Laughing Squid

In a rather amusing advert for the language learning site Babbel, an earnest extraterrestrial grows a bit frustrated when he attempts to communicate his basic needs but is unable to be understood by the well-meaning people of Earth. Despite the communication difficulty, he decides to stay for a while. He finds out about Babbel and...The post A Frustrated Alien Tries to Communicate in a World Where No One Understands His Language appeared first on Laughing Squid.

For years we’ve been writing about Dutch artist Theo Jansen and his Strandbeests, incredible wind-powered walking sculptures, and those inspired by them. Over the years, the kinetic sculpture has undergone changes, but in 2018, Jansen debuted a the “UMINAMI, a slimmed down, sleeker version of his previous Strandbeest designs with redesigned joints. UMINAMI, the new...The post Theo Jansen Debuts His Newly Slimmed Down Wind Powered Walking Strandbeest For 2018 appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Louisville tattoo artist Roy Rowlett has created a brilliant interactive Rick and Morty green screen tattoo upon which moving images can be played, such as the animated series itself. The caption of the tattoo hilariously reads, “It’s called a green screen Morty“, a clever play on the “Rickmancing the Stone” episode in which Summer condescendingly...The post A Brilliant Interactive ‘Rick and Morty’ Green Screen Tattoo That Comes Alive With Moving Images appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In 2014, Wildlife Rehab posted an absolutely adorable video of a passel of young opossums who were loudly enjoying a final snack of yummy bananas before being released back into the wild. The group had been orphaned at young ages, but were determined healthy enough for release after some rehabilitation. Raised at a wildlife rehabilitation...The post Orphaned Opossums Loudly Munch on a Bunch of Bananas Before Being Released Into the Wild appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The New Yorker paid a visit to Declan Kiely, the Director of Exhibitions at the New York Public Library about the wonderful Berg Collection, which houses all sorts of historically significant realia that once belonged to famous American authors. A lock of Walt Whitman’s hair, Jack Kerouac’s boots, and Virginia Woolf’s cane are just a...The post New York Public Library Has a Wonderful Collection of Historic Everyday Items Belonging to Authors appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Ducks Eatery in New York City has brilliantly created a truly unique delectably mouthwatering way to serve watermelon. They first strip the fruit of all its rind and skin, marinate it in the same preparations used for their smoked ham and smoked it until it has the look, smell and feel of real smoked meat,...The post A Delectably Mouthwatering Smoked Watermelon That Looks, Smells and Slices Like Smoked Meat appeared first on Laughing Squid.

History buff Rusty of Rusty’s History Zone posted absolutely stunning drone footage flying over the ruins of ancient Pompeii. This quick clip offers an incredible view into the historical immensity of this particular site, which is, according to Rusty “becoming one of the largest archaeology sites in the world”. via reddit Incredible Aerial Footage Shot...The post Stunning Drone Footage Taken Flying Over the Ancient Ruins of Pompeii appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In a surprisingly touching video essay, artist Zane Whitener nostalgically recalled how the rise of horror for children affected and shaped his childhood while growing up in the 1990s. Using a montage of various scary films, shows and animations, Whitener explains the most important lesson that he learned from watching horror as a kid. …Most...The post How Horror Shows and Films of the 1990s Taught Kids About Empowerment in a Way They Understood appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Paul Barton, an artist and musician living in Thailand who has played a green piano with an elephant named Peter and played a beautiful Bach concerto for a blind elephant named Lam Duan, performed a moving version of the third movement of the Claude Debussy suite “Clair de Lune” for Ampan, a sweet, gentle 80...The post Pianist Plays a Moving Version of Debussy ‘Clair de Lune’ for a Beautiful Eighty Year Old Elephant appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Thomas Dambo (@thomasdambo) on Jul 24, 2018 at 11:46pm PDT We’ve previously posted about the very talented Thomas Dambo who in 2015 created gorgeous giant hulking sculptures in several countries and filled a Copenhagen forest with six towering giants. In 2018 Dambo back with a new series of six giant wooden...The post Six Towering Wooden Sculptures of Moody Trolls Hide Inside 1,700 Acres of a Chicago Arboretum appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Engineers in the Humanoids and Human Centered Mechatronics Lab at the Italian Institute of Technology, in partnership with the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Programme, have created the remarkable Centauro, a very sturdy search and rescue robot that has four legs and a truly anthropomorphic body that can lift heavy items, poke holes in fences and...The post The Centauro, A Sturdy Search and Rescue Robot With an Anthropomorphic Body That Can Cut Wood appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Lucy Sparrow (@sewyoursoul) on Aug 3, 2018 at 10:14pm PDT In 2014, artist Lucy Sparrow created the The Cornershop, a pop-up store that stocked felt replicas of items that are typically found in an English grocery store. Since that time, Sparrow has brought her soft, handmade wares across the pond to...The post The Sparrow Mart, A Los Angeles Pop Up Shop Filled With Felt Versions of 31,000 Supermarket Items appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Scott Beale (@scottbeale) on Jul 26, 2018 at 12:11pm PDT Recently while driving through Delaware, Lori and I visited the legengary Dogfish Head Brewery in Milton, DE. They have a wonderful tasting room and a really great outdoor space that features the incredible Steampunk Tree House as the centerpiece. The 40′...The post Steampunk Tree House at Dogfish Head Brewery appeared first on Laughing Squid.

