Laughing Squid
a daily dose of unique and curious things
Researchers Discover Early Copy of the Quran Written Only Decades After the Prophet Muhammad’s Death
photo by Dr. Wilfried Lagler Researchers at the Coranica Project at the University of Tübingen have discovered that a manuscript of the Quran donated to…
A TED-Ed Lesson Explaining the Three Most Common Routes of Cancer Metastasis
In the TED-Ed lesson “How does cancer spread through the body?,” animated by Andrew Foerster and narrated by Addison Anderson, educator Ivan Seah Yu Jun…
(Human) Wasteland, A Map That Tracks Incidents of Human Poop in Public Places Reported to San Francisco 311
Jennifer Wong has created (Human) Wasteland, a map showing incidents of human poop in public places reported to San Francisco’s 311 program. Users can search…
‘PBS Idea Channel’ Explores Whether ‘Too Many Cooks’ Says Something About the Meaning of Life
PBS Idea Channel host Mike Rugnetta explores whether Adult Swim‘s popular parody “Too Many Cooks” says something about the meaning of life in the show’s…
A Furry Chewbacca Rug Complete With Bandolier
ThinkGeek has released a Chewbacca rug that looks just like the “legendary Wookiee warrior” from Star Wars. The geeky rug, which comes in two different…
‘Hello World’, A Sci-Fi Short Film About a Dystopian Future Where Human Knowledge Is Stored on a Computer Server
“Hello World” is a short French language film (with English subtitles) directed by Parisian filmmakers Etienne Larragueta and Rafael Mathé that follows a young woman’s…
Impressive Juggling Acrobatics Performed With a Kendama Japanese Ball and String Toy
Kuma Films (previously) has a new video highlighting performing duo Zoomadanke, who execute some impressive feats of acrobatic juggling using a kendama, a traditional ball…
‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Movie Outtake Features Ronan Accepting Star-Lord’s Dance-Off Challenge
Marvel has released a new movie outtake from Guardians of the Galaxy that features Ronan actually accepting Star-Lord’s dance-off challenge. After the two foes exchange…
Time-Lapse Video of Large Oil Production Platforms Being Built
Zeist, Netherlands filmmaker Rob Vermaas has produced a time-lapse video documenting the six-month-long creation process of two large oil production platforms built by energy provider…
SCiO, A Portable Consumer Molecular Scanner That Can be Used With Food, Plants and Medications
SCiO is a palm-sized spectrometer for consumers that scans a range of objects including food, plants, plastics and wood to gain information through their molecular…