Pecking out a Tune with Céleste Boursier-Mougenot

As part of a show later this month at The Curve Gallery in London, artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot has combined zebra finches with a Les Paul guitar; video embedded above. See more photos of this work & other dadaist pieces here.

Discovery in Loch Ness - Golf Balls

When a U.S. research team was looking for proof of the loch ness monster, they made a discovery. Unfortunately the discovery was of thousands of golf balls. Originally, researcher Mike O'Brien thought "...they were mushrooms, there were so many. But when we lowered the camera, we were surprised to see that they were in fact golf balls."

CNN has more details & a murky video here.

Have you discovered TDA's song about the Loch Ness Monster fraud? Check out "Deathbed Confession" here.

Photo (of just an old anchor) courtesy: Flickr/Pudekamp

Video: Catnip Makes Kitties High as a Kite

I don't know what's funnier in this Weird Nature clip: The Scared Straight-style video of cats that are high as a kite, or the overblown BBC-ish voiceover.

"In the presence of catnip, they do the unexpected," the breathless announcer says. "As well as rolling around, apparently in ecstacy, they chase imaginary mice."

[via Laughing Squid]

Video: Robot Fetches a Beer

Thirsty? Watch as these robotic bartenders pour, then deliver, a cold beer to their human overlord.

Current price for one of these metallic manservants: $400,000. But Tokyo University engineers hope to cut that to just $40,000 within 10 years.

Odd Jobs

How's that economy treating you? If you need a new idea on how to get your hands on some more money, CNN & Fortune Magazine has an article calling attention to the odd jobs that exist. You won't see these job titles on Craigslist; titles like Movie Prop Replicator and IMAX Screen Cleaner. If you're ready to dive into an kooky job, MSN Money has a more how-to based article.

Do you already have an odd job? Tell us about it in the comments.

Photo by stuartpibrow/Flickr

See a Coconut-Size Kidney Stone

I had my first kidney stone just before New Year's Day. It felt like it was about this size. Ouchy.

[via BuzzFeed]

Creepiest Watermelon Ever

Everybody turns pumpkins into art at Halloween, but will watermelon carving become a summertime treat?

[via BuzzFeed]

Video: Giraffe Fight

And you thought giraffes were just cute creatures with silly necks.

[via BuzzFeed]

Behold, the Bear of Gum

Artist Maurizio Savini got crazy with the chewing gum to create this life-size bear.

Savini's gum-based works, which also include a buffalo and "suited businessmen suspended in gymnastic poses," have been exhibited around the world, according to The Telegraph.

"The reason I like to use chewing gum is because it seemed to me an amazingly versatile material compared to those used by the traditional arts such as painting," said Savini.

How does he do it?

"I work the chewing gum when it is warm and manipulate it with a knife just like some traditional material like clay," Savini said. "The most important step is the fixing of the sculptures with formaldehyde and antibiotic."

Read the Telegraph's full report to see the buffalo and enjoy what is perhaps the most ludicrous bit of art criticism ever, courtesy of Mario Codognato (here's a snip):

"Maurizio's work reminds of the sensual act of chewing, the voluptuous warmth of rebelling saliva, the artificial and secretly aseptic fragrance which spreads from the mouth as a promise and missed kiss."

Wonder what the art critic would say about Santa Cruz's infamous wall of gum?

[via Neatorama]

Video: Orson Welles, Tipsy Pitchman

This is supposedly an outtake from one of Orson Welles' Paul Masson TV commercials. The apparently intoxicated actor can't quite get through a few simple lines -- looks like he drank some wine well before it was time to knock off for the day.

[via Neatorama]

Video: Cow Gives Birth to a Dude

Gotta agree with Videogum's headline: "I Do Not Want Whatever This Is Selling."

[via Videogum]

Now & Then Portraiture

Artist Bobby Neel Adams has taken an intriguing, albeit creepy, approach to portraiture in his series Age Maps. As shown here and on his site, he uses portraits from yesteryear and matches them with current day portraits.

In a similar technique, his series Family Tree combines portraits of family members; Father & Son, Mother & Daughter, etc.

Video: This Cat Loves Showers

I'm not sure how I feel about a grown man taking a big tabby into the shower and videotaping the whole thing, but this cat seems to be OK with it. Maybe things would have turned out differently if the guy cranked up the water flow past drip drip drip.

[via BuzzFeed]

Big Fun With David Lee Roth's Naked Vocals

A cool "soundboard" of snippets of David Lee Roth's vocal tracks from "Runnin' With the Devil" provides at least five minutes of verifiable fun. Just click and enjoy.

(If you want to hear Roth's whole naked vocal track in real time, watch the "video" above.)

Video: Sledgehammers With Explosives

I'm speechless.

[via BuzzFeed]

World's Largest Potato? (Ugliest for Sure)

A Lebanese farmer found this monster tuber on his land near Tyre.

"I've been working the land since I was a boy, and it's the first time I've seen anything like it," now-famous farmer Khamil Semhat told AFP.

He looks pretty proud of his find, and swears he didn't use any crazy fertilizers to stimulate the growth of the hideous thing, which looks like an Elephant Man version of a yam.

It weighs almost 25 pounds, and might make the Guinness Book of World Records for biggest potato.

Suiting Up for a Midnight Snack

If this wacky ad is to be believed, women in the 1960s donned special outfits for midnight snacking. (I prefer to go commando.)

The image, uploaded to Flickr by user Fun House, is part of an advertising set with plenty of priceless images.

[via Boing Boing]

Godzilla vs. Godzilla Tree?

In Japan, a tree has taken on the profile of film legend Godzilla. As seen in the above video, viewing the tree from a specific angle, you can easily make out the profile of the radioactive lizard. I wonder if there's a bonsai somewhere that looks like Son of Godzilla?

Loch Ness Horror

After hearing about the Nessie photo anniverary, we went trolling the waters of the web and came up with this gem! The 1981 horror flick is a masterpiece of classic horror camp. If you're not faint of heart, check out the trailer.

(Via Internet Poster Awards)

First Nessie Photo Turns 75

The first photo of the so-called Loch Ness Monster was taken 75 years ago today, and BBC News tells the story of the historic image:

"It was this picture, snapped by Hugh Grey on 12 November 1933, that is credited as being the first photographic evidence of the Loch Ness monster. It appeared on the front cover of the Scottish Daily Record on 8 December that year, under the headline 'Monster photograph of the mysterious Loch Ness object.'"

The BBC also has several other historic photos of Nessie, including the "neck" photo, which was taken by the guy described in "Deathbed Confession."