Looking back at the most significant battles and military operations in history, deception has always been an important strategy, and in modern-day Russia balloons are one of the most important tools of deception.

Bouncy castles aren’t known as the most effective tools of war, but in Russia, they are just as important as actual weapons worth millions of dollars. That’s because bouncy castles designed to mimic actual weapons cost a hundred times cheaper than the real thing, and can be deployed and moved a lot faster. And if your goal is to deceive the enemy, to appear stronger than you really are, drawing their fire, or simply buying time by forcing them to verify targets, this inflatable army is an important piece of your arsenal.

Read More »

Amsterdam-based artist Cedric Laquieze creates creates eerie yet intriguing sculptures of fairies by piecing together various dead insect parts.

Over the last 20 years, Cedric Laquieze has created hundreds of unique insect fairies by piecing together bug parts that complement each other in terms of color and texture. He collects dead insects specimens given to him by breeders, takes them apart and then glues various parts (shells, legs, antennae, wings, etc.) together to create his fantastic faeries. Although some people are creeped out by Cedric’s creations, others find them utterly fascinating, and praise the artist for piecing together creatures that look almost lifelike.

Read More »

A popular gym in Krakow, Poland, managed to stay open under new coronavirus restrictions by declaring itself a shop where people can “test” equipment for a fee, and a church offering “religious meetings” to promote a healthy lifestyle.

Over the weekend, Krakow police entered the “Atlantic Sports Fitness Gym Squash Klub” fitness center where a dozen or so people were exercising despite the government ban on gyms designed to slow the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Officers ID-ed both the staff and the visitors, but didn’t issue any fines, because representatives of the gym claimed that they were operating legally. Because the firm already has a business classification allowing it to carry out retail services, Atlantic Sports declared itself a shop where people could come in and test fitness equipment for a fee.

Read More »

Masahiko Kimura is a Japanese bonsai artist famous for pioneering the ‘bonsai forest’ trend, in which several bonsai trees are planted on interlocking wood or stone slates, forming tiny, whimsical forests.

Kimura started out in the world of bonsai art at the age of 15, as an apprentice to bonsai master Motosuke Hamano, at Toju-en Bonsai Garden in Saitama, Japan. After 11 years, a young Masahiko Kimura decides to pursue bonsai art on his own, and ends up creating some of the most controversial bonsai artworks ever. It’s hard to refer to bonsai art as ‘controversial’, but Kimura’s style did ruffle a few feathers among purists of the art at first, as many of them considered that he was breaking too many of the craft’s ancient traditions.

Read More »

A middle-aged Vietnamese man is being hailed as a TikTok phenomenon after achieving stardom on popular video app TikTok by doing nothing but staring into his smartphone camera.

With streaming and video content being so popular these days, wannabe influencers really have to work hard and find new ways of attracting and entertaining audiences. Or so they say… In reality, it seems some people can make it by doing nothing but turning on their phone cameras and recording themselves literally doing nothing at all. Don’t believe me? Just check out Vietnamese “uncle” Anh Tran Tan, whose TikTok profile features only clips of him staring into the camera, with Vietnamese music playing in the background.

Read More »

Luxury fashion brand Ralph Lauren has been slammed and ridiculed online for selling a pair of paint-covered overalls for $695.

If you’re going to spend just under $700 on a pair of designed overalls, you at least want them to look expensive, right? No? Well, maybe that’s just me, but I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t them to make you look like you just finished painting an entire house. And yet that’s exactly the look that Ralph Lauren went with for its new “Paint-Splatter Coverall”, a pair of black denim overalls covered in white and orange paint stains and featuring beat-up knee areas.

Read More »

Small-banded kukri snakes, named after the curved Kukri knives used by Nepalese Gurkha soldiers, apparently use their sharp teeth to slice into certain victims and then proceed to eat them from the inside.

Scientists already knew that kukri snakes used their curved teeth to tear into eggs, but a recent study revealed that they sometimes used their knife-shaped fangs to slice the abdomens of poisonous toads, before sticking their heads in side them and feeding on their intestines. According to the research published in the Herpetezoa online journal, the victims are basically eaten alive from the inside, which the authors themselves found to be a macabre feeding strategy.

Read More »

The Japanese castle town of Himeji is home to the only known black cat café in the world, Nekobiyaka, where you can enjoy a refreshing drink in the company of about a dozen black felines.

There are hundreds of cat cafes all over Japan, but only one dedicated exclusively to black cats. Nekobiyaka opened in 2013 and has since become somewhat of a tourist attraction in Himeji. The owner, Ms. Yagi, came up with idea of a black cat café as a way of increasing the felines’ chances of finding a forever home. As in most places around the world, the rate of adoption for black cats in Japan is significantly lower than for all other colors, and many of them end up euthanized. At Nekobiyaka, visitors get to interact with black felines and discover that the stigma and superstition surrounding them is simply ridiculous.

