The Accessibowl is a clever adaptive bowling ball that offers a full-handle grip as an innovative alternative to traditional grip balls, ideal for people with limited upper-body mobility due to injury, arthritis, or disability.

It’s perfect for anybody who struggles with arthritis or any hand condition that makes a traditional bowling ball less comfortable to use.

The ergonomic design features a spring-loaded handle that instantly retracts upon release, ensuring a smooth ride down the alley. The ball is also available in three different sizes, making it excellent for all ages.

This ball is available in 6-, 10-, and 12-lb weights and is safe to use in any ball return machine at a major bowling alley.

via Neatorama

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The Process explored how Heineken uses advanced engineering to extract alcohol from its traditional brew to create Heineken 0.00, its zero-calorie, non-alcoholic version that maintains the same flavor profile. This is done using specialized distillation techniques and historically important, unique yeast strains.

We break down the biochemistry of the exclusive Heineken A-Yeast strain, analyze the mechanics of vacuum distillation columns that extract ethanol without cooking the liquid, and expose the unique double-brew step required to preserve volatile flavor compounds.

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The post How Heineken 0.0 Keeps the Same Taste as the Original was originally published on Laughing Squid.

The Thought Vortex explored the distinctly human instinct to pet animals, regardless of size, noting that this instinct dates back to ancient times.

From puppies and rabbits to lions, bears, and bison, humans have a strange tendency to look at animals and think: “I wonder if I could pet that.”

They further examined the psychology that drives people to make very bad emotional decisions around animals despite knowing better. Concepts such as the Biophilia Hypothesis, the Baby Schema, anthropomorphization, and the social need to connect with the living animals around can all help explain this seemingly inexplicable action.

A brain designed to notice life. A mind that seeks connection with the natural world. Instincts built to nurture vulnerable creatures. A desire for touch, curiosity, and sometimes a little excitement. All of it pushes us toward the same conclusion. Go say hello. Most of the time, that instinct helps us form some of the most meaningful relationships in our lives. Every once in a while, it convinces somebody to climb into a bear enclosure.

They also looked at what animals think of humans, particularly whether they find us cute.

Humans are obsessed with cute animals. But what if the feeling isn’t entirely one-sided Do animals think humans are cute?

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The post Why Humans Feel the Need to Pet Animals of Any Size was originally published on Laughing Squid.

A tiny Italian greyhound named Emma, who had both eyes removed, can walk in a straight line but can only spin to the left.

She always spins to the left. …She can walk in a straight line, but the more excited she gets, she’ll go faster and faster and faster.

Her human, Tori, explained that she saw Emma on the Greenville Humane Society site and immediately knew she wanted to give this tiny dog a loving home. Emma had been surrendered to the shelter because her previous humans could not keep up with the medical bills.

She had gone blind and the people who surrounded her before just couldn’t take care of her with all of her medical needs. I don’t ever do anything spontaneous like that, but I went right to the Humane Society and it wasn’t even open yet. I just sat in the parking lot .

Despite her lack of vision, Emma figured everything out on her first day home.

I describe her like a Roomba. She mapped the house. And the very first day when she found her water and food, we were all just so proud of her and amazed that she could do it.

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The post Blind Dog Who Can Only Spin to the Left Is Adopted by a Devoted Family was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Nate Fender of It’s Weird/True explained how the 1990 Black Crowes hit “Hard to Handle” was originally written and performed by the late great Otis Redding, who sadly died in a 1967 plane crash.

There’s a rock song that you’ve heard for the greater part of 35 years, but what you might not know is that it is a cover of a very well known musician who passed away just three weeks after he recorded it.

Fender further noted that the song was covered by other artists, including the Grateful Dead, Mae West, and Tom Jones. He also dropped the fun fact that the guitar solo on the Black Crowes’ version was supposed to be played by Slash. Instead it was played by sound engineer Brendan O’Brien on a Les Paul guitar owned by Rick Rubin.

The Black Crowes ‘Hard to Handle’

The Original Otis Redding Song

Other Covers of ‘Hard to Handle’

Thanks Chip Beale!

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The post How the Black Crowes Hit ‘Hard to Handle’ Was Actually an Otis Redding Cover was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Artist Paul Ribera of Raincloud Stories uses incredible interactive illustrations to bring songs from across the musical spectrum to life, cleverly telling a visual story alongside lyrics.

Short Music Videos + Storytelling

Included in Ribera’s repertoire are such songs as “Loser” by Beck, “Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes, “Bulls on Parade” by Rage Against the Machine, and “Ring of Fire” by Johnny Cash.

Ribera was also hired to create full-length music videos for Pearl Jam, Superstack, and Andrew Dahle.

Thanks Chip Beale!

