At 3:34 am local time, today, February 27th, a devastating magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck Chile, one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded. According to Chile's interior minister, at least 214 people are now known to have been killed. The earthquake also triggered a Tsunami which is right now propagating across the Pacific Ocean, due to arrive in Hawaii in hours (around 11:00 am local time). The severity of the Tsunami is still not known, but alerts are being issued across the Pacific. As this is a breaking story, I will be adding more photos to this entry, as warranted, throughout the day. (35 photos so far)
Click any of the images to see the full collection. Warning: Some images are graphic.
Indonesia, a sprawling country of contrasts is made up of 17,500 islands and populated by over 240 million people, and is home to the world's largest population of Muslims. Recent news stories from Indonesia include deadly mudslides, controversy over a statue of US President Barack Obama (who attended school there as a child), and stricter enforcement of Muslim sharia law, instituted in Aceh province, where a recently passed law bans women from wearing tight trousers. Collected here are a handful of recent images from places all around Indonesia. (36 photos total)
The jumps are incredible, but they’re also so technical that one seemingly insignificant motion can drop a skier on his tail. Given that the skiers can fly up to 50 feet in the air and come down on a 37-degree grade, it seems like just going out and trying a new trick would be a good way to break your neck. That’s why you’ll need one unexpected piece of equipment if you want to start training for aerials: a towel.
Click the image to read the full Mental_Floss post.
A mini armoured car, designed for use in confined spaces such as airports and hotels targeted in terror attacks, has gone on display at an Indian arms fair.
The battery operated, two million rupee ($45,000) Anti-Terrorist Assault Cart (Atac) is said to resemble a bullet-proof golf buggy with firing ports.
It has been specially designed to transport two armed security personnel during or after terror attacks.
It was created in the wake of the Mumbai (Bombay) hotel attacks of 2008.
The attacks in November 2008 took place in two luxury hotels with gunmen surrounded by security forces for about 60 hours. One hundred and sixty-five people were killed in the attacks, including nine gunmen.
The company behind the cart, Metaltech Motor Bodies Pvt Ltd, said the Atac had been designed in the aftermath of the attacks.
Household names like Procter & Gamble’s Tide and Kimberly-Clark’s Huggies dominated the list of “most trusted and recommended brands” in the U.S., though e-commerce site Amazon.com snagged the top spot, per a new study released today (Monday) by Millward Brown.
The report polled 20,000 U.S. consumers last quarter. Millward Brown also conducted the study in 22 countries. The "TrustR" (trust/recommendation) score is compiled from data taken from BrandZ, a global study of consumer brand equity the research firm has been running for the past 12 years (see chart below).
Buy your chances to win 1 year (24 cases of cans) of Dublin Dr Pepper! Join in the fight with Old Doc's Soda Shop & Dublin Dr Pepper to help the American Cancer Society find a cure for cancer. - All proceeds go to benefit the Erath County Relay For Life American Cancer Society.
$1 gets one chance, $5 gets 6 chances. Click the image above to go to the site.
How far would you go to understand the opposite sex?
That question has helped to fuel the idea behind this site, “30 Chick Flicks in 30 Days: One Guy’s Exploration of Romance Through Movies Loved by Women”.
First, you should know that I’m that “guy” exploring these films. Second, my name is Nick. I’m a husband, and have been for seven years. Third, no one put me up to this. And fourth, I’m not some professional film critic. I live in a small town in southern Oklahoma. I work in communications.
This little experiment will begin Friday, Jan. 15, 2010, and conclude on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2010—the day before Valentine’s Day. That’s 30-straight days; 30-straight chick flicks.
Ohio is home to 24 astronauts. Why so many? Perhaps it's because two great role models, John Glenn and Neil Armstrong, are from Ohio. Perhaps it's because Ohio is the birthplace of flight. Maybe it's the schools or the good-old midwestern work ethic. We're not exactly sure why we have so many, but Ohioans are proud of our astronauts!
