PechaKucha Night was devised in Tokyo in February 2003 as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.
It has turned into a massive celebration, with events happening in hundreds of cities around the world, inspiring creatives worldwide. Drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of “chit chat”, it rests on a presentation format that is based on a simple idea: 20 images x 20 seconds. It’s a format that makes presentations concise, and keeps things moving at a rapid pace.

With PechaKucha Nights now happening in over 230 cities around the world they have discovered that most cities - not just Tokyo have virtually no public spaces where people can show and share their work in relaxed way.

If you have just graduated from college and finished your first project in the real world - where can you show it? It probably won’t get into a magazine, you don’t have enough photos for a gallery show or a lecture - but PechaKucha 20×20 is the perfect platform to show and share your work.

Good PechaKucha presentation are the ones that uncover the unexpected, unexpected talent, unexpected ideas. Some PechaKuchas tell great stories about a project or a trip. Some are incredibly personal, some are incredibly funny, but all are very different making each PechaKucha Night like ‘a box of chocolates’.

Are you a PechaKucha?

Philippe Walter and his team at the Louvre in Paris have now examined the faces of seven paintings signed by the master with a new non-invasive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy technique. As the scientists report Mona Lisa’s secret lies in many whisper-thin layers of a transparent glaze. “Neither brush stroke nor contour is visible: lights and shades are blended in the manner of smoke,” says Walter. The details of how the sfumato technique worked have not been determined before.

And this is the ultimate secret of Mona Lisa’s face: the darker areas arose because a manganese-containing layer was applied more thickly than in the lighter areas. The underlying layers containing lead white are equally thick all over.  The long drying time of the individual layers, lasting weeks and months, explains why Da Vinci worked on the Mona Lisa for over four years, leaving the painting unfinished, according to texts from the Renaissance period.

Next time we visit Mona Lisa in the Louvre in Paris we can enjoy this master piece of Da Vinci even better.

This is the best way to pour champagne: in an angled, down-the-side way.  Doing it this way there is less loss of bubbles which are important for transfering the taste, aroma, and mouth-feel of champagne.  Another essential fact to keep the loss of bubbles small is to chill the champagne to ideally 39 degrees Fahrenheit.

Now we know scientifically how to pour champagne the best way. Let’s enjoy it.

They let a clown ride a unicycle on public places of Erfurt. People who passed the clown while using the cell phone were asked just seconds later if they saw something unusual.

The results are impressive. About 75% of the persons using a cell phone didn’t see anything unusual and even answered to the question if they even didn’t see the clown with no.

Everybody using the cell phone while driving but even while walking should be aware that they lose a big part of their attention toward their surroundings.

Host families range in size, ethnicity and background, but share the desire to open their hearts and homes to give city children an experience they will never forget. Hosts say the Fresh Air experience is as enriching for their own families, as it is for the inner-city children. There are no financial requirements for hosting a child.

The Fresh Air Fund is in need of host families for this summer. If you’re interested feel free to visit the website of the Fresh Air Fund.

We have decided to focus our attention toward other writing projects that we’ve neglected for many months.

From time to time we’ll update you with stories that we find too important to not pass along and we’ll notify our followers on Twitter.

Thanks to our loyal readers for your support and comments.

The first shoe-similar footwear can be found on Spanish cave drawings from more than 15,000 years ago.  The drawings show humans with animal skins or furs wrapped around their feet.  In order to find the very first real shoes we probably have to go back to the Sumerian culture in Mesopotamia.  These first shoes were soft sided and made of wraparound leather.  They looked similar to what we know today as moccasins.

Shoemaking was introduced into the United States in 1629,.  The earliest known shoemaker was Thomas Beard, who arrived in Salem, Mass., in 1629.

Not so long ago there was no difference between right and left shoe.  Until 1850 both shoes, left and right, were made in the same form.  With today’s highly stylized and customize footwear it’s hard to imagine people wearing the same shoe on both feet. 

Today companies use advanced technology to design high fashion shoes as well as improve the performance of athletic footwear.

According to UNESCO, the patron for Denkmal, it is an “outstanding platform  for the international exchange of experience in heritage conservation, it is a successful symbiosis of exhibition and  special shows.” 

After Italy (2004), France (2006) and Hungary (2008) the Denkmal trade fair’s new national partner is now confirmed to be Poland.  Being the national partner is a great honor and opportunity to present the achievements of Polish heritage conservation to an international public.

Denkmal 2010 will take place November 18-20, 2010 in Leipzig, Germany.

The health benefits of bananas are numerous.  They ease constipation and halt diarrhea, protect our eyesight and promote kidney health.

Sport enthusiasts appreciate the potassium-power delivered by this high energy fruit.

Bananas are one of the best sources of potassium necessary for maintaining normal blood pressure and heart function.  Additionally one banana a day can protect against atherosclerosis.

Many Americans have a high-salt diet which originates from eating prepared meals and chips.  High-salt diets cause an increased calcium loss which weakens the bones.  The potassium in the bananas counteract this calcium loss and indirectly help to promote bone health.  Bananas help to build stronger bones by increasing the absorption of calcium.

Bananas correct another health problem caused by drinking too much coffee or energy drinks, stomach ulcers.  Substances in bananas activate the stomach to produce a stronger barrier against stomach acids.

Even if they weren’t so delicious, the health benefits alone would be enough reason to eat more bananas!

This ultimate London Ghost Walk is called “Lantern Walks of Hidden Horror” and guided by Fred Strangebone  alias Ben Whitehead, British comedian and voice imitator.

Holding a hurricane lantern and with sullen looks he leads horror-loving tourists to London’s most creepy places.

Some called this kind of city tour “more of a moving performance than a tour”.

Ben Whitehead offers in five different horror tours through London.

Happy Halloween!