A “Maya” girl sits in an altar during the traditional celebration of “Las Mayas” on the streets in Colmenar Viejo, near Madrid, Spain, Friday, May 2, 2014. The festivity of the Maya comes from pagan rites and dates from the medieval age, appearing in ancient documents, it takes place every year in the beginning of May and celebrates the beginning off the spring. A girl between 7 and 11years is chosen as “Maya” and should sit still, serious, and quiet for a couple of hours in an altar on the street decorated with flowers and plants, afterwards they walk to the church with their family where they attend a ceremony. (Photo by Daniel Ochoa de Olza/AP Photo)

Amazon Amanda and Sergio on a day out in Central Park on May 25, 2014 in New York City. Meet Amazon Amanda – the 6ft 3 ins, 20 stone model who is paid to dwarf men. Amanda, 38, is a big hit with guys who like being squashed, crushed, wrestled or simply seen out in pubic with super-sized women. After growing too big to be a mainstream model, Amanda discovered a subculture where she could put her natural assets to good use. With 63 inch hips and a 44DD bust Amanda is worshipped by amazon fans all over the world. And shockingly she was once asked to crush a terminally ill client to death – so he could die doing what he loves. Despite the suggestive nature of her work Amanda insists nothing sexual ever takes place between her and her clients. (Photo by Ruaridh Connellan/Barcroft Media)

Most people know Nikon as a purveyor of pro and consumer-grade digital cameras. But the company's expertise with optics bleeds over into related markets – it's one of the science community's major suppliers of microscopes. And each year the company asks the community to send it some of their favorite images of tiny objects. A panel of scientists and journalists have chosen the best of this past year's submissions, which Nikon has placed on its Small World site.

Photo: Honorable Mention. “Snow crystal, illuminated with colored lights (5x)”. (Photo by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Department of Physics, Pasadena, California, USA)

“The Mahamasthakabhisheka (or Mahamasthak Abhishek) is an important Jain festival held once every twelve years in the town of Shravanabelagola in Karnataka state, India. The festival is held in veneration of an immense 18 meter high statue of the Bhagwan (or Saint) Gomateshwara Bahubali. The anointing last took place in February 2006, and the next ceremony will occur in 2018”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A Jain Sadhu (2nd L) and devotees gather and pray at the feet of the monolithic statue of Jain sage Gomateswara during preparations for the Mahamastak Abhisheka ceremony February 7, 2006 in Shravanabelagola, India. The Mahamastak Abhisheka ceremony is held just once every twelve years where the statue will be bathed with milk, yogurt, saffron, gold coins and other religious items. The statue is said to be the world's largest monolith. The ceremony officially runs February 8-19. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Justin Nelzen, in red vest, joins others as they work to rescue up to 70 horses along Cypresswood Drive near Humble along Cypress Creek, Monday, April 18, 2016, in Houston. More than a foot of rain fell Monday in parts of Houston, submerging scores of subdivisions and several major interstate highways, forcing the closure of schools and knocking out power to thousands of residents who were urged to shelter in place. (Photo by Mark Mulligan/Houston Chronicle via AP Photo)

A United States Air Force (USAF) F-15 fighter jet travels at low altitude through the “Mach Loop” series of valleys near Dolgellau, north Wales on June 26, 2018. The Mach Loop valleys, situated between Dolgellau and Machynlleth, are regularly used by the military for operational low flying training which can take place as low as 76 metres from the nearest terrain. The USAF regularly use the loop to practice low-altitude flight, which confuses radar systems. (Photo by Oli Scarff/AFP Photo)

Reverend Simon Davis prays with the dancers before the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance in Abbots Bromley, Britain, September 12, 2016. The Abbots Bromley Horn Dance is an English folk dance dating back to the Middle Ages. (Photo by Darren Staples/Reuters)

A performer wearing a lion mask performs the Ise Daikagura lion dance at the remote village of Yamanawa on February 08, 2021 in Ryuo, Japan. Ise Daikagura is a group of traditional Lion Dance performers who pray in front of farmers houses and businesses for good grain harvests and disease-free lives. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images)