2013 › July

A World Health Map

by Elizabeth Seward on

Odra Noel is a scientific artist who has just created and released a piece she called “The Map of Health.” The map provides a visual representation of diseases affecting regions of the world. What’s more is that she uses depictions of affected body parts by each disease for each disease. The USA, which struggles with obesity and obesity-related diseases, is speckled with fat tissue. And with HIV being a leading cause of death in many countries of Africa, the continent is covered in images of blood cells. It’s an interesting and insightful map, one that might lend some thought or conversation about the people we meet when we travel and what kinds of illnesses they deal with regularly.

Thanks, Laughing Squid.

Talking Train Windows (Silently) Play Ads

by Libby Zay on

No, tired train traveler, you’re not hearing voices. That’s just an audio advertisement that can only be heard when resting against a train window. Seriously, is there any way to escape anymore? A new German technology can deliver ads to weary travelers through vibrations. Silent to everyone else on the train, the ads seem to come from directly inside the brain. Let’s just hope companies use the technology for good and not evil, and instead send us soothing nature sounds. Get a full idea of the new concept in the promo video above — and enjoy being able to sleep during transit while you still can.

[via tnooz.com]

Video Of The Day: Algae Swamps Chinese Beach

by Libby Zay on

Thick waves of green growth are washing onto the shores of China’s yellow sea. A massive bloom, caused by an abundance of nitrogen and other nutrients, has turned beaches into massive patches of seaweed shag carped. The algae poses a hazard to marine life in the sea, but it’s non-poisonus to humans. Which is good, because beachgoers have taken a liking to the green stuff. As workers slowly cart away more than 40,000 tons of seaweed, tourists have been turning themselves into swamp things and otherwise frolicking in the green sea. Way to make the most of a potentially icky situation, China.

Prehistoric Bones Big Draw To Small Indiana Town

by Libby Zay on

The small town of Corydon in southern Indiana may soon get an influx of tourists thanks to a new attraction. Just discovered a few years ago, much of what is now Indiana Caverns was inaccessible to the public because all entrances were on private land. But a new passage not only opens up the underground caverns to the public, it gives visitors access to a curious pile of bones. Discoverers thought pioneers had thrown cow bones into the cave, but later came to find out the bones date back to the Ice Age. They come from a variety of species, including birds, snakes, bears, beavers, bison and more. Now, visitors can take an underground boat tour through the caverns for a chance to see the 12,000- to 15,000-year-old bones. The attraction just opened a few weeks ago, but it already tops TripAdvisor’s list of things to do in Corydon.

[via WHAS11.com]

Fascinating Map Of London By Stephen Walter

by Elizabeth Seward on


Stephen Walter has a way of creating complex and obsessive art — specifically, maps. His maps of various areas in England are often enlightening, but he has himself beat with one of his latest creations: a fascinating map of London and its underground. The map was commissioned by the London Transport Museum and while doing his research for the project, Walter uncovered legions of undiscovered facts about London and began incorporating the eerie history beneath the surface of London into the map itself. The map isn’t all historical facts, though. Interjecting his own imagination with fabled stories and general lore alongside the facts, Walter created a map like no other — it transports you into a magical, parallel universe of London, where hearsay is marked and remembered.

[Thanks, Intelligent Life]