SmashingLists

Category: Odd Stuff

  • Top 10 Failed Products

    Every now and then, a product comes along that makes you think “Yes!!! This is the things that has been missing from my life up till this point!” And it truly does change your life (the internet and the George Foreman grill are the two that spring to my mind). But more often than not, product launches are mediocre and the new thing being launched is just a slightly different version of something else.

    Then, once every so often, a product comes along that is far from mediocre – it’s such an enormous, mind-blowing failure that everyone who sees it can only gasp. And that’s what we’re celebrating today- products so poorly-conceived, so hopeful in their launch and so disastrous in their fall that they qualify as one of our Top 10 Failed Products.

     

    10. New Coke

    One of the most famous examples was New Coke, a launch by Coca-Cola in 1985. Obviously oblivious to the phrase “never mess with a winning formula”, they decided to change the recipe of Coke that had served them so well, and relaunch it with a fanfare of trumpets. The Chief Executive at the time, Roberto Goizueta, described the new taste as ” smoother, uh, uh, rounder yet, uh, yet bolder…a more harmonious flavor” and, initially, consumers agreed and kept buying Coke as normal. Then there came the backlash – mainly from loyalists in the South, who saw it as some kind of continuation of the Civil War. Eventually, the vocal minority won out and the old formula was restored, although many said it was never quite the same again.

     

    9. Bic Pantyhose

    I’d love to have been in the meeting where this product was first discussed…”So, what should we develop to go alongside our best-selling pens and disposable razors?” “Errr…underwear?” “Yes!” Unlikely as it seems, a conversation along those lines must have happened, as Bic decided to launch “disposable” pantyhose to go alongside its other disposable lines.

    But production problems ensued – apparently you can’t make pantyhouse in an injection mould like you can with cigarette lighters – and the brand name wasn’t strong enough to convince people to buy. The “disposable” theme didn’t really carry through either, as it’s actually possible to get more than one wear out of a garment like this, provided you avoid sharp nails.  It requires a strong suspension of disbelief to see pens and underwear in the same range, but someone at Bic must have believed they could get away with it!

     

    8. Jell-o for Salads

    Some of these ideas sound basically good, but there are a few which just make you feel faintly nauseous. Like the idea of savory Jell-o. In the first half of the 20th century, there was a trend for congealed salads – vegetables encased in gelatine products – and cooks were having to use lime Jell-o, as the most savory-friendly flavor. So, Jell-o responded by introducing a line of Jell-o for salads in tomato, mixed vegetable and celery. Weirdly, it never caught on and the line was discontinued. But good old lime flavor is still out there if you fancy giving the congealed salad recipe a go yourself.

    Weirdly, Jell-o is also the official snack of Utah, as it’s popular with the Mormon community. But even they would shy away from mixed vegetable flavor, I suspect!

     

    7. Multi-Colored Ketchup

    There’s more food meddling in this next entry, as, in 2000, Heinz ignored the lesson of Coke and messed with a winning formula, in this case tomato-colored ketchup, which had been selling quietly and consistently for the company for over 100 years.

    Wanting to appeal to the kids, Heinz launched a new range of ketchups in  wacky colors, like electric blue, and “funky purple”. The whole thing was slightly mystifying, given that any self-respecting 4-year-old slathers their food in ketchup anyway, and it certainly didn’t appeal to parents. Strangely enough, parents prefer their children’s food to resemble the base ingredient, where possible, rather than resembling something that fell out of an alien’s nose. Needless to say, it didn’t last long.

     

    6. Levi’s Type 1 Jeans

    Now, there’s no discernible reason why this particular product failed so badly – after all, Levi’s haven’t had many misfires in their blue-jean-producing history. But that’s often the way with products – the greater the fanfare, the more likely it is to disappoint. The Type 1 jeans had all the Levi’s hallmarks, such as the red tab, oversized buttons and obvious stitching. But even an expensive Superbowl commercial didn’t shift the jeans, partly because of the crazy pricing strategy that saw some retailers selling them for $100, while others priced them at $30. The air of general confusion added nothing to the sale of the product and Levi’s discontinued the line, in order to focus on known best sellers. It seems that consumers prefer their jeans to be understated, both in terms of “features” and product launches…

    5. Crystal Pepsi

    It’s another soft drink disaster, but just to make things fair it’s a Pepsi fail this time, rather than Coke. Trends in food and drink are always a bit inexplicable (hence the congealed salad), and in the early 90s the trend was for clear colas. Maybe it was inspired by the minimalism trends in homewares and fashion. Maybe it was just a freak occurrence. But in 1992, soft drink executives were rushing around trying to get their clear cola onto the market.

    Coke had their own brand – Tab Clear – but it was Pepsi that launched first, with Crystal Pepsi hitting the shelves in April 1992, months before Tab Clear. A huge marketing campaign accompanied the launch, with music by Van Halen and more Superbowl ads. But the drink never took off. Consumers seem to get confused by products that look like one thing and taste like something different (e.g. green ketchup) and the drink was pulled the following year.

