Miscellaneous News Items.

[arnisador]

A neat take on the "digital" clock:
http://www.yugop.com/ver3/stuff/03/fla.html

[arnisador]

Reinforcements sent to Iraq – Chuck Norris!
In visit to encourage troops, says surge working, morale 'way up' (http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=57679)




Chuck Norris[...]is visiting U.S. troops in Iraq where he says the surge is working and "morale is up – way up!"



Chuck Norris Fact: He’s in Iraq (http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=56346&archive=true)





The star of the “Walker, Texas Ranger” TV series and numerous martial-arts films is visiting bases in Anbar province this month — organizers wouldn’t give specifics for security reasons — on his second trip downrange. He toured 11 bases last year.


Chuck Norris to Iraq! (http://news.aol.com/elections-blog/2007/09/20/chuck-norris-to-iraq/)

Video clip here.

[arnisador]

Miss England told to fatten up (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071027/ap_en_ce/people_georgia_horsley)




A British beauty queen says she was told to pack on pounds for the upcoming Miss World competition — an unexpected request, considering she's not rail-thin. "I was a little bit shocked," Miss England Georgia Horsley said Friday in an interview on NBC's "Today" show.

"I don't think I'm too thin. I'm happy with the way I am," said the 20-year-old, who is a size 4.

[arnisador]

...as long as it's Giant African Spitting Cobra style:

World's largest spitting cobra species found in Kenya: study (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071207/sc_afp/kenyawildlifesnakecobra_071207215647)



A new giant species of spitting cobra -- about 2.6 metres long and with enough venom to kill up to 20 people in one bite -- has been discovered in Kenya, a study said Friday.

[...]

Experts have witnessed the new species successfully swallowing a rabbit, a two-and-half long foot monitor lizard and five-foot-long puff adder.

[arnisador]

Huge Newfound Part of Milky Way Rotates Backward (http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20071212/sc_space/hugenewfoundpartofmilkywayrotatesbackward)



The main galactic disk, home to our sun (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/space/sc_space/storytext/hugenewfoundpartofmilkywayrotatesbackward/25539104/SIG=128qsgcek/*http://www.space.com/php/video/player.php?video_id=mm31A_ScaleUniverse), rotates counterclockwise as seen from above at an average speed of 500,000 mph. Surrounding the disk is what's now called the inner halo. It orbits in the same direction at about 50,000 mph. The outer halo, a sparsely populated region, spins in the opposite direction at roughly 100,000 mph.

Heh. I've been certain for years that where I live is backwards compared to the rest of the galaxy!

[arnisador]

I merged some random news items.

-Arnisador
-FMAT Admin

[arnisador]

America's Funniest Martial Arts Home Videos:
PcSDGQn81rE

Nunchuks can be dangerous:
CVaUN2NAujk

The judge needs to pay more attention:
9hE-JmdP9MU

[arnisador]

It's Beetle Sumo!


RNPS PICTURES OF THE YEAR - A boy watches beetle sumo competition of the IWBC (Insect World Battle Championships) in a miniature ring in Tokyo August 26, 2007.

[arnisador]

Sudoku addicts halt drugs trial (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080611/od_nm/sudoku_dc)



An Australian drugs trial lasting more than three months and costing taxpayers over A$1 million ($947,000) has been aborted after a number of jurors were found to have spent up to half the time playing Sudoku puzzles.

That could so have been me.

[arnisador]

Bear attacks inside Anchorage have people on edge (http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g0RCaMzubhWtkoo3Qtwu7FjevU3AD92JMBF80)



On one recent evening, Rees heard splashing in the creek near his Eagle River home and assumed it was salmon. Seconds later, however, a bear rushed at him from the woods and knocked him to the ground.


"I wasn't going to lay down and take it. The bear came and tried to fight me," said Rees, 18, who works in a meat store. "I started punching it in the head, kicking it and elbowing it ... I was boxing him using one arm to defend, one arm to strike."


More on the bears here (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/16/AR2008081601930.html?hpid=morehheadlines)!

[arnisador]

Georgia tops Russia in judo; journalists questions limited (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/beijing/fight/2008-08-13-judomen_N.htm)


After winning a gold medal in judo, Irakli Tsirekidze of Georgia stood atop the podium Wednesday with his hand across his heart as his nation's anthem was played. At a press conference later, no questions were allowed about his thoughts for his countrymen back home at a time of military conflict with Russia.
[...]
Tsirekidze, also a 2007 world champion, faced Russia's Ivan Pershin in the semifinals with fans of both nation's cheering and waving flags in the stands. Tsirekidze won with a throw for a match-ending ippon with 2:20 elapsed.
[...]
At the wrestling venue, Georgia Manuchar Kvirkvelia did address recent events at home after winning gold in Greco-Roman wrestling.


