Oh, the pitter patter of little feet… all kinds of feet! Watch this smooth-moving, life-like PhantomX Hexapod robot, invented (and recorded) by kinematics expert Kåre Halvorsen, as his kids play around with it.

via Kottke.

PS. More robots!

A pottery lesson at Horseshoe Mountain Pottery in Utah, with Ralph, Maude, Olive, Oscar, Betty & June, the six siblings of Olive Us. The film was co-made with Tiger in a Jar.

More pottery!

An almost-complete skeleton of a Mammoth has been found in an ancient Roman excavation site about 19 miles outside of Paris. It’s thought to be between 100,000 to 200,000 years old. 

“Evidence this clear has never been found before, at least in France,” said Gregory Bayle, chief archaeologist at the site.

“We’re working on the theory that Neanderthal men came across the carcass and cut off bits of meat.”

Above, a clip of what Woolly Mammoth life might have been like, from the BBC natural history show Wild New World. Below, scientists dive further into what traits the Mammoth had to adapt to the freezing cold temperatures of the Ice Age: 

“Wow the moon looks huge tonight!” We’ve all said it, but is the moon ever larger or closer at the horizon? (No, it’s not.) Is it some visual magnification by the atmosphere? (Nope, evidently that’s not why either.)

The answer: evidently our brains are playing tricks on us when we see a huge moon. The perception of the moon’s size is influenced by what’s surrounding it.

Created by Mitchell Moffit and Gregory Brown, this ASAP Science video, The Moon Illusion explains why the moon looks larger near the horizon. There’s also more information here and here.

via Geekosystem.

Sounds and sights that stir feelings and memories: The pleasure of by Vitùc.

via This Is Colossal.