     

    4. Wow! Chips

    And here’s another trend that was hot in the 1990s – Fat Free! None of the fat, same great taste! Diet Everything! And just one of the products launched in 1998 was these Wow! Chips from Frito-Lay. In three different varieties, they delivered what they promised – very little fat but all the taste you’d expect. But they also delivered something else  – stomach cramping, “loose stools” and other digestive complications. The ingredient responsible was Olestra, which later led to a disclaimer on the packet about the abdominal complaints it may cause, and the way it “inhibits the absorption of some vitamins and other nutrients”. So, it may well help you lose weight, but only by a combination of stomach upsets and malnutrition. Strangely enough, sales declined after the revelations and the chips were quietly withdrawn.

     

    3. Colgate Kitchen Entrees

    What sounds more appealing than a combination of toothpaste and ready meals? We’ve all had those moments when we’ve eaten lunch too soon after cleaning our teeth and had an edge of mintiness still. It’s…an acquired taste. But the people at Colgate must have thought there was something in it, as they launched their line of “kitchen entrees” in 1982. Weirdly, no-one else agreed with them, and the idea of tucking into that exciting-looking dish of rice and vegetables while thinking about toothpaste just seemed to repel buyers. The products never made it beyond the American market and were discontinued.

     

    2. Betamax

    In the field of emerging technologies, there are always going to be winners and losers – just look at the way MySpace was knocked out by Facebook, and MiniDisc players virtually obliterated with the advent of the iPod. And such was the fate of the Betamax video recorder, whose 1-hour tapes just couldn’t compete with the 2 hours provided by rival system VHS. VHS was also cheaper, which didn’t help the Betamax sales at all.

    When it launched in 1975, Betamax owned 100% of the market, but the VHS effect reduced it to just 25% by 1981. Despite this, production limped on until 2002, with its prime market being Japan – somewhat incongruous, given that the Japanese are normally on the cutting edge of technology. There are still Betamax players in existence, but there are a rarity and even a collector’s item in some circles.

     

    1. Dasani

    Sorry Coke, it’s your turn again and we’re in the UK for the disastrous launch of new bottled water brand Dasani in 2004. Intended as a rival to Pepsi’s Aquafina, it was a relative success in America but a complete disaster in Britain on its launch in February 2004.

    It started with the marketing slogans – “bottled spunk” and “can’t live without spunk”. In this context, spunk was meant to imply spirit, energy, pizazz….but unfortunately, it’s also a British slang word for semen, and the campaign became a laughing stock. But worse was to come, as Dasani’s “pure” water was found to be no more than tap water, from Sidcup in Kent. It had been treated and bottled but essentially was the same thing that came out of the tap. Coca-Cola said that they had never made any claim as to Dasani’s origins, but Trading Standards hit back, with an investigation into whether Dasani was any purer than tap water, or in fact different at all.

    It certainly was different. In March 2004, bromate was discovered in the water, which is a suspected carcinogenic. The water was withdrawn and, when given an opportunity to relaunch it in 2012, Coca-Cola decided against it. A spectacular failure of a product!

  • Top 10 Pointless Baby Products

    In a 2011 survey, British consumer magazine voted baby slings as the most useless of all baby products. Apparently parents just didn’t like them. I’d have to disagree on two counts – firstly, slings are a complete lifesaver when you have a baby and especially when you have more than one. Secondly, there is a cornucopia of far more useless products out there that they could have picked on. So I’m going to pick on them now. Prepare to have your credit cards maxed to the limit if you’re investing in our Top 10 Most Pointless Baby Products.

     

    10. Walking Wings

    For years, babies have learned to walk. Nearly all of them do it of their own accord, and there’s a variety of techniques – cruising along the furniture, staggering from one fixed point to another, holding an adult’s finger – but largely, they don’t need the intervention of gadgets to help them walk. Until now! In gender-stereotyped pink and blue shades, the walking wings act like a little harness to help guide the baby while they walk. No longer will you need to “tug at little arms” as you drag them along, or suffer from backache as you bend down for all those hours of baby-walking you do. And none of that pesky baby-led navigation that sees you circling the same room several times. No, put them in some kind of contraption and take the power back! Sitting down with a gin and tonic while they figure it all out for themselves is obviously not an option any more….

     

    9. Nuby Nibbler

    One baby product that you might find useful is a little mesh bag for bath toys – it hangs them up and drains them when not in use. But would you also fancy sticking some fruit in the mesh and giving it to your baby to munch on? No, me neither. But clearly the makers of the Nuby thought they were onto a winner with their little mesh feeder, where you put food in and the baby sucks on it through the mesh “without the risk of choking”. Unfortunately, you also lose the risk of the baby enjoying their food or learning to handle it for themselves. Choking is a hazard, that’s true, and especially with frozen fruit, which seems to be a favorite recommendation of Nuby users. But why does any baby need to eat frozen fruit? Surely a slice of fresh mango is much nicer and doesn’t taste of mesh? So a useless product and a nightmare to clean too, by all accounts.

