Does lightning go up or down?

Lightning strikes travel too fast to see. So, do they move from cloud to ground or vice versa? This video has some slow-motion video that shows the evolution of a lightning strike. It turns out to be far more complex.

As thunderstorms form air current rapidly life water upwards. As the water vapor quickly moves up, electrons are knocked loose resulting in a positively charge anvil and a negatively charge clous base. The negatively charge cloud bases causes a positive charge to build in the ground. Tendrils of current begin to form, in both the cloud and the ground, and when they connect, we have the lightning bolt. 

The NOAA website has a more detailed explanation of lightning.

 

The Menologion of Basil II

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The Menologion of Basil II is an 11th century Byzantian manuscript. It was a liturgical book that showed the lives of the Saints as well as martial feats by Emporer Bail II against the Bulgarians. Its style is of the Macedonian Renaissance which was a return to a more naturalistic look. The images were accompanied by text stressing important points about the Saints. After passing through several hands, it is now in the Vatican Library.  

Earlier I've posted about The Codex Laud which is an Aztec religious text. I mentioned that, because of its religious topic, it came across as being rather bloodthirsty. The same applies to the Menologion. Without trying to draw an equivalence between the two religions, when the topic is the tribulations of mankind there will be ghastly scenes portrayed.  

Dream a Little Dream of Me

Get ready for a hypnagogic weekend with Connie Evingson.

 

Car morticians

A forklift places a Dodge Caravan into a car crusher, and it gets crushed. Then another car gets loaded in and it get crushed. Then another and another and another until we have a stack of crushed cars. In the video below we have a car shredder. Drop a car into the bin and it gets randomly disassembled.

I suppose to a motorhead, thinking of when these cars were new and sparkly on a dealer's lot, this is all a bit of a tragedy. To the rest of us it is oddly fascinating.

  

Nautical art of Dominic Serres

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Dominic Serres (1722–1793) was born in France. After studying at a seminary, he moved to Spain where he became a merchant sailor. Eventually, in the Caribbean, he was captured by the British and imprisoned. While in prison he took up painting. Upon release he moved to England and began his career as a painter of maritime subjects, most generally warships of the time. 

Dominic Serres

500 Miles | Jab Koi Baat (Mashup)

Get ready for a two for one weekend with Rishikesh Kamerkar.

 

Walking in Bukit Bintang

Bukit Bintang is an upscale shopping district located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Compared to many of the areas we've walked through in this series, it is very nice looking. The place is lively, with a lot of shops, restaurants, cafes, and food stalls.