There is contention in Sweden over the use of rabbit cadavers as bioenergy to provide heat in Värmland. The rabbits are invasive species, initially pets that were released into the parks in the city of Stockholm. Lacking any natural predators, the rabbits thrive on vegetation, eating their way through the city's central parks. The culling last year set a local record with nearly 6,000 rabbits removed from Stockholm's parks, mostly from Kungsholmen. Some concerned citizens have formed a group, Vilda kaniners värn (Society for the Protection of Wild Rabbits, Google translation). They speak out against the culling and provide alternatives to killing the rabbits, citing methods used in Helsinki (including plant protection) as more humane alternatives. (Biofuel details and more after the break.) [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief on Oct 21, 2009 - 47 comments

The BBC has captured footage of golden eagles hunting reindeer calves in northern Finland, confirming Sami reports. For more about the Sami, you can watch this series of videos, which cover a wide range of subjects, among them the language, arts and crafts, religion and music. And here is more about Sami reindeer folklore.
posted by Kattullus on Oct 21, 2009 - 38 comments

Graphic Concrete is a process with which textures, patterns, typography, images, or works of art can be "printed" on concrete surfaces, with subtle and dramatic results. Invented by Finnish designer and architect Samuli Naamanka, Graphic Concrete is being used in projects all over the globe.
posted by mattdidthat on Sep 10, 2009 - 21 comments

A Mac Classic shows bullies what's for in "3½ inches is enough" by Unreal Voodoo. This demo (actually written to run on a Mac Classic) was presented at ASSEMBLY, Finland's largest computer festival. More highlights from ASSEMBLY are available at GameSetWatch. The demos are mostly trippy and impressive hand-coded animations as one might expect, but there's also a live action short featuring a Rube Goldberg machine.
posted by ignignokt on Sep 4, 2009 - 17 comments

Sneakers: A Short Film Meditation on International Shoe Culture [more inside]
posted by Potomac Avenue on Nov 12, 2008 - 9 comments

Paavo Haavikko, one of Finland's (and Europe's) foremost poets, died earlier this week. As well as poetry, his seventy or so published works included essays, novels, plays for the stage, radio & TV, and opera libretti. (via) [more inside]
posted by misteraitch on Oct 9, 2008 - 8 comments

March 3rd, 1976 - June 19th, 2008. RIP GTS FinnJet. [more inside]
posted by Lord_Pall on Jun 19, 2008 - 11 comments

If you find yourself in Finland on the evening of April 30th or on May 1st, you must be aware of the following information. Today is Vappu. Also known as Walpurgis Night, Vappu is a traditional holiday in Finland, and there are a number of unique social customs and dress you must be aware of in order to avoid embarrassment and ridicule. [more inside]
posted by Lord_Pall on Apr 30, 2008 - 12 comments

Helsinki is home to a new baby camel, Snufkin. He is the son of 13 year old Voodoo and his partner, Selma. [more inside]
posted by Lord_Pall on Apr 28, 2008 - 15 comments

28 Hours in Jyväskylä Filmed at locations in and around Jyväskylä, a city in Central Finland. The idea was to show city life in a way that no-one normally experiences it - in time-lapse, often shot from roofs and masts. [Shorter version on youtube]
posted by gomichild on Apr 14, 2008 - 27 comments

Finnish supermarket dominoes. (6 1/2 minute SLYT post)
posted by miss lynnster on Mar 15, 2008 - 34 comments

Anglo-Finnish artist Sanna Annukka's vibrant, flat design work (especially her Icons series) got me curious about her, well, iconography.

She mentioned The Kalevala previously, the Finnish national epic poem (in Finnish here), a tale of creation and heroism that arguably spurred the Finns to independence from the Russians.

Like so much else epic and awesome, it spawned a '70s prog band, with three albums.
posted by klangklangston on Feb 25, 2008 - 23 comments

Is this the end of the bus timetable? It can be bloody cold in Helsinki in January. The last thing you want to do is hang around too long for a bus or tram. Soon you won't have to because Helsinki City Transport is currently fitting *its entire fleet* with Linux servers. Not only will each bus or tram become a travelling wireless hotspot, but you will be able to see exactly where in the city your new bus actually is. Meaning that you only step into the bitter cold the minute before it arrives. (its in beta but you can see the effects of the live trial) [more inside]
posted by MrMerlot on Jan 27, 2008 - 49 comments

PISA results are in. Finland and Canada high five and make awkward polite bows and gestures towards The Far East. For education policy Programme for International Student Assessment is the research about how 15-year old students are being educated. Briefings for UK and US. Results escape easy answers, but you might test your theory against interactive data tool. [more inside]
posted by Free word order! on Dec 4, 2007 - 47 comments

Carta Marina - From 1518 to 1519, Olaus Magnus made a journey across Sweden. On his journey, he encountered fish the size of elephants, sea serpents, demons and a tribe of pygmies.
posted by tellurian on Dec 3, 2007 - 12 comments

