Photographer Chris Allington, who lives in Omaha, Nebraska, loves chasing and photographing storms across the Great Plains.
Each spring I try to get out and document this clash of airmasses. The annual drama that plays out in tornado alley every year.
A Crossville, TN (US) minister named Horace Burgess owns the largest tree house in the world. It rises 97 feet into the sky, the support provided by a live, 80-foot-tall white oak 12 feet in diameter at its base. Six other trees brace the tower-like fortress. It has some 80+ rooms and dozens of porches, overlooks, nooks and stairways. Built from scrap wood, the site stands in a rural area, but is attracting people from all over the country.
As he tells the story, in 1993, Horace Burgess was praying when god told him, “If you build a tree house, I’ll see that you never run out of material.” A self-taught carpenter and landscape architect, he has worked almost constantly on the structure since then and he's not finished yet. For fourteen years, Minister Burgess has been adding to the tree house using recycled pieces of lumber from garages, storage sheds and barns.
Based on the line of successful greeting cards, mugs, and other stationary items, gifts website Takkoda, through the publishing house TeNeues, has released a series of humorous journals featuring masquerading animals on the cover, as well as on the inside pages.
Takkoda was started by two couples who were raised with a love for childhood stories of anthropomorphic characters. Growing up in rural England, they developed a love of animals as strong personalities, not cutesy pastiches. An interest in the cult of celebrity and an irreverent sense of humour combined to create “Pets Rock” - a range of famous faces pet parodies. The couple photographs real pets, capturing their natural expressions before dressing them up digitally to create their iconic personalities.
See, if you can recognize them all.
Kampong Phluk is a cluster of three villages of stilted houses built within the floodplain of the Tonle Sap lake, about 16 km southeast of Siem Reap, Cambodia. Flooded mangrove forest surrounds the area and is home to a variety of wildlife including crab-eating macaques, and 3000 human inhabitants.
The houses of Kompong Phluk are built on top of wooden poles and stilts between six and eight meters high and tower over the boats moored along the river, which snakes through the village before heading out into the Tonle Sap lake. During the dry season when the lake is low, the buildings in the villages seem to soar atop their 6-meter stilts exposed by the lack of water. At this time of year many of the villagers move out onto the lake and build temporary houses. In the wet season when water level rises, the villagers move back to their permanent houses on the floodplain, the stilts now hidden under the water.
Tonle Sap Lake, upon which the village of Kampong Phluk floats, exhibits a unique hydrologic phenomenon during the wet season - the river reverses direction, filling the lake instead of draining it. The engine of this phenomenon is the Mekong River, which becomes bloated with snow melt and runoff from the monsoon rains in the wet season. The swollen Mekong backs up into the Tonle Sap River expanding the surface area of lake more than five-fold, inundating the surrounding forested floodplain and supporting an extraordinarily rich and diverse eco-system.
Russian advertising agency STOYN has brought together 10 of the most iconic figures in world culture and embodied their images into lick-able ice creams. Every figure has a different taste that reflects the role of these individuals in the global culture - blueberry with licorice for Darth Vader, mate with rum for Che Guevara and strawberry and cream for Marilyn Monroe.
“I take the conventions from the fashion world and apply them to the underclass barnyard animal,” Rob MacInnis said to New York Times.
Some of the first animals he photographed belong to Angela and Frazer Hunter, who own a farm overlooking the Northumberland Strait in Nova Scotia. Mr. MacInnis knew the Hunters through a mutual friend, called them up and had a photo-shoot arranged. That was over five years ago.
Using a a medium-format Hasselblad camera, MacInnis takes both individual portraits of cows, goats, donkeys and horses and group shots which are inspired by Annie Leibovitz star-studded photos like those in seen in Vanity Fair.
"I began photographing farm animals because I was interested in using them as a metaphor for the fashion model," he told My Modern Metropolis. "I wanted to draw parallels between literally consuming them, which we do everyday, and the way the photograph 'consumes' its subject.
"Over the last five years, the project has evolved into more of a critique of photography's role in our society. I've experimented with different genres of photography; fashion, family portraits, documentary, narrative, and panorama, always using farm animals as the subject matter. I wanted to explore more how the camera manipulates its subject and constructs a reality, more than learn anything directly specific about the animals."
