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Powys County Times
11-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Powys County Times
Knighton performance for the Sonic Spider instrument
THE world's first eight-legged musical instrument can be experienced in Powys next week – as the Sonic Spider comes to Knighton. The Sonic Spider is an instrument designed to be played by multiple musicians; four metres in diameter, with piano wires strung on spindly, steel legs. It aims to recreate the experience of an orb web spider, which cannot see and relies on vibrations in its web for sensory information, with performances intended to convey the drama of the orb web spider's world. There will be an outdoor presentation of the Sonic Spider in Knighton on Sunday, August 17, outside in Pinners Hole, Knighton (LD7 1EN), located behind the Offa's Dyke Centre, at 2.30pm. The Sonic Spider is the brainchild of Camilla Saunders, a musician and composer, whose work attempts to build bridges between species on this planet through the medium of sound. It was designed by biologist and science writer Alun Anderson and musician/designer Charlie Beresford, who built the spider. 'They (an orb web spider) know the world around them only through the vibrations that reach them through the silk lines of their web,' reads a statement on the Sonic Spider website. 'It is this world of vibration that the Sonic Spider recreates with sound, the closest we can come to entering the spider's sensory experience. 'At performances, we ask the audience to imagine the whole event space is filled by a giant web, with the Sonic Spider sitting in its centre. 'Several musicians play the eight strings on the spider, while others, playing a variety of instruments, perform out in the 'web'. 'A fly may crash into the web, sending the spider into a frenzy of activity as it tries to capture it and wrap it in silk. Or a male may appear, cautiously signalling that it is not a fly, and hoping to mate and flee, without being eaten. 'Dangerous predators may appear, and the wind will set the web vibrating too.' The website adds: 'The goal is to encourage the audience to perceive how the world of every creature is unique, and to let their imaginations go and begin to imagine the multitude of worlds in this space right here, right now, of creatures large and small around them, that often pass through our lives unnoticed, or even despised as pests.' August is appropriately the eighth month of the year and the international month of the orb web spider. The Powys performance will last about 40 minutes, with attendees encouraged to bring their own seating and umbrellas if rain threatens. The event is free and family-friendly, and there are no real live spiders involved. The Sonic Spider has appeared at several science festivals, including the British Science Festival and Oxford IF, and toured Wales last year courtesy of a grant from Arts Council Wales.
USA Today
19-03-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
The blobfish, 'bullied his whole life,' named fish of the year in public vote
The blobfish, 'bullied his whole life,' named fish of the year in public vote "It's time for the blobfish to have his moment in the sun." Show Caption Hide Caption Small ocean creature hatches in woman's hand A couple walking along a St. Pete Beach in Florida came across an unusual egg, a clearnose skate fish hatched and swam off. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, especially in New Zealand. A New Zealand-based environmental nonprofit, the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, announced over the weekend its annual "Fish of the Year" winner, which was none other than the blobfish. "The blobfish had been sitting patiently on the ocean floor, mouth open waiting for the next mollusk to come through to eat. He has been bullied his whole life and we thought, 'Stuff this, it's time for the blobfish to have his moment in the sun,' and what a glorious moment it is," radio show More FM hosts Sarah Gandy and Paul Flynn said in a news release. More than 5,500 New Zealanders participated in the "Fish of the Year" competition, up from 1,021 in 2024, the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust reported. What is a blobfish? The flathead sculpin, commonly known as the blobfish, gained widespread popularity after it was named the world's ugliest animal during the 2013 British Science Festival. The blobfish is recognizable for its pink blob-like body, droopy, downturned mouth and large, saggy nose. Over the past decade, the fish has been made into countless memes, appeared in different forms of media and of course, sold as squishy plush toys. But the blobfish isn't all the "blobby" in it's natural habitat. In the cold, dark depths of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans − between 1,970 to 3,940 feet deep − the blobfish looks quite different, more like a "normal" fish, in fact. Scientist Richard Arnott told National Geographic that the fish only looks so gooey because of rapid depressurization when its brought to the surface. At the depths the blobfish resides, the pressure can be a hundred times stronger than on land, according to National Geographic. At around 3,280 feet down, human lungs and other air-filled spaces would collapse. To survive under this pressure − literally − the blobfish's body has a high water and fat content. Jelly-like flesh makes the blobfish less dense than water, allowing it to easily move around, according to National Geographic. Blobfish are known as lie-in-wait predators, meaning they lay on the seabed, waiting for anything that passed by to eat up. This allows them to preserve energy. As for reproduction, blobfish reproduce in groups, laying about 100,000 eggs in each nest, National Geographic states. Blobfish parents stay close to their nests as their eggs develop. Are blobfish endangered? Blobfish are not listed as an endangered species, but human activity has caused an increased amount of danger to the fish's livelihood. Deep-sea fishing and bottom trawling, when a weighted fishnet is dragged across the sea floor, are considered some of the blobfish's key predators. What is the Fish of the Year contest? Started in 2021, the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust's Fish of the Year competition serves as an educational opportunity for New Zealanders to learn more about marine life who may be endangered or live in a fragile ecosystem, the trust's website states. In 2021 and 2022, the Eagle Ray took home first place. In 2023, the Oceanic Manta Ray won and last year, the Spotty took home the crown. Who were the Fish of the Year runner-ups? According to the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, the top nine fish, following the blobfish were: No. 2: Orange roughy No. 3: Longfin eel and tuna No. 4: Whale shark No. 5: Big-bellied seahorse and manaia No. 6: Great white shark and mangō taniwha No. 7: Lamprey and piharau No. 8: Spine-tailed devil ray and whai Rahi No. 9: Basking shark and reremai No. 10: Blue cod and rāwaru Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretalcross. Story idea? Email her at gcross@
