I knew Russian modders had some mad skills, but it seems the ones from the Czech Republic are just as good. This Cooker PC mod is proof of that.

I don’t speak Czech, so I don’t know much about the building process of the Cooker Computer, but apparently it was done last year, starting from scratch. No photos of it in action have been found yet, but I’m sure it works just fine. After all it’s all about the look, and a computer in a stove is just about as fresh and cool as modding gets.

Considering you speak Czech and want to know more about the Cooker Computer project, check Modding.cz. Maybe you could give us some more details too. I’m sure we’d all appreciate it.

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Dan Phillips has become a regular celebrity in his home town of Huntsville, Texas, for building 14 fully functional recycled houses out of construction waste and scraps.

The 64-year-old constructor has lived a varied life, working as an intelligence officer in the army, a college dance instructor, antique dealer and even as a puzzle maker. He has spent the last 12 years building affordable houses for the poor, using discarded materials.

Anything durable people throw away is a potentially useful building material for Dan Phillips. He runs down to construction sites and landfills and takes away almost everything they throw away. His houses are not all the same, he builds each one with the materials at hand, but he views that as a good thing. After “repetition creates pattern”.

Dan Phillips’ recycling philosophy has changed the way the entire community sees the recycling process and he has even been contacted by companies who wanted advice on how to build recycled warehouses.

Dan uses his very own construction company to build the houses, but always asks the beneficiary to take part in the building process. This way, if something ever breaks, they’ll know where everything is and how to fix it.

via New York Times

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The “Day of the Geese” is a Spanish Fiesta in which “brave” contestants have to wrench the head off a goose while being plunged into the water.

In the Basque fishing-town of Lekeitio, near Bilbao, people have a rather unusual way of keeping themselves entertained. Every year, during the Day of the Geese, young men try to prove their skill at tearing the head off a goose.

Geese are strung up on a wire, above the town’s harbor, as young men approach in boats and try to grab them. They are then lifted up into the air and plunged into the water repeatedly, until they pull the head off the goose or fall into the water.

Quite a challenge but at least the winner gets a worthy price: he gets to keep the goose…I can’t say I’m surprised to see this kind of display in a country fascinated by archaic traditions like Corrida or the Shearing of the Beasts, but at least here they kill the goose beforehand (if that can be considered a positive aspect). The Day of the Geese used to be celebrated with live geese. Read More »

Wang Guohua has his sight set on entering the Guinness Book of Records for his impressive cigarette pack collection.

The Chinese collector began his search for cigarette packs 6 years ago and now he is the proud owner of 30,000 packs of cigarettes from over 100 production areas of more than 10 countries. He has prepared an application for the Guinness Book of Records, as the man with the biggest cigarette pack collection on Earth.

As you can see in the photos, he’s even used some of them to cover up an entire room inside his house.

Photos by ImagineChina

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Sarah Kaufmann earned herself the nickname of The Cheese Lady through her ability to carve stinky works of art from cheddar cheese.

Using a small carving tool, The Cheese Lady takes between six to twelve hours to create her “cheesy” artworks. Her tasty masterpieces are often featured at children’s parties, birthdays and even hotel openings.

Photos by Sarah Kaufmann/REX FEATURES

via Telegraph.co.uk

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Zhang Tingting, a popular kung-fu artist from China, managed to tow eight cars using only the incredible power of her hair. This was her last performance before becoming a Buddhist nun.

52-year-old Zhang Tingting has been touring China for decades, mesmerizing people with her unique kung-fu talents. Using the power of her braided hair, Zhang is able to pull cars and even cut paper. She has been practicing the ancient art of kung-fu ever since she was 17 years old, but has now decided to quit and become a Buddhist nun.

The talented artist has been living the life of a nun for the last two years, but decided to give one last performance, for the people in her native town of Kaifeng, before shaving her precious hair. On August 25, Zhang Tingting pulled off one of the most amazing stunts ever, towing eight cars for a length of 20 meters.

She has shaved her unusually strong hair, but it has not been lost. Authorities chose to preserve it and are considering sending it on a pilgrimage to Buddhist temples in Tibet, or displaying it in a museum.

Photos by ImagineChina

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Gao Xianzhang has managed to create what some would call the holiest fruits ever, pears shaped like Buddha.

Gao has been working on his pear-growing technique for six years and this season he managed to grow 10,000 Buddha-shaped baby pears. Each fruit is grown in an intricate Buddha mould and ends up looking like a juicy figurine. The ingenious farmer says the locals in his home village of Hexia, norther China, have been buying his Buddha pears as soon as he picks them from the trees. Most of them think they are cute and that they bring good luck.

Gao Xianzhang pears aren’t cheap, roughly $1.8 each, but their success in China convinced him to start exporting them into Europe.

Photos by Central European News

via Daily Mail

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Suang Puangsri, a 38-year-old man from Thailand lives in perfect harmony with his 4,600 pet scorpions.