     

    8.  The BabyKeeper

    For those that agree with the uselessness of slings, there’s always a problem when it comes to restrooms. You can’t fit a stroller into a cubicle, so what do you do? Hang them from the door like you hang your coat! The BabyKeeper does just that – clipping over the edge of the toilet door so that your baby can dangle there and watch you pee. It doesn’t look particularly comfy, but the baby in the adverts looks happy – he must love being strung up like a handbag. Not one for forgetful mothers cause, let’s face it, how easy would it be to just leave them there?

     

    7. Milkscreen

    Now, this one caused huge amount of controversy when it launched and was withdrawn a few days later, after a vigorous campaign by parents on Facebook. The aim was to help mothers breastfeed, by checking their supply, but the method was deeply flawed. It relied on mothers being able to pump as much as they produced but anyone who has ever tangled with a breast pump will tell you that they’re aren’t the easiest or most natural of contraptions. Consequently, it’s rare that a woman will be able to pump out every last drop of milk that she’s produced. Babies are much more efficient at extracting milk than pumps are! Breastfeeding mothers were concerned that the product only fuelled paranoia about milk supply and would do more harm than good, The company eventually agreed, and recalled it from sale.

     

    6. Diaper Stacker

    Now these are a pretty addition to any nursery – fabric diaper holders, in a variety of fabrics to co-ordinate with your decor. But there’s quite a big flaw. When you have a baby, it’s a 24-hour job. There are 8 feeds a day, 8 changes a day and a lot of burping, pacing and rocking in between. When you get that precious 5 minutes away from the baby, what are you going to do? Shower? Pee? Make a cup of coffee? Or arrange a fresh supply of diapers neatly in the fabric hanger thing? Basically, they’re the kind of thing pregnant people buy and the kind of thing that only a pregnant person would be bothered to fill. Once the baby is here, you soon find that life is too short.

  • 10 Mutant and Genetically Modified Organisms

    This is not an exhaustive list of genetically engineered animals like bovine with massive growth and milk or the alergy free cats and super salmons. Here are probably best examples of how far bio-science can go with DNA technology and genetic re-engineering. The fundamental unit to control different properties of an organism are millions of genes in its DNA. And it is possible to isolate every single gene. Thus any biological property that exists in any living thing in any living world could be brought into any other living thing even of any other world.

     

    1. GloFish


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    The GloFish is a patented brand of genetically modified (GM) fluorescent zebrafish with bright red, green, and orange fluorescent color. The original zebrafish from which the GloFish was developed measures three centimeters long and has gold and dark blue stripes. In 1999, Dr. Zhiyuan Gong and his colleagues at the National University of Singapore were working with a gene called green fluorescent protein (GFP), originally extracted from a jellyfish, that naturally produced bright green bioluminescence. They inserted the gene into a zebrafish embryo, allowing it to integrate into the zebrafish’s genome, which caused the fish to be brightly fluorescent under both natural white light and ultraviolet light. Their goal was to develop a fish that could detect pollution by selectively fluorescing in the presence of environmental toxins. It is the first genetically modified animal to become publicly available as a pet.

     

    2. Vacanti Mouse


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    The Vacanti mouse was a laboratory mouse that had what looked like a human ear grown on its back. The “ear” was actually an ear-shaped cartilage structure grown by seeding cow cartilage cells into a biodegradable ear-shaped mold. The earmouse, as it became known as, was created by Dr. Charles Vacanti, at the University of Massachusetts in 1995. Created to demonstrate a method of fabricating cartilage structures for transplantation into human patients, a resorbable polyester fabric was infiltrated with bovine cartilage cells and implanted under the skin of a hairless mouse. The mouse itself was a commonly used strain of immunocompromised mouse, preventing a transplant rejection

     

    3. Sudden-Death Mosquito


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    Oxitec which is a British bio-tech company, has created genetically modified mosquitoes, which are programmed for sudden, early death. Oxitec’s technology is a variation of a proven process called “sterile insect technique” It involves irradiating male insects, causing mutations that make them sterile. When released into the wild, they mate with females passing on lethal genes which either kills the female or at least kills the youngs in her so then she fails to reproduce . Scientists at this British bio tech company said they have evidence that their genetically modified mosquitoes can by this way for sure control the spread of dengue fever.

     

    4. Dolly the Sheep


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    Not so cool or disturbing enough but dolly would hit this list for sure since she was the first ever cloned animal which means that she was produced from a single microscopic cell from a single parent (who hadn’t mated of-course). Cloning techniques might be used widely now in some part of worlds for food but dolly remains remarkable in being the first mammal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell, using the process of nuclear transfer. Normally off-springs are a result of interaction of sex cells but in case of dolly’s birth, sex cells weren’t involved. She was cloned by Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell and colleagues at the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh in Scotland. She was born on 5 July 1996 and she lived until the age of six. She has been called “the world’s most famous sheep” by sources including BBC News and Scientific American. To good, dolly was fertile and produced 6 lambs in total. She died in 2003, living about half as long as a typical sheep. She developed a lung disease common in older sheep.

