Fahim Farook

Tagline: Small heroes. Big adventures. All hand-painted.

Somewhere between a storybook and a daydream, a cat is proselytizing in front of a village church, a fuzzy dog is belting out his latest verses in front of an ancient stone archway, and a very brave mouse is raising a sword in search of adventure (or danger).

Animal Antics is a growing gallery of whimsical digital paintings, each one a small scene with a big personality. Every painting is made by hand, with soft, textured brushwork and plenty of colour. The animals are the stars, whether they’re heroes, wanderers, tricksters or just having a very good day. The surrounding landscapes, from storm-dark skies and rolling hills to rivers, mountains and castle walls, are painted with just as much care.

There are no stories to follow and nothing to figure out. Just take your time, look closely, and see who’s up to what. There’s usually a small detail hiding in the corner, like a cat on a weather vane or a sparkle on a sword.

Who is it for?

Anyone who loves whimsy, animals and illustration. Readers and listeners who want a calm, colourful break. Families who’d like to look at something charming together, and anyone who enjoys wondering what happens next in a picture.

New paintings are added over time.

A driving tabla-and-sitar rhythm, with a subtle tone underneath to help you get your energy back. This track uses a driving tabla rhythm layered with sitar, energetic enough to carry sustained focus, paired with a tone designed to ease your mind into a livelier, more alert state. It's built for a 31-minute working block, with a 4-minute lead-in so your mind has time to ramp up rather than being dropped straight into it — research suggests binaural beats may be more useful when the listening starts before the task rather than during it.

A quick note on how to use it: press play when you're ready to start picking your energy back up, not partway through — the opening minutes are where the shift happens, so starting from the beginning matters. It works best with headphones, since the effect depends on each ear hearing a very slightly different tone, but for people who find headphones uncomfortable, there are a couple of variants that might help.

For the curious: this is a 20 Hz beta binaural beat on a 420 Hz carrier tone. It opens at 12 Hz and glides up to 20 Hz over the first 4 minutes, then holds there until the final 2 minutes, when it glides back down to 14 Hz so the track doesn't leave you at the target rate once it ends.

Upcoming features, how to use existing features, and tech details, from the person building the platform.

The CTO Files is an open log as we build and expand upon the platform. Expect a mix of: sneak peeks at features before they arrive, discussions of existing features and how to use them, and possibly, the occasional semi-technical story about why something works a certain way. It’s part blog, part roadmap, part behind-the-scenes diary, with the jargon kept light.

Who is it for?

NRJ listeners and readers who want to know what’s coming next and why. Fellow builders and founders who enjoy a candid look at the life of a CTO. And anyone who has ever wondered how a site and an app like this is made.

No technical background needed. New entries are added as there’s something worth sharing.

What do you say to your wife when you’ve sold her dog to a Martian?

Normal Kint has a problem. He sold his wife’s dog to a Martian. He did it on impulse, and he’s already regretting it.

Honest, the Martian Ate Your Dog is a comic science-fiction adventure set on a scarred, post-war Earth where aliens have been living among us for decades and nobody quite trusts them. When Normal’s mistake sets off a chase across the wild lands, he is drawn into a story crowded with the most unlikely characters. There is a highwayman who isn’t very good at it, a tiny private investigator with a very big voice, an alien posse, a band of space-faring bounty hunters, a crime lord with a penchant for chihuahuas and a pair of Droids — not the ones you're thinking of, or looking for — with an agenda of their own. Nothing is quite what it seems, least of all the dog.

Witty, fast-moving and full of wordplay, it’s a story of mistaken identities, harebrained plans, strange creatures and a surprising amount of heart. It owes a debt to Terry Pratchett, Charles Dickens and Alexandre Dumas, and it never takes itself too seriously, right down to the cheeky asides in square brackets that pop up along the way. It’s a Fifty Galaxies novel, set in a wider universe you can come back to.

Who is it for?

Readers who like their science fiction funny. Fans of Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, anyone who enjoys a good chase, a good pun and a really bad plan, and anyone who has ever done something silly and prayed their spouse wouldn’t find out.

The story unfolds in 35 short chapters — you can read a chapter on a coffee break or settle in for a long ride.

Come curious. Bring a sense of humour. And keep an eye on your dog.

Every nation has a creation story. Sri Lanka’s begins with a princess, a lion, and a ship full of exiles.

Legends of Lanka is a growing text journey through the tales of the island’s ancient kings, queens and heroes, told with an eye for the absurd, the dramatic and the downright scandalous. These are the stories recorded in the Mahavamsa, Sri Lanka’s great chronicle, and passed down for more than two thousand years, some of them history, some of them myth, and many somewhere in between. Each chapter is a short, self-contained read, so you can begin anywhere, or start at the beginning and follow the island’s story from its legendary origins onward.

New chapters will be added over time, with more kings, more battles and more legends from the island’s past.

Who is it for?

Travellers planning a trip to Sri Lanka who want to know the stories behind the ruins at Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Ritigala. History lovers who enjoy a good chronicle. Anyone curious about South Asia, and anyone who simply likes a great story told with a sense of humour.

No background knowledge needed. Just come curious, and prepare to meet the first of the island’s legends.

A sustained, resonant sitar melody, with a subtle tone underneath to help you decompress. This track uses a sustained, resonant, and melodious sitar track, paired with a tone designed to ease your mind into a looser, more restful state. It's built for a 21-minute session, with a gentle glide at the start so your mind has time to settle rather than being dropped straight into it.

A quick note on how to use it: press play when you're ready to start decompressing, not partway through — the opening minutes are where the shift happens, so starting from the beginning matters. It works best with headphones, since the effect depends on each ear hearing a very slightly different tone, but for people who find headphones uncomfortable, there are a couple of variants that might help.

For the curious: this is a 6 Hz theta binaural beat on a 400 Hz carrier tone. It opens at 10 Hz and glides down to 6 Hz over the first 5 minutes, then holds there for the remainder of the 21-minute session.

Birds waking up on a French morning, with a subtle tone underneath to help you wake up. This track uses a recording of birds waking up early in the morning in France, paired with a tone designed to ease your mind into a brighter, more awake state. It's built for a 28-minute session, with a gradual 8-minute rise at the start so your mind has time to come up to speed rather than being jolted into it.

A quick note on how to use it: press play when you're ready to start shaking off sleep, not partway through — the opening minutes are where the shift happens, so starting from the beginning matters. It works best with headphones, since the effect depends on each ear hearing a very slightly different tone, but for people who find headphones uncomfortable, there are a couple of variants that might help.

For the curious: this is an 18 Hz beta binaural beat on a 420 Hz carrier tone. It opens at 10 Hz and glides up to 18 Hz over the first 8 minutes, then holds there for the remainder of the 28-minute session.

A day at the beach, waves rolling in, with a subtle tone underneath to help you unwind. This track uses a recording of ocean waves crashing on the shore, paired with a tone designed to ease your mind into a calmer, more relaxed state. It's built for a 30-minute session, with a gentle glide at the start so your mind has time to settle rather than being dropped straight into it.

A quick note on how to use it: press play when you're ready to start winding down, not partway through — the opening minutes are where the shift happens, so starting from the beginning matters. It works best with headphones, since the effect depends on each ear hearing a very slightly different tone, but for people who find headphones uncomfortable, there are a couple of variants that might help.

For the curious: this is a 10 Hz alpha binaural beat on a 400 Hz carrier tone. It opens at 12 Hz and glides down to 10 Hz over the first 5 minutes, then holds there for the remainder of the 30-minute session.