Tourist anxiety about bedbugs could rattle one of New York's top industries ahead of its peak.
Also: 
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Kismet
Police said a man using a fake gun in a San Fernando Valley stickup was beaten with the prop weapon when the would-be victim took it from him.
Pennsylvania man complained to police about buying bad pot
From the "They walk among us" Department:
A southwestern Pennsylvania man called 911 to complain about some terrible marijuana he had just purchased, which turned out to be something other than pot.
A southwestern Pennsylvania man called 911 to complain about some terrible marijuana he had just purchased, which turned out to be something other than pot.
Beware the ghost
... pepper that is ...
This chili is so hot that the Indian military has found uses for it outside the kitchen.
Also: Four killed by celery
A food processing plant in Texas has been shut down after contaminated celery was linked to the deaths of four people.
The victims all died from listeriosis food poisoning after eating chopped celery from the factory in San Antonio. The rare bacterial infection is particularly dangerous for newborn babies, pregnant women and the elderly.
It can be caused by not washing or cooking raw vegetables properly. No details were given about the victims.
Texas health chiefs traced the bacteria to chopped celery from Sangar Produce and Processing. They ordered the plant to stop operations immediately and recall all its products shipped since January.
The victims all died from listeriosis food poisoning after eating chopped celery from the factory in San Antonio. The rare bacterial infection is particularly dangerous for newborn babies, pregnant women and the elderly.
It can be caused by not washing or cooking raw vegetables properly. No details were given about the victims.
Texas health chiefs traced the bacteria to chopped celery from Sangar Produce and Processing. They ordered the plant to stop operations immediately and recall all its products shipped since January.
Culinary Delites
Dipping pork in chopped pecans gives these mini sandwiches a crunchy texture.
Also: 
Eating brown instead of white rice can lower your blood pressure and diabetes risk.
Also: 
Hold the secret sauce, the sweet tea, and the sausage, and save hundreds of calories.
Also: Company Offers Marijuana Soda
You'll need a prescription for this soda.
A Colorado soda company has launched a line of drinks with a special ingredient - marijuana.
A Colorado soda company has launched a line of drinks with a special ingredient - marijuana.
Eat a Lionfish to Protect Caribbean Reefs
Photo credit: poplinre/Creative Commons
Placing invasive species on the menu to curb their expansion has been attempted with everything from squirrels to kangaroo to camel, and now conservationists are asking diners to turn their attention—and appetites—to lionfish in the Caribbean.Though the idea is far from new—TreeHugger has reported on it several times—the campaign is being intensified with a new PSA.
Article continues: Eat a Lionfish to Protect Caribbean Reefs
Modern humans emerged far earlier than previously thought
An international team of researchers based at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing, including a physical anthropology professor at Washington University in St. Louis, has discovered well-dated human fossils in southern China that markedly change anthropologists perceptions of the emergence of modern humans in the eastern Old World.
A newly found fossil of a human in Asia some 100,000 years ago reveals distinct Neanderthal features.
Asian Neanderthals, Humans Mated
A newly found fossil of a human in Asia some 100,000 years ago reveals distinct Neanderthal features. Museum displays of human remains covered up for fear of offending
Human skulls or ancients mummies are being removed from British museums for fear of insulting minority religious groups, academics have warned. Already museums around the country have been forced to close coffin lids, remove skeletons and respectfully replace the shroud on mummies in order to placate protesters. There are fears such artifacts could be banned altogether.
Small groups such as the Pagan Organization Honoring the Ancient Dead claim that it is against the religious beliefs of our ancestors to put bodies on show. Museums are becoming increasingly nervous about displaying human remains. Seventeen have drawn up guidelines advising curators to warn the public and only display photographs of mummies with a shroud.
The Egypt gallery at Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery now has half-closed coffin lids on its display of mummies. Manchester University Museum covered up an unwrapped mummy and removed the head of an Iron Age bog body. The Museum of London removed the skeleton of a boy with rickets. In a new book Dr Tiffany Jenkins, of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), pointed out that mummies, skeletons and skulls are often the most popular display in museums.
Dr Jenkins feared that the guidance will mean that eventually there will be no human remains on display at all for fear of offending any number of small groups. “The profession is overreacting to the claims of small minority groups – such as the Pagan Organization Honoring the Ancient Dead. Curiously, the profession do not take into account the feelings of other Pagan groups who advocate the use of human remains in research and display, such as Pagans for Archaeology. This reflects the unease within the sector with researching and displaying human remains.”
Small groups such as the Pagan Organization Honoring the Ancient Dead claim that it is against the religious beliefs of our ancestors to put bodies on show. Museums are becoming increasingly nervous about displaying human remains. Seventeen have drawn up guidelines advising curators to warn the public and only display photographs of mummies with a shroud.
