Laughing Squid

Music writer Jon Burlingame sat down with Ludwig Göransson, the talented composer behind the beautiful, Oscar-winning soundtrack for Black Panther. Göransson spoke about his longtime friendship with director Ryan Coogler, how they met and how they stayed in touch over the years. When Coogler tapped Göransson to compose the soundtrack, he traveled to Senegal in...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post ‘Black Panther’ Soundtrack Composer Talks About Going to Africa to Create the Oscar Winning Score first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Experimental filmmaker Dirk Koy has created “Luftraum”, a mesmerizing 3D drone animation that shows a bustling traffic circle as it deconstructs itself. The road breaks into smaller pieces that lay one atop the other, stacking so high that they reform into the original singular shape. via Vimeo Staff Picks Related Laughing Squid Posts3D Robotics Announces...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post A Bustling Traffic Circle Deconstructs Into 3D Layered Stacks in the Hypnotic Drone Animation ‘Luftraum’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a ticking episode of Things You Might Not Know, host Tom Scott visits the island town of Gudhjem, Denmark to explain why the Nordic country continually lags by fractions of a second behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Scott spoke with meteorologist Mikkel Schou Nielsen, who explained why this occurs and why antiquated law prevents...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post How an Antiquated Danish Law Keeps the Country Lagging Behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Firebox is featuring a very clever tabletop light that’s made up of seven glowing letter tiles that sit in a charging replica tile rack from the game Scrabble. The set comes with 60 mix-and-match reusable letter decals so the words displayed can be changed out for others as the mood strikes Scrabble! …If only it...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Illuminated Scrabble Tiles With Changeable Letters first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In the truly poignant hand-drawn Pixar SparkShorts animated short film “Kitbull” by Rosana Sullivan, a tiny, skittish stray kitten who cuddles up with a plush pink elephant in a cardboard box atop a pile of junk discovers that a big pit bull has moved in. At first, the kitten is frightened and even draws blood...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post A Skittish Kitten and a Lonely Pit Bull Slowly Become the Best of Friends in the Pixar Animated Short ‘Kitbull’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

The cleverly insightful animated video series Kurzgesagt takes on the subject of loneliness. They first look into the necessity of being in the company of others for the simple sake of survival. As society evolved and mechanized, the emotional aspect of loneliness became more pronounced, incorporating the same biological “fight, flight or freeze” survival instincts...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post How the Physical and Emotional Components of Loneliness Combine Into a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Scott Bradlee of Postmodern Jukebox invited singer Emily Goglia to perform a very sultry cover of the theme song from Pinky and The Brain. The original voice actors from the series, Rob Paulsen (Pinky) and Maurice LaMarche (The Brain), wonderfully reprised their roles for the video. Postmodern Jukebox reimagines the Pinky and The Brain theme...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Singer Emily Goglia Fronts Postmodern Jukebox in a Sultry Cover of the ‘Pinky and the Brain’ Theme first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In February 2018, animator Zeeeko created “Where’s the Lamb Sauce?”, a hilarious animation of the very forthright celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay as he stormed about the kitchen in his distinctly vociferous manner. The soundtrack was created from an audio mashup of various episodes of Hell’s Kitchen. In February 2019, Zeeeko uploaded a second animation that...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post A Hilariously Animated Gordon Ramsay Storms Around ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ in a Profanity-Laced Culinary Tirade first appeared on Laughing Squid.

A beautiful little Singapura cat named Malt spends a lot of time with his favorite buddy – a plush bunny that’s almost the same size as him. Malt hilariously carries the bunny by the head with the fluffy body hanging down, giving Malt a rather loopy gait. Malt has no qualms about vocalizing his displeasure...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Little Cat Has Big Love for His Plush Bunny Buddy first appeared on Laughing Squid.

While promoting the film At Eternity’s Gate, legendary actor Willem Dafoe sat down with GQ to talk about playing the role of Vincent Van Gogh. While doing so, Dafoe also broke down an amazing list of the iconic roles he’s played over the years. Willem Dafoe down his most iconic characters, including his roles in...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Willem Dafoe Breaks Down His Most Iconic Roles first appeared on Laughing Squid.

