Sad News: Chuck Davis announces he is dying of incurable cancer

I first learned of Chuck Davis when I arrived in Vancouver in the early 70's, and subsequently had the honour of meeting him on a number of occasions. Most recently, we served together on the Board of Governors of the Vancouver Jewish Historical Society. No, he's not Jewish, but he is so in love with the history of our city, he agreed to be a historical expert on the Board. Last week all the other Governors received a personal note from him advising that he was having to step down since "I've been diagnosed with an incurable cancer, and have no energy at all. The oncologist says I should have "a good year," but a bout of pleural effusion (fluid in the lungs) has made me so short of breath that a walk across the room exhausts me."

During the Jewish High Holy days I mentioned to a few people that I had received this note from Chuck and I hoped that something might be done to recognize his incredible contribution to the city, and help raise some money that is need to finish his current 'book'. I say book in quotes since it really is an on-line encyclopaedia of the city and region.

I am pleased that the Vancouver Sun, Jeff Lee and Michael Klassen have now brought public attention to Chuck's situation (see below) and I am hoping that the City of Vancouver will soon formally recognize Chuck's contributions with a Civic Honour. Gordon Price and I are also starting to plan a Fundraising Event within the coming weeks to raise the necessary funds. More details about this shortly.

In the meanwhile, here is the touching dedication in his 1997 Greater Vancouver Book.

This book is dedicated to my father, George Davis (1905 to 1969). With virtually no formal education, but blessed with unquenchable curiosity, he became a constant reader. When I was a list loving kid, he told me one day, "Charlie, one of these days you're going to make a list of all your lists." He would have loved the Greater Vancouver Book. Chuck Davis 1997

Chuck, in the coming days, weeks, months, and hopefully years, I hope that you will get a sense of just how much thousands of Vancouverites appreciate all you have done for preserving the history of our city.

Vancouver historian Chuck Davis dying of cancer, project unfinished

By Jeff Lee 25 Sep 2010 COMMENTS(0) Civic Lee Speaking

Filed under: Vancouver, history, writers

For anyone who has ever wondered about the history of Vancouver, the name Chuck Davis is no mystery. His books, The Vancouver Book and The Greater Vancouver Book, are essential bibles for those who are interested in the history of our region.
As recently as this week I turned to one of Chuck's books to confirm a distant recollection that the troubled Electra Building at Burrard and Nelson Streets was in fact the former head office of both BC Hydro and its forerunner, B.C. Electric.
Davis' penchant for details, both arcane and important, has been a hallmark of not only good journalism, but also of historical research.
I read with considerable sadness, therefore, that Chuck has incurable cancer and, by his count, has mere weeks or months to live.
Of course, the news could not have come at a more inopportune time, not that there is ever one for dying. He's smack in the middle of his latest book project, a history of Metropolitan Vancouver, and he's not going to get a chance to finish it.
He's looking for someone to take the project over and finish it; by his estimate it will take another $30,000 and a year to complete.
You can read the story here. Mike Klassen over at Citycaucus.com has also posted a note on his site. Chuck can be reached at chuckdavis@shaw.ca

Worst and Biggest Oil Spills in History

The oil gushing from the well where the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and sank is now spreading through the Gulf of Mexico. Oil spills can kill wildlife, pollute the air and water, and alter the ecosystem for years to come. Many of us think of the Exxon Valdez oil spill as a particularly bad one, but with about 42,800 tons of oil spilled, it doesn’t rank as one of the 10 worst ever.

So here I have compiled a list of some of the biggest oil spills in history. I hope you will find it informative.

 10. The Odyssey:

In November 1988, the American-owned oil tanker Odyssey split in two 700 miles off the coast of Nova Scotia. The tanker spewed about 132,000 tons of crude oil into the sea and caught fire as it sank, setting the spill aflame.

9. The Haven:

A violent explosion aboard the Cyprus-based tanker the Haven killed six members of the crew and spilled 145,000 tons of oil off the coast of Italy in April 1991. About 70 percent of the oil burned in the ensuing fire. Oil from the Haven was later found in ocean beds at depths of up to 1,640 feet.

