Laughing Squid

Japanese ping pong player takkyuu geinin demonstrated his expertise in the sport by lobbing back incoming balls with a variety of household and musical items that each made a unique noise when struck. Amongst these items were a pot cover, a tambourine, a spoon, a pair of castanets and even a glass of wine. via...

Filmmaker Casey Neistat and 18 other YouTube creators partnered with Samsung to transform the long abandoned Northridge Mall in Milwaukee, Wisconsin into a magical winter wonderland for the local Boys and Girls Club. The creators spent nearly a month getting the place ready and were happily rewarded by the excitement on each kid’s face as...

The cheery puppeteers of Sesame Street sat down with Wired to discuss and describe in wonderful detail how they operate their Muppets, how they inject personality into the character and how they film certain scenes. Included in this interview are Matt Vogel as Big Bird, Ryan Dillon as Elmo, Martin Robinson as Mr. Snuffleupagus, Leslie...

In a rather saucy video from BBC Earth‘s “Polar Bear Spy On The Ice“, actor David Tennant gleefully narrated a scene in which couple of frolicking polar bears suddenly halted their amorous tryst in order to put right the skiing BBC “blizzardcam” that was spying on them. Once all was good, the romantic bears happily...

Universal Pictures released an amazing trailer for Mortal Engines, an upcoming sci-fi action adventure film directed by Christian Rivers, written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Peter Jackson, and based on the novel of the same name by Philip Reeve. The trailer takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where a gigantic steampunk machine version of...

A post shared by @ronmueckart on Dec 15, 2017 at 1:49am PST Australian artist Ron Mueck has created “Mass“, a truly haunting installation of 100 oversized skulls piled one atop another, in a manner very similar to horrific imagery that comes out of genocide and war. This seemingly somber study of mortality was intended to...

Theme Park University took a ride through Space Mountain, the legendary indoor space-themed roller coaster at Walt Disney World, with all of the lights on. Here is another thrilling video, created by SoCal Attractions 360, of a trip through Space Mountain with the lights off to compare both experiences. Disney Theme Park Toy Play Sets,...

On December 11, 2017, Lt. Justin Mayton with the Harlem-Roscoe Fire Protection District #1 in Roscoe, Illinois expertly and heroically set out onto the frozen Lake Legend where a man who had gotten stranded when his kayak sunk in an effort to rescue his dog Chewy who had fallen through the ice. Donning a proper...

Bad Lip Reading released “Hostiles on the Hill,” a hilarious new extended Star Wars lyric video for Luke Skywalker‘s snowspeeder rap featured in their Empire Strikes Back parody. It’s as sweet as cinnamon. We previously wrote about their brilliant Star Wars lyric music videos “Bushes of Love,” “Not the Future,” and “SEAGULLS! (Stop It Now).”...

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In his continuing concern about the inevitability of automation, the very insightful CPG Grey provides an animated explanation about machine learning. Using very comprehensible examples, he essentially boils the subject down to bots making bots that use humans to learn, improve and eventually become smarter than the person who wrote the code. But with machines...

Tech Vlogger Keaton Keller of TechSmartt went on a bit of a wild chase when he decided he wanted to buy one full Bitcoin for cash. After finding a few ads on Craigslist, he began calling. Several were duds, but one guy was willing to do the transaction, but wanted a 10% fee. Keller countered...

Reigarw Comparisons created a fascinating new video that compares the size, frequency, and collision power of asteroids. We previously wrote about their comparisons of hurricanes, earthquakes, and volcanos. In this episode, we compare the impact of the sizes of asteroids from 1m to 1000km large, how often they occured and what are the results. Including...

In 2016, a photographer in Siberia, Russia captured the wonderfully astonishing sight of freshwater waves coming in from Lake Baikal, freezing in the extreme chill and instantly turning into ice shards as they pushed their way to the ever-increasing shoreline. Ice wave on Lake Baikal – Lake Baikal in Siberia is the oldest and deepest...

With help from Tony Reid of Mind Over Metal, Stephen Robinson of 52 Skillz learned how to rip a phone book in half using his bare hands. A post shared by 52skillz (@52skillz) on Dec 15, 2017 at 12:56pm PST How to Rip a Phone Book in HalfA Determined Man Quickly Learns How to Split...

On December 16, 2017, Ralph Carney, the brilliant wood and brasswind musician who was a good friend of Laughing Squid, passed away at the age of 61 in Portland Oregon. The Akron, Ohio native who lived in San Francisco for many years, had collaborated with such acclaimed artists as Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, Jonathan Richman...

In another one of his truly insightful video essays, YouTuber Polyphonic dives into the career of the George Martin, the very talented producer, composer and musician in his own right, who provided The Beatles with their iconic full orchestral sound for much of the the band’s lifetime. While Martin is just one of several men...

