Grainy images of a large snake in Borneo's Baleh River have some locals afraid the mythical Nabu snake is back. Is Borneo's 100-foot river snake— reported yesterday by London's Telegraph and captured in photographs (one appears to the left)— real? Like the Loch Ness Monster, countless UFOs and Bigfoot, it's hard to say, says Hany Farid, a computer science professor at Dartmouth University, because it's been captured in such low resolution. "It's as if you took a blood sample," he says, "threw away 99 percent of it and asked me to do a forensic analysis." An expert of digital photography forensics , Farid notes that with so few pixels to analyze, there's much less evidence to weigh in one way or the other. At a high resolution —say, 1,000 by 1,000 pixels—tampering gets tougher. At that level, he says, "It's really hard to do. You've got to get it all just right." The low level of resolution is precisely why viewers should be skeptical. To make a fraudulent photo, he says, one would want to work in high resolution, fake it as cleanly as possible and then compress it and make it a bit blurry. "That's a good way of masking any artifacts that you've left behind," he says. Plus, Farid notes that although the fuzziness of UFO and Nessie photos might add a bit of desirable mystique, in this day and age of high-quality point- and-shoot digital cameras, there really aren't many reasons why anyone's daytime photos should be as blurry as those of the Borneo "snake." In addition to the resolution of the two snake photos, other characteristics of an easy fake pop up as well, he observes. Both images show the snake in a somewhat open area, not interacting with other objects. It would be a lot more difficult, Farid says, to fake a snake wrapped around a person. Although Farid won't opine whether the Borneo photos are real or manipulated, he suggests a handy rule of thumb: "When you look at images, you should think about, 'How hard would this be to do?
Thursday, 18 August 2011
Are the photos of Borneo's monster snake real?
Grainy images of a large snake in Borneo's Baleh River have some locals afraid the mythical Nabu snake is back. Is Borneo's 100-foot river snake— reported yesterday by London's Telegraph and captured in photographs (one appears to the left)— real? Like the Loch Ness Monster, countless UFOs and Bigfoot, it's hard to say, says Hany Farid, a computer science professor at Dartmouth University, because it's been captured in such low resolution. "It's as if you took a blood sample," he says, "threw away 99 percent of it and asked me to do a forensic analysis." An expert of digital photography forensics , Farid notes that with so few pixels to analyze, there's much less evidence to weigh in one way or the other. At a high resolution —say, 1,000 by 1,000 pixels—tampering gets tougher. At that level, he says, "It's really hard to do. You've got to get it all just right." The low level of resolution is precisely why viewers should be skeptical. To make a fraudulent photo, he says, one would want to work in high resolution, fake it as cleanly as possible and then compress it and make it a bit blurry. "That's a good way of masking any artifacts that you've left behind," he says. Plus, Farid notes that although the fuzziness of UFO and Nessie photos might add a bit of desirable mystique, in this day and age of high-quality point- and-shoot digital cameras, there really aren't many reasons why anyone's daytime photos should be as blurry as those of the Borneo "snake." In addition to the resolution of the two snake photos, other characteristics of an easy fake pop up as well, he observes. Both images show the snake in a somewhat open area, not interacting with other objects. It would be a lot more difficult, Farid says, to fake a snake wrapped around a person. Although Farid won't opine whether the Borneo photos are real or manipulated, he suggests a handy rule of thumb: "When you look at images, you should think about, 'How hard would this be to do?
Saturday, 13 August 2011
Mermaid Sightings Claimed in Israel
The Little Mermaid, a sculpture, sits on a rock in the harbor in Copenhagen,
Denmark. She's about as close to real as any mermaid stories told through
history, evidence suggests. The sculptor Edvard Eriksen created the
statue, unveiled in 1913.
Locals and tourists in the Israeli town of Kiryat Yam have been flocking to the coast in hopes of
glimpsing a creature that most people believe only exist in fairy tales.
An alleged mermaid, said to resemble a cross between a fish and a young girl, only appears at sunset. It
performs a few tricks for onlookers before disappearing for the night.
One of the first people to see the mermaid, Shlomo Cohen, said, "I was with friends when suddenly we saw a woman laying on the sand in a weird way. At first I thought she was just another sunbather, but
when we approached she jumped into the water and disappeared. We were all in shock because we saw
she had a tail." The sightings apparently began several months ago.
$1 million reward The town's tourism board is of course delighted with their newfound fame and local mystery fauna.
Taking a cue from the town of Inverness, Scotland (on the shore of Loch Ness), the Kiryat Yam government has offered a $1 million reward for the first person to photograph the creature. Town
spokesman Natti Zilberman thinks the reward money is well-spent. "I believe if there really is a mermaid
then so many people will come to Kiryat Yam, a lot more money will be made than $1 million.” Of course, if the mermaid does not exist -- perhaps it is a hoax, an optical illusion, or a simple misperception of a known animal -- then the town's reward money will remain safe and unclaimed,
while the economy benefits from the influx of tourists vying to get a photo that will leave them set for
life. It's not clear what people are seeing, though the power of suggestion and imagination can be strong.
Identifying animals in water is inherently problematic, since eyewitnesses by definition are only seeing a
small part of the creature. When you add in the factor of low light at sunset and the distances involved,
positively identifying even a known creature can be very difficult -- to say nothing of a mythological
one! Mermaids have long held fascination for seafaring peoples. There are a few dozen significant historical
claims of actual mermaid sightings. Most of them are clearly myths and legends , such as "true" stories about lovely young women who married sailors but were later discovered to be shape-shifting
mermaids (such as in the film "Splash"). Other reports date back centuries, and offer no proof or evidence other than a curious story. For
example, a Capt. Richard Whitbourne claimed he saw a mermaid in Newfoundland's St. James harbor in
1610. Another story, from 1830 Scotland, claimed that a young boy killed a mermaid by throwing rocks
at it; the creature looked like a child of about 3 or 4, but had a salmon's tail instead of legs. The villagers
supposedly had it a funeral and buried it in a small coffin. P.T. Barnum's mermaid Hoaxers have worked to satisfy the public's appetite for mermaids; the fact that none have ever actually
been found is only a minor inconvenience. The great showman P.T. Barnum introduced a mermaid to astounded crowd in the 1840s: his infamous
"FeeJee Mermaid", actually a taxidermy fake. The head and torso of a small monkey was grafted onto
the body and tail of a fish. It was bizarre and strange - --certainly nothing anyone had seen before — but
a far cry from the banners and posters suggesting a beautiful, half-naked woman. Other mermaid fakes appeared throughout the centuries. Some were manatees that had been dressed up
to resemble a human form and exhibited for profit. Whether the Israeli mermaid sighting is genuine, a hoax, or an innocent mistake exploited for tourism,
the reality of finding a real mermaid might be different than people imagine, as shown by a song from
the Newfoundland band Great Big Sea, which sings folk-rock versions of traditional sea shanties. One of
their most popular songs, titled "The Mermaid," tells of a lonely sailor who courts a mermaid: "I love the girl with all me heart / But I only like the upper part / I do not like the tail!"
Denmark. She's about as close to real as any mermaid stories told through
history, evidence suggests. The sculptor Edvard Eriksen created the
statue, unveiled in 1913.
Locals and tourists in the Israeli town of Kiryat Yam have been flocking to the coast in hopes of
glimpsing a creature that most people believe only exist in fairy tales.
An alleged mermaid, said to resemble a cross between a fish and a young girl, only appears at sunset. It
performs a few tricks for onlookers before disappearing for the night.
One of the first people to see the mermaid, Shlomo Cohen, said, "I was with friends when suddenly we saw a woman laying on the sand in a weird way. At first I thought she was just another sunbather, but
when we approached she jumped into the water and disappeared. We were all in shock because we saw
she had a tail." The sightings apparently began several months ago.
$1 million reward The town's tourism board is of course delighted with their newfound fame and local mystery fauna.
Taking a cue from the town of Inverness, Scotland (on the shore of Loch Ness), the Kiryat Yam government has offered a $1 million reward for the first person to photograph the creature. Town
spokesman Natti Zilberman thinks the reward money is well-spent. "I believe if there really is a mermaid
then so many people will come to Kiryat Yam, a lot more money will be made than $1 million.” Of course, if the mermaid does not exist -- perhaps it is a hoax, an optical illusion, or a simple misperception of a known animal -- then the town's reward money will remain safe and unclaimed,
while the economy benefits from the influx of tourists vying to get a photo that will leave them set for
life. It's not clear what people are seeing, though the power of suggestion and imagination can be strong.
Identifying animals in water is inherently problematic, since eyewitnesses by definition are only seeing a
small part of the creature. When you add in the factor of low light at sunset and the distances involved,
positively identifying even a known creature can be very difficult -- to say nothing of a mythological
one! Mermaids have long held fascination for seafaring peoples. There are a few dozen significant historical
claims of actual mermaid sightings. Most of them are clearly myths and legends , such as "true" stories about lovely young women who married sailors but were later discovered to be shape-shifting
mermaids (such as in the film "Splash"). Other reports date back centuries, and offer no proof or evidence other than a curious story. For
example, a Capt. Richard Whitbourne claimed he saw a mermaid in Newfoundland's St. James harbor in
1610. Another story, from 1830 Scotland, claimed that a young boy killed a mermaid by throwing rocks
at it; the creature looked like a child of about 3 or 4, but had a salmon's tail instead of legs. The villagers
supposedly had it a funeral and buried it in a small coffin. P.T. Barnum's mermaid Hoaxers have worked to satisfy the public's appetite for mermaids; the fact that none have ever actually
been found is only a minor inconvenience. The great showman P.T. Barnum introduced a mermaid to astounded crowd in the 1840s: his infamous
"FeeJee Mermaid", actually a taxidermy fake. The head and torso of a small monkey was grafted onto
the body and tail of a fish. It was bizarre and strange - --certainly nothing anyone had seen before — but
a far cry from the banners and posters suggesting a beautiful, half-naked woman. Other mermaid fakes appeared throughout the centuries. Some were manatees that had been dressed up
to resemble a human form and exhibited for profit. Whether the Israeli mermaid sighting is genuine, a hoax, or an innocent mistake exploited for tourism,
the reality of finding a real mermaid might be different than people imagine, as shown by a song from
the Newfoundland band Great Big Sea, which sings folk-rock versions of traditional sea shanties. One of
their most popular songs, titled "The Mermaid," tells of a lonely sailor who courts a mermaid: "I love the girl with all me heart / But I only like the upper part / I do not like the tail!"