Click the image to see the list of astronauts from Ohio
The Mariana Trench (or Marianas Trench) is the deepest known part of the world's oceans, and the lowest elevation of the surface of the Earth's crust. It is located in the western Pacific Ocean, to the east of the Mariana Islands. The trench is about 2,550 kilometres (1,580 mi) long but has a mean width of only 69 kilometres (43 mi). It reaches a maximum depth of about 11,033 metres (36,200 ft) at the Challenger Deep, a small slot-shaped valley in its floor, at its southern end.
Click the image below, and then click it again when the new window opens.
t’s very challenging to teach students when they are eating school lunches that don’t give them the nutrition they need and deserve. Oftentimes what is served barely passes muster as something edible. And after a meal high in sugar and fat and low in fiber, they then must pay attention in a classroom.
I’m going to attempt to eat school lunch everyday in 2010. As a teacher it’s available to me for $3.00. Most of the students at my school get free lunch or reduced ($0.40). I’m going to take pictures of the school lunch and post them.
he Olympics have been held in some of the most scenic locations on Earth, and this year is no exception. Some of the most breathtaking moments of the games involve details captured in photo finishes in cross country skiing and hooked ski tips leading to crashes in the slalom seen in slow-motion video. All that aside, Vancouver is equally breathtaking from above.
Vancouver beat out Pyeongchang, South Korea, and Salzburg, Austria, to host Canada’s third Olympics. The city has delivered beautiful, sunny weather that is unfortunately too warm for ideal snow conditions, giving the grounds crews some major challenges. Snow has been trucked in for some of the events.
This gallery collects images taken from space by astronauts and satellite of a few of the more interesting and attractive Olympic host cities from 1900 to 2016.
It's the season of Fashion Week, from Bryant Park in New York last week to London this week, and Milan, Los Angeles and Tokyo next month. As designers and their models gather to present their newest collections to the world, photographers are on hand to take thousands of pictures, most during the actual show - with a few photos from the backstage of each show sent across the wires as well. I've gathered a handful of those backstage glimpses from recent fashion shows, most taken in New York, and share them with you below. (30 photos total)
A sun dog is a prismatic bright spot in the sky caused by sun shining through ice crystals. The Atlas V rocket exceeded the speed of sound in this layer of ice crystals, making the shock wave visible from the ground.
Did you see the 360° show in 2009? And did you look up at the mighty stage and wonder how long it took to build ? Just a couple of minutes as it turns out... when you're watching it on time lapse video. Like this one.
Takes several days to build the breathtaking spectacle that is the 360° touring 'Spaceship'.
But as you probably haven't got days to watch this beautiful creature emerge from the trucks onto the stadium floor, you might want to check out this clever piece of time lapse photography which captures the stage being built and performed on. And taken down again ready for the next city.
Today is Day 8 of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver Canada, almost the halfway mark, and it's time to have a look at the activities in British Columbia. Over 100 medals have been awarded so far, with the United States, Germany, Norway and Canada leading the medal race. This year's event has been nicknamed by some as the Glitch Games, with more than its share of problems, from a malfunctioning cauldron on opening night to weather problems and course troubles. VANOC officials said they were working on the issues they could control, and were optimistic as athletes continued to deliver amazing performances in the many venues around Vancouver. Collected here are some photos from Days 1-8, with more to follow in another entry after the closing ceremony. (45 photos total)
Engineers tasked with building an airport are faced with countless challenges: The ideal location needs ample space, endless flat ground, favorable winds and great visibility. But spots in the real world are rarely ideal, and engineers are forced to work with what they have, making sure that the end product is the safest possible structure for pilots. A survey of airports around the world turns up a mixed bag, ranging from dangerous and rugged landing strips to mega-size facilities that operate like small cities. Here, PM explores the world's most remarkable airports and why they stand out.
Mental_Floss has a series of cool time-lapse videos.
We’re more than halfway through February, yet spring seems so far off for most of us covered under layers upon layers of snow. Personally, I wish we could just hit the fast forward button to about the the middle April. While time may not work that way, video does. In that regard, tonight’s Late Movies feature a series of time-lapse clips to tide you over until it warms up.