The fifth Kiev Fire Festival, which takes place over two days in the Ukraine, sees the world's best flame throwers and pyrotechnic experts gather in the city for thrilling displays. The first festival took place in 2007 and was held in the center of Kiev with an audience of around 2,000 spectators. In addition to the fire show, men and women performed acrobatics, and showed off arts and theater performances. The event culminates with a spectacular parade which organizers hope will 'give life' to a new genre of street art.
See pictures of last year Kiev Fire Festival.
In a contest entitled “Modern Renaissance” by Worth1000, a community of photo manipulation artist, participants put faces of celebrities such as actors and football players into old renaissance paintings, often famous ones. Although I’m not a big fan of either celebrity pictures or photo manipulation, this is something I was a bit amused to discover.
Below are some of the winning entries decided by user votes.
First place. Gemma Arterton
Duffy Sheridan has been painting since he was a child. His father, also an artist, encouraged him to learn to paint anything and everything. Although he and his family spent many years in relative seclusion in the far corners of the world, Sheridan's work has attracted the attention of collectors on five continents.
Since returning to the United States in 1991, his work has received international acclaim and he has been designated a Living Master by the Art Renewal Center. His paintings can be found in prestigious institutions from a Cathedral in the South Pacific to the US Air Force Academy to corporate headquarters in Manhattan, as well as in the private residences of kings, judges, bishops, doctors and collectors all over the world.
Unlike the rest of who throw away junk mails into trash can, American artist Sandhi Schimmel Gold has found a use for them. Yes, of course – art. She takes junk mails including greetings cards, tax forms, advertising brochures and other decorative papers and creates incredible mosaic art pieces in much the same way as a collage, except the shape of the pasted pieces are objects themselves. Sandhi sometimes embellish work with paint, ink or other materials.
Sandhi saw a portrait made of tiny fragments of colorful glass in Venice once. It was too heavy to carry by train, so she decided to make one "just like it" when she got home. After trial and error, she decided to use ephemera instead of glass or tile.
“It would be too simple to say I am inspired by Byzantine mosaics, Louis Comfort Tiffany or Antonio Gaudi,” she says. “It's both the assemblage and the color in the materials that moves me. I am process driven as well as image-centric....Figurative work has always inspired me – I tend to focus on the female. My vision is to create beautiful yet thought-provoking images of beauty; in vibrant color.”
When I saw Jamie Beck’s Cinemgraphs the first time two months ago, I totally fell in love with it. The feeling was universal. Here are some more gorgeous animated GIFs from her.
Artist Larry Moss uses airigami - which translates literally into the fine art of folding air - to create original works of art, installations and experiences that range from the ridiculous to the sublime. Among his many creations are works from famous artist such as da Vinci and Van Gogh, wearable pieces and large scale installation. Below is a sample of some of his bizarre work.
Larry Moss began his career 25 years ago as a NYC street performer, but has gone on to display his amazing air-filled art in 12 countries on four continents. He also holds the Guinness World Record for the largest non-round balloon sculpture since 2000.
Leonardo DaVinci's Mona Lisa
There are two ways to transport a boat between water at two different elevations. One method is to employ locks, often found on river and canal waterways. The other method is to physically lift the boat from one waterway and place it on to another. Boat lifts are not very common, and the Falkirk Wheel, near the town of Falkirk, is the only rotating boat lift of its kind in the world, and is regarded as an engineering landmark for Scotland.
The 35 meters tall Falkirk Wheel connects the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal, which were previously connected by a series of 11 locks that stepped down across a distance of 1.5km. But these has been dismantled in 1933, breaking the link. It was decided that a boat lift was necessary to connect the two waterways, but British Waterways were not keen on just any boat lift. They decided to create a dramatic 21st century landmark structure. The result - a perfectly balanced structure that is The Falkirk Wheel - the world's first and only rotating boat lift.
Roughly three hundred people in their undies endured the rain when they queued up outside a London fashion store in the hope of winning free clothes today, June 16. Spanish label Desigual promised an outfit of their choice to the first 100 people who showed up at their Regent Street branch for the 9am opening, but only if they’re in their underwear. The first punters turned up at 11pm last night and by the morning the queue was 300-strong.
Crowds flooded through the doors, running frantically, grabbing their favourite pieces off the pegs before leaving the shop fully clothed. One 22-year-old girl said: "I have been queuing from 2am this morning, it's been amazing - a little cold but definitely worth it to get some free clothes." Yeah, totally worth it. Besides, we got some nice shots!
Under the slogan 'Arrive Half Naked – Leave Fully Dressed' the event also happened today in Amsterdam, Stockholm, Berlin as well as London. The stunt will be organized again in Madrid on June 21 and Prague on June 24. Will you be attending?
