Any Animal That Touches This Lethal Lake Turns to Stone

53 Quotes That Will Make You Rethink Everything 1. “Everything you can imagine is real.” ― Pablo Picasso 2. Why Social Sustainability Should Be Part Of Every Business I can’t think of anything that illustrates the human cost of doing business more than the tragedy this past April in Bangladesh. More than 1,100 men, women, and children died when the Rana Plaza building, which housed a number of garment factories, collapsed. Most were garment workers who were ordered by supervisors to report to work, even after inspectors deemed the building unsafe. Millions of people around the world work in dangerous and unhealthy conditions, earning a nominal income to deliver the products we consume.

Grandfather Writes Letter To His Daughter After She Kicks Out His Gay Grandson This man may deserve to win "Grandfather Of The Year." In this incredible letter, a grandfather passionately addresses his daughter's decision to kick her gay son out of the house after he decided to come out of the closet. Though we don't have the full details surrounding the incident, the grandfather tells his daughter that "kicking Chad out of your home simply because he told you he was gay is the real 'abomination' here. A parent disowning her child is what goes 'against nature.'"

Paralyzed US Swimmer Banned From Paralympics Victoria Arlen slipped into a three-year coma after experiencing flu-like symptoms at age 11. When she awoke, she was paralyzed from the waist down because of an autoimmune disorder that attacks the nerves in the spine. The wheelchair-bound 18-year-old from Exeter, N.H., went on to find strength in the swimming pool, where she won four medals, including gold and broke her own record in one event at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. But her family, coaches and even her governor and two senators were outraged this week by a decision by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to disqualify the teen from the Paralympic Swimming World Championships in Montreal after ruling that her condition is not permanent. "I am keeping my head held high and I am not bitter, discouraged or angry against them," said Arlen, who's in California clearing her head while visiting with her mother and boyfriend after the colossal disappointment.

5 Ways The Macintosh Changed Creativity Forever In a world in which music videos can be shot on an iPhone, and more design is seemingly done on screen than off, the idea that computers can shape how artists and designers create things seems obvious. But there was a time when computers and art seemed unbridgeable chasms apart. For most people, the Apple Macintosh--which launched 30 years ago this month--helped cross that gap, and made the design world all the better for it. What follows are five ways that Apple’s desktop computer helped change creativity forever. The Mac Turned Computers Into Tools For Creating Art Cops dealing Doritos at post-legalization Hempfest SEATTLE (AP) — A few things will be different at this year's Hempfest, the 22-year-old summer "protestival" on Seattle's waterfront where tens of thousands of revelers gather to use dope openly, listen to music and gaze at the Olympic Mountains in the distance. The haze of pot smoke might smell a little more like victory, after Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize marijuana use by adults over 21. Having won at the state level, speakers will concentrate on the reform of federal marijuana laws. Oh, and the Seattle police — who have long turned a lenient eye on Hempfest tokers — don't plan to be writing tickets or making arrests.

How Spritz Redesigned Reading, Letting You Scan 1,000 Words A Minute When we read, our eyes move across a page or a screen to digest the words. All of that eye movement slows us down, but a new technology called Spritz claims to have figured out a way to turn us into speed-readers. By flashing words onto a single point on a screen, much like watching TV, Spritz says it will double your reading speed. Russian Man Who Got Bank to Sign Homemade Credit Card Contract Now Suing Them for Not Following Terms Tinkoff Credit Systems In 2008, Dmitry Agarkov received an unsolicited letter from Tinkoff Credit Systems (TCS) offering the 42-year-old Russian man a credit card with what he found to be unattractive rates. While most people would have just thrown away the letter, Agarkov decided to do something different. He scanned the contract in the letter into his computer and altered it in his favor, including, for example, a 0% interest rate, no fees, and no credit limit. Moreover, every time the bank didn't stick to these rules, they'd be fined 3 million rubles — $91,000 — which of course would go to Agarkov. If they broke the contract, they'd have to pay Agarkov 6 million rubles ($182,000).

Design Pirate Cody Foster Tries To Buy Victim's Silence Design pirate Cody Foster is at it again. Accused of ripping off the designs of a number of independent designers late last year, the Nebraskan tchotchke wholesaler is now trying to settle one of the lawsuits that has sprung up in the wake of the allegations. Cody Foster's conditions? That the independent designer accusing the company of piracy license her designs to Cody Foster & Co. for $650 and submit to a gag order, deleting any complaints about the company from the web. In our first story about Cody Foster, we detailed how pursuing a case against a design pirate can cost independent designers hundreds of thousands of dollars in accumulated legal fees. Even if you win, you'll likely lose.

Little free libraries inspire neighbours to share love of reading “When you share a book with a neighbour, you’re sharing a part of yourself.” Todd Bol Executive director, Little Free Library Association At Andreas Duess’s Parkdale home, a tiny birdhouse structure on the front lawn attracts attention. Co.Design Bracket Madness: Who Is The World's Greatest Living Designer? [Round 3] Welcome to Round 3 of Co.Design Bracket Madness! With your help, we've compiled a bracket featuring some of the greatest designers alive. Your job is to help crown a winner. Readers have cast more than 70,000 votes for their favorite designers so far. There were a number of close matches in Round 2, but none more hair-raising than Zaha Hadid vs.

Heroic Teacher Fired for Saving Children From Fire The heat is on a Jacksonville, Florida daycare that fired a teacher for saving her kids from a fire. When Michelle Hammack walked into the kitchen and noticed some flames coming from the oven in the kitchen at Little Temples Childcare last week, she returned to her classroom, woke up her napping kids and then led them outside to safety. Not content, Hammack went back inside to make sure there were no children left and, realizing the blaze was small enough for her to handle, she put it out before firemen arrived on the scene. Hero, right?