A team of British scientists is examining different ways to encourage people to eat healthier, more nutritious and sustainable food. Quartz looked at one such method that uses color, shapes, design and other visual cues to help to fool the brain into believing that the food in front of us is far more decadent than...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post How Specific Visual Cues Can Help Stimulate an Appetite for Healthier Food first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In preparation for the T. rex: The Ultimate Predator exhibition, paleontologist Mark Norell and the model-makers at the American Museum of Natural History recreated a baby T. rex from extrapolated information about other related species. The result is feathery little rex with big teeth. Real fossil remains of a baby T. rex have never been...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Paleontologists Blindly Build a Baby T. Rex Model With Extrapolated Information From Other Related Species first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Filmmakers Harun Mehmedinovic and Gavin Heffernan of Sun Chaser Pictures were given special permission to film the skies over H.A.A.R.P. (High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program) in Alaska. The resulting footage is a stunning display of glowing green Northern Lights passing overhead during a frigid winter night. As chance would have it, aurora borealis rolled in...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Stunning Rare Northern Lights Footage Over the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program in Alaska first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In celebration of Valentine’s Day, music writer Polyphonic (previously) examines the different ways that The Beatles wrote love songs. Much had to do with their audience at the time. When the band first started out, they were performing to teenagers, so their songs were specifically written from in first-person and addressing a general “you”. i.e....Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post How Their Ever Evolving Audience Influenced the Way The Beatles Wrote About Love first appeared on Laughing Squid.

While carefully putting down rock salt to give foothold and melt the thick sheet of ice that had formed on his steep driveway, homeowner Jeffrey Takach took an awkward step that sent him helplessly sliding down and into the street. Luckily Takach was not seriously hurt in the incident, as shown in clear footage from...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Man Helplessly Slides Down His Steep Icy Driveway first appeared on Laughing Squid.

“Wild Frolicking Adventures of Informational Education” by the forthright Bill Wurtz, who in his distinctively frenetic animated style, tackles the partial histories of Greenland, Mexico and Antarctica in less than two minutes. He also hilariously addresses which place is the best location for punishment. Wild Frolicking Adventures of Informational Education – billwurtzhttps://t.co/gjGb0i118W pic.twitter.com/Vyb42aI2aI — bill...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post A Frenetic Animated History of Greenland, Mexico and Antarctica Told in Less Than Two Minutes first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a rather energetic interview with IMDb for their Unmade series, the five-time Grammy Award winner “Weird Al” Yankovic shared his idea for an unrealized action hero film called “Accordion Repo Man”. The lead character was based his a job he had while in music school and the plot is pure “Weird Al”. I got...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Hilariously Shares the Plot for His Unrealized Action Hero Film ‘Accordion Repo Man’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Award-winning underwater cinematographer Jarrod Boord (previously) captured absolutely stunning footage of a vigilant cuttlefish closely guarding vulnerable eggs that were perched safely underneath a rock. The cephalopod’s colorful iridescence shined brightly with every protective movement. Related Laughing Squid PostsStunning Deep Water Footage of a Male Weedy Sea Dragon Carrying the Eggs of His Young on...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Stunning Deep Sea Footage of a Protective Iridescent Cuttlefish Closely Guarding Eggs Under a Rock first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Helga Stentzel, a talented visual artist in London, creates wonderful vignettes that feature adorable little animals that are made completely out of different variety of foods. Amongst these animals is a puppy made of lettuce, a banana bear peeking out from under a Nutella sheet, an avocado chorus, a pecan bear, a banana elephant, gummy...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Adorable Animals Cleverly Created Out of Food first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In 2007, illustrator Kirsten Lepore (previously) drew a very detailed animation for the Garrett Davis song “Story from North America” which describes a tough father comforting his sensitive son about a spider in the room. Lepore’s animation hilariously illustrates each and every lyric of the very descriptive song. “Story from North America” by Garrett Davis...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Tough Father Consoles His Sensitive Son About Spider Under His Bed in a Creatively Animated Music Video first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Wolfgang Warsch, creator of the game The Mind, joined forces with fellow game designers Alex Hague and Justin Vickers, who made the game Monikers, created Wavelength, a party game that challenges the players to read each other’s minds through guesses, clues and a 3D dial with a hidden bullseye. Like the best party games, Wavelength...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post Wavelength, A Social Guessing Game That Challenges Players to Read Each Other’s Minds first appeared on Laughing Squid.

