Shroud of Turin news

Apparently, there is a face on the back side, too.
These days though, Jesus has found new places for his image, like lava lamps (with pic!).

Codex Seraphinianvs

Thanks to Gambols and Frolics, I've found out about the Codex Seraphinianvs. Some claim it's the weirdest book in the world. It's a tome drawn and "written" by Italian artist Luigi Serafini.
The Codex is a collection of original artwork by Italian artist Luigi Serafini, presented as a travalogue or scientific study of an alien world. Unlike such alien worlds as Darwin IV in Barlowe's Expedition, which one might find in a science fiction novel, the world in the Codex is obviously some kind of perverse reflection of our own. All of the Codex is presented entirely in an obscure alien writing. This writing, in combination with the bizarre pictures, is what finally puts the Codex in its own league for weirdness. For instance, on one page is a "Rosetta Stone" - only it just translates Codex script into another alien language.
The Web site above has images from the book and some links for more information. It seems to me to be an attempt to create a modern version of the Voynich Manuscript. You can find a few links about the Voynich Manuscript here (scroll down).

A journey under Malta

Professor Hex links to this article on the Hypogeum in Malta, a subterranean burial chamber so large that people got lost and never returned. One teacher and her class of 30 never returned. Well, that's what this article claims anyway. Here's a snippet of some of the far out claims:
She claims that out of this lower tunnel on the far side of the chasm emerged, in single file, several very large creatures of humanoid form but completely covered with hair from head to foot. Noticing her, they raised their arms in her direction, palms out, at which point a violent "wind" began to blow through the cavern, snuffing out her candle. Then, some “thing” wet and slippery (apparently a creature of a different sort) brushed past her.
It's fascinating stuff, whether true or not.
You can see pictures of parts of the Hypogeum here. Here's an article that treats it more soberly as a tourist attraction:
For about a 1,000-year span, the Hypogeum served as a necropolis, a city of the dead that eventually housed the remains of about 7,000 people. It was one of many megalithic structures strewn across Malta, built by a complex Neolithic culture that mysteriously disappeared around 2500 BC.
Even without slimy things and hairy humanoids, the Hypogeum is interesting as an underground Stonehenge and home of a death cult of some kind. Thanks Hex!

Japanese tattoos don't say what you think

The Chicago Tribune does a great little article on what kanji character tattoos really mean. (You may need registration for the article, Metafilter suggests using anonymous/anonymous for your user name/password.)
I had a friend who lived in Thailand. She talked about how people there wore remaindered T-shirts from English speaking countries that said horrible things. One T-shirt was supposed to say DNKY, instead it said DYNK. Another said "I fuck horses" or something similar. If you don't know the language, you must be careful with what you wear, or get imprinted on your skin.

Killer asteroids

Scientists are coming close to surveying all the asteroids that could destroy human civilization. Next they plan on finding the less important city destroyers.

Do birds have cults?

Sparrows try to commit mass suicide by drowning.

Eyeball jewelry

In the Netherlands, people are getting the latest fashion trend, jewelry in their eyeballs.
Dutch eye surgeons have implanted tiny pieces of jewelry called "JewelEye" in the mucous membrane of the eyes of six women and one man in cosmetic surgery pioneered by an ophthalmic surgery research and development institute in Rotterdam.
The procedure involves inserting a 3.5 mm (0.13 inch) wide 1 piece of specially developed jewelry -- the range includes a glittering half-moon or heart -- into the eye's mucous membrane under local anaesthetic at a cost of 500 to 1,000 euros ($1,232).
There's a picture at the link.

The Passion of the Easter Bunny

A Pennsylvania church tried to teach kids about the crucifixion of Jesus by having actors whip the Easter Bunny.
People who attended Saturday's performance at Glassport's memorial stadium quoted performers as saying, "There is no Easter bunny," and described the show as being a demonstration of how Jesus was crucified.
Melissa Salzmann, who brought her 4-year-old son J.T., said the program was inappropriate for young children. "He was crying and asking me why the bunny was being whipped," Salzmann said.

"Satanic" attack on school

A school dormitory in Malawi was attacked in the night by a bare breasted assailant who beat several girls severely.
When the unknown assailant entered the room he appeared to have knelt down and suddenly started beating and hacking the helpless girls with what appeared to be a pipe, leaving blood sputtered everywhere including the walls, according to the girls.
The girls said the assailant seemed to have briefly gone out but reappeared briefly, grinned widely at the girls and then disappeared.
Police took the girls to a safe place and the beaten ones are being treated. But the assailant found them the next night.
Boarding mistress Bridget Muhemed said the assailant’s identity has not been established.
“We are still baffled by the whole incident. It has never happened before. Many believe this is either witchcraft or something to do with satanism. And how did he or she track down the girls and even know we had taken them to police?” she said.
...
The incident comes at a time when stories of vampires, blood suckers and trafficking in body parts are yet to die down in Malawi.

George Romero movie

George Romero is making a movie about a living dead rock 'n' roll band. Called Diamond Dead, the movie will be produced by Ridley Scott and has music by Richard Hartley, who did some uncredited work on "Rocky Horror Picture Show" and was the composer for "Shock Treatement." The Web site for Diamond Dead has a Flash trailer, a jukebox with Hartley's songs, and actual portions of the script as it goes through rewrites.
I just watched the trailer. It's basically just a list of names and then the character sketches of the main characters while some of the music plays. In concept, it looks interesting, if they can pull it off.