"I feel very happy and proud for my country," he said in quotes provided by the Olympic media center. "I proved the existence of Georgia in the world with my gold. This is the biggest day for Georgia in the Olympics this far. … It means a lot, especially in this difficult time."


Georgia wins one over Russia, but it's only on the beach (http://www.startribune.com/world/26938829.html?elr=KArks:DCiUBcy7hUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aULP QL7PQLanchO7DiU)


Two women wearing bikinis in Georgia's red-and-white colors stepped onto the sand at the Olympic beach volleyball venue Wednesday to play a Russian team -- and soon took up an unlikely cause.

The women, Cristine Santanna and Andrezza Martins, were born and live in Brazil. They are in Beijing because the president of Georgia, Mikhail Saakashvili, some time ago asked them to play for his country in the Olympics. Upon learning that Saakashvili's wife, Sandra, was once a volleyball player, they agreed. For this they were granted dual citizenship.


Before Wednesday's match, they felt so little animosity toward their Russian opponents, Alexandra Shiryaeva and Natalia Uryadova, that they stepped under the net and gave them hugs.


But afterward, as Santanna and Martins celebrated their three-set victory over the higher-seeded Russians, they found themselves in the middle of a geopolitical conflict they did not anticipate.

[arnisador]

...as long as it's Giant African Spitting Cobra style:

World's largest spitting cobra species found in Kenya: study (http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071207/sc_afp/kenyawildlifesnakecobra_071207215647)

How Cobras Spit With Perfect Accuracy (http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20090123/sc_livescience/howcobrasspitwithperfectaccuracy)



Spitting cobras don't really spit venom. But they are incredibly accurate, hitting a target - the victim's eyes - from 2 feet (60 cm) away with impressive accuracy, studies have shown.


New research confirms how they do it.
[...]
Turns out the venom does not hit a victim in just one spot. Instead, the venom lands in complex geometric patterns.


A European study in 2005 showed that the cobra's do aim for the eyes (http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/livescience/sc_livescience/storytext/howcobrasspitwithperfectaccuracy/30694912/SIG=11rqnge5p/*http://www.livescience.com/animals/050210_cobra_spit.html), but that their venom is shout out in a spray rather than a stream.

[arnisador]

CHEERLEADING (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/28/SPVI15I9PU.DTL&feed=rss.sports)

Wisconsin high court says activity is 'contact sport' (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/28/SPVI15I9PU.DTL&feed=rss.sports)




High school cheerleading is a contact sport and, therefore, its participants cannot be sued for accidentally causing injuries, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in a case being closely watched in the cheerleading world.

When I hear "cheerleader" and "contact sport" I must admit that my heart starts to beat a bit faster... :D

[arnisador]

Sumo star warned over celebrations (http://news.scotsman.com/world/Sumo-star-warned-over-celebrations.4924421.jp)


SUMO grand champion Asashoryu has been censured for celebrating a victory too enthusiastically.


The head of the Japan Sumo Association criticised Asashoryu, a Mongolian, for pumping both fists in the air in the dohyo, the sacred sumo ring, after winning his 23rd Emperor's Cup.

It was considered a breach of sumo etiquette.

[arnisador]

Parking tickets actually malware attacks in disguise (http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/118488)



The scam is instantly clever once you hear how it works: Hackers print up phony "PARKING VIOLATION" notices and plaster them on cars parked on the street. The phony ticket directs the car's owner to visit a certain website, and of course the website in question (which largely seems to comprise of photos of badly parked cars) is a hack site which attempts to install malware on your PC.

[arnisador]

Rare 'four-out play' helps Dodgers down Diamondbacks (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Rare-four-out-play-helps-Dodgers-down-Diamondb?urn=mlb,155380)


Well, for one thing, sometimes there's four outs in an inning, like in the Dodgers' confusing 3-1 victory over the Diamondbacks on Sunday.

"Baseball is three outs, I thought," Andre Ethier told the L.A. Times on Sunday.

You're right, Andre, it is ... except when an obscure rule says it's not.

Follow along closely here, because it gets complicated:

Looks like it wasn't actually a four-out inning, but could have been.

[arnisador]

Vatican Swiss Guards consider opening to women (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090506/ap_on_re_eu/eu_vatican_swiss_guards)


The Vatican's Swiss Guards will swear in 32 new recruits Wednesday amid suggestions from their new commander that women might one day join their ranks.

Col. Daniel Anrig said Tuesday he was open to the idea of women serving in the elite, 500-year-old papal security force, reversing the long-held position of his predecessors.

[Carol]

Wow. That's a big change in thought. It would be interesting to see if those thoughts parlay in to actions, or if that was simply lip service to the press.