The Egypt gallery at Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery now has half-closed coffin lids on its display of mummies. Manchester University Museum covered up an unwrapped mummy and removed the head of an Iron Age bog body. The Museum of London removed the skeleton of a boy with rickets. In a new book Dr Tiffany Jenkins, of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), pointed out that mummies, skeletons and skulls are often the most popular display in museums.
Dr Jenkins feared that the guidance will mean that eventually there will be no human remains on display at all for fear of offending any number of small groups. “The profession is overreacting to the claims of small minority groups – such as the Pagan Organization Honoring the Ancient Dead. Curiously, the profession do not take into account the feelings of other Pagan groups who advocate the use of human remains in research and display, such as Pagans for Archaeology. This reflects the unease within the sector with researching and displaying human remains.”
Angry spirits blamed for schoolgirls fainting
Teachers of 10 teenage girls who collapsed one after another at their rural Cambodian school blamed the mysterious ailment on angry spirits on Saturday. The girls, aged between 14 and 18, were treated in hospital after fainting but doctors could not ascertain why the youngsters were struck down, said Ruos Lim Chhee, head of the high school in Pnov, northern Cambodia.
He said that all of the girls were found to be healthy, with no signs of food poisoning, although two were a little low on glucose. "We are afraid we are under a spell because we didn't offer any traditional dancing and music to the spirits on the opening day this year," he said. "But we have just offered fruits, boiled chickens and wine to the spirits today, and we hope the students will get better and the spirits will take care of us."
Mil Khim, a teacher who witnessed the string of incidents on Thursday, said one of his students started to complain of chest pains early in the morning and then suffered convulsions before falling unconscious. "The strange phenomenon lasted only a few hours, as eight seventh graders and two from eighth and ninth grade fainted subsequently," he said.
Cambodians in rural areas often believe supernatural forces are behind unexplained events. "We think that perhaps the spirits are angry because the doctors, teachers and even police found no trace of poison or physical weakness," said district governor, Pech Sophea.
He said that all of the girls were found to be healthy, with no signs of food poisoning, although two were a little low on glucose. "We are afraid we are under a spell because we didn't offer any traditional dancing and music to the spirits on the opening day this year," he said. "But we have just offered fruits, boiled chickens and wine to the spirits today, and we hope the students will get better and the spirits will take care of us."
Mil Khim, a teacher who witnessed the string of incidents on Thursday, said one of his students started to complain of chest pains early in the morning and then suffered convulsions before falling unconscious. "The strange phenomenon lasted only a few hours, as eight seventh graders and two from eighth and ninth grade fainted subsequently," he said.
Cambodians in rural areas often believe supernatural forces are behind unexplained events. "We think that perhaps the spirits are angry because the doctors, teachers and even police found no trace of poison or physical weakness," said district governor, Pech Sophea.
Impaling: Not as deadly as you might think
A recent case-study in the Lancet (heh) revealed that it would, indeed, be possible to survive the kind of injury seen in the horrific and somewhat unbelievable 1550 portrait of unfortunate Hungarian Gregor Baci.
Odds and Sods
Bolivian police said they've detained a woman who tried to mail a mummy to France.
The man who's on a 60-day all-potato diet wishes he would have set a goal of one month instead of two
Bad Cops:
Texans terrified as cops execute no-knock middle-of-the-night raid at wrong address
Florida cop is arrested for bribery
DC cop gets five years in prison for possessing and distributing child pornography
Florida cop is charged in boy's accidental shooting
Texas border patrol agent is arrested for child porn
Georgia deputy is charged with killing wife and day laborer
The man who's on a 60-day all-potato diet wishes he would have set a goal of one month instead of two
Bad Cops:
Texans terrified as cops execute no-knock middle-of-the-night raid at wrong address
Florida cop is arrested for bribery
DC cop gets five years in prison for possessing and distributing child pornography
Florida cop is charged in boy's accidental shooting
Texas border patrol agent is arrested for child porn
Georgia deputy is charged with killing wife and day laborer
Wild dolphins tail-walk 'just for fun'
Wild dolphins in Australia are naturally learning to "walk" on water. Six dolphins have now been seen mastering the technique - furiously paddling their tail fluke, forcing their body out and across the water. The dolphins seem to walk on water for fun, as it has no other obvious benefit, say scientists working for the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.
That makes the behavior a rare example of animals "culturally transmitting" a playful rather than foraging behavior. Only a few species are known to create their own culture - defined as the sharing or transmitting of specific novel behaviors or traditions between a community of animals.
The discovery was made by Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) scientist Dr Mike Bossley, who has spent 24 years studying dolphins living in the Port River in Adelaide, Australia. In past years, Dr Bossley has witnessed two wild adult female dolphins, named Billie and Wave for research purposes, attempting to walk on water. Now four other dolphins, including young infants, have been recorded trying to learn the trick from the two adults, and have been seen practicing, less successfully, in the river.
According to the WDCS, apart from Billie and Wave, only one other adult dolphin had previously been seen tail-walking in the Port River during thousands of hours of scientific observations, and then only once. Billie is thought to have learned the trick during a brief period when she was held captive in a dolphinarium, before being released back into the wild. She passed the behaviour onto Wave, and now Billie and Wave appear to be passing on their knowledge of how to tail-walk to their wider community.
