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The new Australian ad for the Toyota Corolla features two of the internet's favorite subjects: ninjas and kittens! -Thanks, Moeda!

This intricate cardboard sculpture was made by artist Ana Serrano. Cartonlandia even has little cardboard residents! Reuben Miller has an interview with Serrano and close up pictures showing the details. Link -Thanks, Reuben!

Tony and Albert Fagler of Englewood, Colorado were cleaning out their grandparent's home after their grandmother died in 2000 and found three canisters of 16mm film. They took the film to the local TV station, but it was so old and brittle that the TV station sent it to the Library of Congress to be converted to video. There, historians asked that the original film be donated to the national archives. It contained footage of Tony and Albert's grandfather Albert Fagler in World War II, including scenes with their grandmother, whom he met and married in England during the war.

There was another reason why the Library of Congress wanted the original films. They are a treasure trove of historic video of the aftermath of D-Day.

They contain cockpit video of American fighter planes in dogfights over the skies of France and Germany.

There is also footage of American planes taking out German convoys on the ground and attacks on ships.

The photographer also documents American soldiers on the ground in their advance across the French countryside.

The film has been called a national treasure, and will be available for future historians. Link (with video clips) -Thanks, SenorMysterioso!

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A grandmother dies and goes to heaven, where she discovers a way to keep an eye on her family. Animation by Maya Weksler, music by Assaf Rinde. -Thanks, corinne!

The Mars Phoenix Lander has been guest blogging at Gizmodo. Today, it sent its last post.

This final entry is one that I asked be posted after my mission team announces they’ve lost contact with me. Today is that day and I must say good-bye, but I do it in triumph and not in grief.

As I’ve said before, there’s no other place I’d rather be than here. My mission lasted five months instead of three, and I’m content knowing that I worked hard and accomplished great things during that time. My work here is done, but I leave behind a legacy of images and data.

The Martian winter produces insufficient sunlight to recharge the lander's solar batteries. NASA will continue to update the Phoenix Twitter feed as the data sent from Mars is interpreted. Link -via Digg

See some suggested epitaphs for Mars Phoenix at Wired. http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/11/marsphoenixs-tw.html

Also worth noting is the Twitter message from October 30th:

Take care of that beautiful blue marble out there in space, our home planet. I’ll be keeping an eye from here. Space exploration FTW!

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Did you ever think you'd be able to see an immolation from the victim's point of view? Tim Ireland built a "guy" (named Bob) for Guy Fawkes Night with a wireless CCTV camera in his head! Friday night, he was ceremoniously burned in effigy while Tim recorded the video at a safe distance. Link -Thanks, Tim!

Some of the things you've always heard about recycling may have been true at one time, but times change. Other things may be partially true, but you'll get the whole explanation at Popular Mechanics, in the post Recycling Myths: PM Debunks 5 Half Truths about Recycling. Altogether, recycling is becoming easier and more cost-effective every year! http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/earth/4290631.html -Thanks, Geekazoid!

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How neat to discover a portable hole you can take anywhere! Just be careful how you choose to use it. -via Digg

You may have heard these quotes all your life, but can you identify the source? Today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss will give you a phrase, and you decide whether it's from the Bible or the works of Shakespeare. I scored 70%. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/20033

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What walks down stairs, alone or in pairs? Everyone knows it's Slinky Cat! -via Cynical-C

A contractor finds a stash of cash inside a wall. Who gets the money, the person who found it, the homeowner, or the descendants of the person who left it there? The fight over just such a case has left all three parties with little money. Bob Kitts found $182,000 in the wall of Amanda Reece's bathroom. When the two couldn't agree on how to split the money, the resulting publicity alerted the family of Patrick Dunne, who hid the money when he owned the house decades ago.

Reece testified in a deposition that she spent about $14,000 on a trip to Hawaii and had sold some of the rare late 1920s bills. She said about $60,000 was stolen from a shoe box in her closet but testified that she never reported the theft to police.

Kitts said Reece accused him of stealing the money and began leaving him threatening phone messages. Marcinkevicius doesn't believe the money was stolen but said he couldn't prove otherwise.

A court has divided the remaining money, but the exact details were not published. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hHJNCy_68fJtiIPaltzwBwynBdkAD94AUVCO0 -Thanks, Em!

(image credit: AP/Bob Kitts)

Check out this large collection of interesting bus stops all over the world, Some have whimsical touches, some are covered with art, some are designed to surprise you, and some are interesting in their decline. The bus stop shown is in Curitiba, Brazil. Passengers pay when entering the bus stop, then go directly from the tube into the bus! http://www.lifeinthefastlane.ca/worlds-most-bizarre-and-intriguing-bus-stops/offbeat-news -Thanks, Jon Jason!

We knew octopuses were intelligent, but this one is telling us something! Otto lives in at the Sea Star Aquarium in Coburg, Germany. The staff was baffled by mysterious short circuits in the night, and posted guards overnight to see what was causing the problem. One the third night, they found out it was all Otto's fault.

"We knew that he was bored as the aquarium is closed for winter, and at two feet, seven inches Otto had discovered he was big enough to swing onto the edge of his tank and shoot out the 2000 Watt spot light above him with a carefully directed jet of water."

Director Elfriede Kummer who witnessed the act said: "We've put the light a bit higher now so he shouldn't be able to reach it. But Otto is constantly craving for attention and always comes up with new stunts so we have realised we will have to keep more careful eye on him - and also perhaps give him a few more toys to play with.

Link -Thanks, Johnny Cat!

Traditional Japanese garments (kimono and kosode robes) had no pockets, so personal belongings were kept in a small container called an inro. This was suspended from the obi (the sash worn around the waist) and kept fastened to it by a miniature sculpture called a netsuke. Most often carved from ivory or wood, netsuke came into use in the early 17th century, and later on were made for ornamental purposes.

See a Flickr set of elaborate and sometimes symbolic netsuke from the Victoria & Albert Museum. Link -Thanks, Mo!

(image credit: mcost)

What's a holiday without a little fun! Mushy Gushy lets you personalize free ecards with your face. Link -Thanks, Javier Perez!