8. The Amoco Cadiz:

Stormy weather drove the Amoco Cadiz Very Large Crude Carrier aground on the Portsall Rocks, a 90-foot deep outcrop off the coast of Brittany, France, in 1978. The ship split in two and quickly sank before its 1,604,500 barrels of oil load could be pumped from the wreck.

7. Castillo de Bellver:

In August 1983, a fire aboard the Castillo de Bellver led to an explosion that caused the tanker to break in two. Oil spilled into the sea 24 miles off the coast of Cape Town, marking the largest spill to date in South Africa. Luckily, the oil caused minimal environmental damage as the direction of the wind moved the oil slick offshore, where it dissipated naturally.

6. ABT Summer: 260,000 tons

ABT Summer tanker, traveling from Iran to Rotterdam, leaked oil and caught on fire about 700 miles off the Angolan coast in 1991. The disaster killed five of the 32 crew members on board.

5. Nowruz oil field

During the first Gulf War, a tanker collided with a platform on Feb. 10, 1983, spilling approximately 1,500 barrels each day, until the platform was attacked by Iraqi planes in March and the slick caught fire. The Nowruz oil field was not immediately capped, because the field was located in the middle of the Iran/Iraq war zone.

4. Fergana Valley: 285,000 tons

The Fergana Valley, one of Central Asia’s most densely populated agricultural and industrial areas, was the site of the largest inland oil spills in history in 1992.

3. Atlantic Empress/Aegean Captain: 287,000 tons

In July 1979, a Greek oil tanker called the Atlantic Empress collided with another ship, the Aegean Captain, during a tropical storm off of the island of Tobago in the Caribbean Sea. The Atlantic Empress disaster killed 26 crew members and is the largest ship-based oil spill.

2. Ixtoc I oil well: 454,000 tons

The Ixtoc I oil well exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in June 1979. The oil drilling platform then caught fire and collapsed, rupturing valves and making it difficult for rescue personnel to control the damage. The spill continued until March 1980.

1. Gulf War oil spill: 1,360,000 -1,500,000 tons

The worst oil spill in history, the Gulf War oil spill spewed an estimated 8 million barrels of oil into the Persian Gulf after Iraqi forces opened valves of oil wells and pipelines as they retreated from Kuwait in 1991. The oil slick reached a maximum size of 101 miles by 42 miles and was five inches thick.

Please attend RIPE: Sunday Sept 26th 5 to 8 pm

Vancouver Farmers Markets presents
RIPE: The 2nd Annual Evening
of Local Food & Libations
Sunday, September 26th 5pm-8pm
at Creekside Community Centre, #1 Athletes Way, Vancouver

The purpose of this event is simple: To Grow & Improve the Services of Vancouver’s Summer & Winter Farmers Markets
By buying a ticket to RIPE you will be directly supporting the organization to not only improve the Farmers Markets that currently exist within Vancouver, but to grow the number of markets, bringing local, seasonal food to more people in more communities.

The casual family-style, all-ages event will include:

• A feast of delicious, local and seasonal food including BBQ’d local meats, corn on the cob and a variety of fresh salads, iced tea and lemonade from a variety of our farmers & vendors and prepared by Tivoli Caterers

• Local beer and wine for adults to enjoy

• The fabulous view of the mountains from the brand new Creekside Community Centre at Olympic Village

• A sensational silent auction

• Live dessert auction

• "Pesto Guy" Richard Lewin of Golda's Pesto to MC

• Local, live entertainment Maria In The Shower

• And a kids activity corner!

Tickets prices:
Members - $50 ea / $150 Family 4-Pack (2 adults & 2 children 15 or under)
Non-members - $60 ea / $180 Family 4-Pack (2 adults & 2 children 15 or under)
*All non-member tickets include a 1 year membership to the Vancouver Farmers Markets!

