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The Gravity of Illusion: Dyson’s Mysterious Garden Fountain

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Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on pinterest_share Share on google_plusone_share Share on stumbleupon Share on reddit Share on email More Sharing Services A simple water feature can take an ordinary deck and turn it into something magnificent. But a water feature fashioned by celebrated industrial designer James Dyson (of Dyson vacuums fame) is bound to be the most unforgettable water feature ever. This fountain, part of an overall garden design dubbed “ The Wrong Garden ,” was created by Dyson for the Royal Horticultural Society’s 2003 Chelsea Flower Show. Like everything else designed by Dyson, it accomplishes a seemingly impossible task with highly astonishing style: in this case, it makes water flow uphill. Dyson’s inspiration for the highly unusual outdoor fountain was M.C. Escher’s “Waterfall,” an illustration in which a stream of water seemingly breaks the laws of physics. Likewise, Dyson’s fountain looks like it somehow exists in a loo...

The ‘Underwater Waterfall’ Illusion at Mauritius Island

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Photographer Unknown (via  KULfoto.com) Mauritius  is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) off the southeast coast of the African continent. Mauritius was first discovered by the Arabs in 975 AD, then by the Portuguese between 1507 and 1513. Since then there have been periods of succession and colonization between the French, Dutch and British. The island became a republic in 1968. Located at the Southwestern tip of the island you will find a fascinating illusion. When viewed from above, a runoff of sand and silt deposits creates the impression of an ‘underwater waterfall’. Satellite views (as seen in the  Google Maps screenshots below) are equally dramatic, as an underwater vortex seemingly appears off the coast of this tropical paradise. [h/t  pdmcmahon ] Satellite Photograph by  DigitalGlobe  via  Google Maps Satellite Photograph by  DigitalGlobe  via  Google Maps ...