Some Things Just Should Not Be Mashed-Up

Wednesday, October 1st, 2008

GeekDad Ken Denmead says that some things just should not be mashed-up — but mixing Star Wars‘ Princess Leia with My Little Pony works:

Some of the other My Little Pony mash-ups definitely do not work.

Awww-A-Day

Wednesday, August 20th, 2008

The awww-a-day calendar by Cute Overload sold out in a day on Amazon:

[T]he birth of Cute Overload was almost purely accidental. Meg Frost, a 36-year-old design manager at Apple, started cuteoverload.com three years ago to test Web software. Within months, it became an online institution, drawing about 88,000 unique visitors a day — about the same as the political gossip blog Wonkette. BoingBoing linked to Cute Overload, saying that viewing the site “is like taking a happy pill.”
[...]
Ms. Frost will not talk about how much money she has made from the site, although it is enough money that she recently hired two part-time assistants. Nor will she say how many calendars have been sold. But the calendar’s top ranking in its category — accessories — and its reaching as high as No. 21 last week on the overall category — books — are indications of its success.

The site’s ads are placed by Blogads, which handles advertising for about 1,500 blogs, including the gossip site PerezHilton.com and the political site Daily Kos. On Blogads.com, advertisers can view traffic numbers for each site and the cost of various types of ads. According to Blogads, a “premium” ad on Cute Overload costs about $2,000 a week, with an estimated 808,000 page views. Hartz Mountain currently has a premium spot for its UltraGuard line of flea and tick repellents, as does American Apparel for its Essential X 3 line of underwear three-packs.

The site also offers “standard” ads for $500 a week. Those are taken up mostly by small companies serving what might be called the “cute market.” Sublime Stitching, for example, sells “cute embroidery patterns,” like “Forest Friends,” while Shanalogic offers clothing and accessories emblazoned with cute imagery.

According to Blogads, there are nine “standard” ads currently running on Cute Overload.

That’s good money for a niche site.

Naturally, you’ll want one for yourself, right?

Newest attraction for the Berlin Zoo

Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

The newest attraction for the Berlin Zoo is a Siberian tiger cub named Antares. He’s pretty cute — for now:



Perhaps this is more like it:

I can haz man flesh?

The Spice must flow

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008

I’m not a particularly big fan of either Dune or of lolcats, but this hit me just right:

Anteaters in Sweaters

Friday, May 9th, 2008

I don’t know what to say about these (lesser) anteaters in sweaters.

Engineered for Cuteness

Monday, March 17th, 2008

If I didn’t know better, I’d say Flocke the polar-bear cub was Engineered for Cuteness:

Flocke

Monday, February 25th, 2008



Today’s second dose of cute comes from Flocke, the polar bear cub at the Tiergarten Nuernberg Zoo.

Kibongo

Monday, February 25th, 2008

Today’s dose of cute comes from Kibongo, a baby crowned lemur (Propithecus verreauxi coronatus) making its first official appearance at a zoo in Vincennes, near Paris, February 21, 2008. Kibongo was born December 24, 2007.

Giraffe Baby

Monday, February 4th, 2008

It’s hard not to love this newborn giraffe, named Margaret, who was born at the Chester Zoo, in the UK.

A New Knut?

Saturday, January 12th, 2008

After the Knut phenomenon, you had to know that more polar-bear cubs would “need” TLC:

A handout picture shows a polar bear cub born by polar bear Vera at the zoo in Nuremberg January 11, 2008. The new baby bear was separated from her mother after officials at the Nuremberg zoo became concerned she might harm the cub. Now four keepers at the zoo are taking care of the 2 kg fur ball, who needs milk every three hours.

Addendum: Rumor has it that the cub is going by Flocke, German for [snow] flake. More importantly, our Eisbaer-BabyEisbaer is pronounced ice bear, by the way — has her own web page. You don’t have to sprech Deutsch to enjoy it.

Mouse Bred Not To Fear Cats

Friday, December 14th, 2007

I’m glad the photographer managed to catch a shot of this mouse bred not to fear cats before its inevitable demise:

In this undated photo released by Tokyo University’s Department of Biophysics and Biochemistry Graduate School of Science, a genetically modified mouse approaches a cat in Tokyo. Using genetic engineering, scientists at Tokyo University say they have successfully switched off the rodents’ instinct to cower at the smell or presence of cats, showing that fear is genetically hardwired and not leaned through experience, as commonly believed.

Kitten Clones

Friday, December 14th, 2007

Sometimes I wonder if scientists, deep down, want to creep out normal folks. These Korean kitten clones glow in the dark — in the name of science!

This handout photo released in Seoul by the Ministry of Science and Technology shows a combo of cloned cats that have a fluorescence protein gene and glowing under ultraviolet beams. The technology could help develop treatments for human genetic diseases, the developers said.

Knut’s First Birthday

Wednesday, December 5th, 2007

It was Knut’s first birthday today — and he’s not the cute, little cub he used to be:

The Berlin Zoo’s famous polar bear Knut, who was rejected by his mother but went on to win the hearts of millions around the world, celebrated his first birthday Wednesday with more than 2,000 well-wishers.

But Knut — no longer a tiny cub, thanks partly to his penchant for croissants — probably didn’t get a taste of his own giant birthday cake, made with 300 eggs and 22 pounds of marzipan. He now tips the scales at more than 240 pounds and has been on a diet since July.

His special treat, instead, was a healthier concoction of fresh fruit, vegetables and rice — topped with a toy wooden candle.

I hope he doesn’t end up like other child stars.

Knut’s First Birthday

Wednesday, December 5th, 2007

It was Knut’s first birthday today — and he’s not the cute, little cub he used to be:

The Berlin Zoo’s famous polar bear Knut, who was rejected by his mother but went on to win the hearts of millions around the world, celebrated his first birthday Wednesday with more than 2,000 well-wishers.

But Knut — no longer a tiny cub, thanks partly to his penchant for croissants — probably didn’t get a taste of his own giant birthday cake, made with 300 eggs and 22 pounds of marzipan. He now tips the scales at more than 240 pounds and has been on a diet since July.

His special treat, instead, was a healthier concoction of fresh fruit, vegetables and rice — topped with a toy wooden candle.

I hope he doesn’t end up like other child stars.

Thousands of minks set loose in Germany

Wednesday, October 31st, 2007

This cute little fellow is one of thousands of minks set loose in Germany — to die and likely destroy the local ecology in the process:

German conservationists have condemned the release of some 17,000 minks from a fur farm, apparently by animal rights activists, saying they are likely to starve in the wild and could disturb the ecological balance in the region.

Sigh.