Archive for October, 2008
The biggest hole in the world – great photos
The world’s biggest hole is located in Russia.
The gaint hole is actually a diamond mine in Eastern Siberia near the town Mirna. It is 525 meters deep and 1.25 km in the diameter.
The following truck loader is one of the biggest in the world – lenth 13.36 meters, width 7.78 meters and height 6.65 meters.
This gaint machine appears just a small point in the next image…
The suction above the hole resulted in several helicopter crashes, so all flight above the hole is prohibited now.
A view from a satellite…
(Really) Stunning Pictures and Photos
1. Water and a Girl
Beautiful composition, excellent scenery, amazing play of colors.
2. The Ball is Coming!
Analogue shot with Seagull 6×6 (Chinese clone of Rolleiflex), made in 1983. “The gulfball is suspended on a fishing line in front of the camera. It was a stormy day. So I had to shoot 5 or 6 films for getting one image with the ball in the center position AND a light reflection on the golf club.”
3. Sky
The sky is reflected in a drop of water. Beautiful scenery.
4. Returning to the same ocean
Beautiful sand textures, beautiful composition and somehow a very sad story hidden behind the image.
5. Tree
A colorful tree from a different perspective.
6. Gizmo
How adorable is that?
7. Glittery Ball
“The reflection in this water droplet, it looks like the glitter is stuck to the water, but NO, it is reflections from the glitter on the feather.”
8. Yaw? Weeeee
You probably shouldn’t try this in your local trains. Such pictures are unforgettable.
9. Leap of Faith
What does being one step away from falling into the abyss feel like? The photo is taken by Paul Perton.
10. Astronaut Self-shot Over Earth
Could this be the best self-shot ever? It’s truly out of this world.
11. Autumn in red
Pure beauty. No words are necessary.
12. FlickrMeeting – Genova – G3
Blue baloon, a small detail, gives the picture an incredible power.
![Mind-Blowing Photos - FlickrMeeting - Genova - G3 - [Ghe semmu + DieciCento + Milanoue!!W ]](http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1365/1433425995_db6d4b2cb5.jpg?v=0 "(Really) Stunning Pictures and Photos")
13. Sea in the sea
Incredible scenery. Apparently, the shot was made on the boat in the middle of the sea.
14. If I was an old building…
“If I was an old building I would want to be by the ocean. Till’ the end of times”. Photographed at the old fishing piers of the Texas Bolivar Peninsula.
15. Bee the Cat
“It’s hard to get the right exposure, with them being white, and with the fact they don’t stay still unless they’re sleeping.”
16. Passing the Golden Gate Bridge
17. Glow
Smoke from a leaf pile.
18. Swimming pool
Taking a look at the swimming pool. From a quite different perspective.
19. Reflect
A reflection from the louvre’s pyramid.
20. Time To Go Home…
“Tthe way the birds are lined up makes the composition extraordinary fantastic.”
21. Seagull on a sign
This seagull seems to have its own personal understanding of human’s rules.
22. Marshmellow girl
A beautiful composition.
23. Refashioned Dahlia
Photo taken at Duncan Garden in Spokane, WA.
24. Bird and Meat
25. Water drop
A photo taken at the exact right time. Available as a desktop wallpaper in various resolutions.
26. Mt. Fuji
27. Two ways at looking at a fish
28. Blessed fog
A shot of Grande Madre di Dio in Torino, Italy.
29. Family of bugs
30. Pigeon Point Lighthouse
“Once per year at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse they shut down the weak insipid modern (presumably electric) light and switch over the the 5 kerosene lamps and fresnel lens of the original, as it was 135 years ago.”
31. Fire Shot
Location: Changa Beach, Coquimbo.
32. A conversation
Fox, bird and snow. This picture is titled “Good afternoon, my name is chikiricuatro”.
33. Shanghai – Acrobatic
Picture taken during an acrobatic show in a Shanghainese theatre.
34. Northern lights as seen from space
35. Red October Rise
Sunrise over Bogie Lake, Michigan.
36. Crystal clarity
37. Skier’s Paradise
“Climbing partner at 17,000′ on Denali carrying his skis down to around 16,200′ where he will be able to ski down the rest of the way to base camp at 7200′.”
38. Bird and Water
39. Photograph Taken at the Exact Right Time
40. All alone.
This shot is taken on a Norway’s cliff Prekestolen (also known as Preacher’s Pulpit).
42. Above the clouds
The shot taken during the flight from Vienna to Frankfurt, approaching Frankfurt.
43. The Waves
45. Cockfight
Taken by Jan Sochor.
46. Polar lights
Öxarárfoss in Iceland – Aurora Borealis taken by Arnar Valdimarsson.
47. Concentration
48. Cat and deer
49. Here floats a bubble in the air…
50. A girl portrait
12 Worst Photoshop Mistakes ever
Need an extra hand?
