Rocket Explosion Overture

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Rocket Explosion 1812 Overture

1812 Overture by Pyotr Tchaikovsky set to Delta II rocket explosion in January 1997 (complete with a cannon fire in the classical performance) -

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Delta explosion in on the left, orchestra's performance on the right:

(images via 1, 2)

Today's pictures & links:

Stainless Steel Cars

John Michaels sends us this interesting bit of automotive history... Here is a 1936 Ford Tudor Sedan (1 of only 4 in existence), built for and owned by Allegheny Ludlum Steel:

(photos by John Michaels)

These cars were built for Allegheny as promotional and marketing projects. The top salesmen each year were given the honor of being able to drive them for one year.
The V-8 engine (max 85 hp) ran like a sewing machine and was surprisingly smooth and quite.

It is known that the dies were ruined by stamping the stainless car parts, making these the last of these cars ever produced. (more info)

If only US auto industry was as rust-free and enduring as these vintage vehicles...

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Ha! Godzilla Cloud

(original unknown)

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Not for the squeamish

Juan Cabana has been making very dubious fossils and drowned remains for some time - check out the collection of his Weird Taxidermy:

(image credit: Juan Cabana)

We featured some of the weirdest (and most dubious in origin) taxidermy on this DRB page.

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Giant Mechanical Flower

A giant mechanical flower that opens and closes at dawn and dusk, made by students at the University Of Buenos Aires in Argentina.

(image by Don, via)

(image credit: Danielle Conkle)

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"Flying Goats" and goats simply stuck

Each case presents its own challenge:

Mountain goats in Banff National Park, Canada, image via)

(image credit: D. Hutcheson)

We wrote about other "Animal Acrobatics" here.

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Mixed fresh links for today:

Scenes From Antarctica - [nature]
Brain Cell vs. Universe Mega-Structure - [space]
Fantastic Cardboard Sculpture by Ana Serrano - [art]
Real names of 182 musicians - [interesting]
Strange... Bizarre Fruits & Vegetables - [wow nature]
Domestic Bliss of One American Family - [gallery]
Twiggy, the water-skiing squirrel - [fun video]
Strangely mesmerizing: Talking Chin - [loud music video]
Incredible walking CNC robot router - [wow video]
A community for financial news, ideas, and tips - [promotion]

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Russian Wartime Bonds

This unique item is displayed among other collectible papers at The International Bond and Share Society. Read more about this site here - it's the world's biggest association of people interested in scripophily (I learned a new word today).

(image credit: International Bond and Share Society)

NOTE:

Call for the "World's Most Curious Ephemera" items over at Ephemera great site. - Click Here (and submit something that you'd like to feature both on DRB and Ephemera sites, this is a collaborative project - see Part 1 here)

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Re-Use Muse

Head over to Point Click Home for an interesting compilation (slide show) of eco-friendly designs for furniture and interior decor, including this chandelier made from dried kelp (yuck!) and a nightmarish chair made from plastic trash:

Chandelier - source, Chair - source

Don't miss the chair - coffee table item made from discarded newspapers! (total cost: $8)

(source: Oscar Lhermitte)

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LOLSpiders ftw

If you missed the big-eyed cute spider creature in our recent article Mimicry of Spiders, you can check out this comparison with the famous Shrek 2 picture:

(image credit: Skid)

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Floating Eyes and Mouth

This river bike from Flatmo's team took the honors at the Kinetic Sculpture Race:

(image credit: Terr-bo)

Check out the guys inside of it, pedaling away:

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Photographing Polar Bears

First seen in Alaskan Chronicle (via), this series of pictures shows how photographing polar bears can be combined with the morning workout:

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Must Tomorrow's Man Look Like This?

From a "Popular Science" magazine, 1963:

Toby Freedman, Gerald S. Lindner, from a speech at the American Rocket Society - image via

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Banded Piglet Squid

Helicocranchia: Nothing like a good-natured squid smile in the morning:

(image courtesy and copyright: Gary Florin, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium)

Read more about them here. These are pretty small species:

(image credit: Richard E. Young)

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Touch it

Inspired by the beautiful polymer clay sculptures by Christi Friesen, Spanish master Campanita de hojalata makes magical pieces, see for example, this brooch: