Is it a bird? Is it a plane?! Unfortunately, it most likely won’t be Superman. And, chances are, it’s not the Twister either. But it is something peculiar. It’s an unknown object (not from space, though!) that needs some help from the Internet to identify it.

Luckily, there is a subreddit for that. The What Is This Thing community is fortunately still going strong with more than 2.7 million members! It’s a place where you can post a picture of an item that you can’t for the life of you figure out what it is or where it came from. The Internet will most likely come to your aid, and the subreddit’s detectives will tell you what your strange object is.

This time, we’ve compiled a new selection of the best entries from the community for you to enjoy. So scroll away and let us know your favorites by upvoting them!

Bored Panda reached out to Celia Quillian, an AI expert who previously lent her expertise to TIME magazine and the Today Show. We wanted to know whether the current AI technology could make the subreddit's job easier. She told us more about how AI models recognize objects in pictures, what challenges we might run into, and what the future of AI image recognition technology is. Read our interview with her below!

More info: What Is This Thing? | Celia Quillian on Instagram | Celia Quillian on TikTok

#1

What Is This Object I Found On A Beach In Yorkshire That Has Holes In And Feels Like A Mix Between Stone And Plastic

What Is This Object I Found On A Beach In Yorkshire That Has Holes In And Feels Like A Mix Between Stone And Plastic

A Victorian toothbrush. The handle is made of animal bone and the holes are where the bristles (normally pig or horse hair) would go. Bristle toothbrushes like this were invented in China in the 1400s, but contrary to all that seems good and sane in this world, most Europeans weren't all that into toothbrushes until the late 1700s/early 1800s. Source: am archaeologist.

OliRobbo Report

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#2

A Silver Spoon With "Top" Part?

A Silver Spoon With "Top" Part?

Vintage Christofle Orfevre a Paris Silver Plated Medicine/Invalid Feeder Spoon.

kalvinoz Report

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#3

Patches Of Sand Floating On Top Of Water Near Shoreline, Each Patch Around 4-10cm In Diameter

Patches Of Sand Floating On Top Of Water Near Shoreline, Each Patch Around 4-10cm In Diameter

It's dry sand floating on the water tension, been picked up by the raising tide. Only happens when it's hot enough to dry the sand and absolutely flat calm.

carissa0816 Report

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#4

This Is About 3ft Talk Made Of Solid Wood. It Doesn't Weigh Much Though, Maybe 5 Or 10 Lbs. The Arm Hanging Down Swings And The Top Is Just A Handle. It Does Not Move

This Is About 3ft Talk Made Of Solid Wood. It Doesn't Weigh Much Though, Maybe 5 Or 10 Lbs. The Arm Hanging Down Swings And The Top Is Just A Handle. It Does Not Move

A boot puller, otherwise known as a boot jack. Heel in the u shaped groove, other foot on the back of that to stabilise it all, swingy bit on the top of the foot, hold the hand grips and lever the boot off the heel by lifting your booted leg up and out.

flyingwithed Report

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#5

Cubby Inside Kitchen Of 1950’s Home

Cubby Inside Kitchen Of 1950’s Home

Telephone nook/niche.

tozierrr Report

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#6

Bought A House With This Glass Structure In The Backyard, No Idea What It's Supposed To Be

Bought A House With This Glass Structure In The Backyard, No Idea What It's Supposed To Be

It’s to grow mushrooms. Called a fruiting house. It looks like there is even substrate there that you use in growing mushrooms.

allgoldslugs Report

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#7

Promo Item I Received For Free At A Christmas Fair. It Is The Size Of My Hand, The White Top Screws On And Off And The Red Bag Part Expands And Is Pretty Thick

Promo Item I Received For Free At A Christmas Fair. It Is The Size Of My Hand, The White Top Screws On And Off And The Red Bag Part Expands And Is Pretty Thick

A mini refillable hot/cold pack for headaches or injuries.

britlynj Report

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#8

Solid Feeling Balls That Chyme/Jingle At A Low Tone When You Shake Them

Solid Feeling Balls That Chyme/Jingle At A Low Tone When You Shake Them

Baoding balls. They’re for stress and concentration. You're supposed to put them both in the palm of your hand and rotate them around each other in a circle.

dezlovesyou Report

#9

Small Ceramic Bowl With Three Small Cones Like Things In The Middle

Small Ceramic Bowl With Three Small Cones Like Things In The Middle

It is an Ikebana Vase. It is for Japanese style flower arrangements. The flowers go in the tubes and the rest is also filled with water, usually smooth stones, or maybe a small turtle or frog sculpture.

xsladil Report

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#10

Yellowish Powder (?) On The Inside Of Swimming Suit

Yellowish Powder (?) On The Inside Of Swimming Suit

The elastic in the fabric disintegrating.

prozloc Report

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#11

Large Metal Tube With Narrowed Front End, Transported With Police Escort, On An Extended Flatbed Trailer

Large Metal Tube With Narrowed Front End, Transported With Police Escort, On An Extended Flatbed Trailer

A spindle that Boeing weaves the carbon fiber fuselage for the Dreamliner on.

orionsanthology Report

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#12

What Is This Cubby Above The Built In Stove. There Is No Access To Open It From Any Angle

What Is This Cubby Above The Built In Stove. There Is No Access To Open It From Any Angle

Sheet pan rack

BrightAd2201 Report

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#13

What Is This Gold Rotating Thing? It’s About 5-7cm In Length And Has What Seems Like Drawings On Each Side?

What Is This Gold Rotating Thing? It’s About 5-7cm In Length And Has What Seems Like Drawings On Each Side?

A letter seal.

throwaway21386 Report

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#14

Slices Of Rubber Held Together By Metal Brackets, About 10 Pounds. It Hit My Windshield Going 80mph Down The Interstate. Luckily The Windshield Did Its Job And No One Was Injured!

Slices Of Rubber Held Together By Metal Brackets, About 10 Pounds. It Hit My Windshield Going 80mph Down The Interstate. Luckily The Windshield Did Its Job And No One Was Injured!

A wheel chock.

No-Following8840 Report

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#15

Found In My Backyard. It Is Chalky And Will Rub Off If You Run Your Finger On It. Because Of My Dogs, Really Just Want To Make Sure It’s Not Some Kind Of Poison. Thanks!

Found In My Backyard. It Is Chalky And Will Rub Off If You Run Your Finger On It. Because Of My Dogs, Really Just Want To Make Sure It’s Not Some Kind Of Poison. Thanks!

The clay plug from the bottom of a fireworks tube.

adaking13 Report

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#16

Found At Tide Pools - Green Nylon Pouch With Ziploc Bag Of Mystery Stuff

Found At Tide Pools - Green Nylon Pouch With Ziploc Bag Of Mystery Stuff

Congratulations you've found a bean bag!

pokokoko Report

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#17

What Are These Smaller Doors Inside Our Hotel Bathroom Door?

What Are These Smaller Doors Inside Our Hotel Bathroom Door?

While many are saying “Dutch” door this is actually called “wicket”. A Dutch door has a separate top and bottom half that open together or independently. A wicket is a door (or two in this case) inside of a door. They are used mainly in psych wards as a way to get into a room that may be barricaded.

offtheshallowend Report

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#18

What Is This Strange Pocket Watch With A Lever And Odd Face?

What Is This Strange Pocket Watch With A Lever And Odd Face?

It's a pocket roulette wheel, modeled to look like a pocket watch for easy concealment but with a rotating dial instead of an indicator hand. It has 12 parts instead of the typical number to look like a broken pocket watch upon inspection. Most likely this one was crafted out of a pocket watch as some of the original frame is visible around the dial/wheel/face.

Eow_hwaet_m8 Report

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#19

What Is This Tube That This Coast Guard Guy Sticks His Gun Into While Loading It?

What Is This Tube That This Coast Guard Guy Sticks His Gun Into While Loading It?

In the army we called it a "clearing station". If you were to have an unintentional discharge while clearing the weapon, that chamber would stop the bullet

TLP34 Report

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#20

Pellets With A Powdery Substance Coating Them, Found On The Floor Of A Garage That Had Not Been Opened For A Few Months, Each Pellet A Bit Larger Than A Tater Tot

Pellets With A Powdery Substance Coating Them, Found On The Floor Of A Garage That Had Not Been Opened For A Few Months, Each Pellet A Bit Larger Than A Tater Tot

Wood stove pellets that got wet.

dick-nipples Report

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#21

What Is This Pot With Tubes And A Suction System? Left In My Friends New Apartment From Old Tenants

What Is This Pot With Tubes And A Suction System? Left In My Friends New Apartment From Old Tenants

A milking machine for goats and/or cows.

jurgo17 Report

#22

What Are These Small Bowls With Holes In The Bottom? I Have No Idea What To Do With Them

What Are These Small Bowls With Holes In The Bottom? I Have No Idea What To Do With Them

Pots for succulents.

evokablespark Report

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#23

Round Brown Things With Holes In Them Lining A Small Waterway In St. Pete, Fl

Round Brown Things With Holes In Them Lining A Small Waterway In St. Pete, Fl

They are artificial reef balls. They are there to create a "living shoreline" to prevent erosion.

International_Mall31 Report

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#24

Small Fragrant Cubiod From Morocco, Bought Thinking It Was Soap

Small Fragrant Cubiod From Morocco, Bought Thinking It Was Soap

Moroccan solid resin perfume bar. It’s made of resin and wax.

