Crying is something we’ve all done, from the moment we are born, to when we’re watching a sad movie or laughing with joy.

But what is the biological purpose of creating water from our eyes when we feel strong emotions? First, there are few different kinds of tears.

The basal lubrication in our eyes is that constant layer of moisture that keeps our eyes from drying out.

Then there is the reflex lubrication that produces from irritants like dust or when we cut onions. This is because our brain releases hormones that trigger the glands in our eyes to protect them.

One of the reasons we cry when we are upset is to show those around us our true emotions. It puts us in a state of passiveness, blurring our eyes and almost handicapping us from any aggressive behavior.

Another theory says that crying is a literal way to the shed your stress. When we have any intense emotion of any kind, it needs to come out one way or another.

What’s incredibly interesting is that the compositional make up of reflex tears versus emotional tears are much different.

Reflex tears hold much higher levels of proteins within them, while emotional tears hold more of a chemical called ACTH which is a hormone linked to high stress levels. So when we are crying, we are literally releasing and shedding our stress.

Tears can be seen as a physical manifestation of an internal emotional reaction. It is our body’s way of releasing those emotions. Continue reading →

This abandon bowling alley was turned into one of the most surreal interactive art experiences ever. The Meow Wolf art collective is an art production company that creates immersive exhibits like haunted houses, museums and jungle gyms. In a 20,000 square-foot bowling alley in Santa Fe, New Mexico, they created “The House of Eternal Return”. This was actually purchased by the Game of Thrones author George RR Martin to allow the team to create this insane world.

 “They explained this vision of a Victorian house, unmoored in time and space with a haunted forest and a magical cave system, and portals to other worlds,” Martin told NPR. “And of course, it pushed all my buttons. I love that kind of stuff.”

This immersive experience is filled with color, texture and out-of-this-world design. In this interactive world, you are encouraged to touch everything, push every button and explore this vast and strange land.

One of the the organizers of the group says they were inspired by theme parks, burning man, grocery stores, and nature. What a strange combination.

Visitors have describe the experience to be like a real life MMORPG or a virtual reality that is actually there. This crazy world took over 18 months and 150 artist to finish. You can explore this amazing world yourself for only $18 if you live out of state and $15 for New Mexico residents.

What do you think of this Alice and Wonderland ask type place? Would you run around in this colorful land of surrealism?

Check them out here!

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Have you ever wondered where our eye color comes from?

Many people might assume the blue in some people’s eyes developed over time from the reflection from the sky or water. But the truth is a lot more interesting…

The team of researchers from Copenhagen university have found that a single mutation has caused the phenomenon of blue eyes. Every single blue eyed person are genetically related to 1 person who lived in the black sea region between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago.

This gene called  OCA2 really started to be noticed about 8,000 years ago. Dr. Hans Eiberg claims that before this time, every person had brown eyes. This gene created a switch in our genetics which shifted the ability to produce brown eyes and started producing blue tinted iris’s.

Almost 95% of Europeans in Scandinavian countries all share the color blue in their eyes. The color blue in our eyes is as recent as Europe itself. The question many scientists are asking is why and how exactly did we go from no one having blue eyes 10,000 years ago to having 20 to 40% of Europeans having blue eyes now?

Have you ever noticed that most babies are born with bright blue eyes that sometimes change over time? I was born with blue eyes and now I have hazel colored eyes. Continue reading →

Samurais we’re considered military nobility and officers of medieval and early modern Japan. In Chinese, the kanji for samurai was a verb that meant to wait upon or a company persons.

While only less than 10% of Japan’s population were samurais, their teachings are still found today in daily day life and in modern Japanese martial arts. They served as the enforcement for the ruling shogunate and helped gain rule over the country during the 12th century.

In 1854, Japan finally decided to open it’s ports for international trade and these portraits were found. These pictures capture the final years of the existence of samurais in 1868. There was a prohibition of wielding a sword for anyone other than the Armed Forces which led to the dissipation of the samurai class.

To this day, bushido, meaning the way of the warrior is still a thriving concept. It originates from the samurais moral values, stressing the importance of frugality, loyalty, martial arts and honor. These stunning portrait take us back in time to world seemingly so foreign to ours, yet it was only a few hundred years ago these masters roamed the earth.

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An amazing new and simple DIY air conditioner has swept across many villages in Bangladesh. Because of the threat of flooding, a staggering 70% of the population lives in tin huts.

Most of these aren’t hooked up to electricity or water, so in the summer you can imagine how unbelievably hot they can get.

It gets so bad, a project called eco-cooler has formed because of the impact. Their mission is to spread the knowledge of how to make these cheap and electricity free methods to cool down the houses throughout Bangladesh.

Originally starting from the advertising agency Grey Dhaka and Grameen Intel Social Business Ltd, their collaboration has created something beautiful. All you need are a few plastic bottles and a board to make this simple cooler.

It works by cutting the bottles in half and mounting them on a grid through bottleneck size holes. You then place the board over window with the bottleneck facing inwards, and that is it! It’s really that simple. Continue reading →

These nuns are breaking all traditions of ordinary nun-hood. The sisters actually don’t consider themselves Catholic or associate with any specific traditional religion. These women have the purpose of cultivating cannabis and understanding that it is a sacred medicine to be respected. They call themselves Sisters of the Valley, and on their site it states:

“We respect the breadth and depth of the gifts of Mother Earth, working to bridge the gap between Her and her suffering people,”

They’ve created a spiritual space that they consider sacred to produce different kinds of CBD oil’s, tinctures, salves and different organic medicine. Many of these concoctions have proven to be extremely effective in treating a wide range of ailments, anything from back pain, seizures, migraines and much more.

These women are amazing because they observe the cycle of the Moon and produce the medicine in conjunction with the Moon cycles. This is incredible because the energy they are putting into their creations are extremely full of care and purity.

Located in California’s Central Valley, these sisters are really bending the rules of what it means to be a sister.

Check them out here.
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