42 Of The Most Mind-Opening Photos To Make You Think About Our World, Look Closer

June Steele | July 30, 2025 11:00 pm

It's easy to get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of our own lives, but then Reddit comes along and reminds us about all the other cool, weird, and interesting things that are happening in other countries or areas of the world.

From sea creatures to CT scanners to search-and-rescue equipment, these photos from around the world will absolutely fascinate you. Continue reading to see some incredible pictures that give us new insight into our world.

Brake For Breakfast

momma deer feeding babies
Photo Credit: Reddit / adalab
Photo Credit: Reddit / adalab

This seems like a fairly inconvenient place to stop to feed your children, but this momma has to make sure her babies are well fed.

So everyone else can wait a hot minute for her to finish.

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Bumblebee, Is That You?

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tranformer/CT scanner
Photo Credit: Reddit / Adderall
Photo Credit: Reddit / Adderall
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No this is not a transformer, and Shia Labeouf is not about to appear from behind this contraption.

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This is actually just a CT Scanner without the cover on it, but it's pretty wicked, right?

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The Real Empire State Of Mind

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GettyImages-515142978
Photo Credit: Bettmann via Getty Images
Photo Credit: Bettmann via Getty Images
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Health and safety regulations? We don't know her.

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This vintage photo of a worker in New York City at the top of the Empire State Building shows just how lax they were about safety precautions. He appears to be reaching out to "touch" the Chrysler Building.

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The Shape Of Water

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large ice crystal found in switzerland
Photo Credit: Reddit / simplywing
Photo Credit: Reddit / simplywing
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Though it looks like a tiny city built out of glass, this structure is actually an ice crystal that was found in Switzerland in an area that's known for its large ice crystals and clear water.

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There's a reason why no two snowflakes look exactly the same.

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Brick By Brick

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machine laying bricks for a road in the netherlands
Photo credit: Reddit / lordsleepyhead
Photo credit: Reddit / lordsleepyhead
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Gone are the days where brick-laying took days of work and multiple people. The Netherlands decided, once again, to be ahead of their time and create this machine.

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Seeing it in action does make it lose a bit of the magic though.

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Tower Of Lies

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tower of pisa is hollow inside
Photo Credit: Reddit / Wicked_Aviator
Photo Credit: Reddit / Wicked_Aviator
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The interior of the Leaning Tower of Pisa is all a lie, because there is no interior.

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The Tower is actually hollow except for the stairs, which don't go fully to the top of the tower.

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He Left His Heart Back Home

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statue that's partially missing to symbolize immigrants leaving home
Photo Credit: Reddit / 0novanta
Photo Credit: Reddit / 0novanta
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The "I Viaggiatori" sculpture is one of many created by artist Bruno Catalano.

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The statue represents the void that's created by leaving one's country, family, and people for another life elsewhere.

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"The Planet Is Not An Ashtray"

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man collected cigarette butts at beach
Photo Credit: Reddit / iamcorner
Photo Credit: Reddit / iamcorner
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At this point, you would think that everybody in the world knows that you shouldn't litter.

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Realistically they do, but this is proof that people still choose to ignore that.

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Flip Over That Lily Pad

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underside of lily pad
Photo credit: Reddit / Hotbreadsy
Photo credit: Reddit / Hotbreadsy
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There probably isn't a time where you would flip over a lily pad, so this is a good insight into what nature can do.

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It just shows how complicated something seemingly simple can be.

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Gorgeous Glacier

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Mendenhall Glacier outside of juneau alaska
Photo Credit: Reddit / Travoli
Photo Credit: Reddit / Travoli
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If you're paying a visit to Juneau any time soon, you could have the opportunity to hike directly into Mendenhall Glacier.

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The inside of the glacier looks like the heavens are opening up for you.

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The Control Room

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traffic control room in beijing
Photo Credit: Reddit / ThatsJustYourOpinionMan
Photo Credit: Reddit / ThatsJustYourOpinionMan
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This looks like the control room from Cabin in the Woods but it's actually the traffic control room located in Beijing.

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Isn't it weird to think about how we live in a world that requires a room like this?

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Now Let's Get In Formation

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skydivers in formation
Photo Credit: Reddit / TehBamski
Photo Credit: Reddit / TehBamski
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81 crazy people all decided to jump out of a plane with nothing but a parachute to make this diamond formation.

