Laughing Squid

An elderly pet rat who has had trouble getting around the house as of late, was able to walk through the kitchen inside a homemade sling held in place by a kind barefooted human who helped guide the way. Related Laughing Squid PostsBlind Chihuahua Tests Out the Homemade Safety Bumper That His Compassionate Human Created...The post An Elderly Pet Rat Walks Around the Kitchen Inside a Homemade Sling Held in Place by a Kind Human appeared first on Laughing Squid.

As part of their ongoing series of deconstructing the rich symbolism and character development within the sublime AMC series Breaking Bad, Debra Minoff and Susannah McCullough of ScreenPrism compares the spiteful personality of the purpetually purple clad kleptomaniacal narcissist Marie Shrader (Hank’s wife) with that of her increasingly dangerous brother-in-law Walter White. What they find...The post How Marie Schrader’s Spitefulness in ‘Breaking Bad’ Is a Microcosm of the Motivations That Drive Walter White appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The doodling, fast talking and extremely knowledgeable music theorist 12Tone takes on one of the most puzzling, but beautiful pieces of modern classical music, the La Monte Young Opus “The Well Tuned Piano“. This piece, aside from being almost five hours long, employs dodecaphony, a twelve-tone (yup) technique that has a certain mathematical complexity that...The post The Mathematical Complexity of Dodecaphony Within La Monte Young’s Opus ‘The Well Tuned Piano’ appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the trailer for the upcoming film Anna and the Apocalypse, a young woman named Anna and her friends are getting ready for Christmas when they discover that a zombie nightmare has descended upon them and they need to fight their way past the undead to reach their families. The most fabulous part of this...The post Anna and the Apocalypse, A Young Woman Hunts the Undead in a Christmastime Musical Horror Film appeared first on Laughing Squid.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by @robyniko on Aug 23, 2018 at 2:40pm PDT It all started out with a tweet by architect Donna Sink, who asked if anyone does “paintings of Modern buildings in the style of Thomas Kincade?”. Photoshop artist and fellow architect @robyniko answered the call with a gorgeous...The post Iconic Modernist Architecture Beautifully Reimagined in the Pastoral Style of Thomas Kinkade Paintings appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In a disquieting Ted-Ed lesson written by educator Elizabeth Cox and animated by Gerta Xhelo, narrator Christina Greer explains how memory is connected to stress levels through corticoidsteroids developed in the amygdala. These corticosteroids affect the amygdala, the hippocampus, which is where memories are cemented and the frontal cortex, where memories are recalled. In the...The post How the Flooding of Stress Induced Corticosteroids in the Brain Can Temporarily Wipe Out One’s Memory appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The Jammy by RnD64 is a really neat super portable digital guitar that can be easily disassembled for traveling and reassembled for playing. When assembled, the jammy sports 15 full size frets, real steel strings, direct audio output and meets airline carry-on size regulations. You love your electric or acoustic guitar. You hate the hassle...The post Jammy, A MIDI Controlled Portable Steel String Digital Guitar That Can Be Easily Disassembled for Traveling appeared first on Laughing Squid.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by S.N.O.R.T. Rescue (@snortrescue) on Aug 7, 2018 at 6:03am PDT A teeny tiny French bulldog puppy who was given the name Augustus, but goes by Auggie, is a sweet little guy who could use a bit of help. Auggie was born with a number of medical...The post Awesome Auggie, A Tiny Rescued French Bulldog Puppy Who Needs Help Paying for Cleft Palate Surgery appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The fabulous online novelty retailer Archie McPhee, that has a fascination for innovative ways to reinvent the candy cane, has released their unique Clamdy Canes, a set of six clam-flavored candy canes. This particular flavor is perfect those who prefer to spend their winters on the beach in warmer climes. From the personified clam on...The post A Unique Set of Clam Flavored Candy Canes For Those Who Prefer to Spend Christmas on the Beach appeared first on Laughing Squid.

For the 11th year in a row, the innovative students of Musashino Art University along with those in the community, worked together to create incredible animals of immense stature out of rice straw, wood and rope. These gorgeous sculptures are part of the annual Straw Art Festival, which takes place every year during the last...The post Massive Animals Made Out of Rice, Straw and Rope Hold Court During the 2018 Wara Art Festival in Japan appeared first on Laughing Squid.