Click the image above to see the other 10 videos. The topics include: - Washington DC Snow Storm - Guy driving from LA to New York - A colony of ants devouring a dead gecko - A history of everything - Trapped in an elevator - Passing through the Panama Canal - Street artist - From Larvae to Butterfly - Artificial beauty time lapse by Dove - Cityscapes
Hey, do you have a Twitter account? Have you ever noticed those messages in which people tell you where they are? Pretty annoying, eh. Well, they’re actually also potentially pretty dangerous. We’re about to tell you why.
The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you’re definitely not… home. So here we are; on one end we’re leaving lights on when we’re going on a holiday, and on the other we’re telling everybody on the internet we’re not home.
The goal of this website is to raise some awareness on this issue and have people think about how they use services like Foursquare, Brightkite, Google Buzz etc. Because all this site is, is a dressed up Twitter search page (link). Everybody can get this information.
Chroma keying is a technique for mixing two images or frames together in which a color (or a small color range) from one image is removed (or made transparent), revealing another image behind it. This technique is also referred to as color keying, colour-separation overlay (CSO; primarily by the BBC[1]), greenscreen, and bluescreen. It is commonly used for weather forecast broadcasts, wherein the presenter appears to be standing in front of a large map, but in the studio it is actually a large blue or green background. The meteorologist stands in front of a bluescreen, and then different weather maps are added on those parts in the image where the color is blue. If the meteorologist himself wears blue clothes, his clothes will become replaced with the background video. This also works for greenscreens, since blue and green are considered the colors least like skin tone.[2] This technique is also used in the entertainment industry, the iconic theatre shots in Mystery Science Theater 3000, for example.
1,200 students, staff and faculty at the University of Alberta unofficially smash the Guinness World Record for most players in a single dodgeball game at the Universiade Pavilion better known as "The Butterdome" in Edmonton, Alta. on February 5, 2010. The former record was 450.
"Vancouver City" music video is an artistic collaboration between Innerlife Project and TimeLapseHD. For more information and music downloads go to www.innerlifeproject.com These time lapses are shot with a 12 mega pixel digital single lens reflex cameras. Original resolution is 6 times better then HD (high definition). The images have been resized for HD and are much better quality then shown here on YouTube. Video clips are for sale. For more information contact us at TimeLapseHD@hotmail.com. Thanks and enjoy!
Last Sunday, February 14th was the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year. It is also the beginning of the Chinese Spring Festival, with celebrations and observations by ethnic Chinese and others around the world, welcoming in the Year of the Tiger. Conservationists are hoping to capitalize on the Year of the Tiger by calling attention to the plight of the endangered big cats. The number of wild tigers is thought to have dropped from 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century to fewer than 3,000 today. In September, the World Bank and Russia will hold a summit on tiger conservation in Vladivostok, encouraging countries that are host to wild tigers to reach agreements to further protect and expand their habitat. (37 photos total)
First, let me clearly state that I have no idea if this guy's numbers are correct or not. I am posting this because of the way he presents the data. If things were always made this simple I wonder if we would allow our elected officials to get by with some of the things they do.
How do the Obama deficits compare with past presidents? And how did the national debt get so big anyway. This video tries to answer those questions by looking at the debt as a road trip and seeing how fast different administrations have been traveling.
In January, Union Pacific tested a 3.5-mile long "monster" train, using extra locomotives to distribute power efficiently. Just what are monster trains, and how are they different from conventional long-haul freight trains?
Click the image to read the article. Watch the video below to see the train pass...and pass...and pass...
Students endure hundreds of hours on yellow buses each year getting to and from school in this desert exurb of Tucson, and stir-crazy teenagers break the monotony by teasing, texting, flirting, shouting, climbing (over seats) and sometimes punching (seats or seatmates).
But on this chilly morning, as bus No. 92 rolls down a mountain highway just before dawn, high school students are quiet, typing on laptops.
