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I wouldn’t go so far as to say this is a bad tattoo, because the artist did a good job with the subject. But maybe we can call it a bad idea tattoo. -via Metafilter

14-year-old Jyoti Amge stands 1 foot 11 inches tall and weighs 11 pounds!

She has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia and won't grow any taller than her current height.

Due to her size, Jyoti has to have clothes and jewellery made for her. She sleeps in a tiny bed and uses special plates and cutlery to eat, as normal-sized utensils are too big.

Despite this, she goes to a regular school in Nagpur, central India, where she has her own small desk and chair, and her classmates treat her like any other student.

Jyoti is a celebrity in her hometown, and will soon release a musical album. She hopes to be a Bollywood actress someday. Link -via the Presurfer

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What do you take with you to a Little League game? If you’re Improv Everywhere, you take a cheering section, a Jumbotron, some play-by-play announcers, and a blimp. It sent a bunch of unsuspecting ten-year-old players (and their parents) to baseball heaven. Read the particulars at Improv Everywhere. Link -via Metafilter

People who want to sell something tend to set the price far above what others think it’s worth. That’s human nature, but it isn’t just greed. The sheer fact that we own something affects our judgement as to its worth. PsyBlog details six reasons buyers and sellers (or owners and non-owners) don’t see eye-to-eye, and how some use these psychological quirks to increase business. http://www.spring.org.uk/2008/04/6-quirks-of-ownership-how-possessions.php

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Mathematicious is a parody of the song "Fergalicious" by Fergie. I find this more interesting. Lyrics are available at the YouTube link. -via Viral Video Chart

Today’s lunchtime quiz at mental_floss is about monsters. The questions come from movies, TV, literature, and even mythology. I thought I knew a lot about monsters, but I only scored 55%, which is still better than the average quiz-taker. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/13953

Design your own temporary tattoos and make them with your inkjet printer! Use your computer to make the design and print on specialty tattoo paper. They’ll last up to a week, or you can scrub them off when you want. Great for children’s parties or a short-term relationship. Link

Wired held a contest for user-generated night photos. The winner, decided by votes from readers, is this photo taken in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park in Utah by Jason J. Corneveaux. Wired hs a gallery of the top ten photographs, plus a link to a gallery of ten more selected by their editors. Link -via Geek Like Me

More and more people in Florida and elsewhere are raising monkeys as a substitute for children. They call them “monkids” and won’t refer to them as pets. Lori Johnson adopted a baby capuchin after her youngest child left home.

At Gemini Springs in DeBary recently, Johnson pushed "Jessy" around in a toy-filled red stroller, a sight that drew attention. "Hey, it's a real monkey," hollered one youngster, who did a double take.

Johnson replied with a grin: "That's not a monkey; that's my kid."

The trend is controversial. Animal sanctuaries are seeing a rise in monkeys who are abandoned or relinquished as they mature. The Jungle Friends Primate Sanctuary in Gainesville has a waiting list of monkeys that need placement.

Many owners say they adore their hairy companions and give them the best of care. Animal-rights groups, however, are fighting hard to ban primate pets. Congress is discussing a bill that would prohibit interstate travel for monkeys, a move that would hamper sales.

Beth Preiss, director of The Humane Society's exotic-pets campaign, said animal sanctuaries are full of monkeys whose owners coddled them as infants and then abandoned them when they became tough to control.

Link -via Fark

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They may be stupid, but they are unbelievably lucky answers. -via Bits and Pieces

A couple of years ago, Iowa artist Patrick Acton built a model of Harry Potter’s Hogwarts School completely out of matchsticks. His latest matchstick project is even bigger. He’s building a model of the fortress Minas Tirith from the Lord of the Rings trilogy! Acton expects the model to be completed in 2009. Link -via Dump Trumpet

The set of puppets includes Sigmund Freud, his daughter Anna Freud, Carl Jung, and an analyst’s couch. The box they come in can be used as a puppet theater. Something you can hide behind when you are analyzing your friends or giving unwanted advice. Link -via Everlasting Blort

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I tried my best to resist, but this kitten forced me to post its video. This was on the front page of YouTube, so I totally forgot what I was there looking for. Beware, it’s three minutes of overwhelming cuteness.

It’s hard to see icy patches on the road ahead. Wouldn’t it be great if the road could signal whether it was icy? Scientists are working on a road coating that will turn pink in dangerously icy conditions!

A new temperature-sensitive varnish developed by researchers at French company Eurovia can be applied to road surfaces to warn drivers about dangerous conditions. The technique – still at the testing stage – might help prevent ice-related traffic accidents in future, the researchers say.

The varnish is made of a polymer containing a thermochromic pigment. The same type of coating is already used to make bath thermometers and frozen food packaging that responds to temperature change. However, it is the first time such a coating has been used to monitor road temperatures.

The color change would also make it easier for road crews to distribute salt. The challenge ahead is to make the coating more visible at night, and to make it last through the summer months. Link -via Reddit

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33 years ago, April 4, 1975, 19-year-old Bill Gates and 22-year-old Paul Allen joined forces to create a partnership called Micro-soft. The company incorporated in 1981, and went public in 1986. If you had invested in Microsoft in 1986, the value of that stock would be worth 280 times as much today! Wired has an extremely short version of the history of Microsoft. Link -via Digg

(image credit: Doug Wilson/Corbis)