That makes the behavior a rare example of animals "culturally transmitting" a playful rather than foraging behavior. Only a few species are known to create their own culture - defined as the sharing or transmitting of specific novel behaviors or traditions between a community of animals.
The discovery was made by Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) scientist Dr Mike Bossley, who has spent 24 years studying dolphins living in the Port River in Adelaide, Australia. In past years, Dr Bossley has witnessed two wild adult female dolphins, named Billie and Wave for research purposes, attempting to walk on water. Now four other dolphins, including young infants, have been recorded trying to learn the trick from the two adults, and have been seen practicing, less successfully, in the river.
According to the WDCS, apart from Billie and Wave, only one other adult dolphin had previously been seen tail-walking in the Port River during thousands of hours of scientific observations, and then only once. Billie is thought to have learned the trick during a brief period when she was held captive in a dolphinarium, before being released back into the wild. She passed the behaviour onto Wave, and now Billie and Wave appear to be passing on their knowledge of how to tail-walk to their wider community.
Paul Is Dead
The underwater creature who shot to fame for predicting World Cup outcomes has died.
Also: Pigzilla stalking horses in Australia
A giant pig on the loose is scaring residents and stalking horses in Darwin's rural area. The massive sow has been wreaking havoc in yards and in horse stables in Virginia, 30km south of Darwin, for more than a week, but has so far successfully escaped all attempts to be caught.
"It's massive, it's a giant," resident Wendy MacKenzie said. The 50-year-old said the pigzilla had been prowling around on properties near Wells Creek, on Virginia Rd. "We tried to catch it plenty of times, and it nosed me quite friendly when I tried to lure it with food.
"But as soon as we tried to catch it, it took off into the creek. I thought I could put it on a lead, but maybe it knows what a lead is and thought 'Nah, we ain't going there'." Ms MacKenzie said the sow had been seen visiting horses on several properties along the creek. "It goes into the horse pens to hang out with the horses- and probably to steal their food," she said.
"That's why it comes on to the properties, too." Another Virginia resident said she knew of a giant pet pig in the area that had been living for years with an old horse. "It's the biggest pig I've ever seen," she said.
"It's massive, it's a giant," resident Wendy MacKenzie said. The 50-year-old said the pigzilla had been prowling around on properties near Wells Creek, on Virginia Rd. "We tried to catch it plenty of times, and it nosed me quite friendly when I tried to lure it with food.
"But as soon as we tried to catch it, it took off into the creek. I thought I could put it on a lead, but maybe it knows what a lead is and thought 'Nah, we ain't going there'." Ms MacKenzie said the sow had been seen visiting horses on several properties along the creek. "It goes into the horse pens to hang out with the horses- and probably to steal their food," she said.
"That's why it comes on to the properties, too." Another Virginia resident said she knew of a giant pet pig in the area that had been living for years with an old horse. "It's the biggest pig I've ever seen," she said.
Aliens suspected of creating mutant four-legged chicken
The day a four-legged chicken hatched, her owner was traveling through Australia's top alien hotspot. Kevin Horner said it may have just been a coincidence the chicken with two extra legs was born as he was passing through Wycliffe Well, 1100km south of Darwin, last Wednesday. He has dubbed the chirpy little hy-line brown chicken "Drumstick" on account of her unexplained extra limbs.
"I have never seen or heard of a four-legged chicken," he said. "I've bred about 100,000 chickens over the years. I've never seen anything like this. The first thing I saw was it sitting in there and thought it was sitting on a dead chicken.
"I just saw these other extra little feet. I think it formed from a double yolk egg, I don't think it's all that uncommon, but I've never seen it before." Mr Horner, 59, of Noonamah said not everyone believed him when he first revealed his bizarre new pet.
"I said it to my wife and she said, 'what have you been drinking'," he said. "I told a few people down at the pub about her and they said I must have done some good drugs." Drumstick is reportedly not facing any segregation from the other chickens. And the chicken will be spared from becoming a meal and will instead be a prized pet.
"I have never seen or heard of a four-legged chicken," he said. "I've bred about 100,000 chickens over the years. I've never seen anything like this. The first thing I saw was it sitting in there and thought it was sitting on a dead chicken.
"I just saw these other extra little feet. I think it formed from a double yolk egg, I don't think it's all that uncommon, but I've never seen it before." Mr Horner, 59, of Noonamah said not everyone believed him when he first revealed his bizarre new pet.
"I said it to my wife and she said, 'what have you been drinking'," he said. "I told a few people down at the pub about her and they said I must have done some good drugs." Drumstick is reportedly not facing any segregation from the other chickens. And the chicken will be spared from becoming a meal and will instead be a prized pet.
Monday, October 25, 2010
The Daily Drift
The Daily Drift
Today's horoscope says:Not to worry.
