Drawing inspiration from post-war studio pottery and mid-century design, self-taught ceramicist Matthew Ward’s work blends the past and present in a charming manner. His glazed stoneware Totem Vase is seven inches tall and features a pattern reminiscent of mid-century-era star bursts. The subtle blue-on-blue colour means this piece will be at home in just about any room, no matter the décor — via Cool Hunting
The company does various designs, but the Astrofire retro-style fire pit by Modfire is the one that stands out. Ideal for a mid century-inspired outdoor space. Love the sweeping legs, as well as the choice of colours. So many to choose from, which means there’s almost certainly one to match your space. Options too for fuel options — natural gas, propane, or wood burning — with that choice dictating the price. They start from $1,450 directly from the maker, with the option of a solid cover and tabletop too if you don’t need the fire, but do need the surface space — via Retro to Go
Three five month old Cheetah cubs make their public debut at Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Australia — via Youtube
Gerry Mander (see above) was the Scarfolk Party candidate in the 1974 election. Though much of his nationalistic campaign consisted of subliminal brainwashing techniques, complicated satanic invocations, and simply lying and punching liberals in the face, he did also proffer tangible promises.
For example, he wanted Britain to be the first western nation to construct an underground sewage system designed specifically to transport its disabled and sick to landfill sites. He also insisted that women finally be recognised as the most valuable resource in their husband’s or father’s livestock.
Most of all, he strongly promoted British exports such as conker wine and badger cheese and demanded that the UK be acknowledged as the clear trade leader out of all the world’s authoritarian third world nations — via Scarfolk Council
Dawn Traffic originally uploaded by Red Wolf
Visitors to Aalborg Zoo, in Denmark, have been enjoying the antics of two adorable Polar Bear sisters. The female cubs were born 26 November to mum, Malik, and the trio emerged from their birthing den in late February — via ZooBorns
Autumn Leaves originally uploaded by Red Wolf
So comfortable originally uploaded by Red Wolf
Forensic scientists say they have been overwhelmed by the number of people wanting to donate their corpses to the southern hemisphere’s first body farm.
The secret bushland facility on the outskirts of Sydney is being used to study how human bodies decompose.
It was established in early 2016 by Professor Shari Forbes, a forensic scientist from the University of Technology Sydney.
We’re not CSI, we don’t solve investigations in an hour, but we can solve investigations through the research that we do,
Professor Forbes said.
The facility is currently the only body farm outside the United States and Professor Forbes said the public interest had been higher than anyone had expected.
The level of interest has definitely surprised us,
she said.
We already have 30 of our donors who have arrived at our facility, and that’s in just over a year.
We weren’t expecting anywhere near that number.
More than 500 people have now said they will also donate their bodies to the cause once they die.
We do have a slight bias towards seniors and the elderly, thankfully because they live long and healthy lives and intend to die from natural causes,
Professor Forbes said.
We don’t hope to see young people out there, but the few that arrive are really beneficial to the work that we do for the police
— via redwolf.newsvine.com
Worship me, human originally uploaded by Red Wolf
The story of Australia’s costly internet bungle illustrates the hazards of mingling telecommunication infrastructure with the impatience of modern politics. The internet modernization plan has been hobbled by cost overruns, partisan maneuvering and a major technical compromise that put 19th-century technology between the country’s 21st-century digital backbone and many of its homes and businesses.
The government-led push to modernize its telecommunications system was unprecedented, experts say — and provides a cautionary tale for others who might like to try something similar.
Australia was the first country where a totally national plan to cover every house or business was considered,
said Rod Tucker, a University of Melbourne professor and a member of the expert panel that advised on the effort. The fact it was a government plan didn’t necessarily make it doomed. In Australia, we have changes of governments every three years, which really works against the ability to undertake long-term planning, and the long-term rollouts of networks like this.
Australia poses natural connectivity challenges. It lies oceans away from other countries, and any network would have to connect far-flung cities separated by its sparsely populated interior.
Still, Australia had high hopes for its ambitious internet project. Started in 2009, the initiative, known as the National Broadband Network, was intended to bring advanced fibre-optic technology to the doorstep of just about every home and business. It was initially estimated to cost 43 billion Australian dollars, shared by the government and the private sector — via redwolf.newsvine.com
— via Youtube
Light Strip and Balls originally uploaded by Red Wolf
St John’s Pipe Organ, St John’s Saint Paul Window, St John’s Door Hinge and Raven originally uploaded by Red Wolf
Paignton Zoo’s South American Maned Wolves are rearing a litter of three pups. This is the first litter for the pair. The male, Tolock, arrived at Paignton Zoo in September 2016 from Katowice Zoo in Poland, where he was born in 2015. Female Milla was born in December 2012 and arrived in the UK a year later from Nordens Ark Zoo in Sweden — via ZooBorns
The notorious Bin Chicken gets the Planet Earth treatment. Learn more about this distinguished, yet disgusting bird — via Youtube
May the fourth be with you everyone! As all the nerds know, today is Star Wars Day, so I wanted to celebrate with this super-cute-squishy little Wampa plush. I knew right away that I wanted to make a plush when I saw Star Wars day coming around, and while we’ve seen the classic characters in plush form all the time, I thought a stumpy little chibi Wampa with a bloody little arm was too good to pass up! The arm is even detachable for use in your own lightsabre battles. I made him with some long-pile minky that I had lying around that I thought suit him wonderfully; with just a scrap of red flannel and a sew-in snap, he came together perfectly — via Choly Knight
A recent Barna survey reports only 18% of Millennials find Christianity relevant to their lives. That’s not surprising if we’re honest. After the Supreme Court decision regarding the ruling on gay marriage things got really weird. Some Christians put up straight pride
profile pictures on social media and reminded people of what the Bible teaches (which, just for clarification, the church is currently split over because of how they view the interpretation). It’s a strange practice to ask people who don’t hold the same beliefs as you to conform to your morals because you quoted a book they don’t read. My friends that aren’t Christians have never tried to force their morality on me, so this is an odd practice in Christendom. Even Jesus didn’t blame pagans for acting like pagans. Yet, many Christians insist their beliefs apply to the culture at large even though most don’t share the same beliefs. With the Supreme Court ruling in Oklahoma, Christians raged about how the government was “forcing their beliefs on them and how they were no longer allowed to have theirs any more”. Well, no, it was Christians who forced their views in the public forum by putting the 10 Commandments there first (if we look at it objectively). And never mind that as of late, many evangelical Christians care more about keeping refugees out of the US despite what their sacred literature teaches.
What we need to face is that public perception has shifted. We live in post-Christian America where we’re no longer relevant to the culture at large. Whatever influence Christians used to have, much like a parasite trying to reconnect to its host for fear of dying, many Christians are thrashing about trying to create waves and convince people they are relevant within our culture. But sadly, instead of men and women looking like Jesus we sure have a lot of talking heads. We sure have a healthy dose of condemnation in our ranks. We love being right
instead of the hard task of humility.
Is it any wonder we’re not relevant? — via redwolf.newsvine.com