The Royal Ascot is one of Europe's most famous race meetings, and dates back to 1711 when it was founded by Queen Anne. Every year Royal Ascot is attended by HM Elizabeth II and various members of the British Royal Family such as The Prince of Wales, with the Royal procession taking place at the start of each race day. The annual five-day racing event has highlighted both British fashion and horseracing since its inception. Top hats and tails remain compulsory in parts of the course. The third day is known as "Ladies' Day" and is the traditional high point for fashion at Ascot.
Below is a selection of designer hats spotted at the Royal Ascot this year. (Also see Wacky and Colorful Fans at the World Cup)
Alastair Grant / AP
Twenty-one year old make-up artist Katie Alves creates detailed drawings using just every day cosmetics to draw stunning scenes on eyelids. Katie works as a graphic designer in a print shop in Port Perry near her home in Ontario in Canada. In her spare time, using drugstore makeup, brushes and a pin for the tiniest details, she recreates movie scenes and original designs on her own eyelids - each eye taking between one and two hours to complete. Among her favorite are scenes from Disney animated movies like Little Mermaid, Entangled and Lion King. (Also see Lip Art by Paige Thompson)
Las Rambla is one of the landmark streets of Barcelona. The approximately 1.3 km long road, in the middle a pedestrian zone, connecting Plaça Catalunya in the centre with the Christopher Columbus monument at Port Vell is probably the central transport hub in Barcelona to the port. During prime time tourist season, La Rambla can get quite crowded because it’s also one of the major attractions of the city.
Walking down Barcelona's main street one encounters numerous street performers posing as ‘human statues’. These street artists feature as imaginative as they can, from celebrities and mythological beings to imaginary characters. They prop themselves up on little boxes, wave at tourists and put up little shows for a tip. If you happen to visit La Rambla, bring all your loose change and put it aside especially, but be careful of your belongings as the street has become the prime target for pick pocketing.
Born in Massachusetts, Adam Beane is quite a unique sculptor, known for his dynamic compositions, action poses, nuanced drapery work and his ability to capture likenesses with expressions.
From 1999 to 2001 Adam worked in two toy-prototype shops as a machinist where he used a variety of materials to produce everything from toy trucks to squirt guns. In the course of his jobs Adam was occasionally called on to use his burgeoning sculpting abilities to produce renditions of characters from children’s movies and TV shows. That was the extent of his forays into sculpting until 2002, when he had an opportunity to try sculpting sports figures as a freelancer for McFarlane Toys. He immediately took to it and by the end of the year had become one of their top freelance sculptors.
Russian miniature gun artist Alexander Perfiliev has been making model firearms for the last forty years. But they are not just pretty, scaled down replicas of the actual design – these miniature guns are perfectly capable of shooting bullets, if you had tiny bullets.
Alexander Perfiliev drilled his first hole using only a primitive hand brace back in 1970 when he built a replica of a Mauser. At that time he didn’t have access to fancy equipment or even a power drill, yet he managed to drill holes as tiny as 2 mm in a 3 mm diameter steel rods. Perfiliev spends an insane amount of time perfecting every detail of the gun. There’s a Mauser, an AK, Smith & Wessons, pistols, revolvers and everything. He’s made over 50 different models all with steel, with each model taking anywhere from half a year to a year.
Most of Alexander’s models can be seen in person in the central hall of an art salon in Zabaikalye.
Robert Longo is an American painter and sculptor whose primary medium of expression is charcoal on paper. Longo became famous in the 1980s for his "Men in the Cities" series, which depicted sharply dressed businessmen writhing in contorted emotion.
Included in this gallery are explosive drawings of atomic bomb blasts entitled "The Sickness of Reason", massive breaking waves entitled “Monsters” and portraits of sharks which he calls “Perfect Gods”. Also included are some drawings from "Men in the Cities" and few others.
Nearly three months after the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Japan is still struggling to clear the debris. In a series of photos taken by the AP, parts of Japan hit by the earthquake and tsunami are shown shortly after the disaster, then after nearly three months of cleanup efforts. It’s amazing to see the effort in some places to restore life to as normal as possible, while in other areas, it seems they have not yet started or simply given up. Either way, Japan has a long way to go. (Also see Before And After Satellite Photo’s of Japan’s Earthquake And Tsunami)
For years, travellers in Cambodia had to deal with one of the world's worst train networks. Trains run infrequently in between the villages, break-downs and derailments are common, and the trains themselves travel at little more than walking pace. So people in the north west of the country, near Cambodia's second city of Battambang, have taken matters into their own hands. They have created their own rail service using pieces of bamboo and abandoned barbell like train wheels. The locals call the vehicles "Norries", but overseas visitors know them as "bamboo trains".