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The post Song Lyrics Cleverly Brought to Life Through Interactive Illustrations was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Simple Things – Surprising Histories explained why the F and J keys on a computer keyboard have small tactile ridges at the bottom, while other keys don’t. These are known as homing markers and help a person find the center of the keyboard solely by touch.

Close your eyes and place your hands on your keyboard. If you type often, then your fingers probably found the correct position almost instantly. That’s because of those tiny bumps. They’re called tactile markers, sometimes known as homing bars. Their job is surprisingly simple, helping your hands locate the home row without needing your eyes

The narrator also addressed the origins of touch typing, early typewriter designs, the transfer of that skill to computers, and the biology behind this simple design.

The moment your fingers brush across those tiny ridges, your brain instantly uses that tactile feedback to orient your hands across the keyboard. It happens so quickly that you barely notice it. But without those small physical markers, many touch typists become slower and make more mistakes.

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The post Why the F and J Keys on a Computer Keyboard Have Small Raised Bumps was originally published on Laughing Squid.

An intoxicating TED-Ed by biology professor Jaap de Roode of Emory University explains the scientific reasons why cats love both silver vine and catnip. According to a 2013 study, these herbs are rich in the happy-making compounds nepetalactol and nepetalactone, which also act as insect repellents.

In chemical terms, both nepetalactol and nepetalactone are classified as iridoids— a type of natural compound known to contain insect-repelling properties.So perhaps cats rubbing their faces in silvervine and catnip were applying an ancient form of bug spray. 

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The post The Science Behind Why Cats Love Catnip was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Film and TV essayist Rocket Riley examined what would happen if a lightsaber were dropped vertically into the ground, as was depicted in Rick and Morty. The short answer is that it would just turn off due to a built-in safety feature.

What would happen if you dropped a lightsaber perfectly vertically? We’ve seen this exact nightmare play out twice in pop culture. In the Rick and Morty Christmas special, Morty drops his laser sword perfectly vertically, causing a global crisis as it burrows directly toward the Earth’s core.

Riley, however, used Star Wars canon, geological principles, physics, and planetary science to determine what might happen if that safety feature were somehow disengaged.

This is a YouTube video. We don’t want the realistic safe answer. Let’s pretend Morty got creative with some duct tape or someone flipped a mechanical override to keep the blade permanently active.  …Now we drop it. Does it slide straight down like a hot knife through butter?

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The post What Would Happen If a Lightsaber Were Dropped Vertically Into the Ground was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Filmmakers on the BBC Earth series Tiger Island watched in absolute astonishment as two female tigers in Nepal took turns babysitting their cubs while the other grabbed a bite to eat.

For the first time, a team of filmmakers capture an extraordinary behaviour never seen before: two tiger mothers sharing and caring for each other’s cubs. A remarkable discovery that reveals just how much there is still to learn about these iconic big cats.

This scene is particularly rare, as tigers are known to be quite solitary creatures.

No one’s ever seen tigers do this before. I was about to say tigers are solitary big cats. ….Females do not cross paths unless they absolutely have to. They don’t share cubs. They don’t share parenting duties. All of this is unfolding just 50 yards over there. This is not what it says in the textbooks.

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The post Two Female Tigers Take Turns Babysitting Their Cubs While the Other Grabs a Bite to Eat was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Mamamamamamamidwest set her kids up with various accouterments, had them pose on the driveway, and sprayed water on them to create very clever “water silhouettes”.

The water silhouettes made a comeback today and the boys recreated some of their favorite sports logos. Air Jordan was a big request in the comments!!! Before anyone gets concerned, it was overcast and 80 today and the pavement was a safe temperature. No children were harmed in the making of this videos

These silhouettes included the themes of movies, sports, and activities.

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The post Mom Sprays Water on Her Posed Kids to Create Clever ‘Water Silhouettes’ on the Driveway was originally published on Laughing Squid.

A really sweet pigeon named Trucu Trucu built a nest of twigs for a pregnant black cat and then waited with her as she gave birth. Shortly after the kittens were born, the helpful bird also began building a nest for them as they nursed. Their human, Ruben Grisales, captured each adorable moment of this beautiful friendship.

The kittens have grown up with Truco Truco and completely trust him.

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The post Pigeon Builds Nest for Mother Cat and Her Kittens was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Musician Paul Fey performed a magnificent cover of “He’s a Pirate” from The Pirates of the Caribbean on the world’s largest pipe organ at the legendary Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Im playing “He’s a Pirate” from Pirates of the Caribbean on the legendary Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall Organ — the largest pipe organ in the world.

This incredible organ set the Guinness World Record for the largest and loudest instrument in the world. According to Fey, it was a truly unique experience.

This was one of the most overwhelming organ experiences I’ve ever had: an enormous console, thousands of pipes, endless colors, and a sound that feels almost unreal in the huge hall. Hearing this famous film theme on such a gigantic instrument was truly unforgettable.

Fey also gave a wonderful tour of the pipe organ, which proved quite fun to him.

The organ at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City features 7 Manuals, way too many stops and is so much fun to play. Join me on a short tour of this instrument showcasing the softest and loudest stops of the organ on the program I’ve played there for a noon recital.

via The Awesomer

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The post Musician Plays ‘He’s a Pirate’ From ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ on the World’s Largest Pipe Organ was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Sam Denby of Half as Interesting explored which nonstop domestic flights are the longest, noting that his requirements were that neither immigration nor customs nor passport would be required upon arrival.

The world’s pretty big, and countries are kind of small, at least if you put them next to each other. So that’s why it’s kind of neat when domestic flights are really long, right? Because usually long flights are international, but these aren’t. They’re domestic. 

He first examined routes from France to other French provinces; however, differing immigration customs made some of these flights a bit less domestic. With that said, Denby declared that the longest nonstope domestic flight was from Boston to Honolulu.

So, what’s the world’s longest domestic flight that actually feels like a domestic flight? No immigration, no customs, no passport. Well, that title goes back to the Boston-to-Honolulu nonstop. …Hawaii is, of course, a fully fledged US state, making it a completely seamless domestic flight experience. Passengers from Boston to Honolulu go through the exact same checks as those from Boston to Baltimore. 

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The post The World’s Longest Domestic Flight was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Craven Moorhaus and Zak Koonce, the prolific team behind Auralnauts, cleverly reimagined scenes from Star Wars IV: A New Hope with Darth Vader battling his perceived enemies using a cassette deck built into his chest.

The Empire’s most feared enforcer has a new secret weapon. It’s a Maxell UR-90.

This seemingly harmless weapon allowed Vader to interrupt people at will, respond to questions wordlessly, and play his own musical soundtrack, including his “The Imperial March” theme, wherever he went.

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The post Darth Vader Battles Enemies by Playing His Theme From a Cassette Deck Built Into His Chest was originally published on Laughing Squid.

All Things Birdie listed several fun facts about the mourning dove, which is a close relative of the pigeon, yet has unique anatomy and specialized cooing mechanisms that produce their distinct call.

As the earth defrosts from winter’s chill, the sound of the mourning dove’s coo heralds the coming of spring and the promise of warmer days. Their call is sometimes mistaken for an owl’s hooting, due to its hollow-like resonance. They are easy to find and observe, as they tend to hang out in the same habitats as humans.

The narrator also discusses their seed-heavy diet, unique drinking habits, role as prolific breeders across various habitats, and ability to produce crop milk.

Both males and females share equally in incubating the eggs and taking care of the young…both parents feed their chicks crop milk for the first three to five days of Lifecrop milk is secreted by the cells in the wall of the crop and is rich in fats and protein afterward, softer foods like regurgitated seeds are introduced.

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The post Fun Facts About Mourning Doves was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Filmmaker Carlos Andrés Reyes created “Pareidolia”, a wonderful short film in which a man wakes up and sees faces in everything while getting ready for work. With each incident of pareidolia, the man tries to put a smile on his face, but it doesn’t really stick. That is, until he sees one thing that really gives him joy.

This one minute film uses pareidolia as a tool to convey the importance of human connection and the role that memories can play in uplifting our mood and perception of the world around us.

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The post Man Sees Faces in Everything While Getting Ready for Work in the Short Film ‘Pareidolia’ was originally published on Laughing Squid.

During the Slaithwaite Christmas Festival in 2022, the Senior Team at Clifton Hand-Bell Ringers performed a hand-bell cover of the classic bluegrass song “Dueling Banjos”, an instrumental tune most famously known for a pivotal scene in the classic 1972 John Boorman movie Deliverance.

CHBR Senior Team, perform Dueling Banjos at Slaithwaite Christmas Festival 17th December 2022

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The post Musicians Perform ‘Dueling Banjos’ on Hand-Bells was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Actress Caroline Klidonas made a surprisingly convincing parody space movie where she played every role and used every available trope. Amazingly, Klidonas accomplished this with only what she had and without ever leaving the apartment.

Can this crew save their doomed mission…without sacrificing each other? A parody of a Sci-Fi Space Drama created ONLY with what I have in and around my apartment.

via Tom Scott

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The post Actress Makes Surprisingly Convincing Space Movie Parody Without Leaving Her Apartment was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Historic footage company British Pathé shared a fascinating report from Queen Mary’s College in London, where members of the engineering department demonstrated their cutting-edge “useful” robotic prototypes for 1968. These robots included a walking machine for those without limbs, a “Mole Miner” for digging on the Moon, a centipede robot for covering large distances in challenging environments such as swamps or zero-gravity, and a step-climbing carriage that assists with climbing.

Useful Robots (1968)

via The Awesomer

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The post A 1968 Report Showcasing Cutting-Edge ‘Useful’ Robots was originally published on Laughing Squid.