chapotraphouse

The look becomes more convincing when you see one irl and really understand that each of those paws is the size of your chest.

Up on the north slope in Alaska where the oil drilling happens all the complexes have security on light vehicles whose job is to keep track of polar bears. Our big white bois are happy to hunt and eat people so it's very important to know when one is in the area, keep track of it, and chase it off when necessary.

Since the whole region is covered in meters of permafrost - wet earth that is frozen and never really melts - you can't lay conventional building foundations. The freeze-thaw cycle of the ice tends to make buildings shift and sink.

So most of the buildings up there are built above the ground on posts sunk down below the permafrost. So what does that mean?

Well, one long arctic night, a guy is getting ready to go from one building to another. He checks the cameras, because there's a camera so you can make sure a polar bear isn't waiting outside, then steps outside on to the stairs leading to the ground. As soon as he does a dinner plate sized paw reaches up from beneath the stairs and goes WHUMP! Right next to his foot. In one motion he jumps two feet off the ground, turns 180 degrees, opens the door, moves inside, turns 180 degrees again, closes the door, then finally lands on the ground and pees himself.

They're extremely cool animals and i never, ever want to see one in the wild.