DREWSKILLZ.COM Dec 15, 2002 - As someone that's fairly good with computers and technology, I thought it might be interesting to look at Santa Claus at an engineers perspective:
1. There are approximately two billion children (persons under 18) in the world, however since Santa does not visit children of Muslim, Hindu, Jewish or Buddhist religions, this reduces the workload for Christmas night to 15% of the total, or 378 million (according to the population reference bureau). At an average (census) rate of 3.5 children per household, that comes to 108 million homes, presuming that there is at least one good child in each.
2. Santa has 31 hours of Christmas to work with, thanks to the different time zones and the rotation of the earth, assuming he travels east to west (which seems logical). This works out to 967.7 visits per second. This is to say, that for every Christian household with a good child, Santa has around 1/1000 of a second to park the sleigh, hop out, jump down the chimney, fill the stockings, distribute the remaining presents under the tree, eat whatever snacks have been left for him, get back up the chimney, jump into the sleigh and get on to the next house. Assuming that each of these 108 million stops is evenly distributed around the earth (which of course, we know to be false, but will accept for the purpose of our calculations). We are talking about 1.25 Km per household, a total of 120.8 million Km, not counting bathroom stops or breaks. This means Santa's sleigh is moving at 1040 Km per second........3,000 times the speed of sound. For purposes of comparison, the fastest man-made vehicle, the Ulysses space probe, moves at a mere 43.8 Km per second, and a conventional reindeer can run (at best) 25 Km per hour.
3. The pay load of the sleigh adds another interesting element. Assuming that each child gets nothing more than a medium Lego set (two pounds), the sleigh is carrying over 500 thousand tons, not counting Santa himself. On land, a conventional reindeer can pull no more than 300 pounds, even granting that the "flying" reindeer could pull ten times the normal amount, the job can't be done with eight or even nine of them......Santa would need 360,000 of them. This increases the payload, not counting the weight of the sleigh, another 54,000 tons, or roughly seven times the weight of the Queen Elizabeth (the ship, not the monarch).
4. 600,000 tons traveling at 1040 Km per second creates enormous air resistance....this would heat up the lead reindeer in the same fashion as a space shuttle re-entering the earth's atmosphere. The lead pair of reindeer would absorb 14.3 quintillion joules of energy per second each. In short, they would burst into flames almost instantaneously, exposing the reindeer behind them and creating deafening sonic booms in their wake. The entire reindeer team would be vaporized within 4.26 thousandths of a second, or right about the time Santa reached the fifth house on his trip. Not that it matters, however, since Santa, as a result of accelerating from a dead stop to 1040 k p s in .001 seconds, would be subjected to centrifugal forces of 17,500 G's. A 250 pound Santa (which seems ludicrously slim) would be pinned to the back of the sleigh by 4,315,015 pounds of force, instantly crushing his bones and organs and reducing him to a quivering blob of pink (HO HO HO!) goo.
5. Therefore, if Santa did exist, he's dead now. MERRY CHRISTMAS!
I hope you found that amusing.
23:19 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - N.M. Teen Dies in 'Jackass'-Style StuntEntertainment - AP TV
N.M. Teen Dies in 'Jackass'-Style Stunt
Tue Dec 17,10:57 AM ET
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - A teenager died while practicing what police say was a stunt he and a friend had seen in the movie "Jackass."
Stephen Paul Rauen, 15, was ejected from the top of a friend's car Monday after he'd jumped onto the hood, Albuquerque Police spokesman Jeff Arbogast said.
When the driver hit the brakes, Rauen hit the pavement, then was run over and dragged a short distance.
"We had reports the individuals had done it before," Arbogast said.
Police interviewed the driver Monday evening, but Arbogast said it was too early to say whether criminal charges would be filed.
"Jackass: The Movie," which opened in October, is based on the MTV show of the same name. Creator Johnny Knoxville has said the goal of his kamikaze comedy is to make people laugh, and he has no message besides, "Don't try this at home."
Comic bits in the movie range from running around naked in public and "Candid Camera"-style pranks to injuries and gross-out antics.
The film is rated R for "dangerous, sometimes extremely crude stunts, language and nudity," according to the Motion Picture Association of America.
The TV show, which still airs in late-night reruns, drew criticism that it encouraged dangerous behavior.
After Knoxville wore a fireproof suit and allowed himself to be set ablaze and "roasted" on a grill, a few imitators were severely burned when they defied the show's disclaimers and performed their own variations on the stunt in 2001.
Just last week, a 13-year-old Indiana boy died and five other teens were injured after the van they were traveling in hurtled off a railroad track at more than 70 mph, crashed into a parked car and slid 400 feet.
Authorities, who found a camcorder and video cassette near the van with scenes from the show, believe the accident may have been an attempt to a recreate one of the show's stunts.
The movie and the television show repeatedly run disclaimers, urging viewers not to imitate the antics.
21:56 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Boy runs himself over with stolen truckOddly Enough - Reuters UK
Boy runs himself over with stolen truck
Fri Dec 20, 2:40 PM ET
OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (Reuters) - A 17-year-old was run over by the pickup truck he had allegedly stolen, police said.
The teen-ager, whose name was not released because he is a juvenile, caught the attention of police early on Friday morning as the pickup wove through the streets of Overland Park, a south Kansas City-area suburb.
Police were able to coax the driver into stopping the vehicle, but he jumped from the truck and tried to make a run for it.
"The vehicle began to roll just as the driver ducked in front of it," said Overland Park police Capt. Dave Moore. "He stumbled and fell and the truck ran over him.
"I guess that truck didn't want to be stolen."
The suspect was hospitalised with minor injuries. Charges were pending, said Moore.
21:54 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Woman Finishes College After 57 YearsStrange News - AP
Woman Finishes College After 57 Years
Wed Dec 18, 8:15 AM ET
SARASOTA, Fla. - Bernice Strickland started college in 1945. She finished Tuesday.
Strickland, 76, was the oldest of 202 graduates receiving bachelor's or master's degrees from the University of South Florida during commencement exercises Tuesday night. Strickland majored in English and American Literature.
"I taught her five times, and she never missed a class," said literature professor Susan Harrington. "That was remarkable."
Strickland, a retired kindergarten teacher, left the Florida State College for Women — now known as Florida State University — in 1947, and didn't resume taking classes until 1995, when she enrolled at Indian River Community College in Stuart.
She had no computer skills and had never read a William Shakespeare play. Now she's a literature graduate, one who got mostly A's at USF.
Strickland said she always had wanted to complete her degree and decided to make those plans a reality after her husband, Lantis, died.
"When he passed away, I wanted something to do to pass the time," she said. "I decided then it was time to go back."
21:53 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Boy, 7, Accused of His Second Car TheftStrange News - AP
Boy, 7, Accused of His Second Car Theft
Wed Dec 18, 9:36 AM ET
MINNEAPOLIS - Authorities were trying to determine what to do about a 7-year-old Minneapolis boy who stole a car, drove around for a while and crashed — not just once, but twice.
Around 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, the boy drove a stolen car in reverse and smashed it into another car in the Powderhorn Neighborhood, slightly injuring a 10-year-old boy riding with his mother and younger sister in the other car, police said.
"He did it again? I can't believe it," said Debra Taylor, whose 1992 Jeep Cherokee was taken by the boy the first time, on Dec. 6. "Something needs to be done. This is the beginning of trouble in his life."
Authorities said they were considering filing a report with county officials to determine whether the boy should be removed from his home. In Minnesota, children younger than 10 cannot be charged with a crime.
On Tuesday, officers arrived at the crash before the car had been reported stolen, according to police reports. Owner Laura Torres said she had just stepped out to start her car and warm it up. No more than three minutes later, it was gone. The car was flanked in front and back by other vehicles, she said.
Sandra Howard, who was driving the car the boy smashed into, said all she saw was a blue car coming her way.
"I kept beeping my horn but it just kept coming," she said. "That boy was going backwards so fast that if I had been someone walking, I would have been dead now."
The boy, whose name was not released, was taken to St. Joseph's Home for Children.
After the Dec. 6 crash, he told officers: "I just had to get to school and I don't know where it is."
21:52 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Feds Seek to Identify People by OdorStrange News - AP
Feds Seek to Identify People by Odor
Thu Dec 19, 8:27 AM ET
The Pentagon wants to sniff out fugitives - literally.
The federal agency that created the Internet now challenges scientists to create a detector that could identify people by their unique, genetically determined odor.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency said this week that it's offering $3.2 million next year to find out if it's even possible. Proposals are due Jan. 29.
Researchers have shown that mice release a urinary odor that is genetically unique, DARPA says. It's based on the combination of acids found in varying concentrations.
So if it's possible to detect an individual mouse, why not a human by the smell of his or her urine or sweat?
If scientists can prove that it works within two and a half years, DARPA wants to build a prototype within six years, spokeswoman Jan Walker said.
Such a detector would essentially allow on-the-fly DNA identification, measuring and collecting yet another biometric, or identifying characteristic of the human body, Walker said.
Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists, a Washington group that circulated news of DARPA's proposal, warns that such a detector — if it were ever built — might be confused by myriad and changing odors that people exude.
"It would be like trying to detect an individual's fingerprints through a pair of gloves," Aftergood said.
The smeller isn't DARPA's first attempt at artificial nose. The unit's Dog's Nose Program works on sensors to detect the TNT in buried land mines without risking the lives of sniffer dogs.
_Jim Krane, AP technology writer
21:50 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Accused of Stealing a Police CarStrange News - AP
Man Accused of Stealing a Police Car
Fri Dec 20, 9:55 AM ET
MISHAWAKA, Indiana - A man accused of stealing a police car from an officer who was pursuing him has been arrested.
Authorities said a police officer was pursuing a van Dec. 9 following a reported burglary when the driver bailed out near a church.
When the officer left his car and chased the man on foot, he circled around the church and stole the squad car, authorities said.
The officer had left the keys in the ignition and the engine was running, said North Liberty police Chief Steve Michael.
The man fled at speeds over 100 mph (160 kph) and again eluded pursuit.
Investigators believe the man then broke into a house and called for a cab, but the dispatcher became suspicious and called police.
Police went to the home and surrounded it after finding the squad car in the garage. But the man was no longer there when officers entered the house.
Investigators believe he fled on a bicycle that was later found outside a YMCA.
Timothy Hurley, 35, of South Bend, was arrested Saturday in a mobile home park in Mishawaka after a woman reported a suspicious vehicle to police.
Hurley was being held without bond Tuesday on charges of trespassing and resisting law enforcement. He was expected to face burglary and other charges in LaPorte County.
21:47 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Thief Returns Jewelry After 34 YearsAP - Feature Stories
Thief Returns Jewelry After 34 Years
Fri Dec 20, 9:44 AM ET
LINCOLN, Nebraska - A thief with a conscience mailed back a gold wedding band and earrings to the jewelry store where he or she stole them 34 years ago.
A letter to Sartor Hamann Jewelry accompanied the traditional woman's wedding band and a pair of pearl earrings with gold posts, tiny diamonds and dangling pearls.
"Enclosed are two items that I stole from you in 1968. I'm very sorry and I should not have taken your property," it said. "The pieces belong to you NOT me. I was wrong and I want to apologize for my actions."
Store owner Don Hamann said the letter that arrived Tuesday did not have a signature. The only telltale sign was a Boys Town, Nebraska, postmark.
"It's kind of interesting," Hamann said. "What must have gone through the person's mind after what, 34 years?"
The package provided few clues. The 18-karat gold ring appeared worn even though it had been polished, he said.
The earrings on close examination appeared to be costume jewelry, a brand the store normally wouldn't carry.
It was the first time Hamann could remember a stolen item being returned voluntarily.
21:45 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Bites Into Bat BurgerAP - Feature Stories
Man Bites Into Bat Burger
Fri Dec 20, 9:53 AM ET
JACKSON, Tenn. - What would you like on your burger? Lettuce? Mayo? Pickles?
Perhaps some bat?
A Lexington teenager faces up to six years behind bars for placing a dead bat on a bun as a joke and giving it to a man who took a bite, thinking it was a burger, police said.
The girl, whose identity is being withheld because she is a juvenile, will be charged with violating a new law that prohibits tampering with someone's food and giving it as a gift, according to Lexington Police Investigator Donna Hetherington.
"It appears to be a practical joke that went very bad. She just wasn't using a whole lot of common sense," Hetherington said Thursday.
Timothy Gooch, 21, went to a local hospital's emergency room after biting into the bat Tuesday night. He was not injured and the bat tested negative for rabies, state Health Department spokeswoman Diane Denton said Thursday.
Hetherington said the bat had been killed when someone ran over it and that the teen had never seen one before. "She thought this would be funny, but it wasn't," Hetherington said.
21:43 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Jailed for Smuggling Monkeys in PantsOddly Enough - Reuters
Man Jailed for Smuggling Monkeys in Pants
Fri Dec 20,10:37 AM
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Customs officials opened his suitcase and a bird of paradise flew out but that was nothing compared to what they found in his pants -- a pair of pygmy monkeys.
Californian Robert Cusack has been sentenced to 57 days in jail for trying to smuggle the monkeys, a total of four exotic birds and 50 rare orchids into Los Angeles Airport after a trip to Thailand, officials said on Thursday.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Johns said Cusack had been undergoing a routine inspection when he arrived last June until an official opened his suitcase.
"It became non-routine when they opened his luggage and a bird of paradise took off flying in the terminal," Johns said.
Johns said the agents found three more birds in his bag, tucked into nylon stockings, along with 50 orchids of a threatened species.
Asked by agents if he had anything else to tell them, Cusack responded: "Yes, I've got monkeys in my pants."
Though Cusack told authorities that he was a concerned environmentalist who had purchased the animals in Jakarta, Indonesia and was taking them to a Costa Rica wildlife sanctuary. He was arrested on smuggling charges.
Johns said that because the monkeys are listed as a threatened and endangered species in the United States, they cannot be brought into the country without special permits that are typically granted to zoos and not individuals.
21:42 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Airport Alert for Lost Cat!Oddly Enough - Reuters
Airport Alert for Lost Cat!
Fri Dec 20,10:41 AM ET
CAIRO (Reuters) - Airports may be used to announcing "last calls" for passengers browsing too long in duty-free, but it's trickier when the missing passenger happens to be a cat.
American tourist Cathryn Chartez was so devoted to her brown and white cat she took it on holiday to Egypt.
But as she prepared to board a flight home from Cairo airport two months ago the cat ran away, airport sources said.
The distraught Chartez enlisted the help of Egyptian tourist police at the airport to hunt for the animal.
Adverts were posted and several cats investigated without any positive identification. Five days ago Chartez returned to Egypt to step up the search.
Her efforts proved not to have been in vain on Friday when an electrical worker in Terminal II found a cat sheltering from this winter's first heavy downpour and notified the tourist police.
The worker declined to accept a 500 pounds ($110) reward from the grateful owner after she was finally reunited with her pet. Both are scheduled to depart for the United States on Saturday.
21:40 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Who Tossed Dog Out of High-Rise Is SentencedOddly Enough - Reuters
Man Who Tossed Dog Out of High-Rise Is Sentenced
Fri Dec 20,10:43 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for robbery, burglary and throwing his ex-girlfriend's dog out a 23rd floor window.
John Jefferson, 43, pleaded guilty this month to aggravated cruelty to animals, robbery, burglary, criminal contempt and stalking his former girlfriend, whose dog, a terrier-poodle mix named Ribsy, he killed in a rage on May 26.
Ribsy's owner, Eugenia Miller, tearfully defended Jefferson in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, saying he loved her dog but had been "very, very high" on crack after a two-day binge.
"Ribsy is safe. I can't look at it any other way than that. He's in a place that I hope to be in one day," she told Judge James Yates.
During his rampage in Miller's apartment in downtown Manhattan, Jefferson threw her television, air conditioner, stereo and clothing off the balcony before tossing the dog to his death.
Two years of Jefferson's 12-year sentence were for killing the dog, the judge said, with the rest for robbery, burglary, stalking and contempt of court.
Had Jefferson been convicted at trial, he faced up to 25 years in prison on all charges.
21:39 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Photo Shop Thieves Forget Holiday PicturesOddly Enough - Reuters
Photo Shop Thieves Forget Holiday Pictures
Fri Dec 20,10:47 AM ET
VIENNA (Reuters) - Two men stole a digital camera from a Vienna photo shop, but in their haste to flee the crime scene forgot to take their holiday photos with them.
The pair entered the shop to pick up their holiday pictures, but seized the opportunity to acquire an expensive camera. While one man distracted the salesperson, the other pocketed the loot.
"The men ran but left their pictures behind, which made it easy for the victim to identify the suspects," an investigator told the Kronen Zeitung newspaper.
19:46 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Airport scanner reveals cause of tummy troublesOddly Enough - Reuters UK
Airport scanner reveals cause of tummy troubles
Mon Dec 16, 1:45 PM ET
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - It took an airport metal detector to give a Canadian woman a clue to why she was suffering from persistent stomach aches four months after having abdominal surgery.
Despite the detector's beep, airport security guards in Regina, Saskatchewan, were unable to find any metal on her body before the woman's October flight to Calgary, Alberta.
Several days later the woman had an X-ray.
It showed a 30-centimeter (11.7-inch) long, 5 cm wide surgical retractor, used to hold incisions open, had been left in her abdomen after surgery four months earlier at the Regina General Hospital.
The woman now wants compensation from the surgeon and the hospital, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported on Monday.
"I would think that it would be an understatement to say surprise, probably more like horror, that this surgical device was left inside her abdominal cavity," the woman's lawyer, Jeff Scott, told the CBC.
After surgery, medical staff are required to account for each piece of equipment used, said an official from the Regina health authority, which oversees the hospital.
"Systems are never perfect and, as always, we strive to do the best we can," Brian Laursen, the senior vice-president of the health authority, told the CBC.
"But inevitably, in any system, there tends to be the occasional failure," he said.
The woman had surgery to remove the retractor a day after her X-ray. She told the CBC she is still in pain.
19:44 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - 'Santa' Steals Painkiller From Drug StoreStrange News - AP
'Santa' Steals Painkiller From Drug Store
Mon Dec 16, 8:01 AM ET
CHESTER, Va. - Police are looking for a man with a familiar description who robbed a drug store at gunpoint: long white hair and beard, a white-fur-trimmed red suit and hat, black boots, prominent belly.
Police Capt. Mike Spraker said the Santa Claus lookalike obtained an undisclosed amount of the painkiller OxyContin from the Eckerd Drug Store in Chester on Saturday night.
"An individual dressed as Santa — beard, hat, the whole works — just walked to the back of the store to the pharmacist, displayed his weapon and asked for the OxyContin," he said.
Spraker said the robber fled on foot. A canine unit tracked his trail to the parking lot of a nearby apartment complex, where police believe he got into a car and drove away.
"No reindeer or sleds were observed in the area," said Spraker, who said he wanted any children hearing about the incident to know "we immediately contacted the North Pole and verified Santa was there. This Santa was definitely an impostor."
