Frank Barnes built this batting robot out of auto parts, steel pipes, and various other junk. A remote control changes the batter’s stance, and another homemade machine sends the pitches. Push play or go to YouTube. http://www.popsci.com/popsci/how20/4aae403ecbcf2110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html?s_prop16=%20RSS:how2 to story. -via Digg

Either place this shower curtain facing away from the tub as a funny, decorative piece. Or, face it into the tub. When your "victim" takes a shower and pulls the curtain closed, they will get a frightening surprise. A hilarious prank to play on unsuspecting guests!

Link -via J-Walk Blog

On My Desk is a blog that takes a look at workspaces and how each is a reflection of its owner. Each post features the desk and/or workplace of a different person, mostly those who create art or media. This desk belongs to Artist/Designer Bobbi Kirk. Link -via Mental Floss

Artist Jeff Victor draws cartoon Star Wars characters in “bubblehead” fashion. See these and other works on his blog, Wicked Crispy. Link -via Metafilter

World Ocean Day has been celebrated on June 8 since 1992. The Ocean Project has a list of resources for learning more about the ocean and how important it is to all of us.

Created in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro - although not yet officially designated by the United Nations - World Ocean Day is an opportunity each year to celebrate our world ocean and our personal connection to the sea. The Ocean Project, working closely with the World Ocean Network, helps each year to coordinate events and activities with aquariums, zoos, museums, conservation organizations, universities, schools, businesses.

Link -via the Presurfer

Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by Georges-Pierre Seurat is often used to illustrate pointilism, the art style that became the precurser of dot-matrix printing. The painting has inspired many adaptations, parodies, and unusual uses for the artwork. Frogsmoke has collected many of these in one post. This picture shows the masterpiece used for a tattoo! http://frogsmoke.com/seurats-sunday-afternoon/ -via Grow-A-Brain

Each of these towers contain innovations that make them compatible with the environment. Link -via Digg

The LED Art Fan has 42 LEDs on the fan blades that flicker as they spin, creating a persistance of vision image. You can import gif files or draw your own frames to make designs or slogans. Push play or go to YouTube. Link to product. -via Arbroath

Twenty pictures of feline bathtime. They are not happy about it, either. Link

I posted this on Sunday, then pulled it when JP lost his website completely due to excessive bandwidth issues. But he has a new site up!

This is how your cat sees the world. JP attached a camera to Mr. Lee’s collar and recorded his adventures. Link -original story via Cynical-C -updated link via Boing Boing

At first it resemble a regular baby carriage, but pull out the panel on the bottom, and it converts to a scooter! The Roller Buggy is a design by Pix Studio. Link (flash site -product link is the yellow square). -via Arbroath

Lasse Klein designed the Abduction Lamp. I want one! But it’s not yet available. The cow or a human will be an add-on accessory. Link -via Cynical-C

Susannah Clary asks participants in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair about the craziest experiment they’ve ever done. Push play or go to YouTube. -via Intelisef

This house is not to be built, it’s to be grown! Architects Mitchell Joachim and Javier Arbona and environmental engineer Lara Greden designed this “tree house” to be both eco-friendly and alive. Trees are planted and trained to grow in the shape of the finished home. The interior walls are made of clay and plaster, and will look like a normal house. http://www.popsci.com/popsci/whatsnew/0cb1ec816bc3e010vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html -via Look at This

Vincent Laforet took a series of sports photographs and used the tilt-shift effect to make them more natural and accessible. In this New York Times slideshow, he explains why. Slideshow opens in autoplay mode. Link -via Metafilter