Category: bizarre

Author eats mushrooms sprouting from his own book about mushrooms

Biologist Merlin Sheldrake found a surprising way to promote his book entitled Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds, and Shape Our Future. He dampened a copy of the book and seeded it with spores, eating the oyster mushrooms that sprouted from its pages on camera.

“Initially I was flattered that the fungus seemed to have consumed the book so eagerly, but on reflection I don’t think that I can take this as a vote of confidence,” Sheldrake admits, “But I think it’s still a reassuring sight. Given it’s the ultimate omnivore it would’ve been a bit bruising if the fungus hadn’t eaten the book at all. Anyway now it’s the fungus turn to get eaten.”

Al Naslaa Rock Formation – Two stones split in half with laser like precision

Al Naslaa Rock is the most photogenic petroglyph in Tayma about an eight-hour drive out of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.. The uniform slit between the two standing stones and the flat faces are completely natural. A perfect slit between the rocks seems like a machine work, but it is astonishingly natural. The small pedestals have provided additional support to boulders. Archaeologists don’t know how rock formation remains balanced and how did the rock cut in the middle. Most likely movement in the ground below triggered the split but  the exact cause of the split has yet to be determined .

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Indonesia’s Silver-Painted Beggars

Beggars have been around for as long as anyone can remember, and Indonesia is no exception,  but a new type of beggar, the so-called Silver Men, has recently sprung up in the South East Asian country. Known as Manusia Silver or “Silver Men,” they are a special kind of beggar inspired by the street performers. They use metallic paint to turn themselves into living statues. The beggars have opted for this look because it makes them stand out and therefore increases the chances of people giving them money.
To get the look, Silver Men just spray-paint themselves with the metallic pigment, grab a cardboard box and walk among the cars on busy roads.
According to recent articles in Indonesian press their numbers have recently soared, and police have been cracking down on Manusia Silver, arresting and fining them in order to discourage them from annoying people for money.

The Creepy Legend of the Chained Oak

By Gary Rogers, CC BY-SA 2.0, LinkBy Gary Rogers, CC BY-SA 2.0, Link

The Chained Oak is an oak tree, tied in chains, near to the village of Alton, Staffordshire, England. The tree, referred to as “The Old Oak”, is the subject of a creepy local legend.
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Underwater river flowing under the ocean in Mexico

Underwater rivers are formed when the fresh top water meets the exposed salty groundwater. The different density levels in the two waters causes them to layer. Undersea rivers are similar to the rivers we see on land. They have banks on either side, They carve valleys into the sea floor and follow meandering paths. These rivers were unknown until the 1980s, when sonar mapping of the seafloor began to reveal them.
Angelita in Yucatan, Mexico, looks like any ordinary swimming hole. It’s not until you dive almost 100 feet that the underwater river becomes exposed.

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Mind Blowing Cocoons in Rainforest

Incredible examples of art in nature.

Rainforest Expedition’s Troy Alexander spotted the bizarre maypole-in-miniature in the Southern Peruvian Amazon. Alexander posted a photograph of his discovery to /r/whatsthisbug, a subreddit devoted to identifying insects and their handiwork.

Seriously, who makes egg cases like this? Just under 2cm across, Southern Peruvian Amazon from whatsthisbug

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Old Shipwreck Reclaimed By Nature

Launched on 22 December 1863, the SS City of Adelaide was commissioned for the Australasian Steam Navigation Company and built in Govan, Glasgow. The vessel ran regular passenger services between several destinations including Melbourne, Sydney, Honolulu and San Francisco. She was sold in 1890 and was converted to a four masted barque by removing her boilers and engines. In 1912 the vessel caught fire and burnt for a number of days before flames could be extinguished. During World War II the wreck of the vessel was used as a target by Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) bomber pilots. In 1971 Cyclone Althea struck the coast of northern Queensland near Magnetic Island, causing the partial collapse of part of the wreck’s iron hull. The sunken hull of the vessel has become an artificial island hosting a variety of plant and bird life approximately 300 meters  off the shore of Cockle Bay.
info source: wikipedia

The wreck of SS City of Adelaide at low tide – By Twistie.man – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

Casa do Penedo – the Stone House

Casa do Penedo  is an architectural monument located between Celorico de Basto and Fafe, in northern Portugal. It received its name because it was built from four large boulders that serve as the foundation, walls and ceiling of the house. Its construction began in 1972 and lasted about two years. The residence was initially used by the owners as a holiday destination. Today, Casa de Penedo is a small museum of relics and photographs from Penedo’s history. Due to its unusual design and integration into the surrounding nature, the building has become a growing tourist attraction/
info source: wikipedia

By Pablo García Chao – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

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The “Bad Lake” that killed 1,700 people and thousands of domestic animals

By United States Geological Survey – United States Geological Survey, Public Domain, Link

Lake Nyos, locally known as the “Bad Lake”, is a crater lake in the Northwest Region of Cameroon. A pocket of magma lies beneath the lake and leaks carbon dioxide into the water, changing it into carbonic acid. In 1986, possibly as the result of a landslide, Lake Nyos suddenly emitted a large cloud of carbon dioxide, which suffocated 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock in nearby towns and villages. Though not completely unprecedented, it was the first known large-scale asphyxiation caused by a natural event. To prevent a recurrence, a degassing tube that siphons water from the bottom layers to the top, allowing the carbon dioxide to leak in safe quantities, was installed in 2001. Two additional tubes were installed in 2011.
Today, the lake also poses a threat because its natural wall is weakening. A geological tremor could cause this natural levée to give way, allowing water to rush into downstream villages all the way into Nigeria and allowing large amounts of carbon dioxide to escape.
info source: wikipedia
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Vulcan Point: An Island Within a Lake on a Volcano Within a Lake on an Island

Taal Volcano is a complex volcano located on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the second most active volcano in the Philippines with 33 historical eruptions. All of these eruptions are concentrated on Volcano Island, an island near the middle of Taal Lake. Viewed from the Tagaytay Ridge in Cavite, Taal Volcano and Lake presents one of the most picturesque and attractive views in the Philippines. Moreover, this lake contains Vulcan Point, a small rocky island that projects from the surface of the crater lake, which was the remnant of the old crater floor that is now surrounded by the 2-kilometre wide lake, now referred to as the Main Crater Lake. Therefore, Taal has an island within a lake, that is on an island within a lake, that is on an island within the sea: Vulcan Point Island is within Main Crater Lake, which is on Volcano Island, which is within Taal Lake, which is on the main Philippine Island Luzon, which is within the western Pacific Ocean.
info source: wikimedia

TheCoffee (Mike Gonzalez) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Continue reading Vulcan Point: An Island Within a Lake on a Volcano Within a Lake on an Island