Ten Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

A Phobia Is Defined As "An Extreme Or Irrational Fear Of Or Aversion To Something"

You've all heard of common phobias like claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces) sociophobia (social anxiety disorder) 

Well here I present you the ten phobias that will blow your mind!

10) Agyrophobia - Fear Of Crossing Streets

 

Agyrophobia is a condition in which a person has this irrational fear that he'll be harmed while crossing the street. A person suffering from this phobia avoids crossing the streets alone. If you do have this phobia, I'd suggest you to be safe on the streets because your anxiety and panic while crossing the street may lead to a fatal accident.

9) Coulrophobia - Fear Of Clowns

I know many of you people love the clowns right? i mean they act so funny, make you laugh at the circus, or kid's favourite Ronald Mcdonald. Well guess what? that's not the case with coulrophobiacs. These people freak out, get panic attacks, or get very depressed even if they think about clowns. Well if you too want to see the darker side of the clown, take our beloved "Joker" from the batman as an example (WHY SO SERIOUS?)

8) Somniphobia - Fear Of Sleep

There are multiple reasons for this. but mostly somniphobiacs are terrified of what might happen after they fall asleep. some somniphobiacs can't sleep because they have this view that they could maximize their time doing something useful (Workaholic types) Or have fun and increase their leisure activity time instead of wasting it sleeping. 

7) Dendrophobia - The Fear Of Trees.

It is more of a psychological disorder in which a person has a fear of woods, trees and forests. This phobia could be from birth or may develop later due to some traumatic event, movies like Cabin In The Woods, etc.  When exposed to such areas, the dendrophobiacs feel discomfort, rapid breaths, excessive sweating etc.

6) Spectrophobia - The Fear Of Mirrors.

spectrophobia is an irrational fear of mirrors. A person can develop this phobia because of the reasons like he/she must've seen something creepy inside the mirror, horror films, fear of looking ugly. Some fear because they think they've been watched by someone inside the mirror. Spectrophobiacs also feel that they are been pulled inside the mirror by someone.

5) Genuphobia - The Fear Of Knees.

HaHa! No Kidding! This phobia is spreading rapidly. There is no specific cause for this phobia, but this may be because while growing up the person's parents must've wore exclusive clothing which covered the entire knees. This may also develop because of an old scar on any particular knee. like I said, the reason is still not specific, but it is what it is.

4) Ithyphallophobia -  The Fear Of An Erect Penis.

This might sound funny to you, but this is really embarrassing for the person suffering from it.  The person suffering from this phobia gets totally freaked out if he sees an erect penis or have an erect penis. These people gets very depressed and act very unsocial. Well the privilege of Naughty America is definitely not for these people.   

  3)Arachibutyrophobia - The Fear Of Peanut Butter Sticking To The Roof Of Ones Mouth.

Some people are terrified or engrossed by the fact of peanut butter sticking on the roof of their mouth. this may occur if the person has an over sensitive mouth roof. Many people are allergic to peanut butter. Also the peanut butter could be a serious choking hazard for children. 

2) Pedophobia - Fear Of Children

Well everyone love kids. They find them real cute and cuddly. However a particular set of people tends to have a different view about kids. They are scared of kids so much some of them even get a panic attack when left alone with a kid. These people even have scary dreams about kids. This may be due to irritation from kids, finding kids filthy, etc. Even horror movies like Omen, Exorcist, etc are responsible to twist up people's view about children

1) Trypophobia - The Fear Of holes.

This is the most creepy phobia to have. In this a person is feared of cluster of small holes of irregular patterns. This phobia is so dangerous that even if you dont have it, just google 'trypophobia images' and i bet you'll freak out looking at those images. trypophobiacs are also scared of honeycombs, frogs, lotus seeds etc. Whenever they come across something with small holes they feel anxious, extreme headache, discomfort, increased heartbeat, mood swings, depression etc.

Thank You for reading. Tell me about your phobia in the comments.  

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Review.

Rating: 8.5/10

The year 2012 was a pretty decent one for movie lovers, but there was this one last movie that I felt was missing. One last spark to ignite a fire. The Hobbit was absolutely what was needed to fill that hole of dissatisfaction.

The movie starts off on the same day on which LOTR had started. However we backpedal 60 years into the past when Bilbo Baggins was a young hobbit. Martin Freeman who plays the role of Bilbo is certainly my favourite hobbit till date. He has grabbed his character of being afraid and yet excited to move ahead almost perfectly. Ian McKellen is as usual so casual and fun to watch. He is someone who has actually got even older in real life but yet manages to play a younger and enthusiastic version of our dear old Gandalf. The thirteen dwarfs have been made to adapt their characteristic dirtiness and their barbaric nature very well by Peter Jackson. Richard Armitage who plays Thorin, the leader of the pack is a standout among those thirteen. To me his role reminded me of Aragorn in some way. Andy Serkis returns as one of the most adored creature in cinema i.e the Gollum. His riddling game with Freeman might just be the most amusing scene in the movie. Gollum still remains to be a CGI wonder. Along with the thrilling action and adventure, the movie has some really great light hearted moments that would never let a smile go off your face.

Moving on to the directional part, the movie is the long but yet exciting and thrilling enough to keep you engaged. The fight scenes after a while get a bit monotonous but I am pretty sure that it is not something that will put you off. The scenery has become even more realistic and better thanks to latest CGI technologies used by Peter Jackson. Critics slammed the increased frames per second used by Jackson. Normally movies in 3D are 24 fps but the Hobbit has 48 fps. I believe it was that sharp realistic detailing thanks to the increased frames that always kept me on the edge of my seat. The scenes are beautiful and it feels as if Middle Earth never looked better. From an aesthetic point of view there is nothing to doubt about the movie. The movie also answers many unanswered questions about the rivalry of dwarves and elves or how Bilbo got his glowing sword named Sting.

For an LOTR fan, this movie is a treat to watch even with some of its minute flaws. Being one myself, I won't find any difficulty in terming it as the 'Movie of the year'. What worries me is that how Peter Jackson is going to manage converting a 300 page book into a trilogy. It will be an interesting journey ahead. 

Life of Pi - The journey of a pious young man.

My Rating - 8.5/10

There is simply nothing that you will hate about this movie. Although the book was deemed 'unfilmable' by many, Ang Lee surprisingly delivers us with an enthralling cinematic experience. Yes, maybe the story is quite flat but at the same time it is allegorical. It gives us a whole new perspective on a young man's journey towards finding God. It also shows us what solitary confinement can do to humans. Suraj Sharma and Adil Sharma did their parts superbly and as usual one of my favourite Indian actor, Irrfan Khan doesn't disappoint at all. Life of Pi shows us the artistic side of cinema. Its wonderful visuals and sensational 3D effects are a treat for our eyes. The thing that amused me the most was Ang Lee's direction. The camera angles used in the movie were out of this world. From the scene of the whale diving out of a jellyfish smack to the shipwreck scene, everything is close to perfection. The different angles through which Ang Lee has shown us different amusing angles of the boat in which Pi travels, the reflection of the sky in the still water and the beautiful sunset scenery, every scene is distinct and unique in its own way. If you ask a photographer he would tell you how good the camera angles were. Personally the angles were good enough to be compared with Stanley Kubrick's angles in the 2001: A Space Odyssey. Apart from that there is a bit of intelligent humour along with an inspiring background score which stands out. With that kind of direction this movie definitely awaits an Oscar. To end this I would say - If you haven't seen this movie while you're alive, well you shouldn't be alive. I will be leaving you with a set of pictures from the movie that might possibly justify why I am constantly praising the direction.

Why opting the Samsung Galaxy Nexus over the LG Nexus 4 might not be such a bad idea after all!

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus(Left) and the LG Nexus 4(Right)

It has been a whole year since the Samsung Galaxy Nexus was released. Straightaway it took the Android world with a storm. It set a benchmark for quality smartphones. Although high end smartphones like Galaxy S2 were pretty established by then but with its sleek look and the then latest version of Android (ICS), the Galaxy Nexus took the smartphone experience to a different level. Now finally almost a year later, Google unveiled its successor by the name of LG Nexus 4. The latest device is without a shadow of doubt much more powerful and desirable than the older one, but the question is that "Is the upgrade really required?" Before I put in my points let me just make it clear that here I am not saying that the Galaxy Nexus is better than Nexus 4, I am trying to point out that even after a year it can win dogfights from most of the smartphones available in the market.

Lets start by discussing about the external built of the smartphones. Both of the phones have almost identical screen sizes. The only difference being that the G Nex sports a 720p Super AMOLED display which provides vivid and brighter colours than the Nexus 4, which has a True HD IPS Plus display whose specialty lies in providing more natural colours. Viewing photos and videos(especially movies) is a joy on the G Nex because of the darker colours while the experience is pretty similar on the Nexus 4 but according to The Verge's Joshua Topolsky, the colours seem a bit washed out. Both have almost similar ppi so there is nothing much to compare there. The LG Nexus 4 beats the G Nex all hands down when it comes to the build quality. Even though the G Nex is a very and probably one of the sturdiest device it does not come near the amazing build quality of the Nexus 4. The LG Nexus 4 with its glass back (although there is always a risk of cracking it) and the jazzy chatoyance effect is much much better than the plastic body of the G Nex (Its a Samsung device so its obvious). The difference in the externals of the phone is separated by a pretty thin line. Certainly the Nexus 4 is better but the Galaxy Nexus is not far away from it either. And in all probabilities I believe that both the devices are the most beautiful android smartphones ever built.

The camera on the Galaxy Nexus is a 5mp Full HD camera but isn't very impressive. It is good for average daily usage but for someone who is addicted to clicking pictures every now and then (especially teenagers in bathrooms, however those idiots would buy an iPhone and not Nexus) it is just not good enough. The camera on the 8mp camera on the Nexus 4 is a huge improvement and it gets even better with the new camera interface of Android 4.2. It can also click HDR images. Its camera may not be as good as the other high end smartphone cameras but it is still a very strong competitor.

Moving on to the real deal now - the internal specifications. On paper the Nexus 4 whitewashes the specs of the G Nex. But then when we see in practical life, the specs are much more than what we require. I mean to say that the specifications of the Galaxy Nexus is as good as anything. With its 1.2ghz dual core processor combined with 1 gig of RAM, G Nex runs almost every application and game flawlessly. It also plays full hd 1080p videos without dropping a single frame and I think one could not just ask for more than that. Quad cores are hardly developed in computers let alone in smartphones. And Intel GM Mike Bell says that multi core processors are wasted on android to such an extent that it might be detrimental. When the world's largest and most successful  chip maker says it, you have no other option than listening to him. The LG Nexus 4 has a 1.5ghz quad core processor which will handle tasks as easily as applying butter on bread but so does the Galaxy Nexus. The 2 gigs of RAM in the LG Nexus is quite nice as it lets you to keep more apps running however it is also of very less use in real life. The LG Nexus 4 was introduced along with the latest Android version namely JellyBean 4.2. People might think it is an advantage but the Galaxy Nexus will be receiving the update as well. With all its powerful specifications the LG Nexus 4 is future proof but then it is safe to say that it is a smartphone that the world deserves but not the one it needs.

The LG Nexus 4 might be 10 times more revamped version of the Galaxy Nexus, but the latter has enough strength left in it that opting for it won't be a bad deal at all (as we all know that Nexus smartphones are very long lasting). Provided I asked the dealer in Mumbai and he says that the Galaxy Nexus has a good resale value. So if you have a budget of around 20k just order a Galaxy Nexus without showing even a wee bit of concern because even if the Nexus 4 does come to India, it will cost you nothing less than 30k. The Galaxy Nexus might not be as good as the Nexus 4 on paper but its specifications are still good enough that you can keep using it for another 4 - 4.5 years without any serious reasons to change.

Thank You for reading. If you think that buying the Nexus 4 makes more sense then please mention it in comments!

Manchester City vs Manchester United: Big Match Preview.

Battle Of Manchester

The managers have spoken, the fans are geared up and its now upto the players to provide us with the match which would probably decide the fate of the Barclays Premier League Trophy. This match is undoubtedly the biggest Manchester Derby to be ever played. With an estimated 650 million people all around the world to be watching this match, we all know this will be a cracker.


Manchester City Team News:

Roberto Mancini's side have been on a good run lately and are on winning streak of 3 matches. City have no players on the injury list and that means that Mancini will put his best eleven to face the 19 times English champions. Carlos Tevez has provided a huge boost to City since his return. He will look to score against his former side. Another player who will be tormenting the United defence will be Sergio Aguero whose pace and skills are very impressive. The midfield presumably will see a combination of the finesse of David Silva and the balance and strength of Yaya Toure. Barry will be playing as the sweeper as he has done most of the season. The back four expected are Clichy, Kompany, Lescott and Richards. However Mancini might employ Kolarov as left back to gain the advantage of his set piece skills. It is quite expected that City will be attacking with all their might as they don't have anything to lose. Revenge might be on their mind as the last time United visited Etihad they went on to win the tie.

Probable Lineup and Formation:

Manchester United Team News:

Manchester United will surely be eyeing sweet revenge after they were humiliated at their own home by their Noisy Neighbours. They win this match, they seal the title. They lose, then they just inflict more misery in their already bad season. United are looking quite good since the return of the veteran Paul Scholes winning all of their league games except for three. They must have thought of going into the derby with a 6 point lead but Everton came to spoil the party. Wayne Rooney will be the key player in this contest. We all know his capability to turn around a contest on its head. Welbeck will be expected to partner him after a good show last weekend. After a couple of impressive performances Nani is predicted to be taking up the left wing and it be usual business on the right wing with Antonio Valencia. Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick are surely to be occupying the center midfield. These two will also be very crucial. Evra, Ferdinand and Evans(slight doubt) are quite sure to be in the starting lineup. There will be some competition for the right back position after Rafael's disastrous performance against Everton. Smalling and Jones are the other alternatives for Sir Alex. However I feel Ryan Giggs and Dimitar Berbatov will be involved in this match. A draw will be a satisfactory result for the Red Devils and I expect them to sit deep and hit City on the counter.

