I think it this picture says it all.

Kevin by P. S. Zollo

Riding my bicycle along Hollywood Boulevard today I saw him in the crowd - noticed him instantly. When we reached each other, I said hi and asked if he would mind if I took his photo.

"You want my photo?"

Yeah, I said. There's nobody like you.

"I know."

And he smiled for me-although his face was evidently destroyed by something-and his mouth reconstructed. =I asked him what happened.

"Shot, shot in the face."

He motioned a gun at close range being shot directly into his face.

Andyou survived that? I asked.

"No," he said with a smile."I'm dead."

I apologized for what was a stupid question, but it was hard to fathom - gun shot- close range - into his face. And he lived.

So what happened? I asked. Was it an accident, or did someone mean to shoot you?

"I did it myself. Tried to kill myself."

You did?

"Yeah."

Where?

"Arizona."

Phoenix?

"Tucson."

So tell me, how did it feel, after you shot yourself in the face - and you came to - and realized you were not dead?

"Agony. The worst agony ever."

Man.

"Yeah."

What kind of gun?

"30-aught-six."

I was thunderstruck. I have met and photographed many people - who are featured in this stream - humans who have overcome amazing adversity. Lydia, who wasburnt almost to death. Ray, whose eye was gone. Margaret, who weighed over 500 pounds. But this. Man. And yet he was smiling. I told him what I thought:

God gives everyone a different life - and some people get really, really hard lives.

"That's me. Doesn't get much worse."

Told me he's on the street. Homeless.

I asked him how bad it was that he wanted to die.

"Bad. Really bad. The worsekind."

Are you gonna try again?

"No. I tried once. That's enough."

Man. Sometimes our lives seem hard - unbearable even - but then we meet Kevin.Or Lydia. Or Ray. And realize again how lucky we are. How hard some humans have it. Man. And yet he smiled. He smiled for me. This man with his face blown off - by his own hand. And here he is - in the sunshine, listening to music, smiling.

Don't even know what else to say about this. Guess I've already said it.

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Unwanted tattoos can be removed by cream injected into skin - without pain or scarring

Tattoos can often be a case of ink now, regret later.

Extracting the dye from the skin has usually been a painful process.

However, cosmetic surgeons are now offering what they say is a more efficient and less painful way of removing body art.

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A gallery of photos that changed the world.

Truely amazing. Click on any of the photos to recieve a detailed explaination.

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Death special: How does it feel to die?

IS IT distressing to experience consciousness slipping away or something people can accept with equanimity? Are there any surprises in store as our existence draws to a close? These are questions that have plagued philosophers and scientists for centuries, and chances are you've pondered them too occasionally.

None of us can know the answers for sure until our own time comes, but the few individuals who have their brush with death interrupted by a last-minute reprieve can offer some intriguing insights. Advances in medical science, too, have led to a better understanding of what goes on as the body gives up the ghost.

Death comes in many guises, but one way or another it is usually a lack of oxygen to the brain that delivers the coup de grâce. Whether as a result of a heart attack, drowning or suffocation, for example, people ultimately die because their neurons are deprived of oxygen, leading to cessation of electrical activity in the brain - the modern definition of biological death.

If the flow of freshly oxygenated blood to the brain is stopped, through whatever mechanism, people tend to have about 10 seconds before losing consciousness. They may take many more minutes to die, though, with the exact mode of death affecting the subtleties of the final experience. If you can take the grisly details, read on for a brief guide to the many and varied ways death can suddenly strike.

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Be a Modern Knight: Protecting Your Lady in the 21st Century

While men are no longer called to be warriors against physical attack, we now have the duty to protect our women from emotional harm, to keep safe the hearts and esteem of the ladies in our lives.

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From The Art of Manliness:
If you're new to The Art of Manliness, you may want to sign up for a daily dose of manliness either by email or by RSS. You may also want to check out their free e-book on how to be a gentleman in 2008. Don't forget to man up!

Poor Little Goldfish

How I Will Probably Die

This originally appeared in the November 2007 issue of Men’s Health and was designed by Julia Hoffman.

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10 Creatures People Didn’t Think Existed

In the span of less than a week, there’s news that Bigfoot and el Chupacabra may have been discovered. At this rate, Nessie is going to pop up next week and the Mothman will knock on someone’s door in West Virginia and ask to borrow a cup of sugar.

