Creative, Modern Offices

Creative, Modern Offices

Gone are the days when offices were typically cubicle, surrounded by white walls and lit by white fluorescent lights. Thanks to corporate giants like Google and Pixar that have demonstrated tremendous success despite their unconventional workplaces, more people are embracing the idea that creative work environment helps stimulate minds and inspire innovation. From simply ditching the crisp white walls for graphical wallpapers to a total overhaul of the office layout, we are all trying to break the mold and introduce a unique working environment to the team, and hopefully inspire some genius ideas along the way.

So if you are trying to inject some personality into the place you spend your daily 9-5, how about getting some cue from the creative giants themselves?

Google (Zurich, Switzerland)

Facebook (Palo Alto, California, USA)

Skype (Tallin, Estonia)

Digg (San Francisco, USA)

Twitter (San Francisco, USA)

Swatch (Zurich, Switzerland)

General Motors (Detroit, USA)

Red Bull (London, United Kingdom)

Pixar (Emeryville, California, USA)

Tunnel Dwellers of Lost Vegas

Tunnel Dwellers of Lost Vegas

Dank ... Steven and Kathryn in their bedroom

·

LOVEBIRDS Steven and Kathryn share a well-organised home in bustling Las Vegas.

They have a neat, if compact kitchen, a furnished living area, and a bedroom complete with double bed, wardrobe and bookshelf featuring a wide selection including a Frank Sinatra biography and Spanish phrase book.

And they make their money in some of the biggest casinos in the world.

But their life is far from the ordinary.

Because, along with hundreds of others, the couple are part of a secret community living in the dark and dirty underground flood tunnels below the famous strip.

Rather than working in the bars or kitchens they "credit hustle", prowling the casinos searching the fruit machines for money or credits left by drunken gamblers.

Despite the risks from disease, highly venomous spiders and flooding washing them away, many of the tunnel people have put together elaborate camps with furniture, ornaments and shelves filled with belongings.

Steven and girlfriend Kathryn's base - under Caesar's Palace casino - is one of the most elaborate. They even have a kettle and a makeshift shower fabricated out of an office drinking water dispenser.

Home comforts ... the couple's kitchen under the famous city

But their bed and many of their belongings are on crates to keep them off the damp floor.

Despite it being hot and dry outside, their tunnel is wet from water being sent down from nearby construction work.

As he gives a guided tour of home, Steven Dommermuth explains: "We use our imagination a lot.

"Our bed came from a skip outside an apartment complex. It's mainly stuff people dump that we pick up. One man's junk is another man's gold.

"We get the stuff late at night so people don't see us because it's kind of embarrassing."

He later gives directions to the tunnels' own art gallery, a collection of graffiti by local artists and some by the underground residents.

Steven moved into the tunnels two years ago after he lost his hotel front-desk job due to a heroin problem he claims he kicked in January.

He now works the same hotels credit-hustling, and his life retains other similarities with the one he left behind.

He says: "We work our way down the strip. The most I've ever found is 997 dollars (£609) on one machine. I've found about $500 a few times. But normally $20 or so is enough to call it a night.

"We buy food and supplies like shampoo and soap. Last night I went and watched the new Quentin Tarantino movie Inglourious Basterds up at the Palms Hotel."

Going underground ... the entrance to the flood tunnels

Despite his established set-up, Steven claims he eventually wants to leave the tunnels but can't because of two outstanding arrest warrants from drug possession charges two years ago.

It is estimated the population of the underground community could be as many as 700. As well as credit-hustling, they earn their money off the wildly excessive city above by begging and "dumpster diving" - raiding bins and skips.

There are around 350 miles of flood channels running under Las Vegas. Most inhabitants are in the area under the city's strip.

Another couple, Amy and JR, have lived in the tunnels for two years, having moved to Las Vegas in search of work, wealth and a slice of the famous Sin City action.

Putting down the Twilight vampire book she is reading for the third time, Amy, 33, explains: "My husband and I have been down here two years this week.

"We were living with my mom in California but the house was full and we had to leave.

