In an adorable role reversal, this Yorkshire Terrier named Rilo pets his human Ricky's face. Even if Rilo was merely trying to wake Ricky and get his attention instead of giving him a love pat, he did it in such a sweet way. Via Laughing Squid.
Lisa Marcus's Blog Posts
Over a period of 80 years, 2,000 square miles of Louisiana coastal land has been covered by water, and scientists predict an increase in the rate of Louisiana land lost to the Gulf of Mexico in the future. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that by the year 2100, the Gulf of Mexico will rise 4.3 feet in an area with an average elevation of only three feet. If those predictions are accurate, the majority of southeast Louisiana would be submerged. Scientists estimate that certain areas of the Louisiana coast are disappearing at a rate of one football field with each passing hour.
If that isn't alarming enough, the land in question is essential to the current American way of life. Located on this landscape is one half of United States' oil refineries, which serve 90 percent of our offshore energy production and 30 percent of our total supply of oil and gas.
Read more about this critical situation, its causes and possible solutions in this Scientific American article.
Image Via: The Water Institute of the Gulf
At a Comic Con San Diego panel last month entitled "Women of Marvel," the news of an upcoming series, Spider Woman, was announced. Yet when a cover of the first comic in the series was revealed, drawn by Milo Manara, an artist known for his erotic drawings, controversy erupted. There was Spider Woman, in a red, skin-tight outfit, posed on all fours. Some bloggers and organizations that write about comics were extremely critical.
Is it the fact that female superheroes (and females in general) in comics are sexualized that makes some people angry, or is it that male superheroes and other male characters are not objectified with the same frequency? This i09 article features ten times that male superheroes have been sexualized, both in movies and comic books. Did they have to throw in movies because there were too few examples in comics? Perhaps. But let's take a look at one.
Pictured below is Dick Grayson, also known as Nightwing. His suit comes fully equipped: mini computer, knockout gas, anti-toxins, "re-breather," listening devices, stun gun and more. But it appears Nightwing has one more secret weapon: his posterior. At least, that's the asset artists who drew the following images took the liberty to highlight, including Secret Six artist Nicola Scott, whose artwork is in the photo immediately below.
I suppose the only true test of public opinion would be a massive increase in male comic book characters being sexually objectified. I daresay if, however unlikely, that did happen all of a sudden, the only quantifiable result would be a reduction in comic book sales.
Images Credit: DC Comics
It's easy to see why New York City-based artist Karla Mia has nearly 45,000 Instagram followers. Her drawings of wildlife are beautifully realistic. Most of the Instagram photos of Karla's artwork include the media used to create it. This touch not only emphasizes the realism of the drawings but it offers users a way to envision the colors and various methods that combine to form each piece.
As Karla told a reporter in an interview for the digital magazine of the Art Collective,
"Sometimes I draw from references, other times I draw to make up a world of my choosing with things that jump into my imagination, fully formed and real only to me until they've hit the paper. There are bits of me and parts of nature and fractions of events that I've lived that can be seen throughout my art. It's more exhilarating than I can describe."
See more of Karla's artwork at her Instagram account. Via Bored Panda.
Images Credit: Karla Mia
This Chihuahua puppy discovers the delight of a mechanical massager. Like many humans, once he feels the sensation, he lingers, in no mood to hurry about his doggie day. Via Tastefully Offensive.
Sushi restauranteur and chef Naomichi Yasuda, who founded Sushi Yasuda in midtown Manhattan before returning to Tokyo to open another restaurant, is a big name in sushi. Here he explains his version of the proper way to eat sushi. Although some of his suggestions might seem to have little impact, the delicate flavors of sushi can be easily altered with the strong tastes of soy, wasabi and ginger. And I thought the only rule about how to eat sushi was "often." What do you think? Via Viral Viral Videos.
The daughter of Mandy Meaux, shown here, has apparently decided that when it comes to consuming chocolate doughnuts, the standard is "deny, deny deny." She stands by her response, in spite of it crumbling all around her as a result of mom's chisel of repeated questioning. Nice try at trying to hide the evidence behind the coffee table, though, kid! Via Viral Viral Videos.
Superhero comic buffs may think they have a good handle on everything Captain America. Here's a pop quiz. True or False: Captain America and real life communist witch hunter Joseph McCarthy teamed up to become a communism battling duo.
