Papu.

A green-eyed woman from Rajasthan. 'These are all photos from the same woman with incredible green eyes. Please visit www.papu.nl. '


Mamtu, Papu's daughter: http://www.flickr.com/photos/54236819@N00/sets/72157594203696626/
'I know this little beauty since she was a baby. She has so many faces, she can be very angry or sad, or even arrogant (!) and has the most beautiful smile. She five years old.'

The Papu Project : http://www.papu.nl/




Cereal Commercials over the Decades.




Conjuring 17th Century Japan.

'One of the most important books that filled the vacuum of knowledge about Japan in the second half of the 17th century was an extensive volume by the Dutch vicar, missionary and church historian, Arnoldus Montanus...'

'... Obviously the first half of the images above - (orangutans!! Hindu Gods!) - suggest that the book was an altogether fanciful production, but that's only partly true. There are apparent oddities within the text as well, but on the whole, Montanus' work provided the most authentic accounts of Japanese culture available until the restrictions on foreigner travel were relaxed in the 1800s. '




The Ripley Scroll.

'The remarkable Ripley Scroll is, in simple terms, an alchemical manuscript that shows in pictorial cryptograms the production of the philosopher's stone (the elusive ingredient that produces incorruptible gold out of lesser metals; and/or the elixir of life).'




Growing Stocks of Unsold Cars around the World.

Photo gallery. 'Carmakers around the world are cutting production as inventories build up to unprecedented levels. Storage areas and docksides are now packed with vast expanses of unsold cars as demand slumps'.




Lino Block Prints of the Fifty United States and Their Mottos.

All put together in one map here: http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2009/01/17/351-in-mottos-we-trust-united-statements-of-america/




An 11-Year-Old's Map of Jewish Emigration.

'In 1938, Germany was not a good place to be a Jew. While some German Jews might still have hoped the anti-semitism of the Nazi regime would somehow blow over, those who had the means to flee the country did so - if they found a place that would have them. The Freudenheims did, and managed to leave Berlin for Montevideo.'

'Their young son Fritz, 11 years old at the time, documented their traumatic odyssey in a map composed in bright colours, cheerfully entitled: Von der alten Heimat zu der neuen Heimat! (’From the old home to the new home!’) He documents the Freudenheim family’s locations as far back as 1925, before he was born himself. Africa, with only one port of call, is portrayed as relatively small, while South America is more defined (all countries are shown) but detached from North America. Of the European countries, Germany looms largest; the trains that take the Freudenheims on their travels inside the country would soon be used for more sinister transports.'




Top 100 Spiritually Significant Films.

'The Seventh Seal', 'Ikiru', 'It's a Wonderful Life', 'Wings of Desire', 'Breaking the Waves', the 'Three Colours' trilogy, 'Secrets and Lies' - as well as the little-known Japanese film 'After Life' ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165078/ ). All excellent films. Though I'm a little surprised that '2001: A Space Odyssey' ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interpretations_of_2001:_A_Space_Odyssey ) and 'A Short Film about Killing' ( http://www.reelviews.net/movies/s/short_kill.html ) aren't on the list. 'Koyanisqaatsi' made the list but not 'Baraka' ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baraka_(film) ).




Land of Lincoln.

'Photos from trips through and around Illinois.'




East Berlin, 1990.

Photos.




Costumes Grotesques.

'There follows a selection of images from a series entitled Les Costumes Grotesques: Habits des métiers et professions… They were published in 1695 by one Nicolas de Larmessin, although I’m not exactly sure which Nicolas was responsible for them, as there seem to have been four generations of Nicolases in the de Larmessin family.'




Picturing Science: 700 Years of Scientific and Medical Illustration.

(Click on 'See all images' to browse).

'Hundreds of images from the thirteenth through the early twentieth century, in the fields of astronomy, chemistry, geology, mathematics, medicine, and physics, as represented by manuscript illuminations, engravings, lithographs, and photographs. '




Faces of Power and Piety: Medieval Portraiture.

'This exhibition explores portraits in illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages (about A.D. 500–1500). '



Astro Pics.


Saturn's Hyperion: A Moon with Odd Craters.


Largest Full Moon on 2009.


Unusual Light Pillars over Latvia.



Querying the Hive Mind.


'Is my husband trying to kill me?'


'What's your favorite two-person game?'


'Eating on $25 a week, suggestions?'