     

    5. See-Through Frog


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    Dissecting animals for science has sparked controversies worldwide, even prompting some companies to create computer simulations as cruelty-free alternatives. For high school students everywhere, this revealing amphibian may be a cut above regular frogs. That’s because the see-through frog does not require dissection to see its organs, blood vessels, and eggs. You can see through the skin how organs grow, how cancer starts and develops. It’s a miracle of genetic engineering and surely a cool mutant gift to students.

  • 10 Strange Fruits Around The World – Page 2 of 2

     

     

    5. African cucumber aka Kiwano

    This is no ordinary cucumber, it the usual cucumber’s African cousin. Just look at the insides and you will know. The spikes around the outer thick skin gives it an angry look, probably it’s an attraction for the spiky species that live on and in the desert sand. This fruit is rich in water and tastes just like the ordinary cucumber except it’s more salty. It is frequently used in decorating food because of its spiky banana like look.

     

    4. Ackee

    This is Jamaica’s national fruit. The seeds of this fruit were bought from West Africa into Jamaica on a rumored slave ship and from then on this has become the delicacy around the Caribbean. To eat this fruit, one has to remove the black tops and cut open the fleshy yellow arils, because the reddish region in between is very toxic. Ackee you are very tricky!

     

    3. Buddha’s Hand

     

    Oh yeah I was scared too when I looked at it first, but didn’t feel a thing when I swallowed it, it just tastes like a lemon. It is called as such because of its shape, it resembles a tightened octopus. It is found in China and India. It is used to flavor fish and eaten raw with spices when mixed with salad. It is also used by the Chinese as a perfume around the house and in cupboards to keep out the smell.

     

    2. Tamarillo

    This is known as the popular sibling of the regular tomato we use every day, its paler and burnt in color, with distinctively shaped seeds in the middle when you slice it in half. This fruit grows in Ecuador, Peru and Colombia and tastes similar to the Passion fruit. It is used in making juices and in certain areas of Bolivia it is used in cooking, especially to prepare the sauce. In the industry it is used as a strong preservative because the fruit contains a high amount of pectin.

     

    1. Custard Apple

    Some people refer to this as the bull’s heart, but I don’t think it deserves that, it’s more like a rugged brother of the common apple, a somewhat mutated sibling. It grows in Taiwan, India and Africa and in other tropical forests around the world. It tastes sweet and lovely, similar to the flavor of custard, hence the name.

  • Top 10 Beatnik Novels

    The beat generation established the obscure and the outrageous as primary themes within popular literature in the mid-20th century. Coming in to fruition following the end of the Second World War, the work created by those involved in this counterculture movement lives on today inspiring many more writers to adopt the brash and straight forward style.

     

    10. The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test

    Published in 1968, this psychedelically driven work from new journalism pioneer Tom Wolfe is a warped ‘nonfiction’ tale of a small group of prankster friends making their way across the county in their bus named ‘Further’. As they travel, each of the group reaches some kind of revelation via the use of LSD etc. with Wolfe there to take down exact and detailed accounts of what was happening, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test is a first-hand account of the 1960’s acid movement.

     

    9. Slaughterhouse Five – Kurt Vonnegut

    Based on personal accounts of his own experiences during World War Two, Slaughterhouse Five tells the tale of a fictional protagonist ‘Billy Pilgrim’ and his capture by a German enemy. Not meaning to give too much away, the narrative soon turns a tad obscure with an Alien race from the distant planet of Tralfamadore getting involved.

     

    8. Factotum – Charles Bekowski

    Epitomising a main theme of many of the beat generations best works, Factotum is a grotesque yet enthralling account of a 20th century nomad drinking and whoring his way across a wartime USA. Set amidst the Second World War (in case you’ve not yet noticed- a very common attribute for such literature), a discharged servicemen/aspiring author Henry Chinaski wanders rather aimlessly across the country, going from job to job, whore to whore and brawl to brawl.

     

    7. Notebooks of a Naked Youth – Billy Childish

    Although perhaps not strictly part of the original beat movement, this work from Englishman Billy Childish certainly strives to carry on the prevalent themes of his influences in a sincere and capable manner. Following the exploits of, and narrated by, a young character by name of ‘William Loveday’, the novel targets the issues all too familiar with many young men. Dealing with his efforts to balance his self-loathing, high intelligence and subsequent charm- the narrative follows the young protagonist through many entertaining encounters which take him from the humdrum of his hometown to the sleaze and glamour of European sex clubs.

     

    6. One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest – Ken Kessey

    The one item on this list that I expect most will have already heard of, and hopefully even had the pleasure of reading- this classic by the sadly now deceased Ken Kessey was adapted into the classic 1975 movie of the same name, starring Mr Jack Nicholson. The charming narrative follows a good hearted rebel and his experience in a mental health institution. Upon his arrival, it becomes clear that his wilful behaviour will not be allowed if a particularly strict nurse has anything to do with it. The two soon become locked into a battle of wills, with the story reaching an unexpected and rather shocking climax.

