STUFF: News, Technology, the cool and the plain weird

[MIKA27]

A Laser Violin Would Have Surely Blown Amadeus’s Mind

Playing a violin requires far more finesse than just dragging a bow across its strings. There are subtle nuances in motion, pressure and speed required that take years to master. Or, you can wait for Dylan Menzies to perfect his easy-to-play optical O-Bow and just skip all the rehearsals.

Instead of strings, the instrument is essentially a smooth copper cylinder with a dented groove that holds the bow as it’s dragged across. At the bottom of that groove is an illuminated optical sensor that tracks the bow’s speed, angle and position, allowing different notes to be played, including the vibrato effect stringed instruments are known for.

On the back end, there’s custom software that manipulates the violin samples in real time to match what’s being played. Like with a MIDI keyboard, the O-Bow could also be used as an interface for a whole symphony of virtual instruments. While it’s just a research project at the moment, Menzies does hope to one day commercialise the O-Bow and presumably save young musicians from hours of tortuous practice.

[MIKA27]

Unzipping Antique Gadgets Shows Off Glorious Guts

If only it were so easy as unzipping the case off of a camera to see its amazing insides. It’s not, but Chinese art student Hu Shaoming reworked a bunch of old gadgets with zippers so you can peer at their innards.

The antique devices are currently on display at Guangzhou Art Academy. It features four devices across four decades — a phone from the 1910s, a clock from the 1920s, camera from the 1930s, and a film camera from the 1940s.

Over four months he took each old gadget apart and carefully added a zipper to show off the intricate gears and workings on the inside. Boy are they beautiful.

Hu Shaoming

[MIKA27]

The Universe Is 80 Million Years Older Than We Thought

We’ve known for ages that the universe is around 13.25 billion years old for a while, but a new study is tweaking that number slightly. Findings by the European Space Agency’s Planck space probe show that the universe is about 80 million years older than previously thought, bringing the total to 13.81 billion.

The Planck space probe has managed to suss out that increased accuracy by examining the receding glow of the universe’s first moments more closely than ever. The discovery lends credence to the idea that the universe exploded from a subatomic particle to nearly full-size in mere fractions of a second, faster than the speed of light. It confirms, with actual data, theories about the universe’s actual age that have been proposed for decades based on nothing put pure mathematics.

In the grand scheme of things, 80 million years is a drop in the 13-billion-year bucket, but it is another step towards knowing more about this universe we inhabit. As George Efstathiou, director of the Kavli Institute for Cosmology at the University of Cambridge who announced the finding said: “There’s less stuff that we don’t understand by a tiny amount.” That sounds like a triumph to me.

[MIKA27]

NATO-Commissioned Report Says Killing Hackers Is Basically OK

Cyberwarfare is all well and civilised when it’s confined to a ***-for-tat hacking of banks, but it’s got the potential to spiral out of control really fast. To try and prevent that, and save the world from a hacked-WoW-account-induced apocalypse, NATO has comissioned a set of international laws to try to make cyberwarfare more… civilised.

Despite how it might seem, war’s actually relatively civilised. Agreements like the Geneva Conventions and Ottowa Treaty lay down laws as to how warfare should be conducted — be nice to your prisoners and no blowing people up with landmines, for example — and the UN charter explains when war might be justified. But none of those were written with cyberwarfare in mind, which is difficult when the Americans are going round hacking the Iranians, the Koreans are hacking each other, and China’s just hacking everyone.

In an attempt to make some sense of the mess, NATO (basically the Western powers-that-be) commissioned a report from a bunch of legal experts at the ‘NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence’ to suggest some rules for cyberwarfare. Well, the report’s in, and the suggestions are kinda surprising.

Basically, cyber attacks which cause “physical damage, injury or death” constitute a ‘use of force’, and thus can be retaliated to with real physical weapons. Equally surprising is the classification of civilian hacktivists as legitimate targets during war.

For those of us who aren’t looking forward to WWIII though, there is some good news. As with conventional warfare, there’s a list of targets that’s off-limits for cyber-warfare, including things like hospitals and nuclear power plants (oops, USA/Israel). Additionally, an attack originating in a country doesn’t constitute proof for retaliation — there has to be proper evidence that the attack is the actual work of a government.

It’s worth noting that these proposals aren’t law — yet. At the moment, it’s just a set of suggestions, but given the work that’s gone into it, and the lack of sensible alternatives, something tells me that these ‘suggestions’ might get the global thumbs-up soon. CCDCOE

[MIKA27]

What Happens On The Internet In A Minute?