A beautiful golden retriever named Hugo who lives in London, UK with his beloved food dispensing, pet photographer human Ursula Daphne Aitchison. The two pose together in a sweet photo series that feature them in matching and coordinating outfits, in adorable vignettes and in seasonal costumes and sometimes Hugo will even pose by himself in...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post A Beautiful Golden Retriever and His Beloved Food Dispensing Human Pose Together in Adorable Photos first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a lofty video essay for Cheddar, producer Patrick Jones explains why the cabim lights are turned out both during the takeoff and landing of a plane. It comes down to a simple, logical safety reason – the need to allow passengers’ eyes to adjust to darkness in case of an emergency, which is more...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter, Flipboard and Subscribe by Email.The post The Simple Safety Reason That Explains Why Plane Cabin Lights Are Turned Off During Takeoff and Landing first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In celebration of Valentine’s Day, Swedish outdoor power products company Husqvarna has amusingly launched Timber, the world’s first dating service that matches lonely dendrophiles with beautiful trees from around the world. Those interested in finding the perfect match can browse available the barks and branches online and indicate which one is most appealing by clicking...Follow Laughing Squid on Facebook, Twitter and FlipboardThe post Husqvarna Launches ‘Timber’, An App That Matches Tree Lovers With Available Trees Around the World first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Tesla Motors has introduced the very thoughtful “Dog Mode” for their vehicles. This wonderful dashboard feature not only regulates the temperature inside the car when the engine isn’t running but also proclaims via a large LED screen that the dogs within the vehicle are safe. Introducing Dog Mode: set a cabin temperature to keep your...The post Tesla Introduces a Temperature Regulating ‘Dog Mode’ That Assures Passersby That the Dogs Within Are Safe first appeared on Laughing Squid.

After becoming friends with the skittish fly who got caught in his lovingly homemade web, a very happy Lucas the Spider decided that he was hungry. Lucas turned to his new friend to find out what spiders eat. Without betraying personal safety, the fly took the sweet arachnid on a culinary tour of the various...The post Lucas the Spider and His Brand New Friend the Fly Search the House for Something Yummy to Eat first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a very meta nod to the sublime Netflix series Stranger Things and its 1980s nostalgia, Hasbro is releasing a Stranger Things Dungeons and Dragons Starter Kit that will incorporate the adventure that Mike Wheeler started in the first episode of the series. The kit includes includes two Demogorgon figures (painted and unpainted) and character...The post ‘Stranger Things’ Dungeons & Dragons Starter Kit first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a hirsute episode of ACS Reactions, a perfectly coiffed Ms. Beautyphile explains the chemical compounds and reactions behind all those crazy crimping, curling and styling products used to make hair so very big in the 1980s. The 80s was a decade full of neon leg warmers, power ballads, and big hair. But how did...The post The Chemistry Behind the Crimping, Curling and Styling Products That Made Hair So Very Big in the 1980s first appeared on Laughing Squid.

With the release of the Freddie Mercury biopic in 2018, performers everywhere have been finding unique ways to cover the titular song. Musician Ralph Jay Triumfo hilariously covers the entire song by plucking one note at a time with a pair of chopsticks. He then cut all the chopstick plucking videos together to complete the...The post An Acoustic Guitar Cover of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Plucked One Note at a Time With a Pair of Chopsticks first appeared on Laughing Squid.