[arnisador]

'24' star Sutherland charged over head-butt claim (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090507/ap_on_en_tv/us_people_sutherland)

[QUOTE]Kiefer Sutherland has been charged with assault for allegedly head-butting a fashion designer at a Manhattan nightclub. New York police said the charges were filed after Sutherland spoke to investigators at a police station in lower Manhattan on Thursday.
[...]
The designer, Jack McCollough, claims Sutherland attacked him after an argument, leaving him with a cut on his face./QUOTE]

[arnisador]

Record 12-run inning lifts Boston over Cleveland (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/recap?gid=290507102&prov=ap)


Twelve batters came up and all 12 scored before Boston made its first out more than a half hour into the bottom of the sixth inning of a 13-3 win over the Cleveland Indians on Thursday night.
[...]
Boston broke the AL record of 11 runs in an inning before making an out and tied the modern major league mark of 12.

[arnisador]

For one night, Jayson Werth goes klepto on the basepaths (http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/For-one-night-Jayson-Werth-goes-klepto-on-the-b?urn=mlb,163155)


Only 49 players in MLB history have stolen all three bases in the same inning — only nine since 1942 have thieved in such a manner — and the last Phillie to do it was Pete Rose in 1980. Considering that Werth only stole 20 bases in 2008 and that Philadelphia only had 12 stolen bases coming into the game, it becomes an even more impressive rarity

[arnisador]

Fla. fisherman hooks live missile in Gulf waters (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090609/ap_on_re_us/us_missile_hooked)


Florida authorities say a commercial fisherman reeled in a live missile in the Gulf of Mexico and kept it on his boat for 10 days.

The sheriff's office in Pinellas County say the boat's captain, Rodney Soloman, hooked the air-to-air guided missile 50 miles off the Panhandle town of Panama City. The Air Force and Navy use Gulf waters off the Panhandle for weapons training.

[Carol]

Fla. fisherman hooks live missile in Gulf waters (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090609/ap_on_re_us/us_missile_hooked)

"Cap'n! We gotta live one!"

[arnisador]

Cops in Michigan protect — and serve doughnuts (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090704/ap_on_fe_st/odd_cops_and_doughnuts)


"Cops & Doughnuts" is more than a punchline. It's now a bakery in Michigan — owned by nine full-time employees of the Clare Police Department.

The newly renamed bakery opened Wednesday, offering doughnuts, cookies, muffins, brownies and bread. It also has mugs and T-shirts bearing the "Cops & Doughnuts, 100 Percent Cop-Owned" logo, and phrases including "You Have the Right to Remain Glazed" and "Handcuffs and Cream Puffs."

[arnisador]

NYPD rookie makes arrest moments after graduation (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090703/ap_on_fe_st/us_odd_rookie_arrest)


One of the NYPD's newest officers made his first arrest Thursday just minutes after graduating from the Police Academy in a ceremony at Madison Square Garden.

Officer Dariel Firpo, 23, was leaving the midtown Manhattan ceremony when he saw a 79-year-old man being robbed of his wallet and thrown to the ground by a mugger, police said.

The mugger tried to run away, but Firpo caught him without incident, they said.

[arnisador]

Iowa's biggest city may legalize late-night dance (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090714/ap_on_re_us/us_des_moines_dancing)


Dancing the night away in Des Moines doesn't seem to be at the top of many must-do lists. Maybe because it's illegal.

An obscure city ordinance outlaws publicly shaking your groove thing in Iowa's biggest city after 2 a.m.

Few even were aware of the ban until members of the nonprofit Des Moines Social Club sought to hold an after-hours dance at their downtown building. They were told no-go on the tango.

[arnisador]

Former ND nuclear missile site gets first visitors (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090714/ap_on_re_us/us_nuclear_historic_site;_ylt=An3DpC9S6QwloNyXlvg_ dH9H2ocA;_ylu=X3oDMTM4a24wdHYwBGFzc2V0Ay9hcC8yMDA5 MDcxNC9hcF9vbl9yZV91cy91c19udWNsZWFyX2hpc3RvcmljX3 NpdGUEY3BvcwM3BHBvcwM3BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcmllcwRz bGsDZmlyc3R2aXNpdG9y)


A former nuclear missile launch center that closed as the Cold War was winding down opened Monday to a public curious to see what life was like at the once-top secret site.
The Ronald Reagan Minuteman site, surrounded by wheat and soybean fields in eastern North Dakota, looked much as it would have in 1997 when it still was active. The former living quarters, a building that stands about 60 feet above the underground nuclear missile control center, still has the kitchen equipment, televisions, pool table and magazines it did when the site was closed.

[arnisador]

World's dumbest criminals:
http://blutube.policeone.com/Clip.aspx?key=DEABFA8B656DD03E