BY: M. TOMOSKI Illustration by: Ryan Garcia / The Plaid Zebra It’s a fine line to walk between tin-foil hats and hard facts whenever you hear the words “the government is hiding something.” In most cases, these are the people who…
This is what the world would look like if there were only 100 people
BY: CAROLINE ROLF Now that our population has surpassed 7 billion and continues to rise, it can be hard to see your significance in the world when you are a single individual in a number this large. But what…
Is the Google Cultural Institute just one more step aboard WALL-E’s Axiom?
BY: Victoria Heath One of the most striking and rather disturbing scenes of the Disney movie Wall-E was when the child-like robot discovers humanity’s fate aboard The Axiom. It seems the writers at Disney-Pixar were showing us a funny…
You’re right, we should be teaching mindfulness and meditation in schools.
BY: Adrian Smith When I consider how positively mindfulness affects my psyche and my overall mental wellness, I’m often left wondering why our education system doesn’t teach mind-body training in schools. Mindfulness, a term first coined by biologist Jon…
When threatened by a billion-dollar mining company, this peasant farmer told them to go to hell.
By: JACK M. You don’t have to look too hard or wait too long to hear of yet another mega-sized mining company ripping up some pristine piece of the planet, polluting natural resources, defacing rain forests, compromising biodiversity, threatening…
The Ecosexual Bathhouse lets visitors explore their sexuality with the environment
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Australian-American art duo Pony Express have created the Ecosexual Bathhouse—an interactive performance space where visitors are encouraged to push the boundaries between sexuality and ecology. Guests can sink their arms into a composting glory hole, be…
This designer unintentionally created a wonderfully illustrated version of Walt Whitman’s ‘Song of Myself’
BY: Adrian Smith When Allen Crawford sought to improvise a few drawings while keeping Walt Whitman’s ‘Song of Myself’ in mind, he ended up creating a visceral and immediate visual representation of Whitman’s iconic poem. The designer/illustrator comes from Philadelphia, where…
Meet the neo-hippie communist bringing body art to Cuba—where tattooing is still illegal
BY: CAROLINE ROLF While he might look like your everyday hipster, Che Alejandro Pando Napoles, or Che for short, would describe himself as more of a “neo-hippie communist.” Despite having to constantly dodge government closures of his shop by…
Excessive daydreaming is the new psychological disorder puzzling researchers
BY: Adrian Smith In 2002, Professor Liora Somer began treating adults who had been sexually abused during childhood, finding that a number of her patients used daydreaming as an escape from the reality of their situation. These patients would…
Why experiential travel is here to stay and 3 experts that will help you carve your own path
BY: CAROLINE ROLF There was a time when travel meant escaping everyday stresses—unwinding and recharging.. It meant you needed a place that you could do absolutely nothing and feel absolutely delightful. I personally chose to travel like this, when several…
Over stimulation is blocking our creativity but boredom could actually be the solution
BY: CAROLINE ROLF At some point, we all get the feeling of boredom. Maybe it’s late Friday afternoon and you’re waiting for the workweek to finally end. Maybe it’s in the clinic waiting room or through the third hour of…
Is wearable technology slowly turning us into obedient and paranoid robots?
By: Jack M. They’re quickly becoming as commonplace as smartphones and tablets – wearables. We strap them to our wrists and arms, wrap them around our heads and stick them to our chests. We’re looking through them, sleeping with…
This project that helps blind people gives new meaning to feeling art
By: Danika Moir Helsinki-based designer Marc Dillon has started the Unseen Art project, which allows the visually impaired to interact with art. Using 3D printing, Dillon is recreating classical art pieces, such as the Mona Lisa, that people are able…
Three simple things you can do to help the planet that will make a big difference
BY: CHRIS SMITH Whether you believe it or not, the climate of our planet is changing. In 1896, Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius hypothesised that the burning of fossil fuels by humans could theoretically cause the earth’s average temperature to rise.…
Six Contradictory Characteristics of a Creative
By: Adrian Smith Earlier this week I came across a book written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, professor of psychology at the Quality of Life Research Center in Claremont. In Creativity: Flow and The Psychology of Discovery and Invention, he marvels at…
To reclaim green space, India will spend $6 billion on reforestation efforts
BY: JESSICA BEUKER India is in the midst of a growing industrialization period, and subsequently is suffering from extensive deforestation. The country is also one of the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitters. To combat this, and to bring back…
These two guys are renting out a room in their $15 million penthouse for free
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Last week a new ad appeared on SpareRoom – a flatshare site in the UK – for a £8 million ($14.8 million) penthouse in Paddington, London. The 4,000 sq ft property includes a cleaner, chauffeur and a…
The inside of this church is decorated with over 40,000 human skeletons
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Also known as the Church of Bones, the Sedlec Ossuary is a small chapel located in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutna Hora in the Czech Republic. On the outside it looks like a typical gothic-style church,…
Everything you need to know about becoming the ultimate guerrilla gardener in your city
BY: JESSICA BEUKER Guerrilla gardening – the act of prettifying a neglected and unkempt piece of public land and using it to grow flowers, vegetables and fruits – is a movement that continues to spread. Ron Finley, now known as…
Pawel Nolbert’s photos explore the distorted reality of social media.
BY: ERIC ZDANCEWICZ While many people are fabricating dual personalities with their Instagram accounts, Pawel Nolbert is creating work that embraces the ambiguity of reality in the social platform. In his Deconstructed series, the Polish artist takes simple shapes and…