January 2015

Saturday, January 31, 2015

4-Year-Old Reunited With Her Puppy After Remorseful Thieves Brought It Back

by Unknown on January 31, 2015 0 Comment

A family in Melbourne, Australia, came home one day to find their home had been ransacked.

Their iPads, passports, and a laptop were gone — and so was Sasha, who is their 8-week-old Lab and their 4-year-old daughter Maia's best friend.

Naturally, the electronics and the passports took a back seat to finding Sasha.

Maia was heartbroken. Her dad said that days later she was still upset and said she could "still smell the dog...Every night of the last week she and the dog have fallen asleep together in the dog's bed."

After an appeal across social media and in the news, Maia and her family woke up one morning to a surprise — Sasha was back, roaming their backyard.

"We think that whoever took her has either has a conscience or got scared and just dropped her over the fence ... we don't care to be honest, we're just glad to have her back," Maia's dad said.

Police are still investigating the robbery, and they're just as mystified about Sasha's return as Maia's family is.

"It's a bit of a strange one. It's difficult to understand what they were thinking," a spokesman said. But clearly Maia and her family are just happy that they're all together again.

So Bananas Are Going Extinct Because We Were Idiots And We Did This To Ourselves

by Unknown on January 31, 2015 0 Comment

In 1923, beatnik jazz musician Sam Lanin wrote a song called, "Yes! We Have No Bananas." Stay with me here.

The song was quite apt because back then, the bananas species that millions of people around the world had eaten for centuries were going extinct. A fungus, Tropical Race 1 strain of Panama disease, had spread from Australia and nearly wiped out the banana species called the Gros Michel. It only took the fungus a couple decades in the late 1800s to do that.

And surprise, surprise, we've learned nothing. A stronger strand of the fungus called Tropical Race 4 is going to do the same thing but this time, we made it easier for the disease to spread.

These are the infected roots of the banana plant after its been infected by TR4 strand of Panama disease.

The fungus cannot be killed by the usual chemicals, it strangles the food and water supply, can spread easily and its spores can stay in the soil for decades.

Over a century since then, banana plants from all over the world are being killed by a more potent mutation of the same fungus called Tropical Race 4.

The disease affects 85 percent of the entire banana market which works out to 145 million tonnes (160 million tons) of bananas and plantains produced each year. And according to a new study, scientists say the banana we eat is facing extinction and it's not a question of if but when.

And (without exaggerating) there's nothing we can do to stop it. And not even a stupid fundraising campaign using a Drake cover of "Yes! We have No Bananas" can save us.

Sorry, dude. Your sweet jams can't raise enough funds to fix this...

But I hear you say: "You're exaggerating" — what does the study actually say?"

Well, the study published in PLOS Pathogens finds that this new fungus strand is killing and threatening the survival of the Cavendish species of banana.

Scientists have known about this new strain, Tropical Race 4, for more than 50 years since it started infecting up crops in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Australia (where the first version of the Panama disease developed in the 1800s).

But Latin America — where we get most of our banana fix — has been largely untouched. However, scientists said that won't be the case for much longer.

The global reach of Tropical Race 4

How could we let this happen?

The banana species we eat is a monoculture. That means all commercially produced bananas that the world eats are essentially clones of each other. Dole and Chiquita breed them to be identical because it's easier to pump out a lot of them. This breeding also minimizes the number of ugly fruits that are riddled with small imperfections that we'll complain about.

The problem with the bananas being clones is that a single disease or pest can cut through the global fruit population like a knife through, well, a banana.

Main image via eHow | M.J. Doran

Friday, January 30, 2015

Trolls Accused Her Of Lying About Her Body, So This Instagrammer Shut Them Up With A Video

by Unknown on January 30, 2015 0 Comment

Social media is a powerful tool, but it's double-edged. Yes, it's a mighty broadcasting platform to spread your message and connect with people. But it's also a means for jerks to put people down at arm's length and without meaningful consequences.

It's easy to reduce it all and dismiss it as simple attention-seeking, but we all need attention sometimes. It's a totally valid need. Just think of how you react when you're trying to grab someone's attention and they ignore you. Really gets under your skin, right? But not all attention-seekers go about it in the same way. Some do it in healthy ways, while others just want to tear people down. Can you blame anybody for wanting to fight back?

COMMENT to let us know what you think about this Instagram star's battles!

Even though we're living in a booty-friendly world, where we've agreed that baby having back is a good thing, we still have to deal with internet trolls who just can't deal with bootylicious women like Instagram star Raylynn, the proud owner of a 70-inch caboose.

