Musician Brandon Acker made a wonderful explainer video about the ancient Arabic Oud. This beautiful pear-shaped instrument, related to the lute, has 11 strings (five doubled and a single bass note) that run down a fretless neck. Using half-flats and half-sharps that are unique to Arabic music, this ancient instrument…
A Mesmerizing Film That Reveals the Elaborate Flight Patterns of Starling Murmurations to Confuse Predators
Photographer Xavi Bou, who captures multiple flight patterns of birds through a photographic method of his own design called “Ornithographies”, has created a stunning film that shows the flight of a starling murmuration performing an elaborate dance so as to evade, confuse and overwhelm an attack of predatory birds. The…
An Impossibly Difficult Transparent Jigsaw Puzzle
Little Flower Pot Shop has created an impossibly difficult, completely transparent jigsaw puzzle. The puzzle comes in several levels of difficulty according to the size and number of pieces in the box, but the finished puzzles are all the same size. This custom jigsaw puzzle is hard enough in its…
‘The Scream’ Painting by Edvard Munch Carved Into the Cream Center of an Oreo Cookie
Food artist Tisha Cherry (previously) carved the iconic Edvard Munch masterpiece “The Scream” into the cream center of an Oreo cookie.
A Hilarious Compilation of M*A*S*H Clips That Address Each Step of Staying Safe and Healthy These Days
Frank Vaccarriello created a hilarious compilation of clips from the long-running classic TV sitcom M*A*S*H that addresses each recommended step of staying safe and healthy these days. The show, a dramedy that focused on Korean War through the eyes of doctors at a mobile Army hospital, also offered a great…
Street Signs Reimagined in an Age of Social Distancing
While going for a run, designer Dylan Coonrad of CannonDesign noticed how the streets of his Brooklyn neighborhood were void of both people and animals. With this in mind, Coonrad created a poignant series of reimagined street signs, both before and after the virus. I found myself paying attention to…
A Fun Social Distancing Bingo Card to Occupy New Yorkers While the City Is on ‘PAUSE’
Brooklyn artist Sarah Butler, who has made several New York City themed Bingo Cards, has created a really amusing, but very appropriate “Social Distancing Bingo Card” for Gothamist that can happily occupy pent up New Yorkers during a state-wide “PAUSE” that requires everyone to stay the f**k home. Each square…
‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ Cleverly Parodied With Lyrics Inspired by the Current Situation
Daniel Matarrazo, an incredibly talented musician and music director, has penned a couple of brilliant parodies of popular Disney songs to address the current status of the worldwide situation. One parody replaces the lyrics of “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” from Mary Poppins with those that are directly inspired by the status of the…