Rare Exports, Inc. They deliver the impeccable, well-mannered, and extremely rare original Finnish Father Christmases to nearly 150 countries every Christmas. Exclusively. [YouTube, NSFW.] [more inside]
posted by homunculus on Nov 15, 2007 - 15 comments

The Roma Journeys - contemporary photographs of Roma life in Hungary, India, Greece, Romania, France, Russia, and Finland by Joakim Eskildsen. For more photo essays and info on the Roma, see two superb prior posts by plep and taz.
posted by madamjujujive on Nov 15, 2007 - 26 comments

I'ts fun to stay at the... N-M-K-Y!
posted by miss lynnster on Aug 26, 2007 - 28 comments

Bilderbook.
posted by hama7 on Aug 16, 2007 - 26 comments

Toy art: tribal scooters, spider car, little animal robots out of broken electrical parts, a color changing house designed by a 14 year old boy, of wood, wind-up, MunkyKing, Ugly Dolls, out of beer cans, with balloons, Cute Things, artoyz, toys from trash, tiny knitted dolls clothes and accessories, vintage and retro at Tick Tock Toys.
posted by nickyskye on Jul 7, 2007 - 15 comments

Jyrki Kasvi is a member of the Finnish parliament from the Uusimaa constituency. He represents the Green League and his campaign website can be viewed in English, Swedish, or Klingon.
posted by fandango_matt on Mar 9, 2007 - 23 comments

Moomins! The Moomins, created in 1945 by artist and writer Tove Jansson in this story, went on to become a series of books beloved by children in the 60s and 70s and then a British TV show in the early 80s. The Moomins’ fame is so all pervading in Finland that they have their own amusement park and museum but they somehow have never gained as much of a foothold in the US. Why are the Moomins so popular? Some of the books are surprisingly philosophical and even dark and some of the characters are downright seditious; the Moomins, for all their humor and love, are often a little bleak. Tove Jansson, who modeled many of her characters on people in her life, was as talented an artist as she was a writer; here, for your delectation, are her illustrations for The Hobbit. Previously on Metafilter.
posted by mygothlaundry on Aug 13, 2006 - 36 comments

Frets on Fire is a Guitar Hero clone that is so good that you will turn your keyboard upside down. It's one of many games you can download that were made for the Finnish computer festival, Assembly.
posted by euphorb on Aug 4, 2006 - 8 comments

The kantele is the national instrument of Finland, strongly associated with traditional Finnish folk music. A psaltery-like string instrument of somewhat obscure origin, it prominently figures in the Kalevala. Despite this association with the past, the kantele is very much a living instrument- it was used in the soundtrack to "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe" for its "pure, chilly sound", and electric kanteles have been made. [more inside, with sound samples]
posted by a louis wain cat on Jul 8, 2006 - 20 comments

Eurovision winner declared: Finland's Lordi, (previously mentioned here, wins with the highest Eurovision score of all time, 292 points, breaking Finland's 40 year long bewitchment of the Eurovision Curse. [Euro♥isionFilter]
posted by taursir on May 20, 2006 - 104 comments

Hardrock Hallelujah Finland's entry for this year's Eurovision contest. It is indeed the day of Rockening.
posted by EtJabberwock on May 15, 2006 - 50 comments

Downtown Helsinki seemed semiapocalyptic tonight while a set of warehouses near city-center burned to the ground. The buildings were previously owned by the State Railway, and (as Wikipedia tells) recently had become an unofficial cultural center hosting BDSM conventions and heavy metal festivals. The buildings were previously scheduled for destruction on Monday to make way for a new music hall, but it looks like the demolition happened early. Fire trucks had visited the scene earlier this week when it was last set on fire during a May Day eve protest-- or was that drunken revelry? Strangely, this wasn't considered significant enough for the police to worry about it. More photos.
posted by taursir on May 5, 2006 - 15 comments

Hel Looks. Street fashion from Helsinki, Finland. You're probably familiar with Japanese street style, and how they're dressing in Shibuya, but what are things like on the other side of the world? Some Hel fashions look familiar. Very familiar. Some recall the 'world between the wars'. Shemagh are popular, although not for the head. Sometimes just...eek! If Death Metal marries Neko Musume, in which religion will the kittens children be raised? Of course this is Helsinki: "When I dress up the most important thing is not to be cold!" [via]
posted by Slithy_Tove on Dec 1, 2005 - 39 comments

A new, controversial law making its way through the Finnish parliament is confusing, but its implementation may infringe on already existing Finnish laws of free speech. With decisions set to be made later this week, a demonstration has already been planned for Tuesday. On the other hand, some sources seem to be saying that this new law should present no major issue. Thus, it seems like there's a small amount of confusing legal voodoo going on: while the law wouldn't make it illegal to copy music to MP3 players, it would mean that "the breaking of copy protection for the copying of the content of a sound or video recording for personal use would be prohibited." It looks like no one knows exactly what they want out of this law, or how to interpret it. DMCA, anyone?
posted by taursir on Oct 2, 2005 - 6 comments