The answer is a big capital T. After Captain America's battle against Nazis during the second World War, the comic's popularity declined. There were no more Nazis to fight. Thus, in the early 1950s, Captain America became a McCarthy mouthpiece. The superhero was now labeled "Commie Smasher." There was a new enemy to fight, and fight he did. He even doused a commie with gasoline. The Captain's commie combat only lasted a year, from 1953 to 1954. At that time, his brave battle against a socio-economic system was put to rest.
Read more weird facts about Captain America at ListVerse.
Image: Marvel Comics
This male mountain lion cub was found dehydrated and malnourished by a resident of Spokane, Washington. At the time, he was just three weeks old. Washington state fish and wildlife authorities conducted a fruitless search for the cub's parents. When no trace of his mother could be found, the cub was taken to Mount Spokane Veterinary Hospital, whose staff looked for accredited facilities to house the cub after he regained his health. Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Madonna Luers said,
"You just don’t rehabilitate an apex predator that’s become fixed on people, and release it back into the wild. The odds that it would eventually have contact with people or pets are too high.”
Zoo America has become the cub's new home and will help give him the nutrients and attention necessary to grow up healthy and adjusted. The as-yet-unnamed cub is said to be thriving.
Read more and see additional pictures here.
Images Credit: Zoo America
This Alltime10s video on how the Internet is censored in other countries, particularly the punishments for citizens who dare to post information their governments consider subversive, is food for thought for any American whining about lack of freedoms.
Russian photographer Alexander Belenkiy returned to the Sochi area just six months after the 2014 Winter Olympic Games and found it practically deserted. Belenkiy visited Rosa Khutor, a small town near Sochi that hosted the alpine skiiing games. The words Belenkiy used to describe Rosa Khutor were "ghost town," "huge wasteland" and "abandoned," as these pictures attest.
While this is a winter resort town that is less populated in the summer, it's still fairly obvious that a lot of the money put into expansion of the area for the Olympics is now going to waste, judging from the unused furniture and commodes and deserted buildings. Read more and see additional pictures here.
Images Credit: Alexander Belenkiy
This otter sits and eats some kibble from a bowl at a dining table... at least for a while. Later he seems to leave his perfect table manners by the wayside, deciding to eat while on top of the table. Still, as one YouTube commenter said, "I've seen worse manners from supposedly advanced species." Via Daily Picks and Flicks.
Artwork by Dave MacDowell
Spoke Art Gallery in San Francisco's upcoming show Kubrick features the work of 67 artists, all inspired by the films of director Stanley Kubrick. The show runs from September 6th to September 27th. Locals or travelers planning to attend can RSVP via Facebook. Further description from the gallery's website reads,
"Spanning a plethora of mediums from sculpture and painting to limited edition prints, the show seeks to honor one of the 20th century’s most significant directors while also reinterpreting his impact in a contemporary context...
All the artists were allowed to select the film of their choosing, there were no guidelines on subject matter or content. Each artist was given free reign to re-interpret and render their take on Kubrick’s entire cinematic collection. Resulting in a variegated display, KUBRICK is an experiment in modernity, a cross-section between film and art."
Via Laughing Squid
Artwork by Tracie Ching
Artwork by Nicole Gustafsson
Artwork by Robert Wilson
What does littering say about the person who litters? The City of Toronto's Live Green organization has created a series of public service messages to answer that question. The ads create words to describe litterers by layering product wrappers. Obviously the adjectives are blunt for a reason. While I'm skeptical that most people who feel it's OK to throw their trash wherever they go will be moved by such ads, if they make even a few people rethink their behavior, they have been effective. Via Bored Panda.
Facebook user Kathy Knaus, who — from the information I can glean from her profile — I assume resides in Vienna, Austria, posted this picture to her Facebook photo album entitled "cakes." Knauss commented that every item in the album is one of her culinary creations. One commenter complimented Knauss, telling her how special her children must feel to have a mom capable of such cake coups. Knauss jokingly responded, "Or they will just remember having a mom who liked playing with icing and ... frequently up to her elbows in cake batter." Her time spent "playing" certainly amounts to greatness. This cake is a work of art! Check out Knauss' Facebook album here. Via i09.
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