Monday, December 24, 2018
Sunday, December 23, 2018
Super Realistic Doll Faces
Olga Kamenetskaya "wipes off" dolls makeup from mass produced dolls to replace with a super realistic face.
Thursday, October 25, 2018
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Thursday, August 30, 2018
Carcasses of Reindeer Felled by Lightning are Spawning New Plant Life
About two years ago, Norway’s Hardangervidda National Park—a sprawling nature haven located on Europe’s largest mountain plateau—was caught in the throes of a thunderstorm. In a remote corner of the park, 323 wild reindeer huddled together, seeking warmth and comfort as the storm raged around them. Suddenly, lightning struck, essentially electrifying the ground and triggering instantaneous cardiac arrest amongst the unsuspecting animals.
Today, the reindeer’s rotting carcasses still litter the landscape of Hardangervidda. Aside from removing the animals’ heads in order to screen for disease, local authorities left the scene largely untouched, allowing nature to run its course. Now, Steph Yin reports for The New York Times, scientists believe the ravaged patch of land may be witnessing the beginnings of a biological renaissance as tragedy yields the promise of new (plant) life.
The Norwegian team’s research, newly detailed in Biology Letters, revolves around the decomposing carcasses, which attracted scavengers that defecated all over the site, spreading seed-filled feces that may eventually sprout into plant seedlings.
Ingrid Spilde of Norwegian news outlet Forskning.no reports that the carcasses initially eliminated all plant life in the area, upping ground acidity and tinkering with soil nutrients. As scavenging foxes and birds deposited feces across the patch of land, however, they left crowberry seeds that may be capable of transforming into seedlings.
The crowberry plant serves as a keystone species in the alpine tundra, Yin writes. Its black or dark purple berries are an essential food source for many Arctic animals and have a strong influence on the region’s ecosystem.
In order to germinate, the crowberry plant requires bare, nutrient-dense soil—“exactly what the carcasses are creating,” Steyaert tells Yin.
According to Live Science’s Yasemin Saplakoglu, the carcass-ridden environment and its hordes of seed-dispersing scavengers provide ideal breeding grounds for new plant life. In fact, 21 out of 24 fecal samples described in the study contained viable crowberry seeds. During a recent visit to the site, researchers spotted a promising change in the landscape: crowberry seedlings and grasses popping up amongst the reindeer’s scattered remains, presenting a unique meditation on death—and, for the first time in two years, life.
Excerpts from the text of Meilan Solly, the complete article with links can be seen at SmithsonianMag
Today, the reindeer’s rotting carcasses still litter the landscape of Hardangervidda. Aside from removing the animals’ heads in order to screen for disease, local authorities left the scene largely untouched, allowing nature to run its course. Now, Steph Yin reports for The New York Times, scientists believe the ravaged patch of land may be witnessing the beginnings of a biological renaissance as tragedy yields the promise of new (plant) life.
The Norwegian team’s research, newly detailed in Biology Letters, revolves around the decomposing carcasses, which attracted scavengers that defecated all over the site, spreading seed-filled feces that may eventually sprout into plant seedlings.
Ingrid Spilde of Norwegian news outlet Forskning.no reports that the carcasses initially eliminated all plant life in the area, upping ground acidity and tinkering with soil nutrients. As scavenging foxes and birds deposited feces across the patch of land, however, they left crowberry seeds that may be capable of transforming into seedlings.
The crowberry plant serves as a keystone species in the alpine tundra, Yin writes. Its black or dark purple berries are an essential food source for many Arctic animals and have a strong influence on the region’s ecosystem.
In order to germinate, the crowberry plant requires bare, nutrient-dense soil—“exactly what the carcasses are creating,” Steyaert tells Yin.
According to Live Science’s Yasemin Saplakoglu, the carcass-ridden environment and its hordes of seed-dispersing scavengers provide ideal breeding grounds for new plant life. In fact, 21 out of 24 fecal samples described in the study contained viable crowberry seeds. During a recent visit to the site, researchers spotted a promising change in the landscape: crowberry seedlings and grasses popping up amongst the reindeer’s scattered remains, presenting a unique meditation on death—and, for the first time in two years, life.
Excerpts from the text of Meilan Solly, the complete article with links can be seen at SmithsonianMag
Tuesday, July 03, 2018
Tuesday, June 05, 2018
Thursday, May 31, 2018
Thursday, May 17, 2018
「This is America 」
This is a late post. But I want to register this. In the future I want to scroll back my posts and remember that this video clip had an impact on me.
And to mix the feelings: this other one should be like "This is Japan"
And to mix the feelings: this other one should be like "This is Japan"
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Sunday, April 01, 2018
Van Gogh & Japan
Van Gogh fell under the spell of Japanese printmaking in Paris, where he quickly purchased over 600 prints from a dealer. He hung them in his studio, so he could gradually absorb the influence of these colourful works. More than 100 Japanese prints from his collection are on view in the exhibition.
Exhibition Van Gogh & Japan
Exhibition Van Gogh & Japan