19:41 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Christmas Reindeer Loses, Uh, Its OrnamentsOddly Enough - Reuters
Christmas Reindeer Loses, Uh, Its Ornaments
Fri Dec 13,11:02 AM ET
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (Reuters) - A star reindeer in a South African shopping mall's Christmas display lost a little of its seasonal pride and joy after complaints from shoppers.
Managers at one of Cape Town's upscale malls, "castrated" the plastic animal after receiving complaints about shiny golden Christmas tree ornaments hanging between its hind legs, officials said Thursday.
Hein Conradie, a spokesman for the company which made the display, told the Cape Argus newspaper that the ornaments were "anatomically correct for an animal of that size" and were prominent because of the reindeer's central position in the display.
"Generally, we find it wiser to use sexless reindeer," Conradie said.
19:39 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - College Sets Speed Limit for WheelchairsAP - Feature Stories
College Sets Speed Limit for Wheelchairs
Mon Dec 16, 7:24 AM ET
LOS ANGELES - or worse, expelled — for speeding at Valley College.
Campus officials recently set a speed limit of 4 mph for wheelchairs, hoping to keep pedestrians from being hurt.
"It's a safety issue, pure and simple," said Tom Jacobsmeyer, vice president of administration, who proposed the regulation after seeing a student nearly hit by a woman "going very fast" in a wheelchair.
Some students find the regulation absurd.
"It's like a bad joke," said Lynn Eller, one of several students who use a wheelchair or electric cart on campus. "People who aren't disabled should be warned to be considerate of wheelchair users."
Campus officials said last week they will warn offenders at first, but chronic violators could be cited, suspended or expelled.
19:38 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Puts Obscenity on Traffic Fine CheckMan Puts Obscenity on Traffic Fine Check
Mon Dec 16, 7:32 AM ET
HOWELL, Mich. - A man who used an obscenity on a check he wrote to pay a traffic fine is facing a contempt of court charge.
Eric Wilmoth, 26, of Howell was to appear Monday before 53rd District Court Judge John Pikkarainen on the contempt charge.
Wilmoth wrote the obscenity on the memo line of a check he mailed to the court to pay a traffic fine. That was within his First Amendment rights, said defense lawyer Ron Plunkett of Brighton.
"This is America. I think you can say that," Plunkett told the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus. "Now it's a different thing when you do it in front of a judge."
Plunkett says Wilmoth has not acted disorderly in front of any judge or even been in the presence of one for this case before he was held in contempt.
It is unknown how Pikkarainen discovered the check. His secretary said the judge would not comment because the case is pending.
When checks to pay traffic fines are mailed to the Livingston County Courts, they can go through a number of different hands, including the 53rd District Court administrator and the county clerk's office, according to district court Deputy Clerk Diane Livingston.
Any check drawing attention can be sent to the court administrator or the court's chief judge — Pikkarainen. Whoever noticed Wilmoth's check probably did not have a hard time seeing its comments.
Wilmoth "highlighted that with a yellow marker," Plunkett said.
According to Plunkett, Wilmoth accidentally backed into someone in Howell on Sept. 25.
Police ticketed him for improper backing.
Wilmoth contested the ticket in October in an informal hearing before Livingston County Magistrate Brian Brown. Plunkett said Wilmoth acted calmly with Brown and the officer even though Brown ruled against him.
"He regrets having written it," Plunkett said. "He'll apologize to the court. But at that time he was upset with the court."
19:36 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - One Dead, 9 Hurt in Blast from Banana GasOddly Enough - Reuters
One Dead, 9 Hurt in Blast from Banana Gas
Mon Dec 16,10:40 AM ET
ANKARA (Reuters) - A man was killed and nine people were injured on Saturday when gas used to artificially ripen fruit exploded in a Turkish market, police said.
Erbil Esmer, 36, was killed while shopping for bananas at a fruit wholesaler in the northwestern city of Balikesir, a policewoman said.
"A spark caused the gas used to (ripen) bananas ... to explode," she said.
Nine people were treated in hospital for injuries from the strong explosion, she said. Several buildings and vehicles outside the market were damaged.
00:32 Posted by David
00:26 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - City Sells Parking Meters for $50 EachStrange News - AP
City Sells Parking Meters for $50 Each
Thu Dec 12,12:15 PM ET
MERRILL, Wis. (AP) - Looking to raise some pocket change?
The city of Merrill is selling more than 400 parking meters for $50 each. The city council voted in October to remove them from downtown streets because of complaints that they deterred shoppers.
More than 100 meters have been sold, Mayor Doug Williams said.
He said people have put them in basements or dens, and that one man put a meter in his driveway — where his in-laws park.
00:25 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Calif. Man Wins Two Lotteries in One DayStrange News - AP
Calif. Man Wins Two Lotteries in One Day
Fri Dec 13,10:04 AM ET
BELMONT, California - Angelo Gallina beat the odds and then some.
In a single day, he won the state's $17 million SuperLotto Plus jackpot and the $126,000 Fantasy 5 top prize.
"I think I'll eat cake," Gallina told lottery officials after his Nov. 20 wins. He said he would also buy a new car and a home for his grown children.
State lottery officials put the odds for the SuperLotto contest win at 1-in-41 million. The odds of winning the separate Fantasy 5 contest were 1-in-575,000.
Figuring out the odds of one person winning both draws on the same day requires a calculator and lots of zeros.
"One in 23 trillion," said Mike Orkin, a professor of statistics at California State University at Hayward, who arrived at the number by multiplying 41 million by 575,000.
00:23 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - DUI Charges Dismissed After Blood Mix-UpStrange News - AP
DUI Charges Dismissed After Blood Mix-Up
Sun Dec 15,12:05 PM ET
LOS ANGELES - A judge dismissed drunken driving charges against a 20-year-old college student after DNA testing paid for by the young man's parents showed police had used the wrong blood sample.
The Los Angeles Police Department has also launched an investigation into the mix-up, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.
The case began when Nick Bergamo was arrested May 25 on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. When blood test results came back they indicated Bergamo's blood alcohol level was nearly twice the legal limit.
Bergamo disputed the results, hired a lawyer and paid $1,200 for DNA testing, an unusual step in alcohol-related court cases.
The DNA test showed the blood sample wasn't his, and the judge dismissed the charges earlier this month.
"I was floored," said attorney Lane Scherer. "A mistake like this is a big, big deal."
The implications could extend beyond Bergamo's case, since blood is typically tested in batches, Scherer said. The same police department has faced questions of its handling of blood evidence before, including during the O.J. Simpson's murder trial.
Scherer declined to say whether Bergamo, a student at Loyola Marymount University, had been drinking, which would have been illegal since he is under the legal drinking age.
The new LAPD probe will include retesting Bergamo's blood sample at a private DNA lab to ensure the DNA test results were correct.
00:19 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Mass. Waitress Gets $10,000 TipAP - Feature Stories
Mass. Waitress Gets $10,000 Tip
Sun Dec 15,12:11 PM ET
QUINCY, Mass. - Waitress Sarah Nilsen got an early Christmas present in the mail this week: A $10,000 tip from one of her regular customers.
The check, made out to Nilsen's 11-month-old son, came from an older widower who patronizes the Newcomb Farms restaurant, where Nilsen, 22, waits tables twice a week.
The man, whom Nilsen would not identify, sits at the same table and orders the same meal every Wednesday.
Nilsen, who also works full-time at an insurance agency, said she's been talking to the man about her son Andrew since he visited the restaurant with her when he was 3 months old.
This past Wednesday, Nilsen and her customer had more reason than usual to talk.
"I said, 'I don't know how I can thank you,'" Nilson recalled, according to The Patriot Ledger of Quincy.
His reply: "I just wanted to do something for you."
Nilsen and her husband, Jeffrey, plan to put the money in Andrew's college savings account. She says she's sure Andrew will meet his benefactor at the restaurant many times.
00:15 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Buyer Pays $485 a Word for Potter PlotOddly Enough - Reuters
Buyer Pays $485 a Word for Potter Plot
Fri Dec 13,10:57 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A private U.S. buyer coughed up $485 a word for a 93-word synopsis of the yet-to-be completed fifth book about wizard boy wonder Harry Potter.
"It was sold to a telephone bidder from America for 28,680 pounds ($45,180)," a spokesman for auction house Sotheby's told Reuters.
The final price for the collection of random words giving a tantalizing glimpse into the plot of "Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix" was nearly five times the pre-sale estimate of up to $9,500.
J.K.Rowling, the author of the world's most popular children's books, offered the teaser for sale Thursday to raise funds for Book Aid International.
The actual content of the plot preview will remain the secret of the buyer who bought it sight unseen -- although Sotheby's did release a selection of the chosen words as a taster before the auction.
"Thirty-eight chapters ... might change ... longest volume ... Ron ... broom ... sacked ... house-elf ... new teacher ... dies ... sorry," were obviously more than enough to generate vigorous bidding as Potter mania continues to sweep the globe.
00:14 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Villagers Armed to Fend Off Plundering PigsOddly Enough - Reuters
Villagers Armed to Fend Off Plundering Pigs
Fri Dec 13,11:00 AM ET
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Hungry wild pigs rampaged through Turkish villages on Friday pillaging crops and gardens as they sought food and refuge from fierce weather conditions sweeping through the country's northeast.
The Anatolian news agency quoted local officials as saying ammunition had been distributed to villagers to fend off the swine invasion after hundreds of the animals damaged crops in settlements in the Black Sea province of Giresun.
"The villagers can fight against the wild pigs with an organized hunt. They can be hunted 12 months of the year," Sedat Damci, head of a local hunting association, told the agency.
Muslim Turkey has a large population of wild boars. Despite Islam's strict ban on consuming pork, hunting the animals is a popular sport throughout the country's rural areas.