An adorably downy baby owl obligingly hopped across the grass with fluffy spread wings upon hearing a whistle in the air. When the owl arrived, the hoped for treat was not there, just a human with a warm hug. Related Laughing Squid PostsElegant Pop-Up Book Inspired Aluminum Owl Lamps That Reveal Their Wings With Light...The post A Downy Baby Owl Obligingly Hops Across the Grass With Spread Wings Upon Hearing Human’s Whistle appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In their ongoing analysis of the popular series The Office, Debra Minoff and Susannah McCullough of ScreenPrism analyzed the highly abrasive but very independent spirit of Dwight K. Schrute. There’s no doubt that Dwight is eccentric, territorial and even violent, but at the same time he doesn’t care what other people think, particularly since they’re...The post How Dwight Schrute of ‘The Office’ Grew to Accept Others While Marching to the Beat of His Own Drum appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A fascinating video from National Liverpool Museums offers a view into the past with a comprehensive demonstration showing the specific order involved in the process of getting an 18th Century upper class gentleman got dressed for the day. This process is very similar to our previous post showing how an 18th Century working woman would...The post A Demonstration of How an Upper Class Gentleman in the 18th Century Would Get Dressed in the Morning appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Video blogger and web producer Evan Puschak aka The Nerdwriter took a reflective look at the timelessness of Michael Jackson’s 1979 song “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough“. This was the first of Jackson’s crossover songs and has remained extremely popular due to the combination of different rhythms, syncopation and the rich layer of instruments...The post Why the Michael Jackson Song ‘Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough’ Has Remained Timeless for So Many Years appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the amusingly brilliant stop motion animation “Captain 3D” by Victor Haegelin, a superhero action figure sitting upon a desk accidentally comes to life with the magnified power from a pair of 3D glasses that were haphazardly tossed in front of a light. As the hero awakens, he becomes aware that a sharp toothed green...The post Superhero Action Figure Comes to Life With the Power of 3D to Save Woman From the Jaws of an Octopus appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Stephen Bacque, a Cranford, New Jersey resident by way of Houston, Texas, rides around town on a battery powered horse of his own original design. Formerly homeless, Bacque is a rodeo announcer, author and motivational speaker who encourages those around him to challenge themselves no matter their life circumstances. Bacque sat down with NJ.com to...The post Rodeo Announcer Rides Around His Northern New Jersey Town on a Homemade Battery Powered Horse appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Justin Roiland, the brilliant mind and voice behind the sublime animated series Rick and Morty, offers up some hilarious tips that can come in handy for successful voice over work. Amongst his suggestions are drinking a cup of tea, performing mouth exercises, becoming the character and taking a nice big sip of Hennessy. Justin Roiland...The post Justin Roiland of ‘Rick and Morty’ Offers Several Hilariously Handy Tips for Successful Voice Over Work appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the haunting Reed Morano film I Think We’re Alone Now, the incredible Peter Dinklage plays the role of Del, an involuntarily reclusive man who is the only survivor of an unnamed apocalypse. His main purpose in life is to remove and bury the dead before rummaging through their houses for necessities. Del is so...The post I Think We’re Alone Now, A Haunting Film About the Sole Survivor of an Apocalypse Meeting Another Person appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The New York Times has put together a fascinating interactive chart that reveals just how much the temperature has increased (by number of days) in your hometown since the year of your birth. Additionally, this map goes on to project how much the heat will increase from this day forward through a startling graph that...The post Fascinating Chart Showing How Much the Temperature Has Increased in Your Hometown Since Your Birth appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by kevin lai (@kvnlai) on Sep 5, 2018 at 6:05am PDT Since the passing of the great Aretha Franklin on August 16, 2018, some very creative New Yorkers have been erecting wonderful ad-hoc memorials to the legendary singer at subway stations around the city that carry her last name. Such examples have...The post MTA Pays Tribute to Aretha Franklin With ‘Respect’ Signs at NYC Subway Stations Named Franklin appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Over the July 4 weekend in 1977, the iconic southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd played to a sold-out crowd at the Oakland Coliseum in Northern California. The set included “Sweet Home Alabama“, which was heavily cheered despite the ongoing but good natured lyrical feud with Bay Area resident Neil Young. They also performed a legendary,...The post Amazing 1977 Footage of Lynyrd Skynyrd Performing in Oakland Three Months Before Their Tragic Plane Crash appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A pair of rather frisky fawns decided to play a game of tag, with a little hide-and-seek thrown in, around giant rolled up bale of hay. The owner of the Hulett, Wyoming ranch was able to witness first hand the sight of these adorable youngsters gleefully chasing one another around the grass. I was sitting...The post A Pair of Fiesty Fawns Play an Adorable Game of Tag With a Bit of Hide-and-Seek Around a Giant Bale of Hay appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The enigmatic HBO series Sharp Objects is anything but light and fluffy, yet the folks at Doing OK edited together some of the “happier scenes” of the series and set it to the cheery intro theme from the 1980s sitcom Full House, with an eerily heartwarming result. HBO’s Sharp Objects in the style of Full...The post An Eerie Mashup of ‘Happier’ Scenes from ‘Sharp Objects’ Set to the ‘Full House’ Theme Song appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Filmmaker Michael Tucker of Lessons from the Screenplay had an opportunity to speak with legendary sound designers Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn about the work they did together on the John Krasinski film AA Quiet Place. They explain how they used of the theme of the film to create sonic points of view,...The post How Sound Designers of ‘A Quiet Place’ Created Sonic Points of View to Connect Characters With the Audience appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Morgan Fallon, the Director of Photography for Parts Unknown, sat down with Variety to talk with them about the tragic, unexpected loss of his friend and colleague Anthony Bourdain. Fallon fondly remembered the adventurous chef, noting Bourdain’s insistence upon bearing witness to local customs without the fanfare of his celebrity and complete generosity of spirit....The post ‘Parts Unknown’ Director of Photography Fondly Remembers Anthony Bourdain’s Generosity of Spirit appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Funny or Die has created an funny, perfectly-timed mashup using scenes from the American version of The Office with those from the Amazon Prime series Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. The mashup hilariously centers the fact that as both Jim Halpert and as Jack Ryan, actor John Krasinski plays a paper pusher with a dangerous nemesis...The post A Really Funny John Krasinski Mashup of ‘The Office’ With the Amazon Series ‘Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan’ appeared first on Laughing Squid.