Photo Credit: Going Slowly
Each bamboo train consists of a 3m-long wood frame, covered lengthwise with slats made of ultra-light bamboo, that rests on two barbell-like bogies. A repurposed water-pump or gasoline engine transfers power to the rear wheels by means of belts. These rickety contraptions can haul twenty or more people over the aging rails at speeds nearing 40 km/h, with the track just a couple of inches below the passengers. Warped and broken rails make for a bone-shaking journey.
But the drivers insist it is a safe form of transport.
"I use the bamboo trains to go to Battambang from my house in Phnom Teppedey so I can buy medicine," said Sao Nao as she sits on the rails with a small group of people, waiting for a norri to depart. "They're very safe - a motorbike taxi is too fast, and if I use one of those I sometimes get dizzy and fall off. On a bamboo train I can sit down and go to sleep. You can't do that on a motorbike."
Street artist Isaac Cordal’s installations are littered all over London, in the form of miniature cement figurines. If you are not careful when walking the sidewalks along the streets of London, you might even step into one of them. The figures are a part of a project termed ‘Cement Eclipses’ and deals with such themes as the anonymity and drudgery of city life.
Cordal models his figures first in clay and then casts multiples in cement using silicone molds. The multiples are then installed in their urban locations using strong epoxy glue, “representing a kind of metamorphosis in which the man leaves his roles as citizens camouflaging themselves with the city and slowly becomes part of furniture”, says the artist. “In this way confirms the voluntary isolation of human being with regard to nature, hidden among the sidewalks, streets, walls, etc., becoming the urban environment in their natural habitat.”
Isaac Cordal first began making cement sculptures in 2002 and first placed them out in the streets in 2006 in the Spanish city of Vigo. Since then, cement eclipses have been discovered in urban areas of several European cities including Berlin, London, Brussels, Liege, Barcelona, Vigo, etc. Many of the photographs in this dossier have been taken in London between September 2008 and January 2010, where I currently reside. (Also see Miniature Street Art by Slinkachu)
Japanese artist Sayaka Ganz uses discarded plastic utensils, toys and tidbits to create beautiful animal sculptures. Her plastic sculptures measure from 18 inches to over eight feet in length and can contain up to 500 pieces of junk.
Sayaka Ganz, 34, collects most of her material from charity shops and dust bins, and the rest is donated by friends and family. She then sorts everything plastic - from sunglasses and cutlery to baskets and cooking utensils - into 20 color groups in her basement in Indiana, US. She then ties each plastic junk into a wireframe until it takes the form of an animal in motion.
Her fascination with animals in movement permeates this collection. “When you look at the piece from the distance you see the form of the horse galloping, but when you get up close you start to see that individual objects were used”, she writes.
Some of her plastic utensil sculptures have sold for $12,000.
The Darvaza gas crater or “The Door to Hell” is a 60 meters wide and 20 meters deep hole in the heart of the hot, expansive Karakum desert in Turkmenistan, that has been on on fire for the last 38 years. But the hole is not of a natural origin. The large crater is a result of a Soviet gas exploration accident that occurred in 1971.
The Darvaza (also known as Derweze) area is rich in natural gas. While drilling in 1971, the Soviets accidentally tapped into a massive underground natural gas cavern, causing the ground to collapse and the entire drilling rig to fall in. To prevent escape of poisonous gas into the atmosphere, the geologists decided to light it on fire. They had hoped the fire would use all the fuel in a matter of days, but as it turns out, the supply of natural gas below the crater is near infinite as the crater’s been burning since.
On a dark night, the glow of the burning hole can be seen from miles away and the smell of burning sulfur can be detected from a distance that becomes quite strong as you near the hot edge of the crater. Photo credit
Red Bull Flugtag (German for ‘airshow’) is a fun event organized by Red Bull in which competitors attempt to fly homemade human-powered flying machines. The flying machines are usually launched off a pier about 30 feet high into the sea or lake. Most competitors enter for the entertainment value, and the flying machines rarely fly at all.
