Darwin Martin House / Frank Lloyd Wright

New York based artist and director Jonathan Turner highlights the details of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin D Martin House (1903-05) in Buffalo, New York. Part of a multi-structure estate, the Martin House serves as a prime example of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie House ideal, with strong horizontal lines and planes, deeply overhanging eaves, a central hearth, prominent foundation, and a sheltering, cantilevered roof. Although the complex suffered considerable damage over the decades, the Martine House Restoration Corporation (MHRC) has raised funds for a complete restoration of the complex, which began in 1997 and continues on today — via ArchDaily

Applepus / CuteStorm

This is a limited edition plush, featuring an adorable apple print on the belly and underside of the tentacles.

This big, huggable plushie is sure to be your new best friend! My octopuses (or octopi) love to play and pose. This guy measures about 12 inches from toe tip to stem tip, and his arm span is about 15 inches — via Etsy

Green Greenberg Green House / New Theme

The Green Greenberg Green House was commissioned [New Theme] by the photographer Jill Greenberg and her husband Robert Green. The design developed from their program and the contextual considerations of the existing site. The triangular down?slope site opens onto a plateau off the street, sloping sharply towards the south side of the property and offers panoramic views to the Los Angeles basin, thus, the organic shape towards the north contoured site condition, and the rectilinear south side that engages the city grid. Through the analysis of these two factors, the initial massing and orientation was generated to optimize spectacular views and natural ventilation — via ArchDaily

Snow Leopard Cubs / Helsinki Zoo

Helsinki Zoo in Finland is known for successfully breeding Snow Leopards — more than 100 of them since 1960. On 23 June, one of their adult females gave birth to three cubs in her her den. All three are girls! The little family was allowed to bond and grow in those first weeks in the protection of the nest, but for the first time they ventured outdoors — via ZooBorns

Scottish wildcat extinct within months, association says

Scottish wildcats will be extinct in the wild within months as numbers of pure-bred cats have fallen to about 35 individuals, conservationists warn.

A team put together by the Scottish Wildcat Association (SWA) reviewed 2,000 records of camera trap sightings, eyewitness reports and also road kills.

SWA said the analysis suggested there could be 35 wildcats — far fewer than previously thought.

Other research has estimated that there could be less than 400 pure-bred cats.

Last month, a report on a project funded by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) estimated that there were 150 breeding pairs left.

Disease and inter-breeding with domestic and feral cats are among the main threats to numbers of pure-bred wildcats — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Sydney sheikh in court over ‘female genital mutilation’

Police will allege the two girls had the procedure, which is also known as female circumcision, performed on them in NSW when they were aged six and seven within the past 18 months.

Three other people have been charged over the alleged genital mutilation.

Also arrested today was a 68-year-old woman who has been charged with two counts of prohibition of female genital mutilation.

Police will allege the woman performed the procedure on the girls.

She has been granted conditional bail and will face Campbelltown Local Court on 3 October.

A 42-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman were arrested last Friday and charged with two counts each of female genital mutilation. — via redwolf.newsvine.com

New monkey species with massive blue arse found in Africa

A species of monkey previously unknown to science has been discovered in Africa: and boffins say that it has an extensive bright blue bottomwhich rivals that of the largest and most colourful known monkeys on Earth.

The new monkey was first sighted by scientists in 2007, when boffins found one being kept as a pet in the town of Opala in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It transpired that the unusual monkey was well known to local people, but had never before been catalogued by scientists. Following some research, the new species — dubbed lesula — has now been announced to an astonished world.

The lesula, which is the first new monkey found in Africa for 28 years, is remarkable in particular for its vibrant colouring. It has a pink face, golden throat, massive whiskers and a vertical white stripe up its nose, which gives it some resemblance to the already well known owl-faced monkey — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Amur Tiger Triplets / Bronx Zoo

The Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo roared with new activity last week as three Amur Tiger cubs born in April made their public debut. The cubs, one male and two females, are vitally important to the future of wild Tigers: in the last 100 years, the global wild Tiger population has plummeted 97 percent. Only about 3,200 Tigers remain in the wild, with only 1,000 breeding females. Amur Tigers, also known as Siberian Tigers, are among the rarest big cats on Earth — via ZooBorns

Australian tabloid decides to fight trolls … with trolls

Australian tabloid newspaper The Daily Telegraph has started a campaign to Stop the trolls.