The visual effects artists of Buttered Side Down have created “Learning to Sculpt”, a very clever stop-motion clay animation that’s told in first person narrative. This person makes anthropomorphic figures out of a block of clay and the number of these figures increases until there’s enough for a soccer game, but no one is in...The post A Clever First Person Stop-Motion Clay Animation About the Consequences of Learning to Sculpt first appeared on Laughing Squid.

When Thomas Penafiel of Sarasota, Florida was notified by his Nest security camera that someone was on his porch, he took off out of his house without shoes or shirt in order to give chase to the couple who stole from him. Once he got close to the alleged “porch pirates”, Penafiel avoided confrontation and...The post Shoeless Shirtless Florida Man Pursues the Pernicious Porch Pirates Who Stole Packages From His Doorstep first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Haru, the rather vociferous and adventurous Shiba Inu dog, engaged in an adorable contest in which she and her human counterpart baby Abram would “Ring the Bell, Get a Treat”. What the parents didn’t anticipate, however, when setting up this little game was Haru’s extremely polite and protective nature of her tiny charge, as she...The post Shiba Inu Politely Waits for Baby to Ring Bell for Treat first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Will Burrard-Lucas, a talented wildlife photographer and founder of the remote/trap photography device company Camptraptions made it his mission to capture clear, decisive photographs of a very elusive black leopard (black panther). Burrard-Lucas had heard about this beautiful wild cat but had never seen one up close. This perspective completely changed when Burrard-Lucas visited the...The post Determined Photographer Realizes His Dream of Photographing an Elusive Black Leopard in Africa first appeared on Laughing Squid.

At the end of January 2019, the band Weezer dropped the Teal Album, a surprise compilation album consisting of popular cover songs. One such cover is of the iconic a-ha song “Take on Me”, which is accompanied by an amusing music video that features the members of the Vancouver band Calpurnia as a younger version...The post Finn Wolfhard of ‘Stranger Things’ Is a Teenage Rivers Cuomo in Weezer’s Video for Their ‘Take On Me’ Cover first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In the humorously surreal Danny Boyle film Yesterday, a musician named Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) returns from Paris to his rural English town after an unusual electrical event takes place, only to find that The Beatles have been inexplicably completely erased from history. No one knows who they are, even after Malik plays some of...The post Musician Finds Himself in Times of Trouble When The Beatles Vanish From Memory in the Film ‘Yesterday’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

The full-length, feature film Tolkien explores the origins of legendary author J.R.R. Tolkien. The author, who lost both his parents by the tender age of twelve, went on to develop very close, deeply felt friendships with fellow outcast schoolmates. Unfortunately, this fellowship bonded under the looming fear of World War I, which threatened to destroy...The post Tolkien, A Film About the Author’s Origins and the Fellowship of Friends Who Highly Influenced His Work first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a hilarious clip from a 1990 episode of the classic British sketch comedy series A Bit of Fry & Laurie, a couple of men sitting in a medical exam room (Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie) emulously try to out analyze each other as they each try to assert themselves as being the only psychiatrist...The post A Pair of Psychiatrists Try to Out Analyze Each Other in a Hilarious 1990 Clip From ‘A Bit of Fry and Laurie’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Filmmaker Sam Tilson of Super Silly Films built a wonderfully charming, giant 3D printed yarn zoetrope for Valentine’s Day that features a heart spewing volcano that fills up boxes of milk that sit above cupcakes with jumping cloud frosting. As the zoetrope turns, the straws from the boxes of milk add a splash of love...The post A 3D Printed Yarn Zoetrope With Crocheted Characters That Fill Coffee Cups With Love for Valentine’s Day first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In the wonderfully surreal animation “Extrapolate” by Dutch artist Johan Rijpma (previously), a hand drawn straight line transcends the rigid boundaries of its geometric grid. The line moves ever on, continuing into the physical world, extrapolating and incorporating everything in its path as a part of itself. In this hand drawn animation a line is...The post A Straight Line Transcends the Rigid Borders of Its Geometric Grid in the Surreal Animation ‘Extrapolate’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

I Am Richard Pryor, is an original documentary film that pays honest but heartfelt tribute to the legendary comedian who tackled really difficult issues through humor and blazed a trail for those who came after him. The film features interviews with family, friends and co-workers, all of whom loved and knew Pryor in their own...The post ‘I Am Richard Pryor’, A Documentary That Pays a Heartfelt, Honest Tribute to the Legendary Comedian first appeared on Laughing Squid.