I wanted to do today’s Q10 on animals that were thought to be mythical but ended up being real; however, I couldn’t find that many. So it’s a combined list of that and animals that were thought to be extinct but were rediscovered at some point. Those types of animals are called Lazarus species, by the way… a rather fitting name.

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We've got our wires crossed: The bizarre stories of people whose brains have rewired themselves

When the brain is injured, the systems learn to link up differently - sometimes with surprising results.

Here, we talk to people whose brains have been 'scrambled' as a result of illness or birth.

But far from being a hindrance, some of them believe it is actually beneficial.

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It's Confirmed: This New Drug Really, Seriously Cures Cancer

Cancer patients have been left free of the disease after being treated with a new drug which harnesses the power of their own immune cells.

Four of 38 patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma have seen the disease complete regressions following treatment, while five others saw reductions of 50 per cent in their tumours.

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Sophocles and the Marine Corps

By Ransom Riggs

It’s an unlikely pairing to say the least, but translator/director Bryan Doerries is convinced that the ideal audience for many ancient Greek plays is a military one; that despite the 2,500 year gap between when they were written and the present, they’re more relevant than ever. Bryan is a friend and writing partner of mine, and yesterday he invited me down to San Diego to a staged reading he’s translated and directed of several scenes from Sophocles’ Ajax and Philoctetes. But the venue wasn’t some blackbox theater and the audience wasn’t comprised of typical theatergoers; it was the Marine Corps’ annual Combat Operational Stress conference, in which about 800 top brass gather to talk about how to handle Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in the military. Four-star generals sitting down to hear actors from New York read ancient Greek plays? Yep — and they loved it.

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Famously Ugly People in History

Plato once said, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” If the internet has proven one thing it is that there is someone out there for everyone. This is a list of 10 people from different parts of history that were also famous for being ugly by their society’s standards. You’ll find philosophers, sideshow freaks, politicians, and even a queen.

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Sometimes a funny face is all you need to start your day.

Although, some would argue, the awesome characters shown on this page are the very reason why portrait photography exists; and why taking pictures of "normal" people is so utterly dull and boring in comparison.

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$920 USD for a bunch of premium grapes in Japan

A bunch of premium grapes were auctioned for 100,000 yen (~US$920) in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, on Monday (August 11). The bunch weighed around 700g and had 35 grapes, which converts to about $26 per grape.

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Google: Japan Gift Fruit to read about this fad.

The Health Benefits of Masturbation

Perhaps the joke’s on us. While people love to make wisecracks about it, few will actually admit to doing “it.”

Yet, according to Martha Cornog, of "The Big Book of Masturbation", self-pleasuring is surely the second most common human sex act. And, despite its torrid history, that’s proving to be a good thing. Turns out this once taboo behavior has plenty of health benefits and can do wonders for your sex life.

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52 Workout Songs To Help You Get Bigger, Stronger, and Faster

It was with this in mind that the 52 best workout songs were selected in an epic exploration of the foot-tapping, guitar-screaming and beat-boxing tracks that have found a welcome home in gyms across America. Most of them famous, some very obscure, but all great songs for running, lifting, spinning and any other workout you can think of.

As for selection criteria one key element stood out from all the rest: tempo. Why? According to experts it is the most important factor in enhancing workout performance because it provides timing and coordination for your movements. Music in the 120-140 beats-per-minute (bpm) range is best for most aerobic exercise because it most closely matches the average person’s heart rate.

Now, Art of Manliness presents the 52 best workout songs for your listening pleasure:

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10 Things 300 Didn’t Tell You

It was, um, a lot of years ago today (480 B.C., to be exact) that King Leonidas and the Spartans were defeated by Xerxes’ army at Thermopylae. Well, that’s according to some accounts. Some historians say that we can’t be sure exactly what day in late summer the Battle of Thermopylae happened, but for our purposes today (namely, a timely Quick 10) we’ll stick with the ones who have agreed on August 11.
10 Things 300 Didn’t Tell You:

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Taking a Piss On the 9/11 Conspiracy Nut Jobs

The terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001 changed this country. A country that I love. As the seven years have gone by, and our nation has struggled to maintain a proper course, an obnoxious and vulgar group has continued to recruit believers. Those that believe that the 9/11 attacks were an inside job and an elaborate conspiracy.

