Genetic research company BGI in Shenzhen, China, has started selling genetically-altered micropigs to the public as pets. Nature reports that the miniature pigs were genetically altered to become test subjects for studies on human stomach bacteria and other genetic testing. By disabling a growth trait in a cloned Bama pig, the researchers created a pig half the original’s size —roughly 33 pounds as an adult and just too cute not sell for roughly $1600 USD.
If cloning pigs and making them more adorable isn’t enough to convince you that we’re living in a magical tech-wonderland, then what about shaving with a laser? Enter the Skarp: A Swedish-made gizmo that removes excess hair from your skin by cutting through it with a high-intensity laser. According to Neatorama, the laser works by channeling a particular wavelength of light that slices through hair, but not skin: Business Insider reports that laser-shaving does not cause razor burn.
Some ideas were never meant to come to life. A Honey Boo-Boo music video, for example, should never have happened. But Honey Boo-Boo has now a song/video called “Movin’ Up!” So. Uproxx claims the video was directed by Adam Barta, the same YouTube video mastermind who directed Octomom’s music video. So don’t kill the messenger; blame Adam Barta.
You’re probably feeling the need to get that out of your head. Understandable. And though that last video may have diminished your trust, I swear the next link will help. This is The Weeknd singing an acoustic version of “The Hills” on BBC Radio One — and it’s the polar opposite of the video you saw before.
Kirkus Reviews announced the finalists for the 2015 Kirkus Prize in fiction, nonfiction and Young Readers’ Literature. The award comes with a $50,000 prize, and is thus one of the biggest in the field. This year’s list of fiction finalists sports a few books Flavorwire has covered this year, including A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin, The Story of My Teeth Valeria Luiselli and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, which was also nominated for the Man Booker prize and The National Book Award.