A minute isn’t a terribly lengthy period of time. Sixty seconds if I recall correctly. Online, though, there’s a lot going on in those 60 seconds.

Intel’s infographic shows what’s going on, from 20 million photo views, 100,000 new tweets (hopefully not all of them about Justin Bieber) and a staggering 30 hours of YouTube video uploads, with the note that in 2012 (which is where its figures date from) the number of networked devices was equal to the world’s population.

By 2015, it estimates, that figure will have doubled — or, in other words, Skynet is closer than you think.

[MIKA27]

New Apple ID Exploit Allows Others To Reset Your Password; Here’s How To Protect Yourself

Apple may have finally added two-factor authentication, but a new exploit is putting Apple IDs at risk in a way that two-factor authentication can’t necessarily fix. Here’s what you need to know.

The Verge is reporting that a new exploit, involving a small URL trick on Apple’s iForgot page, will let anyone reset your password using just your email address and your date of birth. Since this information is so easy to come by, that means there are a lot of people that could change your Apple ID password. Two-step authentication would fix the problem, but as of right now, a lot of people aren’t able to sign up for the new security feature. Ironically, Apple is citing “security reasons” for making people wait a certain number of days before they can sign up.

So how can you fix the problem if you haven’t already enabled two-factor authentication? Change your date of birth to a fake date that only you can remember. Hopefully, Apple will fix the problem soon, and you’ll be able to change it back. But for now, head to your account settings page on Apple’s web site and change your birthday under the “Password and Security” menu. Hit the link to read more.

[CanuckSARTech]

MIKA - I love this thread. One of my go to threads a few times a week. Thanks for all the contributions.

I agree.

So much better than that hogwash non-NASCAR-racing thread.

[MIKA27]

I agree.

So much better than that hogwash non-NASCAR-racing thread.

[MIKA27]

Why You’ll End Up Wearing A Smart Watch

People don’t wear watches anymore. You’ll look ridiculous. Why wouldn’t you just use your smartphone instead? These are just some of the negative sentiments sceptics are spewing about smart watches, which are still very much in their nascent stage. Guess what? They’re wrong.

Smart watches may seem like a dorky throwback now, but with so many companies working on new versions they have serious potential. Laptop Mag’s Mark Spoonauer looks at five ways smart watches could impact your life.

Not only are there some promising smart watches already available, including the Pebble and Martian Watch, but Samsung has confirmed that it is working on its own watch. Meanwhile, Apple reportedly has more than 100 people working on a curved-glass iWatch that runs iOS and Google is said to be working on its own high-tech timepiece. All of these gadgets have the potential to improve your existence. Here are five reasons why smart watches will be anything but a fad.

1. You Can Glance at Info to Save Time

With all of the buzzing and beeping your phone does on a daily basis — a smart watch will let you know at a glance which calls are worth picking up (or ignoring), which messages are worth responding to, which tweets are worth re-tweeting and more. No more having to constantly unlock your phone only to discover that someone has invited you to try “My Birthday Calendar” on Facebook. Still, it will be critical for smart watch makers to let you customise alerts so your wrist isn’t buzzing all day.

2. A Smart Watch Can Help You Live Longer

A Nike Sportswatch can be used for running, and while I love that it uses GPS to track the distance and users pace, it’s too bulky to don all the time. The trick for smart watches will be to provide enough fitness and health-related data to make them useful without being bloated. Apple’s iWatch is rumoured to feature not only Nike features like a pedometer and calorie counter but also a heart rate monitor. Samsung has already debuted an S Health app for its Galaxy S4 and an accompanying S Band (similar to the Jawbone Up and Fitbit Flex). It’s safe to assume a Galaxy Watch would perform similar functions.

3. They Can Extend Your Phone’s Battery

How could something that needs your smartphone for connectivity actually extend its endurance? Most smart watches use the Bluetooth 4.0 standard, which employs low-energy technology specifically designed for smart devices. As smartphone screens get bigger, consumers will be looking for ways to make them last longer on a charge. A smart watch could do just that because you’ll be using it for a lot of the things you typically glance at your phone for, saving precious juice on your handset.

4. You’ll Be Able to Do More with Your Voice

Even though some smart watches let you make calls from your wrist, I’m not that keen on it because it winds up disturbing everyone around you. I’m more excited about what’s possible once you can leverage virtual assistants like Apple’s Siri and Samsung’s S Voice. With your phone in your pocket, you should be able to dictate a message or social update to your wrist, see who won last night’s game and get the 5-day weather forecast. Quick, easy and less annoying to everyone else.