The Manchurian Candidate remake

I'm so tired of movie remakes, especially when they start tackling classics. Admittedly, I enjoyed both the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Dawn of the Dead remakes, but I still don't think they're necessary. And now, they're remaking one of the greatest films ever made, The Manchurian Candidate. It has a good cast and Jonathan Demme is a fine director, it may even be a good film. It's still pointless.

Perplexing UFO mystery

In a survey, the Scottish town of Bonnybridge was named the UFO capital of the UK. The survey was sponsored by Grolsch beer. The real alien question here: Why is a beer company sponsoring a UFO survey?

Letting others do my blogging

I was going to mention Jeff Vandermeer's new Web sites and articles online, but Trent at s1ngularity::criticism put together a nice post of all the relevant links. If your interested about Vandermeer's work (and you really should be) start clicking.

Jonathan Carroll interview

Singularity.net has published the first in series of interviews, this one with Jonathan Carroll:

JC: When you're working in the fantastic it's as if you're boxing with the gloves off. There are no rules so anything goes. You want God to appear eating an ice cream cone? Fine. You want a woman to give birth to Hitler#2? Fine. When there are no rules there is certainly more chaos and it can be a lot harder work for the reader, but there's also a lot more room to move and maneuver. You can talk about things on the page that you couldn't in more "stable" fiction" because of that anything-goes element. When you read ["Corrections" author Jonathan] Franzen, you're going to a Chinese restaurant. You get what you expect and the only surprise is if the food there, invariably Chinese cuisine, is wonderfully prepared. When you go to my restaurant you have no idea what the food is going to be or if it will be well prepared. There's an element of doubt that isn't in the Franzen restaurant, maybe even dismay, but there's potential for wonder and all out delight that cancels out the other negative stuff if you like this "anything goes" sort of place.

Russians to build UFOs for U.S.

U.S. Naval Air Systems Command has signed an agreement with Russia's EKIP Aviation to produce flying saucer shaped aircraft. The ships are good for putting out forest fires and monitoring oil pipelines, according to the story. There's a picture at the site too.

Do-it-yourself Caesarean

The 40-year-old pregnant woman lived in an area of Mexico without running water or electricity and eight hours from the nearest hospital. She had lost a baby previously due to labor complications. She wasn't having that this time.
Dr R Valle, of the Dr Manuel Velasco Suarez Hospital in San Pablo, Mexico, said: "She took three small glasses of hard liquor and, using a kitchen knife, sliced her abdomen in three attempts and delivered a male infant that breathed immediately and cried."
Before losing consciousness, the woman told one of her children to call a local nurse for help.
(Found at Cylindrical Primate Storage Unit.)

Tarantino, Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino wants to take on 007 with a low budget adaptation of "Casino Royale," the first James Bond book by Ian Fleming. He wants to bring Pierce Brosnan back as bond. But according to Dark Horizons, Brosnan has no interest in doing anymore Bond movies and the studio doesn't want him anyway.

A woman and her octopus

Japanese sculpture depicting woman and octopus sex. Not safe for work? (Found at Cylindrical Primate Storage Unit.)

Hauntings

Haunted house resident sets up Web sites to bring together people with similar problems.
People want a safe place to come and talk about their experiences, where nobody laughs at you or calls you crazy," says Fritz.
And now the group is gearing up for its largest, and most comprehensive, event: a two-day Spring Paranormal Get Together April 24-25. In addition to lunch and dinner at two haunted restaurants, the gathering will include a seance, professional ghost tours of two haunted locations (including a cemetery) and the chance to sleep in a haunted bed and breakfast.
Why do people who have had paranormal experiences want to sleep in a haunted place?
Meanwhile, another group is planning the Southeastern Paranormal Studies Intercollegiate Conference this weekend.
Conventional scientific research and unconventional ideas will be fused in an attempt to explain the unexplained, said Nelson Abreu, president of the Science of Self Club, who is hosting the event.
“We feel that giving a stage for serious scientific research on nonconventional topics is essential because scientific journals are censoring this type of work,” he said.
Meanwhile a night janitor at a courthouse and a film crew are dealing with ghostly encounters.

Easter Island cures cancer

Medical researchers have found that drugs made from bacteria in Easter Island's soil helps deal with kidney cancer. No word on side effects having anything to do with the size of your head.

All the religion news that's fit to print

Here's your Jesus roundup:

A new survey says more people believe Jews responsible for Christ's death. The survey takes into account that Mel Gibson movie everyone's talking about:
Generally, there is a correlation between seeing the movie, and expressing an intention to see it, with holding the view that Jews were responsible for Christ's death. This is especially the case among younger people. Of those age 18-34 who have seen the movie, 42% believe Jews were responsible for Christ's death. Similarly, 36% of those age 35-59 who have seen "The Passion of the Christ" express that view. Still, majorities in both of these age groups ­ whether they have seen the movie or not ­ say they do not feel that Jews were responsible for Christ's death.

In Texas, man sees "The Passion" and confesses to murder that had been ruled a suicide.

The Revealer reviews the South Park episode about "The Passion of the Christ" (which was a hilarious episode, I must say.)

Swedish textiles expert says he can prove the Shroud of Turin is real.
Swedish textiles expert Dr Mechthild Flury-Lemberg, who discovered the seam at the back of the cloth during a restoration project, says: "There have been attempts to date the shroud from looking at the age of the material, but the style of sewing is the biggest clue.
"It belongs firmly to a style seen in the first century AD or before."