The friends you have who are real friends won't be going anywhere -- not even after you tell them that you need new stimulation when it comes to socializing and conversation.
They may even sympathize -- and some might ask to go searching for new companions right along with you.
These are the people who count -- the ones who'll be there for the long haul.
Some of our readers today have been in:
Sittard, Limburg, Netherlands
London, England, United Kingdom
Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Paris, Ile-De-France. France
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Szeged, Csongrad, Hungary
Berlin, Berlin, Gemany
Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Edithvale, Victoria, Australia
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
as well as Italy, Brazil, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, Pakistan, Guadeloupe, Russia and in cities across the United States such as Mableton, Woods Cross, Twin Falls, Boston and more.
Today is:
Today is Monday, October 25, the 298th day of 2010.
There are 67 days left in the year.
Today's unusual holiday or celebration is:
Sourest Day.
Don't forget to visit our sister blog!
Ten of the country's coziest B&Bs
Nestle into an Oregon treehouse for a bird's-eye view of autumn leaves.
Also:
Helpful Hints
Among the fruit's many talents outside the kitchen: It can lighten your hair or brighten your laundry.
Also: Discovery of taste receptors in the lungs could help people with asthma breathe easier
Taste receptors in the lungs?
Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore have discovered that bitter taste receptors are not just located in the mouth but also in human lungs.
Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore have discovered that bitter taste receptors are not just located in the mouth but also in human lungs.
What If the Leading Cause of Weight Gain Wasn't Food at All?
Photo: Scott McLeod
A new study from the University of Chicago and the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that much of the reason that Americans are over weight is due to sleep deprivation. A lack of enough sleep causes the body to hold onto fat in a biological effort to slow us down.Article continues: What If the Leading Cause of Weight Gain Wasn't Food at All?
How lighting affects diet
Food is not the only thing in your kitchen that may impact your diet.
Also: Sorting fact from fiction about soy foods
First of all - they're not foods ...
Some say soy is a healthy superfood, while others claim it boosts cancer risks.
Also: A real groaner
Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal?
His goal: transcend dental medication.
His goal: transcend dental medication.
Touch-Screen Devices Can Harbor Flu Germs
I knew there was a reason I instinctively despised those things ...
A squeeze, a flick, a touch - but keep those grimy, germ-infested hands off that iPhone. Who knows where those fingers have been? Personal touch-screen devices - iPads, BlackBerrys and Droids - are now seemingly everywhere, potentially harboring the germs and viruses that turn voices raspy and send noses running.
Want to peek at a digital snapshot, a friend's Facebook status or to show off the latest YouTube video? Best to just look, not touch - or risk going viral yourself. British researchers provide some stomach-churning data: Mobile phones harbor 18 times more bacteria than a flush handle in a typical men's restroom.
According to a study, published by the Journal of Applied Microbiology, the risks of transmitting pathogens from glass surfaces to a person's skin are relatively high. If you put a virus on a surface, like an iPhone, about 30 percent of it will get on your fingertips and a fair amount of it may go from your fingers to your eyes, mouth or nose, the most likely routes of infection.
A squeeze, a flick, a touch - but keep those grimy, germ-infested hands off that iPhone. Who knows where those fingers have been? Personal touch-screen devices - iPads, BlackBerrys and Droids - are now seemingly everywhere, potentially harboring the germs and viruses that turn voices raspy and send noses running.
Want to peek at a digital snapshot, a friend's Facebook status or to show off the latest YouTube video? Best to just look, not touch - or risk going viral yourself. British researchers provide some stomach-churning data: Mobile phones harbor 18 times more bacteria than a flush handle in a typical men's restroom.
According to a study, published by the Journal of Applied Microbiology, the risks of transmitting pathogens from glass surfaces to a person's skin are relatively high. If you put a virus on a surface, like an iPhone, about 30 percent of it will get on your fingertips and a fair amount of it may go from your fingers to your eyes, mouth or nose, the most likely routes of infection.
Six new scams aimed at shoppers
Protect yourself this holiday season against "smishing" and stripped gift cards.
Also: 
Bad Cops
New Jersey cop gets probation for "scuffle" that left a man dead
Ohio cop is indicted for shooting fellow cop at shift change
Tennessee deputy is charged with federal civil rights violations, lying to federal investigators
Did an LAPD cover-up keep this man in prison for 26 years?
Georgia cop is charged after brandishing loaded assault rifle at restaurant
Georgia deputy quits after being accused of coercing a woman to take off her clothes
Louisiana police officer accused of having sex with juvenile
Ohio cop is indicted for shooting fellow cop at shift change
Tennessee deputy is charged with federal civil rights violations, lying to federal investigators
Did an LAPD cover-up keep this man in prison for 26 years?
Georgia cop is charged after brandishing loaded assault rifle at restaurant
Georgia deputy quits after being accused of coercing a woman to take off her clothes
Louisiana police officer accused of having sex with juvenile
Cyberwar
Relentless attacks on U.S. networks may force us to rethink notions of time and space, report says.
