Category: Culture

Jigsaw Puzzledom

~ mehopper

I got lost in puzzles, and I couldn’t get out!

However, unlike most normal people, I didn’t get lost in doing jigsaw puzzles.

Nope. Leave it to me. I managed to get lost in finding out about them.

The journey began when I saw this video about a color-changing jigsaw puzzle from the MoMA Design Store.

MoMA Design Store (YouTube Channel)
MoMA Design Store (Official Website)

Geeezzz! Who thought of that? It looks mind-bendingly hard, but still neat!

Then this time-lapse video posted by Andre F caught my eye.

Andre F (YouTube Channel)

Again, neat! The description of the video said that the puzzle was called Around the World.

I did a Google search and, Voilà!, I found it …

Around the World – 42000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle for $559.99 (Puzzle Warehouse)

… but, I had also fallen deeper down the rabbit hole that is Jigsaw Puzzledom.

I couldn’t help noticing that my search for Around the World Jigsaw Puzzle also brought up a video about a different puzzle from Ravensburger entitled Disney Moments. Here’s a mini-documentary about their 40,320 piece monster.

Ravensburger UK (YouTube Channel)
avensburger UK (Official Website)

You may have noticed that the video covered just about everything that most normal people would ever want to know about how puzzles are made. However, if you want to know more, then here’s a recent article from the New York Times that I stumbled upon.

Here’s How Those Hot Jigsaw Puzzles Are Made (Amie Tsang, The New York Times)

Then I got curioius and did some fact checing. Guess what?

The Guinness World Records website says that the jigsaw puzzle with the “mostest” actually had a whopping 551,232 pieces, and it was completed by 1,600 students of the University of Economics in Vietnam.

Nice trivia.

In addition, the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of jigsaw puzzles is held by Luiza Figueiredo in São Paulo, Brazil. This 360° video shows a quick glimpse of her epic collection of 1,047 puzzles.

Watch the video below in 360° on YouTube here!

VR 360 (YouTube Channel)

Okay, as you can tell, I was way into Jigsaw Puzzle Land at this point.

Heck, while I was there, I decided that I might as well wander around and explore a bit more.

For example, YouTube kept suggesting that I watch a video about the history of jigsaw puzzles.

Piecing together the history of jigsaw puzzles (CBS Sunday Morning, YouTube)

If you would like to learn more about the history of jigsaw puzzles, then you might also be able to get your hands on the book The jigsaw puzzle: piecing together a history by Anne Williams (the historian featured in the CBS Sunday Morning clip above).

Also, did you know that you can order personalized puzzles from Shutterfly, Portrait Puzzles and Create Jigsaws?

Finally, if you’re still reading this post, let alone doing any of that stuff, then you’ve fallen deep into Jigsaw Puzzledom, too.

If that’s the case, then you should know that you’re in good company. Here’s an article that explains that you belong to a club that includes the likes of Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Bill Gates and Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones!

The Rich and Famous Who Love the Humble Jigsaw Puzzle (Wentworth Wooden Puzzles)

Fun stuff!

Alas, no matter how great the company, I had to finally drag myself out of Jigsaw Puzzle Land to share this with you, and then get back to work on what I should be doing (i.e. a much needed overhaul of this Cosma web site).

I will leave off here, but if you continue exploring Jigsaw Puzzledom on your own, then there’s a few things you should know.

First, be careful about calling yourself by a term like “Puzzler.” It’s colloquial. The correct, technical term to use is Dissectologist.

Second, you may want to join a club called the Benevolent Confraternity of Dissectologists. If you’re into jigsaw puzzles, seriously, check that out!

On the other hand, if this post has just gotten you in the mood to work a jigsaw puzzle, right here and now, then you will probably enjoy the online puzzles at Jigsaw Explorer!

Enjoy some for me! 🙂

Find out more about hobbies, fun and games…

Wacky World

~ mehopper

It’s a weird and wacky world out there, and Guinness World Records (GWR) loves to remind us of that fact from time to time.