Probable Lineup and Formation:

Manager Interviews:

Roberto Mancini: "I'm not nervous. Why should we be worried? When is the squeaky-bum time? I don't know that phrase. We are at the top of the league and have been there since the start of the season. This is where we want to be. Of course, it's important to get on with your chairman and the owner. But the owners at Manchester City are intelligent and they understand that to create a winning team takes time."

Sir Alex Ferguson: You would have to be a confirmed masochist to enjoy it (the derby). But we are looking forward to it and the players will be fully prepared for it. We have not watched the games a lot, but he (Carlos Tevez) scored a hat-trick. That is an impact. We will just have to wait and see what he does on Monday."

Emotions will be high in this match so one might expect a lot of bookings. It will be very difficult for United. They will be totally under pressure. They have to win otherwise they face the famous Poznan from the City loyal. But one might never know what tricks Sir Alex has got under his sleeves.


Prediction: Manchester City 1-2 Manchester United


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Linkin Park "Burn It Down" : Review

Linkin Park the American Rock band from California announced on 16th April the launch date of their new album Living Things. They also released the lead single of the album titled "Burn It Down".


Many fans were pretty disappointed with the previous Lp album A Thousand Suns. Personally I wasn't very impressed with Lp using elements of Techno and Electronic music in their songs. The new song starts with a heavy electronic beat which brings the feeling electro musicians like Daft Punk. Surprisingly as the song progresses those beats blend well with Chester Bennington's vocals. The chorus is the most impressive part where guitar riffs come in. Bennington uses softer vocals in the song except the chorus where he gets back to his usual business. Mike Shinoda spits out a little verse in the bridge which is probably the most disappointing part of the song. It kind of spoils the flow of the song. I think the rap was not needed tp be included. The song ends with the same electronic beat which is there in the intro.The lyrics are not very different from what Lp normally uses. 


The fans might still be missing the Nu Metal songs which got Linkin Park into the industry. This new faced Linkin Park atleast for now seems dedicated to impress the Pop and Techno fans. Even though it isn't the old Lp that we used to love, the song isn't that bad. 


Rating : 3.5/5

Here is the Official Lyrics Video:

The Avengers Review: Astonishingly Good

Almost 6 months since the release of the first trailer of The Avengers has now finally released. The movie surprisingly stood up to all the hype it created. Avengers is a well written movie with a good storyline and a mindblowing cast. Robert Downey Jr as usual is the most impressive personality in there. He does real justice to his role of Iron Man. With some witty dialogues and his rich attitude he literally lures the crowd. Hulk is awesome as ever. Powerful, indestructible and angry. Mark Ruffalo is the third actor to be playing Hulk and he doesn't does it bad at all . Thor is a bit of all brawn no brain kind of guy, but even then Chris Hemsworth does just enough to make you like him. Black Widow didn't play much of a part in there but yet her role was integral and Scarlett Johansson performs her duties well. Captain America was the old fashioned war soldier and he did well to acclimate himself in these modern wars. The way he manages to block almost everything from his shield is quite impressive. Chris Evans looks pretty comfortable in that role. Jeremy Renner continues from his impressive performance in MI4 and does brilliantly as Hawkeye. Infact he ain't much of a superhero but those arrows he got in there are quite awesome. Samuel Jackson gives a solid performance as Nick Fury and is well supported by Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill. A special mention to Tom Hiddleston who looks really mean and cunning in his negative role of Thor's brother Loki.

  

The storyline is plain and simple. There is nothing much to worry about. It revolves around a source of unlimited power called the 'Tesseract' which was also seen in previous Marvel comic movie Captain America: The First Avenger. Loki to avenge his defeat from Thor decides to make a pact with the Chitauri tribe of aliens which means that Loki will bring them the Tesseract and they will let Loki have Earth. Loki uses his powers to take control over the minds of Hawkeye and Dr. Eric Salvig who was previously seen in Thor the movie. He steals the Tesseract and manages to get away. Then with an army he starts the execution of his plan to create a portal for the Chitauri tribe to enter the Earth. Meanwhile Nick Fury builds a team of people with special abilities and names them The Avengers who go on to defeat the Chitauri tribe, Loki and manage to save the Earth. Then they disappear. I won't go deep into the storyline as it would spoil your fun of watching the movie.

All I wanna say is, that the movie is class. The final fight is just mind blowing. This is undoubtedly the second best superhero movie of all time. And yeah, watch the movie in 3D. The movie was converted to 3D in post production but yet the effects are impressive. One more commendable thing the director Joss Wheedon do was that he did not let any one superhero standout and dominate the others. All were equally powerful and awesome. But even then Robert Downey Jr. steals the show with his charm. A must watch for superhero movie lovers. Deserves a watch. Don't miss it!

My Rating: 8.5/10
IMdB Rating: 8.9/10
RT Rating: 8.1/10