Also: Robert Reich: 'We're losing our democracy'
Gaius Publius
While all the evidence has been in plain sight for months, Robert Reich does a good job of summing the pieces.
He says the danger facing our democracy is a "perfect storm." The first part of the storm is the income disparity, where "[a]lmost a quarter of total income generated in the United States is going to the top 1 percent of Americans" and "[t]he top one-tenth of one percent of Americans now earn as much as the bottom 120 million of us." It's worth memorizing those numbers.
The second part is our friend, the Citizens United decision (my emphasis):
The third part of the storm is the deep hole most Americans are in. Yet at a time when people are looking to government to tide them through a horrible rough patch, Washington tells them there's no money:
If so, the Court certainly responded, and in spectacular fashion: Instead of issuing a ruling on the film's airing, as expected in June of 2009, it called for the case to be re-argued with an expanded set of questions, including the constitutionality of limiting any corporate political donations at all. In other words, the Court took a case about whether the airing of a film counted as an independently-produced campaign ad, and turned it into a "radical" expansion of the concept of corporate personhood.
And now, according to Think Progress, we have many of the elements of Reich's trifecta in coordinated planning meetings. The billionaires who have benefited from the income disparity are, thanks to Citizens United (a Antonin Scalia–Clarence Thomas special, I might add), meeting to figure out how to further leverage their advantage over the rest of us. And then there's this:
Are really we "losing our democracy" to a revolutionary force?
He says the danger facing our democracy is a "perfect storm." The first part of the storm is the income disparity, where "[a]lmost a quarter of total income generated in the United States is going to the top 1 percent of Americans" and "[t]he top one-tenth of one percent of Americans now earn as much as the bottom 120 million of us." It's worth memorizing those numbers.
The second part is our friend, the Citizens United decision (my emphasis):
Hundreds of millions of dollars are pouring into advertisements for and against candidates — without a trace of where the dollars are coming from. They’re laundered through a handful of groups. Fred Malek, whom you may remember as deputy director of Richard Nixon’s notorious Committee to Reelect the President (dubbed Creep in the Watergate scandal), is running one of them. Republican operative Karl Rove runs another. The U.S. [sic] Chamber of Commerce, a third.More on Citizens United in a moment.
The third part of the storm is the deep hole most Americans are in. Yet at a time when people are looking to government to tide them through a horrible rough patch, Washington tells them there's no money:
No money? The marginal income tax rate on the very rich is the lowest it’s been in more than 80 years. Under President Dwight Eisenhower (who no one would have accused of being a radical) it was 91 percent. Now it’s 36 percent. Congress is even fighting over whether to end the temporary Bush tax cut for the rich and return them to the Clinton top tax of 39 percent.There's money all right, Reich is saying; just none for us. His conclusion is spot on:
The perfect storm: An unprecedented concentration of income and wealth at the top; a record amount of secret money flooding our democracy; and a public becoming increasingly angry and cynical about a government that’s raising its taxes, reducing its services, and unable to get it back to work.About that Citizens United decision: It has occurred to many that perhaps the reason the case was brought had less to do with defending the airing of a Movement Conservative attack film than something else — a Movement Conservative attempt to bring just such a challenge to election funding before the Supreme Court.
We’re losing our democracy to a different system. It’s called plutocracy.
If so, the Court certainly responded, and in spectacular fashion: Instead of issuing a ruling on the film's airing, as expected in June of 2009, it called for the case to be re-argued with an expanded set of questions, including the constitutionality of limiting any corporate political donations at all. In other words, the Court took a case about whether the airing of a film counted as an independently-produced campaign ad, and turned it into a "radical" expansion of the concept of corporate personhood.
And now, according to Think Progress, we have many of the elements of Reich's trifecta in coordinated planning meetings. The billionaires who have benefited from the income disparity are, thanks to Citizens United (a Antonin Scalia–Clarence Thomas special, I might add), meeting to figure out how to further leverage their advantage over the rest of us. And then there's this:
Past Koch meetings have included various Republican lawmakers, including DeMint, and Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia as speakers.Let's not forget Ginni Thomas (yes, that Mrs. Clarence Thomas), of Liberty Central, a secretly-funded Tea Party organization, who may be bringing their own challenges to the Supreme Court. If you were David Koch, would you fund Liberty Central?
Are really we "losing our democracy" to a revolutionary force?
Probe launched into U.S. swimmer's death
The open-water race in which U.S. team swimmer Fran Crippen died comes under fire from its winner.
Also: Backlash grows against full-body airport scanners
Worldwide, a backlash is growing against the push to install full-body scanners at airports.
Cholera outbreak spreads in Haiti
BBC:
Five cases of cholera have been detected in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, the UN says, amid an outbreak that has killed more than 200 people.
UN spokeswoman Imogen Wall told the Reuters news agency the patients had been quickly diagnosed and isolated.