Woman says the image of Jesus has appeared in her fireplace. It's not the first supernatural occurrence at her house:
"On January 2, 1999 the first word appeared on the wall," said Rose-Mary. "It was the Welsh for 'peace be with you'. In that first month we had about 20 words come and go.
"Since then pictures, crosses and Welsh words have been appearing all the time on the wall and around the fireplace in a brownish stain.
"They come and go. The words always seem to have a virtuous or religious connotation.
"Watching the fireplace in our house is as entertaining as watching the television!"

And Cosmopolitan has added a column on spirituality.

In politics the Bush administration accuses Kerry of using scripture for political purposes.
''John Kerry's comment at New Northside Baptist Church was beyond the bounds of acceptable discourse, and a sad exploitation of Scripture for a political attack,'' said Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt.
Because, the Bush administration would never use God in politics. As far as I'm concerned, both sides should shut up about God and starting worrying about politics.

Farscape returns

Sci Fi Wire reports that SciFi channel is picking up a Farscape miniseries, "Peacekeeper Wars."

Lansdale interview

Good interview with Joe R. Lansdale from the Houston Chronicle. The article includes a lot of biographical detail about the author that I didn't know. (Link found at Beatrice.)

Movies for the sick bed

So I've been sick for the last five days and have not felt like coming anywhere near the computer. Sorry for the derth of posts lately.
When I'm sick I can't concentrate on books or deep thoughtful movies, so I ended up watching lots of monster movies and action films this weekend. It's like chicken soup to me. So here are my capsule reviews:
"Equilibrium": Cool action rip-off of Fahrenheit 451. Christian Bale's action scenes are truly impressive.
"Deep Rising": Total popcorn movie fun. A big squid, octopus monster hidden inside a giant ocean liner, killing people off one by one. Good fun. Not much more.
"Impostor": One long chase scene. It captures a few good science fiction ideas, but mostly it's just characters running around.
"Mystery "Men": Funnier in concept than execution. I'm surprised at how good a rating Rotten Tomatoes gave it.
"Cabin Fever": Fun horror movie. Lots of references to 70s and 80s horror movies. Lots of humor. A good time. Gory.
"Underworld": Action movie with vampires and werewolves. Takes itself very seriously. Didn't buy the love story. Eh.
"Dog Soldiers": Surprisingly good low budget soldiers vs. werewolves movie. Kind of a "night of the living wolf" movie.

I also managed to crawl out of my hole long enough to see "Hellboy". I thought it was great. But then, I'm a big fan of the comic book and it's very true to the comic. Still, I though it was an exciting, fun movie with good characters and awesome monsters.
Back to regular linkage tomorrow.

Del Toro At the Mountains of Madness

Thanks to an off-hand mention at Caitlin Kiernan's Low Red Moon journal, I found out that Guillermo Del Toro, director of Hellboy, Kronos, Mimic and The Devil's Backbone, is also attached to direct an adaptation of At the Mountains of Madness. This is great. I saw Hellboy the other day and was very, very pleased. And The Devil's Backbone was truly a great spooky movie. I think he could really do the H.P. Lovecraft story justice.

Keanu Reeves in A Scanner Darkly

Dear God, why?

Just weird

I don't know what this is, but it's hilarious. (Link found at The Daily Column.)

You always knew this was the case

Exploring the Hostility of Things:

"During some research into the relation between periods of the day and human bad temper, Clark-Trimble, a leading Cambridge psychologist, came to the conclusion that low human dynamics in the early morning could not sufficiently explain the apparent hostility of Things at the breakfast table - the way honey gets between the fingers, the unfoldability of news-papers, etc. In the experiments which finally confirmed him in this view, and which he demonstrated before the Royal Society in London, Clark-Trimble arranged four hundred pieces of carpet in ascending degrees of quality, from coarse matting to priceless Chinese silk. Pieces of toast and marmalade, graded, weighed, and measured, were then dropped on each piece of carpet, and the marmalade-downwards incidence was statistically analysed. The toast fell right-side-up every time on the cheap carpet, except when the cheap carpet was screened from the rest (in which case the toast didn't know that Clark-Trimble had other and better carpets), and it fell marmalade-downwards every time on the Chinese silk. Most remarkable of all, the marmalade-downwards incidence for the intermediate grades was found to vary exactly with the quality of carpet."

Your toast knows what kind of carpet you have.
(Link found at Cylindrical Primate Storage Unit.)

No explanations for 'fairy circles'

Scientists in South Africa are baffled by Namibia's 'fairy circles.'

The circles comprise innumerable discs of completely bare sandy soil, ranging from two to 10 metres across, found in grass on Namibia's coastal fringe.

Scientists looked at three explanations: the milkbush, termites and radioactive soil. All of them have been discarded.

Lead scientist Gretel van Rooyen, a botanist at the University of Pretoria, is now exploring the theory that, somehow, toxic elements are deposited in the shape of the circle, making it impossible for plant life to get established there.
"But even if we find them, how they came there is the next problem," New Scientist quotes her as saying in next Saturday's issue.
For the moment, she admits wryly, "we're left with the fairies".

More Godzilla plushies

Toy Vault will be releasing a plush Baby Godzilla, 50th anniversary Godzilla, Gigan and Megalon.

ROMA ANNO DOMINI C: LOCI

Here's a clickable map of Rome in 100 AD. (Link found at Rogue Classicism.)

Computer zombies

Look! Night of the Living Dead is in the public domain and free on the Internet now! Go and get it.

Manuscript of bizarre creatures

Here are illustrations and descriptions from Marvels of Things Created and Miraculous Aspects of Things Existing, an illuminated Persian manuscript. There are centaurs and dragons and flying fish here, but also men with heads on their chests, fish with a man's head, a yellow monkey and lots more. (Link found at Maud Newton.)

