http://webecoist.com Green Design, Sustainable Technology and Environmental Oddities Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:17:19 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en If you were asked to name a truly wonderful British film, chances are it was filmed at Pinewood Studios. Its great reputation has resonated worldwide, the scene for a thousand iconic images. Pinewood Studios recently had an inspiring exhibition, Water on Lens. It featured underwater photographs from movies such as ... http://webecoist.com/2009/11/05/water-on-lens-underwater-stage-filming-and-photography/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/lensbabiesthumb.jpg Here are 23 images taken from Pinewood Studios underwater movie shoots like The Da Vinci Code and Casino Royale, as well as some extra underwater stage filming photos. The largest web-spinning spider in the world has been identified, and she's a terror. The Nephila komaci was discovered in South Africa and displays some rather fascinating characteristics. Its webs, which can reach up to one meter wide, are impressive. But the most striking feature of the spider is its ... http://webecoist.com/2009/11/04/size-matters-largest-web-spinning-spider-found/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/nephila-komaci-spider.jpg Scientists have identified an interesting new species of spider in South Africa. The females are gigantic, the males are tiny, and their webs huge works of art. Few of nature's elemental phenomena are more powerful yet less permanent than lightning... well, not exactly. Fulgurites, or "petrified lightning", are the glassy trails of lightning strikes left in sandy soil or exposed rocks. As fragile as they are beautiful, fulgurites are the next best thing to holding a lightning ... http://webecoist.com/2009/11/03/fulgurites-high-glass-digs-where-lightning-goes-to-die/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Fulgurites_thumb.jpg As fragile as they are beautiful, fulgurites (so-called "petrified lightning") are the next best thing to holding a lightning bolt in your hand! All of your instincts may be screaming for you to avoid looking down at all costs, but when you’re this high in the air, the view is just irresistible. Whether you’re clinging for dear life to a rickety wooden rainforest observation tower or staring straight down through a glass floor ... http://webecoist.com/2009/11/02/got-vertigo-terrifying-towers-glass-balconies/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/tall-towers-thumb.jpg Afraid of heights? Even the photos of some of these insanely tall towers, lookouts and glass balconies will make your head swim. (Image via: Planetary Gear) Now that Winter is drawing in, we start to appreciate the things taken for granted in the balmier months - such as well-sheltered bus stops. The good news is that the latest designs are more luxurious and more eco-friendly than the soulless gappy cubicles we known so ... http://webecoist.com/2009/11/01/3-eco-bus-shelters/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/bsfrfin-1.jpg Winter is here: time to shiver in a bleak, nasty cubicle as you wait for your bus? Not so, as these three eco-innovative shelters demonstrate. (Images via: Animal Pictures Archive, It's Nature, Photo Bucket, It's Nature, PBS) With the endless run of horror movies, spook houses, candy, pumpkin seeds and other perks, Halloween is about as good as it gets in terms of a holiday that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Now just ... http://webecoist.com/2009/10/31/natures-halloween-tricks-31-scary-deep-sea-monsters/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Natures-Deep-Sea-Monsters-Thumbnail.jpg From vampire squid and fangtooth to viperfish and blobfish, nature is full of deep sea monsters that are perfect for inciting a scare on Halloween. Around Halloween, pumpkin wizards create extreme pumpkin carvings in every category you could imagine. Patterns can even be downloaded or carved on the fly. Give a carving knife to a geek, gamer, or gory movie lover and watch out! They create what they most enjoy. Gamer fans of the ... http://webecoist.com/2009/10/29/geeks-gamers-gory-flicks-114-cool-pumpkin-art-carvings/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/halloweenthumb.jpg A Halloween tribute to geeks, gamers, and gory flicks. Here are 114 treats, or cool pumpkin art as jack-o-lanterns with intricate carvings from freaky to geeky. Plastic drinking straws are one of the hallmarks of our disposable society. The little tubes are manufactured to be used just once, then they are discarded to sit in landfills for hundreds of years. And with our love of fast food and iced coffee, there are untold numbers of plastic ... http://webecoist.com/2009/10/28/suck-it-8-brilliant-examples-of-plastic-drinking-straw-art/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/plastic-drinking-straw-art.jpg If you thought plastic drinking straws were only good for one thing, think again. These projects upcyle the single-use item into permanently awesome art. Sun, sand and heat are the basic recipe for any amazing desert but like any creative cook, Mother Nature reaches for the spice to make things extra nice. These 10 desert delights are most definitely a treat for the eyes, though being stranded in any one of them might not ... http://webecoist.com/2009/10/27/thats-hot-the-10-most-amazing-deserts/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Amazing_Deserts_thumb1.jpg Sun, sand and heat are the basic recipe for any amazing desert but like any creative cook, Mother Nature reaches for the spice to make things extra nice. Doll’s Eyes, Fairy Bells, Miracle Leaf – how can plants with names like these be dangerous? Eat them, and you’ll be sorry you fell for their deceptive names and unassuming appearances. From a tree that can make you go blind to flowers that even kill unsuspecting honeybees, these 13 (more) ... http://webecoist.com/2009/10/26/gorgeous-but-deadly-13-unassuming-poisonous-plants/ http://webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/deceptively-deadly-plants-thumb.jpg From a tree that can make you go blind to pretty flowers that can make you keel over in minutes, these plants are not as innocent as they seem.