She said they had been infected in the main outbreak zone - the Artibonite region - and had subsequently travelled to the capital, where they fell ill.
This meant Port-au-Prince was "not a new location of infection", she noted.
'Western' social sciences restricted in Iran
The country places limits on university subjects deemed incompatible with Islamic teaching.
Also: India Plans to Build the World's Largest Magnet
The largest magnet in the world, located at CERN in Switzerland, weighs 12,500 tonnes. Scientists in India plan to build one weighing 50,000 tonnes in order to do neutrino research:Neutrinos will interact with the iron – which will be layered in sheets – and spew out charged particles, whose paths will be bent by the iron’s magnetic field. About 30,000 detectors sandwiched between the sheets of iron will track these charged particles, providing information about the incident neutrinos.
INO will initially study atmospheric neutrinos, which are produced when cosmic rays smash into the upper atmosphere.
Unlike most neutrino detectors, such as the Super-Kamiokande in Japan or the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory in Canada, INO will be sensitive to both neutrinos and anti-neutrinos, which interact with matter in different ways.
Diamond-Studded Saucepan
This past weekend, Moscow hosted the Millionaire Fair. It’s an exhibition of the world’s most luxurious products, including a diamond-encrusted saucepan:Its handle and lid were encrusted with nearly 300 diamonds and was decorated with 18-carat gold. It’s made by German cookware brand Fissler. But wealthy cooks might be disappointed: the pan isn’t suitable for cooking.
“It is for serving food beautifully,” brand manager Natalya Oreshkina said.
Belgium
What do you know about Belgium? The country was inhabited in ancient times by the Belgae, the region was part of the Roman and Carolingian empires before breaking up into a number of feudal states during the Middle Ages. Following the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Belgium was given to the kingdom of the Netherlands, from which it gained independence as a separate kingdom in 1830.
Now you know a little bit more about Belgium. But what you may not know is that Belgium is a very complicated country.
Do you want to know more about Belgium? (subtitled NL/FR) from Jerome de Gerlache on Vimeo.
Now you know a little bit more about Belgium. But what you may not know is that Belgium is a very complicated country.
We Make Carpets
We Make Carpets is an art collective consisting of Stijn van der Vleuten, Marcia Nolte, and Bob Waardenburg. They make temporary structures that resemble carpets from a distance, such as the one pictured above. It’s actually made out of bricks, not fabric. They’ve also made carpets out of medical tape, cotton balls, balloons, and pasta.
The hidden dangers of savings accounts
Stashing your cash is a smart move, until you're socked with penalties and low returns.
Also: Can foreigners buy U.S. citizenship?
A little-known program provides green cards for investing $500,000 in the U.S.
Also: Insurance not?
Employer plans have provided most people in the U.S. with coverage for generations.
Also: Biggest mistakes to make with mortgages
The dream of homeownership can easily become a nightmare if you fall into any of these traps.
Also: How much eight popular degrees pay
Mid-career employees with these diplomas earn as much as $91,500.
Also: 
Baby dies as family jumps from apartment to escape naked 'devil'
A baby was killed and several more people seriously injured when a family of 11 threw itself from a third-floor apartment to flee a man they mistook for the devil, French investigators have said. The bizarre tragedy came to light on Saturday when firefighters were called to the village of La Verriere on the outskirts of Paris following reports that several people jumped from a balcony in a social housing block.
Among the injured, they found an entirely naked man of African origin with a knife wound in his hand and two children, a baby and a two-year-old girl. The baby died despite receiving hospital treatment in Paris. Odile Faivre, the assistant prosecutor from Versailles, said the incident began in the early hours when a group of 13 people were watching television in an apartment, and the naked man heard the baby cry.
"The man got up to prepare a bottle for the baby when his wife, seeing him, screamed 'It's the devil. It's the devil,'" she said. In the confusion following the apparent case of mistaken identity, the naked man's sister-in-law stabbed him in the hand, and he was ejected through the front door of the apartment. When he attempted to get back in, panic erupted.
"The other occupants of the flat fled by jumping out of the window," Ms Faivre said. According to police, one man jumped with the two-year-old in his arms and crawled two blocks away to hide in bushes, screaming, "I had to defend myself." Investigators found no trace of hallucinogenic substances in the apartment and no evidence that any occult ritual took place. Seven of those who jumped were taken to the hospital, some with multiple injuries. "A number of points remain to be cleared up," Ms Faivre said
Among the injured, they found an entirely naked man of African origin with a knife wound in his hand and two children, a baby and a two-year-old girl. The baby died despite receiving hospital treatment in Paris. Odile Faivre, the assistant prosecutor from Versailles, said the incident began in the early hours when a group of 13 people were watching television in an apartment, and the naked man heard the baby cry.
"The man got up to prepare a bottle for the baby when his wife, seeing him, screamed 'It's the devil. It's the devil,'" she said. In the confusion following the apparent case of mistaken identity, the naked man's sister-in-law stabbed him in the hand, and he was ejected through the front door of the apartment. When he attempted to get back in, panic erupted.