The first Red Bull Flugtag competition was held in 1991 in Vienna, Austria. It was such a success that it has been held every year since and in over 35 cities all over the world. The most recent one this year was held in Tel Aviv, Israel, on June 3. According to the organizers, some 50,000 spectators had gathered to enjoy the event.
Anyone is eligible to compete in the Flugtag event. To participate, each team must submit an application and their contraption must meet the criteria set forth by Red Bull, which are usually size of wingspan and weight of the craft. Because the aircraft will ultimately end up in the water, it must be unsinkable and constructed entirely of environmentally friendly materials.
Unknown to many Cincinnatians, sprawling under their feet is a vast network of abandoned and derelict subway tunnels – in fact, the United States’ largest abandoned subway tunnel. Construction of the Cincinnati subway began sometime around 1917, however, just 11 days earlier the United States entered World War I and construction was halted. By 1925 construction slowed to a stop before even half of the proposed 16 mile line was completed. Seven miles between Cincinnati's central business district and the industrial suburb of Norwood were tunneled, bridged, or graded, but no track was laid and no subway cars were ordered. No passengers ever rode between the six stations that were built.
Photo credit: Wikipedia
The incomplete Cincinnati line sat fallow through the Great Depression and WWII. Bridges, stations, and retaining walls along the surface stretches deteriorated to such an extent that a few items actually collapsed. Nearly everything above ground was bulldozed to make way for portions of I-75 and the Norwood Lateral in the 1950's and 1970's, respectively. The mute two mile tunnel that remains under Central Parkway is unknown to many Cincinnati natives.
In what looks to be the world's largest day care facility, thousands upon thousands of King Penguins group their offspring together into giant huddles to stop them from dying in the sub-zero temperatures of South Georgia. They are also better protected from predators in this huge gathering. Chicks with their long, brown, downy coats are made to crowd together to retain their body warmth in groups visible as brown swathes on this spectacular photo below.
Photograph: Andy Rouse/Rex Features
The chicks, which take between 10 to 13 months to raise, cannot regulate their body temperature and the parents care for them round the clock for the first three weeks. They then put the chicks in one of the creches, returning every two or three days with food. The picture was taken at the shoreline of South Georgia, a British territory close to the Falklands. It is one of the main breeding colonies for the birds. A full penguin breeding cycle lasts more than a year and pairs generally breed twice every three years.
The King Penguin is the second largest species of penguin, weighing up to 35lbs. The Emperor penguins are the largest. They eat small fish - mainly lanternfish, and squid and repeatedly dive to more than 100 metres to find lunch. There are an estimated 2.23million pairs of King Penguins with numbers increasing.
The 6th annual dog surfing competition, officially known as the Loews Coronado Bay Resort Surf Dog Competition, drew in hundreds of local citizens as well as dog surfers from across the US. Over 50 dogs of all sizes gathered along the shore of Imperial Beach, California for an intense day of competitive surfing on June 5, 2011. Dogs compete in 10 minute heats as they attempt to catch at least two waves. The heats are subdivided into three categories, small dogs, large dogs and tandem dogs. Judges look for confidence in the four legged surfers as well as a long wave ride and a good sense of fashion.
Winners of the competition receive a special vacation package at the Loews Coronado Bay Resort. All profits from the competition are donated to DonorsChoose.org, an online forum which provides a space for public teachers in San Diego to request and receive funding for school supplies from private sponsors.
A volcano in the Caulle Cordon of southern Chile erupted on Saturday, June 4, shooting out pumice stones and pluming a cloud of ash 10 kilometers high and five kilometers wide. Flights in the region were canceled and more than 3,500 people stayed away from their homes near the volcano, which produced an eerie show of lightning dancing through its clouds of ash overnight. This is the third volcano to erupt this year after the Shinmoedake eruption and last month’s Grimsvoetn eruption.
Volcanic lightning strikes over the Puyehue-Cordon Caulle volcanic chain in southern Chile. (Photograph: Francisco Negroni/Agenciauno /EPA)
The first Playboy Club opened in Chicago in 1960, and subsequently in New York, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Kansas City and elsewhere. There were Playboy Club resorts in Jamaica, New Jersey and elsewhere. The clubs offer cocktail bars, with Playboy Bunnies serving drinks and food, and live performances. Owning a Playboy Club membership became a status symbol, even though only 21% of all key holders ever went to a club. At $25.00 per year per membership, Playboy earned $25 million for every 1,000,000 members. This revenue stream was critical to the development of the Playboy empire.
