When the Sky Fell on the Ground...

The Architecture of the future

Why the beggars dont get a job

Neuroscience research conducted on children who have been raised in poverty has shown that the stress of a poor childhood has permanent affects on the brain. More specifically, scientists are learning that the working memories of poorer children, especially those brought up in dense urban populations, have smaller capacities than those of their middle- and upper-class counterparts. What this means is that these children will have a harder time remembering things like long numbers or names of state capitals in school, be less equipped to “mug up” for the brutal exams and, as a result, fair poorer in job interviews, even if they are able to actually go to school and get job interviews in the first place.


The implications are obvious — there are explanations beyond laziness for why the poor stay poor for generations. It’s perhaps not fair to blame them for their plight. So, next time you tell a young begger to go get a job, give him a rupee or two along with your advice to take the edge off the stress and make it a little more likely that the kid will have a chance to leave the slums.

So next time you see a beggar on the street, don't be mean to them

The Amazing Banana Boats

Danish artist Jacob Dahlstrup loves to build miniature boats, but instead of using wood, he builds their hulls out of ripe bananas. His works were recently on display at the Shoreditch Town Hall, in London, and you can see his entire portfolio on his official site. While I’m pretty sure they don’t float (not the way a boat is supposed to, anyway), Jacob Dahlstrup’s banana boats make great, nutritious snacks.