It seems as though Daniel Ricciardo has had some real challenges to contend with already in the 2019 Formula One season… Which is probably a tough pill to swallow considering how well he had been doing at Red Bull. However, is the Aussie driver regretting his decision to leave Red Bull and join Renault? Or will the French team pull through for him?

Why He Left

What we have to remember, is that although Ricciardo had been seeing some success with Red Bull, it was certainly overshadowed by the rise of Mighty Max Verstappen. Those who have watched the Netflix documentary, Formula 1: Drive to Survive, know all too well the conflict Daniel Ricciardo found himself in. On one hand, he loved driving in the Red Bull, particularly as it’s one of the most competitive cars outside of the top two teams of Ferrari and Mercedes. On the other hand, it was quite clear that Max Verstappen was getting preferential treatment – especially when his contract was renewed on some pretty impressive terms. The Australian driver knew it was time to leave, he just didn’t know where he would end up.

His First Choice?

It seems as though Renault certainly wasn’t Daniel Ricciardo’s first choice of team to leave Red Bull for. However, as Ferrari scooped up Charles Leclerc and Valtteri Bottas promised to do better in 2019, the options were running out for Ricciardo. Renault used to provide the engine for Red Bull, until Christian Horner decided to pull out of the contract, so it seemed to make sense that he would follow the engine that had given him so much success in the past.

All Going Wrong

Unfortunately for Daniel Ricciardo, things haven’t been going as well as he had hoped in the 2019 Formula One season. He ended up with a DNF at his home race, the first race of the season in Australia, plus two more DNFs in Bahrain and Azerbaijan. In fact, he has only been in the points twice this season – seventh at Shanghai and ninth in his favorite race, Monaco. It seems to be all going wrong for Ricciardo, but Renault are hopeful.

Now that a few of the issues have been ironed out of the yellow car, and Ricciardo is finding his feet behind the wheel, we should see him climbing up the grid again soon. We hope!

Before the internet, when you ran into a mystery, you couldn’t rely on anyone but your friends. But these days, you can show the weird things you find to people online, and rest assured that someone, somewhere will be able to tell you about it. Such is the joy of worldwide communication, and it’s also what we’ll be talking about today: times where someone just had no clue what they were looking at, but by taking it to the all knowledgeable internet, were able to get an answer fairly quickly.

This tiny little thing made of thread and glue is called a worry doll. Apparently, the idea is to tell the doll your worries, then place it under your pillow when you sleep at night. This is supposed to make it so your worries don’t plague you as much during the day.

We’re not exactly sure where the concept of a worry doll came from, but it definitely sounds like some sort of superstitious type of thing parents tell to their young children.

Most people think of fossils as being quite hard to find, like they’re buried thousands of feet under the ground. However, that depends on your description of ‘fossil.’ This rock was found right on the porch of a home someone bought.

Of course, its just a fossil of a tree trunk, or rather, it’s the impression of a tree trunk in the rock. You may not think that qualifies as a fossil, but in reality, this too fall sunder that description.

This strange object hanging from a ceiling may look a lot like a slider at first, and you wouldn’t actually be wrong about that, if the internet is to be believed. Apparently, it’s a spider that has been overtaken by some sort of fungus infection.

We’re not exactly sure how that happens or how long it takes, but we are going to assume that this spider died before it ended up getting into this state.

Sometimes, it’s easy to see a connection where there isn’t one, based solely on coincidental similarities. Take this sticker for example, which was found on the inside cover of a bible: it looks like a partridge and a fig tree, both of which have biblical significance.

But in reality, it’s an election sticker from 1992, supposed to symbolize “no Bush, no quail.” It’s just a coincidence that it ended up in a bible and seemed relevant.

All sorts of things wash up on the beach, and most of them aren’t the types of things you would expect to find on a beach at all. Take, for example, this metal sphere. The internet claims it is most likely a titanium sphere that is commonly found in space debris.

Despite our lack of expertise, we’re inclined to buy that explanation. After all, all sorts of weird things fall from space, it’s just that most people don’t ever see them.

Have you ever seen something really weird just out and about in the great wide open? Something like this image, for example? We’d forgive you if you were confused by it. Turns out it’s not actually that complicated though: these are European Red Slugs, and they happen to be mating.

In fact, when you find two of an animal oddly intertwined with one another in nature, they are very often mating. That’s just how it is. Animals would probably be as confused by how humans get it done as well.

Finding weird things in your food is never very pleasant. That’s because you just never really know what they are. In this case, what this woman found in her meal, according to the internet, is insect eggs. Pretty gross.

We hope they got a refund for something like this, and more importantly, that they called a health inspector. We’re pretty sure they would never go to eat there again, regardless of any other action they chose to take.