To purchase your tickets: call Claire Geller at 604 537 8256 or

• Visit the RIPE/Membership table at any weekly Vancouver Farmers Markets;
  
• Pay below via PayPal (all tickets purchased online will be available at WILL CALL)
  

  RIPE Event Tickets MEMBER $50.00 NON MEMBER $60.00 MEMBER FAMILY PACK $150.00 NON MEMBER FAMILY PACK $180.00 Member Name

  
  
  
• Visit or call the Farmers Market office at 2-1163 Commercial Drive, Vancouver, BC V5L 3X3 or 604.879.FARM *if you plan to visit the office please call ahead as office Hours vary depending staff availability

RIPE is currently accepting interest for Sponsorship. Please email Jackie@eatlocal.org for a full sponsorship package.

Amazing F1 car replicas made from unusual things

F1 has a big fanfare and so have the F1 cars. The lovers of this amazing race completion come out with unique replicas of F1 racers every now and then. There are sand sculptures, ice replicas; Puma shoe box F1 cars as well as replicas from unusual things like bread loaves. For all F1 enthusiasts we’ve listed F1 replica cars that you would surely love to lay your hands on.

F1 car sculpture with 1500 bullet holes

Info: This F1 car sculpture by Pintor Sirait is called Democracy and is a thought provoking pieces where the artist uses F1 car sculptures to convey everything that is wrong with the world. Democracy is covered in bullet holes, 1500 bullet holes to be exact.

 F1 racer made of Styrofoam

Info: The life sized F1 replica is created by Michael Salter entirely out of scrap Styrofoam.

 F1 car made of bread pieces

Info: This F1 replica is a delicious piece of speed, and is made out of 22 varieties of bread and a thousand loaves. Every part of the car is edible, probably except the supporting structure that keeps the bread in shape.

 Matchsticks Mercedes F1 car


Info: Michael Arndt transformed 956,000 Matchsticks into a full-scale replica of a McLaren 4/14 F1 car. Turning this fiction into dream cost Arndt around 6000 Euros, including 1686 glue-tubes.

 F1 car made of Puma cloths

Info: This F1 racer is created by Puma from clothes. They built it out of Puma shirts, shoes, sandals, socks, hats, and presumably everything they could find with the Puma mark, and managed to create a detailed F1 racecar.

Lego Ferrari

Info: Well, this working Lego Ferrari was made out of 80,000 bricks to promote the Lego World in Oct, 2008 and was driven in the streets of Amsterdam by Leon Krijgsman.

F1 car sculpture of Ice

Info: The life sized ice sculpture of Alonso’ F1 car was made by Niall Magee.

Hedge F1 car

Info: The spectacular hedges cut like a Formula1 car and pit lane mechanics will set the hearts of any motoring fan racing. Gardeners at the Williams F1 headquarters spend hours every month trimming their topiary. The 11ft long car is made from six plants and each 6ft high mechanic is made from two.

Puma shoe boxes F1 racer

Info: Wilson brothers: Oscar, Ben and Luke made a life sized F1 racing car while cutting Puma shoe boxes into different shapes and then hand fixing them to make a coherent whole of F1 racer.

 McLaren F1 Ice car

Info: The full-scale replica of McLaren F1 car get ice form from 2 tonnes of ice and was made to mark the McLaren’s 40th anniversary in F1 in the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix.

Sand sculpture of F1 car

Info: Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Red Bull Racing is seen with sand sculpture of a Red Bull Racing car on St Kilda beach during previews to the Australian Formula One Grand Prix on March 26, 2009 in Melbourne, Australia. 

'Gentle Densification' in West Vancouver

For some time I have been talking and writing about the need for more housing choices for those who want to move out of larger single family homes, or homes on larger lots, into smaller, more suitably designed homes. I have also promoted the concept of what some have called 'gentle densification' which would allow two or three homes to be built on one, appropriately located lot.

Through a series of happy coincidences, I have recently partnered with Joel Slone, a small West Vancouver homebuilder in what I hope will be a successful infill development in Hollyburn to demonstrate these ideas. The proposal is to redevelop three single family properties with three smaller duplexes and three coach houses.

