8 Ways to Sunday

A collection of strange links about science and technology that I’ve happened across over the weekend.

Painful death has never been so cuddly as it is at GIANTmicrobes.com

• Dog Condoms — The humane alternative to neutering and spaying! Available “at major pet stores and convenience markets by the beginning of 2006.” Comes in regular and meat-scented varieties.
• Vampire bats only known bat species to run on ground — “Riskin started out studying how bats of various species move across a surface, which they generally do badly. The least effective of them ‘just smack their wings against the ground and freak out,’ never successfully taking a step, he says.” Not the vamps, though. They started jogging along in a bounding gait at speeds up to 1.2 meters per second. And you thought they were creepy in the air. See article for freaky pictures.
• Vintage Vespa pin-up girls — For you guys that get really excited about little European scooters.
• History of Robots in the Victorian Era — Packed with period photos and illustrations. The most interesting section concerns “Boilerplate.” Built in 1893, this mechanical man was powered by what seems to have been a primitive fuel cell technology using lead and reduced sulfur. Not very environmentally friendly, but way ahead of its time for sure.
• GIANTmicrobes.com — Must be seen to be believed. These things freak me right the fuck out.

(Props: Life in the Present, Exclamation Mark, and Entertainment Weekly magazine)