"The other occupants of the flat fled by jumping out of the window," Ms Faivre said. According to police, one man jumped with the two-year-old in his arms and crawled two blocks away to hide in bushes, screaming, "I had to defend myself." Investigators found no trace of hallucinogenic substances in the apartment and no evidence that any occult ritual took place. Seven of those who jumped were taken to the hospital, some with multiple injuries. "A number of points remain to be cleared up," Ms Faivre said
Famous Trials: The Witches of Salem
Here’s a bit of American history we’re all familiar with… but know almost nothing about.
BACKGROUND
The trouble at Salem, Massachusetts, began with two young girls acting oddly. It explodes into one of the strangest cases of mass hysteria in American history. In the six-month period between March and September 1692, 27 people were convicted on witchcraft changes; 20 were executed, and more than 100 people were in prison awaiting trial.
In March 1692, nine-year-old Betty Parris and her cousin Abigail Williams, 12, were experimenting with a fortune-telling trick they’d learned from Tituba, the Parris family’s West Indian slave. To find out what kind of men they’d marry when they grew up, they put an egg white in a glass… and then studied the shape it made in the glass.
But instead of glimpsing their future husbands, the girls saw an image that appeared to be “in the likeness of a coffin.” The apparition shocked them… and over the next few days they exhibited behavior that witnesses described as “foolish, ridiculous speeches,” “odd postures,” “distempers,” and “fits.”
Reverend Samuel Parris was startled by his daughter’s condition and took her to see William Griggs, the family doctor. Griggs couldn’t find out what was wrong with the girl, but he suspected the problem had supernatural origins. He told Rev Parris that he thought the girl had fallen victim to “the Evil Hand” -witchcraft.
The family tried to keep Betty’s condition a secret, but rumors began spreading almost immediately -and within two months at least eight other girls began exhibiting similar forms of bizarre behavior.
The three women were arrested and held for questioning. A few weeks later two more suspects, Martha Cory and Rebecca Nurse, were arrested on similar charges. And at the end of April a sixth person -the Reverend George Burroughs, a minister that Abigail Williams identified as the leader of the witches- was arrested and imprisoned. The girls continued to name names. By the middle of May, more than 100 people had been arrested for witchcraft.
On May 14, 1692, the newly appointed governor, Sir William Phips, arrived from England. He immediately set up a special court, the Court of Oyer and Terminer, to hear the witchcraft trials that were clogging the colonial legal system.
* The first case heard was that against Bridget Bishop. She was quickly found guilty of witchcraft, sentenced to death, and hung on June 10.
* On June 19 the court met a second time, and in a single day heard the cases of five accused women, found them all guilty, and sentenced them to death. They were hung on July 19.
* On August 5 the court heard six more cases, and sentenced all six women to death. One woman, Elizabeth Proctor, was spared because she was pregnant- and the authorities did not want to kill an innocent life along with a guilty one. The remaining five women were executed on August 19.
* Six more people were sentenced to death in early September. (Only four were executed: one person was reprieved, and another woman managed to escape from prison with the help of friends.) The remaining sentences were carried out on September 22.
*Two days later, the trials claimed their last victim when Giles Cory, an accused wizard, was executed by “pressing” (he was slowly crushed to death under heavy weights) after he refused to enter a plea.
The integrity of the girls then came into question. Some of the adults even charged that they were faking their illnesses and accusing innocent people for the fun of it. One colonist even testified later that one of the bewitched girls had bragged to him that “she did it for sport.”
As the number of accused persons grew into the hundreds, fears of falling victim to witchcraft were replaced by an even greater fear: that of being falsely accused of witchcraft. The growing opposition to the proceedings came from all segments of society: common people, ministers -even from the court itself.
BACKGROUND
The trouble at Salem, Massachusetts, began with two young girls acting oddly. It explodes into one of the strangest cases of mass hysteria in American history. In the six-month period between March and September 1692, 27 people were convicted on witchcraft changes; 20 were executed, and more than 100 people were in prison awaiting trial.
CHILD’S PLAY
In March 1692, nine-year-old Betty Parris and her cousin Abigail Williams, 12, were experimenting with a fortune-telling trick they’d learned from Tituba, the Parris family’s West Indian slave. To find out what kind of men they’d marry when they grew up, they put an egg white in a glass… and then studied the shape it made in the glass.But instead of glimpsing their future husbands, the girls saw an image that appeared to be “in the likeness of a coffin.” The apparition shocked them… and over the next few days they exhibited behavior that witnesses described as “foolish, ridiculous speeches,” “odd postures,” “distempers,” and “fits.”
Reverend Samuel Parris was startled by his daughter’s condition and took her to see William Griggs, the family doctor. Griggs couldn’t find out what was wrong with the girl, but he suspected the problem had supernatural origins. He told Rev Parris that he thought the girl had fallen victim to “the Evil Hand” -witchcraft.
