well since you asked, Takuan, here's an instructional video from Noodlepie on making Giong Phan Thiet nuong moi, aka grilled lizards, filmed in Mui Ne, near Phan Thiet, the home of lizard eating.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IEA-U8F2zc

Dear Takuan,
That's interesting. I found a paper on TalkOrigins that says "Our appendix is a developmental derivative and evolutionary vestige of the end of the much larger herbivorous caecum found in our primate ancestors":
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/vestiges/appendix.html

So if we all suddenly turned herbivore again, how long would it take for humans to redevelop a proper caecum, I wonder?

@Ill Lich: I love your comment! The authors of the study found that "the lizards developed cecal valves—muscles between the large and small intestine—that slowed down food digestion in fermenting chambers, which allowed their bodies to process the vegetation's cellulose into volatile fatty acids.

'They evolved an expanded gut to allow them to process these leaves," Irschick said, adding it was something that had not been documented before. "This was a brand-new structure.'

...Such physical transformation in just 30 lizard generations takes evolution to a whole new level, Irschick said.

It would be akin to humans evolving and growing a new appendix in several hundred years, he said."
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080421-lizard-evolution_2.html

Brian Sack has lots more funny stuff on his website, including this gag you can play that comes with an official-looking letter announcing the imminent arrival of "YOUR NEW MONKEY":
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000397.html

You can send it to anyone who doesn't read BoingBoing.

That baby needs to take the All-Bran Challenge:
http://www.slate.com/id/2175772

@ Noen: here are some photos of a house made of books. Actually a house that appears to be constructed entirely of books, but the books are cleverly carved pieces of wood. I especially like the bed made from a giant open book (photo #9), with a wooden book supporting one of the legs:
http://www.liviodemarchi.com/ukmain3.htm

And sadly, as Geoff Manaugh of BLDGBLOG pointed out a few months ago, there are now huge buildings outside London full of unwanted but legally protected books that will be kept in a pristine environment, warming nobody's walls:
"Indeed, this is where unwanted books 'will go to serve their life sentences in a secure environment,' the Guardian explains, 'thanks to the grace of the provisions of the 1911 Copyright Act [UK] and later government legislation.'
In other words, a relatively random piece of 100-year old legislation – dealing with copyright law, of all things – has begun to exhibit architectural effects.
These architectural effects include the production of huge warehouses in the damp commuter belts of outer London. These aren't libraries, of course; they're stockpiles. Text bunkers..."
http://bldgblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/future-warehouse-of-unwanted-books.html

Alternatively, you could cover your roof with fake soil and grow plants:
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/pafcal

The idea that 60% of the world's reproduction paintings come from a single village in China doesn't sound so farfetched to me, considering what Peter Hessler found in southern Zhejiang Province in his recent National Geo story:
"At Qiaotou, I stopped to admire the 20-foot-high silver statue of a button with wings that had been erected by the town elders. Qiaotou's population is only 64,000, but 380 local factories produce more than 70 percent of the buttons for clothes made in China. In Wuyi, I asked some bystanders what the local product was. A man reached into his pocket and pulled out three playing cards—queens, all of them. The city manufactures more than one billion decks a year. Datang township makes one-third of the world's socks. Songxia produces 350 million umbrellas every year. Table tennis paddles come from Shangguan; Fenshui turns out pens; Xiaxie does jungle gyms. Forty percent of the world's neckties are made in Shengzhou."
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2007/06/instant-cities/hessler-text/3

I visited the second largest mall in America last night in King of Prussia, PA, and you couldn't tell that the US economy is in terrible shape. In fact, judging by the staggering volume of shoppers on a perfectly ordinary Saturday night, you'd be forced to conclude the opposite.

These aren't hoodies so much as wearable art, but they're extremely well-made as hoodies: even the zippers are exquisite. A bargain at $120, even better when you get two for one.

Cory, soon you WILL be able to fly one too! Check out Alberto the Personal Blimp, which runs on hot air rather than helium, and just got FAA approval last July to carry passengers in Amherst, Massachusetts. It can be deflated and folded up when not in use. If the testing goes well, about four years from now you'll be able to buy your own personal blimp for about $100,000-$200,000:
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2007/09/next-up-the-per.html

The images of the CSA Halloween campaign for Target are phantasmagorical.