5. Smart Watches Are More Discreet Than Phones…and Google Glasses

Say you’re in a meeting or on a date and you want to quickly check your inbox without whipping out your 5-inch phablet. A smart watch would let you do that quickly and more discreetly. Smart watches are also a lot less polarising than Google Glass, which a Seattle-area bar just banned months before they debut. Yes, it was a publicity stunt, but it certainly won’t be the last establishment to outlaw Google’s high-tech eyewear. To a certain extent, smart watches are a necessary stepping stone to make other devices like Glass more socially acceptable.

[MIKA27]

Apple Wants To Add Copy Protection To Your Display Using This Patent

Ah, poor HDCP. Known in expanded form as High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection, it was designed to lock down one of the few remaining unsecured links in the media consumption chain — the connection between computer and display. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t really work out and Apple, unsatisfied with the status quo, has decided to file a patent on a similar system.

Filed in August last year and published last month, the patent, entitled “Securing a HDCP link from graphic processor GPU to video display” describes a method of copy protection that would work in concert with High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP), rather than replace it. HDCP has never really posed much of a barrier to the average user, let alone pirates. Even the patent mentions the deficiencies of the protocol:

Unfortunately, the driving of an external display from a computer system may be associated with a number of security vulnerabilities. In particular, video data used to drive the external display may be subject to eavesdropping as the video data is sent over a video interface to the external display. To protect the video data from eavesdropping, a protection mechanism such as High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) may be used to encrypt the video data before the video data is transmitted to the external display. However, an eavesdropper may bypass the protection mechanism by exploiting vulnerabilities in untrusted software on the computer system and/or lapses in the encryption of the video data.

The way Apple wants to combat HDCP’s weaknesses is by decrypting the media to “protected” memory and using that to render the video/audio. The “graphical output” as the patent describes it, would have to support the copy protection, otherwise it would cut the connection between the protected memory and the display, after a indeterminate grace period. The image to the right, taken from the patent, illustrates the system in abstract form.

The thing is, I don’t see how this will make copy-protected video content any more secure. Any type of DRM is only as strong as the weakest link and in this case, this is the actual data stored on the medium. If you can figure out how to rip the video and audio directly from the source (or intercept it, in the case of internet streaming), it doesn’t matter if the link between the GPU and display is impenetrable, you can just use the unprotected raw content instead. It happened to DVD, Blu-ray and HDCP, so I don’t see how Apple thinks it can do better.

[MIKA27]

Bill Gates Has $100,000 For Anyone Who Can Invent A High-Tech, Next-Gen Condom

Condom’s are a life-saving piece of tech, and for being little more than deflated latex balloons, they do their job pretty well if you wear them. That’s the part that Bill Gates is working on. No, he’s not going around as a one-man condom-police army, but he is offering $US100,000 to anyone who can make a condom less of a bummer to wear.

The money is being offered by way of the Grand Challenges in Global Health Program, and is up for grabs by “anyone — students, scientists or entrepreneurs” who can improve the age-old second-skin tech. And if you needed any clever ideas to get you started, the Gates foundation “has you covered” so to speak:

Additional concepts that might increase [condom usage] uptake include attributes that increase ease-of-use for male and female condoms, for example better packaging or designs that are easier to properly apply. In addition, attributes that address and overcome cultural barriers are also desired.

But mostly force-fields. I think we’re all looking for force-field condoms here. Or maybe something with graphene? I don’t know, you figure it out.

Gates has already thrown a whole bunch of cash at building a better toilet, it’s not that surprising that something like condoms might be next on the list. But with any luck, the reward can spark some killer innovation, and then you’ll have Bill Gates to thank the next time you get laid. What a thrill

[MIKA27]

Our Old Classic Fears Translated Into Modern Technology Nightmares

Do you remember all your childhood fears? You know, like all those nightmares you had about being chased, being naked and getting killed by monsters. You stopped being scared of them because you grew up and you replaced old fears with new digital nightmares. Like being trolled and accidentally sending sexts and the Internet being down. Grown up life can be scary with technology!

CollegeHumor came up with the modern equivalents to classic nightmares and they’re awfully hilarious. The only thing they’re missing is some monsters under your bed which I guess would be like viruses eating up your computer or something. For real though, I have a legitimate fear of dropping my phone.

