The Oakland Buddha – How One Buddha Statue Brought Neighbourhood Crime Down by 82%
A non-religious man in Oakland managed to virtually eliminate neighborhood crime with nothing more than a statue of Buddha bought from a local hardware store. The neighborhood of 11th Avenue and East 19th Street was formerly a rough part of Oakland, riddled with a variety of illegal activities ranging from littering and vandalization to drug […]
Woman Wears Corset for 23 Hours Every Day to Maintain Her Super Thin Waist
How far would you go to achieve that extreme hourglass figure you’ve always dreamed of? How about wearing a tight corset around your waist for 23 hours a day? When Navy veteran Diana Ringo, 39, of Chula Vista, California gave birth to her twins three years ago, she felt that the loss of her curves […]
No Men Allowed on ‘SuperShe Island’, a Women-Only Resort Off the Coast of Finland
Hardcore feminists searching for a vacationing spot where they don’t have to interact with men at all need look no further than SuperShe Island, a women-only island resort off the coast of Finland. SuperShe Island is the brainchild of American entrepreneur Kristina Roth, who decided to invest in a women-only resort after realizing that being around […]
Long-Assumed-Dead Dog Returns Home After 10 Years
Ten years ago, Abby, a year-old black lab, was playing with her human family outside of their Apollo, Pennsylvania home, when something caught her attention and she just wandered off. Her owner,Debra Suierveld, spent weeks searching for the pup, but she eventually gave up, assuming the dog had been killed. Life went on for Debra […]
Cow Heading to the Slaughterhouse Makes Daring Escape, Hides in Forest and Becomes Social Media Star
Hermien, a plucky cow from Lettele, in the Dutch province of Overijssel, recently became a social media star and a symbol of freedom, after making a daring escape just as her owner was trying to load her on a truck bound for the slaughterhouse. Named after her owner Herman Jansen, the cow initially escaped with […]
Indonesian Family Has Been Sharing Their Home with a Crocodile for Over 20 Years
It was 1997 when Muhammad Iwan, 41, saw some children playing with a newborn estuarine crocodile that fisherman had recently caught at Pangandaran Beach, in West Java. He bought the reptile for just 25,000 Indonesian Rupiah ($1.8), named it Kojek, and welcomed it into his family home in Sempur Sub-District, West Java, as a pet. […]
The Sinister True Story of the Triplets Separated at Birth as Part of Cruel Social Experiment
In 1980, when Robert Shafran arrived for his first day of college at Sullivan County Community College in New York, he was confused and overwhelmed by people he had never met warmly greeting him with hugs and high-fives, and, strangest of all, calling him Eddy. The reason behind the odd reception emerged when he met […]
‘Human Uber’ Lets Users Attend Events Using Another Person’s Body
If you’ve been looking for something to help you leave the house even less than you currently do, you’re probably going to love “Human Uber” a tech concept that allows people to be present anywhere using another person’s body. Japanese researcher Jun Rekimoto presented his idea, called ChameleonMask, at MIT Tech Review’s EmTech in Singapore […]
Electronics Company Develops Smart Device That Cancels Embarrassing Toilet Noises
Japan is known as the most polite nation on Earth, and that extreme politeness extends to all aspects of life, including bathroom etiquette. Many public toilets feature a wall-mounted device that, when pressed, creates a sound that masks that of urination. However, electronics company Roland has come up with an improved version that drowns out […]
America’s Smallest and Loneliest Town Has a Population of Exactly 1
Welcome to Monowi, Nebraska, population 1. According to 2010 U.S. Census data, Monowi is the only incorporated town in the country with only one resident. As the only person living in Monowi, 84-year-old Elsie Eiler, is the town’s mayor, clerk, treasurer, librarian, bartender, among other functions. Every year she hangs a sign in the tavern advertising […]
Russian Modelling Agency Only Represents Models Over 45-Years-Old
Fashion modelling has always been an industry dominated by the young, with most models having to retire around the age of 30. One Russian modeling agency is going against the norm by working exclusively with models aged 45 and. The oldest model on their roster is 85. Moscow-based modelling agency Oldushka was founded by former […]
Meet Pigcasso, the Painting Pig Whose Artworks Sell for Thousands of Dollars
If you ever find yourself having to convince someone that anything is possible, just tell them about a Pigcasso, a 450 pound (204 kg) pig who, after being rescued from a South African slaughterhouse at four weeks old, went on to become an acclaimed painter. South African animal-rights activist Joanne Lefson adopted Pigcasso after rescuing […]
Strange Phenomenon Preserves Dog Stuck Inside Tree for Nearly 60 Years
In 1980, when loggers for the Georgia Kraft Corp. cut a chestnut oak into logs they made a grim discovery. Lodged in a hollow stretch near the top of the tree was a mummified hunting dog. Rather than send the section of the tree on to the sawmill, the loggers donated it to Forest World, […]
Japanese Inn Teams Up with Car Maker Nissan to Create Self-Driving Slippers for Its Guests
Japan has long been known for both its strong traditions and being on the cutting edge of technology, and this new inn combining the classic Japanese surroundings with high-tech, self-driving slippers and furniture is a perfect reflection of this. Nissan Motor Co. developed a system in which slippers park themselves at the entrance of the […]
Woman Takes Stuffed Dead Fox with Her Everywhere She Goes
We all have that one acquaintance who takes their pet everywhere with them, so from that standpoint, Lisa Foxcroft, of Merseyside, in North West England, isn’t that special. But what does make her stand out is that her pet is actually a taxidermy fox cub named Baby Jesus. The two of them have been getting a […]