Because even mermaids should have a body complex

A Polish town wants to give its mermaid symbol a boob job and a diet.

"There was a discussion about the coat of arms and one female councilor said jokingly that the mermaid's breasts were too small and that she was a bit fat," city hall spokesman told Reuters.
The joke became a serious idea when local and national media got wind of the debate, giving sleepy Ustka plenty of coverage.
"We are now considering altering the mermaid slightly by making her breasts bigger and making her leaner," the spokesman said. "She will become more attractive and Ustka will gain publicity."

Allegedly, you can see a picture of the mermaid at this site: http://www.ustka.pl/ustka.html?section=40, but I can't get it to work.

Enemies of the state

According to a new book, the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff in the early 1960s wanted to blow up civilians or soldiers to justify going to war with Cuba. The plan was drafted and accepted by the Joint Chiefs and then presented to President Kennedy's defense secretary Robert McNamara. The plans didn't go any farther and the head of the Joint Chiefs, Army Gen. Lyman L. Lemnitzer, was removed shortly afterwards.

Code named Operation Northwoods, the plans reportedly included the possible assassination of Cuban émigrés, sinking boats of Cuban refugees on the high seas, hijacking planes, blowing up a U.S. ship, and even orchestrating violent terrorism in U.S. cities.
The plans were developed as ways to trick the American public and the international community into supporting a war to oust Cuba's then new leader, communist Fidel Castro.
America's top military brass even contemplated causing U.S. military casualties, writing: "We could blow up a U.S. ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba," and, "casualty lists in U.S. newspapers would cause a helpful wave of national indignation."

A real big foot found

A giant foam foot was found in Buckmaster Pond in Westwood, Mass., Monday morning.
The unusual item is about 5 feet long, 3 feet high, black in color, and very detailed, including well-defined toes and toenails. Sicard said there were reports that the foot might have been sitting on a park bench in the area during the weekend.
Police are seeking the owners of the foot.

Overlooked gems

Here's a list of "100 movies that deserve more love." (Link found at Metafilter.) I'm amazed at how much I agree with what I've read so far. If I didn't love the film, it's something I haven't seen yet. Check it out.

Sonic weapon

Marines will use a bizarre new "Secret Scream" gun to disable people.

The actual sound used is a recording of a baby's scream played backwards.
"For most people, even if they plug their ears, it will produce the equivalent of an instant migraine," said Woody Norris, chairman of American Technology Corporation, the Californian company that has produced the weapon.
"It will knock some people to their knees."

The gun was created through secret Pentagon research:

A secret division in the Pentagon has been financing research on futuristic weapons for more than 15 years.

He probably only painted the tip

COPENHAGEN, Denmark - An artist with 780 gallons of red paint, three fire hoses and a 20-member crew at his disposal went to Greenland in search of a blank canvas large enough to accommodate his creative impulse.
The result is a blood-red iceberg now sitting off the country's western coast.

A photo can be seen here at the artist's Web site.

A little about the artist:
Evaristti, who was born in Chile, drew widespread attention - and disdain - when he displayed 10 working blenders filled with goldfish in a Danish gallery in 2000.
He invited guests to turn the devices on and someone did, grinding up a pair of goldfish.
The gallery director was tried on charges of animal cruelty, but acquitted.

Hell's Angels, Atlantis chapter

My god, Underwater Times is filled with good stories today. For instance, there's the Scubadoo, an underwater motorcycle. Includes pictures!

Keeping your giant octopus busy

Aquarium workers have created an "octobox," a puzzle box to keep a playful giant squid busy. Apparently, the giant squid, "Titan", already can open jars and is generally very curious. No picture at the link, sorry.

Glow in the dark shark

Fishermen save 1 in a million albino shark. Although, albino may make you think this shark is pale. No sir, he's bright yellow and has been named Mango. There's a picture at the link.

SCUBA terrorists

Hamas troops used SCUBA gear to attack a Jewish settlement. Israeli troops killed them before they made it. Count on the New York Post for a sedate and learned headline: "Scuba scum slain."

Psychics beat the odds?

Researchers at the Scottish Society for Psychical Research say psychic mediums beat the odds in their survey. It's interesting, but sounds a little suspect to me. Here's how the survey was handled:

A total of 13 mediums took part in the SSPR study, carried out in Scotland and London. In each test the medium would sit in a different room from the participants and choose seat numbers they wanted to read from the audience. The audience, usually around 30 people, would enter a room out of sight of the medium and on their way in be given a random seat number. After the reading, adjudicators would distribute lists of what the mediums had seen and the audience had to tick which of the mediums’ statements applied to them.

That last bit sounds the most questionable. If I choose which one sounds like it applies to me, isn't that going to skew the results? I'm just thinking out loud here.
Also, they don't talk like scientists:

“I am aware that critics will say the tests were somehow rigged. But, rest assured, we could not have been more scientific in the way this was carried out. If anyone claims it is fixed or rigged, we would sue.”

The SSPR is an amateur group that is peer reviewed.

Also speaking at the Muncaster conference is Dr Hugh Pincott, who believes that one day society will look at the work of amateur investigators with the same respect given to the amateur astronomers of the 15th and 16th centuries who broke ground on discovering new planets and comets.
He said: “There is a large expansion of regional groups who are using their own time and money to carry out research and are making headway. Most academic seats are privately funded and so it really is gifted amateurs who are doing all the work.”

