Desert sun overhead, volcanic forces beneath your feet, and the average year-round temperature is 94F (34C)! This is Danakil Depression in Ethiopia, where the ground springs forth with lava and hot mineral springs that evaporate and leave salt formations behind. See a collection of beautiful and foreboding photographs of the region at Environmental Graffiti. Link

(Image credit: Luke Duggleby)

Food and other industries have mascots that are walking and dancing versions of their products, so why not mascots for urine tests, syringes, and various body organs? These exist too, in walking, dancing, kid-hugging form! See eleven of the best at mental_floss. Shown here is Petey Cup, which is, well, you can figure that out or go read more about him. Link

Jack Shepherd of Buzzfeed was able to score an interview with the internet's favorite cat, Maru. The answers to his questions had to be translated from cat to Japanese by Maru's roommate, Mugumogu, and then into English by Aya Hibino, but we still get some insights on what it's like to be Maru, supplemented by a few videos. Link

LEGO artist Ochre Jelly, known offline as Iain Heath, unveils his latest creation: a recreation of the webseries Epic Meal Time rendered in LEGO bricks! He says this scene was tough to do, but his love of bacon kept him going. See more pictures of this tableau at Flickr. Link -Thanks, Iain!

Previously: More Ochre Jelly creations.

(Image credit: Flickr user Ochre Jelly)

Apprehensive and inexperienced parents seek out advice from people who are only too happy to tell you the "right" way to bring up baby. Then science tells us that "right" way is baloney. For example, here's a study about giving kids candy:

The researchers studied over 11,000 kids ages 2 to 18 who were divided into two groups. One group was fed sweets and chocolate about 4 grams above their daily recommended sugar intake, while the other kids received no sweets at all (having to sustain themselves on a steady diet of pity and taunts from the first group). Despite the almost negligible amount of candy they've been given, the results of the study showed that, statistically, the candy-munching brigade were later 22 to 26 percent less likely to be overweight than the kids raised on free-range carrots and vegan water.

The good news didn't end there. Kids who rode the sugar dragon also had lower levels of a protein that has been linked to heart disease and other chronic illnesses, which goes against all the so-called common sense of healthy nutrition. However, the results only applied to typical sugar candy and not chocolate, for no other reason than life just being arbitrary and unfair.

Yep, parenting basically boils down to common sense and moderation, just as you thought. Read more at Cracked. Link

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So many, many webs! This instructional film was shown at the Hubba Hubba Revue Goth Show. Photos of the video shoot are available at Flickr. Link -via Metafilter

The engraved stationary of established businesses from days gone by are works of art, as letters were such an important method of communication. It was common to feature a company's buildings front and center. BibliOdyssey has an assortment of these intricately engraved letterheads and sales receipts from the Biggert Collection at Columbia University, ranging from the mid-1800s to the 1930s. The stationery shown from James A. McCafferty & Sons manufacturing company of Brooklyn appears to contain all of their advertising plus their building in one image! See 30 more such engravings in the larger and easier to read full list of images. Link

(YouTube link)

This video contains twenty little planets modeled after video game worlds. I can name two; how many can you identify? When you give up and want the answers, they are listed at the YouTube page. -via The Daily What Geek

 



Matthew Inman at The Oatmeal spells it out in plain language for those who couldn't figure it out any other way. If you know someone like that, you can forward the link to them. Meanwhile, we will look forward to Inman's love story about cage fighting nuns and tanks. Link

This tweet from @DadBeard brought him hundreds of new Twitter followers. Is it because of the ridiculous mistake on the student's part or because of the facetious response? Link

(YouTube link)

Stacked Cakes made a huge custom R2D2 cake by request. It stands on artificial legs, but the rest is cake -and it even makes sounds like the little robot! If you live near Canberra, you can order one, but if not, they have posted the instructions so you can make your own. Link -via Boing Boing

When you are having a bad day, here's a thought that should make you at least smile a bit inside. This Twaggie was illustrated from a Tweet by @ProSexTips, a division of Funny or Die. See a new Twaggie every day at GoComics. Link

Edward Linley Sambourne was a professional illustrator and cartoonist, but his hobby was photography. He took pictures of women on the streets of England to document their choice of dress, but rarely did the subject know he was snapping the pictures! Sambourne's method would be a privacy issue today, but as the photographs are now over a hundred years old, they are a catalog of what women of the time looked like in their natural habitat. See more photographs at The Library Time Machine. Link -via Nag on the Lake

This world map is a pretty neat little feat of graphic art, as it is built of tiny images of app logos. But it is also interactive, so you can click on each logo at the linked site and be taken to the company that produces the particular application. I can't say whether the apps are any count, since I don't even have a smart phone. Link -via the Presurfer

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Samantha Valle taught her German shepherd Geronimo to jump rope Double Dutch style and other neat tricks, too. See more dogs jumping rope at Mother Board. Link -via Laughing Squid