The first Playboy Club in London opened in 1965, following legalization of gambling in the United Kingdom. The club on Park Lane was also the first Playboy Club in Europe.
The Running of the Brides is a local tradition that has taken place since 1947 at Filene's Basement store in downtown Boston. On this day hundreds of brides-to-be and bridesmaids alike scramble for bargains at the one-day sale of wedding gowns. The sale is also held at Filene's once a year including Chicago, Cleveland, Atlanta, and Los Angeles.
Women run to find wedding dresses at the annual "Running of the Brides" sales event at Filene's Basement in New York on Friday, June 3. The annual sale is known for its long queues and frantic shopping among brides-to-be hoping to save hundreds or even thousands of dollars on designer wedding gowns. (Eric Feferberg / AFP - Getty Images)
Slauerhoffbrug also known as the 'Flying Drawbridge', is a fully automatic bascule bridge located in the city of Leeuwarden in Netherlands. The bridge uses two extending arms to actually lift a section of the road up and out of the way to let boats through underneath. The tail bridge can quickly and efficiently be raised and lowered from one pylon (instead of hinges). This quickly allows water traffic to pass while only briefly stalling road traffic. Pretty unusual design.
The deck is 15 m by 15 m and is painted in yellow and blue, representative of Leeuwarden's flag and seal. (Also see, The Incredible Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany)
The Stockholm subway system is said to be the longest art exhibition in the world - 110 kilometers in length. Traveling by subway is like traveling through an exciting story that extends from the artistic pioneers of the 1950s to the art experiments of today. Over 90 of the 100 subway stations in Stockholm have been decorated with sculptures, mosaics, paintings, installations, engravings and reliefs by over 150 artists. It’s a part of a long tradition of public art for public transport.
The Kungsträdgården subway station looks like an archaeological excavation, with the remains of the old Stockholm Makalös palace. At Östermalmstorg the artist Siri Derkert highlights women's rights and peace and environmental issues. The roof of one Stockholm station is red-lit, making it appear to be covered in billowing flames, and another boasts ancient-looking statues carved out of the tunnel walls.
At the corner of Rue de l'Étuve/Stoofstraat and Rue du Chêne/Eikstraat in the heart of Brussels, is a famous landmark – the Manneken Pis. It is a small bronze statue of a naked little boy urinating into the fountain's basin. Although there are many similar and sculptures all around the world, thousands of tourists flock each day to take a photo of this particular one.
Part of the reason why people visit this little figure so frequently is its enormous wardrobe of costumes. The statue is dressed in tiny costume several times each week, according to a published schedule which is posted on the railings around the fountain. His wardrobe consists of several hundred different costumes, many of which may be viewed in a permanent exhibition inside the City Museum. A non-profit association called The Friends of Manneken-Pis manages and selects costumes from among hundreds of designs submitted each year.
Street monkey performance is a common form of cheap entertainment in Jakarta, Indonesia and in many Asian countries like India. Macaque monkeys who are trained for street performances, known as “topeng monyet”, are chained to a cage in “monkey village”, where the animals are trained to take part in street performances. The street performances usually involve the monkeys wearing masks, such as dolls’ heads or attire to mimic humans, with the monkeys trained to act out human activities such as shopping, riding bicycles or other simulations of human behavior.
Poverty drives the handlers to exploit the monkeys in the hope of earning small change. Shocking to many Westerners, it’s a common sight on the streets of Jakarta. Most Indonesians pass along unfazed or mildly amused and a few give the handlers money. But the effect and cruelty to the monkeys is a cause that charities such as the Jakarta Animal Aid Network are increasingly taking up.
In Kalkar in 1972, construction was started on the SNR-300, the first fast breeder nuclear reactor in Germany. The reactor was designed to use plutonium as fuel and be cooled by sodium, and was to output 327 megawatts of energy. It was still a very new technology at the time, but the German government was determined to limit energy import and, as the uranium supply in Germany was limited, a breeder facility to use the limited resources efficiently was required.
The local state government was concerned about the safety of nuclear energy, and sporadic demonstration continually delayed the project. In 1979, disaster struck at another nuclear plant at Three Mile Island, and public protests reached new heights. Despite opposition, construction of the SNR-300 continued and by 1985 the power plant was competed. By that time about 7 billion Deutsche Mark (about 3.5 billion euros or over 4 billion USD) were already spent on it.
Then in 1986, after the Chernobyl disaster, the SNR-300 never went into full operation, and in 1991, the project was officially cancelled.
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