UFOs over Canada

Canada Prime Minister Paul Martin's plane had a close encounter with a UFO. But it looks like it was nothing more than a shooting star.
Martin and his entourage were cruising above Alberta when their Challenger jet came within an otherworldly whisker of a luminous object streaking through the night sky.
In a report to Edmonton air traffic controllers, the pilot of Martin's plane noted seeing a "very bright light falling" through the air, with smoke trailing, while the aircraft passed over Suffield, Alta., on Sun., March 21.
People aboard at least two other planes also saw the plummeting object, which was travelling "at a very fast rate of speed" from a high altitude, says the report.

ProfessorHex

There's a new blog out there called ProfessorHex. He says I set a "fine example" for him. Well, if you say so, professor. Here's hoping you surpass my humble works. It shouldn't be that hard. Professor Hex claims to be a "scholar of the strange and mysterious." I look forward to seeing where he goes with it.

Next film by Donnie Darko director

Richard Kelly, the writer and director of Donnie Darko, has written and is planning to direct a comedy-musical-science fiction-thriller. I have no idea what that means. Anyway, I love Darko, so I'm more than willing to give Kelly the benefit of the doubt. Although here's what is being said about a cast:
Seann William Scott is in negotiations to star in the project, set to begin shooting in July. Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Lee, Janeane Garofalo, Tim Blake Nelson, Amy Poehler, Kevin Smith and Ali Larter are also in talks to join the cast, the trade paper reported.

More Neokaiju!

With just a short look on Google, I find there's a Web site for the Neokaiju project. I'm really into the design for "Steampunk," which looks like a combination of King Ghidorah and a pot bellied stove.
Super7 Magazine and STRANGEco present the Neo Kaiju Project, a new mini figure series combining Japanese monster toys with contemporary US artists and designers. Each artist has created one figure referencing a classic Japanese monster (ÒkaijuÓ) and one of their own choosing.
Super7, by the way, is the magazine of Japanese toy culture.

Neo-Kaiju

STRANGEco is apparently creating a toy line called the Neo-Kaiju Project. They describe it thus: reinterpretations of Japanese monsters by Gary Baseman, Tim Biskup, Seonna Hong, Kathy Schorr and Todd Schorr.
There are a couple of pictures at the site. Most seem to have the general shape of classic monsters with cute, cartoony additions to them. Hard to describe, just go look at them.
(Link found at BoingBoing.)

Seeking the site of the Trojan War

The search for the city of Troy, made legendary in the tales of Homer, is detailed in this Telegraph article.

The reason the legend retains such a powerful grip on our imagination is clear to Dr Eric Cline of George Washington University, who has worked at Troy.
"The whole story of the Trojan War is a compelling one for the ages - it's love and war, it's greed, it's desire. You name it, it has elements that compel the human psyche, and have for millennia."
Dr Cline is interested in how archaeology can help us discover whether the legend is based on real historical events. "Is there a nugget, a kernel of truth at the base of this story around which everything else is wrapped?
"Is there some historical war which took place that Homer wrapped in layer after layer, so it became much more than just a single battle, a single conflict, much more than just a war? It became a story, an epic, a saga."

(Link found at Rogue Classicism.)

The Tragical History of Cerebus

There is a great long post at Long story; short pier about Dave Sim's comic "Cerebus" and its tragic nose dive. The writer absolutely captures what was right about Sim's work and where he went off his rocker. If you've ever read Cerebus, check this post out. (Link found thanks to David Fiore.)

Frankly, I think it's terrible

According to the Plain English Campaign, 'at the end of the day' is the most irritating cliche. It's pretty bad, but I can think of worse ones. I hate when people say "frankly," or "honestly" or "to be honest" before giving out information. Oh, so you haven't been honest before this?

Ugly weird fish

This site has pictures of weird fish from the Tasman Sea, including the vampire sex fish I mentioned a few days ago.

Mystery grave

One day at a cemetery, a new grave, dedicated to Lou and Blackie, suddenly appeared on what should have been an empty lot. Then a wooden cross turned up on it. It was supposed to be a vacant lot, so police decided to dig it up. They found nothing, just dirt. A mystery remains.

New dragonfish found

New deep sea species of dragonfish found.

As with all dragonfish, which live at depths ranging from about 600 to 3,000 feet, the new species has menacing teeth, and a mouth that can jut out to engulf prey as wide as it is. They also have small organs along their bellies that produce light, or bioluminescence, and that may serve as camouflage to make the fish blend in with faint sunlight from above, thus appearing invisible to potential predators below.

And here's a Google search for dragonfish images.

All about the Devil's Tower

Every wonder how the Devil's Tower (that squared off mountain everybody was obsessed with in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind") came to be? Read all about it at The Museum of Unnatural History. Apparently there is also a legend about lost gold hidden under the tower.

Star-shaped towers mystery

Martine "Frederique" Darragon is trying to find the solution to the mystery of towers in plain sight along the Himalayas. Apparently, none of the natives have any history for the star-shaped objects.

The mice of "Jugs"

Mad scientists grow human breasts on mice. They're doing this for cancer research, but I just can't get the thought of big-hootered mice out of my head now.
Unlike human breasts, however, the mice's growths sit flush to the chest. Humans are unusual in this respect, says Daniel Medina who studies breast cancer at Baylor College of Medicine at Houston, Texas: "In few other species are breasts pendulous."

Affordable funeral arrangements

A German artist wants his body fed to piranhas.
Karl Friedrich Lentze, 56, said he came up with the idea after reading about a Dutch man who wanted to be fed to snails.
Lentze, from Berlin, said he liked the idea but wanted something that would gobble him up a lot quicker.
Unfortunately for Karl, scientists say piranhas like living meat, they're not so big on cadavers.
The artist is however still hoping to hear from other zoos that may be more open to his proposal.
He said: "They could always poke my body with sticks to get me moving and get the fish interested."

