Environmental Graffiti

Farmers Weekly

It’s common knowledge that humans are the smartest animals in the world, right? But what would happen if the animal kingdom fulfilled the Orwellian prophecy and we were eventually ruled by animals? Which animals do you think would put us to shame?

Here are a few potential candidates:

The Rubik’s Cube Solving Octopus

flickr

OK, so maybe it can’t really complete the Rubik’s Cube, but we will find out soon. A number of octopuses have been given toys as part of a new study into the sea mollusc’s handiness, or arminess, rather.

Scientists at Sea Life centres across the UK and Europe are giving them toys and food to determine whether they investigate and eat with a specific tentacle, if they favour one arm just like humans are left or right-handed.

Hans the Maths Horse

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In the late 1800s a German high school mathematics instructor named Wilhelm Von Osten had the idea that intelligence, character and personality were based on the shape of a person’s head. So, to test his wacky theory he decided to teach a cat, a bear and a horse, maths.

Hans, an Arab stallion, showed real promise in the classroom and with some extra tuition, when Osten would write a number on the blackboard Hans was able to tap out the correct number with his hoof. He could count all the way up to ten, which by today’s maths standards really is something.

Unfortunately, Osten’s theory was eventually discredited when they discovered Hans the horse was just reacting to his master tapping on the board.

N’kisi, The Parrot with a 950-word Vocabulary

kleinz

Eight-year-old African grey parrot, N’kisi hit the news headlines a few years ago for being able to use words in context and verbs with past, present and future tenses. N’kisi is also able to use other words to phrase a sentence when he can’t quite think of the right one – he will say things like ‘pretty smell medicine’ to describe aromatherapy oils used by his owner and is also reported to have a great sense of humour.

Apparently, when another parrot hung upside down from its perch, N’kisi joked, “You gotta put this bird on camera.” And, on meeting revered primatologist Dr Jane Goodall after seeing her pictured with apes, he greeted her with, “Got a chimp?”

That’s, as they Yogi used to say, smarter than the average bear.

Fish that Can Follow Directions

Check out this cool video. Four fish are directed around a tank with nothing more than hand signals from their owner. Quite uncanny; and goes to prove that goldfish aren’t as stupid as they let on to be.

On the other hand, it could be further evidence to prove that the sly goldfish doesn’t have four second memory after all; they probably started the rumour themselves just to get out of being roped into doing stunts like this.

Ed, the Talking Horse

brian

Made famous by 1960s sitcom, Mister Ed, this clever talking horse is probably the most famous of all the talking animals. The idea for the show was taken from a short story by Walter R Brooks, Ed Takes the Pledge. The US sitcom ran for an astounding seven years, so is the love of ours for talking animals.

Source 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

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NASA

Travelling at 90 miles per hour (145km p/h), Hurricane Gustav is set to reap destruction as it rips across the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, home to almost 3 million people later this afternoon.

Currently sitting 100miles south-southeast of the Haiti and already more powerful than recent Tropical Storm Fay; Hurricane Gustav, the 7th terrifying storm of the year, is quickly gaining strength over the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea.

“On this track this hurricane should move over southwestern Haiti later today and near or just south of Cuba on Wednesday,” the Hurricane Center said. “Intense rains may produce life-threatening flash floods and mud slides.”

“Most indications are that Gustav will be an extremely dangerous hurricane in the northwestern Caribbean Sea in a few days.”

NHC

In recent years, Haiti has undergone extensive deforestation which raises fears of major flooding and landslides due to the shortage of vegetation which would ordinarily hold increased rainfall and soil.

Gustav is likely to grow to a category 2 storm with winds rising up to 96 mph. Hurricanes are rated from 1 to 5, with category 3 and above classified as major hurricanes and are the most destructive.

Earlier this month, Tropical Storm Fay devastated areas of the Caribbean and Florida, leaving a trail of landslides and flooding but the worst hurricane to date was Katrina, a terrifying category 5 storm which hit the Gulf of Mexico in August 2005, killing 1,500 people and razing the city of New Orleans.

Sources 1, 2, 3, 4

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Image by:lemoox

Artists, generally, put an enormous amount of time and effort into their works, so when it all disappears within one day, it must be totally heart-wrenching.

Image by: Nele Azevedo

Brazilian artist, Nele Azevedo diligently carved hundreds of miniature ice figures as part of a recent installation only to watch them slowly melt in the heat of the day. As the sun beat down on the tiny sculptures they stooped and slumped, lending an ephemeral quality to the already very cool installation.

Image by: Nele Azevedo

Sources: Neatorama and Stuff that is Irrelevant

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Hurricane Fay by NOAA

If you can’t quite get enough lava flows, images of Earth from space and weird and wonderful factoids about this awesome planet of ours, then check out the Geography section over at About. Written and managed by Matt Rosenberg, a professional, published geographer who has been the guide on About for over a decade, the collection of articles and images compiled is phenomenal.

Our favorites of the week are; an article explaining The Four Spheres of Earth: Atmosphere, Biosphere, Hydrosphere, Lithosphere and a predetermined list of hurricane names for 2008 until the year 2013. Who knew?

If you want to have up-to-date geography into delivered right to your virtual doorstep you can also sign up for the weekly geography newsletter.