"I heard Las Vegas was a good place for jobs. It's the city that never sleeps, with all the bright lights, and I'd always wanted to come.

"But it was tough and we started living under the staircase outside the MGM casino. Then we met a guy who lived in the tunnels. We've been down here ever since.

"I have my books, my CD player, crossword puzzles, some clothes and my picture of our son Brady, who was killed 11 years ago at four months old. The main dangers are the floods and the Black Widow spiders. But it's not a terrible place to be if you're homeless.

"It's much cooler than on the streets, we get a breeze coming through and the cops don't really bother you. It's quiet and everyone helps each other out down here.

"I hope to get out one day. But I want to stay in Las Vegas - I love it here."

Amy and JR met 13 years ago and even got married in one of the city's popular wedding chapels on Valentine's Day last year.

Their wedding had some similarities with the 110,000 other couples who get hitched in the city each year.

JR, 36, explains: "We got married in the Shalimar Chapel.

Gloomy ... JR and Amy at home

"We went to watch a show, then to McDonald's for dinner. We got a little bit drunk and did the other normal wedding day things - only we had to come back down here rather than go to a hotel room."

Some of those living there have been forced into the network of tunnels by the recession and difficult job market.

The economic downturn has hit the underground residents in their pockets too.

Amy and JR's neighbour Jamie, showing off a wristband he found that gives him free food all day at a hotel buffet, explains: "I've been down here since May.

"I've worked at a lot of the hotels, mainly in building and construction, but not for a couple of years. The jobs are harder to come by now.

"Now I credit hustle but there are lots more people doing it these days. Hundreds and hundreds. You see little old ladies doing it."

As for other entertainment in the tunnels, the 45-year-old adds: "We're big talk radio fans. And a few of us are accomplished musicians and have instruments here.

"One guy down here has a full-time job. I don't think gambling is the cause of many people being down here. It's more alcohol and drugs. We all gamble a bit - we're in Vegas."

Bright lights ... Las Vegas' famous strip

Local writer Matthew O'Brien, who has had a book published about the tunnel people, called Beneath The Neon, has been working with Steven and others to help get people housed. He recently founded the Shine A Light foundation to aid them.

He explains: "I guide social workers into the tunnels, show them the terrain and introduce them to people.

"They offer these people services like health and drug counselling.

"We have got 12 to 15 people into houses in the last six months.

"But a lot of the people are very resistant to help. Many don't want to give up their addictions.

"They like their freedom and that no one is telling them what to do.

"They are scared of what's out there.

"To come out of the tunnel and face the world is intimidating for some of the people. Some are very much entrenched down in that tunnel and comfortable. That's why the charity doesn't like to give out too much food, water and clothing.

"We don't want them to get too comfortable because it is really an illusion. It can be extremely dangerous.

"It doesn't rain much in Nevada but when it does the tunnels can fill very quickly. There have been 20 drownings in the last 20 years and a lot of those were people who were living in the tunnels.

"Steve and Kathryn can say they feel like they have a home. But when it pours down three inches of rain in two hours it's clear it's not a home. It's a flood channel."

Where Planes Go To Die old planes go to die

Where planes go to die: Massive £22bn air force 'Boneyard' revealed in high resolution by Google Earth

Daily Mail Reporter

It's where old planes go to die - a 2,600-acre patch of U.S. desert where several generations of military aircraft are stored in what has been dubbed 'The Boneyard'.

The $35billion (£22billion) worth of outdated planes is kept as spare parts for current models at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona.

End of the line: The 2,600 acre site is home to 4,200 aircraft, of which 80 per cent are used as spare parts for the current U.S Air Force fleet

Four of the numerous types of military aircraft kept at the site in Arizona

Some planes are merely stored at the base between deployments, but for more than 80 per cent of the 4,200 aircraft that call it home, it is a cemetery of steel - 350,000 items to be called on when needed.

The base is home to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance And Regeneration Group (309 AMARG) which carries out repairs to the craft and even gets some of them flying again.