00:13 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Police Fight Right to Bare ButtocksOddly Enough - Reuters
Police Fight Right to Bare Buttocks
Fri Dec 13,11:03 AM ET
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police warned on Friday that the law would lose its bite if "mooning" became enshrined as an implied constitutional right.
A lawyer for defendant James Albert Ernest Togo, 20, told a court in the eastern state of Queensland last month that his client was exercising his right to protest and was not guilty of indecency when he bared his buttocks at a police car last August.
But police prosecutor Senior Sergeant Michael Purcell said Friday that argument was bogus and dangerous.
Purcell told the court he could not imagine naked buttocks replacing the kangaroo and emu on Australia's Coat of Arms.
"How can the action of someone dropping their pants and exposing their buttocks become public comment or a political protest?" he asked, the Australian Associated Press reported.
"If we allowed everyone who wanted to drop their pants and moon police officers, we are undermining the authority of the police."
The case continues.
01:51 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Texan Killed Friend Who Drank Last Cold BeerOddly Enough - Reuters
Texan Killed Friend Who Drank Last Cold Beer
Fri Dec 6,10:15 AM ET
BANDERA, Texas (Reuters) - A jury on Thursday handed a life prison sentence to a Texas man who shot and killed a longtime friend he accused of drinking the last beer in his refrigerator.
Jurors deliberated for less than two hours before passing the sentence on Steven Brasher, 42, for the murder of Willie Lawson, 39, on Nov. 5 last year.
"There was only two beers left, so I took one, and I told Willie not to take my last beer," Brasher said in a taped statement that was played during the trial.
Testimony showed Brasher shot Lawson in the head with a pistol after the two began arguing over the missing beer. Brasher maintained the shooting was an accident.
01:49 Posted by David
NY Daily News - Local - 1st-grader sends 3 to hospital1st-grader sends 3 to hospital
A Bronx first-grader went berserk and tore up his classroom yesterday, tossing a chair and sending two teachers and a social worker to the hospital, school officials said.
The rampage began after the 6-year-old at Public School 18 in Mott Haven suddenly tried to throttle another student in his class, witnesses said.
Two teachers and a social worker who was in the classroom to observe the troubled boy pulled the enraged student off his classmate.
The boy then picked up a chair and whacked the social worker in the head. After he hit one of the teachers in the arm, the three adults finally managed to wrestle the boy to the floor.
The 6-year-old already had attacked two students this year, sources in the school said.
The student was sent for a psychiatric evaluation. He also faces a three-day suspension and transfer to a special education program, school officials said.
The adults were taken to nearby Lincoln Hospital, where the social worker was treated for a head gash that took three staples to close. One teacher was treated for the injured arm. The second teacher, upset by the incident, was treated for nausea, school officials said.
Alison Gendar
Originally published on December 7, 2002
01:47 Posted by David
Click the link below to read the whole story
The Guardian | Fake plastic surgeon wreaks havoc in Mexico'She said she'd make us look like Barbie dolls'
Hundreds of Mexican women have been scarred for life by a stripper who, posing as a plastic surgeon, injected them with window sealant and motor oil. Jo Tuckman reports
Monday December 9, 2002
01:14 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - 6-Year-Old's Birthday Party Held at DumpStrange News - AP
6-Year-Old's Birthday Party Held at Dump
Mon Dec 9, 7:55 AM ET
LOS ANGELES - When 6-year-old Michael Wong-Sasso grows up, he wants to be a trash collector.
So naturally, he wanted to have his birthday party at the local dump.
About 40 children and their parents gathered Saturday at the Sunshine Canyon Landfill to celebrate Michael's seventh birthday.
"I like the big trucks," he said. "I like putting trash where it belongs. I like making the world cleaner."
For safety and sanitary reasons, the party was held in a small valley on the landfill's outskirts, away from bulldozers and strange smells. The partygoers were surrounded by scores of potted trees, which are used to landscape the landfill.
The children fashioned flour-dough animals with the help of recycled materials such as cardboard and colored paper and frolicked on a big pile of "clean" dirt, playing with toy backhoes and earthmovers.
"We don't know where this interest in trash came from," said Michael's mother Sophia Wong. "He's been this way since he was 2."
Having a party at a dump is "definitely different," said Scott Krause, who brought his 6-year-old son, Trevor.
"It's not like you're saying, `Oh no, not another birthday at the landfill,'" Krause said. "I mean, how many times can you go to Chuck E. Cheese's?"
01:12 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Santa Clarita Tree-Sitter Breaks MolarStrange News - AP
Santa Clarita Tree-Sitter Breaks Molar
Mon Dec 9,11:51 PM ET
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (AP) - The tree-sitter who's lived in an old oak tree for 39 days saw a dentist Monday who shimmied up his tree and put a temporary cap on a molar he broke eating an energy bar.
"Instead of a house call this is a tree call," said Dr. Ana Michel as she stood near the oak prior to John Quigley's appointment.
Quigley perches 46 feet up in the tree he's trying to save from a developer's road-widening project. Michel met Quigley at a section of tree that provided a level setting for a dental consultation.
Quigley broke the upper left molar last week. Michel said she couldn't install a permanent crown while in the tree. Instead she applied a sedative substance that hardened over the break and soothed the pain.
Afterward, Quigley said, "It feels a lot better."
Los Angeles County has called for the oak to be uprooted so Pico Canyon Road can be widened from two lanes to four to accommodate future development west of Santa Clarita.
The tree was originally going to be cut down. Protests led to a plan to move it, but Quigley and other activists don't think it would survive relocation. Quigley said discussions with the developer, John Laing Homes, were proceeding positively.
01:10 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Burglary Suspect Said to Steal Cop CarStrange News - AP
Burglary Suspect Said to Steal Cop Car
Wed Dec 11, 8:57 AM ET
LAPORTE, Ind. (AP) - A burglary suspect eluded police in northern Indiana by stealing the squad car of one of the officers pursuing him.
Police later found the car in the garage of a LaPorte County home, but there was no one in the house.
"We're just trying to regroup and find out where this guy went," said Police Chief Walter Brath.
Authorities said a North Liberty police officer was pursuing the man's van Monday following a reported burglary in St. Joseph County when the man bailed out near a church.
When the officer left his car to chase the man on foot, the suspect circled around the church and stole the squad car, authorities said.
The officer had left the keys in the ignition and the engine was running, said North Liberty police Chief Steve Michael.
The man fled into LaPorte County at speeds over 100 mph and again eluded pursuit.
Investigators believe the man then broke into a home in LaPorte and called for a cab, but the dispatcher became suspicious and called police.
Police went to the home and surrounded it after finding the squad car in the garage, but the man was no longer there when officers entered the house.
Authorities said they knew the man's name and would seek an arrest warrant.
01:04 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Boy arrested after stuck in chimneyOddly Enough - UK Reuters
Boy arrested after stuck in chimney
Wed Dec 11, 8:44 PM ET
SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Even Cindy Lou Who wouldn't be fooled by this Grinch.
A 16-year-old boy who apparently spent much of the night stuck in a chimney in the San Diego suburb of San Ysidro was arrested, along with two of his friends, early on Wednesday after firefighters freed him.
Authorities said the boy, whose name was not released, claimed that he had been stargazing on the roof and fell into the chimney with a clatter.
Police, who apparently suspected him of more Grinch-like motives, were called to the scene at 5 a.m. local time and firefighters were forced to break apart the chimney to get him out. The boy was unhurt.
01:03 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Girl Reportedly Gives Teacher Marijuana U.S. National - AP
Girl Reportedly Gives Teacher Marijuana
Wed Dec 11, 9:21 AM ET
HOLYOKE, Mass. (AP) - The Department of Social Services is looking into a possible case of child abuse after a 4-year-old girl brought her teacher a small bag of marijuana as a gift.
When Head Start Early Childhood Center teacher Iris Galvez asked where she got the gift Monday, the girl said she got it "from her mommy," according to a police report obtained by the Union-News of Springfield.
The girl's mother, Shelin Colon, 32, said she doesn't have any drugs in the house and doesn't know where the girl might have gotten the marijuana, police said.
No charges have been filed.
A report of suspected child abuse or neglect has been filed with Social Services, a department spokesman said.
Suzanne L. Parker, deputy director of the area Head Start program, declined to comment.
01:02 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Messy Car Helps Man Survive SnowU.S. National - AP
Messy Car Helps Man Survive Snow
Wed Dec 11,10:51 AM ET
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) - For once, Calista Endicott was thankful her brother Robert Ward kept a messy car.
Assorted food packets, a peanut butter jar and other items are being credited for Ward's surviving six and a half days trapped in subfreezing weather after he crashed his car last week. A broken hip suffered in the accident prevented him from climbing out of the vehicle.
"Thank God I have a messy brother," Endicott said Wednesday on ABC's "Good Morning America."
The 32-year-old from Kermit, east of the Kentucky line, was found Sunday by rescuers who heard his cries for help.
"I ... had some hallucinations. I thought I had been rescued earlier," he said.
Ward said he wasn't "worried too much about food at first. I had some Border sauce that you get from Taco Bell. I like that stuff anyway."
His car landed at the bottom of a 150-foot ravine after he lost control of it Dec. 2 while heading to work as a coal mine security guard.
"It really is a miracle that he survived," said Dr. William Beam. "He was starting to go into organ failure."
Ward also suffered frostbite and a cut. He was in serious condition Wednesday in the intensive care unit of a Huntington hospital.
00:58 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Snow Machine Slip Whites Out HighwayOddly Enough - Reuters
Snow Machine Slip Whites Out Highway
Wed Dec 11,10:14 AM ET
VIENNA (Reuters) - An Austrian ski club transformed a generous stretch of Austrian highway into a formidable ski run on Wednesday when the wind blew its artificial snow off course.
The club was using its snow machine near one of Austria's busiest motorways, the A1 Westautobahn, close to the German border, the Austrian auto association ARBOe said.
The man-made snow drifts and ice patches resulted in hour-long delays for drivers near the Alpine city of Salzburg.
00:57 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Vicar Slays Santa, Shocks ChildrenOddly Enough - Reuters
Vicar Slays Santa, Shocks Children
Wed Dec 11,10:17 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A British vicar reduced young children to tears and stunned their parents when he said Santa Claus and his reindeer would burn to a crisp while delivering presents at supersonic speed.
Stand-in vicar Lee Rayfield shattered the illusions of dozens of kids when he joked in his carol service sermon that Santa and his reindeer would burn up doing 3,000 times the speed of sound as they delivered gifts to 91.8 million homes.
"I am mortified and appreciate that I have put some parents in a difficult position with a lot of explaining to do," Rayfield told Wednesday's Daily Telegraph. "I love Christmas."
Newspapers said many children at the school service at St Mary's Church in Maidenhead, west of London, were distraught when Rayfield pointed out that it was logically impossible for one man and his sleigh to deliver 378 million presents in just 31 hours.
"There were a lot of children there who still believe in Santa Claus, or did so until last night," Sue Smee, who attended the service with her five- and nine-year-old sons, told the Daily Mirror. "It has left us parents with a lot of explaining to do today," she added.
23:20 Posted by David
TheLouisvilleChannel.com - News - Police: Man Breaks Into Homes, Surfs Porn SitesPolice: Man Breaks Into Homes, Surfs Porn Sites
Man Apparently Uses PCs To Buy Porn Site Memberships
POSTED: 6:11 p.m. EST November 29, 2002
GILLETTE, Wyo. -- Some folks in Gillette, Wyo., got a surprise when their computers started logging on to porn sites.
It's not a case of cyber-possession. Rather, it's a case of breaking and entering.
Gillette police say they're looking for a burglar who's been breaking into homes. Apparently, the perpetrator is just using the homeowners' personal computers to surf pornographic Web sites.
In some cases the crook also used stolen checks to buy memberships in the porn sites. The owners only discovered the break-ins after the computer settings were changed to automatically log on to the Web pages.
23:18 Posted by David
Man beats elderly woman, pours fire ants on her Man beats elderly woman, pours fire ants on her
Associated Press
Dec. 3, 2002 12:30 PM
MACON, Ga. - A man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for severely beating his girlfriend's grandmother, pouring fire ants on her and stealing $300 and her car.
Pearsall Leroy Gerald, 19, was sentenced Monday after pleading guilty to aggravated assault and other charges.
Gerald told police he attacked the 62-year-old woman on June 12 because he hated her and because he needed money to pay off a debt to a drug dealer, prosecutor Elizabeth Bobbitt said. The victim was beaten with a 4-foot stick and kicked repeatedly in the face.
"Her face was not even recognizable," Bobbitt said. "It looked like raw meat."
23:13 Posted by David
Italian found dead in wall after suicide decades ago
PRINT EDITION
Wednesday, December 4, 2002 – Page A17
MILAN, ITALY -- An Italian man who packed his bags 44 years ago and told friends he was leaving for the United States was found dead inside one of the walls of his home yesterday.
An American who recently bought the house near Lucca, in northern Tuscany, discovered the body when she was doing renovations, police said.
Inside a thick wall in the cellar she found human remains, two packed suitcases, a trowel and other equipment to make a wall, a rusted rifle and a suicide note.
The note, on paper headed with the name Nemo Cianelli, explained that the man had discovered he had an incurable disease and had decided to kill himself. He said he had invented the tale of going abroad to avoid upsetting his family.
In 1958, local newspapers reported that Mr. Cianelli was missing, and speculated that he might have gone to the United States, but after a period of rumour and mystery, the story was forgotten.
Police said it appeared Mr. Cianelli packed his suitcases, wrote the note, built a wall up around himself and shot himself. Reuters
23:11 Posted by David
The Ledger: Lakeland, Polk County, FloridaPublished Tuesday, December 3, 2002
Murder Defendant Barred After Bizarre Jail Behavior
By Jeff Scullin
The Ledger
jscullin@mindspring.com
BARTOW -- After Lance Sheffield smeared himself and a jail cell with his own feces before the start of his murder trial Monday, Polk Circuit Judge Charles Brown barred him from the courtroom, ruling that he had, effectively, waived his right to be present.
Brown said Sheffield, 21, was welcome in the courtroom whenever he was ready to behave himself.
Sheffield's actions, Brown said, were the latest in a series of antics aimed at delaying his trial.
He rejected the suggestion of Sheffield's attorney, Assistant Public Defender Mel McKinley, that Sheffield is mentally incompetent to stand trial.
Authorities have charged Sheffield in the April 2000 shooting death of Victor Hood, a 53-year-old Amtrak employee who died during a robbery attempt outside a Winter Haven bar.
Sheffield faces life in prison if convicted.
Friday, Brown denied Sheffield's request to dismiss the Public Defender's Office as his legal counsel.
The judge committed Sheffield to a state mental hospital in February after he defecated on a holding cell floor, threw feces at several bailiffs and corrections officers, spat on his attorney's lapel and yelled at an imaginary co-defendant.
In January, Sheffield's trial was delayed after he threw water on his attorneys and banged on the holding cell walls so loudly that it disturbed proceedings in nearby courtrooms.
Jury selection in Sheffield's trial is scheduled to continue today.
18:24 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Police: Man Steals to Clear His RecordStrange News - AP
Police: Man Steals to Clear His Record
Wed Dec 4, 9:01 AM ET
SCRANTON, Pa. - A man charged with theft didn't have the money to pay for a rehabilitation program that would clear his criminal record, so he stole a courthouse computer to pawn off, police said.
Police said Ernesto Valdez, 32, arrived Monday at the Lackawanna County Courthouse to enroll in the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program, which expunges the criminal record of first-time offenders.
Valdez did not have the $685 enrollment fee, so he stole a court stenographer's laptop computer to pawn, according to police.
The pawn shop refused to take the computer because the power cord was missing, so Valdez returned to the courthouse to retrieve it, police said. He was arrested after a stenographer spotted him in the office with a wire dangling from his pocket, police said.
Valdez appeared before Judge Trish Corbett twice Monday — first she accepted him into the rehabilitation program, and later she revoked his bail and ordered him to the county prison.
Valdez had been accepted into the program after being charged in connection with theft of stereos from several cars in Scranton in June.
18:23 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Where the Streets Are Paved With...Beer?Strange News - AP
Where the Streets Are Paved With...Beer?
Thu Dec 5, 8:04 AM ET
DAVENPORT, Iowa - Ice-cold beer was flowing in a Davenport neighborhood, but it was on a city street and heading for the city's storm sewers, police said.
A beer delivery truck driver was ticketed after his trailer smacked into a low-clearance bridge Tuesday.
The accident ripped off the top of the Budweiser truck's trailer, collapsing the trailer and spilling beer onto the street.
The driver, from Dubuque, was ticketed for disobeying a traffic sign that warns of the 11-foot bridge, police said.
It's the ninth time a truck has struck the bridge since Jan. 2001, authorities said.
Crews spent most of the day cleaning up the accident that left beer trickling toward a storm sewer and frozen on the city street, police said.
18:21 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Women to Bare It All for RainOddly Enough - Reuters
Women to Bare It All for Rain
Wed Dec 4,10:59 AM ET
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Hundreds of women from drought-ravaged southern Australia plan to bare it all to the heavens in a bid to make it rain.
Inspired by a Nepalese drought-breaking tradition, the women from Ouyen in the far northwest of Victoria state will carry out a naked rain dance in the barren outback in early March, just ahead of the planting season for the next crop.
"We'll invite all the families from all the communities around in the Mallee (region) who are suffering from the drought, we'll all get together and have food and entertainment all day," said organizer Lynne Healy of the Ouyen Inc community group.
"And the women will get on buses and discreetly go out to a secret location and we will do our dance or our whatever," Healy told Reuters on Wednesday.
Unexpected publicity means the rain dance will probably attract many more than the 200 women the organizers originally expected to take part -- but the media will not be invited.
"It'll be totally nude, hence no cameras," Healy said.
18:19 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Mobile Phone Scammers Cut OffOddly Enough - Reuters
Mobile Phone Scammers Cut Off
Wed Dec 4,10:39 AM ET
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese mobile phone con artists had one of their most lucrative ploys disconnected Wednesday.
Parliament passed a bill outlawing the "wan-giri" or "one-ring" scam, which has been jamming phone networks and irritating mobile users for more than a year.
The ruse is simple.
Operators of adult entertainment services make vast numbers of computer-generated calls to random mobile numbers, hanging up after one ring. Users curious enough to call back are played a pornographic message or information about other adult entertainment services, and then sent a hefty bill.
Although there is no legal obligation to pay the charges, which are usually more than $160, many phone users have been frightened into doing so.
Telephone service in the western industrial region of Osaka was brought to a halt twice in July when wan-giri callers made around 3,000 simultaneous calls a minute.
Under the revised law, passed by parliament's Upper House on Wednesday following earlier approval by the Lower House, anyone found to be making mass random calls and hanging up without speaking faces a fine of up to $8,000 or up to a year in prison.
18:16 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Court Says Slippery Shower Is Not CruelAP - Feature Stories
Court Says Slippery Shower Is Not Cruel
Thu Dec 5, 8:16 AM ET
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A former inmate at the Salt Lake County jail has lost an appeal that claimed a slippery shower floor at the jail was so dangerous that it amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.
Stephen Flandro's claim that his Eight Amendment rights were violated when he slipped and fell in the shower was tossed out by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday.
In order for an inmate's constitutional rights regarding cruel and unusual punishment to be violated, the situation would have to pose an excessive risk to health and safety, the court wrote, and jail guards would have to be deliberately indifferent to the danger.
This case didn't measure up, the three-judge appeals panel wrote.
"Slippery shower floors constitute a daily risk faced by the public at large," the ruling says. "Slippery floors do not violate the Eighth Amendment."
18:15 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Students Use E-Mail to Cheat on ExamAP - Feature Stories
Students Use E-Mail to Cheat on Exam
Thu Dec 5, 8:37 AM ET
TOKYO (AP) - A prestigious university in Tokyo has failed 26 students for using e-mail functions on their cell phones to cheat on their e-commerce final exam, a university official said Thursday.
Professors became suspicious when identical answers, mistakes and all, showed up repeatedly on the final, taken by roughly 500 students in July, said Hitotsubashi University Vice President Takehiko Sugiyama.
He said one student is believed to have left the classroom during the exam and e-mailed answers to his classmates using his cell phone. Twenty-six students later admitted to cheating after performing poorly on a makeup exam, Sugiyama said.
The university decided not to suspended the 26, but they were failed on the test, Sugiyama said.
He said it was the first time Hitotsubashi has had to contend with cheating via e-mail.
18:14 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Homeless man found with fortune in pocketsOddly Enough - UK Reuters
Homeless man found with fortune in pockets
Thu Dec 5, 1:50 PM ET
MILAN (Reuters) - It was a rags to riches story at a hospital in northern Italy when a homeless man turned out to be carrying some $30,000 (19,000 pounds) in his pockets.
The 80-year-old bearded man was checked into the psychiatric ward of the hospital three days ago when he was found aimlessly wandering around the city of Como, police told Reuters on Thursday.
The man, apparently without family, had been living in a shelter and on the streets.
But to the hospital staff's surprise, they found 10,000 euros (6,300 pounds) and 40 million lire, equivalent to another 12,700 pounds, in his pockets.
"He said it was his life's savings," the police source said.
But the Bank of Italy has foiled a happy ending, by refusing to exchange the lire, which are no longer in circulation, for the euro currency because the man's identification papers expired 13 years ago.
Under Italian law, currency exchanges can only be carried out with proper identification and in many cases a tax number, which the homeless man does not possess.
18:14 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Jealous Wife Smashes 18 Cars With HammerAP - Feature Stories
Jealous Wife Smashes 18 Cars With Hammer
Thu Dec 5, 8:37 AM ET
SINGAPORE (AP) - A used-car salesman's wife, who suspected her husband of having an affair, smashed 18 cars with a hammer during a five-minute rampage at their Singapore dealership, police said Thursday.
A 34-year-old woman, identified only as Mrs. Tu, bashed in the windscreens of Mercedes, BMWs and Volvos on Tuesday, and also destroyed a computer and telephone, media reported. The damage was estimated at $56,500, Channel NewsAsia reported.
The car dealership is owned by Robin Tu, 37, and his wife, the Straits Times newspaper reported.
Tu believed her husband was cheating on her, but hadn't confronted him. "I hit first, then ask later," she told the newspaper.
Friends told her that her husband had a mistress after he started coming home later than usual last month.
"At first I thought it was just a mistake," Tu said. "But a few days ago, he didn't come home till dawn. When he did it again on Tuesday morning — I snapped."
Police were investigating to determine whether any criminal offense had been committed, spokesman Ang Poon Seng said.
Mrs. Tu said she will file for a divorce and that she felt better after venting her anger. "I slept much better than I had in days," she said. "It is my shop, my cars — I can do what I like to them."
Vandalism normally draws strict punishments in Singapore. American teenager Michael Fay was flogged for spray-painting cars in 1994.
18:13 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Missing toads spark drug probeOddly Enough - UK Reuters
Missing toads spark drug probe
Thu Dec 5, 1:45 PM ET
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch police are investigating whether drug addicts raided a pet shop and stole three exotic toads whose warty skin can induce hallucinations when licked.
The animals were snatched from a pet shop near a drug addicts' centre in the city of Leeuwarden in the northeast of the Netherlands on Wednesday.
"There has been quite a bit of trouble with junkies and there is a drugs crisis centre near the shop, so it is quite possible, naturally we are looking in that direction too," police spokesman Harry Oenema told Reuters.
"They are an exotic kind of toad that secrete a substance. If you lick them you may get a hallucination, comparable with a trip on LSD," he added.
The fist-sized brown cane toads, from the bufo marinus species, are originally from South America and secrete a toxin from glands on their necks and backs as a defence against predators. They have been introduced in Australia to combat a plague of greyback beetles.
Licking the toads can cause side effects like swelling of the tongue and temporary muscle paralysis, according to the pet shop owner.
18:10 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Thieves Steal $2,000 from Christmas TreeOddly Enough - Reuters
Thieves Steal $2,000 from Christmas Tree
Thu Dec 5,11:25 AM ET
OSLO (Reuters) - A Christmas tree decorated with banknotes worth about $2,000 has been stripped by thieves at Oslo's main railway station, police said on Wednesday.
Magne Furuholmen, of Norwegian pop group a-ha, made flowers and stars out of banknotes when he was paid 14,000 Norwegian crowns ($1,930) to decorate a six-foot tree at the station, a popular hang-out for heroin addicts.
Furuholmen, who gained world fame with the a-ha song "Take on Me" and is also an artist, used 50, 100, 200 and 500-crown notes as decorations to symbolize the commercialization of Christmas. He also hung up chains made of five-crown coins.
He shrugged off the widely predicted theft. "There was a distinct possibility that this was going to happen," Furuholmen told NRK public radio.
Asked if he would ask the police to track the thieves, he said: "I don't see it in that way. I see it more that a person has completed the work and taken an incredibly good payment."
Police told Reuters that railway staff had reported the theft on Wednesday.
Furuholmen was paid by Norway's state railways to decorate the tree, but decided to use his artist's fee to create the decorations themselves.
The station is guarded by security cameras, but they do not catch everything as they turn constantly.
18:08 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Sues Doctor Who Left Surgery to Cash CheckOddly Enough - Reuters
Man Sues Doctor Who Left Surgery to Cash Check
Thu Dec 5,11:33 AM ET
BOSTON (Reuters) - A Massachusetts man filed a malpractice lawsuit on Wednesday against the doctor who left him on the operating table midway through spinal surgery to cash a check at a nearby bank.
Charles Algeri said he suffers severe pain in his right leg after orthopedic surgeon David Arndt left him for 35 minutes with an open incision in his back during a spinal fusion procedure at a Boston-area hospital. Algeri's lawyer filed the lawsuit in Suffolk County Superior Court in Boston.
Arndt, whose license to practice medicine was suspended by the state medical board, has acknowledged that he temporarily abandoned Algeri in the operating room during the July 10 operation at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The doctor admitted to a medical board investigator that he had "exercised remarkably horrible judgment" during the surgery, according to a board report released in August.
Arndt explained to the investigator he had been waiting for his paycheck because he had to pay some overdue bills, and had been hoping to finish the surgery before his bank closed for the day.
The procedure took longer than he expected, however, and Arndt decided to make a break for the bank midway through surgery.
Algeri, a Waltham, Massachusetts, resident, opted for the surgery to relieve pain he had been feeling in his left leg and left lower back.
"All of his problems were on his left side. Now he has problems on both sides but much worse on the right side," said Algeri's lawyer, Marc Breakstone.
Algeri is seeking unspecified damages from Arndt, claiming the pain is a result of the doctor's negligence. Breakstone noted that the doctor has $5 million in insurance coverage that could apply to the case.
"He's got $5 million in coverage and the case is worth at least that much," the lawyer told Reuters.
Arndt's lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
18:07 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Suicide Mistaken for Art PerformanceOddly Enough - Reuters
Suicide Mistaken for Art Performance
Thu Dec 5,11:35 AM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - Visitors to a off-beat Berlin arts center thought a dead woman on the ground was a performance art act rather than a suicide, police said on Thursday.
Authorities said the 24-year-old woman, who apparently leapt from a window, discussed suicide in a videotaped interview with a group of artists the day before.
"A group of visitors to the center at first thought the body lying on the ground at the art center was part of an art performance," said police spokeswoman Christine Rother. "It took a while before anyone realized it was not an act but a suicide."
Artists at the Tacheles art center had videotaped the woman the evening before when she told of her suicide plans. They tried to talk her out of it and drove her home, but she returned to the arts workshop later in the evening.
11:06 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Rat Olympics Return to NebraskaStrange News - AP
Rat Olympics Return to Nebraska
Tue Nov 26, 8:10 AM ET
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - 2002 is an Olympic year, if you're a rat. Next week, the Rat Olympics return to the Lincoln campus of Nebraska Wesleyan.
The rodents will be competing in all sorts of Olympic events like track, weight lifting and long jump. Trainers and their rats will be vying for gold, silver and bronze medals.
Psychology Professor Spencer Morrison says training rats is a great way for students to study animal behavior. Morrison adds the spectators will be amazed by the rats' ability and agility.
Competition for the big cheese begins a week from Thursday.
11:05 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Mich. Family Seeks to Secede From TownStrange News - AP
Mich. Family Seeks to Secede From Town
Wed Nov 27, 8:11 AM ET
OMER, Mich. (AP) - A tiny Michigan city may soon get tinier.
Cheryl and Kevin Perry and her parents want to secede from Omer, population 337, and attach to neighboring Arenac Township.
The issue goes to voters in Omer and the township on Dec. 17.
