Weird Universe Blog — May 15, 2019
The Yips Phenomenon in Golf
The Yips are defined as "a disorder in which golfers complain of an involuntary movement — a twitch, a jerk, a flinch — at the time they putt or even when they chip. This interferes with their ability to perform that activity.” It was the subject of a multidisciplinary study by researchers at the Mayo Clinic, who concluded:For <10 handicap male golfers and <12 handicap female golfers, the prevalence of the yips is between 32.5% and 47.7%, a high proportion of serious golfers. This high prevalence suggests that medical practitioners need to understand the aetiology of the yips phenomenon so that interventions can be identified and tested for effectiveness in alleviating symptoms. Although previous investigators concluded that the yips is a neuromuscular impediment aggravated but not caused by anxiety, we believe the yips represents a continuum on which 'choking' (anxiety-related) and dystonia symptoms anchor the extremes.
The Yips should not be confused with the Yip Yips, which are something completely different:
Posted By: Alex - Wed May 15, 2019 -
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Category: Medicine | Sports
The War Between the Snipe and the Clam
The rare technique of cut-paper animation, by Hu Jinqing, who just recently died.
The creator's Wikipedia page.
Posted By: Paul - Wed May 15, 2019 -
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Category: Animals | Fish | Oceans and Maritime Pursuits | Stop-motion Animation | 1960s
May 14, 2019
Croissant Sneakers
Odd collaboration: Sneaker brand Koio has partnered with pastry chef Dominique Ansel to produce croissant-themed sneakers. According to Fast Company:This may be the first-ever sneaker collaboration with a baker. And it is certainly the only sneaker inspired by a croissant on the market... The sneaker’s upper is made of calf leather that has the texture of eggshells, flour-white suede, patent leather the color of yellow butter, and detailing on the toe and heel that looks like sugar. To top everything off, the laces come adorned with a rose-gold croissant accent.
They can be yours for only $348. Oh, and each pair also comes with a package of Dominique Ansel pancake mix.
Posted By: Alex - Tue May 14, 2019 -
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Category: Fashion | Shoes | Food
Culver City Fiesta La Ballona Queen
Fiesta Queen finalists -- These ten girls are finalists in the Culver City Fiesta La Ballona queen contest to select five girls to reign over the community celebration Aug. 3-5. They will appear at Veterans Memorial Auditorium Friday night. July 14, when judges will pick the five finalists. From left they are Sally Adler of Westchester; Merry Allison of West Los Angeles; Marie Bailey of Culver City; Sandra Bettin of Santa Monica; Sally Jane Hutchison of Culver City; Mickey Jines of Venice; Doris Turner of Westchester; Barbara McMillan of Westchester; Connie Sue Moore of Culver City; Darlene Bevington of Culver City".
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Tue May 14, 2019 -
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Category: Awards, Prizes, Competitions and Contests | Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues | Regionalism | 1960s
May 13, 2019
Saved goldfish from drowning
“Not many people know that a fish can drown if it swallows too much water,” said Peter Hume, an inspector for the Royal Society.
Well, I certainly didn’t know that.
Waukesha Daily Freeman - Aug 13, 1968
Posted By: Alex - Mon May 13, 2019 -
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Category: Fish | 1960s
Artwork Khrushchev Probably Would Not Have Liked 21
Khrushchev definitely would not have approved of this filthy exhibitionism!
Posted By: Paul - Mon May 13, 2019 -
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Category: Art | Avant Garde | Statues and Monuments | Beauty, Ugliness and Other Aesthetic Issues | 1920s | Russia
May 12, 2019
Sears unveils new logo
Sears recently spent what is certainly a large amount of money to redesign its logo. When it unveiled the results last week, it explained:The new icon was created to represent both home and heart, this shape also conveys motion through an infinity loop, reminiscent of one getting their arms around both home and life. The rings, like those of a tree trunk, show longevity. With home and heart at the center, the rings radiate and grow to encompass our broad assortment of products and services
However, a lot of people have commented that the new logo looks an awful lot like the logo of Airbnb.
The irony here is that when Airbnb unveiled its logo, back in 2014, it was also controversial. People complained, first, that it looked too much like testicles, and also noted its similarity to existing logos, such as these:
This isn't the first time a company has spent a lot of money to redesign a logo, only to come up with something similar to an existing one. When NBC TV unveiled a new logo in 1975, after spending almost $1 million for a redesign, the result turned out to be almost identical to the existing logo of the Nebraska Educational Television Network.
Posted By: Alex - Sun May 12, 2019 -
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Category: Business | Design and Designers
Mystery Gadget 74
The purpose of this simple gadget?
The answer is here.
Or after the jump.
More in extended >>
Posted By: Paul - Sun May 12, 2019 -
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Category: Technology | 1940s
May 11, 2019
Shortest Commercial Flight
Odd Trivia: The shortest scheduled commercial flight in the world takes a mere 90 seconds. It's the Loganair flight between the Scottish islands of Westray and Papa Westray. From cntraveler.com:In good conditions, Loganair’s 1.7-mile jaunt between the Scottish islands of Westray (population: 640) and Papa Westray (population: 72) in the Orkneys, off the north coast of the mainland, can take under a minute. Headwinds can make the flight a whopping two-and-a-half minutes. Retired police officer Graham Maben is one of the route’s regulars; the 70-year-old Orkney native now runs a tour business on the islands, and estimates he has taken the flight around 40 times over the past 15 years.
Posted By: Alex - Sat May 11, 2019 -
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Category: World Records | Air Travel and Airlines
Follies of the Madmen #424
This ad raises the intriguing question: "What female thing did the saddle screw to produce the wallet?"
Source.
Posted By: Paul - Sat May 11, 2019 -
Comments (1)
Category: Anthropomorphism | Business | Advertising | Sexuality | 1940s