For the seventh year in a row, the folks at Evil Mad Scientist has released this year’s version of their charming, wonderfully geeky, Valentine’s Day cards for 2019 that you can download and print out. As in versions before, the cards embody the cleverly quippy, scientific-y heartfelt spirit that this holiday brings with a unique...The post Nerdy Science and Math Themed Valentine’s Day Cards by Evil Mad Scientist That You Can Download and Print first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In “LEGO: The Great Escape”, a LEGO stop motion animation by Nukazooka, two bored Minifigures decided that they were getting a bit stir crazy inside the playroom and began build a structure that would propel them to the outside. Like those who came before them, a big problem arose for these two – getting past...The post LEGO Minifigure Pals Try to Get Past Their Furry Feline Tormentor in ‘The Great Escape’ From the Playroom first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Michigan horticulturist Andrew Sietsema captured beautiful photos of “ghost apples” that remained hanging from a tree inside a frozen apple orchard. These incredible natural sculptures appear after ice forms around an apple and remain in place, even after the fruit has rotted and fallen out. More ice then forms over the area where the fruit...The post Translucent ‘Ghost Apples’ Created by Ice That Formed Around Apples That Were Hanging From a Tree first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In the heartwarming Pixar SparkShorts animated short, “Smash and Grab”, written and directed by Brian Larsen, a pair of job-specific, aging robots who have been working together for a long time on a locomotive, decide that they are going to leave this life behind for the newer models that can easily replace them. Escaping doesn’t...The post Two Aging Robots Try to Escape Life on a Locomotive in the Pixar Animated Short ‘Smash and Grab’ first appeared on Laughing Squid.

A surprisingly lithe English bulldog named Rudy caught everyone off guard as he swiftly and confidently conquered the obstacle course at the 2019 Westminster Dog Show in New York City. This wonderful breed of dogs can be goofy, sweet, silly and brave, but Rudy’s incredible speed and agility as he gracefully rounds the corners of...The post A Surprisingly Agile Bulldog Conquers the Westminster Dog Show Obstacle Course With Incredible Speed first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Researchers J.A.E Hughes, P Maiolino and Dr. Fumiya Iida from the Engineering Department at the University of Cambridge have developed a truly anthropomorphic 3D printed robotic hand to tackle small precise movements, such as playing the piano. While this hand will not be playing any concertos any time soon, it was able to perform basic...The post An Anthropomorphic Robotic Hand Plays the Piano In a Remarkable Demonstration of Digital Dexterity first appeared on Laughing Squid.

There are two ways to subscribe to Laughing Squid by email: You can sign up for our Laughing Squid email list (powered by MailerLite) and receive a daily email featuring all the blog posts that we publish. You can also subscribe via Jetpack to receive individual emails for each post we publish: Related Laughing Squid...The post Subscribe to Laughing Squid by Email first appeared on Laughing Squid.

In a digital exclusive from July 2018 for their wonderful crafting series Making It on NBC, former Parks and Recreation co-stars Nick Offerman and Amy Poehler played a rousing game of “Smell That Wood”. For the game, Offerman offered up his skills as a talented craftsman to identify blocks of different woods by smell alone....The post Amy Poehler Challenges Nick Offerman to Identify Different Types of Wood Using Only His Sense of Smell first appeared on Laughing Squid.

Music essayist Trash Theory takes a look a the history of punk rock, focusing specifically on the proto-punk bands that embodied the yet-to-be named genre. Each of these bands wrote songws with minimalist chords, loud guitars and relevant lyrics, laying down the groundwork until the era of punk was officially ushered in with the 1976...The post The Pre-1976, Proto-Punk Bands That Embodied the Punk Rock Genre Long Before It Existed first appeared on Laughing Squid.