When hoodied musician Dr K (Brendan Kavanaugh) of Badass Boogie encountered a couple of teenagers who had never heard of Boogie Woogie, he sat down at the Yamaha Platform 88 public piano and rocked a mean Boogie Woogie tune to school them musically on the finer points of the genre. Dr K meets two dudes...The post Hoodied Musician Rocks a Mean Boogie Woogie on a Public Piano in London for Kids Who Never Heard of It appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Engineers at Embodied Media have created Fusion, a truly remarkable wearable robotic backpack that sports an convenient pair of arms that can be controlled by a remote operator (body surrogacy) for collaboration over any distance. The Fusion can also be handily employed in those situation where an extra body is needed, but no one else...The post Fusion, A Wearable Robotic Backpack With Remote Controlled Arms for Collaborative ‘Hands On’ Projects appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The very creative design shop Hello Velocity has created Brand New Roman, a ingeniously hilarious font that is made up entirely of highly recognizable, popular corporate logos. The font is available in both color embedded for browsers with that capability (Firefox and Microsoft Edge)) and in monochrome for those that don’t (Chrome and Safari). Now...The post Brand New Roman, A Hilarious Font Made Up Entirely of Highly Recognizable, Popular Corporate Logos appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Claire Wineland, the wonderfully brave, outspoken, inspiring and insightful young woman who had been sharing her first hand experience dealing with cystic fibrosis for most of her life through her YouTube channel, sadly passed away on Sunday, September 2, 2018. Claire had undergone a double lung transplant just the week before, but the stress of...The post Claire Wineland (1997-2018), An Inspiring YouTube Star With Cystic Fibrosis Who Motivated Others to Action appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Gus Johnson illustrates what might happen when you forget that your headphones are still plugged in. Related Laughing Squid PostsHeadPhone, Get Co-Workers Attention If They Have Headphones OnCommon Tech Personality Stereotypes in OfficesEverpurse, A Purse That Charges Your PhoneThe post When You Forget Your Headphones Are Plugged In appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While walking around the 2014 DeLorean Car Show in Dayton, Ohio, actor Christopher Lloyd of Back to the Future appeared to be taken off guard when spot-on Marty McFly impersonator Rob Sims caught his attention. After posing for the requisite photo, Sims began talking to Lloyd in character. The actor enjoyed a good laugh before...The post Marty McFly Look Alike Surprises Christopher Lloyd of ‘Back to the Future’ at 2014 DeLorean Car Show appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The keepers at the Oregon Zoo use a custom made catapult known as the “Cheetahpult” to launch balls far into the enclosure of the resident cheetah ambassadors as a means of providing exercise and enrichment. These beautiful big cats gracefully chase after the launched dark red ball, swoop it up, return it into a bucket...The post Graceful Cheetahs Happily Retrieve Balls Launched Into Their Enclosure by a Custom Made Catapult appeared first on Laughing Squid.