The families say they're tired of paying taxes for water service they don't get. To split from the city, Michigan law requires that voters give their approval.
"We pay city taxes but have absolutely zero benefits from the city," Cheryl Perry said.
"We have no street lights, no sidewalks, no water. Even the city limits sign is posted before you come to our property. Why keep paying for things we don't get?" said Perry, whose lot adjoins her father's.
Omer officials aren't thrilled by the proposed split. But they aren't protesting it.
"What can they say?" said Susan Hegenauer, Omer's clerk. "I think the biggest concern for the city is the election cost."
10:59 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Stuffed owl sparks rescue effortOddly Enough - UK Reuters
Stuffed owl sparks rescue effort
Fri Nov 29, 5:29 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - An eagle-eyed local resident called animal rescuers after spotting an owl trapped at the top of a church steeple in Bath.
But when the rescuers knocked on the door of St Michael's Church they were told their mission was in vain for the bird was stuffed and had been placed there by a local optical equipment store for customers to test their equipment.
"When they got to the church saying there were coming to rescue a trapped bird they were told it was far beyond mortal help," Robin Gower of Ace Cameras and Optics told Reuters.
"It is an Eagle Owl nicknamed Ollie which we put there about two years ago, but we have had a bird up there for at least five years and have never had any problems before now," he said. "Whoever spotted it must have good eyesight."
Gower said that despite the mistake the shop would continue to put stuffed birds on the church tower to amuse the customers and let them put their telescopes through their paces.
"Ollie is getting a bit weather-worn after two years, so I expect we'll be putting in a call to the taxidermist at some point," he said.
10:57 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Broken Wing Pelican Tried Walking South U.S. National - AP
Broken Wing Pelican Tried Walking South
Thu Nov 28, 8:37 PM ET
OTTAWA, Wis. (AP) - A white pelican rescued from the cold North this week had a broken wing, but its sense of direction appeared to be fine.
Phil Thieme found the bird trudging south, first along his driveway and then down the road near southeastern Wisconsin's Horicon Marsh. Fearing for the pelican's life, he and his neighbors corralled it Monday using a net and a blanket.
"It was bound and determined to go south. It kept walking down the middle of the road," said Jean Seinke, one of the rescuers.
The pelican was taken to Ottawa's Wildlife in Need Center, which will try to repair the wing surgically, said Judy Budnick, the center's executive director. She said it was not known how the protected bird was injured.
Tom Erdman, curator of the Richter Museum of Natural History at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, said the pelican would have an urge to go south this time of year, but probably had more immediate motivations.
"It could theoretically be walking south. It's a delightful thought," Erdman said. But he added that "survival was probably the first thing on its mind — looking for open water and fish."
10:55 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Partying Daughter Grounded, Foot Nailed to FloorOddly Enough - Reuters
Partying Daughter Grounded, Foot Nailed to Floor
Wed Nov 27, 8:52 AM ET
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A Cambodian mother took drastic measures to stop her party-loving 13-year-old daughter from going at out night -- she nailed her foot to the floor, officials said on Wednesday.
Mao Savoeun, 36, from Kompong Thom province in central Cambodia, told police she was angry with her daughter for going to a party at a local pagoda during last week's Water Festival, the annual knees-up in the war-ravaged southeast Asian nation.
On the girl's return, and after she went to sleep, her mother drove a two-inch nail through the top of her right foot, pinning it to the floorboards.
"We educated her about human rights and she was shedding tears, but this is a crime and we are going to send her to the prosecutor who will decide whether to charge her," local district chief Srey Puthy told Reuters.
10:54 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Handcuffs the New Must-Have for Women?Handcuffs the New Must-Have for Women?
Wed Nov 27,12:31 PM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - Handcuffs are the fastest selling item at five new shops tailored for women by Germany's biggest retailer of sex merchandise, the store chain said on Wednesday.
Beate Uhse AG said handcuffs have been flying off the shelves of stores it opened this year to focus on sex toys for women, rather than the traditional male clientele.
"Women's sexual appetites are steeped more in the realm of fantasy -- they like to use their imagination more than men," said Assia Tschernookoff, a spokeswoman for Beate Uhse at corporate headquarters in Flensburg.
Beate Uhse, founded in 1946 and recently floated on the Frankfurt stock exchange, has more than 200 shops throughout Europe offering a myriad of sexual aids from lubricants to a taste of the lash. Attempting to capture new markets, it opened the shops aimed at women earlier this year.
"The shop had just opened and the handcuffs were all gone the first day," said Tschernookoff.
The five new shops report some 90 percent of customers have been women.
"This just goes to show that these days women know what they want and they're not shy about getting it," Tschernookoff said.
10:52 Posted by David
Anchorage Daily News | Kansas man convicted of attempted rape of nonexistent girl
The Associated Press
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (November 28, 6:05 p.m. AST) - A man was convicted of attempted rape for planning to assault a nonexistent 10-year-old girl who was imagined in an effort to break up a child pornography ring.
Prosecutors said Steven Peterman, 44, believed the child was real and that he intended to commit the crime.
Peterman was convicted Wednesday of attempted rape, solicitation to commit rape and sexual exploitation of a child. He faces 11 years in prison at his sentencing Dec. 27.
Authorities said a woman Peterman met in a bar made up the girl to help break up a child pornography ring.
Although prosecutor Keith Schroeder admitted to performing "a little bit of legal gymnastics" in filing the attempted rape charge, he said Peterman wasn't prosecuted for simply thinking about raping a child.
He was arrested with several photos characterized by police as child pornography, along with a variety of sex toys.
"When he went to the residence where he believed the child was waiting, he had purchased several items that he intended to use in committing a crime," Schroeder said.
Tim Frieden, Peterman's defense lawyer, had an unlisted number and could not be reached for comment Thursday.
10:50 Posted by David
'Girls Gone Wild' Producers Win Lawsuit (washingtonpost.com)'Girls Gone Wild' Producers Win Lawsuit
The Associated Press
Wednesday, November 27, 2002; 9:56 PM
ORLANDO, Fla. –– A federal judge ruled that the makers of a sexually explicit video series did not violate the privacy rights of a 17-year-old girl who flashed her breasts to a cameraman.
U.S. District Judge Anne Conway ruled Tuesday against the plaintiff, saying Veronica Lane consented to the filming and distribution of her image and likeness even though she was just 17 years old.
Lane was seeking unspecified damages, arguing the film, its creators, producers and distributors had violated her right to privacy and had cast her in a false light by including her in the "Sexy Sorority Sisters" video.
Conway ruled that the defendant, Mantra Films, which produces the "Girls Gone Wild" videos, did not have to compensate Lane for using her likeness in the videos.
In September 1999, Lane and a friend flashed their breasts to a cameraman. Lane later contended that she did not know that her image would be used in a commercial video.
© 2002 The Associated Press
10:48 Posted by David
Ancient dildos on showAncient dildos on show
Hong Kong - A 2 000-year-old sex aid for women has gone on show in a Hong Kong display of relics from China's Han Dynasty, a news report said on Friday.
The ancient phallus - made of bronze - is part of an exhibition at the Hong Kong Museum of History which also includes a number of Xian's famous terracotta warriors.
The phallus is believed to have been used by frustrated courtesans living in the imperial palace during the Han and Qin dynasties which span 221 BC to 220 AD, according to the South China Morning Post.
Curator Naomi Szeto told the newspaper: "Most people know about emperor Qin and his fierce regime that brought China together as a single nation by conquering six other states.
"But we want to go one step further and present a picture of what China was like after it achieved stability by including relics from when the Han Dynasty ushered in an era of stability and a flourishing society."
01:36 Posted by David
NCBuy: Weird and Offbeat News StoriesNovember 25, 2002 - Wireless Flash
42 Percent Of Office Drones Have Sex At Work
CHICAGO (Wireless Flash) -- It's amazing any work gets done at the office because 42 percent of Americans say they've had sex on the job.
According to a new sex survey in the upcoming "Playboy" magazine, 38 percent of men and 48 percent of women have been working their bodies on company time.
However, when it comes to workplace whoopee, the ladies have the men beat.
-- 46 percent of women have bedded their boss compared to only 18 percent of men.
-- 45 percent of women have had sex on their desk, compared to only 33 percent of guys.
-- Finally, 20 percent of ladies will gladly sleep with interns compared to only 12 percent of men.
The complete survey hits newstands December 2.
01:29 Posted by David
IOL : Union strippers win battle of the greasy pole Union strippers win battle of the greasy pole
November 21 2002 at 04:43PM
London - Strippers at a nightclub in the western English city of Bristol have gained their first victory over management after joining the large GMB union.
The 17 "exotic dancers" have secured new polish to grease the poles around which they dance, as the old kind of grease used to give them a painful rash.
Club manager Lisa Maggs told Thursday's Times said: "We completely support the dancers' decision to join the GMB. We are hoping we can empower the girls and the club owners to make important changes." - Sapa-DPA
01:28 Posted by David
Nude boy's photo pops up in man's presentation Nude boy's photo pops up in man's presentation
Associated Press
Nov. 22, 2002 12:15 PM
FORT WORTH, Texas - A businessman and former pastor was charged with possessing child pornography after a photo of a nude boy appeared during a computer slide presentation he gave at work, officials said.
Employees at Exel Inc. told police that James Andrew Smith had finished a PowerPoint slide show Sept. 4 when he tried to open another document on his laptop computer. The image of the young, nude boy appeared on screen, according to the co-workers.
Smith blamed the image on a computer virus.
Authorities later found child pornography on computer disks seized from him, according to a police report. The company also turned over 65 pages of printed child pornography allegedly found in Smith's desk.
He was held on $300,000 bond on two counts of possessing child pornography and one charge of promoting child pornography.