Cronenberg's new movie

David Cronenberg will be making a movie of Martin Amis' "London Fields."
Script by Roberta Hanley ("Woundings") and Amis follows a promiscuous psychic troubled by disturbing premonitions that are all the more unnerving for never being wrong. Tale is set in and around a seedy London pub, where the psychic has come to meet the end her dreams have foretold: to be murdered by one of two men she meets there -- but which one?
(Link found at Cup of Chicha.)

Grad student or cult leader?

Former students make claim that Wheaton College did not protect them for a grad student who is also a cult leader. Apparently, he believes in corporal punishment:
Andreson, who tried four times to flee before finally breaking free in 2002, says she was forced to stay awake for days, had to stand in frigid weather in just a T-shirt for hours and was made to flog other members. Golwalla also made her abuse herself, once forcing her to screw a jagged coat hanger into her face.
She described the Maryland basement as a ``torture chamber,'' and said the hot-tempered cultist once kicked her to the ground and threw a book at her head. He wouldn't let her call her family, monitored her phone calls and e-mails and forced her to slap herself in the face, pull out tufts of her own hair and bang her head on the floor until it bled. Her punishment for questioning Golwalla on one occasion: She had to lick a filthy bathroom floor.
"It was definitely evil,'' she recalled. ``It was so isolated. That basement was my whole life and Feroze was my God.''

Vampire sex rituals of deep sea fish

The murky depths off New Zealand reveal some really weird fish. For instance, the sex life of the deep sea angler fish:
'The female is the size of a tennis ball. It has big savage teeth, little nasty pin eyes ... and a rod lure off the top of its head with a glowing tip to coax in stupid prey.'
The male 'looks like a black jellybean with fins'.
When a male finds a female, he bites into her side, never letting go.
'He drinks her blood, in return for giving her sperm,' Dr Norman said.

Squid attacking Chile

Scientists use satellites to explain Chilean giant squid invasion. Includes a couple of nice pictures, one of a squid in the water.

Godzilla review

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla gets a good review. Here's the summation:
This was a fun movie, reminding me of the classic Godzilla movies in a lot of ways. While I did have some minor complaints about the way Godzilla was portrayed, the fights and design for Kiryu made up for them. This movie contains a better plot than most Japanese monster movies. While I didn’t like the English audio track, the Japanese soundtrack was very good. Overall, this was a great entry to the Godzilla mythos. Highly Recommended.
I think the movie is coming out this week. I'll be hunting the video stores for this one.

Weird movie

Here's a really fun, dark fantasy short film called The Cat with Hands. I saw it on about a million blogs before I downloaded it. Trust me, it's worth watching. The latest blog I saw it at was s1ngularity::criticism.

Looking at Lansdale

James Sallis offers an overview of Joe R. Lansdale's career and then goes on to review his new book, "Sunset and Sawdust."

Mystery of the lost English explorer

The Guardian has the low down on an explorer who disappeared mysteriously after searching for the lost city of Z in the Brazilian struggle. The story is equal parts "Heart of Darkness" and "The Lost World" with bits of "She" thrown in.

'This is one of the great adventure stories of the past century,' said Williams, 'and at last we are finding out what really happened. Fawcett was a kind of Indiana Jones figure and his children have fought hard to keep his good name, in spite of interest from Hollywood and countless books.
'His secret plans for a new and unconventional way of life have only just emerged from the letters he wrote to friends.'

Studying near death experiences

Scientists plan study of near death experiences. The article doesn't explain how they control the conditions of this study. How do you get people who are about to die, temporarily? The article goes over interesting ideas on near death experiences:

But Blackmore has examined all the arguments and believes she knows what causes these NDE visions. Firstly, the light at the end of the tunnel is simply "noise" in the visual cortex. It is often experienced by epileptics, migraine sufferers and those who meditate. It is not unique to NDE.
The out-of-body experience? Well, if you think about the last time you walked along a beach, for example, where do you see yourself? Probably not through your eyes, but from a vantage point above or to the side of you. Most people have a bird's-eye view of themselves when remembering past events. What Blackmore found in her own studies is that people who dream from a bird's-eye perspective are more likely to have out-of-body experiences.

King of the Jews vs King of the Monsters

Hurry, before it's gone, get you Godzilla vs Jesus t-shirt on ebay now!

Three-headed frog=Three frogs getting it on

Remember the three-headed frog story from a while ago? Well, according to this site, it's not a three headed frog, it's a frog menage a trois! It's common for frogs and toads to form "mating balls" apparently, and the three-headed frog was one of these. Apparently frog mating habits are very kinky.

UFO on Mars

Mars rover sees a UFO in the Martian sky. NASA officials say it could be a shooting star or an old orbiting spacecraft falling into the atmosphere. No word on rover abductions yet.

Citizen Kane vs. Maltese Falcon

There's an interesting discussion going on between certain bloggers about which is the better movie: "Citizen Kane" or "The Maltese Falcon." Among the participants are The Forager, David Fiore, and Sean Collins. Each one of those links goes to one part of the conversation, but it goes on in other blog entries, comments and elsewhere.
Personally, I just enjoy reading it and, as I haven't seen The Maltese Falcon in years, I don't have much to add. I've often thought Citizen Kane is the best movie of all time. Lately though, I've been rethinking it. It certainly created many new ideas in cinema, but being groundbreaking doesn't make a great film. I do love the story and I think Joseph Cotten is tremendous in it. I also think Orson Welles is perfect as Kane. Both of them are bigger than life.
At the moment, if I had to say what the greatest film of all time was right now, I might say "Seven Samurai." Tomorrow I'd probably say different. Maybe "Night of the Hunter."
Anyway, it's an interesting conversation, check it out.

