This is London sheds some light on the little bugger:

"With tiny teeth and claws, a little tail and soft-looking white skin, could this really be what it seems - a baby dragon?

Highly unlikely of course, but this disturbingly realistic model almost had the experts fooled.

The dragon, suspended in a jar of what is thought to be formaldehyde, is believed to be the brainchild of German scientists who wanted to humiliate their English counterparts in the 1890s, when the rivalry between the two countries was intense."

A simple X-ray will resolve whether this creature has a skeleton -- or if its a rubber model. At the time, Germany was the world's leading manufacturer of India rubber.

Of course, there are some people who refuse to believe that Dragons are extinct; This site has some interesting pictures, including what appears to be a Plesiosaur like creature ("Marine Dragon") supposedly fished out of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand in 1977. Unfortuantely, it "stunk so bad that after they made 4, 5 pictures of him, they threw this Dinosaur back into the sea."

And just when we were so close to proving they exist! Damn!

Sources:
A baby dragon, or a bad joke?
By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
(Filed: 24/01/2004)
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/01/24/ndrag24.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/01/24/ixhome.html

Enter the dragon
By Humfrey Hunter
This is London, 23 January 2004
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/entertainment/art/articles/8795649?source=Even%0Aing%2520Standard

Dragons are NOT extinct
http://www.anzwers.org/free/livedragons/evolutio.htm

Posted at 08:56 AM in Humor, Media, Science | Permalink | Comments (33) | TrackBack

"A marijuana-based medication for people suffering from multiple sclerosis and severe pain is expected to be approved for sale in Britain early this year, British officials say.

The drug, Sativex, developed by GW Pharmaceuticals, a British company, is a liquid extract from marijuana grown by the company under license from the government. Developed to be sprayed under the tongue, it would be the first drug in recent decades to include all the components of the cannabis plant, advocates of medical marijuana say.

The British agency that regulates pharmaceuticals does not like to discuss potential drugs before they are approved. The country's Home Office, which oversees laws and policies on controlled substances, has indicated that Sativex is likely to receive approval."

Source:
Britain Poised to Approve Medicine Derived From Marijuana
By DAVID TULLER
Published: January 27, 2004
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/27/health/policy/27MARI.html

Posted at 04:10 PM in Current Affairs | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Delicate. Abstract. Phallic. Gorgeously designed. Four pages of "rare and valuable" Isaac Asimov book covers. Some are truly beautiful. From West Virginia University's brand-new home for an Asimov geek's recently donated collection. Rare and valuable artifacts that include autographed first editions.

via Metafilter

Posted at 11:58 PM in Art & Design, Books, SciFi | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sigh. Always sad to see a classic car destroyed. There's a full set of these at carnut.dk.

That said, these look pretty cool . . .

Via linkfilter

Posted at 07:14 AM in Art & Design | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Why would anyone want a plush stuffed toy of Ebola, or Black Death or Streptococcus or the Flu?
"Cause they're cute!

Collect the whole set:

Bad Breath (Porphorymonas gingivalis)
Kissing Disease (Epstein-Barr)
Athlete's Foot (Trichophyton mentagrophytes)
Ulcer (Helicobater pylori)
Black Death (Yersinia Pestis)
Ebola (Ebola Virus)
The Flu (Orthomyxoviridus)
The Common Cold (Rhinovirus)
Stomach Ache (Shigella)
Sore Throat (Streptococcus)
Martian Life (ALH 84001)
Beer & Bread (Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Source:
Giant Microbes

Posted at 06:28 PM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

You don't even have to get cold to experince the joy that is writing your name in the snow -- just head over to panlogic's pee index.



via Dave Barry

Posted at 06:27 PM in Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Why do I find this so charming?