The campaign’s roots lie in recent incidents that saw a reality television hostess’ Twitter account subjected to ridicule and a Rugby League footballer’s account receive vile comments about his recently-deceased mother.

The footballer struck back, threatening to rip the balls off the troll, followed by a call to Australia’s Prime Minister to do something about trolls. That call saw the Premier of the State of New South Wales weigh in, agreeing that trolls must be stopped.

Things then snowballed as reports emerged the Prime Minister had granted the footballer an audience to discuss the troll menace, an odd gesture but one that makes sense given current debate in Australia about links between online bullying and youth suicide.

All of which explains why the Telegraph gave over its front page, depicted aboveand helpfully parsed by Twitter user HyperBrendan, to its new Stop the Trolls campaign — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Ducati Pantah / JvB-moto

It’s always fascinating to see the personal rides of well-known custom motorcycle builders. Rough Crafts’ Winston Yeh, for example, rides a tiny PGO 125cc scooter. This Ducati Pantah belongs to JvB-moto‘s Jens vom Brauck, and prowls the roads around Cologne in Germany — via Bike EXIF

Business, Design

A Lange & Söhne Expands Watchmaking in Glashütte

With global demand for its watches growing, A Lange & Söhne, based in Glashütte in the German state of Saxony,  has been expanding its production facilities over the past few years. The latest step took place on 5 September, with a groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of construction on the company’s new annex.

A Lange & Söhne is already the largest employer in the town of Glashütte, providing jobs for more than 500 people, and its watchmaking workshops are already spread across several buildings. The new annex will provide more than 11,000 square meters of additional space for the movement-assembly departments and the machines that produce delicate movement components. Lange CEO Wilhelm Schmid, who took part in the groundbreaking ceremony along with Walter Lange, great-grandson of brand founder Ferdinand A Lange, welcomes the start of construction. The annex was long overdue, Schmid says. The new building will allow us to clearly improve production processes and working conditions — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Sexual equality debate rages after DJ Alan Jones’s outburst

A furious debate on sexual equality is raging in Australia following misogynistic comments made by the country’s best-known radio DJ, who announced on his show that women in positions of power were destroying the joint.

Alan Jones’s outburst followed the announcement that Australia would be spending $320m promoting Pacific islands women in business and politics.

[Prime minister Julia Gillard] said that we know societies only reach their full potential if women are politically participating, scoffed Jones, who has previously suggested Gillard be put in a sack and dropped out to sea.

Women are destroying the joint, he said. [Former state chief police commissioner] Christine Nixon in Melbourne, [Sydney lord mayor] Clover Moore here. Honestly.

Days of heated debate — including a vigorous social media campaign against him — on the extent of sexism in the country have followed his comments — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Widespread distrust of US extends beyond Middle East, poll shows

American influence on the world stage is being sapped by widespread distrust of US intentions, not just in the Middle East and south Asia but also among traditional European allies, according to a survey of global opinions.

Suspicion of America outweighed faith in its good intentions by large margins in the Arab world and Pakistan, and even its heavyweight European ally Germany was more sceptical than trusting, a YouGov survey found. British and French opinion was more positive but still deeply divided.

Negative Arab and Pakistani perceptions of America as overweening and untrustworthy clearly pose a daunting foreign policy challenge for the Obama administration. The fact that 78% of Pakistanis questioned by YouGov said they did not trust America to act responsibly underlines Washington’s serious lack of soft power in the region as it attempts to extricate itself from Afghanistan.

Attitudes towards the US in the Arab world were nearly as negative. Those respondents in the Middle East and north Africa who said they trusted America were outnumbered by more than two to one by those who said they did not, and 39% said they did not trust America at all — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Doe Bay Cottage Prefab / Studio 29

Here’s the first prefab home in this line by Method Homes with a design by Studio 29. Located on Orcas Island, the home was designed for a Washington family wanting a vacation getaway with some of the more traditional details — sleeping loft, breakfast nook, window seats, etc — typically found in classic homes of the 19th century — via Jetson Green

Craft

Panzer Tank Slippers / Miligurumis

Jose’s wife made him these Tiger shaped crochet Panzer Tank Slippers… and since he posted it in his Facebook profile and Missing-Lynx peeps have gone totally crazy about it. Which is awesome! Well, his wife finally created a pattern for the Panzer Tank Slippers that is available in her Etsy account as of now — via Blitz72.com

Update: Miligurumi’s Etsy store has since closed, but searching Etsy for Panzer Tank Slippers shows that several people are selling the finished product