Scorpions, grasshoppers, locusts and other insects are considered delicacies in Thailand and Suang Puangsri has been eating them for the last 10 years. To atone for this “crime” he has adapted his home in Uttaradit province, 600 km north of Bangkok, to live with 4,600 dangerous scorpions.

He feeds them and cares to their every need and ultimately releases them in their natural habitat, in the forests of Uttaradit. As you can see in the images, he has no problem with his creepy pets crawling all over his body and even in his mouth.

Inspired by his scorpion pets, Suang makes insect figurines out of seeds and branches.

Photos by Reuters

via Yahoo

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Over 200,000 blue rubber-ducks took part in the 2009 Great British Duck Race, on September 6, on the Thames, in London.

Last year the tradition of the blue ducks began and this year they returned in even greater numbers, literally covering up Molesey Lock, on the River Thames. As we’ve mentioned in our coverage of the 2008 Great British Duck Race, the duckies are blue because, in 2007, when they were yellow, people threw their own ducks in the water, without paying the entrance fee.

The Great British Duck Race is a contest between rubber ducks, to determine which is the fastest floating one. People have to pay 2 pounds to “adopt” a blue rubber duck and enter it in the competition. The winner’s prize is 10,000 pounds and the rest of the earnings go to the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC).

Last year’s record of 200,000 blue rubber ducks on the Thames was beaten this year, with over 205,000 “contestants” registered for the race.

Photos by Xinhua/Reuters

via Xinhua

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I know of Disney’s acquisition of Marvel, but I had no idea they also had their eye on Hasbro, owner of the Transformers franchise.

Meet the adorable Donald Duck, like you’ve never seen him before. Takara Tomy, a famous Japanese toy manufacturer has decided to give the popular Disney character a radical makeover and turned him into a Transformer. Donald now turns from a skateboarder into a buggy-driving duck in seconds and might just steal Bumblebee‘s part in the new Transformers movie.

via Cool Buzz

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Raising awareness on the issue of global warming is not easy this days, but artists come up with all sorts of original ways to make the news.

Take Brazilian artists Nele Azevedo,  who created 2,000 ice-sculptures and placed them on the steps of the Berlin Opera Hall, to melt. That’s a lot of work to watch melt away in one hot afternoon, but at least her message made the newspapers. And if one more person knows about the melting Arctic ice, than her effort was not in vain.

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As a black mother, having three albino children out of five can’t seem normal.

But it can happen, and Rosmere Fernandes de Andrade and her partner Joao, two black Brazilian parents are proof. Esthefany Caroline, Ruth Caroline and Kauan are as white as snow while their two other siblings have dark skin, just like their parents.

Scientists say this is very unusual, especially since both the parents and some of the children are black. But it’s all just a game of luck, since if both the parents carry the albinism gene, there is a 1 in four chance their offspring will be an albino.

You can imagine it’s not easy for them to adjust in a society where they look completely different from everyone else and they say they constantly get taunted by kids, at school. Their parents are also faced with the task of buying expensive sunblock and extra clothes, to prevent them from getting skin cancer.

Photos by REUTERS

via Daily Mail

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PETA activists finds original way to promote vegetarianism in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Ashley Fruno, an old PETA activist from Canada, who in the past even went nude to promote vegetarianism, now found an even more ingenious way to attract attention. On September 2, 2009, miss Fruno showed up in front of a mall in Malaysia’s capital of Kuala Lumpur, dressed in a beautiful green dress, made only out of vegetables leaves.

She was holding up a sign that said “Let Vegetarianism Grow on You“. Well, she did and it looks amazing on her.

Photos by Xinhua/Chong Voon Chung

via Xinhua

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The Chinese Government knows how stressful work can be and decided to help the people release the pressure through Destructotherapy.

This is not the first time we’ve posted a piece on Destructotherapy, but it is the first time I’ve heard of it in China. Authorities in Changsha have set up a destruction therapy course in a park, where people could smash the hell out of used cars and all sorts of broken home appliances like TVs, refrigerators or washing machines.

I think more and more people should embrace Destructotherapy, after all, there’s nothing more relaxing than smashing stuff to bits.

Photos by Xinhua/Li Ga

via Xinhua

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At least that’s what over 5,000 followers of Viassarion the Teacher would have you believe.

Sergei Torop is a 48-year-old spiritual leader who believes he is the reincarnation of Jesus. A former traffic policeman, Torop was laid-off in 1991 and suddenly realized he was the Second Coming of Jesus, 2,000 years after he was crucified. That’s when he became Viassarion.

Of course, he’s not the only man on Earth claiming to be the Son of God, but unlike most of them, Viassarion the Teacher actually managed to gain a significant following, including artists and intellectuals who actually moved to and around the small Siberian town of Petropavlovka, just to be close to their Messiah.

Sergei Torop has been traveling to other countries to convert followers and, although he has been accused he’s been doing it for personal gain, Viassarion says his church makes no money whatsoever.

via Daily Mail

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