Explore a Room of Skulls With Google Street View

I’m not going to mince words here: skulls are awesome. So that’s why you need to check out the skull room at the California Academy of Sciences. The 4,000-square-foot exhibit holds over 640 skulls, all available to behold (and some to touch!).

The Academy wants its visitors to explore death as a means to explain life. “From an enormous bull elephant to a tiny elephant shrew, every skull tells a story about the life, death, and evolution of vertebrates,” the website says.

The most prominent segment is a 90-foot wide wall of California sea lion noggins. The inventory may seem like a lot, but it’s actually only one-sixth of the Academy’s scientific collection. Hidden amongst the impressive hoard are warthog, wolf, walrus, and other skulls that visitors are asked to pick out from the group.

On top of sea lion skulls, the Academy also offers interactive activities, flesh-eating beetles, and a full orca skeleton that bears a striking resemblance to mosasaurus.

In clockwise order: domestic sheep, helmeted hornbill, Ganges River dolphin, Malayan tapir.

If you are in the area, you can see this cool exhibit in person from now until the end of November. Those at a geographic disadvantage can also enjoy the morbid fun remotely via Google. Google’s Street View lets you peruse the museum right on your computer, so you don’t have to spend all that money on airfare.

On top of a virtual tour, you can also check out 3D views of some of the skulls in the exhibit. The only logical next step is to start 3D printing these things out and decorating your home with them. I recommend the creepy Ganges River Dolphin skull, which doubles as an aquatic chainsaw.