A warning to would-be kebab thiefs. A three-part political allegory of sorts. Something more abstract. All links WMV. Music videos.
posted by kenko on Jun 29, 2005 - 5 comments

The Paganism of Suomi. Before the arrival of Christianity, and even for centuries after, Finland (popups) had a rich religious tradition. Like most things Finnish, it was wholly different from the mythology of their Nordic neighbors, but shares much with that of the Sámi (Lapp) peoples.
posted by borkingchikapa on Nov 27, 2004 - 10 comments

"Competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of respect between players, adherence to the rules, and the basic joy of play."
The overriding ideal behind Ultimate frisbee is Spirit of the Game where sportsmanship is valued above all else. Next week is the World Ultimate & Guts Championships in Turku, Finland where 23 countries compete, so now is a great time to (re-)learn to play. Besides being lots of fun for everyone, it might even improve your career prospects.
posted by quiet on Jul 24, 2004 - 13 comments

WTF online.
posted by hama7 on Mar 30, 2004 - 17 comments

Mieskuoro Huutajat are the "Men's Choir Shouters," formed in 1987 in Oulu, Finland, by a group of young men who clearly had nothing better to do. The idea was to dress about 20 men in black suits, white shirts and black rubber ties, and train them to shout some of the most beloved songs in the Finnish song heritage. Since then they've branched out a bit. Check out their version of the Star-Spangled Banner. Apparently, they are currently performing on an ice floe in the Arctic Ocean, shouting at a stranded ice-breaking ship.
posted by carter on Feb 3, 2004 - 12 comments

Rare Exports, Inc. They deliver the extremely rare original Finnish product to nearly 150 countries every Christmas, exclusively. It's a big download (the small version is 35.5 MB) but that's nothing compared to the patience these hunters must have to catch their prey. [NSFW, via MonkeyFilter.]
posted by homunculus on Dec 26, 2003 - 9 comments

Looking over this list of corruption levels by country, it is evident that there is some correlation between corruption and quality of life. But which is cause and which is effect? And since these numbers are only relative, are things getting better overall, or worse? How corrupt is your country?
posted by eas98 on Oct 8, 2003 - 11 comments

Extreme Piggy Back Riding For the past 11 years, couples from around the world have been participating in the Carry Your Wife competition in Finland. Based in local legend, the husbands are required to carry their wives through water, across sand, and over man-made obstacles. The prize? Her weight in beer. warning: last link is video
posted by Stynxno on Jul 5, 2003 - 1 comment

You're a pro wrestler (seen here in action figure form) who was just elected to the parliment of Finland with one of the highest vote totals in the country. Although calling your President a lesbian isn't really the first thing you want to do after your election.
posted by RobbieFal on Mar 20, 2003 - 11 comments

Finnish Parliamentary Elections are held this sunday. Deutsche Welle and NY Times sum things up pretty well, but I've added some links you might find interesting. [more inside]
posted by lazy-ville on Mar 15, 2003 - 9 comments

An enduring fad in Finland. For a few years now, musicians in Finland have coopted Humppa, traditional polka-style music, and given it a punk sensibility. Eläkeläiset, the focus of the above link, are the most popular Humppa band. The most fun for folks who don't speak Finnish (like me) are covers of songs with which we're familiar like "Viva Las Vegas" ("Humppaleka") and "London Calling" ("Vanhamiljonäärihumppa"). Even after the novelty wears off, Finnish is oddly beautiful even when it's shouted over an accordion. There are plenty of samples for download on the site.
posted by Mayor Curley on Feb 10, 2003 - 13 comments

Cyberpunk is here today. Finnish telecom company Sonera's security unit is being investigated for using telephone records to find out who had given reporters confidential information. Two employees have been arrested.
posted by lazy-ville on Nov 4, 2002 - 2 comments

19-year-old student behind Finland's deadliest peacetime attack last friday found inspiration from the internet and was said to be a skilled bomb-expert. And yes, the internet as the source of all evil is being heavily discussed in the Finnish media again.
posted by inkeri on Oct 13, 2002 - 31 comments

All you need is three chords and a guitar? Zac 'Mr. Magnet' Monro didn't even have an instrument when he won the 7th Annual Air Guitar World Championships (video) in Oulu, Finland. And it's two years in a row for him.
posted by mathowie on Aug 26, 2002 - 15 comments

Just the ticket... A 500,000 markka (£50,000ish) fine for speeding? If you're a dot-com millionaire in Finland, sure. Though you have to wonder whether it's about time to slap a ban on this speed merchant. (The debating point: should fines be related to income?)
posted by holgate on Nov 25, 2000 - 10 comments

it's just not the same on radio but it seems radio morning shows are willing to go to any length to get new listeners.
posted by mkn on Jun 17, 2000 - 3 comments