So You Pull Up the Submersible Robot You've Sent to Survey the Ocean Floor

And you find THIS attached to it . . .







Apparently they're considered a delicacy in Taiwan.

Things Adults Would Already Know If They'd Bother to Read Kiki Strike

(Above: The nicest ladies in the world.)

A recent study published in Psychological Science offers evidence that clean, pleasant smells can make you a better person. According to the Boston Globe, "The authors even suggested that clean smells could be employed as a tool to influence how people act." Oh really? You don't say!

The article is pretty interesting (if long). Here are a few of the highlights . . .

People playing a trust game in a citrus-smelling room treated their opponents more fairly.

The smell of some cleansers made people more likely to volunteer for a charity.

People walking through a mall were more likely to help fellow shoppers (by retrieving dropped items) if the smells of cinnamon buns and coffee were in the air.

A French study showed that people were more likely to help a female stranger if she was wearing perfume. (And even more likely to help if she was wearing Fille Fiable.)

The moral of this story? Take a bath every day. (And add a small bottle of fragrance to your spy-girl toolbox!)

Big News!

As you may recall, a while back I posted three potential covers for my new book, The Eternal Ones. Over one hundred of you wrote in to vote for a favorite. Well, here's the final cover! (Sitting on my cluttered desk.) I love it! What do you think?

Now my amazing publisher, Razorbill, has done something so unbelievably cool that I can barely contain myself. They've had ouroboros rings made!!!! I just wish my photos did them justice. Their little red eyes sparkle with evil.







Razorbill has even put together a video that brings the snake to life. It's things like this that make sitting in front of a computer all day worthwhile. And there's so much more to come!




One more thing before I go. My Significant Objects dome doll (scroll down to see it) sold for $35 on ebay. Woohoo! Thanks for bidding!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Pictures by Magdelena Bors. (They remind me of St. Patrick's Day for some reason. And they're awesome.)

Significant Objects

Significant Objects is a fascinating project that asks writers to pen "descriptions" of objects that are later sold on ebay. The proceeds go to charity, and the list of writers who've contributed is pretty amazing.

I was asked to contribute, and my "item" (the world's creepiest dome doll) went on sale earlier this week. Check it out! (And make sure you check out the other items on the Significant Objects site as well.)

The Earthquake Fish

Don't believe in sea monsters? Then you've never seen an oarfish. (Shown below and possibly above.) These long, silver, serpent-like fish can reach up to 56 feet in length, and they have a bright red dorsal fin that runs the entire length of their bodies.

Oarfish live in deep water and are seldom seen by humans. Which is why the Japanese are a little worried that nineteen of them have recently washed ashore. What's going on in the ocean's murky depths that might be sending them to the surface? Watch this video and find out.

(Thanks to an AD reader for the tip!!)

Ahh, The Glories of Nature

The Nepenthes rajah (shown above) is the largest carnivorous plant in the world. Its trap can hold up to two liters of water. Or your average tree shrew. Which is why most botanists assumed that the N. rajah ate tree shrews. (Pitcher plants usually lure unsuspecting insects or small mammals into their traps, where the creatures are slowly digested.)

But this plant has no interest in eating the shrews themselves. And the fact that it's shaped like a miniature toilet is no accident. As the photo below shows, the N. rajah and Borneo's tree shrews have a very special relationship.

That relationship was summed up by the BBC in a headline that deserves an award of some sort. Check it out here.




P.S. Those interested in carnivorous plants should definitely check out the photos here and here!

The Bleeding Iceberg

Eww. Read the true story behind Antarctica's Blood Falls here.

Congrats . . .

. . . Lucy & Claudia on your 7th friend anniversary!

New York Just Got a Little Less Scruffy

Artist Jan Vormann recently visited New York and decided to fix up the place. He and his crew of random kids and passersby filled the city's cracks, crevasses, and assorted holes with Legos. (See more pics here.

Thanks, Jan. You're welcome back any time.

Blackie the Mutant NINJA Penguin

(Photo by Andrew Evans.)

That is all.

I'm Baaaack

(Above: File under old but amusing.)

Hello everyone! I'm just back from some book business that took me all the way across the country. I had a great time, and I even managed to fit in some "real" work. By that I mean underground explorations of course!

I finally had the chance to see Seattle's own underground city up-close. I highly recommend Bill Speidel's Underground Tour. The tour guide was hilarious, the underground world was fascinating, and there were many mentions of exploding toilets (not sure if the one below ever exploded).




So now that the contest has a winner and my work is over, it's time to get back to some weirdness. Look out for some tomorrow!

(P.S.: The judges of the 1000 Contest were the judges of all the other contests!)

(P.P.S.: The t-shirt entry I'd like to have made into a shirt is below. I love it because only the "Irregulars" out there would know what it means!)

And Even More AWESOME Entries!!!!

And a few great ideas that didn't come with a visual . . .