@Elorin: they sort of hide it to make people click all over their site. Here's the complete list of their top 25 blogs, which you can vote on:
http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1725323_1727246,00.html

Reminds me of the "Lobster Fisherman, 5 a.m." on Kasper Hauser's missed connections:
http://www.kasperhauser.com/khmc/archives/000148.html

@Highjumpman: the story's been up on the NatGeo site since last year, but it's just been nominated for a National Magazine Award from the American Society of Magazine Editors:
http://www.magazine.org/editorial/national_magazine_awards/winners_and_finalists/468.cfm

@Micah:
I had know idea a law firm could have so much soul! "The word is out, we're a happenin' place to be" indeed!

Perfectly execrable! Thanks!

Have you heard the Facebook Anthem? It denounces rather than promotes a corporate entity:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZzP_69ZTFk

Hmm, I thought they were supposed to come in six packs?
http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Users/keug1/Quotes_DA.html

Lots more cool map-related stuff at Cartophilia, including "Things You Hate About Hawaii," a map-based board game called "A Developer's Life for Me'" and a satellite view of a heart-shaped island in Croatia:
http://cartophilia.com/blog/2008_02_01_archive.html

Oooh! I love the Paul E. Garber Facility! Too bad they closed it to the public. You can take a virtual tour here:
http://www.aviation-history.com/garber/vgarb.html

I can't look at these mushroom cupcakes without hearing the sound they make. I guess it's like a 21st c. madeleines experience?

Yes, gems like the Soupy Sales Show, a kind of deranged Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood that began in Detroit in the early '50s and ended up at WNEW in New York City in the mid-'60s, featuring lots of wacky improv:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNv3rVV1mfs&feature=related

The bunnies are not cut out of sheet marshmallow, Antinous, and Lileks is quite right, as always. I consulted this unofficial Peeps FAQs page and discovered that although Peeps were originally made by hand, modern-day Peeps "are kind of extruded through a special nozzle which moves back and forth, giving the Peeps their characteristic shape. Bunnies are extruded in slices. The sugar coating is then applied." Furthermore, the Just Born company "has started using the brand name 'Peeps' to refer to the entire line of sugar-coated marshmallow holiday candies, such as Peeps brand Bunnies and Peeps brand Hearts." So alas, now you can legally refer to marshmallow hearts as Peeps! But before you repudiate the Just Born company, bear in mind that its founder, Sam Peeps, was awarded the keys to San Francisco for inventing the Born Sucker Machine, which mechanically inserted sticks into lollipops.
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/food/candy/peeps/preamble.html

Hilarious! It's a spoof but the message is true: while Dems argue, the Republicans have their act together.

With a unicorn chaser!

Gadling blogger Ember Swift posted some great photos of Beijing construction sites featuring the national bird of China (the construction crane), along with an art exhibit tribute to the migrant laborers who work, and live, at these sites:
http://www.gadling.com/2007/06/23/a-canadian-in-beijing-the-national-bird-of-china/

@Foobar: dogs that recognize words spoken by different humans, and neon tetras that can distinguish between human faces are more than sentient, even if you don't want to go so far as declaring they're sapient. In National Geo this month there's a story called "Animal Minds" that argues that every time an animal researcher discovers some behavior that appears to be an example of thinking (tool-making among crows, for example), the human cognitive psychologists move the goalposts: "It's a common complaint among animal researchers. Whenever they find a mental skill in a species that is reminiscent of a special human ability, the human cognition scientists change the definition." But what do you make of a dog (border collie, of course) named Betsy (not her real name) who can look at a color photo of a toy she's never seen in real life, study it for a minute, and then go into another room and choose that toy from among others and bring it back?
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/animal-minds/virginia-morell-text

@Hokkaido Hillbilly: thanks for the explanation, But since you live in Hokkaido, don't you think she should have used Mr. Sparkle instead? If he's disrespectful to dirt and can disintegrate two-headed cows, most likely he would be able to banish athlete's foot to the land of wind and ghosts also. Can you see that he is serious?
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/309884

Also, have you ever eaten ice cream ramen? http://www.boingboing.net/2007/10/23/ice-cream-ramen.html

See, capitalism CAN work!

Check out the tantalizing World of Goo preview here: http://2dboy.com/games.php

Excuse me Mark, but how can you say Pastafarianism is unscientific? One of its tenets, if that's the word I want, is that global warming is directly related to the decline in piracy, which is demonstrated very clearly in this chart:
http://www.venganza.org/2007/10/23/national-geographic- promotes-fsm.htm

Even more hysterical Brit comedy duo Bird & Fortune explain the meltdown:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJ_qK4g6ntM

I love the tape babies by Mark Jenkins of the Wooster Collective. My daughter found a tape baby attached to a one-wheeled bicycle chained to a post in DC, and adopted it (Mark said it was okay). It's labelled Drop #12, dated 5/05, in his photo gallery of tape babies: http://www.xmarkjenkinsx.com/storker.html
She named her baby Hector and he now lives in her dorm room in Pittsburgh.