Read More »

Poitou, or Baudet du Poitou is a French donkey breed known primarily for their large size and their distinctive coat which, if left ungroomed for long periods of time, will form dreadlocks.

Originally bred in the Poitou region of France, Baudet du Poitou was once highly sought after all over the world, because of its size and strength. Before the industrial revolution, Poitou donkeys were raised to be used in breeding large mules known as Poitevin, once “regarded as the finest and strongest in France”, and exported to various countries for the development of other donkey and mule breeds. In the former province of Poitou, donkey breeders would  traditionally leave the animals’ coats ungroomed, causing their long locks to form shaggy lumps known as ‘cadenettes’ or dreadlocks. These would sometimes grow so long that they reached the ground.

Read More »

A Spanish ham producer recently announced that it sold the most expensive piece of traditional Iberian ham to a Japanese buyer for the outrageous price of 12,000 euros ($14,100).

Julio Revilla, president of Sierra Mayor Jabugo, an Iberian ham producer based in Corteconcepción, Spain’s Huelva region, said that the record-breaking piece of ham was prepared following the strict instructions of the buyer. They requested that the ham come from an Iberian pig at least two years old that had been grazing in the mountains of Sierra Mayor for at least 100 days. The animal had to gain at least 100 kilos during the time they spend grazing and that their diet consisted only of acorns and herbs. Finally, the curing period for the ham was five years, double the normal curing period for premium ham.

Read More »

A 29-year-old woman in China has suffered paralysis in the left side of her face after having wrinkle fillers injected at a cosmetic clinic. Doctors fear that the symptoms may be permanent.

On September 12, Ms. Zhao, from Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province. went to the local cosmetic hospital for a procedure she had undergone several times in the past – filler injections to remove some visible wrinkles on her face. Only this time things didn’t go as smoothly as usual. On September 19, a week after getting the filler injections, the 29-year-old woman woke up with half-face paralysis. Her mouth was crooked, she had a permanent frown in her left brow, and she couldn’t completely close her mouth and her left eye. She is still unable to chew food correctly or drink liquids, and has to use a straw.

Read More »

An entomologist from the University of Melbourne lets thousands of mosquitoes bite his arm regularly in order to keep them fed for research on eradicating Dengue fever.

Dr Perran Stott-Ross has been involved in mosquito research at the University of Melbourne for many years now, trying to find effective ways of curbing the spread of the Dengue virus, passes between humans via mosquitoes. One of the most promising strategies has been infecting swarms of mosquitoes with Wolbachia, a bacteria that naturally blocks the transmission of dengue fever and is passed on over generations of mosquitoes. But in order to further this research, Dr. Stott-Ross has to monitor thousands of blood-sucking bugs, and as part of that monitoring he offers his own arm as an all-you-can-eat buffet…

Read More »

UK-based supermarket Waitrose has been slammed by social media users for selling bouquets of “autumn seasonal foliage” at £6 ($7.5) apiece.

Photos of various tree leaves packaged in transparent plastic foil and arranged as flower bouquets went viral on social media this week, sparking controversy because of the product’s price, six British pounds, of seven and a half dollars. Considering tree leaves can literally be picked up from the street this time of year, it’s understandable that some people went after Waitrose, accusing the supermarket of trying to make money by selling something that is actually free.

Read More »

Luciana Gonzalez is a Brazilian confectionery master specializing in ultra-realistic sugar flowers. Her works is so incredibly detailed and delicate that you would never guess she has only three years of experience.

Up until 2017, Luciana Gonzalez had never baked a cake in her life and had never enjoyed spending time in the kitchen. But three years ago the civil engineer decided to abandon her lucrative career in civil construction due to unbearable stress, and try supporting her family in another way. After her former profession put her in the hospital, she decided to go to school again and learn another profession. The Senac Campos do Jordão school of gastronomy was right in front of her house, so she decided to give it a try, despite her total lack of cooking experience.

Read More »

Hannah Grace, a creative mother-of-one from the UK, has been doing makeup illusions for only a couple of years, but she is already one of the most talented artists in the business.

A former chef turned self-taught makeup artist, 32-year-old Hannah got into facial makeup illusions back in 2018, while painting her face for fun. She realized that she was pretty good at it and decided to pursue the art form further. Since then, she has transformed herself into popular cartoon characters, as well as original illusions, some of which are truly stunning to look at. Although her makeup art started as a hobby, Hannah has managed to turn it into a successful career, at least on social media, where she boasts thousands of loyal fans.

Read More »