Welcome to Now Trending: Six must-read stories from the worlds of celebrity, oddities
LENNON REWIND
Imagine a whole new set of previously unseen and unheard John Lennon material. It's easy if you try – and have access to iTunes. John Lennon: The Bermuda Tapes is an interactive album app documenting the late Beatle's 1980 sailing expedition from Newport, R.I., to Bermuda that took place six months before his death. The app includes an illustrated tour of Lennon's time in Bermuda, previously unreleased interviews with Lennon and Yoko Ono, and raw demo versions of songs he penned during his trip.
Source: People
FANTASY WORLD
A Korean artist has merged traditional fairy tales and stories into a remarkable fantasy boxroom. Jee Young Lee served as set designer, sculptor, performer and photographer for the ornate art installation, which is currently on display at the OPIOM gallery in France. The different tableaux within the boxroom include the display Last Supper, which shows hundreds of rats racing toward a plate of cheese, and Monsoon Season, which transports the viewer to an underwater world riddled with poisonous sea anemones.
Source: The Daily Mail
WEIRD SCIENCE
Bill Nye the Science Guy wants Barack Obama to get serious about science. The 58-year-old TV educator went on YouTube to record an open letter to the U.S. President asking him to restore the U.S. role as a global leader of science and to stop chopping the budget for NASA space missions. Nye says in the video: "Supporting a robust space program raises everyone's expectations of what's possible … it's inherently optimistic. It's part of our national character."
Source: Slate
NON-CREATIVITY A PLUS
People say they like creativity, but they really don't. A new study from the University of California at Berkeley states most people are actually biased against creative thinking, despite any well-intentioned insistence to the contrary. In most instances, people who say they are looking for creativity react negatively to creative ideas. "We think of creative people in a heroic manner and we celebrate them," researcher Barry Staw says. "But the thing we celebrate is the after-effect."
Source: Slate
DEAR SANTA
Have you written your letter to Santa yet? Deadspin writer Drew Magary cheekily shares his seasonal frustration by going through his seven-year-old daughter's annotated wish list. Among the items she wants: A new American Girl Doll of the Year 2014 ("You cannot have this, sweetheart"), a bead kit ("You got it. Done."), 1,000 bucks ("This is Christmas, not an Italian wedding"), an iPod Touch ("Santa does not produce electronics …") and five North Face jackets in different colours ("Dream smaller").
Source: Deadspin
KILLING FIELDS
Canada's Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq has riled up social media after posting a photo of a freshly killed polar bear on Twitter with the caption "Enjoy." Aglukkaq posted the photo and comment while in Moscow honouring the 40th anniversary of an international agreement on the conservation of polar bears. The Inuvik-born Aglukkaq was relaying a message from an unnamed party in Baffin Island who boasted that his cousin had "caught his first polar bear" and included a photo of the dead animal. Whatever her intention, Aglukkaq was criticized for her actions. "Really? That is disgusting," tweeted one of her Twitter followers.
Source: CBC News