Burroughs interviewed

Thanks to BoingBoing I found this interview with William S. Burroughs from Creem Magazine. The interview is funny because he doesn't seem to enjoy the rock 'n' rollers he's talking about all that much. For instance, here he talks about Bowie:
MORGAN: What did you think of him when you met him? Did he seem to be the kind of guy who was bullshitting his way through life or did he seem to be walking the straight and narrow?
BURROUGHS: (laughs) Well, neither one. He’s not bullshitting, he’s very, very clever and I think very calculating. I think he knows exactly what he’s doing and where he’s going and how to get there.
And here is Burroughs' advice to young writers:
MORGAN: Is there any advice you’d like to give to young writers?
BURROUGHS: I have an exercise I learned from a Mafia Don in Ohio: see everybody on the street before they see you. It’s quite interesting actually because, if you see everyone before they see you, they won’t see you.
And then you’ll find that somebody beat you.

Lawrence Block blog

Crime writer Lawrence Block has started a blog for his book tour.
(Found via Sarah Weinman.)

Killer cow

In Idaho Falls, a cow escaped a farm and had to be chased down by police. The cow cut the tendon of an animal control officer and it made its displeasure with police known:
Police Sgt. David Frei tried to herd the cow by driving beside it. The cow rammed into his Ford Explorer, denting a front panel, and then disappeared somewhere south, witnesses said.

But Mikey did wake up in a bathtub full of ice after his organs were removed!

Under the headline Pop rocks did not kill 'Mikey,' the Marshfield Mail corrects a story about stolen UPS uniforms thought to have been bought by terrorists. Apparently, the story was an urban rumor that the sherriff's department picked up and passed along to the local news media. So Mikey is OK and don't be too frightened of your UPS drives. Got that?

Clandestine invasionn of Virginia

Apparently, a group of UFO enthusiasts is suing Virginia's governor because he has failed to stop a "clandestine invasion" of the state. The Smoking Gun has an affidavit a person offered in support of their case. Be sure to check out the alien drawing on page 3.

Raise the bubble wall!

Mississippi is considering using a fence made of bubbles to keep out various types of carp.
Also here's a factoid:
Silver carp, which are nearly as big [100 pounds], have become a safety hazard along parts of the Mississippi because they jump out of the water and sometimes hit boaters, Oetker said.

War of the Worlds

Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise are teaming up to make a new War of the Worlds. I'm hoping they stick closer to the book and include the tripods and red weed and blood sucking aliens.

Amazing Stories to rise from the grave

Famed science fiction magazine Amazing Stories is being relaunched, again. The last time around, they tried to use media fiction (Star Trek stories, etc) to get people interested. This one sounds like they are going to use the nonfiction content to attract readers.
Now re-imagined for a new generation of fans, Amazing Stories launches into the 21st century with both cutting-edge fiction from today’s top authors and the mission to provide the definitive editorial voice across the entire spectrum of sci-fi, fantasy, super heroes and supernatural horror. Amazing Stories will feature reviews and previews of the latest movies, TV, DVDs, books, comics and story-driven electronic games, as well as interviews with the creators of these fantasy stories. Each issue will also contain original fiction works from the world’s top authors, as readers of Amazing Stories have come to expect from the magazine.
Well, I'm hoping for the best anyway.

Weird animal news

Afghan soldier couldn't afford to get married. He ends up being arrested for having sex with a donkey. Desperate times ... desperate measures.
A kangaroo viciously attacked a woman in her garden. A bobcat viciously attacked a woman in her basement.
Chinese veterinarians are showing a panda American sex ed videos so it will be ready to mate.
Jim Rindhage is a professional dog poop scooper.
Bird poop destroying Norwegian bridge.
Man dies of heart attack and pneumonia, but police launching a murder investigation because his genitals have been removed and may have been eaten by the dog.
And finally, dogs trained during World War II to run under tanks with explosives. Unfortunately, they were indiscriminate about which tanks they'd run under.

Beeswax and pirate treasures

This article on the Treasure on Neahkahnie Mountain is a wild mix of Indian legend, scientific fact and reports of treasure hunters and explorers. There's history, legend and weirdness all mixed together. Good stuff.
Actually, the Web site, Unexplained Earth, looks to have a lot of other interesting stories like that one. Check it out.

Godzilla takes New York!

Columbia University is having an exhibition called Godzilla Conquers the Globe: Japanese Movie Monsters in International Film Art. It celebrates the 50th anniversary of Godzilla and looks at the process of change Godzilla (and other Japanese movie monsters) went through as they travelled from country to country. It also includes a history of Japanese monsters in folklore and books and how those were translated to the silver screen.
The Web site includes thumbnails of many Godzilla posters from around the world. Some of my favorites are in there, like the Polish poster which can be seen here (scroll down). It features a blue Godzilla that's almost smiling as it crouches over a tiny city.
Good stuff. Check it out. And go to it if you're near Columbia. They say this could become a travelling exhibit if it's successful.

May the fold be with you

BoingBoing has been linking to a lot of paper folding lately. Here's a neat one featuring Star Wars vehicles.

