21 interesting facts. Life of a nomad. I’m confused. I’m simply confused as to how it’s possible that I have so far failed to properly explain how I’ve managed to travel/live/work abroad nonstop for 12 years straight (and counting). The questions are still pouring in every single day: How do you do it? How is it possible to travel for so long? Where does the money come from? And while I thoroughly enjoy communicating with readers (I’m being completely serious and encourage you all to continue sending your emails to me as often as you wish), the fact that these very questions are on the minds of so many of you out there has led me to believe that I need to do a better job at providing the answers. While it’s true that I’ve already written plenty of posts on the matter, clearly all of these posts, even as one collective entity, still fall well short of proving that a life of travel is not some crazy fantasy but a perfectly reasonable and easily attainable lifestyle option instead.
So what am I to do? December 25, 1999: March 2000. Wooden lamp shade. Suicide forest. Located at the base of Mt. Fuji, Aokigahara is perhaps the most infamous forest in all of Japan. Also known as the Sea of Trees, Suicide Forest, and Japan’s Demon Forest, Aokigahara has been home to over 500 confirmed suicides since the 1950s. Called “the perfect place to die,” Aokigahara is the world’s second most popular place for suicide (the Golden Gate Bridge being the first). A Horrifying Legend is Born Legend says that this all started after Seicho Matsumoto published a novel by the name of Kuroi Kaiju (Black Sea of Trees) in 1960. Wataru Tsurumui’s controversial 1993 bestseller, The Complete Suicide Manual, is a book that describes various modes of suicide and even recommends Aokigahara as the perfect place to die. Japan’s suicide rate is already bad enough as it is, and having this forest and suicide manual on top of it all is pretty terrible. In addition, there are many other ghost and demon stories associated with the forest.
Terrifying Topography An Unfortunate Suicide Hotspot. Top 20 Unsolved Mysteries. Unsolved Mysteries 1. The Creation of Man [ Wikipedia ] This is probably one of the most well known and controversial of mysteries known to man at the moment. The basic mystery is where did we come from? Many people believe we were created by some kind of God, others believe were naturally came into being through the process of evolution, and some even believe we were put onto earth by aliens. Because there is no conclusive evidence for either argument, this subject remains our greatest mystery. The concept of evolution states that through a series of adaptations and mutations from generation to generation, a creature can change dramatically over time.
There are many arguments against evolution, mostly (in the West) from fundamentalist Christian bodies. The concept of creationism states that God made the Universe in the form in which it exists today. It attempts to explain away potential theological problems like dinosaurs, carbon dating, and the fossil record in general. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Nikola Tesla. Additional notes from the author: If you want to learn more about Tesla, I highly recommend reading Tesla: Man Out of Time Also, this Badass of the week by Ben Thompson is what originally inspired me to write a comic about Tesla. Ben's also got a book out which is packed full of awesome. There's an old movie from the 80s on Netflix Instant Queue right now about Tesla: The Secret of Nikola Tesla. It's corny and full of bad acting, but it paints a fairly accurate depiction of his life. The drunk history of Tesla is quite awesome, too. Sweet clock.
Sweet science presents. Science comes up with a lot of awesome stuff, and you don't need a Ph.D, a secret lab, or government funding to get your hands on some of the coolest discoveries. We've got a list of 11 mostly affordable gifts that are guaranteed to blow your mind, whether or not you're a science geek. Click on any image to see it enlarged. 1. Aerogel Also known as frozen smoke, Aerogel is the world's lowest density solid, clocking in at 96% air. Aerogel isn't just neat, it's useful. Price: $35 2. Inside these sealed glass balls live shrimp, algae, and bacteria, all swimming around in filtered seawater.
EcoSpheres came out of research looking at ways to develop self-contained ecosystems for long duration space travel. Price: $80 3. NASA has been trying to figure out how to get a sample of rock back from Mars for a while now. Every once in a while, a meteorite smashes into Mars hard enough to eject some rocks out into orbit around the sun. Price: $70+ 4. Price: $150 5. Price: $110 6. Price: $80 7. Price: $15 8. Psychological facts. I’ve decided to start a series called 100 Things You Should Know about People. As in: 100 things you should know if you are going to design an effective and persuasive website, web application or software application.
Or maybe just 100 things that everyone should know about humans! The order that I’ll present these 100 things is going to be pretty random. So the fact that this first one is first doesn’t mean that’s it’s the most important.. just that it came to mind first. Dr. Russian Sleep Experiment. The secret world of Disneyland. Disneyland may look like a straightforward theme park. But there's a secret world hidden behind the balloons, castles and cotton candy - a place where wild cats roam the park at midnight, Mickey Mouse hides in the wallpaper, and movie stars sip martinis behind closed doors. Feline security It's not easy keeping the grounds of Disneyland utterly spotless, as well as free of unwanted pests. Every night after closing time, 200 feral cats are released into the park to help keep the rodent population under control. Though Disney doesn't comment on the matter, rumour has it that the feline taskforce dates back to 1957, when renovations to Sleeping Beauty Castle revealed a colony of more than 100 stray cats.
After unsuccessful attempts to chase them out of the park, Disney decided to put the cats to work instead. Hidden Mickeys At Disneyland, the round-eared Mickey Mouse emblem is everywhere. Cocktails behind closed doors Trick of the eye Things are not always as they appear at Disneyland.