The proposal has been going through the planning and approval process in West Vancouver for some time. Known as Bowling Green, the properties are kitty corner to the bowling greens at 20th and Esquimalt, and next to the Seniors' Centre and new Community Centre complex. One block off of Marine Drive, it is a most suitable location for this type of housing

In order to be built, the proposal will need both an Official Community Plan Amendment and a rezoning. Rather than 'spot-zone' just the three properties, the District of West Vancouver, with the support of the adjacent property owners, is proposing to amend the OCP for the full block. This will allow Council to consider rezonings for the remaining properties which could also be redeveloped over time with similar forms of housing provided they respect the surrounding neigbhourhood's single family character.
The proposed FSR is 0.63 which is very similar to the 'outright' permitted single family density in many other municipalities. I am hopeful that this project will be approved in order to help people understand what 'gentle densification' looks like. The final designs will be inspired by some of the lovely cottage homes that have recently been built in Washington State.

An Open House is being held this evening to present the proposals to the public. If you have had concerns about this proposal in the past, or are interested in more housing choices for the future, I hope you will drop by.

Top 10 Weirdest Phobias

We all know the meaning of phobia and how it makes our lives miserable. The fear of darkness, the unknown, heights, water and insects are pretty normal and we might think that these are the only phobias known to man. But like us, you are also in for a surprise. Have a look at the most weirdest phobias actually known to the medical world.

 10. Spectrophobia – Fear of mirrors or one’s own reflection.

 Spectrophobia or eisoptrophobia is a kind of specific phobia involving a morbid fear of mirrors and the dread of seeing one’s own reflection.

It is attributed to the fear of self-knowledge and fright from exhibitionism. It is an exaggerated or irrational fear of mirrors or one’s own reflection. It is debated that Spectrophobia is related to fear of ghosts or Phasmophobia. But, by definition it is the fear of self-actualization. It may arise as the fear of losing one’s perception of personal beauty, or the fear of accepting anomalies on one’s persona like moles or marks that are a reminder of painful events from one’s past. It could also be termed as a symptom of denial of certain events that have left marks on one’s persona.

In other cases schizophrenia is also coined as a reason for Spectrophobia. But, it is one weird though dreadful disorder as one can not avoid mirrors or reflections in today’s world. It can be easily identified and also treated like other phobias.

9. Ablutophobia – Fear of Bathing

Ablutophobia is the persistent, abnormal and unwarranted fear of bathing, washing, or cleaning. This phobia is a situational specific phobia. Ablutophobia tends to be more common in children and women than in men and especially with those people who are very emotional. Such a phobia makes you feel dejected and lonelier. It might be an impact of an event from the past linking bathing, washing or cleaning to emotional trauma. The original catalyst would be a real-life scare of some kind, the condition can also be triggered by any event seen on Television, films or even witnessing someone else experience trauma.

It is different from fear of water or hydrophobia as the person is not afraid of the water, but the cleaning. He might not care about the water if it’s not being used to clean him/her. Those suffering form Ablutophobia experience – dizziness, breathlessness, excessive sweating, heart palpitations, nausea, dry mouth, feeling sick, shaking, becoming mad or losing control.

The Self-help NLP or Neuro Linguistic programming technique has proved to be an effective treatment for this phobia.

8. Anthophobia – Fear of Flowers

 Anthophobia is a persistent fear of flowers. Though sufferers generally understand that they face no threat from flowers, they invariably experience anxiety at the sight or thought. Any genus or species of flowers can instill fear, as can any flower part, such as a petal or stem. Anthophobia is also referred to as the fear of small harmless things, such as a small torn piece of paper.

Anyone could have this phobia, if you kind of freaked out when your girlfriend brought you flowers, you might have Anthophobia. And if you have never received any flowers like me, you should go buy flowers for yourself just to be sure.

