natecooper.net

Really neat visualization technique to communicate a complex subject.

(via jordan harper)

Woah! That Chameleon is pretty hip … and he’s got a pair of retro sunglasses to go with each outfit! Speaking of being hip, what’s with videos of lizards being paired with trendy music?

(via Neatorama)

This collection of illustrations of animals made from continents is pretty amazing. More when you click on the image.

(via Pink Tentacle)

O.K. I know this was on Digg, which means it’s definitely made the rounds but it’s so damn catchy it’s just playing over and over in my head. Sort of like a Gogol Bordello mixed with They Might be Giants in french. Amazing Animation. Amazing song. A must see. I love French Pop music.

Helen Suzman died on Jan. 1st. Didn’t know much about her so decided to read up on wikipedia

“Suzman was awarded 27 honorary doctorates from universities around the world, was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize[5] and received countless other awards from religious and human rights organizations around the world. Queen Elizabeth II made her an honorary Dame Commander Civil Division of the Order of the British Empire in 1989…”

27 honarary doctorates! and essentially knighted. Some times I aspire to high goals but somehow I think no matter how hard I try I’ll never reach her status.

The real bugger is that all of her awards and nominations were completely deserved as well since she was the longest standing anti-apartheid member of the South African parliament even when it was insanely unpopular.

BLDGBLOG seems dubious of a WSJ article predicting the dissolution of the U.S. into six fractionalized nations, under foreign influence.

Does this suggest the end of the perfect California burrito?

Check out this park and landscape in Prague. I have mixed feelings about modernist architecture. It always looks amazing in photography but often is bleak and imposing from the ground level. More recent construction like this, however, re-writes the perspective on a human scale. It looks very functional, almost inviting.

(via bad banana blog)

One of the funniest bits I’ve seen on there in a while.

John King reviews ‘Atlas of the Real World’ concluding it puts us in our place

Apparently its not completely possible. This lengthy but interesting (and pic filled) story from Dark Roasted Blend details the many many reasons why attempting such a trip is not only very challenging but nearly suicidal.

A section of Southern Panama called the Darien Gap is not only roadless but filled with all kinds of impedance such as bandits, critters, poor terrain, unnavigable streams among many other things generally considered unfavorable for travel.

Check out an excerpt:
“If you ever wondered what’s like to be kidnapped in the Darien Gap by Colombian Death Squad, here is an account:

National Geographic Adventure contributing editor Robert Young Pelton and two American backpackers were kidnapped there in 2003 and held for 10 days; here is what he has to say (once they got out of there alive) -

‘The Darien Gap is one of the last—not only unexplored—but one of the last places people really hesitate to venture to… It’s also one of the most rugged places. The basic problem of the Darien Gap is that it’s one of the toughest hikes there is. It’s an absolute pristine jungle but it’s got some nasty sections with thorns, wasps, snakes, thieves, criminals, you name it. Everything that’s bad for you is in there.’”
(via Dark Roasted Blend)