There’s Waldo is a very clever robot that is able to search through many illustrated faces to find the often elusive Waldo of the classic game “Where’s Waldo“, indicating the location with a pointed robotic finger. The robot then sends a picture to a trained machine to verify the location of iconic red-striped shirt wearer....The post There’s Waldo, A Clever Robot Specifically Designed to Answer the Age Old Question of ‘Where’s Waldo’ appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Photographers, videographers and spectators along the course react to the incredible speed of the motorcycles racing during the Isle of Mann TT in a hilarious compilation created by BAZ Channel. The most common reaction was that of astonishment and fear, as this race is known as the fastest race in the world. There were a...The post Amusing Compilation of Photographers Reacting to the Incredible Speed of Isle of Man TT Motorcycles appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Great Big Story visited with the incredibly talented choreographer and master ballet dancer Ivan Liška to talk about dance during the Bauhaus Movement during early-mid 20th Century Germany. They specifically focused on the highly distinctive, costumed geometric style of the “Triadic Ballet” developed by Oskar Schlemmer in 1922. The Bauhaus Movement produced more than just...The post The Incredible Costumed Geometry of the 1922 Bauhaus Era ‘Triadic Ballet’ by Oskar Schemmler appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While a diamond wholesaler was doing a bit of work at their desk, a rather refined ant with expensive taste came over and casually grabbed a loose gem to steal. The refined insect masterfully rolled the diamond away, but every so often, would check behind to make sure that no one was watching. An ant...The post A Refined Ant With Expensive Taste Attempts to Steal a Loose Diamond From Wholesaler’s Desk appeared first on Laughing Squid.

An Amish man in Colon, Michigan named Timothy Hochstedler decided to get in on the ride sharing bandwagon with his own interpretation of companies like Uber and Lyft, but with a horse and buggy rather than a car. Calling it “Amish Uber”, Hochstedler offers door-to-door rides for just $5 and unique rolling view of the...The post Michigan Man Starts an Amish Version of Uber With an On-Call Horse and Buggy Ride Sharing Service appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The incredibly creative Wackids, who usually play with toy instruments, played a truly unique cover of the White Stripes song “Seven Nation Army” on electronicThe post A Unique Cover of the White Stripes Song ‘Seven Nation Army’ Played Through Electronic Barbie Dolls appeared first on Laughing Squid.

