Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 459
August 24, 2016
The Color Pink is Named After the Dianthus Flower
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
In the same way that the word orange described a fruit before a color, the color pink got its name from the Dianthus flower.
Dianthus isn’t actually a single flower but a genus of about 300 species
The flower is native to Europe and Asia, but it can be found in North Africa too
In the 16th Century, the Dianthus Plumarius was commonly referred to as a pink
The verb “to pink” dates back to the 14th century and means “to decorate with a perforated pattern”
The color pink got its name not simply because the flowers are pink, but because the edges of their petals are “pinked”
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
Source:
A Bunch of Ruby Roman Grapes can Cost More Than $11,000
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Ruby Roman grapes grown only in Ishikawa, Japan are the most expensive grapes in the world with a bunch going for over $11,000.
The grapes are grown and marketed entirely in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan
They’re red in color and about the size of a ping-pong ball
There are strict rules a grape must adhere to before it can be called a Ruby Roman:
Each grape must be over 20g
Its sugar content must exceed 18%
Each grape should resemble a cherry tomato-red color
In July, 2016, a bunch of 30 Ruby Roman grapes sold for £8,350 ($11,053.73)
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
Source: A Bunch of Ruby Roman Grapes can Cost More Than $11,000
Vulture Bees are the Only Bees That Eat Rotting Meat
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Vulture bees are the only bees that don’t eat pollen or nectar; they survive on rotting flesh.
Vulture bees are a subspecies of bee in the Trigona genus
Trigona bees are the largest genus of stingless bees
They don’t like fully rotten meat, but prefer something a little fresher
Like flies, they eat by regurgitating saliva and a honey-like substance onto the food and then lap it up
Embed from Getty Images
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
Source: Vulture Bees are the Only Bees That Eat Rotting Meat
August 23, 2016
The Googly-Eyed Stubby Squid is the Cutest Cuttlefish Ever
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Everyone’s interested in the ocean this year. First, there’s CAPSTONE exploring the ocean floor and discovering new life. And now there’s Nautilus doing the same thing. But Nautilus is going a step farther and livestreaming the expedition.
From the Nautilus live stream comes the above video of the most adorable creature ever. He’s so cute that even the scientists on board have a hard time keeping their excitement to themselves.
Stubby Squid
Not only is this little guy adorable, he’s also really interesting. Even though he looks like a cross between a squid and an octopus, the stubby squid is actually more closely related to the cuttlefish.
They live at depths of 300 m and have been found as deep as 1,000 m. They bury themselves in sand and mud with just their eyes exposed to find prey; mostly they eat shrimp and small fish. And they spend a lot of their time just being adorable.
The stubby squid is cool, but if it’s related to the cuttlefish, can it do this?
Source: The Googly-Eyed Stubby Squid is the Cutest Cuttlefish Ever
Batman the 4-eared Cat is an Orphan No Longer
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
A 4-eared cat, affectionately named Batman, found a new home by way of the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society.
Batman is three-years-old and has two sets of ears
The mutation that causes cats to have four ears is a recessive gene in both parents
Batman came to the shelter with an upper respiratory infection that stopped him from being able to be adopted
When vets healed him, a family swooped in and adopted him almost immediately
You can find out more about the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society on their Facebook page, and their website
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
August 22, 2016
The Greenland Shark Can Live to be 512-Years-Old
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Human beings generally live to be around 80. This isn’t a hard fact, it’s just an estimate. It isn’t unheard of for people to live longer than 80 years. But anyone living into their 90s or 100s is thought to be the exception and not the rule. Other animals live longer. Before he died, Adwaita, the tortoise, was thought to be 250-years-old; though some people dispute that number. But even that pales in comparison to the estimated age of the Greenland shark.
In a recent study, scientists claimed that Greenland sharks might live to be up to 512-years-old.
The Greenland Shark
Greenland sharks also have weird teeth
500 years ago, Leonardo da Vinci was still alive, Thomas More’s Utopia was published, and somewhere by Greenland, a shark that might still be alive today was being born.
But since no scientists from back then are still alive, and radio collar tracking wasn’t a thing yet, how can we be sure how old these animals are? That’s where things got clever.
Greenland sharks don’t accumulate any hard tissues. The easily found reference points of age aren’t found in them, so scientist had to get creative.
Using carbon dating, they were able to analyze the shark’s eyes and see that many of them had been around since long before the 1950s. This was based on the presence of an isotope left behind in the wake of nuclear bomb testing common in those times. They also have seen that the sharks only grow about one centimeter per year. Combining this data, they judged the average life expectancy to be 272 – 512 years.
To make matters odder, the meat of Greenland sharks is known to be toxic to humans, but people in Greenland and Iceland still eat it. They’ve learned that the meat loses its potency if it’s allowed to ferment for a long enough span of time.
Greenland sharks are certainly some of the oddest creatures in the deep.
Daniel Kordan Captured an Amazing Sight at the Altiplano Salt Flats
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Photographer Daniel Kordan escaped harsh light pollution and took breathtaking photos of the Milky Way at the Altiplano Salt Flats.
Because light pollution is found in cities and small villages, Altiplano is the best place to observe the stars
Daniel Kordan planned a month-long expedition for astrophotography
The Altiplano Salt Flats are 4000-5000 meters above sea level
The salt flats are covered in 5-10cm of water
After their bodies adjusted to the elevation, Kordan and his crew took amazing pictures of galaxy perfectly reflected in the water
Via Daniel Kordan
Via Daniel Kordan
Via Daniel Kordan
MINI BION
“BIONs” – short for Believe It or Not – is the word we use at Ripley’s to refer to anything that is unbelievable and worthy to become part of Ripley’s lore and collection.
Source: Daniel Kordan Captured an Amazing Sight at the Altiplano Salt Flats
Petros Vrellis Creates Amazing Portraits Using a Single Thread
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
When you think of art, how often do you think of knitting? Petros Vrellis is looking to change that. But you won’t find him sitting in a rocking chair with two needles making a blanket. Instead, Vrellis is changing the face of knitting.
Everyone knows that with a little imagination and innovation, an artist can take any material and make a masterpiece. And Vrellis is exploring just what an artist can do with a single piece of thread. Spoiler alert: he can make amazing Renaissance-based portraits.
Vrellis was born in Greece. His background is in electrical engineering and art sciences. Using his computer knowledge and his artistic sensibilities, he creates remarkable and intricate works. Vrellis considers himself more of a toy inventor than an artist, and it’s that open playfulness that has enabled him to do things no one else has.
A New Way to Knit
The loom he uses is a 28″ aluminum bicycle rim with 200 anchor pegs on its circumference. With that and a piece of thread, Vrellis creates these amazing portraits. But how does he know where to put the string and how many passes are needed to add the definition?
That’s where his computer background comes into play. The pattern for the finished product is generated by a special algorithm. The algorithm takes a digital photo and turns it into a knitting pattern.
Vrellis takes the thread and knits it in a straight line from one anchor peg to the next. He does this over and over again until the final portrait comes to life.
To learn more about Petros Vrellis, you can check out his website. And to see more of his work, you can head here.
Source: Petros Vrellis Creates Amazing Portraits Using a Single Thread
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