Morning routines have been like this since the fall, when school officials mounted a mobile Internet router to bus No. 92’s sheet-metal frame, enabling students to surf the Web. The students call it the Internet Bus, and what began as a high-tech experiment has had an old-fashioned — and unexpected — result. Wi-Fi access has transformed what was often a boisterous bus ride into a rolling study hall, and behavioral problems have virtually disappeared.
Once more, it is Carnival Season in many countries around the world with a Roman Catholic heritage. Celebrations and parades are put on just prior to the observance of Lent. Over the past few weeks parades and celebrations have taken place throughout Europe, the Caribbean and South America. An estimated 730,000 foreign tourists, many fleeing snowy winter conditions in Europe and the United States, traveled to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for this year's celebrations. Collected here are a handful of images from some of the elaborate celebrations of this Carnival season. (39 photos total)
Click on the image above to see the full collection.
With six days of flight nearly completed by the crew of space shuttle Endeavour, here's a look at some of the best images captured so far during the vehicle's mission.
Last night, Vancouver, British Columbia welcomed the world, as over 2,600 winter athletes from 82 countries entered the BC Place arena, ready to compete in 86 events in 15 different sports. The opening ceremony focused on Canadian diversity and heritage, with emphasis on the many cultures of the First Nations. After the longest Torch Relay in history, the Olympic Flame has come to rest and now lights the cauldron of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. (30 photos total)
Some years the commercials are the best thing about the Super Bowl. Knowing this Adland.tv took the time to compile 38 years worth of Super Bowl commercials.
Click on the link above to go their site. The green year names are links that will take you to the list of commercials for that year, and the opportunity to watch your favorites once again.
Although I cannot narrow these down to a single favorite, 'Terry Tate - Office Linebacker' would definitely be in my top ten.
The original track of Darth Vader's voice as performed by the man who acted him, David Prowse. Imagine what a different movie Star Wars would have been if they had left it like this. From the Documentary "Empire OF Dreams"
With only two days left until the start of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, the 106-day, 26,000 km overland Olympic Torch Relay through Canada has nearly come to a close. Back in December, we featured 33 images from the first 44 days of the journey. Today, we bring you highlights from the last 73 days, as torchbearers bring the flame ever closer to its final destination, Vancouver's BC Place, to light the Olympic Cauldron and signal the start of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games on February 12th. (42 photos total)
Designer Ralph Lauren's love of all things American is extending to Team USA once again.
When about 150 athletes walk in the opening ceremony of the 21st Winter Olympic Games Feb. 12 in Vancouver, they'll wear navy puffer jackets, winter-white tapered pants and Fair Isle knit hats from the Polo Ralph Lauren Olympic collection, which is inspired by the 1932 Lake Placid Games.
Dogsleds are in the news lately, as several races have recently taken place around the Northern Hemisphere, and as transportation choices for both a meeting of the G-7 and the start of the 2010 U.S. census. Mushers brought representatives to Iqaluit, a small village in Nunavut Territory, chosen to host a recent G-7 meeting, in part so Canada could assert sovereignty over its part of the Arctic. The 2010 U.S. Census, as per tradition, kicked off its count on January 25th in a rural part of Alaska in the small village of Noorvik, as census takers arrived by dogsled. And recent dogsled races include Le Grand Odyssee, the Sedivackuv Long, Pirena, the Aviemore Husky Sled Dog Rally and many more smaller regional competitions. Collected here are a handful of recent photos of sleds, dogs, and their humans. (30 photos total)
January 26th, 2010 marked the 60th anniversary of India's adoption of the Constitution of India, and the 80th anniversary of its original 1930 Declaration of Independence from British rule. The annual holiday is celebrated as Republic Day, with a grand parade held in the capital, New Delhi, and many other celebrations across the diverse nation. Collected here are a number of photographs from the Republic Day celebrations and many more colorful glimpses of daily life from all around India. (40 photos total)
Click any of the images to see the full collection.