[MIKA27]

New Orleans Gets Vending Machine-Equipped Taxis

Occasionally, you’ll luck out and climb into a taxi cab with such amenities as free tissues, discarded newspapers or all the tourist pamphlets you can carry. But if you find yourself in New Orleans, you might end up in one of the 250 vehicles in the Orleans Carriage Cab fleet that now feature soda-dispensing vending machines.

It’s not unlike the New York TaxiTreats concept, except this is real and officially being rolled out en masse in the big easy. Using a touchscreen display, patrons can order up a non-alcoholic beverage — including Coke, Sprite, Iced Tea and orange Fanta — for just a buck that’s delivered to them via an automated mechanism behind their headrest. There’s no mention of how they deal with the issue of the cans getting shaken up and exploding when opened though, because last time we checked, taxi back seats were already sticky enough.

[MIKA27]

This Giant, Twisting Garden Of A Tower Mimics Our Own DNA

A marriage of microbiology and vertical gardening, the currently-under-construction Agora Garden will be a twisting, blossoming double helix amplified to massive proportion. Designed by Vincent Callebaut Architecte, the residential tower will utilise its rising jungle both in terms of aesthetics and sustainability.

In fact, this building will supposedly be one of the most eco-friendly in the city, as it plans to incorporate an orchard, vegetable garden, aromatic and medicinal plant space, and a compost and rainwater capturing system. Additionally, the tower plans to at least partially run on solar energy; a circular light funnel sill push the sun’s rays down to the basement, where absorbers can then make use of it as need be.

The design team is (considering the building’s form) unsurprisingly happy to escape convention. They describe the building as “neither single tower, nor twin tower” but rather “two helical towers gathering themselves around a central core”. The unusual shape of the tower will also provide its inhabitants with an equally unusual view — depending on where you’re standing, your view will alter and turn with the structure itself.

The entire project is supposed to be completed by 2016, and with such elaborate, complex, and packed contents, the double helix of its design will make absolute sense.

[MIKA27]

Hublot's Limited Edition Big Bang Depeche Mode Watch is made from micro-blasted black ceramic

In the last few notable instances we see, luxury watch maker Hublot has managed to always get associated itself with a thematic or a cause, which it explicitly expresses on its limited edition horological master pieces. We saw that in the Ferrari stamped UAE edition, the Atelier courtesy watch, and even the World Boxing Council edition which raised money for the former boxing stars. Now they have aligned with Depeche Mode to jointly create the limited edition watches for raising funds for safe drinking water. A cause known to be close to the heart of the Hublot Chairman, Jean-Claude Biver the proceeds from the sale of the watches will thus be diverted to providing clean drinking water to those who dont have access. Like most of the special watches in the past, this edition will run a limited edition run of just 250 numbered units.

The Depeche Mode watches are quite packed in with features. The reference is a company made is a 311 CI 1170 VR DPM13 movement, limited for this special series of 250 watches. The casing is a Big Bang 44mm micro-blasted ceramic structure, which has been given the pattern design for a more rugged appearance. The bezel has put together with 6 black PVD Titanium screws, while the covering remains the usual sapphire crystal with anit-reflective coating.

Announcing the development in Berlin, the 2 brands have have joined hands for raising money for the charitable institution called Water, which will be bringing the precious life source to the developing parts of the world, where it remains a scarcity. With the upcoming Depeche Mode 2013 European Tour around the corner, the event will focus on highlighting the new limited edition watch series, whose part proceeds would definitely land up in the charity's account. The other benefit would obviously be a higher general awareness to the esalating problem in the developing world.

[MIKA27]

Remy Martin Louis XIII Rare Cask 42,6 Cognac will Retail for $23,000

When it comes to the ‘connoisseur category’ of cognacs, Remy Martin Louis XIII occupies a very special place in the hearts of collectors, who swear by the rare beverage’s unique qualities. To keep the wealthy drinkers in tow, Remy Martin has created special edition bottles in the past, and the lucky few indeed picked them up at the least opportunity they get. The Black Pearl Magnum, Le Jeroboam decanter, and Rémy Martin Diamant Fine Champagne Cognac are just some of the elite editions we saw in the past. Now the Rare Cask 42.6, named after the 42.6% alcohol content of the beverage has been released in the market. The price tag on each of them is $23,000, and only 738 such decanters will ever be available for sale.

