroller, an OLED display, and a rotary encoder, different developing processes can be programmed in, the chemicals heated, developer agitated, and film processed. The Filomat is capable of storing fifty different processes that use three chemicals and a maximum of ten steps.
The video for this device is what sells it, although not quite yet; if enough people are interested, the Filmomat might be sold one day. This is likely the easiest film developing will ever get, but then again a technology is only perfected after it has been made obsolete.
Thanks [WhiteRaven] for sending this one in.
Filed under: chemistry hacks

DxOMark Mobile report: Google Nexus 6P
With its 5.7-inch QHD AMOLED display the Nexus 6P is a little smaller than last year's Nexus 6 in terms of both display size and overall dimensions. It comes with an aluminum shell and overall high-end specs, along with a new 12.3MP Sony sensor and an F2.0 aperture. DxOMark's mobile evaluation puts it at third place in its rankings - find out why. Read more
The Hardest Substance Known to Nerdkind [Comic]
[Source: Rock Paper Cynic | Like “Rock Paper Cynic” on Facebook | Follow “Rock Paper Cynic” on Twitter]
The post The Hardest Substance Known to Nerdkind [Comic] appeared first on Geeks are Sexy Technology News.
Forging the Soul Reaver Sword (Legacy of Kain) in Real Life [Video]
From Man at Arms – Reforged:
Every other Monday, our team of blacksmiths and craftsman will be building some of your favorite weapons, and some weapons that you’ve never seen before. This week, we’re forging a big fan request – the wicked Soul Reaver Sword from Legacy of Kain!
[AWE ME]
The post Forging the Soul Reaver Sword (Legacy of Kain) in Real Life [Video] appeared first on Geeks are Sexy Technology News.
JSONx is an IBM standard format to represent JSON as XML

by keiran_s
‘How to be Bird Poop For Dummies’ by This Moth Fly Mimic
Nuno CruzThe queen of disguise!
How to be Bird Poop For Dummies by…. a moth? Alright, so you might not see this title/author combo topping..
The post ‘How to be Bird Poop For Dummies’ by This Moth Fly Mimic appeared first on Featured Creature.
More Creatures:



Spun Glass Caterpillar: A Real Life Crystal Creature
Nuno CruzI love my planet

Photo: Rick Thompson

Photo: John Howard

Photo: Igor Siwanowicz

Photo: Igor Siwanowicz
No, this isn’t a Swarovski crystal creation, but it very well could be! Instead, it’s a Spun Glass Caterpillar (Isochaetes beutenmuelleri) that has dozens of glittering, almost frosty-looking, spines radiating from its body. Don’t be tempted by its beautiful crystalline gaze, though. Those puppies do sting. You’ll want to look, but definitely don’t touch!
Reminds me of when your parents took you to an antique shop when you were little and you were told DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING. Then, you proceeded to secretly touch everything, especially the glass stuff. One time, I ended up breaking something – that was a more of a sting for my parents than for me, though.

Photo: Rick Thompson
If you look closely at the photo above, you’ll notice that you can see right through this creature! That dark green stripe running down the length of its body is actually its stomach.
Ultimately, it’s strange how these truly incredible spun glass caterpillars can transform into such plain Jane adults. Gotta grow up sometime and lose all your mystical qualities… I guess…

Photo: Eric Gofreed
*my spirit is spun of glass*
The post Spun Glass Caterpillar: A Real Life Crystal Creature appeared first on The Featured Creature.
More Creatures:
The best trailers of 2014
MOVIECLIPS trailers | via
First real world images of the new Nokton 10,5mm f/0.95 lens!
Nuno Cruz*_*
Image courtesy: ePhotozine
ePhotozine is the first website who shared real world images of the new Voigtlander Nokton 10,5mm f/0.95 lens. They write:
We were able to take a number of sample photos with the lens, and were impressed by the straight edges, as well as the sharpness of the lens.
Can’t wait to buy this lens! Preorders should be up soon at BHphoto.
Image courtesy: ePhotozine
Panasonic preorders:
LX100 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto. Europe at WexUK.
GM5 at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto. Europe at WexUK.
GM5 in red at Adorama.
35-100mm at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto.
Olympus preorders:
Silver E-M1 body at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus. In Europe at Wex UK.
40-150mm f/2.8 PRO lens at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus. In Europe at Wex UK.
LH-76 lens hood at Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus.
MC-14 1.4x teleconverter at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus.
PRF-ZD62 Z protection filter at Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus.
PRF-ZD72 Z protection filter at Adorama, Bhphoto, GetOlympus.
General links to all new Olympus stuff at Adorama.
ALL new stuff announced at Photokina at Amazon.