Engines, munitions, wiring and electronics are all recycled to help lower the cost of maintaining the current-day fleet. In 2005, staff at the facility recycled more than 19,000 parts worth $568million (£366million) .

The U.S. government even allows the military in other countries to buy parts and even planes from the site.

The facility is the size of 1,300 football pitches.

The site has been a curiosity for eagle-eyed Google Earth users since the satellite imagery software was launched in 2005, but now for the first time it is available to view in high resolution.

The desert is a perfect place to store the mass of steel, because low humidity and rainfall means very little rust occurs. In addition, the hard soil means they can be parked up without the need for building concrete ramps.

The military has used Davis-Monthan as a plane storage facility for 60 years, and in recent years its unique landscape has been called on by Hollywood for such films as Transformers.

Enlarge

One of the reasons why the aircraft are kept here is because  in the desert there is low humidity and rainfall which means very little rust occurs

On the left are B-52 bombers, which were built to carry nuclear weapons. They have been chopped up for scrap and (right) these are F-4 Phantom fighter-bombers which were used extensively in the Vietnam War

Squeezed up against each other these B-52s are stored at what has been dubbed 'The Boneyard'

Now see the image for yourself on Google Earth

Abandoned SAlt Mine In Romania

Abandoned SAlt Mine In Romania

 

 

The Salina Praid is situated 5 km from Sovata, in the Harghita County which is more famously known as the Salt Zone in Romania. Geographically, the basin of Praid can be found on the east coast of the Transylvanian basin (“a huge salt cellar”), at the base of the Gheorgheni Mountains. The history is traced back to the middle ages around 2nd century AD, when the Romans exploited the salt. The excavations left by Romans were continued by Avars and by Bulgars later
The history has in fact witnessed the Szekler rising in the year 1562. The Szeklers were Hungarians in origin, lived in the northern-central regions of Transylvania as pastoralists. And their livelihood here made this place more famous for the Szekler Salt that allowed them to mine the salt 3 times in a year without any taxes or restrictions.

Geologically speaking, the Praid is the salt hill, 567 meter tall and called as Dealul Sarii, where you can find the salt deposits in abundance which are as thick as 2000m, and which are estimated to contain about 3 billion tons of salt. The Praid is termed as the natural centre of the Szekely Salt Country. One can find different sorts of recreation too, for instance, the underground playgrounds for children, the billiard-tables for adults, a buffet, salt-spas salt swimming pools (for wellness and relaxation, rheuma treatment, and skin diseases), salt museum, salt exhibition and sculptures, and of course a church too called ecumenical chapel.
The most attractive feature of this salt mine is the Speleotherapy that amounts for great number of visitors daily, around 2500 to 3000 per day. This therapy also called as halo therapy, is a special therapy used to deal with the respiratory problems like bronchitis, asthma and allergies, etc. A highly ionized air and a higher atmospheric pressure than on the surface 735-738 mmHg on average are concentrated on for this kind of treatment. A very famous treatment in some countries that takes about 18 days’ time.
The mine tours take around the people through all these places in the salt mine, accumulating 25 visitors in a trip, and thus making about 100 such trips daily.

Tokyo Storm Water Discharge Channel.

Tokyo Storm Water Discharge Channel.

Advance planning that leads to the security of the citizens of the country is always welcomed, more especially if it is something related with the natural catastrophes. These natural disasters are simply unpredictable and dealing with them looks like an insurmountable task.
Though hugely expensive, but it is worth taking over, for the millions of people residing in the realm of such dangers. Best example is regarding the inhabitants of the metropolitan city of Saitama, Japan, who had been facing the water calamities very often.
The technical engineers in Japan had come up with an extra-ordinary storm water management solution in the year 1992, which is the amazing underground system that effectively deals with the flood water and prevents the area from the massive damage to lives and properties
It is called The Metropolitan Area Outer Discharge Channel, constructed to minimize the damage caused by heavy rainfall or typhoons. Since 1979, the city had faced six major floods, two of which were from typhoons. So this particular underground system has been set up with specific responses to an above ground occurrence. According to experts, this sewer water discharge channel is set to minimize the flood effect by 80%.