Listen carefully: There is not one shred of evidence of a conspiracy.

None. Zero. Zip. Squadush.
I wish to release some of my frustration and dismantle any notion to the contrary.

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10 mispronunciations that make you sound stupid

I’d like to talk about words that may be used correctly but are pronounced wrong. They also may be much more flagrant examples of stupidity.

A caveat: My ear may be abnormally sensitive to mispronunciations since in college I developed an unnatural affinity for linguistics (can you say “Get a life?”). However, people often make snap decisions about character and intelligence based on their language biases, so it’s something you should be aware of. Here are some of my pet peeves, which you may or may not ever use in your life.

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5 Scientific Theories That Will Make Your Head Explode

There are generally two types of science: first, there’s the type that makes computers work, allows us to ride around in metal boxes propelled by continuous explosion, and makes it so that milk doesn’t taste all gross. Then there’s the fringe science, the stuff that shoots up your nose like mathematical horseradish and dances a jig on your brain…or brane, as it were (that’s the nerdiest joke in the article, we promise). So kick off your work boots, put on your thought slippers, and prepare for a science course so mind-blowing, it’s written almost entirely in italics.

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5 Women’s Styles/Fashions That Men Hate

As most men chill on the uncomfortable periphery of fashion, we do develop a strong sense for what we hate on women. And while women do style partly for themselves (”I’m the real me!”) or for their female friends (“SOOOoooOOO GOOD!”), a chunk of it’s for guys. Ladies, if you’re listening, please read, and get a clue.

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Note: I agree with this entire list. Even the Honourable Mentions.

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Oil

We all complain about the high price of oil: businessmen worry about the rising cost of petroleum-based raw materials, and politicians fret about the geo-political situations in oil rich countries and the rest of us pay through the nose whenever we fill up at the pump (yes, it has come down a bit, but only after such a huge run-up).

But what do we really know about oil? Do you know where petroleum came from? (hint: not dinosaurs). Or that during the early days of Standard Oil, gasoline was so useless that it was dumped in rivers? Did you know how much it actually costs the Saudis to produce a barrel of crude oil? (This explains why they're SO rich).

Here are the 10 Facts You Didn't Know About Oil:

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Knights Templar heirs in legal battle with the Pope

The heirs of the Knights Templar have launched a legal battle in Spain to force the Pope to restore the reputation of the disgraced order which was accused of heresy and dissolved seven centuries ago.

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Polar Bear vs. Huskies

The photographer was sure that he was going to see the end of his huskies when the polar bear materialized out of the blue, as it were:

But something else happened.

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23 TV shows heading to the big screen

We've dug through the upcoming movie production logs and uncovered a variety of small screen fodder heading to the movies...
by Simon Brew

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Confessions of a Sex-Shop Salesgirl

Who knew that selling sex toys would provide such a window to the soul?

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A spectator’s guide to the Olympics

There will be 10,708 athletes competing in 302 events in Beijing. Presuming you’re not one of the few admirable souls trying to keep up with it all, here are 10 competitions you won’t want to miss.

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Can you guess where my accentis from?

How good are you at spotting accents from around the world? Put yourself to the test in the first Language Trainers Accent Game!
Simply listen to a couple of lines from the poem, take a guess at their country of origin, and see how high you can score.
Can you make it onto the high score table?

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Guide: to the Shadowy Organizations That Rule the World

Every so often some aluminum-foil-hatted nut will pull you aside at a party and tell you the Freemasons are a powerful secret society bent on controlling the world. He’ll point to the all-seeing pyramid on the one-dollar bill, run down the list of Masonic presidents, and trace supposedly Masonic symbols on the streets around the Washington Mall. From these premises he will argue that the gentlemen you may have seen strolling into your local lodge on a weekday night are actually officers of a 291-year-old international conspiracy.

With that in mind, we present six organizations that have been accused of plotting world domination, along with an assessment of who they are, what they do, and just how powerful they actually are. From what we can tell, no group on this list is running the world from behind its locked doors. But those without keys can never be sure.

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