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Image by:emptyheart

It’s an unfortunate but necessary evil that trash has to lay littering the streets until collection. It’s not clean and it’s not pretty. Well, it wasn’t until artist Adrian Kondratowicz designed and produced a range of colorful trash bags which have decorated the streets of New York since May this year.

Part of a viewer generated public art installation, entitled TRASH:anycoloryoulike; the artists roam select Manhattan streets and replace standard bags of trash with new beautified bags which are 100 percent biodegradable and scented to repel insects and vermin.

“It’s just a basic concept. We consider ourselves so advanced but we still throw our trash on the street,” says Renee Mlynaryk, print and online media press coordinator for TRASH. “It has a progressive tone.”

The premise of the installation is to raise public awareness of the arts within the environment and everyone is invited to take part. Individuals can buy their own bags; contribute by getting their whole block involved, the local school, or by creating their very own design.

TRASH: anycoloryoulike is set to run through fall 2008 but if public reaction is anything to go by then maybe NYC will be seeing more bright-pink and white polka-dot garbage bags in the future. Anyone keen to get involved should check out their site.

Source 1, 2, 3

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“In the environmental movement, every time you lose a battle it’s for good, but our victories always seem to be temporary and we keep fighting them over and over again.” David Suzuki.

Welcome to the world of reverse graffiti, where the artist’s weapons are cleaning materials and where the enemy is the elements: wind, rain, pollution and decay. It’s an art form that removes dust or dirt rather than adding paint. Some find it intriguing, beguiling, beautiful and imaginative, whereas others look upon it in much the same way as traditional graffiti – a complete lack of respect for the law. Reverse graffiti challenges ideals and perceptions while at the same time shapes and changes the environment in which we live, whether people think for the better, or not.

We thought we’d compile a collection of some of the most incredible works of reverse graffiti and the artists behind them for your viewing pleasure.

1. Moose: Original Reverse Graffiti Artist >

2. Scott Wade: Reverse Graffiti on Cars >

3. Alexandre Orion: Skulls in Sao Paolo >

4. More Reverse Graffiti from the Public >

Image: Diliff

Fans of innovative architecture will love this: as part of the REACTIVATE!! Exhibition in Valencia, Spain, two Barcelona-based Mexican architects have created a site-specific installation within the theme of ‘remodeled spaces and minimal interventions’.

Image: EACC

Showing at the Espai a’Art Contemporani de Castelló, Patricia Meneses and Iván Juárez of ex studio, present another of their keynote installations, investigating and experimenting new ways of relating space with society.

Image: EACC

Refugios Urbanos consists of six semi-transparent pods suspended in space by wires. Resembling alien-like cocoons we often associate with Sci-Fi movies, the structures are designed to hold a grown human, providing an alternative private space for reflection in a busy city.

Source:We Make Money Not Art

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Hand-crafted by Russian carpenter from Apple Tree wood

Since the advent of cell phones we’ve seen the initial cumbersome 1980s design shrink considerably while its technological capacity has increased.

Ziricote phone by Hulger

These days we want it all, we want the calls, the texts, the music downloads, film clips and a five billion pixel camera… practically. We really are a technologically demanding bunch, and that’s OK, because, after all, this is the 21st century. But now it seems our tastes are becoming more simplified again, as these wooden mobile creations would suggest.

Maple wood phone designed by Hyun Jin Yoon and Eun Hak Lee

Link

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All images: Cree

We’re always looking for new cleaner, greener ways of traveling and have just come across this nifty little number by Swiss car company, Cree.

SAM, as the car is called, is a patented Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) approved for all public roads. Designed and created by Cree after an inordinate number of queries from potential customers, SAM was developed as an environmentally sound transport option.

With its reverse tri wheel configuration and room for only one, SAM looks more like a Robin Reliant crossed with a Sinclair C5 than an innovative concoction fit for the 21st century, but, along with its eco credentials, the Dolorian-style doors and availability of color ways are its saving grace.

Unfortunately, the space-age looking car is still in prototype stage. Cree are currently looking for interested investors with a view to mass-producing the car and making it available world-wide. So, if you know of anyone cashed-up and willing, spread the word.

Source 1, 2

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Image: Energy Information Administration

Just when we thought there were no more new fandangled ways of deriving energy from our shriveling planet, Australia comes up trumps. Scientists there believe untapped geothermal energy locked in three miles below the Earth’s surface is a worthwhile and completely sustainable alternative to using fossil fuels.

It’s estimated that only one percent of Australia’s geothermal energy, which is often referred to as ‘hot rocks’, could produce up to 26,000 years worth of clean electricity.

Geoscience Australia, a government organization, used 5,722 existing petroleum and mineral boreholes across the country to map potential geothermal areas. Hot rocks need to be 150 degrees Celsius to produce electricity, which is achievable at a depth of one to five kms, noting, not surprisingly, that the temperature rose deeper into the earth’s crust. Once pinpointed, water is pumped far below ground where it becomes heated naturally; the heat produced in turn generates power.

Image: Surachit

Currently, Australia’s reliance on coal for generating electricity makes it the world’s biggest per person polluter, producing five times more carbon emissions per head than China. Australia is aiming to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels for energy production from 77 percent to 20 percent by the year 2020, so have been investigating viable alternative renewable energy sources.

Australia’s Resource Minister, Martin Ferguson said: “Geothermal energy provides clean base-load power and is potentially a very important contributor to Australia’s energy mix in a carbon-constrained world.”

Source: Reuters

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