Nepenthe

1. Humpback whale 10 ft [3 m] 2. Elephant 5-6 ft [1,5 - 2 m] 3. Bull 3 ft [90 cm] 4. Stallion 2 ft 6 in [80 cm] 5. Rhinoceros 2 ft [60 cm] 6. Pig 18-20 in [45 - 50 cm] 7. Man 6 in [15 cm] 8. Gorilla 2 in [5 cm] 9. Cat ¾ in [ 1,90 cm] SOURCE: Leigh Rutledge, The Gay Book of Lists (Boston: Alyson Publication, 1987) Other lists in Animals 10 Least Intelligent Breeds of Dog 10 Nations with the Most Camels 11 Examples of Unusual Mating Habits 5 Pieces of Advice on How to Survive an Encounter with a Bear 7 Extinct Animals That Are No Longer Extinct 8 Examples of Strange Animal Behaviour Maximum Recorded Lifespan of 58 Animals

By Roger Ebert James Mangold 's " 3:10 to Yuma " restores the wounded heart of the Western and rescues it from the morass of pointless violence. The Western in its glory days was often a morality play, a story about humanist values penetrating the lawless anarchy of the frontier. It still follows that tradition in films like Eastwood's "The Unforgiven," but the audience's appetite for morality plays and Westerns seems to be fading. Here the quality of the acting, and the thought behind the film, make it seem like a vanguard of something new, even though it's a remake of a good movie 50 years old. The plot is so easily told that Elmore Leonard originally wrote it as a short story. A man named Dan Evans ( Christian Bale ), who lost a leg in the Civil War, has come to the Arizona territory to try his luck at ranching. It's going badly, made worse by a neighboring bully who wants to force him ...

The apparition of these faces in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough. - Ezra Pound

From my friends at Calais Pedro World ;)

URSUS MARITIMUS are the largest land carnivores and live for up to 25 years spend most of their time on Arctic ice floes are the most likely species to kill humans for food can smell a carcass 32km away Asleep ;)

Eddie Weinstein Saturday January 12, 2008 The Guardian In December 1941, when I was 17, the Germans turned Losice, the Polish town where I lived with my parents and younger brother Israel, into a ghetto. The overcrowding was unbearable. We couldn't go out to buy wood or coal, and there was no medicine. Any Jew caught outside was killed. Three months later, I was taken to a labour camp 30 miles away. We had very little food and slept in unheated barracks. We got sick with colds, fevers, sores and lice. After 23 days, I escaped with a friend, Michael Rak. We hid in a barn during the day and at night we made our way home. The Jewish police came for me, but I was in hiding, so they arrested my mother. My father was afraid I would be killed, so he went in my place. In August the following year, the Germans surrounded the ghetto. We had to assemble in the square. There were wagons waiting. They told the women and children to ...

So Faro, so good

A for ARCHIVE (...) B for BOLLYWOOD (...) C for CLUBS (...) D for DEUTSCH, OSCAR (...) E for EASYCINEMA (...) F for FIRST FILM (...) G for GIMMICKS (...) H for HOME CINEMA (...) I for INDEPENDENT (...) J for JOYCE, JAMES (...) K for KIDS' CLUBS (...) L for LUMIERE BROTHERS (...) M for MULTIPLEX (...) N for NEWSREELS (...) O IS FOR ORGAN (...) P for PEARL & DEAN (...) Q for QUOTA QUICKIES (...) R for REVIEWS (...) S for SNACKS (...) T for TECHNICOLOR (...) U for USHERETTES (...) V for VERSION ORIGINALE (...) W for WIDEBOYS (...) X for X-RATED (...) Y for YOUR MAJESTY (...) Z for ZOETROPE (...) From The Telegraph

The above graphic is direct from the Japanese government, which has been encouraging the use of furoshiki instead of other more wasteful solutions. How to use "Furoshiki" + PDF [Env.go.jp] Found in BoingBoing Gadgets

The Cartoon History of the Modern World, Part I From Columbus to the U.S. Constitution Don’t be fooled by the title, loyal readers. This is a direct continuation of Cartoon History of the Universe III. Between the covers it’ll look just like CHU IV. The name changed because of... oh, never mind... something about the publishing business... but inside you’ll find everything from Protestant theology to a barrel of nuns. And so much more... Including The Cartoon Kitchen , featured on Serious Eats ;-9

Follow your nose on a fragrant journey through the science, history and art of making perfumes. Experiment with countless fragrance combinations on your way to becoming a master perfumer. Learn how your nose and olfactory system work with your brain to sense and recognize smells. Play games with your sense of smell and taste. Read about the long history of perfumes and take a peek into the perfume industry today. Discover where natural and synthetic fragrances come from. Use vegetable shortening to extract the fragrant oils from rose petals. Find out what makes a perfume different from a cologne. Design your own perfumes and learn how perfumes are meticulously composed. Train your nose to recognize the components of complex scents. Make a scented potpourri and a sweet-smelling sachet with your homemade perfumes. Design the perfume that suits you perfectly, and surprise your friends with perfumes made specially for them. Perfume Science introduces young perfumers to the biology, chemis...

