Don't you just love this warm piece of fleece roadkill? Also available in possum, skunk, squirrel, fox, and beaver. Link -via Unique Daily

The company Second Sight has developed a bionic eye called the Argus II. The eye uses implanted electrodes to replace a malfunctioning retina. So far, the device has been implanted in 18 patients around the world.

It uses a camera and video processor mounted on sunglasses to send captured images wirelessly to a tiny receiver on the outside of the eye.

In turn, the receiver passes on the data via a tiny cable to an array of electrodes which sit on the retina - the layer of specialised cells that normally respond to light found at the back of the eye.

When these electrodes are stimulated they send messages along the optic nerve to the brain, which is able to perceive patterns of light and dark spots corresponding to which electrodes have been stimulated.

The hope is that patients will learn to interpret the visual patterns produced into meaningful images.

The BBC followed a 73-year-old patient named Ron who received an Argus II.

"For 30 years I've seen absolutely nothing at all, it's all been black, but now light is coming through. Suddenly to be able to see light again is truly wonderful.

"I can actually sort out white socks, grey socks and black socks."

Link -via reddit

The Simpsons have had quite a few guest stars over its 20-year run. In this Lunchtime Quiz from mental_floss, you are asked to identify which star played each of 15 characters on the show. So far, the average score is 57%, although that could have been affected by my dismal outcome. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/23183

A jaguar named Macho B. may have been the only wild jaguar left in the United States. He's been photographed near the Mexican border in Arizona since 1996. He was caught and released on February 18th, when wildlife officials fitted him with a tracking device. In the past few days, a biologist tracking Macho B. noticed his lethargic behavior, so Arizona Game and Fish officers recaptured him. They found the jaguar to be suffering from severe kidney failure, and he was euthanized. Macho B. was estimated to be 14-16 years old. Link

(image credit: Arizona Game and Fish Department)

Video games came out in 1972, when Pong debuted, right? Wrong! The first video game was played in 1948! It was called the Cathode Ray Tube Amusement Device, which may explain why it didn't take off. Learn the story behind it and ten other hi-tech machines that have a long history behind them. Link

Ross and Sally Russell built their home with a sliding cover. With a touch of a button, it becomes a glass home to let sunlight in!

When Ross, now 48, presses a button on a remote-control handset, four electric motors start to whirr, hidden wheels begin to turn and the whole 20-ton shell – 52ft long, 20ft wide and 23ft high – slides slowly back on rails to reveal a mostly glass house beneath – and a first-floor bathroom open to the sky. Ross even built a lot of it himself. How, exactly? “I’ve got an O-level in woodwork,” he says, deadpan.

Link to story. Link to video of the finished home in action. -via Metafilter

The folks who publish those "_____ for Dummies" books have covered every subject imaginable. Or have they? In today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss, can you identify which of 15 books are real "for Dummies" books and which are made up? Better hurry, because the made up titles may go to print soon! http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/23152

Advertising agency Duval Guillaume produced a cute ad for Belgian bus company De Lijn, emphasizing that it's safer to travel in groups. Link

(YouTube link)
I'm sure this was a fun evening! Watch the performance from fraternity Pi Kappa Alpha at the 2009 Anchorsplash charity talent show at Virginia Tech. -via reddit

What if microblogging platform Twitter had been available in the distant past? Sharinator has a sample of Twitter feeds from an ape-man, a caveman, Julius Caesar, and Hitler, plus on from the future! Link -via Digg

Just thinking about a tapeworm gives me the shivers. What are your chances of getting a tapeworm? Take the quiz! The questions will make it rather obvious what the risk factors are. http://www.heyquiz.com/quiz/tapeworm -via the Presurfer

The final dance scene in the movie Slumdog Millionaire works so much better set to Peanut Butter Jelly Time! A mashup by Kent Nichols. He had to be inspired by the yellow scarf that looks a little like a banana, don't you think? Link

(YouTube link)
Talk about interacting with living history- the Los Angeles Natural History Museum has dinosaurs roaming the hallways! This eerily realistic puppet was created by Erth Visual and Physical, Inc. -via Greg Laden's Blog

This cat's full name is Ugly Bat Boy, and he lives at Exeter Veterinary Hospital in New Hampshire. His owner, veterinarian Stephen Bassett says that he is normal in every way, except that he's ugly. The eight-year-old cat is bald in most places, but has a long flowing "mane" on his chest. Ugly has become a local celebrity. Veterinary employee Christie Hartnett calls him "Dr. Bassett's little wonder cat."

Workers said many people who come into the building can't really believe what they're seeing. But they said despite appearances, Bat Boy has a nice disposition and real inner beauty.

"The impression from clients that come in is he's not real because he just sits so still, and when he does move, he scares them, but they think he's mesmerizing," Hartnett said.

Be warned that if you go to the story and click on the "slideshow" button, the first picture may frighten young children. Link -via Metafilter

Yes! This would make my half-dozen remote controls much easier to use! Come to think of it, we may have just discovered why I don't watch much TV anymore. From the book Designing Interactions by Bill Moggridge. Link -via Divine Caroline