Smith was fired from Exel, a Fort Worth-based computer logistics company. He also resigned Wednesday as pastor of Landmark Baptist Church, where he had served for 3 1/2 years.
His wife of 13 years, Julie Smith, said the allegations stunned her.
"He's never hurt our children. As far as I know he's never hurt anyone's children," she said.
01:08 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Scientist Burns Penis with Hot LaptopOddly Enough - Reuters
Scientist Burns Penis with Hot Laptop
Fri Nov 22, 9:53 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Laptops have always been a hot item but a 50-year-old scientist didn't realize to what extent until he burned his penis.
The previously healthy father of two remembered feeling a burning sensation after he had been writing a report at home for about an hour with the computer on his lap.
He noticed a redness and irritation the following day but it wasn't until he was examined by a doctor that he realized how much damage had been done.
"The ventral part of his scrotal skin had turned red, and there was a blister with a diameter of about two centimeters (0.8 inches)," Claes-Gorn Ostenson, of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, wrote in a letter published in The Lancet medical journal on Friday.
Two days later, the blisters broke and the wounds became infected and then crusted but after about a week the unidentified scientist was "healing quite rapidly."
Ostenson noted that the computer manual did warn against operating it directly on exposed skin but said the patient had lap burns even though he had been wearing trousers and underpants.
"This...story should be taken as a serious warning against use of a laptop in a literal sense," he added.
01:06 Posted by David
Just another reason not to go into the water!!!
Yahoo! News - Lightning Strikes SurfersOddly Enough - Reuters
Lightning Strikes Surfers
Mon Nov 25, 8:41 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - A lightning strike has injured two surfers off the Cornish coast in southwest England, police said on Sunday.
The bolt of lightning hit a woman surfer on Saturday, causing her to stop breathing, and leaving a male surfer unconscious.
A helicopter flew them to hospital where they were in stable condition. The woman was still in intensive care.
01:03 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Arrested for Making Phone Booth MobileOddly Enough - Reuters
Man Arrested for Making Phone Booth Mobile
Mon Nov 25, 8:39 AM ET
WEST VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - He might have had an unusual concept of the mobile phone, but otherwise police admit they are confused as to why a British Columbia man attempted to steal a telephone booth.
The man was arrested on Friday in a Vancouver suburb after he was discovered on the Trans Canada Highway sleeping in a stolen pick-up truck. The stolen phone booth was in the back.
"You know, that's a very good question," West Vancouver Police spokesman Sgt. Bob Fontaine said when asked about the 28-year-old man's motive for taking the booth.
Investigators theorize the man, whose name was not released, may have wanted the phone's coin box, or was trying to hide the fact that he had run into the booth while stealing the truck in Vancouver.
"Who knows, he might not have even known it was there," Fontaine added with a chuckle.
Phone company Telus Corp. said people often vandalize its phone booths, but they weigh about 200 pounds (90 kg) each and are bolted down so it is rare for them to disappear.
"We can't recall when, if ever, something like this has happened," spokesman Nick Culo said.
The Squamish, British Columbia, man was awoken from his nap by police and taken into custody. He has been charged with possession of stolen property.
01:01 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Cannon Shell Turned Table Leg Hurts EightOddly Enough - Reuters
Cannon Shell Turned Table Leg Hurts Eight
Mon Nov 25, 8:35 AM ET
BELGRADE (Reuters) - A Montenegrin family thought a World War II artillery shell was the ideal replacement for a broken table leg -- until it exploded, injuring eight people as they were about to eat a meal.
The Miskovic family in the town of Danilovgrad was preparing the local specialty of grilled pork fat on the table when the old shell went off at the weekend, the Yugoslav daily Vecernje Novosti reported on Monday.
"It was our own idea to replace the missing leg with this cannon grenade," house owner Milovan Miskovic said. "We thought it was harmless...it was here in our courtyard for some 50 years."
But "all of a sudden, we heard a loud bang and then everything went black."
The newspaper reported the victims suffered only light injuries.
01:01 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Lavish Christmas Gifts Are Out Once Couples MarryOddly Enough - Reuters
Lavish Christmas Gifts Are Out Once Couples Marry
Mon Nov 25, 8:42 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Marriage may be the perfect recipe for happiness -- but not for lavish Christmas gifts, a survey published on Monday showed.
The poll by RBS Advanta found that the longer people are in a relationship, the less likely they are to spend large sums of money on each other.
While 53 percent of those unmarried, but living together, will spend over 100 pounds on presents for their partner this Christmas, only 31 percent of married couples are prepared to spend that much.
And it gets worse once you have children -- romantic presents are replaced by practical ones, the poll of 1,000 people across Britain found.
For couples together for one or two years, the average amount spent is 101 to 200 pounds, while for those who have stuck it out for longer, it drops to 51 to 100 pounds.
The biggest spender on romantic gifts this year will be a male between 16 and 34 years old who has been in a relationship for one to two years, but does not live with his partner.
The least romantic spender will be a woman married for over 20 years without children, according to the survey.
23:50 Posted by David
Italian Men Legally Allowed to Slap Women’s Bums2002-11-14 21:02:00
Italian Men Legally Allowed to Slap Women’s Bums
The Italian government has legally allowed male office workers to slap their female colleagues’ butts. There was one condition stipulated in the law, though: this slapping is not supposed to become a habit.
This decision was made by the Italian court of appeal. The court ruled that slapping underneath the back is not a display of sexual abuse, if the fact of slapping happened once.
This was the end of the trial that lasted for eight years. The trial was started by a female office worker from Venice. She was made to file a lawsuit against her male colleague, who slapped her bottom every day.
This man, a manager named Enzo Miceli, was sentenced to 1.5 years in prison in 1994. However, when the case reached the court of the highest instance, he was acquitted. The court ruled that there was no display on libido in that behavior.
23:49 Posted by David
AP Wire | 11/15/2002 | What's a hairy butt between friends?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted on Fri, Nov. 15, 2002
What's a hairy butt between friends?
Associated Press
MANSFIELD TOWNSHIP, N.J. - An argument between two friends over which one had the hairiest buttocks escalated into a brawl that ended when one man slashed the other.
Emmanuel Nieves, 23, of Liberty Township, and Erik Saporito, 21, of Independence Township, were talking with some other friends at a Mansfield Township apartment complex when the fight began.
Nieves soon pulled out a knife and slashed Saporito's face and ear, authorities said. Saporito was taken to Hackettstown Community Hospital, where he was treated and released.
Nieves was arrested later that morning at his home and charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats, weapons offenses and criminal mischief. He was being held Friday on $25,000 bail at the Warren County Jail.
23:46 Posted by David
JS Online: Sex 101: The nitty gritty Sex 101: The nitty gritty
UW-Madison columnist and her colleagues have little shame exploring what used to be pillow talk
By NAHAL TOOSI
ntoosi@journalsentinel.com
Last Updated: Nov. 19, 2002
Madison - Here's the bare naked truth: Lots of college students have sex.
They like having sex.
And sometimes they're drunk when they're having sex.
To Read More
Caley Meals' sex column is posted on Wednesdays at www.badgerherald.com. The Daily Cardinal's human sexuality column appears Tuesdays at www.dailycardinal.com.
23:36 Posted by David
Mainichi Interactive - Top News Teacher busted for installing secret toilet camera
CHIBA -- A public elementary school teacher, who secretly installed a video camera in dressing rooms and lavatories at the school where he worked to secretly film girls, was sacked Wednesday, education officials said.
The Chiba Prefectural Board of Education dismissed Masakatsu Sugaya, 28, a teacher at the Hikata Municipal Nishi Elementary School in Chiba Prefecture, on a disciplinary ground.
"We deeply apologize to prefectural residents for the incident. We'll do our best to regain the public's trust in education," an education board official said Wednesday.
Sugaya is accused of installing a video camera in dressing rooms and girls' lavatories at the school on numerous occasions and filming girls between June last year and October this year, board officials said.
However, the education board suspects that he started secretly filming girls in October 1998 when he was working at another municipal school.
The scandal recently came to light after one of the girls lodged a complaint with a female teacher.
Sugaya was hired as a teacher in 1997, and was assigned to Hikata Municipal Nishi Elementary School last April. (Mainichi Shimbun, Nov. 20, 2002)
23:35 Posted by David
NBC 4 - News - Parents Complain Prostitutes Operate Out Of High School BathroomParents Complain Prostitutes Operate Out Of High School Bathroom
Principal Says Problems Are 'Typical'
POSTED: 10:20 a.m. PST November 20, 2002
LOS ANGELES -- Is Washington Prep High School out of control? Some teachers say yes.
Teachers wrote a letter claiming major problems are plaguing the South Central Los Angeles campus including students who are gambling, drinking, cutting classes, using profanity, smoking marijuana, threatening teachers and committing sexual acts.
Several teachers told NBC4 they agree with the letter but only one would talk on camera if we didn't show her face.
"You can walk around campus and you're not sure when class is in and when it isn't because there's so many students roaming around. There's not a respect for authority," she said.
"That is not the average student at Washington Prep, but is it happening at all? Yes, on an isolated basis," school principal James Noble said.
Noble said the problems are typical of large urban schools. Parents say that's no excuse.
"There's been a lot of fighting and a lot of good teachers have left because there's no control up here," parent Pam Jones said.
The letter also claims that "students are robbed and beaten daily, black and brown conflicts are on the rise."
"Most of the time, the fights at the school are people around here who come up here and hop the fences," said student Jason Finn.
Noble held meetings with parents Tuesday night to address the concerns. He denied the charge that prostitutes operate out of the boys' restrooms.
Some students say a gang influence in their neighborhood is spilling over into their campus with threats and intimidation even against teachers.