“TINK” is an absolutely wonderful CGI animated short by UK based digital production team Mr. Kaplin that features a Rube Goldberg-esque machine with all the bells and whistles. The film also sports a pleasantly noisy soundtrack by Box of Toys Audio. Like several of their other films, TINK began as an experiment in animation. Tink...The post TINK, A Wonderful CGI Animated Short Featuring a Fabulously Noisy Rube Goldberg Style Machine appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A Russian man named Jon decided that he would stop shaving while he and his wife Eva traveled around the world for an amazing 911 days. When the couple embarked upon the trip in September 2015, Jon’s face was completely bare. This was very much not the case they returned home 2.5 years later. During...The post Timelapse of Man Growing a Massive Beard While He and His Wife Travel 911 Days Around the World appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In November 2017 we wrote about toy maker Kevin Holmes and his amazing handmade 3D zoetrope that features fish with giant teeth endlessly eating other fish along with other wonderful animations. Since that time, Holmes’ company 4-Mation is raising funds through Kickstarter to sell their original app-based modular 3D kit, which includes a frame of...The post An App-Integrated Modular Kit For Building Spinning 3D Zoetropes With Variable Light Frames appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the first episode of their video series Microworld Unseen, educational channel The Beauty of Science takes an incredible look at the Pseudozizeeria maha (Pale Grass Blue), a rather plain butterfly found mostly in Asia. Yet under a scanning electron microscope, this common butterfly is an creature of exquisite beauty. As a result, you probably...The post The Exquisite Beauty of a Common Butterfly as Viewed Through a Scanning Electron Microscope appeared first on Laughing Squid.