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It probably took a lot of effort to coordinate this, but they did it just for you.

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Tip Of The Iceberg

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interior of a pool table
Photo Credit: Reddit / Duckman296
Photo Credit: Reddit / Duckman296
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The interior of a pool table looks a lot more mechanical than you expected right?

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Goes to show that you don't always know what's going on beneath the surface! It's like a duck — chill on top but paddling furiously below the water.

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Tiny Technology

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smallest computer compared to grain of rice
Photo Credit: Reddit / willburn61
Photo Credit: Reddit / willburn61
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The world's smallest computer compared to a grain of rice proves just how far our world has advanced technologically.

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It makes you wonder where will be in the next 10, 20, or 30 years.

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Pearly Planets

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pearls cut in half
Photo Credit: Reddit / thegodofbigthings
Photo Credit: Reddit / thegodofbigthings
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Much like golf balls, pearls have a pretty cool inside, but they look more like planets rather than candy.

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If you look up how pearls are actually formed, their layered-look makes a lot of sense, but it's not something you really think about.

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Everything Has A Purpose

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artichokes grow into flowesr
Photo Credit: Reddit / saladbars
Photo Credit: Reddit / saladbars
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Did you know that if you don't harvest artichokes, they keep growing and blossom into beautiful flowers?

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These spiky little dudes contribute to our world in their own way, we just have to let them.

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Bilateral Butterfly

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butterflywith male and female characteristics
Photo Credit: Reddit / Johnsingl
Photo Credit: Reddit / Johnsingl
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This beautiful creature shown here is a bilateral gynandromorph butterfly, which is a fancy way of saying it's half male and half female.

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This condition actually exists in a number of animals, but is most commonly identified in birds and butterflies.

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Take The Stage

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theatre stage looking out on crowd
Photo credit: Reddit / kiaall
Photo credit: Reddit / kiaall
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Most people won't ever have the chance to see this view of a theatre.

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Only the cast and crew of a performance will have the opportunity to look out on the crowd and see something this memorable.

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That's Just One Cable!

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half cut of a golden gate cable
Photo credit: Reddit / jaykirsch
Photo credit: Reddit / jaykirsch
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The Golden Gate Bridge features two main cables that run the span of the bridge. This half cut of a cable is as thick as a tree trunk and looks like thick, dense metal.

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In reality, one cable is actually made up of thousands of other cables. Each cable is made of 61 smaller cables that are bundled from 27,572 strands of wire.

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This Massive Wasp Nest Isn't As Dangerous As It Looks

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massive wasp nest cut in half
Photo credit: Reddit / sverdrupian
Photo credit: Reddit / sverdrupian
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Wasp nests are made out of tree bark. The wasp will eat the bark of certain trees, chew is up, break it down, and then regurgitate it in a softer form.

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The new 'bark' form allows them to create papery nests.

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Does This Ruin The Magic?

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inside of space mountain with lights on
Photo credit: Reddit / chrono1465
Photo credit: Reddit / chrono1465
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It might just look like some metal tracks, but this is actually the inside of Disney's Space Mountain ride with the lights turned on.

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It definitely doesn't look as scary as when you're 5-years-old.

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Nothing To See Here

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sheets covering leavened products in israel
Photo credit: Reddit / bary3000
Photo credit: Reddit / bary3000
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This is a supermarket in Israel during the Jewish holiday of Passover. In this case, there are laws against displaying leavened products to the public.

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Many stores will cover up their leavened products to conform, and make it easier for their shoppers.

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When Lightning Strikes

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tree burning from inside after lightning strike
Photo Credit: Reddit / Zusical
Photo Credit: Reddit / Zusical
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A tree burning from the inside out is not a sight you'd usually see on your daily walk through the neighborhood.

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This was a result of the tree being struck by lightning during a storm.

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It's Hard To Look At For Too Long

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mugs hanging on wall that look like matrix glitch
Photo Credit: Reddit / anguskeenan001
Photo Credit: Reddit / anguskeenan001
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The longer you look at this wall of mugs, the dizzier you're going to feel.

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It's like you're looking at some glitch in the Matrix or like you've entered some sort of time warp.

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Brace For Impact

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Nördlingen_009
Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons
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The Bavarian town of Nördlingen looks a little different from up above than a regular town.

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The town is built inside a 14-million-year-old crater that was formed from a meteor impact.