French musician Mathieu Terrade performed a flawlessly somber cover of the iconic Queen song “Bohemian Rhapsody” on a Harpejji G16. Terrade’s rendition of the song has garnered quite a number of views on YouTube. 2 Millions of views for “Bohemian Rhapsody”!!! We previously wrote about this wonderfully unique tapping instrument that employs the principles of...The post Talented Harpejji Player Performs a Somber Cover of the Iconic Queen Song ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While speaking at a 2016 TEDxQueensSU event, hypnotist and filmmaker Albert Nerenberg offered an amusing presentation that tested whether or not the highly controversial subject of hypnotism is actually real. As a novel way to prove his point, Nerenberg put out several suggestions to the audience and then asked them to raise their hands in...The post TEDx Presenter Hypnotizes the Audience to Test Whether or Not the Power of Suggestion Works appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Swiss photographer Raphaël Sandoz captured an incredible timelapse of the gorgeous downhill ride on Gelmer Funicular, a cable-traction train that begins high up in the Swiss Alps near Gelmer Lake, runs along the Grimsel Pass until it terminates in the valley town of Handegg, Guttannen. timelapse of the ride back down from the gelmersee with...The post Amazing Timelapse of an Incredibly Steep Downhill Ride on a Cable Train From High in the Swiss Alps appeared first on Laughing Squid.

DIY craftsman Levsha shared a video showing his step-by-step process for building a beautiful micro sized chess set set out of shiny brass and precious wood. Every tiny chess piece is a perfect miniature version of those within a standard set. …It’s a little souvenir for friends. To make these chess pieces you will need...The post Skilled DIY Craftsman Shares How to Make a Beautiful Micro Chess Set Out of Brass and Wood appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While magician Ah Gan was demonstrates a series of tricks on video, his rather humorless friend repeatedly revealed the secrets behind said tricks in complete silence, without a flicker of emotion crossing his pokerface. Chinese magician A Gan enjoys showing off his tricks through his live-streaming channel, but not when his buddy is messing around...The post A Magician’s Tricks Are Repeatedly Spoiled by a Silent Humorless Friend Who Reveals His Secrets appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Motion and graphic designer Florent Porta has created “Les Machines Impossibles“, a series of five short films that brilliantly imagine what goes on with the internal mechanisms inside larger, more complex machines. The films were made in 2017 at the request of the Centre Pompidou Museum for their children’s web series “Mon Œill. The subjects...The post Brilliantly Imaginative Short Films That Explain the Internal Mechanisms Inside Complex Machines appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In an aquatic episode of The New York Times series ScienceTake from 2015, host James Gorman shares some very interesting information using research from David Scheel, Peter Godfrey-Smith and Matthew Lawrence. The three men studied the eight-armed cephalopods of Tasmania, Australia, Gorman explained the clever ways in which the solitary creatures use their bodies to...The post The Clever Ways in Which Solitary Octopuses Use Their Bodies To Communicate With Each Other appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The Revolving Internet is a fun, slightly dizzying site created by Constant Dullaart that rotates the Google search page in slow moving constant turns around the computer screen. Even though it’s moving, the search field is fully functional to allow the person at the keyboard to type in any URL they see fit. All web...The post ‘The Revolving Internet’ Rotates the Google Search Page In Slow Moving Circles Around the Screen appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Filmmaker Emile Rafael sat down with renowned architect Frank Gehry in front of his iconic namesake Spruce Street building in Manhattan to talk about his visionary art. Gehry was more than happy to share his passion for architecture that imbues a strong sense of movement and fluidity as seen in his beautiful fish shaped building...The post Renowned Architect Frank Gehry Shares His Passion For Giving His Buildings a Sense of Movement appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A very informative video by Food Insider/The Science Channel shows the fascinating process by which rainbow colored candy sprinkles are made, what they are made of, how they get to be certain colors and how they are packaged. They also gave a short history about where sprinkles originated. Rainbow cake sprinkles have been around since...The post How Rainbow Colored Candy Sprinkles Are Made appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the animated “Detective Simmons” by StoryCorps, the amazing oral history project that provides recording booths for people to tell their own life stories, a wonderful tribute is paid to an honorable man who knew when and how to stand up for what was right. The commentary was provided by his beloved daughter and grandson,...The post Police Detective Is Fondly Remembered by Daughter and Grandson for Standing Up for What’s Right appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Doodling music theorist and musician 12tone took a deep dive into the classic song “Message in a Bottle” by The Police. He astutely focuses on the song’s use of quintal harmonies, power chords and the wandering passage the music takes before it find the root (E Major) while noting how this sense of melodic meandering...The post How Meandering Quintal Harmonies Give the Song ‘Message In a Bottle’ a Sense of Being Lost at Sea appeared first on Laughing Squid.