French travelers Eloise & Luc have captured absolutely stunning footage of the mineral rich peaks of the Italian Dolomites during winter. This beautiful mountain range is part of the Southern Limestone Alps and is named for the mineral dolomite, which gives the range its beautiful pale coloring. We discovered the Dolomites during winter. It was...The post Stunning Footage of Winter in the Italian Dolomites appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Wire Hon (@wirehon) on Aug 29, 2018 at 8:37am PDT Amateur photographer Wire Hon has created a wonderfully fun illusory series in which he poses his superhero action figures in various dioramic scenes that can include any member of Hon’s family. Once everyone is in place, he uses smartphone camera to...The post Using Forced Perspective on a Smartphone to Make Superhero Action Figures Appear Larger Than Life appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In a fascinating clip from his 2018 Aspen Ideas Festival talk, esteemed author, Atlantic contributor and Columbia University Linguistics professor John McWhorter eloquently explains how the term “LOL” has evolved over the years with the constantly advancing tools of communication. Whereas originally the term literally meant “laughing out loud” in its Usenet days, with texting...The post How Evolving Communication Technology Changed the Context of ‘LOL’ Within the Common Lexicon appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Lucas the Spider, the animated arachnid by Joshua Slice, who has proved himself to be quite a talented musician on several instruments, showcased his skills in a rockin’ multi-track video of an original song for which Lucas played each of the instruments. If Lucas can become the world’s most musical spider, then anything is possible!...The post Lucas the Spider Shows Off His Musical Skills by Playing Every Instrument In a Multi-Track Song appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Nail Sunny (@nail_sunny) on Aug 20, 2018 at 10:08am PDT Nail Sunny, a well-known salon in Moscow, Russia creates some really fascinating nail art. One intense example of this is a design that shapes and paints a person’s nails so they look like the polished feet of an infant. The effect...The post Intense Fingernail Art That Looks Like Tiny Feet appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In 1999, actor John Turturro (Barton Fink, The Big Lebowski, The Night Of) partnered with search engine Lycos to provide “Beginner’s Guide to the Internet“, a 37 minute educational film about navigating the World Wide Web. While driving to Las Vegas, (Turturro’s character) Sam’s Volkswagen breaks down. He stops in the nearest town to get...The post John Turturro Teaches a Kid About the World Wide Web in ‘Beginners Guide to the Internet’ (1999) appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by ??????? (@arimurataishi) on Aug 24, 2018 at 1:27am PDT Graphic designer Taishi Arimura has created a brilliantly fun series of Japanese warriors crafted out of instant ramen, soba and udon noodles. The labels from each package are used as ceremonial garb and dinnerware are used as weapons. A post shared by...The post Japanese Warriors Crafted Out of Instant Noodles appeared first on Laughing Squid.

DIY miniaturist Cath of The Square to Spare offers up a really concise and helpful tutorial on making tiny Fender Stratocasters with simple crafting supplies such as popsicle sticks, crafting wire and paint. Particularly impressive is Cath’s technique for painting the sunburst pattern that’s so iconic to this guitar. The second color will be the...The post Wonderfully Realistic Handmade Miniature Fender Electric Guitar Models Made From Popsicle Sticks appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In an adorable clip from the BBC One series Animals Unexpected, a clever racoon named Rascal demonstrates her problem solving skills in real time. Presented with the challenge to open a series of gates to get to a stalk of broccoli at the end, Rascal ably goes about unlocking each gate, including the really difficult...The post Clever Racoon Uses Problem Solving Skills to Open a Series of Gates That Lead to an Awaiting Treat appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Dutch artists Veerle Coppoolse is crafting an absolutely beautiful hand cut 3D paper zoetrope that shows the multi-step metamorphosis of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. Coppoolse came up with this idea while she was recovering from a broken spine due a paragliding accident, brilliantly likening her healing process to that of a forming butterfly....The post A Beautiful Hand Cut Paper Zoetrope That Shows the Full Metamorphosis of a Caterpillar to Butterfly appeared first on Laughing Squid.

LEGO and Bugatti have achieved what was thought to be impossible. Using their LEGO Bugatti Chiron kit as a guide, the engineers at LEGO Technic created an incredible life-size 1:1 replica of the famed luxury sportscar. These engineers, however, were not content to have it just sit still and look pretty (which it does), so...The post An Amazing Drivable 1:1 Life Size Bugatti Chiron Replica Made Entirely From LEGO Technology appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The fast talking doodling music theorist and musician 12tone stepped away from the scale in order to explain how best to use various forms of rhymes (end rhymes, interior rhymes, assonance and consonance) when writing the lyrics of a song. He also stresses the importance of knowing how to properly accent words so that it...The post How to Write Lyrics That Convey Desired Emotional Resonance With the Use of Rhymes and Accents appeared first on Laughing Squid.

San Francisco artist Chris Eckert, who wanted to make a point of increasing surveillance and decreasing privacy of the population, has created “Blink“, an absolutely incredible series of mechanically operating blinking single eyeballs in a row, each equipped with face tracking software to deliberately evoke a disconcerting sense of privacy violation. This series premiered during...The post A Disconcerting Installation Featuring 20 Blinking Kinetic Eyeballs That Track a Person Around a Room appeared first on Laughing Squid.