A ballet dancer stretches backstage during Nacho Duato's “The Nutcracker” at the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia November 21, 2015. For theatregoers in St Petersburg, Nacho Duato's “The Nutcracker” demonstrates the global appeal of a Christmas classic. When the curtain rises at the Mikhailovsky Theatre, among the oldest opera and ballet houses in Russia, it's the culmination of hundreds of hours of toil and sweat by dancers, costume makers, set designers and musicians playing the famous score by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. (Photo by Grigory Dukor/Reuters)

In the past people used to bury their loved ones or turn them into ashes. However, now there is a completely new possibility. Since having an urn with ashes in your house may be a bit weird, you may want to choose the option of turning your deceased relative into a diamond. Yes, diamond! You’ve heard us correctly. By using immense heat and pressure, the ashes you get after cremating a person can be turned into a real diamond. After this, the diamond can be left as it is, and stored in a jewelry box, or it can be used as a piece of jewelry, such as a ring or a pendant, allowing you to always keep your loved one close to your heart. (Photo by djd/Algordanza memorial diamonds)

These are the stunning images of what looks like a picturesque winter wonderland – but actually shot in the middle of summer. Amateur photographer Catherine Perkinton, 45, has spent the summer travelling around the country to create the fabulous images by utilising infra-red. (Photo by Catherine Perkinton/SWNS/ABACAPress)

People are often fascinated by things that baffle them. For example, Livia Marin creates porcelain pottery that looks as if it has partially melted. This pottery might serve little purpose, yet it is definitely a curious thing to have in your house. This set of pictures shows off her “Nomad Patterns” series of deformed vases, pitchers, and teacups. The most appealing thing about these pieces of art is that the patterns on the “melted” parts are as beautiful as on the rest of the pottery. (Photo by Livia Marin)

“Natural History” is a series of completely candid single exposure images that merge the living and the dead to create allegorical narratives of our troubled co-existence with nature. Ghost-like reflections of modern visitors viewing wildlife dioramas are juxtaposed against the antique taxidermied subjects housed behind thick glass, their faces molded into permanent expressions of fear, aggression or fleeting passivity. After decades of over-hunting, climate change, poaching and destruction of habitat, many of these long dead diorama specimens now represent endangered or completely extinct species”. – Traer Scott. (Photo by Traer Scott)

“A meteor streaked across the sky above Russia's Ural Mountains on Friday morning, causing sharp explosions and injuring more than 500 people (20 had been hospitalized in serious condition), many of them hurt by broken glass. “There was panic. People had no idea what was happening. Everyone was going around to people's houses to check if they were OK”, said Sergey Hametov, a resident of Chelyabinsk, about 1500 kilometres (930 miles) east of Moscow, the biggest city in the affected region”. (Photo by Alexey Bulaew/RIA Nowosti)

Since 2002 the Ventura bus stop at Telegraph Rd next to the Pacific View Mall remains as Ventura’s most controversial piece of public art. Created by renowned sculptor, Dennis Oppenheim, “Bus Home ” is a looping cork screw of steel, concrete, acrylic, paint, and electric light. It stands 36′ at its tallest height. For the artist: “The work depicts the metamorphosis of a bus becoming a house…entering the ground and coming up again. For the tired and often alienated traveler the experience of waiting wished to be intervened by the realization that the transaction will be complete. The passengers will arrive at their destination. They will arrive home