Alternatively, you could put a photo of your newborn's face on a bag of rice that you could give to your friends to announce the birth, like they do in Japan:
http://seabrat76.multiply.com/journal/item/12/Japans_Baby_Rice_Bags

Reminds me of the Banterist spoof Platinum MetroCard for the NYC subway system: "Peace of Mind-- Leave your bags unattended in the station or on the train without consequence. And if you see something, you don't have to say something. (Si ves algo, no problemo)."
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000221.html

@Clumpy: yes they did, and also Home Depot Slo-Mo, which in some ways is even funnier:

http://improveverywhere.com/2006/08/19/slo-mo-home-depot/

Bravo!

Is this what Paul Stamets meant when he said mushrooms could save the world?
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/02/29/ted-2008-paul-stamet.html

Reminds me of this Banterist spoof comparing the child-securing properties of two cars, one fitted with the Graco TurboBooster car seat, the other with plastic restraints:
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000543.html

Such quibbling. This is a fun list. I liked the flashcube reference. But I didn't know making a deer-fat poultice is out of style.

Here's another: replacing the cartridge in your cartridge pen.

I'm in awe of the crow vending machine and the crows who figured it out. There's a good article about animal cognition in the March Nat Geo which mentions the frustrations of animal researchers:
"It's a common complaint among animal researchers. Whenever they find a mental skill in a species that is reminiscent of a special human ability, the human cognition scientists change the definition. But the animal researchers may underestimate their power—it is their discoveries that compel the human side to shore up the divide." It also talks about the New Caledonian crows that make "hooks from sticks and leaf stems to poke into the crowns of the palm trees, where fat grubs hide."
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/animal-minds/virginia-morell-text

Really, really ridiculously good-looking photos of the Large Hadron Collider on the Nat Geo site:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/god-particle/ginter-photography.html

Giggle-inducing video of Improv Everywhere prank with three individuals lugging huge desktop computers and monitors into Starbucks and setting up shop:
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/starbucks-employees-may-need-training-but-the-pranksters-are-just-fine/

That's funny about Lisi's diagrams looking like Spirograph art, because the various parts of the Large Hadron Colllider look like Spirograph art too:
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/02/23/cern-photos-in-natl.html

Ah, perhaps THAT explains the sudden inexplicable national shortage of idioms reported in The Onion this week, in an expose titled "Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation All Sewed Up In Horse Pies" (irritatingly not online).

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Now this Hillary logo has class:
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000540.html

Actually I would like a Whole House Light Switch that would leave the Christmas lights on.

Scott Adams on the Dilbert Blog had a similar idea two weeks ago, called the Whole House Light Switch. It works like this:

"It’s located by the inner door to the garage. When you are heading toward the car with the rest of the family, and they have left on every light in every room in which they have entered in the past 24 hours, you just flip the one switch and all the lights in the house go dark. I suppose you could designate one light to be the exception, so it looks like you are home when you are away.

My other invention involves each family member wearing a ring with an RFID sensor, so the lights only stay on if at least one ring is in the room. As you enter the room, and pass near the sensor, the lights come on by themselves. The light switch would need three settings in this case: 1) On, 2) Off, and 3) Sensor. If you have house guests, they simply use the on/off part of the switch. When only the family is there, everything is on auto.

I considered an Allowance Meter, which decreases the kids’ allowances based on light use, but that would have unintended consequences."

http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2008/02/better-light-sw.html

Nat'l Geo's "Toxic Computer" interactive graphic shows where the lead, chromium, mercury, beryllium and cadmium reside on an ordinary computer:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/high-tech-trash/computer-interactive

The link appears to be broken, Mark. So while you're fixing the visual images, here are some sounds of the Grand Bazaar, from the poem "I Am Listening to Istanbul" by Orhan Veli, via Metroblogging Istanbul:
http://istanbul.metblogs.com/archives/2007/09/istanbul_in_fam.phtml

CRT monitors for TVs and computers contain up to 8 pounds of lead (a neurotoxin), circuit boards contain lead and mercury (linked to brain and kidney damage), and motherboards contain beryllium (causes lung cancer), according to this interactive graphic on National Geo's website (where I work): http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2008-01/high-tech-trash/computer-interactive.html

I hope nobody was hurt in the making of this video!