In the trailer for the limited Cary Joji Fukunaga Netflix series Maniac, Owen Milgrim (Jonah Hill) and Annie Landsberg (Emma Stone) are two mentally fragile volunteers who take part a strange pharmaceutical trial and find that they’re not quite sure where they are as they start experiencing mind bending multiple reality scenarios that constantly involve...The post Two Fragile Volunteers Take Part in a Mind Bending Pharmaceutical Trial in the Netflix Series ‘Maniac’ appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While diving in the beautiful blue waters of Hurghada, Egypt, an unsuspecting diver named Tobias Sachs found himself at the center of an absolutely mesmerizing bait ball made up of thousands of fish. The tiny fish were using the power of many to protect themselves and perhaps even Sachs, from an incoming whale shark attack....The post Thousands of Fish Swarm Diver in a Mesmerizing Bait Ball to Ward Off an Incoming Whale Shark appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The Ringer took a look at the development of the beloved Jim Halpert throughout the entirety of the American version The Office, noting how his personal appearance improved with his increasing story arc. They specifically focused on how Jim’s evolving hairstyles took place alongside the trajectory of his happiness and best described it with their...The post How Evolving Hairstyles of Jim Halpert on ‘The Office’ Mirrored the Trajectory of His Happiness appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Corridor Digital partnered with Google to create an amazing human replication of a spinning zoetrope without employing any special video effects. The perfectly synchronized, stop-motion scenario was created on a Samsung Chromebook Pro and is certainly on par with any of the zoetropes we’ve written about in the past. Corridor Digital is a group of...The post An Amazing Real-Life Spinning Human Zoetrope appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A talented street musician named Serin in Rome is becoming known for his incredible covers of classic Pink Floyd songs, which he performs right in front of the Pantheon. Among the songs that visitors to the city have captured on video are “Comfortably Numb“, “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” and Time, “Another Brick in the...The post Street Musician Performs Brilliant Covers of Classic Pink Floyd Songs In Front of the Pantheon in Rome appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by ODEITH (@odeith) on Jul 16, 2018 at 11:37am PDT In April 2015, we wrote aboutThe post Incredible 3D Illusion Anamorphic Street Murals of Insects That Appear to Be Popping Off the Walls appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Electrical engineer Tobias Kuhn of Electron Dust has created a neat Arduino project in which he used four microphones to keep PID controlled ping pong ball bouncing on a plate machine. The purpose of this project per Kuhn, is to keep the ball going for as long as possible. Not quite your usual ball and...The post Four Microphones Keep a PID Controlled Ball Bouncing on Plate Machine For as Long as Possible appeared first on Laughing Squid.

While performing at the Le Poisson Rouge in New York City in April 2018, the incredibly talented Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain live streamed a beautiful cover of the iconic David Bowie song ‘Heroes‘ – a truly fitting tribute to the late musician in his adopted hometown. On the 5th April 2018 at Le Poisson...The post The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain Performs an Incredible Cover of David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’ in NYC appeared first on Laughing Squid.

As he’s done in previous years, San Francisco filmmaker Mark Day created a fascinating video featuring 24 hours on the dusty playa during Burning Man 2017, just weeks before the 2018 event. An intentionally-overlong trip through one man’s Burning Man. Your mileage, and your Burning Man may vary. …This starts as a solo project and...The post 24 Hours at Burning Man 2017 appeared first on Laughing Squid.

