A competitor tries to swipe away some grease as he slips off the “gostra”, a pole covered in grease, during the celebrations for the religious feast of St Julian, patron of the town of St Julian's, outside Valletta August 30, 2015. In the traditional “gostra”, a game stretching back to the Middle Ages, young men, women and children have to make their way to the top of a pole and try to uproot one of the flags to win prizes. Photo by Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters)

The Bahamas, the Commonwealth nation of hundreds of islands roughly the size of Connecticut and with population of just a bit over Anaheim, is known for its crystal waters and pristine beaches. This is possibly one of the world’s most beautiful havens of nature, yet people are coming here to see pigs. It is unclear when the pigs first appeared on Exuma Island or where they come from. There’s talk about a daring escape from a shipwreck, or sailors releasing the swine on purpose. In all probability, there were no pigs on this tropical paradise before European settlers came, so their mere presence is the work of human. The intriguing feat of nature, however, is that this population of pigs developed a fine aptitude for swimming. Here: “So you're on a boat in Bahamas and then this pig swims by begging for food”. (Photo and caption by Lisa Larsen/Public Domain)

A woman takes her souvenir picture with a white fox in front of ice sculptures illuminated by coloured lights during the opening day of the 31st Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival in the northern city of Harbin, Heilongjiang province, January 5, 2015. The annual Ice and Snow Festival, organized by China National Tourism Administration and local governments, kicked off on Monday in Harbin, one of the coldest cities in China. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

The Nasīr al-Mulk Mosque or Pink Mosque is a traditional mosque in Shiraz, Iran, located in Goade-e-Araban place (near the famous Shah Cheragh mosque). The mosque was built during the Qājār era, and is still in use under protection by Nasir al Mulk's Endowment Foundation. It was built by the order of Mirza Hasan Ali Nasir al Molk, one of the lords of the Qajar Dynasty, in 1876 and was finished in 1888. The designers were Muhammad Hasan-e-Memar and Muhammad Reza Kashi Paz-e-Shirazi. The mosque extensively uses colored glass in its facade, and displays other traditional elements such as panj kāseh-i (five concaves) in its design, it is also named in popular culture as Pink Mosque due to the usage of beautiful pink color tiles for its interior design.

Two workers shovel mud from the river as they look for gold on March 25, 2014 in Lampang, Thailand. Thai villagers from Wang Nuea, North of Thailand, look for gold in the river every year during the drought season. They are able to make an average around USD 15 per day, however two years ago they reached USD 200 in one day due to the river level dropping so much. The workers begin to search for gold at 10 AM and work until sunset, often working second jobs in the day in order to survive. (Photo by Borja Sanchez-Trillo/Getty Images)

A stunning photographic collection featuring portraits of people from 30 countries and the food they eat in one day. In this fascinating study of people and their diets, 80 profiles are organized by the total number of calories each person puts away in a day. Featuring a Japanese sumo wrestler, a Massai herdswoman, world-renowned Spanish chef Ferran Adria, an American competitive eater, and more, these compulsively readable personal stories also include demographic particulars, including age, activity level, height, and weight. Essays from Harvard primatologist Richard Wrangham, journalist Michael Pollan, and others discuss the implications of our modern diets for our health and for the planet. This compelling blend of photography and investigative reportage expands our understanding of the complex relationships among individuals, culture, and food.

This undated photograph shows one of the 14 new species of so-called dancing frogs discovered by a team headed by University of Delhi professor Sathyabhama Das Biju in the jungle mountains of southern India. The study listing the new species brings the number of known Indian dancing frogs to 24 and attempts the first near-complete taxonomic sampling of the single-genus family found exclusively in southern India's lush mountain range called the Western Ghats, which stretches 1,600 kilometers (990 miles) from the west state of Maharashtra down to the country's southern tip. (Photo by Satyabhama Das Biju/AP Photo)

A beggar who lay at the side of a road pretending he had no legs was moved on by police who made him stand up and walk away. The man lay slumped on his front in Chengdu, in Sichuan Province, China, with his legs tucked under him, and his jeans stretched out to make it appear he had no legs. He is approached by a police officer, who bends down and talks to him for some moments. The officer then reaches out and helps the man to his feet before guiding him across the road. Chengdu is one of a number of cities where officials have tried to clamp down on begging. (Photo by Rex Features)