  • 10 Undeciphered Codes and Texts

     

    10. The Codex Seraphinianus

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    The Codex Seraphinianus is a book written and illustrated by the Italian artist, architect and industrial designer Luigi Serafini during thirty months, from 1976 to 1978.The book is approximately 360 pages long (depending on edition), and appears to be a visual encyclopedia of an unknown world, written in one of its languages, a thus-far undeciphered alphabetic writing. The illustrations are often surreal parodies of things in our world: bleeding fruit; a plant that grows into roughly the shape of a chair and is subsequently made into one; a lovemaking couple that metamorphoses into an alligator; etc. Others depict odd, apparently senseless machines, often with a delicate appearance, kept together by tiny filaments. There are also illustrations readily recognizable, as maps or human faces. On the other hand, especially in the “physics” chapter, many images look almost completely abstract. Practically all figures are brightly coloured and rich in detail. The whole Codex is composed in a bizarre alphabet that has still yet to be translated even after intense study by linguists. Since the text itself is unreadable, the Codex has become most famous for Serafini’s artwork, which ranges from the surreal and beautiful to the downright disturbing.

     

    9. Indus Script


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    The term Indus script (also Harappan script ) refers to short strings of symbols associated with the Indus Valley Civilization, in use during the Mature Harappan period, between the 26th and 20th centuries BC. In spite of many attempts at decipherments and claims, it is as yet undeciphered. The underlying language has not been able to be identified, primarily due to the lack of a bilingual inscription. Over the years, numerous decipherments have been proposed, but none has been accepted by the scientific community at large. The topic is popular among amateur researchers, and there have been various (mutually exclusive) decipherment claims. None of these suggestions has found academic recognition.

     

    8. Dispilio Tablet


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    The Dispilio Tablet (also known as the Dispilio Scripture or the Dispilio Disk ) is a wooden tablet bearing inscribed markings (charagmata), unearthed during George Hourmouziadis’s excavations of Dispilio in Greece and carbon 14-dated to about 7300 BP (5260 BC). It was discovered in 1993 in a Neolithic lakeshore settlement that occupied an artificial island near the modern village of Dispilio on Lake Kastoria in Kastoria Prefecture, Greece. The site appears to have been occupied over a long period, from the final stages of the Middle Neolithic (5600-5000 BC) to the Final Neolithic (3000 BC). A number of items were found, including ceramics, wooden structural elements, seeds, bones, figurines, personal ornaments, flutes (one of them dating back to the 6th millennium BCE, the oldest ever found in Europe) and what appears to be the most significant finding, the inscribed Dispilio Tablet which could not be deciphered by symbologists till date.

     

    7. Vinča Script

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    In 1875, archaeological excavations led by the Hungarian archeologist Zsófia Torma at Tordos, Hungary (today Turdaş, Romania) unearthed a cache of objects inscribed with previously unknown symbols. In 1908, a similar cache was found during excavations conducted by Miloje Vasic  in Vinča, a suburb of Belgrade (Serbia). Later, more such fragments were found in Banjica, another part of Belgrade. Since, over one hundred and fifty Vinča sites have been identified in Serbia alone, but many, including Vinča itself, have not been fully excavated. Thus, the culture of the whole area is called the Vinča culture, and the script is often called the Vinča-Tordos script . The nature and purpose of the symbols is a mystery. It is dubious that they constitute a writing system. If they do, it is not known whether they represent an alphabet, syllabary, ideograms or some other form of writing. Although attempts have been made to decipher the symbols, there is no generally accepted translation or agreement as to what they mean. At first it was thought that the symbols were simply used as property marks, with no more meaning than “this belongs to X”; a prominent holder of this view is archaeologist Peter Biehl. This theory is now mostly abandoned, as same symbols have been repeatedly found on the whole territory of Vinča culture, on locations hundreds of kilometers and years away from each other. The prevailing theory is that the symbols were used for religious purposes in a traditional agricultural society. If so, the fact that the same symbols were used for centuries with little change suggests that the ritual meaning and culture represented by the symbols likewise remained constant for a very long time, with no need for further development. The use of the symbols appears to have been abandoned (along with the objects on which they appear) at the start of the Bronze Age, suggesting that the new technology brought with it significant changes in social organization and beliefs.

     

    6. Singapore Stone


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    The Singapore Stone is a fragment of a large sandstone slab which originally stood at the mouth of the Singapore River. The slab, which is believed to date back to at least the 13th century and possibly as early as the 10th or 11th century, bore an undeciphered inscription. Recent theories suggest that the inscription is either in Old Javanese or Sanskrit. It is likely that the person who commissioned the inscription was Sumatran. The slab was blown up in 1843 to clear and widen the passageway at the river mouth to make space for a fort and the quarters of its commander. The slab may be linked to the legendary story of the 14th-century strongman Badang, who is said to have thrown a massive stone to the mouth of the Singapore River. On Badang’s death, the Rajah sent two stone pillars to be raised over his grave “at the point of the straits of Singhapura”. The Stone, now displayed at the National Museum of Singapore, was designated by the museum as one of 11 “national treasures” in January 2006, and by the National Heritage Board as one of the top 12 artifacts held in the collections of its museums.