Burtang Report

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#25

Set Of 9 Wooden Balls. 4 Black, 4 Brown, And One Smaller Brown Ball. More Details In Comment

Set Of 9 Wooden Balls. 4 Black, 4 Brown, And One Smaller Brown Ball. More Details In Comment

Bocce balls

Woodpecker16669 Report

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#26

These Chains At Animal Kingdom Disney World, They Are Located On The Safari Tour

These Chains At Animal Kingdom Disney World, They Are Located On The Safari Tour

Its to prevent animals from moving from zone to zone. The chains are difficult/ uncomfortable for herd animals to walk across so the dont. Similar chanis/bars are used for other cattle and livestock on farms. Source: been on the safari tour way too many times and had guides tell us that.

herr-heim2point0 Report

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See Also on Bored Panda
#27

Witt? Some Sort Of A Combination Of Tongs And A Strainer?

Witt? Some Sort Of A Combination Of Tongs And A Strainer?

Handheld colander for fried foods.

AK____79 Report

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#28

I Dug This Up While On Holiday In Devon, UK. Only The Protruding Cylindrical Part Was Visible And It Was Found ~7m Up A Sand Dune. It Is Solid Metal (Most Likely Iron) And Roughly A Metre In Length. It Didn’t Seem Hollow And Was Unbelievably Heavy. Any Ideas?

I Dug This Up While On Holiday In Devon, UK. Only The Protruding Cylindrical Part Was Visible And It Was Found ~7m Up A Sand Dune. It Is Solid Metal (Most Likely Iron) And Roughly A Metre In Length. It Didn’t Seem Hollow And Was Unbelievably Heavy. Any Ideas?

With a trunnion on each side, it looks like a small cannon.

jcs1809 Report

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#29

Old Wooden Bat-Like Object With Floral Carvings

Old Wooden Bat-Like Object With Floral Carvings

OP it’s called a tire thumper, 18 wheelers use them to “check their tires”. Really it’s kept under their seat for self defense. *floral carvings would be a bit out of place tho.

saintgreer Report

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#30

Small Waxy Minty Sticks - Looks Like Hot Glue Sticks

Small Waxy Minty Sticks - Looks Like Hot Glue Sticks

Wax for braces/dental work

soupsoup12 Report

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#31

Grid Of Large Metal Cubes On A Pole, Located In The Las Vegas Airport. Not Making Any Noise And No Lights, Maybe An Air Filter Or Something? Located About 8ft Off The Ground And Maybe 20ft Long

Grid Of Large Metal Cubes On A Pole, Located In The Las Vegas Airport. Not Making Any Noise And No Lights, Maybe An Air Filter Or Something? Located About 8ft Off The Ground And Maybe 20ft Long

A decommissioned arrival/departure display.

IHateMars Report

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#32

The University I Used To Attend Had One Of These In Every Classroom -- A Small Black Box With What Appears To Be A Grid Of Leds, Placed Towards The Front Of The Room / Where Students Will Face When Seated

The University I Used To Attend Had One Of These In Every Classroom -- A Small Black Box With What Appears To Be A Grid Of Leds, Placed Towards The Front Of The Room / Where Students Will Face When Seated

Infrared audio transmitter for the hearing impaired.

Cambienta Report

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#33

What Is This Thing On My Neighbors Balcony? About 1.5 Feet X 8 Inches. Some Type Of Electronic. Small White (Sometimes Red) Light Shining Occasionally. Looks Like It’s Suctioned To The Door

What Is This Thing On My Neighbors Balcony? About 1.5 Feet X 8 Inches. Some Type Of Electronic. Small White (Sometimes Red) Light Shining Occasionally. Looks Like It’s Suctioned To The Door

5G Home WiFi, it connects to 5G cell towers and streetlights and gets the best reception when attached to a plane of glass because 5G attenuates through walls.

StayGlassy Report

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#34

I Saw This Building At Work The Other Day, Its Detached From Any Other Buildings Its About 15 Ft Tall Windows On All Sides But Only On The Top And A Door In Front

I Saw This Building At Work The Other Day, Its Detached From Any Other Buildings Its About 15 Ft Tall Windows On All Sides But Only On The Top And A Door In Front

Old deer blind turned into kids' fort

Frankthetank8 Report

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#35

Two Small Metal Items With Cloth Inside The Hole On The Side

Two Small Metal Items With Cloth Inside The Hole On The Side

They are vintage kazoos, they probably need new baffles in the hole to be able to work properly.

klorge87 Report

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#36

Wierd Hammer-Shaped Thing With Flat Edges

Wierd Hammer-Shaped Thing With Flat Edges

This is an axe for peppermint bark. It comes in the package. Market solved. I’m so excited I’ve never solved one of these.