Chorophobia – Fear of Dancing

 Dancing is a very common part of our lives. It’s an expression of our mood, joy and energy. Asking someone to prom, annual dance or even dancing together at a wedding is a swell way to find a mate. But, what if someone is afraid of the very core of the idea? Chorophobia is an persistent fear of dancing. It might be any form of dancing, couple or even single. Mostly sufferers believe that they don’t feel like dancing, but they don’t realize that they are afraid of it. In most cases people realized this anomaly when they just had to dance like at a club or at prom. In extremities, some have found out about this when they felt anxiety and nausea at the time of their wedding dance.

The treatment for Chorophobia is the same as for other phobias, but it is hard to recognize. Sometimes it is just seen as the reluctance or a part of one’s personality not to indulge in things like dancing.

Genophobia – Fear of Sexual Relations

Genophobia is the physical or psychological fear of sexual relations or sexual intercourse. The word comes from the Greek terms genos, meaning “offspring,” and phobos, meaning “fear.”

People who suffer from the phobia can be intensely affected by attempted sexual contact or just the thought of it. The extreme fear can lead to trouble in romantic relationships. Those afflicted by Genophobia may stay away from getting involved in relationships to avoid the possibility of intimacy. This can lead to feelings of loneliness. Genophobic people may also feel lonely because they may feel embarrassed or ashamed of their personal fears. This type of phobia can be developed due to any trauma sustained during sex. People that were molested as children are mostly found to be Genophobic.

Heliophobia – Fear of Sunlight (Vampire Madness)

 Heliophobia is a problem that afflicts hundreds of people, but one that suffers from a lack of true research. The Pacific Health Center suggested that many people have been staying away from the sun because of growing fears about skin cancer. Sufferers of Heliophobia would keep out of the sun and would mostly be just thought of as ‘night owls’. They are terrified at the sight of daylight and tend to keep it as dark as possible. They stay in basements or cellers and spend an abnormal amount of time on in house activities. Television, movies and especially vampire stories have come quite handy in inflicting Heliophobia.

Heliophobia was considered a “telltale sign” of vampires in many cultures. So I guess the new twilight vibe can also inflict Heliophobia.

Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia – Fear of the ‘number 666’

 Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia is a Greek word. It literally means “fear of six hundred sixty-six”. It is the fear that originated from the Biblical verse Revelation 13:18 which indicates that the number 666 is the Number of the Beast, linked to Satan or the Anti-Christ.

Outside the Christian faith, the phobia has been further popularized as a motif in various horror films. Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobes will strongly avoid things related to the number 666. A prominent example is Nancy and Ronald Reagan who, in 1989, when moving to their home in the Bel-Air section of Los Angeles, had the address of 666 St. Cloud Road changed to 668 St. Cloud Road. Some women also expressed concern on giving birth to a child on June 6, 2006 (abbreviated 6/6/06). The release of ‘The Omen’ on 6/6/06, along with other referrals to this number in films like ‘The number 23’ etc. are an example of Hollywood use of this number.

In 2006, the BBC listed hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia and its definition as fact #64 in its “100 things we didn’t know this time last year”.

Nomophobia – Fear of being out of mobile phone contact

 Nomophobia is the fear of being out of mobile phone contact. The term, an abbreviation for “no-mobile-phone phobia”, was coined during a study by the UK Post Office who commissioned YouGov, a UK-based research organization to look at anxieties suffered by mobile phone users. The study found that nearly 53 percent of mobile phone users in Britain tend to be anxious when they “lose their mobile phone, run out of battery or credit, or have no network coverage”. The study found that about 58 percent of men and 48 percent of women suffer from the phobia, and an additional 9 percent feel stressed when their mobile phones are off.

The study compared stress levels induced by the average case of nomophobia to be on-par with those of “wedding day jitters” and trips to the dentists. More than one in two nomophobes never switch off their mobile phones.

Phobophobia – Fear of having a Phobia.

 Phobophobia is the fear of phobia(s), and more specifically, of the internal sensations associated with that phobia and anxiety. Phobophobia comes in between the stress the patient might be experiencing and the phobia that the patient has developed as well as the effects on his life, or in other words, it is a bridge between anxiety/panic the patient might be experiencing and the type of phobia he/she fears, creating an intense and extreme predisposition to the feared phobia. Nevertheless, Phobophobia is not necessarily developed as part of other phobias, but can be a important factor for maintaining them. Phobophobia differentiates itself from other kind of phobias by the fact that there is no environmental stimulus per se, but rather internal dreadful sensations similar to psychological symptoms of panic attacks.