Just last week they released their 66th Edition of extreme factoids and an accompanying media blitz to rain outrageous strangeness down upon the media landscape.

It all started with a silly little one minute video. Here’s a link to it.

Guinness World Records 2020 – Out Now (Guinness World Records, YouTube)

Then Guinness World Records followed that up with a two minute video highlighting their hand-picked stars.

Meet The Stars of GWR 2020 (Guinness World Records, YouTube)

Then there was this article on their website with more detail about the “Stars” in the video.

Power your Curiosity: Introducing the Stars of Guinness World Records 2020 (Connie Suggitt, Guinness World Records)

They also have a YouTube Channel where they post separate videos about the Stars.

Finally, they distribute their press release, and voilà, there’s a media frenzy.

The next thing you know, news organizations starved for something to cover besides politics, the weather, the state of the roads and whatnot, latch on to it and print articles like this one.

Pinky Pull Ups, Mayo Eating and Other Weird Feats in the New Guinness World Records book (Scottie Andrew, CNN)

There is a finer point to be made here, though. Guinness World Records is a business, so they tend to delve into a “records for hire” approach sometimes.

That is why I was able to find a 360° video with this description.

Watch the All-New F-PACE defy gravity in a Guinness World Record-breaking 360° loop. As we celebrate our 80th anniversary, our new performance SUV was driven with daring precision by Legendary Stunt Driver Terry Grant, showcasing its lightweight design, agility, sports car speed and performance.

Here is a link to the video.

Jaguar F-PACE 360° Experience of Gravity-Defying World Record Loop (Jaguar, YouTube)

Yes, indeed, for better or worse, profit motive or not, they do a great job of catering to all sorts of interests — they even had a cool 360° video for me to post about here!

Lest you think you’re safe from their hijinks, I highly recommend that you check out their Showcase organized by interests. Better yet, you may wish you’d stuck to cat videos, because the website has a category for animal lovers!

Oh nooo… there you gooo…

Happy Weekend!

Find out more about competitions and the rest of the World in general …

The Maya Underworld

~ mehopper

Chichén Itzá is a fascinating place, and believe it or not, it’s just gotten even more so!

But let’s start from the beginning.

In case you aren’t familiar with it, here’s a link to a 360° video that will give you a sense of why it is considered a World Wonder.

Seven Wonders of the World: Chichén Itzá | 360 Video (The New York Times, YouTube)

It’s hard to believe that such a place could become more intriguing, but I just stumbled across another 360° video in which archaeologist Guillermo de Anda explains how there’s more below El Castillo than meets the eye — a lot more!

Inside Chichén Itzá | 360 Video (National Geographic< YouTube)

That video hardly scratches the surface of what Guillermo de Anda and Gran Acuífero Maya are discovering about underwater caves and their importance to the Maya.

Not only was Chichén Itzá built over a cave, but that cave is connected to Sistema Sac Actun which is now considered to be the largest underwater cave system in the world. In addition, sinkholes called cenotes serve as a network of entrances to the cave system!

Al Jazeera (YouTube Channel)
Al Jazeera (Official Website)

The most mind boggling thing of all is that divers are finding both Maya relics and much, much older human artifacts in the the underwater caves. Here’s a link to a video about the discovery.

Divers Discover 215-Mile-Long Cave in Mexico Full of Mayan Relics (Business Insider, YouTube)

Here are links to where you can learn more about these discoveries!

Remains of Maya Underworld Found in World’s Longest Submerged Cave (Megan Gannon, Live Science)
Cave Full of Untouched Maya Artifacts Found at Chichén Itzá (Jason Daley, Smithsonian Magazine)
World’s Largest Underwater Cave System Discovered in Mexico (Jason Daley, Smithsonian Magazine)

Follow these links to learn more about Chichén Itzá!