Pretty spectacular. Reminds me of this Nat Geo gallery of North Dakota ghost towns, by Eugene Richards, especially the shot of an abandoned classroom where the last class graduated in 1940:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2008-01/emptied-north-dakota/richards-photography.html

Awww, they're so cute! All I need now is an iPhone.

The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster has long believed that the rise of global temperatures is directly related to the decline of pirates, as presented in this Pastafarian graph:
http://www.venganza.org/2007/10/23/national-geographic-promotes-fsm.htm

Mmmm, if you like bacon and chocolate, you should try the bacon chocolate bar from Biagio:
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2007/12/biagio-bacon-fo.html

Whack-A-Mole for babies, without the dangerous mallet?

I think you'll agree that the Banterist "Apple iPad" is the perfect accompaniment to the classic Bic ballpoint pen, especially for your dad. It's "completely user-friendly and relies on your dad's own handwriting recognition capabilities":
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000218.html

The "Stick Figures in Peril" group on Flickr has some gems, including this sign that explains what happens when you put a plastic bag on your head:
http://flickr.com/photos/ratanx/2080754961/in/pool-stickfiguresinperil/

"They'll never know the simple joys of a monkey knife fight."

http://www.snpp.com/episodes/BABF08

This kinda reminds me of the bacon flowchart, which helps you decide if you want bacon. (The answer is inevitably yes):
http://www.joeydevilla.com/2007/11/14/guess-what-im-craving-this-morning/

If only Morris had hired some steam-powered, chess playing automatons. THEY would have gotten the songs back!

Sky Maul is a hilarious parody, but so is Brian Sack's Banterist, which extolls such travel gadgets as the Komfort Kollar:
"You'll be the talk of the cabin with Komfort Kollar. Using the same technology developed for people with whiplash, Komfort Kollar lets you sleep soundly - immune to the glares and gestures of fellow passengers. If you're on a short flight and don't have the time it takes to blow up your Inflatable Travel Pillow and flop forward, the Komfort Kollar is the answer. Best of all, it's bulky and can't be deflated."
http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000340.html

The record industry may be dumb, but they're not so stupid that they try to take on Harvard, which has threatened to fight them. They just target the other Ivies instead: http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/25/1543247

Yay, Tesla wins! Now someone has to figure out how to build his antenna to harness the energy of the sun:
http://www.pbs.org/tesla/ll/ll_todre.html

@ Ill Lich: I don't think EP was in "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat" because he didn't lose his memory from alcohol abuse. According to Josh Foer's story:
"15 years ago, the herpes simplex virus chewed its way through his brain, coring it like an apple. By the time the virus had run its course, two walnut-size chunks of brain matter in the medial temporal lobes had disappeared, and with them most of EP's memory."
http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-11/memory/foer-text.html

This battle suit is almost as cool as the medieval Japanese body armor you can try on at Narita International Airport when you're jetlagged and waiting for a flight. And they take your picture for free:
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2007/10/tokyo-airport-f.html

The photos are spectacular. The "Hubble's Greatest Hits" gallery picks out some arresting images and explains what makes them special:
http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-11/hubble/hubble-interactive.html

Not only do Pastafarians produce lovely tree ornaments, but they also point out the often-overlooked connection between global warming and the decline of pirates:
http://www.venganza.org/2007/10/23/national-geographic-promotes-fsm.htm

I like the part in WORLD ONE: PARKING LOT where the walkthru reminds you that "Every person you run down in this world is one less you'll have to deal with in future levels, so never miss an opportunity for carnage!"
Or this tip, from WORLD TWO: SHOWROOM--"As you enter the main area, you will see an EKHARD oiled solid-oak dining sideboard. Quickly kick it apart to acquire the TABLE LEG WITH NAIL."
http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/how_to/the_nonexpert_ikea.php

Here's a snippet of classic dialogue from Homestarrunner, when an angry Strong Bad tries to deal with a clueless call center operator (played by Homestar) in "ISP":

There is a phone ringing sound and the screen is split by a phone cord with Homestar Runner in the office on the left and Strong Bad on the right. On Homestar's cubicle wall there is a Post-It Note that reads "Note to self: Chew more." Homestar wears a headset.}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: Thank you for calling the internet, may I have your account number or identity theft, please?

STRONG BAD: No, but you can have a heapin' helpin' of my unbridled rage!

HOMESTAR RUNNER: {reading slowly from sheets of paper} Ma'am, please calm down. Your CD tray is not a cup holder. {turns page} I cannot help you clear your browser cache. No, I'm not in India.