"I hope you like it -- I can't return it .. ."
The author has put up a different "creaturesinmyhead" every day for the past 2 years; Rarely has obsessive behavior been so amusing . . .
Source: creaturesinmyhead via linkfilter

Posted at 07:01 PM in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

"Amazon.com is trying to take the friction out of grass-roots contributions to presidential candidates. We're making it as easy for people to contribute as it is to buy the latest Harry Potter. If you meet the necessary qualifications, contributing small amounts couldn't be easier . . ."

This is an interesting business approach to stealing a little of Dean's internet thunder by (arguably) the most successful internet retailer. What better way to democratize the collection of campaign contributions than thru one of the Web's most popular sites?

Heres some selected Q&A from the FAQ:

Are you guys affiliated with any candidate or party?
No.

Is Amazon.com endorsing a candidate?
No. You read the nonpartisan listings we provide and you decide which candidates to support, if any. We just make it easy.

Where does the candidate information come from?
We're reporting basic biographical information (birth date, home state, political party, etc.) about each candidate. In most cases, the information was provided by the campaign itself, or taken directly from the campaign's Web site. We have given each candidate a chance to edit or supplement this information.

Is Amazon.com getting paid to do this?
U.S. federal law prohibits us from donating services to any or all presidential campaigns, so we are charging the campaigns our usual and normal Amazon.com Payments fee.

We've also decided that we'll eventually contribute the aggregate amount we're paid in fees to Kids Voting USA, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, national organization that works with schools and communities to enhance civics education and provide youth an authentic voting experience.

How are you calculating the amount and number of contributions each candidate has received?
The numbers you see posted on the candidate's page reflect how many Amazon.com customers have made a contribution (of any size), and the collective value of the contributions that our customers have made to that candidate, via the Amazon.com "Presidential Candidates" feature, from the time the candidate first began accepting contributions through the feature.

How much may I contribute?
Although legal contribution limits are higher, we wanted to facilitate small contributions (between $5 and $200 to any candidate) through Amazon.com. By law, your total contributions to any candidate by any means must not exceed $2,000.

How does this feature work?
It uses the Amazon.com Payments capability that you also can use to buy products and services from other vendors.

What's the deadline for making contributions
As long as the Presidential Candidates feature is live on Amazon.com, you can make a contribution to the candidates that are participating. It's important to note that we're conducting this as a test and we may decide to discontinue it at any time.

May I give to two candidates?
Certainly; so long as you give no more than $200 to any one candidate, you may give to two, three, or more candidates, as you wish.

This race just keeps getting more and more interesting.

UPDATE: 1/24/04 10:00am Yahoo picks up the story via Reuters :

Source:
Amazon Presidential Candidates

Amazon.com's Latest Product Category: Politicians
By Reed Stevenson
Reuters, Jan 24, 9:00 AM ET
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=569&ncid=738&e=1&u=/nm/20040124/tc_nm/campaign_amazon_dc

Posted at 04:58 PM in Finance, Politics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Following our previous thread of Star Wars, Trekkie and Snow cars, we now present: The 1959 Cadillac Miata!

via Beaterz

Posted at 07:09 AM in Design, Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

A new "adult search engine" called "Booble," just popped up. The name and logo should look somewhat familiar to you; So should the "I'm feeling playful" button.

It's essentially parallel in look and feel to Google. Just substitute the letter "b" for "g" and there's your logo. The site owners should expect a letter from Google's legal counsel any day.

If I represented the search engine giant, instead of sending the standard boring trademark infringment letter, I would have some fun with the case. How often do you get to sue a porn related site? I imagine the money shot would look something like this:

"Greetings,

We represent Google Corporation ("Google") in trademark matters. Google owns numerous U.S. and foreign federal trademark and copyright registrations for the famous Google logo design. Your site makes unauthorized use of our client's widely recognized name and trademarks.

Your site is an adult search engine. As such, we assume you are familiar with the plot line of the film "Back Door Bandits." Congratulations! You've just won the lead role in "Back Door Bandits 2." Enclosed please find a complimentary matching velcro glove and sock set for your role in the film . . .

Who said litigation wasn't any fun?

via linkfilter

Posted at 07:25 AM in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack