From the website:

Maxim magazine celebrated its 100th issue by building a 75-by-110-foot billboard featuring its cover image of Eva Longoria, billed as "TV’s Sexiest Earthling." The billboard doesn’t tower over a highway, however. It’s flat on the ground so that it can be seen from a satellite and posted on Google Earth.

Link (via digg)

Scientists from the University of Chicago unveiled their discovery of the fossils of a "fishapod" named Tiktaalik roseae, a fish with ribcage, neck, and primitive writst and fingers – characteristics of land animals.

The fossils of the approximately 9-ft. long creature, which are, described in two Nature articles released today, were dug out of rock formations on Ellesmere Island, in the Canadian Arctic, by paleontologists from the University of Chicago and several other institutions. Its nickame, for reasons that will become clear, is "fishapod"; it’s more formally called Tiktaalik ("large fish in stream," in the local Inuit language). Fishapod dates from about 383 million years ago. It had the scales, teeth and gills of a fish, but also a big, curved rib cage that suggests the creature had lungs as well. The ribs interlock, moreover, unlike a fish’s, implying they were able to bear fishapod’s weight—an unnecessary trait in a fish. It had a neck—most unfishlike. And, most surprising of all, its pectoral fins included bones that look like nothing less than a primitive wrist and fingers.

Links: Time | NYTimes | BBC | Pharyngula

The newly translated text of a manuscript believed to be the Gospel of Judas, is sure to stir up controversies.

Discovered in 1970 in the Egyptian desert, the translated text purportedly describes Judas’ betrayal as requested by Jesus himself.

"You will be cursed by the other generations — and you will come to rule over them," Jesus tells Judas in the document made public Thursday.

The newly translated document’s text begins: "The secret account of the revelation that Jesus spoke in conversation with Judas Iscariot."

In a key passage Jesus tells Judas, "You will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me."

This indicates that Judas would help liberate the spiritual self by helping Jesus get rid of his physical flesh, the scholars said.

"Step away from the others and I shall tell you the mysteries of the kingdom," Jesus says to Judas, singling him out for special status. "Look, you have been told everything. Lift up your eyes and look at the cloud and the light within it and the stars surrounding it. The star that leads the way is your star."

Link

Anthony Atala and collagues from North Carolina’s Wake Forest University had successfully transplanted bladders grown in a lab from the patients’ own cells.

They took a bladder biopsy from each patient and isolated muscle cells and special bladder cells called urothelial cells, which they grew in the lab.

The cells were then placed onto a specially designed bladder-shaped scaffold and left to grow for seven to eight weeks.

The researchers surgically attached the engineered bladder to the patient’s own bladder and followed progress for up to five years.

Link

Cellar Image of the Day has this touching picture of Pakistani children riding a home-made ferris wheel over the heap of garbage in the slums of Karachi, Pakistan.

Karl Bushby is attempting to walk 36,000 miles around the world with unbroken footsteps. So far, he has spent nearly the last 8 years walking over 17,000 miles through South, Central, and North America.

The latest news is that Karl and a walking companion Dmitri Kieffer have successfully crossed the frozen Bering Strait from Alaska to Russia on foot!

Link (Thanks Skully!)

Jeff probably has the world’s second largest collection of beer cans: over 50,000 different cans from all over the world (I wonder who’s got the largest collection?)

Link (via Make: Blog)

Apparently, the selection of sushi usb drives has expanded since we first saw them in 2004!

Link | Also: Fosfor Gadget’s Top 10 Weirdest USB Drives Ever (Thanks David R!)

Thailand has been crowning Miss Jumbo Queen since 1997! Kudos and congrats to these beautiful, full-bodied women. Link

Duck Car as seen in Burning Man ‘02. For more Burning Man photos, see: Link

Take a look at the world’s wackiest wedding dress: Link (via Grow-a-Brain)

Lyonshel Studio makes fantastic soft foam, pre-painted, flexible masks that will allow you to "unleash the animal within" (their words, not mine!)

Link | Gallery (via Superhelga)