Beryl Markham was a Kenyan aviator born in England (one of the first bush pilots), adventurer, racehorse trainer and author. She was the first person to fly solo, non-stop across the Atlantic from Britain to North America. She wrote about her adventures in her memoir, West with the Night.
Vladimir Demikhov was a Soviet Russian scientist and organ transplantation pioneer, who performed several transplants in the 1940s and 1950s, including the transplantation of a heart into an animal and a heart–lung replacement in an animal. He is also well known for his dog head transplants, which he conducted during the 1950s, resulting in two-headed dogs.
Model warship combat is an international club activity, in which participants construct radio-controlled scale models of actual warships, most commonly those built by various nations prior to 1946, such as the USS Des Moines or the German battleship Bismarck. The models are armed with pneumatic cannons, and fight against one another on ponds and lakes.
The gumboot chiton is the largest species of chiton, a type of marine mollusk found along the rocky coasts of the North Pacific, from California to Alaska and across to Japan. Known for its reddish-brown, leathery mantle that covers its eight armored plates, the gumboot chiton is often referred to as the "wandering meatloaf" due to its appearance. It can grow up to 36 cm (14 inches) in length and feeds primarily on algae, which it scrapes off rocks using its radula, a tongue-like organ studded with rows of teeth.
Camel Trophy was an off-road vehicle-oriented competition that was held annually between 1980 and 2000. It was best known for its use of Land Rover vehicles over challenging terrain. The event took its name from its main sponsor, the Camel cigarette brand.
The gyro monorail is a single rail land vehicle that uses the gyroscopic action of a spinning wheel to overcome the inherent instability of balancing on top of a single rail.
The Bond Bug is a wedge-shaped microcar, with a lift-up canopy and side screens instead of conventional doors.
The Hustler is a unique, modular automobile designed by British industrial designer William Towns and produced by his company, Interstyl, in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Best known for its unconventional aesthetic and versatility, the Hustler epitomized Towns' vision of a practical yet distinctive vehicle that stood apart from traditional car designs.
The Windward Performance Perlan 2 is an experimental research glider that was designed by Greg Cole. On 2 September 2, 2018, it reached an altitude of 76,124 ft (23,203 m), surpassing the 73,737 ft (22,475 m) attained by Jerry Hoyt on April 17, 1989 in a Lockheed U-2.
Ghost apples are a natural phenomenon that occurs in certain conditions during the winter months in apple orchards, particularly in regions with cold climates. These peculiar apparitions resemble translucent, icy shells suspended from tree branches, resembling ghostly versions of the fruit they once were. Ghost apples are formed through a combination of freezing rain and subsequent thawing. When freezing rain coats the apples on the tree, it forms a layer of ice around the fruit. If temperatures rise suddenly after the freezing rain, the apples may thaw and decompose, leaving only the icy shell of the apple behind. As the rotten fruit falls out or is picked by harvesters, the hollow ice shell remains, giving rise to the ghostly appearance. Ghost apples typically have a delicate, ethereal appearance, with a translucent outer layer resembling ice. Inside, they are hollow, devoid of the fruit pulp and seeds that would typically fill an apple.