An interview

At a reading group in Birkenhead, nine women and two men are looking at Act 1 scene 2 of The Winter's Tale, in which Leontes and his wife Hermione urge their guest, Polixenes, not to rush off back to Bohemia. Some of the language is difficult to grasp: what's meant by "He's beat from his best ward"? or "We'll thwack him hence with distaffs"? But thanks to the promptings of the group leader, Jane Davis (from the Reader Centre at the University of Liverpool), Shakespeare's meanings are slowly unlocked, and discussion ranges widely over the various issues the passage raises: jealous men, flirtatious women, royal decorum and what to do with guests who outstay their welcome. The rise of book groups is one of the most heartening phenomena of our time, but this is an unusual one, including as it does Val and Chris from a homeless hostel, Stephen who suffers from agoraphobia and panic attacks and hasn't worked for 15 years, Brenda who's bipolar, ...

These all-natural, bath-sized shea butter bars distributed by Lafco New York are a labor of love. They have been created by the Claus Porto's family-run factory in Portugal for the past 117 years. The jumbo-sized soaps appeal to the senses with beautiful wrappers and 17 magnificent scents, from honeysuckle to grapefruit fig.

In choosing a toilet paper, most of us are deciding between quilted or triple-ply, extra on the roll or the better bargain. But Renova, a European company, has produced designer toilet paper in vibrant colors to jazz up any bathroom . Lime green, tangelo orange, cherry red or dark-as-night black could adorn your WC. Think of the reaction your guests will have..."Can I use this?", "Will it leave a colorful mark?". Rest assured, although out of the ordinary the colored TP is perfectly safe and won't leave any unwanted residue. They also make matching napkins and paper towels. For €2.17 per roll they are a bit spendy but the impression they'll leave will be priceless. I wonder if they will ever make glow-in-the-dark? Luxist

[And not a minute too soon, my thoughts exactly:] I discovered that Portugal has the finest collection of hanging Santas in the world. It is always interesting to see how other nations celebrate holidays and how they decorate their homes. If only one could make psychological profiles based on people's Christmas decorations! After a few days in Portugal, I have noticed that there is only one Christmas decoration here: the hanging Santa. Unlike in the Czech Republic , they seem to really like Santa here. I just took this photo today in the picturesque town of Alte , about 20 miles northwest of Faro. Santa hangs from everywhere in Portugal - window sills, restaurant signs, rooftops...There must be some sort of association that manufactures the demand for hanging Santas, otherwise I have no idea why the Portuguese--arguably, people with very good taste--would want to decorate the beautiful facades of their homes with them. NOTES FROM PORTUGAL, in Gadling Tiles from the dark side Cat S...

Cartophilia is an illness common to many travelers-- indeed, I suffer from it myself. The disease is carried by, among other things, the travel bug, and it is highly contagious. Okay, contrived metaphor over. Cartophilia, of course, refers to a love of maps. I love maps for lots of reasons: as works of art, for remembering old trips, for planning new ones, and most importantly, for whittling the too-huge world down to a manageable size. To indulge this passion, I've recently stumbled across a couple of bookmark-worthy map-related blogs. The first, started just a few months ago, is called Cartophilia and is produced by a self-described amateur map-lover. It's great for keeping up with all the map-related news I require, and it's always chock-full of interesting photos and maps. The second cartoblog (trademark!) is the creatively-titled Strange Maps , which dispenses Asian cooking recipes. Only kidding-- it's got a bunch of weird maps. Whether it's the Blonde Map of ...

If you are reading this, the good news is that you have a brain inside your head. And you have probably read about the emerging brain fitness movement: frequent articles in the media, an ongoing PBS special, more and more products and games. Now, before you embark on buying any of those programs, you should know that there is a lot we can do without spending a dime. Based on dozens of interviews with scientists and recent research findings, let's take a look at some of the habits of Highly Effective Brains: 1. Learn what is the "It" in "Use It or Lose It". A basic understanding will serve you well to appreciate your brain's beauty as a living and constantly-developing dense forest with billions of neurons and synapses. 2. Take care of your nutrition. Did you know that the brain only weighs 2% of body mass but consumes over 20% of the oxygen and nutrients we intake? As a general rule, you don't need expensive ultra-sophist...