Nice stomach on the “Before” picture
World’s smallest waist – Maxim Mexico
The model apparently had a stroke during her shoot (right eye)
The only cereal that makes you white
Yeah, nice legs
No head. From Sports Illustrated
At 4 am, somewhere, a designer who needs Photoshop training wakes up and utters “OMG! I forgot to put her finger back in”
Is she’s about to devour her friend?
Madonna’s Microcephalic issue
So what’s wrong with this girl’s arm?
Ok, how many hands do you actually have Lady Guineviere?
10 Most Amazing Bridges
Banpo Bridge (South Korea): The Fountain Bridge
On September 9, 2008, the Banpo Bridge in Seoul (South Korea) got a major facelift: a 10,000-nozzle fountain that runs all the way along both its sides. Immediately after being installed, the bridge turned into a major tourist attraction, as the bridge pumps out 190 tons of water per minute using the water from the river below.
Millau Bridge (France): World’s Tallest Vehicular Bridge
Towering 1,125ft above the Tarn Valley in southern France, driving along the Millau Bridge is said to feel like flying. This Foster + Partners marvel is slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower, took three years to build and opened to the public in 2004. While it may provide picturesque views of the valley below, once the mist descends it is not a route for the faint hearted! The Millau Bridge has a total length of 8,071ft with the longest single span at 1,122ft and a maximum clearance below of 886ft; in short the bridge is massively impressive both on paper and in real life. The deck is lofted on 7 pylons and weighs 36,000 tonnes. A series of 7 masts, each 292ft tall and weighing 700 tonnes, are attached to the corresponding pylons.
Henderson Waves (Singapore): Most Beautiful Pedestrian Bridge
At a height of 36 metres or 12 storeys from the road, the Henderson Waves it’s the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore. The 300-metre bridge links up the parks at Mount Faber and Telok Blangah Hill.
Hangzhou Bay Bridge (China): World’s Longest Trans-Oceanic Bridge
Across the Hangzhou Bay extends the longest trans-oceanic bridge in the world, with 35.673 kilometres (22 mi) long with six expressway lanes in two directions. The bridge was built to address traffic congestion in the booming region, cutting the driving time between Shanghai and Ningbo from four to two-and-a-half hours.
The bridge underwent various feasibility studies for a decade before it was approved in 2003, and finally opened to the public on May 1, 2008. Total investment on the bridge was RMB 11.8 billion (around US$ 1.4 billion).
Rolling Bridge (UK): The Bridge that Curls Up on Itself
Designed by Heatherwick Studio, the award-winning Rolling Bridge is located Paddington Basin, London. Rather than a conventional opening bridge mechanism, consisting of a single rigid element that lifts to let boats pass, the Rolling Bridge gets out of the way by curling up until its two ends touch. While in its horizontal position, the bridge is a normal, inconspicuous steel and timber footbridge; fully open, it forms a circle on one bank of the water that bears little resemblance to its former self.
Twelve metres long, the bridge is made in eight steel and timber sections, and is made to curl by hydraulic rams set into the handrail between each section.
Oliveira Bridge (Brazil): World’s First X-shaped Cable Stayed Bridge with two crossed lanes
The Octavio Frias de Oliveira Bridge over the Pinheiros River in São Paulo, Brazil was opened in May 2008. It is 138 metres (450 ft) tall, and connects Marginal Pinheiros to Jornalista Roberto Marinho Avenue. It’s design is unique in that the 2 curved decks of the bridge cross each other through its X-shaped supporting tower.
Wind and Rain Bridge (China): Dong people’s bridge
The Wind and Rain Bridge is the symbolized architecture of the Dong minority people. The wind and rain bridge in Diping is the largest of its kind in Guizhou Province, where China’s biggest Dong community lives. The bridge is over 50 meters long and it’s first built in 1894 during the Qing Dynasty over 100 years ago. However, the original structure was destroyed in a big fire in 1959 and the one visitors see today was a recreation finished in 1964.
It’s a pure wooden architecture made up of pillars, purlins and balusters of different sizes and shapes. The body of the bridge is divided to three tiers, the largest one in the middle take the shape of a traditional Chinese drum tower. The pilasters and eaves of the bridge are engraved with flowers and patterns and are quite magnificent.
Tower Bridge (UK): Most Famous and Beautiful Victorian Bridge
Completed in 1894 and designed by Horace Jones and Wolfe Barry, Tower Bridge (so named after the two, striking, 141ft high towers and the Tower of London close to it) is one of the most famous landmarks in London and one of the most beautiful in the world. The 800ft long bridge has a 28ft clearance when closed but raises in the centre to a maximum clearance of 140ft that allows ships to pass down the Thames. Back in the days when goods were moved by sea instead of air the bridge was raised around 50 times daily. Tower Bridge took 432 workers 8 years to build. During that time they sank 70,000 tonnes of concrete into 2 huge piers, lowered 2 counterbalanced bascules into place each weighing 1,000 tonnes and then clad the whole bridge in Portland stone and Cornish granite to disguise the 11,000 tonnes of steel beneath.