STRONG BAD: Shut up and listen. {Homestar drops the papers in surprise. Strong Bad bangs his hand on keyboard} My internet is crawling along like... something... funny... that crawls along.

HOMESTAR RUNNER: All right, I can help you with that. Please hold while I transfer you to someone who can help you with that.

STRONG BAD: {incredulous} What?!

HOMESTAR RUNNER: {singing} Doo doot. Tch. Doo doo dit. Tch. Doot doo doot. Tch.

{Cut to a long shot of the office as Homestar stands up. Homestar is the only visible tech representative.}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: {still singing} It's the hold music, do doot. Tch. Pa doo doot. Tch. Boodoo doo doot. Tch. {high pitched voice} Hold music!

{Cut back to the splitscreen as Homestar sits down.}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: {in a telephone voice} Thank you for holding. Your call is very unportant to us. The next available representative wi— {normal voice} okay, I'm back! Lemme just verify your address so I can send you my weight in free sign-up CDs.

STRONG BAD: Ugh, enough! {bangs hand against keyboard again} I'm marching my pasty white bwathom down there to talk to the man in charge!

{He slams the phone down and walks offscreen during Homestar's next line.}

HOMESTAR RUNNER: I'm so glad we could get that resolved. Is there anything else I can—

http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail152.html

http://www.hrwiki.org/index.php/isp

Besides his definitive book on pencils, Petroski also wrote entertainingly on the history of forks, paperclips, zippers and other mundane tools in "The Evolution of Useful Things":
http://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Useful-Things-Artifacts-Zippers-Came/dp/0679740392/ref=pd_sim_b_shvl_title_1/002-8129293-4361633

Very cool! Another micro-capitalism story I like is this one about setting up McDonald's-style owner-operator franchises in Kenya to run "for-profit retail clinics that provide basic treatments for malaria, respiratory infections and worms":
http://www.forbes.com/healthcare/2007/10/11/africa-pharmaceuticals-ghana-biz-sci-cz_rl_1011healthstore.html

This self-carving pumpkin video on Neatorama is pretty cool too, and you don't even have to carve it:
http://www.neatorama.com/2007/10/25/halloween-awakening/

My favorite manhole cover is on the sidewalk in Bratislava, and features Cumil the sewer worker peeking out:
http://www.sewerhistory.org/images/mhc/slovak_mhc26.jpg

Almost as bad as this Kellogg's All-Bran commercial with the formerly constipated construction worker:
http://www.slate.com/id/2175772/nav/ais/

I love this a lot. Thanks for posting it. Makes me happy to be alive right now.

Like this wonderful Golden Book from 1959 entitled "You Will Go to the Moon" written by the excellent science writers Mae and Ira Freeman. My son was mesmerized by this book when he was 4 and asked me to read it again and again and again and again. Here's a photo of the cover:
http://cgi.ebay.com/YOU-WILL-GO-TO-THE-MOON-MAE-AND-IRA-FREEMAN-1ST-ED_W0QQitemZ220160238968QQihZ012QQcategoryZ279QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

This memory game on the National Geo site may or may not grow you more brain cells but it's fun to play and doesn't cost anything:

http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-11/memory/memory-game.html

Have you seen what endangered animals would like to do to Stephen Colbert, according to National Geo's blog Pop Omnivore?
http://ngm.typepad.com/pop_omnivore/2007/10/what-endangered.html

Here's another quiz: what omnipresent tech symbol is identified in different countries by the following names: monkey, little mouse, strudel, maggot, elephant's trunk, crazy, and snail?
http://intelligenttravel.typepad.com/it/2006/11/where_its.html

Reminds me of the iPod Shredder from Sky Maul: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2255eNPx1l8

The funny thing is, the essence of Miss Teen South Carolina's answer was correct-- part of the problem with geographic ignorance in this country is that lots of people don't have maps! The 2006 Roper Public Affairs-National Geographic study revealed that only 19% of young Americans have a world map. And the other funny thing is, as other commenters have pointed out, the folks at the Miss Teen USA pageant were totally wrong in phrasing their question: they said that 1 in 5 young Americans can't find the U.S. on a world map, when in fact 94% can. Check out the Roper-National Geographic Study on Geographic Literacy here: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/roper2006/pdf/FINALReport2006GeogLitsurvey.pdf

You can combat maplessless by buying a deliciously detailed map, globe or atlas from the National Geographic Society here, including the gigantic mural world map that's 110" wide and sticks to your wall like wallpaper. You never have to be mapless again:
http://shop.nationalgeographic.com/gateway/120/105.html