Wizardry & Wild Romance

Coming next month, Monkeybrain Books are publishing a revised edition of Michael Moorcock's Wizardry & Wild Romance. "The Encyclopedia of Fantasy" calls the original book (published in 1987) "an impatient and rather patchy examination of fantasy ... and which constitutes as a whole an apologia for his own ironized point of view." I have no idea if that is a good description of the book or not. According to Monkeybrain, the new book will be "newly revised and expanded."
Moorcock is the absolute master of modern fantasy. Things he tossed off in a week are far better than some of the dreck on fantasy bookshelves today. So I'll be buying it in short order. If you're interested in fantasy literature, it's probably an essential volume.

Beware dihydrogen monoxide!

City officials in Aliso Viejo, Calif., nearly banned water. During an investigation of a foam container maker, they found out the company used dihydrogen monoxide (the scientific name for water). A few official looking Web sites did them in, describing dihydrogen monoxide as an odorless, tasteless chemical that can be deadly if accidentally inhaled.

Makes a great birthday present

Hurry, hurry, get your own two-headed calf, bids start at $9 for a limited time.

Rich religious cult leader and her illegal, manmade island

This article starts out talking about an island illegaly built in a protected South Dade, Fla., nature preserve. Apparently, the island was built by the "Supreme Master" of a religious cult. But this isn't your typical cult:

Whether Ching Hai should be considered a ''cult leader'' is the subject of debate among people who track such groups. The group offers no dark doomsday messages but instead practices a form of meditation called quan yin, which taps into some sort of inner music, and stresses vegetarianism along with simple rules against lying, stealing or ''sexual misconduct.''

But apparently, living next door to her wasn't a bad thing.

''She was a very kind person, just very, very strange,'' said one neighbor who did not want to be identified. ''There was just a lot of weird stuff.''
Stuff like this: scurrying minions who always referred to her as ''the master.'' Odd construction projects, often done after midnight, like aviaries or landscaping, fences or screens to shield the property.
De Lamour, said another neighbor, described herself as a designer but talked little about herself. At one home, neighbors rarely saw anyone, only cars. At another, the petite woman was pleasant when encountered -- sometimes to a fault, offering extravagant gifts like expensive designer clothes on a whim.
''You had to be careful what you said. Just mention you were cold and the next thing you know she was coming with bags full of Ralph Lauren sweaters,'' the neighbor said. 'When I made a comment about why she was bringing over all this stuff all the time, she said, 'I have so such money I don't know what to do with it.' ''

Good stuff, take the time to read it.

Christ complex

Well, I hope politicians are aware of the negative influence The Passion of the Christ is having on people. First we hear of an old woman who dies in the theater. Now this: A 23-year-old tried to nail himself to a cross. Obviously, these religious movies are a bad influence. Hollywood should know better. Ban them! Restrict them! MPAA on their asses!

Deep sea robot pictures

A new deep sea robot will be taking pictures of the ocean depths and sending the photos back to be displayed on the Internet. The photos will be available here: www.deepseacam.com

Moral art

Forager writes a post on the necessity of moral instruction in art. Don't miss the comments, the conversation continues there.

Dirty secrets of Legoland

There's a topless woman looking for beads at Mardi Gras. There's a guy mooning the president. There's a drunken man at a table in Washington D.C. There's another man puking in a toilet. These are just a few of the residents hidden away in Legoland by the builders.

Jesus was gay!

Well, not really, but this article on what the Bible says about homosexuality does mention it. Toward the end, the article becomes a screed against Bush, but the discussion of Biblical rules and their interpretation is interesting.

Mars fight

Scientist attacks bizarre claims made by Richard Hoagland. Hoagland is that "Face on Mars" guy. Philip Plait has finally gotten fed up with Hoagland, who he has avoided commenting on in the past because he didn't want to give Hoagland more attention.

" 'Hoagland's claims irritate me because he is promoting uncritical thinking,' Plait told SPACE.com . 'He doesn't want you to think about what you're seeing. He's trying to bamboozle you into believing what he's saying.'
"Critical thinking is the foundation of science, but Plait thinks it's also an important skill for anyone trying to navigate modern society. 'Hoagland is eroding away at that ability.' "

Worst ... job ... ever

Greg West says he enjoys being a sewer diver.
"It's fun. it's adventurous. it's a rush," he said.
Using a specialized diving suit, West swims through dark sewer lines trying to find leaks and other problems.
"What's it like diving in sewage pipe? Dark, even with a light, West said. "You have no visibility. It's just all by feel," he said."
And the job is risky too:
"West figures some risks come with the job. "I've had a few mishaps. People accidentally shut off my air before ... a few broken legs.""

Giant Squid related

Thanks to a posting at the Night Shade message boards, I found these interesting giant squid related links. First is paintings by Skot Olsen that use the giant squid as a symbol. They look like some twisted take on Popeye.
The second link is TONMO, the Octopus News Magazine Online. It's set up as a message board and there seems to be a ton of stuff to look at.

Giant monster from Thailand

A new giant monster movie is being made in Asia: Garuda. There's a trailer for the film at the site. The Thai film looks like it's going to use a lot of CGI for its big winged monster.

Ellison on Schwartz

Harlan Ellison's Julius Schwartz obituary appears on his Web site.

Stranger than a $3 bill

Woman says she thought her $1m bill was real.

Dinosaur hunt

People on a Papua New Guinea island say they saw a 'dinosaur.' Armed police went out in search of the creature, but no trace was found. From the article:
"Eyewitness Christine Samei told reporters she ran for her life after seeing a three-metre tall, grey creature with a head like a dog and a tail like a crocodile which was as fat as a 900-litre water tank.
'It's a very huge and ugly looking animal,' Samei told local media. "