On Monday, July 30, 2018, unsuspecting New York City subway passengers a were surprised to find a gentleman seated upon a leather couch in a most relaxed position, riding through the city in the utmost comfort. But for the fact that the sofa was blocking the doors and taking up seats, he could be on...The post A Relaxed Man Rides the New York City Subway in the Utmost Comfort Upon a Brown Leather Couch appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Over the years, different airlines have tried different ways to make their in-flight safety videos more interesting. In 2018, Turkish Airlines did the same by enlisting characters from The LEGO Movie franchise to give an amusing presentation to their passengers on their international flights. Are you ready for the safety video with the smallest cast...The post Turkish Airlines Enlists Characters From ‘The LEGO Movie’ to Star in Their In-Flight Safety Video appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Horror artist Ashley Newman of “It Came From Under My Bed” has created a fabulously disconcerting series of pot pies with realistic, anthropomorphic faces that have a variety of expressions baked right into their top crusts. These pies and other fascinating handmade objects are available for purchase through Newman’s Etsy Store and business is booming....The post Fabulously Disconcerting Anthropomorphic Human Faces Baked Into Top Crusts of Handmade Pot Pies appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Luksand Wunder has created a frustratingly brilliant second part to the original The Most Unsatisfying Video in the World Ever Made, which again features a number of amusing scenarios that show an action in process but cuts off access to the most gratifying part of the video – the follow through. The Most Unsatisfying Video...The post The Most Unsatisfying Video in the World Part Two appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Stop-motion animator Kevin Parry of LAIKA (The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings), who has demonstrated numerous ways one can sit on a chair, enter a room and walk, among other actions, showed 50 different hilarious ways to get into a pool. A Man Who Doesn’t Understand Bitcoin Inaccurately Explains the World of Bitcoin in...The post 50 Hilarious Ways to Get Into a Pool appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Filmmaker Ien Chi of the 2011 film “Tick Tock“, decided that he wanted to “ditch school to whistle“, basically taking time off to participate in an international whistling competition taking place in Leasburg, North Carolina. Along the way, Chi met some amazing people who were happy to share their personal stories with him. Chi was...The post Filmmaker Learns About the Healing Power of Whistling Through People He Met at a Competition appeared first on Laughing Squid.

Yoshida Haruka of the Open Reel Ensemble showed how he plays unrolled reel-to-reel tape like a drum to achieve a unique electronic sound. Known as “tape tapping”, this specific art requires good percussion skills and a good supply of electromagnetic tape. When you tap the tape, it sounds like a electro-magnetic drum. via reddit Rob...The post Percussionist Plays Unrolled Reel-to-Reel Tape Like a Drum to Achieve a Unique Electronic Sound appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Lola Dupre (@loladupre) on Jul 18, 2018 at 8:01am PDT Artist Lola Dupre has created a wonderful series of interpretive, hand paneled paper collages that depict popular cats and dogs of Instagram, such as Nimbus Whippet, Whiskey the Vizsla, Fargo, Trails and Bears along with some or her own studio cat...The post Wonderfully Interpretive Paper Collages Depicting Popular Cats and Dogs of Instagram appeared first on Laughing Squid.

The UkuRobot, a very cleverly designed robotic ukulele, eerily performed a haunting cover of the “Love Theme” from the iconic film The Godfather in an empty room. This incredible machine can play a variety of songs, such as the theme from “Requiem for a Dream” and “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” by Green Day. via TechCrunch,...The post A Cleverly Designed Robotic Ukulele Eerily Plays a Haunting Cover of ‘The Godfather’ Theme appeared first on Laughing Squid.

A post shared by Lighthouse Farm Sanctuary (@lighthousefarmsanctuary) on Apr 10, 2018 at 7:19pm PDT For three years, a blind bison named Helen was at the Lighthouse Farm Sanctuary in Scio, Oregon without making a single friend. The guarded bovine was nervous around other animals and while she was living in a safe environment, it...The post A Lonely Guarded Blind Bison Finds a Best Friend in a Young Jersey Cow at an Oregon Sanctuary appeared first on Laughing Squid.