Like each decanter appears here, the craftsmanship is just by far, what one would expect from a brand of this stature. 20 experts were involved in creating each of these Baccarat crystal decanters, which have been given a 24K rose gold ring at the neck, with labeling done across it. After that, each of them decanters has been fitted with a black crystal stopper, much in tune with the rest of the aesthetics of the bottle.

What makes Louis XIII the rarest, and perhaps one of the most coveted of beverages in all of its categories, is that ingredients have been sourced from the Grande Champagne region in France. 1,200 eaux-de-vie have been blended uniquely, before being aged for well over a century in special casks called ‘tiercons’.

The cellar master takes exclusive care to ensure that the blend is perfectly matched in all of the decanters to keep the quality standards to the mark, and retain the original flavors as intended. According to tasters, the cognac is known to have notes of plums and dates, with tingling flavors of gingerbread, prune stone and ginger, ending with a touch of tobacco leaf flavor.

The availability of the decanter ‘1’ to ‘738’ will restrict to elite boutiques of the brand in London, from this June onwards. However later in the year, by September, the rest of the numbered decanters will be available to be picked up by the target elite group of buyers. Udaipur, one of India’s last surviving royal families, welcomed the beverage in the country where the sale will begin later in the year. Befitting for something of such royal heritage, it is perhaps time for the rich drinkers to get themselves one of these jewels.

[MIKA27]

Titanic violin played by the bandmaster when the oceanliner sank has been found

More than 100 years have gone past, but the ship still evokes a sense of ailing nostalgia for the tragedy it met with in 1912. Despite being the largest and the strongest passenger ship of its time, it met with a tragic end to its journey after clashing with an iceberg near the polar region. 1,500 people died and many more families suffered the losses from the tragedy, but the tragic incident still manages to get a lot of attention as something historic, as shown in the most expensive Titanic memorabilia to go on auction. Recently Australian billionaire Clive Palmer unveiled his plan for Titanic II, to set sail by 2016. From the depths of the ocean, the latest discovery from the ill fated ship, which we know will gather considerable interest, is a violin played by Wallace Hartley, the leader of the band playing on the Titanic. Auctioneers Henry Alridge & Sons, who will be undertaking the auction, have also testified that the instrument is authentic and pegs the estimated value at $604,560 (£400,000).

When some of the survivors when de-boarding the ship during its final hours, they remember Wallace Hartley and his band members still perform on the attic, something also depicted in the multi-starrer ‘Titanic’ movie. It is said that he did so, in order to maintain calm and peace and so that everybody can perhaps ride to safety without any unnecessary chaos being created. Going by the ambiance some say, Hartley played the sad tune of ‘Nearer, my god, to Thee’.

The violin is known to have been lost when Wallace Hartley drowned and passed away at the age of 34. But years later in 2006, a man is known to have found a travelling case with the violin in it, at the bandmaster’s home in Wiltshire. He got in touch with specialist Titanic Auctioneers Henry Aldridge & Sons, and for nearly 7 years, they collected evidence and researched into the history of the band leader.

They have finally testified that this violin is the authentic one, known to be in the procession of Wallace Hartley during the last hours of his life on the Titanic.

[MIKA27]

Six-Wheeled Mercedes G-Class 'G63 AMG 6X6' is the Largest and Most Extreme Road Legal SUV

For the likes of 'extreme' heavy duty car fans, the German automaker Mercedes-Benz which recently gave a sneak peek into the future with Ener-G-Force Concept SUV that looks towards future with a quest for the ‘Highway Patrol Vehicle 2025’, has now introduced the G63 AMG SUV in a new format, with a 6x6 drive train, while retaining the luxury aspect of the rugged machine. Targeted at a fixed number of owners, who will be getting a makeover for their premier Mercedes SUVs, this is perhaps the robust, largest and most extreme road-legal SUV vehicle from the house of Mercedes-Benz. Almost resembling a sci-fi movie scene, this SUV is known to travel on road and sand with equal ease. The estimated price tag might just hover around the $457,000 mark, which will be more than triple the U.S.-spec G63 AMG’s $134,300 price tag, and only 20-30 units per year will be made.

Since the most eccentric bunch of Mercedes lovers will perhaps throng for this special edition car, the muscle power added to it truly significant. Under the hood, there is 5.5-litre twin turbo charged V8 engine, which will be dishing out 544 HP of power in output.

This will take the vehicle from 0-100 kmph is just about 6 seconds on the clock. The physical as one can fathom, will be equally imposing with 37-inch tyres which will be able to travel virtually on all surfaces, with a special torque distribution technique which into a 30:40:30 ratio, giving the car abilities to jump at odd angles if needed be.