Maybe they're just not ready for that jelly.

This is, of course, all Kim Kardashian's fault.

Flaunting her curves ushered in a new age of shapely booty, and everyone's trying to keep up with her.

Raylynn has attracted more than 300,000 Instagram followers with her abundant booty and, more importantly, a strong commitment to body positivity.

And yet the haters, who are going to hate, just want to put her down. These people, for some reason, have accused her of using Photoshop to enhance her curves.

Bodies come in all shapes and sizes, but Raylynn's proportions do seem to be one-sided.

Maybe it's because she has so much going on around her hips compared to her waist and shoulders that the internet's cruelty comes out.

So in spite of her body-positive focus, Raylynn took an extraordinary step to silence her critics...

To be clear, Raylynn, a mother of one, is completely comfortable in her own skin.

"Hate only affects those who let it affect them," she wrote in one post.

But sorting through posts with hurtful comments that trash her and accuse her of making sex tapes — which she adamantly refuses having done — has to be incredibly draining.

As if she doesn't have enough trouble finding pants that fit, right?

So she posted a video that shows her dancing around, strutting her stuff.

As you can see, there's no digital trickery involved — she's just shaking what her momma gave her.

Some of Raylynn's fans, trying to be helpful, think they know why she's SO booty-centric...

Although they are almost certainly NOT medical doctors, some of Raylynn's fans speculate that she has a condition called lipedema. In fact, her Instagram bio contains the word lipedema, but nobody knows if that means she has actually been diagnosed.

Lipedema causes fat to be distributed in irregular ways, usually around the hips and butt. Up to 11 percent of women suffer from lipedema.

However, Raylynn doesn't seem to be too concerned about medical conditions.

She can have fun, even if her haters can't.

And yet, the haters and the trolls have definitely gotten under her skin.

"I see why ppl kill themselves over hate," she wrote in a post. "It can get heavy...some of u r just ugly souls n I pray God guides you down a better path."

So she's summoning her strength and doubling-down on positivity, keeping her focus on being a force against body-shaming.

"Dare to be different. Believe in ur beauty. Flaunt your flaws. U have one life. Live it," she sums up.

COMMENT to let us know what you think of Raylynn's battles!

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Man Takes Stunning Photos Of Christmas Ornaments Being Shot

by Unknown on January 29, 2015 0 Comment

We all know that Christmas can be a stressful but fun time of year. It's for the kids, right?

Alan Sailer is a photographer who may be expressing some of that discontent with the holidays through his own work. Sailer is known for taking incredibly high-resolution photographs of things being shot. Yes, you read that correctly. This time, the subjects of his work are Christmas ornaments.

Let's take a look, shall we?

SHARE this article with your friends on Facebook. These are actually really cool.

1. In this dazzling photo, this ornament filled with Jell-O is shattered by the speeding bullet.

You can see the Jell-O hold the pieces together!

Yes, yes, it is.

Let's check out some more.

2. This Christmas ornament filled with colored sand may be more stunning, I'm not sure.

So satisfying.

We have a lot more!

3. Wow, look at the bullet just begin to exit the ornament!

The precision on this man's camera is simply ridiculous.

4. The blue inside contrasts so nicely with the red.

You can see purple where the two colors meet.

5. This thing really had no chance.

That is quite the explosion.

6. This one is my favorite.

It looks like it's filled with milk...

7. Doesn't it seem like this guy has a problem with Christmas?

I'd really love to know.

8. OoooOoo, a clear one!

9. Okay, I've changed my mind, this is my favorite.

What a beaut.

You're very welcome, sir.

Leave a COMMENTon Facebook letting us know which of these explosions was your favorite.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

16 Pictures That Perfectly Describe Every Parent's Life

by Unknown on January 28, 2015 0 Comment

If I see one more friggin' image of a family all neatly seated around the dinner table, eating all of their veggies and laughing together in perfect harmony, I'm going to snap.

Do you have kids? If your answer was "yes," then you probably agree with me.

Parenting is awesome. But there are so many more appropriate adjectives — messy, dirty, candid, embarrassing, loud, exhausting, gross...adventurous? Does that sound better?

But I kid. The parenting gig is tough at times, but we NEED to laugh at life's little mishaps.

Not everything will go to plan. In fact, MOST things won't. So go with the flow and you'll have way more fun.

SHARE this hilarious list with friends who can relate! #14 OMG.

1. When this is a nightmare highly likely to become a reality.

Or is she just starting a new reverse-mohawk fashion trend?