“The Firmest Friend” is a really touching, award-winning documentary about forgotten homeless youths in New York City and the incredibly unique bond they share with their pit bulls, a breed that is often demonized as being vicious. Filmmaker Andrew Fixell sensed a real kinship between misunderstood humans and misunderstood dogs and wanted to share it...

When farmers in Fordongianus, Italy went out into the field, they were surprised to find that a small dog had climbed onto the soft, downy back of one of their longhaired sheep and got comfortable. The oblivious sheep didn’t seem to mind the canine interloper and just went about grazing along the grass as if...

Due to a serious predilection for the destruction of Christmas trees by one of their cats, Chris and Jess, the humans belonging to Cole and Marmalade, decided to forego the challenge this year and instead found a fun and simple alternative. Using inexpensive feline-safe materials, the couple created a giant cardboard gingerbread house complete with...

New York City sound designer Matt McCorkle, a member of New Museum incubator NEW INC, who previously made a spooktacular interactive Halloween Soundboard, has created the New Year’s Music Box, an interactive soundboard to celebrate the New Year. This online soundboard lets users experiment with the instruments of a four-part harmony performance of “Auld Lang...

In a gutsy TED-Ed lesson by Emma Bryce and animated by Jeremy Jusay, narrator Addison Anderson explains how the digetstive system works in order to transport necessary nutrients to keep the body and the brain functioning properly. Across the planet, humans eat on average between 1 and 2.7 kilograms of food a day, and every...

Jack Houweling of Jackspiano and Jax Design has created a fantastic tutorial video where he demonstrates how to make a double chaotic pendulum out of wood. His step by step guide, with pictures, is available to view on the Jax Design website. images via Jax Design via Digg The Corpus Clock & Chronophage (Time Eater)...

A post shared by Cristian Marianciuc (@icarus.mid.air) on Aug 7, 2017 at 9:43am PDT In January 2015, British origami artist Cristian Marianciuc challenged himself to make one unique paper crane per day for a year. Marianciuc then increased the challenge to reach 1,000 unique cranes a goal he easily reached over the course of three...

A post shared by Chad Knight (@chadknight) on May 8, 2017 at 11:03pm PDT Surrealist artist Chad Knight has created a mind-blowing collection of 3D digital sculptures that look they actually exist in the real world. Prints of his impressive works of art are available to purchase from Society6. A post shared by Chad Knight...

Kyloki is a funny web series, created by the folks at Leisure Elk Productions, about a random guy who attempts to live in an apartment with evil villains Kylo Ren and Loki. A post shared by Leisure Elk (@leisureelk) on Nov 27, 2016 at 1:26pm PST A post shared by Leisure Elk (@leisureelk) on Sep...

While visiting the Adelaide Zoo in South Australia, YouTuber Flippers & Feathers captured adorable footage of an excited small clawed otter as he skillfully and repeatedly juggled three small stones while lying on his back on top of another otter’s tail. It was almost if he were anticipating something very good, very soon. An Oriental...

Lynx & Birds is a charming animated Christmas short, created by Blue-Zoo Animation in London, that tells a heart warming tale about a fearsome predator who unexpectedly becomes a loving provider. A mama bird accidentally lets her baby bird fall out of its nest. The little bird comes face to face with a hungry lynx....

A post shared by Tina's perspective on life (@tinasperspective) on Feb 14, 2016 at 3:07pm PST Norwegian photographer who goes by the moniker Tina’s Perspective has captured some absolutely stunning macro portraits of the mysterious and magical beauty of the ever-changing cat’s eye from several different angles. Tina’s subjects were most likely Zorro, Zonic and...

Gavin Free and Dan Gruchy of The Slow Mo Guys teamed up with Amazon to promote the second season of The Grand Tour. To do so, they captured slow motion footage of a 4 ton wrecking ball destroying a brick wall and all sorts of vehicles. Puppy Christmas, Cute Puppies Destroying Gifts & DecorationsProject Wrecking...

A very silly little cat named Mew Mew who lives in Blacklick, Ohio, sneaked behind the computer where her human Kelley Fultz was working, caught the scent of a yummy baked good and stuck out a surreptitious white out to drag the half eaten piece of break away by the napkin. Fultz, however, was having...

Larry is a short horror film, created by Jacob Chase, about a lonely monster who comes to life after a parking lot attendant (Joe Calarco) reads a horror story. The terrifying creature only wanted a new friend. via io9 Battling Boy, Paul Pope’s Graphic Novel About Demigods and MonstersThe Shape of Water, A Cold War...

Producer Felipe Haurelhuk and editor Fabrício Carvalho teamed up with Darth Blender to create an animated version of the latest Avengers: Infinity War trailer. They used clips featured in 1990s television shows like Spider-Man The Animated Series, The Incredible Hulk, and The Avengers – United They Stand. A Retro Version of the Avengers: Infinity War...

Filmmaker Jacob T. Swinney has created an uplifting montage of people and creatures dancing in films from 2017. He featured scenes from movies like Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, IT, and Baby Driver. A Supercut of People in Movies Watching MoviesA Montage of Epic Moments That Took Place at the Star Wars Celebration in...

Musician Cooper Carter did an incredible job of playing all 28 parts of composer John Williams‘ iconic “The Imperial March” theme song from Star Wars on guitar by himself. Here is the original song. submitted via Laughing Squid Tips Musician Plays the Brass Section of John Williams’ Star Wars Theme Song on Guitar by HimselfMusician...

To celebrate Star Wars: The Last Jedi blasting into theaters this week, The Warp Zone unleashed a force-filled parody where they add hilarious lyrics to the “Cantina Band” song in Star Wars: A New Hope. Star Wars Cantina Band Song on Chapman StickThe Bottle Boys Play the Star Wars ‘Cantina Band’ Song Using Beer Bottles...

During the Cold War, the Central Intelligence Agency embarked on a series of mind control experiments under the codename Project MKULTRA. Not all the subjects were aware they were participating. One such subject, CIA employee Frank Olson, jumped to his death, seemingly while under the influence of LSD, but questions remain through current times. The...

Upon hearing a very festive but noisy fireworks show taking place outside, an unusually anxious Simon’s Cat desperately attempted to find a safe place where could hide and completely opt out. The nervous feline tried everywhere, even inside the cat tree, where the kitten was sleeping, but nothing happened except making the kitten nervous. It...

Great Big Story traveled to to Thailand to marvel at the incredible and unique Wat Samphran – a bright pink Buddhist Temple that stands at an impressive 80 meters (263 feet) high and features a 17 story green dragon wrapped around the exterior of the building with its noble head proudly raised above the roof....

In a holiday-themed episode of their incredibly informative whiteboard series for Mental Floss, linguist Arika Okrent and illustrator Sean O’Neill explain the meaning of the old English lyrics of several classic Christmas carols and point out proper grammar intended in each. While you’re caroling this season, here’s a few grammar points to watch out for....

The wonderfully entertaining and very funny Maymo the Lemon Beagle followed a trail of plush beagle puppies out into the living room until he came upon a big pile of the very same plush dogs. Maymo was ready to walk away when a slight movement caught his eye. Slightly startled, Maymo cautiously approached the pile...

On a very daring episode of the First We Feast series, Hot Ones, YouTube’s own Casey Neistat sat down with host Sean Evans to talk about how his earliest job as a pot washer at a seafood restaurant inspired him to do what he loves most, making daring, outspoken and relevant videos. Neistat and Evans...

The normally reticent Sean “Diddy” Combs invited Joe Sabia of Condé Nast Entertainment into his home to answer 73 random questions for Vogue. Slowly coming down the stairs in a pink shirt and sunglasses, Diddy explained that he preferred to be the name Love, why he left New York for Los Angeles, his love for...

To celebrate the Christmas season and The Last Jedi landing in theaters this week, Christophe Haubursin and Mac Schneider of Vox created a video where they explain the 1978 Star Wars Holiday Special and explore how it accidentally helped shape the Star Wars universe. A long time ago in living rooms across the US, a...

A post shared by Matthew Mohr (@moreismohr) on Dec 2, 2017 at 11:36am PST Artist and physicist Matthew Mohr has created “As We Are” an amazing interactive sculpture of a 14 foot human head made of LED screen ribbons that contains a photo booth located behind in its neck. When a person gets a picture...

Portland, Oregon stop-motion animator Kevin Parry of LAIKA (The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings) has created an amusing new video where he demonstrates 50 different ways of sitting while on a chair. Back in June, he showed off 100 different types of walks while on a treadmill. Animator Demonstrates 100 Different Types of Walks...

Italian illustrator and architect Federico Babina has created “INKONICITY,” an animation and collection of creative illustrations that depict iconic imagery and sounds of various cities around the world. Prints of Babina’s artwork is available to purchase from Society6. A post shared by federico babina (@fbabina) on Dec 13, 2017 at 3:24pm PST A post shared...

Darren Dyk of Beyond Slow Motion captured wonderful slow motion footage of Brandon Laufer performing all sorts of monstrous Air Chair hydrofoil backflips. Steve-O Does a Fire-Breathing Backflip and Pops a Balloon Filled With Water in Slow MotionSuper Slow Motion Video of Two Paintballs Colliding in Mid-AirAn Air Balloon Popping Underwater in Slow Motion

Great Big Story went to Traverse City, Michigan to find out a bit more about K-9 Piper, a specially trained, hardworking border collie and his determined mission to clear birds such as geese, owls, crows and gulls from the runways of Cherry Capital Airport in order to prevent aircraft bird strikes. Piper’s human partner and...

The Star Wars films might have looked quite a bit different, if George Lucas stuck to the original concept drawings that Ralph McQuarrie produced in the early stages. Graduating students from the DAVE School (Digital Animation & Visual Effects School) decided to bring McQuarrie’s classic illustrations to life with an amazing trailer that they worked...