Telephone phobia – Fear of making or taking phone calls.

 Telephone phobia (telephonophobia, telephobia) is reluctance or fear of making or taking phone calls, literally, “fear of telephone”.

Sufferers typically report fear that they would fail to respond appropriately in a telephone conversation, and fear finding nothing to say, which would end in embarrassing silence, stammering, or stuttering. The associated avoidance behavior includes asking others (e.g., relatives at home) to take their phone calls and exclusive use of answering machines. As a result, the sufferers avoid many activities, such as scheduling events or clarifying information.
As it is common with various fears and phobias, there is a wide spectrum of severity of the fear of phone conversations and the corresponding difficulties. In 1993 it was reported that about 2.5 million of people in Great Britain have telephone phobia.

List of Worlds Largest Things

The photos in this post are some world’s biggest stuff. Although many of these things are totally useless, other than to have your picture taken with, they are very interesting. Most represent real life items that are simply hugely oversized.

World’s Largest Cheesecake

On 25 January 2009, in Mexico City, Mexico, Philadelphia of Kraft Foods Mexico was recognized by Guinness World Records™ as the creator of the largest cheesecake ever made. The colossal confectionery weighed 2,133.5 kg (4,703 lb), had a diameter of 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) and was 56 cm (1 ft 10 in) tall. The recipe for the world’s largest cheesecake included 800 kg (1,764 lb) of Philadelphia cream cheese, 800 kg of yogurt, 350 kg (772 lb) of cookies, 250 kg (551 lb) of sugar, 150 kg (331 lb) of butter and 100 kg (220 lb) of strawberries, along with other ingredients.

World’s Largest Plate of Hummus

Hummus is a dish that often finds different varieties depending on the creator, but is normally made from mashed up chickpeas, sesame paste, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. While eaten for centuries, the exact origin seems to be unknown. Lebanon decided to take things into their own hands, and with the collaboration of some 300 chefs, they filled a massive ceramic plate of hummus in downtown Beirut. The final 4,532 lb. (2,056 kilograms) dish utilized 2,976 pounds of mashed chickpeas, 106 gallons of lemon juice and 57 pounds of salt. Shortly after, a representative from the Guiness Book of World Records confirmed their record-breaking dish.

World’s Largest Easter Egg

The Easter egg or Ukrainian ‘Pysanka,’ was constructed in 1975 to commemorate early Ukrainian settlements in an area east of Edmonton. Professor Resch was responsible for the entire Pysanka concept which required the development of new computer programs. The Pysanka is really an immense jig-saw puzzle containing 524 star patterns, 2,206 equilateral triangles, 3,512 visible facets, 6,978 nuts and bolts, and 177 internal struts.

World’s Largest Lily

Flaming Red Giant was erected in 1990 by Ralph Korody, as a symbol of community recognition to a pioneer and long time resident of our district, DR. A. J. (Bert) Porter. This represents one of many varieties developed at Honeywood Nursery. Home town of this flower is Parkside, Saskatchewan.

World’s Largest Thermometer

Will Herron, a businessman, dreamed of a huge thermometer for 25 years before he made it a reality in California’s high desert. The World’s Largest Thermometer is 134-ft.-tall, symbolic of the record high temperature in the US, in Death Valley — 134 degrees Fahrenheit in 1913.

World’s Largest Motorcycle

The world’s largest motorcycle comes with a $300,000 price tag and stands at 11 feet high and measures 20 feet long. Created by Greg Dunham, this monster motorcycle could actually drive.

World’s Largest Pool

Already drawing the crowds in the South American resort of San Alfonso del Mar in Chile, this artificial lagoon and swimming pool is eight hectares in size and contains an incredible 250,000 cubic meters of water. Acknowledged by Guinness World Records as being the world’s largest swimming pool, the lagoon trounces all other record holders in the category, including the Orthlieb pool in Casablanca, Morocco, itself a huge 150 meters by 100 meters – the San Alfonso pool is 1km in length.