Before ceiling fans existed, did people just accept the heat for what it was and swelter in it? Of course not, at least not as far as the wealthy were concerned. This strange contraption is actually a really old ceiling fan.

Using a rope (and possibly a pulley system), this large curtain-like thing would be pulled up and down in order to create a draft, much like a little hand fan you could find today. Of course, we assume someone had to do this manually.

This car is specially modified, but for what purpose? Well, it turns out that there is an Uber like service called Bubbl, which is geared towards children and with greater concerns over the driver and the children’s safety. We assume the actual bubble serves a practical purpose.

Of particularly interesting note is the fact that these special cars are all driven by off-duty or retired police officers, which make it especially unique among such driving services.

This object may seem like a pretty confusing coat hanger design if you don’t know what it is. It’s called anti-ligature, and belongs only in special rooms where there is concern over someone taking their own life. The design removes one potential way of doing that.

We assume such a device would most find use in hospitals, prisons or psychiatric wards, though we definitely aren’t the people to go to in regards to a final consensus on that assessment.

This little guy may look like some sort of strange rabbit, but it’s something else entirely, actually. The internet says it is a Patagonian Cavy: whatever that is. Looks like a mix between a hare and a capybara to us.

Apparently, it was seen at a zoo in an enclosure that it didn’t belong to, so we’re not sure if that means it’s an animal actually found at the zoo, or if it’s the kind that just like to roam around without much supervision. Or maybe it’s both.

Someone found this strange looking piece of metal in the lock to their door, which would be pretty concerning for anyone. Of course, it became more concerning when the internet revealed what this strange object is. Apparently, it’s a tension wrench from a lockpick set.

Needless to say, it’s a little concerning to think that someone was breaking into your house. As for why they left their tension wrench behind, who knows? Then again, we suppose a locksmith may have been involved instead.

Considering how horrific they are, these little parasites have actually been mentioned on the internet several times, so maybe you’ve heard about them. The odd thing is, they eat a fish’s tongue, then replace the tongue so they can eat the food the fish eats instead of it.

That is… pretty disturbing, to say the least. Needless to say, we probably wouldn’t be comfortable eating any fish that had such a parasite inside of it, regardless of whether or not it actually presented any sort of health hazard.

This piece of car was found in an accident involving a car and a cyclist, and no one at the scene knew what it was. Thankfully, someone from the internet was able to determine its identity: a 1988 Chevy Silverado headlight bezel.

Apparently, the internet anon who answered this knew the answer because he had been a state inspector for Maryland for many years, in which a part of vehicle inspection was mandatory headlight adjustment. We suppose that would provide a lot of experience.

If there’s one thing you wouldn’t want to find just lying around in a server room, it’s a Russian Anti-Tank Guided Missile. The real question is, why on Earth is such a deadly munition just lying around in a corner?

If we had to guess, this server room may have once been an armory, and perhaps it was repurposed, which required clearing out all of the munitions. If this is the case, someone clearly didn’t do a very good job with that. Talk about dangerous!

It may look like a UFO, but we promise this strange thing is man-made. Apparently, this large apparatus is actually a power source of some sort: the large mirror reflects light onto a tower, and the heat is used to turn a steam engine, or a similar heat-requiring engine.

That said, we imagine things like this can only be used in areas where this much space is actually available, and we can’t help but wonder how efficient it is. Still, that’s a pretty cool thing to see while on a flight!

This object might look like a useless USB device, but it’s actually a charging barrier, sometimes called a sync stop. Basically, it allows you to plug devices into any USB port without fear of having data exchanged against your will.

It makes it so only the power pins go through the barrier, so a device can still be charged via USB, even though there won’t be any data exchange. A pretty nifty thing to have!

Oftentimes, people attribute strange things in the sky to aliens or secret government projects. Usually, the answer isn’t quite that entertaining. Take this interesting aerial anomaly, for example. Apparently, the effect was created by a rocket launch.

Unfortunately, the internet hero who answered didn’t really give much more information on how this was made from a rocket launch. We assume it has something to do with the exhaust from the engines falling to Earth or something similar. After all, rockets tend to not fly in circles.

This aircraft, seen at Heathrow Airport, may look like a mothballed plane from some distant past, but it actually isn’t. It’s just a mockup of a plane for practice. Specifically, the airport’s fire brigade uses it to train for the real deal.

Which makes sense to us. Planes are very expensive, and more importantly, a lot of lives may be in danger when the fire brigade is needed. So you want everyone to know what they are doing before a real emergency actually occurs!