Magdeburg Water Bridge (Germany): Europe’s Largest Water Bridge
The Magdeburg Water Bridge connects the former East and West Germany over the Elbe River, and it was made as part of the unification project. 1 km long, the 500 million euros water bridge enables river barges to avoid a lengthy and sometimes unreliable passage along the Elbe. Shipping used to come to a halt on the stretch if the river’s water mark felt to unacceptably low levels.
Ponte Vecchio (Italy): Oldest and Most Famous of it’s kind
The Ponte Vecchio in Florence is one of the most famous tourist spots in Italy, and is thought to be the oldest wholly-stone built, segmental arch bridge in Europe, although there are many partial segments which date further back. It was originally built of wood until destroyed by floods in 1333, and twelve years later it was rebuilt using stone. Famous for its lining of shops, the bridge has housed everybody from Medieval merchants and butchers to souvenir stalls and art dealers.
Amazing And Unbelievable Photos
Beautiful set of unique photos that you have probably never seen before in unique settings such as the migration of sting rays to the thousand hand buddha performance. Lovely photos that would intrigue anyone if they would take a more detailed look.
18 Extraordinary Modern Beds and Bed Designs
Considering we spend a third of our lives occupying them, it is surprising bed designs have remained so stable throughout history – until now. Here are 18 groundbreaking beds that are straining to free themselves from convention, predictability and even gravity.
Image: Le Beanock.
Its origins lost in antiquity, the hammock has been a popular and practical alternative to terra firma sleeping arrangements for thousands of years. Le Beanock’s contribution to this tradition is scale: slung between walls on a series of heavy-duty chains, their double-sized (but presumably only one-person) hammock is an eye-catcher, a room centerpiece and a sheer joy when it is time to sweep the floor.
Images: Max Longin.
But other modern beds also aren’t keen on being grounded either. Take theBed Float - not only can it be fully dismantled in a jiffy (with part of the bed frame forming a carrying case), it is also designed to look as if it’s touching the ground as little as possible.
Images: Lago and Yanko Design.
Similarly overcome with the urge to levitate are these two beds. Joel Hesselgren’s vision is of bed legs that also double as side tables, in a modular design that can be divided into singles or doubled up and expanded as need be – “a bed that grows with you”. Lago’s Fluttua bed aims for a David Blaine trick: from the right angle, there is nothing but air under this bed.
Images: New York Times and Shawn Lovell Metalworks and Casket Furniture.
Children like their beds to look like anything but beds (for example, pirate ships are popular) but this habit is not just confined to the kids. The Okooko bed looks almost seaworthy, albeit in a Columbus rather than Blackbeard style. The Tree Bed - part four-poster, part Lothlorien - can’t make up its mind whether it is a bed or a bird’s nest. And the Casket Bed seems perhaps a little too perfect for those with an angsty, gothic-revival obsession with creatures of the night.
Image: Private Cloud.
Another design trend happily carried over from our childhoods is the cradle.Private Cloud have taken the concept and thoroughly updated it with more than a splash of style and pupil-dilating beauty. Rollers can be fixed under the leg-arches to allow safe rocking to and fro, or to lock the whole bed in place – and the whole piece can double as a comfortable (and stable) lounge-chair.
Image: Lomme.
If you thought Private Cloud looked modern, the Lomme will be a revelation. This egglike bed comes equipped with a “light therapy” alarm clock, a massaging viscoelastic memory foam mattress and a control unit that is a specially modified iPhone. (At this point, you will be correct in assuming the Lomme isn’t cheap). With muting acoustics and a distinctly calming aesthetic, the Lomme seems guaranteed to give you a trouble-free night’s sleep, wherever you are.
Images: Come Up To My Bedroom exhibition and Architonic.
Some beds have something to hide. All that’s lacking from this wicked-lookingmousetrap-style bed (created for an exhibition, not for sale) is a box of chocolates as a lure, and possibly some kind of first-aid kit. The Pump It bed, on the other hand, could not look less innocuous…since until it is inflated, it’s just a corner of your carpet. An ideal solution to the problem of friends inviting themselves over for the weekend.
Images: Lectus and Techeblog and Tovdesign.
As much as minimalist is a pure and beautiful thing, maybe there’s such a thing as too minimalist. The classic-lined but somewhat severe Lectus Stripe Bed is a masterpiece of pared-down design, but just how comfortable is it? The Foetal Position Bed is even more demanding: you either lie in exactly the correct way, or you fall off – there is no middle ground. Taking constraint one step further, the Hold Me Bed is arguably the safest in the world, as you’d have to work extraordinarily hard to roll off it.
Images: Trendhunter and Metronaps.
Yet it is not just the design of beds that is changing – their function is similarly in flux. As evidence builds that power napping has a profound positive influence on concentration and energy levels throughout the day, business of the future will have to find suitable furniture for corporate napping programmes. Here are some beds that are ahead of the curve. The twoCocon Napping Pods (the first reminiscent of Ridley Scott’s Alien) and the stunningly hi-tec pod from Metronaps seek to tackle sleepiness with the sturdiest of modern technology…
Image: Nappak.
…while Nappak is keen for a quickly, easily inflated solution to the problem!