World’s Largest Plane

The An-225 is quoted as having a maximum takeoff weight of over 1.3 million pounds (600,000 kg). The FAI gives credit for a slightly lower weight of 1.12 million pounds (508,200 kg), the record set by an An-225 in 1989 for the largest mass ever lifted by an airplane to an altitude of 6,500 ft (2,000 m). The An-225 was originally built to ferry the Soviet Buran space shuttle but it is now used to transport various outsize cargos. Only one example was ever completed, and it is currently available for charter flights. The An-225 is a cargo transport only and has never been used as an airliner.

World’s Largest Building

Burj Dubai (Arabic for “Dubai Tower”) is a skyscraper under construction in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is the tallest man-made structure on Earth other than broadcasting towers. Construction began on September 21, 2004, and it is expected to be completed and ready for occupation in September 2009.

World’s Largest TV

While Sharp and Panasonic are claiming largest for individual technologies, TecnoVision is having none of it and pitching its 205in screen as the World’s Largest Television full stop. The Luxio measures a whopping 455x256cm – that’s enough to almost fill an entire wall.

World’s Largest Aquarium

This is one of the world’s biggest fish tanks – so big that it’s even been named the Kuroshio Sea.
Located in the Churaumi Aquarium in Okinawa, Japan, the enormous tank is some ten metres deep, 35 metres wide and 27 metres long. It holds a staggering 7,500 tonnes of water – roughly equal to three Olympic-sized swimming pools.

World’s Largest Crayola Crayon

It weighs 1,500 pounds and is 15 feet long. Apparently, this crayon could draw a line 10 miles long! Crayola created this monster sized crayon with crayons donated by children to celebrate the company’s 100th birthday! This is a great story.

World’s Largest Six Pack

It is located in La Crosse, Wisconsin. You can’t keep a good roadside attraction down! The World’s Largest Six-Pack has risen anew. Once painted in the colors of Heileman’s “Old Style Lager” beer, the six aging tanks that make up the six pack were painted over following the closure of the brewery back in 2001.
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World’s Largest Ice Cream Cake

Chinese workers were seen celebrating after they broke the Guinness World Record for the biggest ice-cream cake more than a year ago in Beijing, January 16, 2006. The cake is 4.8 meters long, 3 meters wide, and 1 meter high, and weighs 8 tons. It was recognized as the largest ice-cream cake, according to the Guinness World Records.

World’s Largest Cruise Ship

Oasis of the Seas is an Oasis-class cruise ship in the fleet of Royal Caribbean International. The first of her class, she is expected to be joined by her sister ship Allure of the Seas in December 2010. Both vessels are expected to cruise the Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She set a new record of carrying over 6,000 passengers. Oasis of the Seas offers passengers features such as two-story loft suites and luxury suites measuring 1,600 sq ft (150 m2) with balconies overlooking the sea or promenades. The ship features a zip-line, a casino, a mini-golf course, multiple night clubs, several bars and lounges, a karaoke club, comedy club, four swimming pools, volleyball and basketball courts, theme parks and nurseries for children.

World’s Largest Fountain

The fountains, which has yet to be named, will be capable of shooting water over 150 metres into the air – the height of a 50-storey building – and stretch over 275 metres – the length of two football fields. The $218 million project will be 25 percent larger than the iconic fountains at the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas. Like the Fountains of Bellagio, Emaar’s fountains will include an integral light and sound show and is expected to become one of Dubai’s major tourist attractions, drawing over 10 million visitors per year.

World’s Largest Golden Nugget

It’s named “Hand of Faith,” it’s the size of a baby, and it weighs almost 62 pounds. It was found in 1980 by a guy in Australia with a metal detector, who reportedly almost didn’t bother to dig it up because he thought that his machine was faulty. Hand of Faith was only six inches below the surface. The Golden Nugget bought it for a million dollars. WOW!