    5. Voynich Manuscript


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    The Voynich manuscript is a handwritten book thought to have been written in the early 15th century and comprising about 240 vellum pages,most with illustrations. Although many possible authors have been proposed, the author, script, and language remain unknown. It has been described as “the world’s most mysterious manuscript”. Generally presumed to be some kind of ciphertext, the Voynich manuscript has been studied by many professional and amateur cryptographers, including American and British codebreakers from both World War I and World War II. Yet it has defied all decipherment attempts, becoming a historical cryptology cause célèbre. The mystery surrounding it has excited the popular imagination, making the manuscript a subject of both fanciful theories and novels. In 2009, University of Arizona researchers performed C14 dating on the manuscript’s vellum, which they assert (with 95% confidence) was made between 1404 and 1438. In addition, the McCrone Research Institute in Chicago found that much of the ink was added not long afterwards, confirming that the manuscript is an authentic medieval document.

     

    4. Byblos Syllabary


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    The Byblos syllabary , also known as the Pseudo-hieroglyphic script , Proto-Byblian , Proto-Byblic , or Byblic , is officially an undeciphered writing system, known from ten inscriptions found in Byblos. The inscriptions are engraved on bronze plates and spatulas, and carved in stone. They were excavated by Maurice Dunand, from 1928 to 1932, and published in 1945 in his monograph Byblia Grammata. The inscriptions are conventionally dated to the second millennium BC, probably between the 18th and 15th centuries BC.

     

    3. Beale Ciphers

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    The Beale ciphers are a set of three ciphertexts, one of which allegedly states the location of a buried treasure of gold, silver and jewels estimated to be worth over USD$65 million as of 2010. The other two ciphertexts allegedly describe the content of the treasure, and list the names of the treasure’s owners’ next of kin, respectively. The story of the three ciphertexts originates from an 1885 pamphlet detailing treasure being buried by a man named Thomas Jefferson Beale in a secret location in Bedford County, Virginia, in 1820. Beale entrusted the box containing the encrypted messages with a local innkeeper named Robert Morriss and then disappeared, never to be seen again. The innkeeper gave the three encrypted ciphertexts to a friend before he died. The friend then spent the next twenty years of his life trying to decode the messages, and was able to solve only one of them which gave details of the treasure buried and the general location of the treasure. He published all three ciphertexts in a pamphlet, although most of the originals were destroyed in a warehouse fire. Since the publication of the pamphlet, a number of attempts have been made to decode the two remaining ciphertexts and to find the treasure, but all have resulted in failure.

     

    2.Khitan Scripts


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    The Khitan scripts were the writing systems for the now-extinct Khitan language, used in the 10th-12th century by the Khitan people. who had created the Liao Empire in north-eastern China. There were two scripts, known as the large script and the small script . These were functionally independent and appear to have been used simultaneously. The Khitan scripts continued to be in use to some extent by the Jurchens for several decades after the fall of the Liao Dynasty, until the Jurchens fully switched to a script of their own. Examples of the scripts appeared most often on epitaphs and monuments, although other fragments sometimes surface. Many scholars recognize that the Khitan scripts have not been fully deciphered, and that more research and discoveries would be necessary for a proficient understanding of them. Our knowledge of the Khitan language, which was written by the Khitan script, is quite limited as well. Although there are several clues to its origins, which might point in different directions.

     

    1. Cascajal Block


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    The Cascajal Block is a writing tablet-sized serpentinite slab which has been dated to the early first millennium BCE incised with hitherto unknown characters that may represent the earliest writing system in the New World. Archaeologist Stephen D. Houston of Brown University said that this discovery helps to “link the Olmec civilization to literacy, document an unsuspected writing system, and reveal a new complexity to [the Olmec] civilization.” The block holds a total of 62 glyphs, some of which resemble plants such as corn and ananas, or animals such as insects and fish. Many of the symbols are more abstract boxes or blobs. The symbols on the Cascajal block are unlike those of any other writing system in Mesoamerica, such as in Mayan languages or Isthmian, another extinct Mesoamerican script. The Cascajal block is also unusual because the symbols apparently run in horizontal rows and “there is no strong evidence of overall organization. The sequences appear to be conceived as independent units of information”. All other known Mesoamerican scripts typically use vertical rows.

  • 10 Weirdest Guinness Book of World Record Holders – Page 2 of 2

     

    5. World’s Biggest Miser

    Henrietta Green
    Hetty Green was a very rich woman; in fact she was once the richest woman in the world, mainly because she didn’t use to spend any money on anything. And I do mean anything. Green was mainly interested in business because it was considered as her family business; there are many tales (of various degrees of accuracy) about her stinginess. She never turned on the heat nor used hot water. She wore an old black dress and undergarments that she changed only after they had been worn out. She did not wash her hands and rode an old carriage. She ate mostly pies that cost fifteen cents. One tale claims that she spent a night looking for a lost stamp worth two cents. Hettie’s son Ned broke his leg and had to have it amputated because Hettie delayed treatment while insisting on finding free medical care. The question arises how cheap a person can get when he/she has $7.5 million ($107 million in 2010 adjusted for inflation).