City of Chichén Itzá (UNESCO World Heritage Centre)
Chichén Itzá (National Geographic)

Find out more about Mexico, the Americas, the World and History …

Palessi Shoes

~ mehopper

Payless pulled off quite a stunt!

They set up a fake “luxury” store dubbed “Palessi” and filled it with their $20-$40 footwear. Then they invited so called “influencers” to a clever party, and the invitees actually ended up paying up to $600 for the Palessi shoes.

Here’s a link to an ABC News YouTube video and news story about the “prank.”

Payless Opens Fake Luxury Shoe Store as Prank (ABC News)
How Payless Tricked Influencers Into Paying $600+ for Their $20 Shoes (Holly Rhue, Elle)

Here’s a link to a Payless commercial that explains the prank.

The Payless Experiment (Payless YouTube)

Of course, it’s shoe haute couture that was being lampooned in the ad. Yes, some people really do pay many hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars for shoes.

Here’s a video tutorial and article for those of you that are unfamiliar with brands like Christian Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik that are featured at places like Neiman Marcus and shows like Sex and the City.

AllTop Ten (YouTube Channel)

Top 25 Most Expensive Shoes in the World (Beautiful Life)

Lest you think it’s just those of the feminine persuasion who fall prey to expensive shoe fetishes, here’s an article that covers the masculine side of the isle as well.

Top 10 Most Expensive Shoe Brands of 2024: From Gucci to Stuart Weitzman (Finances Online)

So, you may wonder, why are such shoes so outrageously expensive?

Here is a link to a short featurette thta covers some reasons why Christian Louboutins start at more than $600 and can cost more than five grand.

Why Louboutin Shoes Are So Expensive (Business Insider, YouTube)

Here’s a link to 360° video by the British Fashion Council with Manolo Blahnik explaining his artistic design process.

Join Master Shoemaker Manolo Blahnik in Virtual Reality

Finally, here’s a link to a fun video of Consumer Reports slaughtering a Manolo Blahnik.

Cutting up Manolo Blahnik Shoes (Consumer Reports)

Here’s a link to their research and results.

Are Manolo Blahniks Worth the Money? (Consumer Reports)

Short story, yes , they are better constructed, and perhaps more fashionable, but not necessarily more comfortable.

No shocker there 🙂

Find out more about fashion and commerce …

Maya Megalopolis

~ mehopper

You may remember learning about the Maya in school, and you may have heard of Chichén Itzá (UNESCO) because it is often included on recent lists of “World Wonders” (as well as being a convenient day drive from Cancún). Here’s a link to a 360° video that will give you a sense of what it’s like to see Chichén Itzá.

Seven Wonders of the World: Chichén Itzá | 360 Video (The New York Times, YouTube)

There are also other less heavily promoted places where you can see Maya ruins, and one of the most impressive and famous is in Tikal, Guatemala (UNESCO). Here’s a link to a 360° video that will give you a sense of what it’s like to visit those ruins.

Tikal, Guatemala 360 VR Temple Number 2 (Miguel Barreto MAC, YouTube)

It is actually these ruins that are receiving more attention right now, and that is because an organization called Fundación Patrimonio Cultural y Natural Maya (Pacunam) backed a project to use a “laser” technology called Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) to discover and map what is being called a “megalopolis” built by the Maya from 250 to 950 CE. Here are links to a video and two news stories about it.

Lasers On Planes Used To Reveal Massive Complex Of Mayan Ruins (NBC Nightly News, YouTube)

Sprawling Maya Network Discovered under Guatemala Jungle (BBC)
Laser Mapping Uncovers Dozens of Ancient Mayan Cities (Oscar Holland, CNN)

Here is a link to a slightly longer, in-depth story that also mentions a nifty Augmented Reality (AR) application that makes it possible to “navigate” LiDAR data.

Scientists Use Laser Technology to Uncover More Mayan Ruins (CBS Mornings, YouTube)

Find out more about the Americas, the World and History …