3d illusion arts: Oddity Central

Oddity Central

Poor Chinese Family Make Their Home in Public Toilet
Incredibly Detailed 34-Meter-Long Train Model Is Made Entirely from Chocolate
Japan Develops Shock-Absorbing Electric Car Covered in Airbags

Poor Chinese Family Make Their Home in Public Toilet

Posted: 20 Nov 2012 10:39 AM PST

A family of migrant workers in China too poor to rent a proper apartment, have made their home in a public restroom, on Beijing Road, the busiest and most popular shopping strip in Guangzhou.

Earlier this year, I wrote a post about a resourceful Chinese family in Shenyang who managed to turn an abandoned public restroom into a cozy home. Their story was pretty unbelievable, but the one I’m presenting today is even more so. 33-year-old Liao Xiaoming, his wife and their child all live in a functional public toilet on the busiest street in all of Guangdong province. Not wanting to leave their child behind in their native village as they left to the big city in search of a better life, the two accepted the job of contract public restroom cleaners, because kids of contract cleaners can attend local schools in Guangdong without paying temporary schooling fees. Normally, Chinese residency restrictions prevent children of migrant workers from attending local public schools in cities where they parents are serving. Since their child’s education is very important, the two parents agreed to the contract, even if that meant they had to live in it too.

Their unusual home is located on Beijing Road, in between shops and billboards, and has a small sign above that reads “public toilet”. The pathway leading to the toilet is so narrow that it’s hard to imagine how a slightly overweight person could make their way through. Inside, the restroom looks clean enough, thanks to the efforts of Wang Xuanna and Liao Xiaoming, but it’s not somewhere where you’imagine someone could live. As you walk by the cubicles you can see a small room, barely 2 meters by 2 meters in size. This is where Wang cooks and deposits most of their stuff. It’s also where they eat dinner as people walk in and out of the public toilet. Luckily, they also have a small attic above the room, where they sleep and where they like to hang out, watch TV and play cards, from time to time. Their bathroom is the toilet for disabled people, where a shower means rubbing their bodies with soap and washing it off with a bucket of hot water. It’s hardly the ideal home, but the son comments "as long as we have a place to sleep…"

Wang and Liao wanted to rent a studio, where they could raise their 13-year-old son properly, but renting a mere bed in the nearby neighborhoods costs 400 yuan ($64) a month. Their monthly salary is 3000 yuan, barely enough to cover all of their daily expenses and the boy’s books. "If not for my son's education, we wouldn’t have taken this job. It's not paying well. We can earn much more if we go back to our village, growing vegetables and raising pigs. Besides, we have a much bigger house back home," the husband says. But his wife seems more optimistic: "Happiness isn’t about money. Happiness is about a loving family. I feel happy because my husband cares about me and my son is a good boy." Her only wish is that he son does well in school. Once he graduates from college and lands his first job, she and her husband will be carefree.

This story proves China’s economic growth can be deceiving. The truth is the gap between the country’s rich and poor has never been wider, and while some people bathe in luxury, others are struggling to make ends meet and put their kids through school.

SINA News via Offbeat China

Poor Chinese Family Make Their Home in Public Toilet was originally posted at OddityCentral.com

Incredibly Detailed 34-Meter-Long Train Model Is Made Entirely from Chocolate

Posted: 20 Nov 2012 05:52 AM PST

Created by master chocolatier Andrew Farrugia, from Malta, this edible train model has set a new Guinness World Record the longest chocolate structure in the world. It measures a whopping 34 meters in length and features every detail of a classic steam-powered choo-choo.

Unveiled at the “Brussels Chocolate Week”, in Belgium’s capital city, this tasty masterpiece had everyone drooling. Made of 2,755 pounds (1250 kilos) of the finest Belgian chocolate, donated by chocolate brand Belcolade, this 34-meter-long steam train replica took Maltese chocolate artist Andrew Farrugia a painstaking 784 hours to complete. If you’re wondering about calorie volume, this delicious masterpiece packs a massive 6.5 million calories. Farrugia got the idea for the train last year, when visiting Belgian Chocolate Festival in Bruge. ”I had this idea for a while, and I said what do you think if we do this realization of a long chocolate train, you know, because a train you can make it as long as you like,” he told the press.

Photo: L’Avenir

The chocolicious train is made of two parts: the first seven wagons are modeled after the new Belgian trains, and the rest of the train is modeled after the old train wagons, including a wagon with a bar and restaurant on board. The artist created the masterpiece in his home country of Malta, and had all its different parts transported to Belgium in 25 wooden boxes. Unfortunately, the train sustained considerable damage during the trip, and several of the train’s walls had completely collapsed. But, after working day and night to repair everything, the train was ready for the big unveiling, which took place yesterday.

Photo: L’Avenir

After measuring the train and confirming no other materials but chocolate were used, Guinness Book officials declared it to be the longest chocolate structure in the world. It’s still not the largest chocolate sculpture ever created, but it’s definitely impressive to look at.

Photo: L’Avenir

Photos from L’Avenir

News story via ITN

Incredibly Detailed 34-Meter-Long Train Model Is Made Entirely from Chocolate was originally posted at OddityCentral.com

Japan Develops Shock-Absorbing Electric Car Covered in Airbags

Posted: 20 Nov 2012 04:45 AM PST

Hiroshima University-affiliated startup business Humanix has recently revealed a three-wheel electric vehicle, called iSAVE YOU, which is covered in covered with an airbag-like cushion material that springs back to its original form after absorbing impacts.

You hear that, auto-makers around the world? You’re doing it wrong, airbags go on the OUTSIDE of the not the inside! At least according to Japanese company Humanix, whose golf-cart-like vehicle, iSAVE YOU, is covered in airbags. Researchers from the University of Hiroshima formed the venture company to sell their innovative creation for 790,000 yen ($9,740 USD). Professor Tsutomu, president of Humanix, told Japanese magazine Sponichi Annex that "the car will be perfect for our rapidly aging society and that there are already many requests for it from the elderly and disabled." The cushions covering the vehicle are made of a tent fabric and sponge, and will absorb shock waves in case of an impact, protecting both the passengers and pedestrians. The iSAVE YOU can run up to 30 km on a single charge and and can be recharged from any regular household electrical outlet.

According to the Humanix website, the biggest advantage of using a vehicle like iSAVE YOU, apart from the safety aspect, is the ease of registration. The iSAVE YOU vehicle can be registered as a trike (a bicycle with a light side-car) and it only requires a single, simple (almost free) inspection and registration procedures at the Light Motor Vehicle Inspection Center rather that the regular, instead of the regular “Shaken” registration which costs over 100,000 yen ($,1000+). Also, driving one of these three-wheeled vehicles doesn’t require proof of a costly parking space, or any liability insurance. Still, I don’t see how those exterior airbags are going to protect anyone from a serious impact with an SUV, for example…