Weird Creature Found in ThaiLand.
This creature , was found on Thailand, its
strangely shaped body leaves
a lot of mastery around it .
The photographer has
captured with his camera a
truly unique and amazing moment, and got himself a
fantastic photographs that
make up a great story. As all good mysteries it
happens in far away from the
technology wonders of the
modern society in Thailand.
You can see a lot of local folks
in the background of these photos that seem to worship
this creature they have
“found”. The end result is an
even more absurd and even
humorous scene. They
managed to get me even more amazed by this baby
powder and juices they
brought as a tribute to this
creature. They have even
brought a fan to keep it well
preserved for the scientists.
Lets turn to the main subject, or should I say object, of this photo series the fantastically colored and shaped body of the creature. There has been a lot of debates about what this creature might be and that is exactly the beauty of mystery, the inability to solve
it. It might be some kind of strange animal, it even looks like a mythical creature. Honestly I don’t know what to think about this event. These photographs do raise more questions than answers…
strangely shaped body leaves
a lot of mastery around it .
The photographer has
captured with his camera a
truly unique and amazing moment, and got himself a
fantastic photographs that
make up a great story. As all good mysteries it
happens in far away from the
technology wonders of the
modern society in Thailand.
You can see a lot of local folks
in the background of these photos that seem to worship
this creature they have
“found”. The end result is an
even more absurd and even
humorous scene. They
managed to get me even more amazed by this baby
powder and juices they
brought as a tribute to this
creature. They have even
brought a fan to keep it well
preserved for the scientists.
Lets turn to the main subject, or should I say object, of this photo series the fantastically colored and shaped body of the creature. There has been a lot of debates about what this creature might be and that is exactly the beauty of mystery, the inability to solve
it. It might be some kind of strange animal, it even looks like a mythical creature. Honestly I don’t know what to think about this event. These photographs do raise more questions than answers…
New Leafy Sea DRAGON foundNew Leafy Sea DRAGON found
Named after the dragonsof Chinese mythology,
Leafy seadragons
(Phycodurus eques)
resemble a piece of drifting
seaweed as they float in the seaweed-filled water.
The Leafy seadragon, with
green, orange and gold
hues along its body, is
covered with leaf-like
appendages, making it remarkably camouflaged.
Only the fluttering of tiny
fins or the moving of an
independently swiveling
eye, reveals its presence. Like the seahorse, the male
seadragon carries as many
as 150-200 eggs. After
being deposited by the
female, the eggs are carried
in the honeycomb-shaped area (known as the brood
patch) under the male's tail
for approximately eight
weeks. Seadragons have
no teeth or stomach and
feed exclusively on mysidopsis shrimp. Known
as "Australian seahorses"
in Australia, they are found
in calm, cold water that is
approximately 50-54° F
(10-12° C). Leafy seadragons have been
protected by the South
Australian government
since 1982.
Friday, 12 August 2011
Moundsville Prison Shadow Ghost.
spookypicture taken by Polly Gear of
the Mountaineer Paranormal
group at Moundsville Prison,
West Virginia of a shadow
person. This eerie location dates from 1866 and was the
home to many dangerous and
dark elements of society
including most recently
Charles Manson. Murders,
suicides, violence and executions all happened here.
It is extremely paranormally
active and as well as noises,
voices and odors, shadow
people have been seen all over
the location. Is this one of them? I think so.
Jenner Museum Ghost Scary.
picture taken at the Jenner Museum, Berkeley,England. Here's what the
Culture 24 website says about
it:
"There have always been
stories of ghosts at the Edward Jenner Museum. We
usually take them with a
pinch of salt," says Sarah
Parker,the museum’s director.
A BBC photographer dropped
in to get some snaps of the museum's latest exhibition
and when he got back to the
office discovered some
unexpected and unexplainable
shapes in his pictures. "I don't
believe in ghosts myself," says Chris Sandys, BBC
photographer, "but this is
strange! As soon as I'd taken
the panoramic photo, I
reviewed the image on the
camera, and straight away noticed this strange formation
of light, shaped like a figure,
through the doorway in the
next room". The figure looks
quite large and could be a
soldier as graffiti has been found in the attic with names
and ranks of soldiers who had
stayed in the house, possibly
during the 19th century.
Caergwrle Bridge Ghost
Members of the CheshireParanormal Society took this
fantastic picture on Packhorse
Bridge, Caergwrle, Wales.
Although this was just a
random shot, orbs had been captured by the group already
and several members felt
uneasy at the time. It's
believed a number of ghosts
haunt this bridge possibly in
connection with a former burial ground nearby, for
which the bridge was the
entrance.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)