     

    4. Most Married Woman

    Most Married Woman
    Linda Wolfe, 68, is an American woman who holds the honour of “The Most Married Woman in the World” in Guinness book of records after walking down the aisle 23 times, and now is on a look out for Mr 24. According to Miss Linda, she is “addicted to the romance” of getting married. She first married in 1967 at the age of 16, to a 31 year old. The rest of the list of husbands includes a one-eyed convict, a preacher, barmen, plumbers and musicians. Two turned out to be homosexual, two were homeless and one beat her. Another put a padlock on her fridge. One marriage lasted just 36 hours because “the love wasn’t there”. But Linda, from Indiana, once married the same man, Jack Gourley, three times. She told The Sun: “It’s been years since I walked down the aisle. I miss it” The serial bride, who now lives in a retirement home, said she had never cheated on a husband. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, The title of the world’s most married person said in February that she’s lonely and would love to walk down the aisle again.

     

    3. Tightest frying pan roll


    There are many records present regarding the strength of different people in different categories. The record for rolling aluminum frying pan is held by Scott Murphy. On July 30, 2007 Scott Murphy rolled the tightest circumference of a 30 centimetre (12-inch) aluminum frying pan with his bare hands in 30 seconds, i.e. 17.46 centimetres (6.87 inches), at the NXB Team Training Centre in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

     

    2. Oldest table tennis player


    The most viewed records that amaze viewers are the records created by old people. Dorothy de low, 97 is the oldest living tennis player up to date. She represented Australia in the XIV World veterans Table Tennis Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on May 25, 2008 and then on October 15, 2009 she participated in table tennis practice in the World Masters Games at Sydney Olympic Park.

     

    1. Largest (and Probably Only) Airplane Ever Eaten

    Largest (and Probably Only) Airplane Ever Eaten
    There are a number of records in which people are seen eating different types of stuff. But the record of the weirdest/random thing ever to eat was made by Michel Lotito (1950-2007), better known as Mosieur Mangetout (Mr Eat Everything). He was basically a normal guy, except he ate things like metal and glass. This person is probably the only person to have this ability. He has conjured many records, but his most famous record was eating a Cessna 150 (aeroplane). The Cessna 150 took roughly two years to be “eaten”, from 1978 to 1980. Doctors found that Mangetout’s stomach lining is twice as thick as a normal stomach lining, which explains why he is able to digest these things. The doctors concluded that his rare condition must have developed when he was still in his mother’s womb; He began eating unusual material as a child around 9 years of age and performed publicly since 1966. It is estimated that between 1959–1997, Lotito had eaten around 1 ton of metal. Lotito died of natural causes on June 25, 2007, ten days after his 57th birthday. He is buried at the Grenoble Cemetery.

  • Top 10 Greatest Inventions Ever Made

    Even though the human species is not alone in regards to using tools, we have definitely gone above and beyond in the technological aspect of our race. The use of our inventions has taken us a long way. They’ve allowed us to land on the moon, travel over oceans, and even eliminate major health threats with various medicines. Below, we are going to talk about the top 10 greatest inventions ever made.

     

    10. Alcohol


    Although most people probably don’t know this, we have been brewing alcohol for the past 12,000 years or so. It shouldn’t come to you as a surprise that we’ve mastered the process and now alcohol is used in every country in the world for all kinds of purposes. Besides drinking, alcohol can be used to kill microorganisms (which is what it was originally designed for). Needless to say, it has come a long time since its conception and the uses for alcohol are increasing each day.

     

    9. The Internet

    The web has only been around for a relatively short period of time but this doesn’t mean that it doesn’t hold significance in our society. The Internet originally began as various communication networks that developed in the 1970’s and quickly rose in popularity since then. The web has allowed information to be accessed quickly and effectively, from any part of the world. It has revolutionized the world and will forever hold a part in our society.

     

    8. Birth Control

    Although there are several different methods for prevent child birth, this method has been one of the most reliable techniques. What a lot of people don’t know is that various birth control techniques have been around for about a century with the more popular methods beginning about a decade ago.

     

    7. Antibiotics


    Antibiotics really began to take off in the 1870’s when science really began to dabble in it. Ever since that point, we have developed cures to diseases and create antibiotics that have kept people safe from infections that otherwise would have killed them. The benefit for this invention is simple: it has allowed a greater number of people to live for a longer period of time. With antibiotics, we have greatly reduced the chances of dying from an illness and the best part is that technology is only getting better every day.