IDEA #1
Gold lettering on a black shirt: WELCOME TO THE SHADOW CITY!! Warning please beware of delinquent girl scouts deaf rats and butt kicking super spies!
The warning part would be in red lettering on black.

IDEA #2:
Super bold print: WATCH OUT I'M DANGEROUS!!!! (In gold lettering.)

IDEA #3:
Do You Believe In Ghosts?



On the back of this shirt, it reads: "You have to be able to kick butt when you're short.

(Sorry it took me so long to scan it, AB!)

More, More, More!

MORE Entries!

For some reason I can't make this image rotate . . .

A Few Other Entries

I will be posting more throughout the day!

Drum Roll, Please . . .

Thanks for waiting! So, as you may have gathered from all the updates, we changed the rules a bit last night. In the end, the only votes that counted were votes from people who had entered the contest--or people who regularly visit this blog. If you tallied the votes yourself you might have come up with the wrong answer.

Soooo, who was the big winner? Well it was a very close race. Once we changed the rules, it became extremely close. The winner, by three whole votes is . . .

ENTRY #3!!!!!! Congrats, Rosemary.

BUT . . . because it was so close, and because I changed the rules, I think it's only fair to give a nice consolation prize to the first runner-up. And the first runner-up is . . .

ENTRY #2!!!!!! (Your knowledge of the world of Kiki Strike astounds me.)

Congrats to both of you!

P.S.: I will be posting other entries throughout the day. If you would like your entry posted, please send me a note at kikistrike@gmail.com

We Have a Winner!

(Art by Mark Jenkins.)

And that winner will be announced tomorrow at noon.

LAST UPDATE! THIS ONE IS IMPORTANT.

OK, I'm making a new rule. Because I can. While I don't mind friends and family voting, I think it has gotten a little out of control.

So the only votes that will count will be:

Those from people who regularly visit/comment on this blog. (Yes, I know who you are.)
Those from people who also entered the contest.

Sorry, but that's the way it has to be.

Another Update!

(Isn't this exciting!)

VOTING WILL END AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. COMMENTS ON THE VOTING POST WILL BE TURNED OFF.

And since I'm a sucker for popular demand, I'm happy to post some of the other entries! If you sent one and you'd like me to post it, please send me an email at kikistrike@gmail.

And maybe I'll even tell you guys which shirt I might just make for myself. (And no, it wasn't one of the finalists!)

Update!

Sorry for the delay in posting comments. I had to get my hair done! (I know, not a good excuse.)

I see we have a lot of ANONYMOUS votes. Please, if you did not give a name, vote again. I'm afraid anonymous votes won't be counted! (To avoid voter fraud.)

And the Finalists Are . . .

The panel of experts wants you to know how difficult this decision was! There were over sixty entries in the 1000 Contest, and they were all amazing. You guys should start your own t-shirt company. (And then use the proceeds to take over the world. Mwwahahaha.)

Alas, only five t-shirts could be chosen as finalists. The experts looked for designs that were creative, fashionable, and different from anything else they had seen.

Now it's your turn! Comment on this post to vote for your favorite. One vote per person only, which means PLEASE DO NOT VOTE ANONYMOUSLY. If I suspect cheating, I will contact the FBI. Then I'll figure out what to do. But you can rest assured that CHEATING WILL MAKE ME VERY UNHAPPY.

Also, please use your imaginations. Some of the designs are rougher than others, but all the shirts will look great in the end!

ENTRY #1




ENTRY #2





ENTRY #3





ENTRY #4





ENTRY #5

Are You Thinking?

Remember, all entries in the 1000 Contest are due no later than midnight on Friday!

Aww. You GUYS!

(Above: You will feel the same way when you're my age.)

Thanks for all the birthday wishes! You have amazing memories. Today is the day!

I'm taking a little trip this weekend, so I may not have the chance to post for a few days. So if you have questions about the contest, ask them now and ask them here!

BTW, the entries I've seen so far are amazing!

Happy Valentine's Day & Chinese New Year!

(Above: Just a random cute picture.)

Happy Alligators in the Sewer Day!

Yes, it's a real day! Seventy-five years ago today, a teenager discovered an 8-foot alligator at the bottom of a manhole in Harlem. The event was even written up in the New York Times (see below).

According to a former superintendent of New York sewers (a man once known as the King of the Sewers), that 8-footer wasn't alone. When the man went down into the sewers see for himself what was there, he found . . .

Alligators serenely paddling around in his sewers. The beam of his own flashlight had spotlighted alligators whose length, on the average, was about two feet. Some may have been longer. Avoiding the swift current of the trunk lines under major avenues, the beasts had wormed up the smaller pipes under less important neighborhoods, and there Teddy had found them. The colony appeared to have settled contentedly under the very streets of the busiest city in the world.

Is the story true? Only the King of the Sewers knows. (And I don't think he's taking questions any more.)

Read more here.