Photographer Steve Schofield takes pictures of British science fiction and fantasy fans in their homes.

My practice is concerned with exploring the fascination that the British public has with American popular culture and the sub-cultural world of fandom. In the images, I have shown people in their own homes and environments wearing costumes that they would be dressed in to attend events with other like-minded individuals. It seeks to offer a glimpse into seemingly ordinary lives of my subjects and allows the private to become public. The work hints at the depth of people's fantasies and the methods they employ to adopt this culture as part of their own lifestyle as a means of escapism.

The work makes a political reference to globalisation and America's ongoing ability to infiltrate all cultures via various channels of media. Much of daily life is influenced by 'Americanisms' whether through language, food or fashion, which can often be traced back to music videos, the Hollywood film industry, advertising and American sit-coms.

Link -Thanks, Jon Jason!

Today's ABC World News Webcast features a look at Alex's post from last week, the Top 10 Strangest Anti-Terrorism Patents. Since Alex is camera-shy, I was recruited to fill in. Link to Neatorama segment. Link to entire webcast.

Today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss will test how well you can interpret Microsoft Office 2007 icons. A lot of people find them confusing. I got 58% (7 out of 12) just by guessing. Still, if I used Microsoft products, that wouldn't help me much! http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/16348

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Dopey the hamster has her own private elevator made of Legos! Watch her use it to get to her sleeping quarters, although it takes her a few tries. -via Boing Boing

Which animal is cuter? Give your opinion at Continuum of Cute. You are given 100 pictures of animals, and you arrange them so the cutest is in the bottom right corner and the least cute is in the top left corner. You can also browse to see how others ranked the animals. Link -via the Presurfer

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A scooter made from a beer box. This brings a whole new meaning to the term "case mod"! It was spotted near the city of Kaufbeuren in Germany. -Thanks, özi!

Isn't thing the cutest thing! Forum member WJN milled this tiny robot from brass, to see how small he could make one. As you can see, he's standing on a quarter to show the scale. Link -Thanks, amoebaboy!

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Western Spaghetti is wonderful new stop-motion short from the genius PES. You really should look through his entire portfolio. Link -Thanks, Jon Jason!

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A Google Maps application leads to mystery and intrigue. From The Vacationeers, the guys who brought you the video Google Maps. -Thanks, Andy!

There are monuments to women you've never heard of scattered around the world. In Greece, you'll find a monument to a village of women and children who committed suicide rather than be captured by the Turks of the Ottoman Empire. Another, in Ottawa, commemorates the five women who sparked the women’s rights movement in Canada in 1920s. The Red Light District Statue in Amsterdam pays tribute to famous prostitutes! Learn about these and more at Web Urbanist. Pictured is the Vrouemonument in South Africa, dedicated to the 27,000 women who died in British camps during the Boer War. Link -via Look At This

A couple of dozen octopuses at aquariums around Europe have been given Rubik's cubes to play with. It's not to find out of they can solve them (although it would be SO cool if they did), but to see if the animals favor one arm (or two) over the others. Visitors will be asked to observe which arm they use when playing with the puzzles. The results will be used for research, but also to make the octopuses' lives easier and more enriched. Link -via Boing Boing

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Improv Everywhere recruited 16 sets of identical twins for their latest project. Twice, they loaded the twins onto a subway train for a performance. Eight sets participated in the first outing, ten in the second, which is the one in the video. Get more details and see lots of photos at Improv Everywhere. Link -via J-Walk Blog

Doctor Who fans will get a kick out of today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss.

In the 45-year history of the BBC science-fiction series Doctor Who, ten different actors have played The Doctor (not counting movies, one-off charity specials, stage shows or audio dramas). Can you name all ten before time runs out?

You have three minutes. I didn't even attempt this, since I don't know the answers. You will, no doubt, do better. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/16282

Can anything be cuter than three baby ferrets in a cup? From Flickr user Dosh Dosh. Found at The Pet Blog. Link -via J-Walk Blog

Who are these people eating apples at the Apple Store in the Big Apple? A week before the product is available, a line began forming Friday for the new 3G iPhone at the Apple Store in Manhattan. Who would stand (or sit) in line that long? It's not so much Apple fanboys. Ten people from the group Waiting For Apples began the line, but after a rainy night, only five are left. Their goal is -get this- to set a record for waiting in line. Link