     

    6. Anesthetic


    We don’t know about you, but not a lot of people would have the mental tolerance to go through a surgery without anesthetic. Anesthetics allows doctors and surgeons to perform surgeries without the patient feeling any of the horrific pain that otherwise would be felt without the medicine. Nowadays, anesthetics have been replaced with other kinds of procedures including laughing and sleeping gas. However, this doesn’t take away from the importance that it has on our society.

     

  • 10 Most Weird Candles – Page 2 of 2

     

     

    6. 80 Hour Beeswax Coil Candle:


    It allows you to set the amount of time before it automatically extinguishes itself.

     

    7. Stone Candles


    Next time you step into someone’s garden corner, make sure you don’t burn your pants.

     

    8. Electronic Candle:


    Aram Bartholl’s candle uses a combination of resistance wire, copper wire, switch, and 12V power transformer to light a candle.

     

    9. Rocklite Candle:


    This unique one-of-a-kind hand crafted out of select rock and stone, can be used indoors or even outdoors using Citronella Oil.

     

    1o. Pillar Candles:


    These look like ordinary white candles, once you light it red wax flows out.

  • Top 10 Most Complicated Mazes

     

    5. Samsø Labyrinten (Denmark)

    This maze is just on a different scale to the others. Where most mazes use hedges, this uses fully-grown trees and wide paths so it feels more like a wander through the forest than being trapped in a maze. But it is undoubtedly a maze, with the Temple as the target in the middle. It’s 60,000m2 and once held the title of “World’s largest permanent maze” in the Guinness Book of Records. It contains a number of features to look out for along the way, including a tribute to Danish author Hans Christian Anderson.

    Formerly a Christmas tree forest, the labyrinth was designed in 2000 by Erik and Karen Poulsen and is unusual in that it was carved out of existing woodland, rather than planted. JCBs were used to clear pathways through the forest and make a central space for the Temple. It’s a different kind of maze, but it’s still possible to get completely lost in it, thanks to the massive trees that block your view from every side.

     

    4. Peace Maze (Northern Ireland, UK)

    The maze that took Samsø’s title of “world’s largest permanent maze” was the Peace Maze in County Down, Northern Ireland, which opened in 2001. It was designed to resemble a peace symbol, an important one for a country troubled by internal strife for large portions of the twentieth century. The Belfast Agreement in 1998 effectively brought an end to “The Troubles”, but there was a lot of damage to be repaired and the maze symbolizes hope and peace, with the 6,000 yew trees being chosen for their longevity.  In the center of the maze is the Peace Bell, which is rung to signify the completion of the maze.

    For a short time, the 3,147 meters of path were the longest in the world, but the title was handed over again in 2007. It remains the 2nd largest permanent maze in the world.

     

    3. Pineapple Garden Maze (Hawaii)

    And here’s the current holder of that sought-after title. The Pineapple Garden Maze was built in 1997, on the Dole pineapple plantation, but only became the longest in the world after it expanded in 2007. It has 3,962m of path, comfortably beating the Peace Maze, and the centerpiece is a giant pineapple. 8 secret stations dotted throughout the maze help you to unravel a mystery at the middle, and the maze contains 14,000 Hawaiian plants.

    While at the Dole Plantation, you can also take a ride on the Pineapple Express, not to be confused with the Seth Rogen film of the same name. That concerns an entirely different kind of plantation. It’s actually a 20-minute ride in a red-and-yellow train where you can learn all the about the history of pineapple. Who would want to miss that?

     

    2. Cool Patch Pumpkins Maze (USA)

    So, those are the largest permanent mazes, what about one that changes every year? Described as “The Coolest Maze on the Planet” (albeit by their own website), the Cool Patch Pumpkins Maze is different every time it opens for the season, and has won the title of “Largest maze, temporary corn/crop maze” in the Guinness Book of Records several times. Starting as a 15-acre corn maze in 2003, it had grown to 45 acres by 2011 and last year was an impressive 53 acres. It used to be a marketing tool for selling pumpkins, but has become a tourist attraction in its own right, although they still sell a lot of pumpkins because of it.

    As you might expect, it’s fiendishly complicated and one visitor recorded that it took 2 hours and 10 cell phone calls to get through it. And naturally, it gets more complicated every year. The pumpkin patch maze can be found in Dixon, CA not far from Sacramento and it’s worth a visit to see what they come up with in 2013!

     

    1. The Labyrinth at Knossos

    Top of our list is a maze that is sadly not a tourist attraction, but it is legendary for its complexity. Built for King Minos of Crete, in the Palace of Knossos (above), the legend goes that the fiendish labyrinth contained an equally fiendish creature – the Minotaur. This half man, half bull was raised by Minos’ wife Pasiphaë but became too fearsome for civilized company, and craftsman Daedalus constructed a labyrinth so complex that the Minotaur would never be able to get out – in fact, Daedalus himself had trouble getting out of it after construction.

    Eventually the labyrinth was conquered by heroic Theseus, with some help from Minos’ daughter Ariadne, and there has been no trace of it found in the ruins at Knossos. If it still existed, however, it would certainly be the most complicated maze in the world.