Glass-Scratch880 Report

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#37

I Received This Item As A Wedding Gift From An Egyptian Wedding Guest. It Is Nearly 5” Tall And Has A Removable Top With 4small Holes Like A Salt Shaker (Item Is Not Hollow)

I Received This Item As A Wedding Gift From An Egyptian Wedding Guest. It Is Nearly 5” Tall And Has A Removable Top With 4small Holes Like A Salt Shaker (Item Is Not Hollow)

It's a narghile/hookah. Looks like it's purely decorative, not really usable.

laserspaceship Report

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#38

Cinder Block Walled Hole Under A Concrete Step. What Is The Purpose?

Cinder Block Walled Hole Under A Concrete Step. What Is The Purpose?

It's part of the foundation. Keeping consistent depth keeps things moving together instead of separately so your steps stay on place and don't heave or drop in time.

MrPenman Report

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#39

What Is This Strap On My Backpack? It Attaches With Velcro, But I Don't Know What It Would Be Used For

What Is This Strap On My Backpack? It Attaches With Velcro, But I Don't Know What It Would Be Used For

That can slide over the handles of suitcases with wheels so if you travel, you can pull it along with your suitcase and it won’t fall off.

wpr8 Report

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#40

These Are Found On Street Corners In Daytona Beach. They Appear To Just Pump Water Up Only For It To Go Immediately To The Storm Drain. I Have Seen A Few Different Designs

These Are Found On Street Corners In Daytona Beach. They Appear To Just Pump Water Up Only For It To Go Immediately To The Storm Drain. I Have Seen A Few Different Designs

They’re timed valves to keep the water in the distribution lines from getting too old. When the water is in the pipe too long the chlorine level drops too much and the water is unsafe.

byeargan Report

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#41

Easily Malleable Metal, With Diamonds In The Center. I Have Four Of Them, And They Were All Rolled Up Like The First Picture

Easily Malleable Metal, With Diamonds In The Center. I Have Four Of Them, And They Were All Rolled Up Like The First Picture

I think they're accessories for hair braids, try googling 'hair braid cuffs'.

katiem1236 Report

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#42

Sword-Looking Thing That Plugs Into Mains Voltage

Sword-Looking Thing That Plugs Into Mains Voltage

An electric tie iron.

MarrEbike Report

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#43

Small Plastic Spoons With Brown Substance, Individually Packaged And Found In A Public Park Exposed To The Elements

Small Plastic Spoons With Brown Substance, Individually Packaged And Found In A Public Park Exposed To The Elements

Tamarind spoon. You have Hispanics in the neighborhood. Hit up a liquor store and get a fresh pack and try them out!

villagetaco Report

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#44

A Pole With A Ring Around It And A Heavy Base

A Pole With A Ring Around It And A Heavy Base

An umbrella holder.

itsyales Report

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#45

I See These Weird Metal Boxes In UK Pubs Down By The Bar And Other Than Impromptu Chewing Gum Bins, What The Heck Are They?

I See These Weird Metal Boxes In UK Pubs Down By The Bar And Other Than Impromptu Chewing Gum Bins, What The Heck Are They?

An old ash tray.

Arseypoowank Report

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#46

Clear Hard Thing. Playing Card For Scale

Clear Hard Thing. Playing Card For Scale

Magnifier for reading a book.

sylverfalcon Report

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#47

A White Plastic Stick, That Gets Narrower In The Middle, With Small Hands On Both Ends Given As A Wedding Favour/Gift For Guests

A White Plastic Stick, That Gets Narrower In The Middle, With Small Hands On Both Ends Given As A Wedding Favour/Gift For Guests

A Muddler Stick / Cocktail Swizzle Stick.

_just_here_to_see_ Report

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#48

Front Eyelet On Winter Boot. Unsure Of Purpose

Front Eyelet On Winter Boot. Unsure Of Purpose

Hook for attaching "gaiters" example that uses the laces themselves but the hook is a far better option because it's independent of your laces which can affect how the boot wears

ViliBravolio Report

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#49

Small Leather Piece With Straps And Adjustable Buckles

Small Leather Piece With Straps And Adjustable Buckles

Wife had something similar that was decoration on boots. You could take them off and change them. Its an ornament for a boot. Search for Boot Bracelet. Fits sorta like spurs.

Lemon_bitch Report

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#50

Strange Object Inside A Wooden Box. We Can See Some Numbers At The Base. It Has Some Wires. There's Also A Strange Large Wook. It May Have Some Missing Parts

Strange Object Inside A Wooden Box. We Can See Some Numbers At The Base. It Has Some Wires. There's Also A Strange Large Wook. It May Have Some Missing Parts

It's a simple/plane alidade. It's made out of iron and wood. It measures 52cmx22cm. The hook measures 31 cm. The number at the base go from 0 to 1100.

Lleon_96 Report

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