A three-pound rat was found in the Foja Mountains of western New Guinea, Indonesia. Experts think it may be a previously-unknown species. It is five times the size of regular city rats, and has no fear of humans. That sounds suspiciously like the premise for a horror film. Link

(image credit: Bruce M. Beehler/Conservation International)

Take a look at Why So Serious? The Many Faces of Joker, with images spanning from the first comic book to feature the character in 1940 to Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. This one is from the 1988 graphic novel The Killing Joke. Link

Bonus: Here’s an image of the even earlier character who inspired the creation of The Joker. http://www.transbuddha.com/content/the-man-who-laughs/

Bathynomus giganteus is commonly known as the Giant Isopod, a deep-sesa crustacean the size of a housecat. In early 2008, Bathynomuslove Records will release a compilation album of songs called Songs About Giant Isopod. The song list:

1. Paul Hawkins - Isopod (I can evolve)
2. Pocus Whiteface - Giant Isopods Ate My Well-Known Brand of Corn Chips
3. Pagan Wanderer Lu - An Isopod Is Cute In The Eyes Of An Isopod
4. Silence at Sea - Gladiators on Repeat
5. Plurals - What Know They Of Bathynomus?
6. The Jaynes - Crusty The Isopod
7. Stealthtones - Nefarious Crustacean Confectionary Debacle
8. Little My - In Isolation Nothing Makes Sense
9. Werk - Giant Isopods Have Stolen My Gameboy
10. Jam on Bread - Isopod in my bathroom
11. The Silent Clothes - Hold it Together
12. Tom Lee - Two Letters Less Than The Apple
13. Time Space Repeat - Rise of the Giant Isopods
14. Meles Meles - Isopod Love Song
15. Ziggy Bolus & The Thomas Fergusson Band - Me, Myself & Isopod
16. Hello World - Vorarephilia

Link to the project’s MySpace page.

More about the Giant Isopod.

How far can you go after the gas light in your car comes on? At Tank on Empty you can check your car model’s performance, add information, or submit a story. My car says it's empty all the time, but I haven’t run dry yet (knock wood)! Link -via the Presurfer

(YouTube link)
Twin pandas have a little fun in their own clumsy way at a zoo in Japan. The cuteness is overwhelming! -via A Welsh View

Curious Expeditions has a rundown of several of history’s more interesting duels. For example: Two ladies dueled in 1792 over a comment one made about the other’s true age!

The ladies dueled first with single shot pistols. The duel came within a foot of fatal when Mrs. Elpinstone’s shot went through Lady Braddock’s hat. Despite the calls of their seconds (every principle duelist must have a second, a sort of right hand man - or madame, in this case) to cease and desist, the determined ladies switched to swords. A short round of fencing ensued, and Mrs. Elphinstone was wounded in the arm. Through her pain, she agreed to write a letter of apology. Honor restored, the ladies curtsied and headed home.

Link

(YouTube link)
Wu Ying was in her sixties when she fell in love with hip hop music and started dancing. She then organized a group of 30 women in China to learn and perform hip hop dance moves. The youngest is 48, but most are in their 60s. Now Wu is 71 years old, and the group has won numerous awards and will perform at the Olympics in Beijing. Link -via I Am Bored

(YouTube link)
Musical artist and composer Dan Fogelberg died this morning from prostate cancer. He was 56 years old.
Link to story. Link to website. -via Fark

Since 1977, LucasFilm has commissioned original art for its company Christmas cards. Many of them, like the 1981 card shown, feature Star Wars characters. This year’s card has a company of pop-up Stormtroopers. See that and more at Slashfilm (warning: contains Ewoks). Link -via Dump Trumpet

Bad Gift Emporium is a flash site that showcases some really poor gift choices. Click on a picture for an explanation and a chance to send an ecard featuring that gift. You can also submit and rate gifts. Link -via Everlasting Blort

Dave Munger at Cognitive Daily ran a little experiment to see how people reacted to the terms “stay at home father” (or mother) versus just plain father and mother. The results are discouraging, but not totally unexpected. Participants in the experiment did not make comparisons; they were presented with a story featuring a character who carried one of the four labels. The graph represents how many hours 1200 respondents estimated that the person they read about worked. Link

Build your own city at MyMiniCity! Select a country, name your town, and then revisit to see it grow. I created Neatorama City, which is supposed to grow as more people visit. Last time I looked, there was a population of two.



Update: Just a couple hours later, the population has soared to 99, unemployment is at a staggering 49%, but there is still no crime.

You can start your own city, too. Link -via Dump Trumpet (who has a new URL)

There are some really scary-looking things hanging out underwater! This Wolf Fish is the least nasty picture I could find in the post The Ten Nastiest Fish of All Time. Not for the squeamish. http://www.anglingmasters.com/10-nasty-fish.asp -via the Presurfer

(YouTube link)
In this Nokia Telenor ad, a little girl reads her essay about the future, to the increasing consternation of the adults around her. -via Dark Roasted Blend

Wired presents a gallery of cubicle makeovers from Kelley L. Moore featured in her book Cube Chic. These would really cheer up a drab, dull workspace, but they won’t make up for a lousy benefits package. This one could feed your daydreams about a tropical vacation! Link -via J-Walk Blog