This object may look like a Ukulele or a banjo, but in fact, it’s an Old Gibson. We’re not sure what the actual distinction is, honestly. That said, the internet claims they were only made between 1903 and 1933, making them exceptionally rare, and probably worth a lot of money.

In fact, if you ever find old things just lying around your house, you should really take the time to determine their true origins and how much they may be worth. You never know!

These windows may look warped or damaged somehow, but they aren’t really. They are actually like this due to an older method of creating windows. Apparently, this older process involved spinning glass out into a flat plane, and these wraps are actually the center of the spin itself.

Needless to say, they definitely aren’t as easy to look through as modern windows. Whatever technique it is that we use today, we sure are glad that it became the norm!

Seeing the words ‘Japanese government’ and ‘Pesos’ on the same bill of currency is not something you would expect to see. But there was a time when Japan occupied the Philippines in 1941, which led to just such a situation.

Today, such bills would be incredibly rare, so needless to say, we have no doubt that the bills depicted in the above image are worth a lot more than they say right on them. Who knows how much they could be worth today?

What you see may look strange, but it isn’t always that special. Sometimes, it’s just a pretty funky-looking cloud, and the internet will enlighten you to that quickly enough. Take, for instance, this cloud right here. It looks special.

But apparently, it’s just a lenticular cloud. We don’t actually know what that means exactly, since we aren’t meteorologists. We do know, however, that lenticular clouds are probably seen fairly regularly compared to other mysterious things in the world.

As we said before, it’s never a pleasant experience to find things in your food that you weren’t expecting. Granted, at least this mysterious object isn’t something organic, which would be even more of a concern.

Apparently, this little object is a microchip usually put into pigs or cattle in order to make their meat traceable. More apparently, it’s supposed to be removed from meat before anyone is going to eat it. That didn’t happen this time around.

This thing may seem like some sort of horrifying monster, or even worse, some sort of wicked spider, but it’s actually neither of those things. Despite appearances, it’s just a caterpillar. A Hag Moth caterpillar, to be exact.

The false arms it has are supposed to make it look like dead leaves, acting as a sort of camouflage. And hey, it clearly works to some extent, since it would scare off most humans without any issue!

Believe it or not, there are some devices out there intentionally designed to start avalanches. These pipes are a part of that system. They use gasses to create controlled explosions that start avalanches at the time humans want them.

We don’t know for certain why this is something anyone would do: perhaps it’s to cause avalanches when no one is around, that way there’s no risk of an avalanche when people actually are around. That’s just a guess on our part though.

If you’ve ever watched some behind the scenes footage of how a movie is made, then you’ve probably seen one of these contraptions before. It’s a crane, used to hold cameras during movie shootings, particularly when the camera needs to keep up with a fast moving set piece or actor.

Presumably, it’s a hassle to take it off, or it’s at least enough of a hassle that whoever drives this car doesn’t feel like it’s worth taking off when they go home.

What might this black stuff on the wall be? Mold, perhaps? Well, depending on how you feel, the real answer may be better or worse. Apparently, it’s a termite infestation. That said, we can’t really tell if that implies these black things are termites, or if it’s just the damage they’ve caused.

One way or another, this isn’t something anyone wants to come across, we’re sure. After all, termites are some of the worse pests to have around, considering how much damage they do to hosues.

Sometimes, what you’re looking at isn’t nearly as special as you think. This black line, seen during a shot from the SpaceX Falcon Heavy Stream, is not anything particularly special. In fact, it’s just land.

According to the internet, that land happens to be New Caledonia, which we assume is an island of some sort. Just goes to show, some things are pretty normal, you just have to be able to recognize it for what it is before jumping to conclusions.

Have you ever seen this odd little holes on the bottom of a cup or mug? Those things aren’t just for aesthetics! They serve a practical purpose, preventing water from pooling on the top of the mug when it’s in the dishwasher.

On top of that, it also helps ensure that the mugs don’t suction themselves to coasters or tables when they are wet. For such a simple design, it sure does put in a lot of work. Sometimes simple designs are very useful for everyday living.

We mentioned termites before, this is a different example of how you can recognize the fact that you have termites in your home. Someone found these grainy things in their closet, and every time they clean them, they come back again some time later.

So, what are they? Unfortunately, according to the internet, it’s a whole bunch of termite poop. For there to be that much, we’re assuming that the person in question here has a whole lot of termites running around.

These strange things that look like streetlamps of a sort can be found at some hospitals. However, they are most certainly not headlights. They are actually emergency showers. If someone had made contact with a dangerous chemical, they could be treated here before entering the hospital.

Apparently, these showers must last fifteen minutes, and they run at a PSI of 20. Well, better safe than sorry when it comes to dangerous things like chemicals, right?