Mercedes Benz, no matter how rugged a car they make on the exterior, will always have something luxurious on the interiors. Amongst the notable features are the quilted white leather seats, dashboard with carbon fibre fittings, and the bamboo decorated luggage area.

[CanuckSARTech]

[Fuzz]

Bill Gates Has $100,000 For Anyone Who Can Invent A High-Tech, Next-Gen Condom

Back in high school for an economics class, we came up with the idea of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Glow in the Dark, Pizza Flavoured condoms.

[MIKA27]

Back in high school for an economics class, we came up with the idea of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Glow in the Dark, Pizza Flavoured condoms.

WOW, think you might be on a winner there, have you applied?!

[MIKA27]

Here’s A Laptop Stand That’s Better For Your Back

Vool is a handsome laptop stand that might ease the strain on your back and shoulders. It’s designed in such a way that keeps you from hunching over your computer so much.

Anyone who spends at least a couple of hours in front of a machine every day knows how hard it is to avoid that sometimes. Vool’s also made from totally eco-friendly pine from a sustainable forest on the border of Russia and Finland.

At $US390, it’s a little spendy, but it’s totally handmade, which probably factors into the price. It looks great and saves you space, and your back and neck (and the environment) might thank you. Vool

[MIKA27]

We All Want To Live In Monaco’s Odeon Tower, But We’re All Too Poor

Holy crap, look at the Odeon Tower, a slick new skyscraper in Monaco set to be completed in mid 2014. Good luck affording a unit there — the place is expected to be the most expensive building per square metre in the world.

Dreamed up by architect Alexander Giraldi in a style inspired by belle epoque design of early 20th century Paris, the building will have two towers that reach heights of 170m. There are 259 units for sale, along with 73 private luxury residences — two of which are sky duplexes, and a giant private penthouse on top complete with an infinity pool and private water slide. The penthouse alone is estimated to sell for around $329 million.

Even the “regular” apartments will have floor-to-ceiling windows that command impressive views of the French Riviera — it’s the first new high rise in Monaco since the 1980s, so there isn’t much skyline competition. And the building has Russian and Turkish saunas, a bunch of pools, spas, chauffer service and a 24/7 concierge. Best of all? Residents can get these services through a touchscreen control in their apartment. All of this sounds ridiculous, but less so when you remember that Monaco is a mega wealthy tax haven that’s a rich person’s dream land.

[MIKA27]

11 Splendid Sand Sculptures Made For Movie Geeks

These sand sculptures were prepared as part of this year’s Hollywood-themed Weston-Super-Mare Sand Sculpture festival on March 26, 2013, in Weston-Super-Mare, England. All week, 20 award-winning sand sculptors from across the globe are working to create sand sculptures that include odes to Harry Potter, Marilyn Monroe and characters from the Star Wars films as part of the town’s very own movie-themed festival on the beach.

Sand sculptor Radavan Zivny works on a sand sculpture of Gollum from the Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

A scene from Jurassic Park.

Helena Bangert (center), from Holland works on a sand sculpture of King Kong.

A sand sculptor works on a Toy Story-themed sand sculpture.

Detail of the Toy Story.

E.T. phones home.

Scene from a Harry Potter movie.

Detail of a Harry Potter sand sculpture.

Batman and The Incredible Hulk, because why not?

A Clint Eastwood sculpture of when Clint Eastwood made good movies.

Pirates of the Caribbean.

Detail of the Pirates of the Caribbean sculpture.

Alfred Hitchcock and a murderous bird.

Yoda, this is.

[MIKA27]

Crazy Guy Dangles Above The Earth At Terrifying Heights

“Mustang Wanted” is a crazy Ukrainian guy who loves having his photo taken as he dangles from buildings at preposterous heights. The resulting images will stop your heart.

At first you wonder what compels somebody to want climb to these high places without any safety restraints. Just to show off? Is this just bizarre exhibitionism?

In fairness, some of these photos are breathtaking.

But you want to reach out and grab this guy and pull him to safety before he falls. Or before somebody crushes his grip.

“Snap out of it man! You cannot do this. These glorious photos are not worth it. You are going to die!”

Then you think to yourself, “these photos must be ‘shopped.”

“Nobody is this crazy. This can’t possibly be real.”

It is so, so real.

http://youtu.be/ajVurrUvELc