The family tried to keep Betty’s condition a secret, but rumors began spreading almost immediately -and within two months at least eight other girls began exhibiting similar forms of bizarre behavior.
THE PARANOIA GROWS
The citizens of Salem Village demanded that the authorities take action. The local officials subjected the young girls to intense questioning, and soon the girls began naming names. The first three women they accused of witchcraft were Tituba and two other women from Salem Village, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne.The three women were arrested and held for questioning. A few weeks later two more suspects, Martha Cory and Rebecca Nurse, were arrested on similar charges. And at the end of April a sixth person -the Reverend George Burroughs, a minister that Abigail Williams identified as the leader of the witches- was arrested and imprisoned. The girls continued to name names. By the middle of May, more than 100 people had been arrested for witchcraft.
THE TRIALS
On May 14, 1692, the newly appointed governor, Sir William Phips, arrived from England. He immediately set up a special court, the Court of Oyer and Terminer, to hear the witchcraft trials that were clogging the colonial legal system.* The first case heard was that against Bridget Bishop. She was quickly found guilty of witchcraft, sentenced to death, and hung on June 10.
* On June 19 the court met a second time, and in a single day heard the cases of five accused women, found them all guilty, and sentenced them to death. They were hung on July 19.
* On August 5 the court heard six more cases, and sentenced all six women to death. One woman, Elizabeth Proctor, was spared because she was pregnant- and the authorities did not want to kill an innocent life along with a guilty one. The remaining five women were executed on August 19.
* Six more people were sentenced to death in early September. (Only four were executed: one person was reprieved, and another woman managed to escape from prison with the help of friends.) The remaining sentences were carried out on September 22.
*Two days later, the trials claimed their last victim when Giles Cory, an accused wizard, was executed by “pressing” (he was slowly crushed to death under heavy weights) after he refused to enter a plea.
REVERSAL OF FORTUNE
By now the hysteria surrounding the witch trials was at its peak: 19 accused “witches” had been hung, about 50 had “confessed” in exchange for lenient treatment, more than 100 people accused of witchcraft were under arrest and awaiting trial -and another 200 people had been accused of witchcraft but had not yet been arrested. Despite all this, the afflicted girls were still exhibiting bizarre behavior. But public opinion began to turn against the trials. Community leaders began to publicly question the methods that the courts used to convict suspected witches. The accused were denied access to defense counsel, and were tried in chains before jurors who had been chosen from church membership lists.The integrity of the girls then came into question. Some of the adults even charged that they were faking their illnesses and accusing innocent people for the fun of it. One colonist even testified later that one of the bewitched girls had bragged to him that “she did it for sport.”As the number of accused persons grew into the hundreds, fears of falling victim to witchcraft were replaced by an even greater fear: that of being falsely accused of witchcraft. The growing opposition to the proceedings came from all segments of society: common people, ministers -even from the court itself.
THE AFTERMATH
Once the tide had turned against the Salem witchcraft trials, many of the participants themselves began having second thoughts. Many of the jurors admitted their errors, witnesses recanted their testimony, and one judge on the Court of Oyer and Terminer, Samuel Sewall, publicly admitted his error on the steps of the Old South Church in 1697. The Massachusetts legislature made amends as well: in 1711 it reversed all of the convictions issued by the Court of Oyer and Terminer (and did it a second time in 1957), and it made financial restitution to the relatives of the executed, “the whole amount unto five hundred seventy eight pounds and twelve shillings.”
Lillian La France
In the Roaring Twenties, Lillian La France made a living as a stunt rider in the Motordrome circuit, performing in cars and on motorcycles for crowds around the U.S.In 1894, Agnes was the second of nine girls born into honest-livin’, hard-workin’ Catholic family standards. She christened herself Lillian LaFrance and quickly shook the dust of her Kansas hometown from her boots sometime around 1916, and roared off to create the life she had always dreamt of, carving it raw as she went along. She began Motordrome riding in 1924, and left a blurry, yet brilliant legacy behind that still haunts many who are taken by the images of her incredible spirit staring back through squinty eyes in a copy of a copy of old grainy photos. Incredible.
The History of Roller Skating
…the devices never really took off until London inventor Joseph Merlin created a more refined version that comprised of boots with metal wheels on them. He used them to crash a party in a grand display by skating into the crowd while playing the violin. He almost immediately crashed into a wall-length mirror, which brought him even more attention…although likely not what he was looking for.
Ancient Romans Recycled Glass
- Large quantities of glass were recycled in Britain under Roman rule during the 3rd and 4th centuries A.D.
GPS Devices Installed in African Rhinos' Horns
Article continues: GPS Devices Installed in African Rhinos' Horns
New jellyfish tells tale of global warming
A new species of jellyfish found off Israel’s coast the summer poses no threat to bathers but should serve warning to the countries bordering the Mediterranean sea about the dangers posed by global warming and damage to the environment.
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