Remember when we talked about how beaches often have strange things on them? Well, this beach in Guam ended up showing off a piece of metal that looks suspiciously like a UFO. But of course, as you may have guessed, it is not in fact a UFO.

Apparently, it’s a piece of a rocket that was launched near Guam, but when the launch failed, pieces of it fell back to Earth, particularly near Guam. That’s when discoveries like this one happen.

Did you know that there are actually farms for alligators? Seems pretty weird, doesn’t it? They also don’t look like what you’re probably thinking of. The picture below is apparently what alligator farms look like, at least in Cogdell, Georgia.

Considering that some people eat alligator, that’s the only reason we can think of that would justify having a farm for them. Geez, couldn’t they just nab all the ones running amok in Florida all the time?

Ever see something this weird floating around in a river? This strange organic matter is known as Bryozoa, and they are actually animals, not some sort of plant. They are commonly called moss animals.

Apparently, they are of interest to medical researchers because they may have some use in creating new drugs for cancer treatments. On the other hand, they can apparently cause damage to structures as well. Needless to say, they’re quite strange!

Before electronics could keep all of our precious food cold, humanity had to find other ways to preserve things that couldn’t be left out in the heat. That of course means old style refrigerators. This one looks like a hill, but actually isn’t.

It’s just a room covered in a whole lot of dirt for insulation. That keeps the heat out and allows for a cooler temperature within the room. Pretty savvy as far as solutions to problems are concerned!

If humans knew about all the creepy crawly things out there in the world, they’d probably freak out a lot more than they do. Take this Stonefly larvae, for example. What a creepy looking creature! However, it’s apparently actually a good sign.

We don’t know much about it, but according to the internet, Stonefly larvae are an indicator of good water quality. Why that is, we have no idea. We’re inclined to believe them regardless. When is the internet ever wrong, right?

Apparently, a lot of strange things to be seen around a home are caused by termites. This seemingly odd thing on the ceiling is actually just pieces of the wall, moved around by termites. Why are they doing that all the time?

Seriously, if you start seeing weird things around your home, there’s at least a 50% chance that it has to do with termites, somehow or another. They really are some of the worst pests out there, with all the damage they cause to homes.

Ever see something like these odd metal disks near stairs? Ever wonder what they could possibly be for? Well, they actually do make a fair deal of sense, once you learn their purpose. They exist solely to stop skaters from grinding on those surfaces.

That of course, seems pretty reasonable. That would be dangerous to pedestrians for one, and could potentially do damage to property as well. Pretty nifty.

Apparently, it’s not that rare for people to just stumble upon explosives these days, which is pretty concerning. What you are looking at here may look like some sort of protective shell, but in reality, it’s an underwater mine: just not underwater.

Thankfully, we assume such a mine would probably not be a hazard at this point in time, if only because it requires more than someone touching it to set one off. Still, it’s probably best to leave it alone.

There have been many ways to open a jar throughout human history, but this may be one of the weirdest. In fact, it’s so weird that we aren’t exactly sure how something like this would supposedly work. Seriously, this thing you are looking at is a jar opener.

Maybe the side with the teeth opens jars with notches, like peanut butter? That would be our best guess, but of course, we hardly proclaim ourselves as experts.

This strange object is apparently an old tool used to sharpen razors, though it’s actually a little misleading to call it a sharpener. What it really does is realign the edge of the razor when you slide it between the spheres.

This gives it a straighter edge which is better for cutting, but it doesn’t actually make the edge any sharper than it was before using the tool. But hey, it’s easier to call it a sharpener, not an edge aligner.

Anyone who has ever ridden an escalator has seen this strange brush things near where you stand. No, they don’t exist to clean your shoes, though some people do actually use them for that.

The real reason they exist is to prevent things like loose clothing, shoelaces, hair, and anything else from getting caught within the escalator’s moving parts. Needless to say, that’s some safety we are most glad to have around.

Admittedly, this strange piece of flesh on a beach does look a lot like some sort of monstrous foot. But it’s not actually what you think. It is still a body part, but it belongs to a seal, not some scary monster.

According to the internet, it’s a hairless seal flipper. How a poor seal lost it, we can only guess at. Probably had something to do with a hungry predator that didn’t aim its bite quite as well as intended. One way or another, definitely an odd thing to find on your morning walk.

If you were to get an item from a friend that they wanted you to have after their death, you would think it would be something special with great emotional value, right? Well, not all the time. This may look like an urn or something, but it actually isn’t.

In reality, it’s just an opium pipe. A very fancy opium pipe, and admittedly it could have some sentimental value to someone, but either way, definitely not what one would expect from a deceased friend.