The overall design of the system is outstanding, standing tall at 25.4m (83 feet), 78m (255 feet) wide and 177m long (580 feet). The total structure appears to be more of a set erected for English blockbusters, as if taking us into those James Bond movies, etc.
Although it was completed years ago, this amazing system has not been used yet for the said purpose, but is surely an attraction for the tourists.

Most Terrifying Spiral Staircases on Earth

Most Terrifying Spiral Staircases on Earth

Glasgow lighthouse

Apart from the fact that they simply make you dizzy, spiral staircases are not for the faint of heart as this post will show. They are often in lofty places or the opposite, cramped dungeons, so mastering a spiral staircase is not a question of simply walking up or down. Claustrophobia, vertigo-inducing views and stomach-churning heights have to be braved because of those adventurous minds that installed spiral staircases in the scariest of places.

Long way down and low handrail at a tall pagoda in Singapore:

Like a slightly heart-shaped vortex – don’t get sucked in:

The square yet spiral staircase in an old apartment house in Hong Kong. Is that a trap door at the bottom?

Next, on to a treehouse: at 80 ft in height, the spiral staircase winding around a fir tree at Cedar Creek Treehouse, Mt. Rainier, is called “Stairway to Heaven”. The reason for this is that it leads to Cedar Creek Observatory, reachable via a 43 ft-long suspension bridge. We’re not sure what’s scarier – the climb up the tree, or the walk across the bridge.

Here’s a view from low down:

… and from up top:

Almost there – the observatory:

The scary outside staircase below winds its way around the chimney of the old Bóbila Almirall in Terrassa, Catalonia. At 63 m, it is the world’s tallest chimney with a spiral staircase. In case you’re contemplating going up, it’s 234 steps to the top and there’s not much of a handrail to hold on to!

Old chimney in Terrassa, Spain:

Lighthouse stairs surely have their scary element, given their length and the claustrophobia factor

Looking up at the lighthouse in Brunate, Italy:

Santa Barbara lighthouse with see-through staircase:

And fire escapes and building staircases can be scary if the view down makes your stomach feel queasy. We’ve found a few that fit the description.

Inside the Julius Tower in Berlin Spandau:

The image above was taken inside the 30 m tall Julius tower. It is part of the Spandau Citadel, one of Europe’s most important Renaissance forts, built between 1559 and 1594. Its famous wooden spiral staircase was reconstructed in 1964 after the neo-Gothic one of 1843.

Only in emergencies – old fire escape on a building in Boston:

Those who like to go spelunking may want to tour California’s Moaning Cavern. Just be warned that this rickety looking staircase is part of the package…

Dark, rickety and claustrophobic:

The Statue of Liberty in New York, though exhilarating to get to, rich in history and an important monument, is not for those with an aversion to cramped spaces and climbing tiny, dizzying steps in one direction.

Looking up at the steel construction:

This staircase used to take tourists up – no longer because of security reasons:

Climbing up to the crown:

Iraq’s Malwiya Tower

Then, there are buildings that are only staircases – the spiral minaret, or Malwiya Tower, above at the Great Mosque of Samarra, 125 km (78 miles) north of Baghdad, is one of them. Commissioned and built in the 9th century, at 52 m high and 33 m wide at the base, it was for a long time the world’s largest mosque. Though the ramp spiraling up to the top is quite broad, there’s no protection on the sides; one step too far and it’s a free fall down.

Here’s an image with people, tiny in comparison:

Anyone who has been inside the Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s monumental church in Barcelona, Spain, will agree that its long and winding stone staircases in each 170 m-tall spire are by far the building’s scariest features – about 20 stories tall without a handrail.

This is just the beginning…

… or option 2, the elevator:

…before you know it, you look down at something like this:

Says photographer Travis Miller about how he took the shot above: “I was the only person in the towers this day and going down was quite the mental challenge to keep my mind focused on the task at hand…don’t know if I could handle it today … I was tottering quite badly.”