Winning At All Costs . . . . . . A Good Strategy?Late last week, Lance Armstrong, the winner of seven consecutive titles (1999-2005) of the world's most grueling bike race - The Tour de France, finally confessed to something many people had suspected for years - The use of performance enhancing steroids during most of his storied career, to get an edge over his competitors....
Read news articleA Library With No Books? Hmm . . . . .How would you feel if you walked into your local public library and instead of hundreds of shelves laden with all kinds of exciting books, you encountered a modern interior that resembles an Apple store complete with aisles of computers and other electronic gadgets? That, is exactly the vision Nelson Wolff has for BiblioTech, a new kind of public library that is scheduled to open in San Antonio's Bexar County, in fall 2013....
Read news articleIreland's Loughareema Lake Plays Mind Games By Randomly VanishingYou may have encountered instances when you could have bet your life about something you had seen or done, but yet when you revisited, either the thing has vanished or the chore, left undone. If you happen to visit Ireland you may encounter the same feeling at the Loughareema Lake - However, in this case it is not your mind playing games with you, but the lake itself, which seems to sporadically appear and disappear....
Read news articleGermany's Espionage Case Has All The Trappings Of An Exciting Spy Thriller!They were the regular Mr. and Mrs. Smith. 54-year old Andreas Anschlag was a car engineer who had worked at several companies, while 48-year old Heidrun Anschlag was a devoted housewife. The couple lived in a comfortable detached home in the quiet community of Marburg, West Germany. A perfectly boring existence right? Not quite!...
Read news articleA New Super Hero Everyday? You Better Believe It!If you are a super hero fan you are probably wishing that someone would think up of a new character - After all how many iterations of Superman, Batman and Ironman can one watch? And, while putting them together like they did in The Avengers is fun, that too can get a tad boring! But fear not, because Pixar artist Everett Downing has been sketching brand new 'Supers' as he likes to call them, with all kinds of incredible powers - So far, he has dreamt up over 300 of them, and he is not done yet!...
Read news articleEmperor Penguin Colony Welcomes First Human VisitorsIn December 2012, three men braved Antarctica's treacherous and remote Princess Ragnhild Coast to seek out a colony of Emperor Penguins that has hitherto just been suspected to exist. They were not disappointed!...
Read news article2013 Australian Summer May Be One For The Record BooksWhile summers in the world's driest inhabited continent AKA Australia can get a little uncomfortable, this year seems to be starting out a little more extreme than usual. On Monday January 8th, the Australian meteorological dept reported an average continent temperature of 104.6°F (40.33°C) - Surpassing a record set in 1972. And, the forecast for the rest of the season looks even worse....
Read news articleYAY! Japan's Rare Black Amami Rabbits No Longer Endangered!After many years on the endangered list of animals, Japan's Amami Black rabbit can finally breathe a sigh of relief - That's because this year, the rare animal that is believed to be the only living remnant of the ancient rabbit that once inhabited Asia, is no longer in danger of being eradicated!...
Read news articleRobot 'Trainee' Astronaut R2, Begins To Earn Its Keep At The ISSWhen Space Shuttle Discovery launched off to Space on its final mission on February 24th, 2011, among its roster of astronauts was a 'trainee' - And not just any ordinary rookie either, but the world's first humanoid robot astronaut that was heading to the International Space Station as a permanent resident....
Read news articleElusive Giant Squid Finally Caught On CameraGiant squids, the kind referred to in Jules Verne's 1870 novel, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, have been known to exist for many centuries. However, finding the world's largest invertebrate in its natural habitat had proved a little elusive. Now, thanks to some patient Japanese researchers, we can all finally get a glimpse of this magnificent cephalopod!...
Read news articleChips, The Bobcat Who Is Just Too Nice!Chips is like any other bobcat. She has black-tipped pointed ears, yellow eyes with black pupils, sharp hearing and vision and can even climb trees, as well if not better, than any other member of its species. But, she has one big problem - She is just too nice to be a bobcat! While that may be a good thing in most other species in her case, it is a kiss of death!...
Read news articleHarbin's 29th Annual Ice and Snow Festival Is Spectacular!One might expect people living in subzero temperatures to escape to some warmer destinations or simply, hibernate. But the residents of Harbin in Northeast China do neither. They instead turn the hostile icy environment into such an amazing winter wonderland that millions of tourists from all over the world actually brave the chilly temperatures to experience it....
Read news articleComing Soon To A Bookstore Near You - 500 New Fairytales!If you like most of us, have read and perhaps even seen all the old and new reiterations of Cinderella, Snow White and Rapunzel a zillion times, you are in luck. That's because a cultural curator in Germany has discovered a treasure trove of 500 new fairy tales that have been tucked away in the archives for over 150 years!...
Read news article2013 Welcomed With Spectacular Firework DisplaysA Happy Happy 2013 to all of you! We sure hope you and your loved ones did something special to ring in the new year! Here is how it was welcomed by some of the world's biggest cities. So settle down with a cup of hot cocoa and enjoy the spectacular show!...
Read news articleBrrr! It's The First Day Of Winter!Well, it's official - The world did not end today! But amongst all the hoopla surrounding the rumored demise, the one significant event that you may have missed is that today also happens to be the first day of winter for people living in the Northern Hemisphere. Of course, the opposite is true for those living in the Southern Hemisphere who, are celebrating their first day of summer....
Read news articleThe Senseless Tragedy At Sandy Hook Elementary SchoolOn the morning of Friday December 14th, Americans watched in horror and disbelief as reports of an unprecedented tragedy began unfolding on the Internet and live television - The senseless killing of 26 innocent people, 20 of them students between the ages of 6 and 7, at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut....
Read news articleHumpback Whales That Can Spout Fires And Rainbows? Hmm . . . . .This stunning image of a fire emanating from the spout of a humpback whale may seem like a cleverly photoshopped picture or better still, a new awesome species of the mammal. However, it is neither - Instead it is an optical illusion created by a scientific principle that you may all have heard of - Refraction....
Read news articleModern-Day Version Of Noah's Ark Has A Cinema And Restaurant!If you have ever wondered what Noah's Ark, the ginormous boat that saved Noah, his family and two specimens of every animal genus that inhabited the earth may have looked like, you are in luck. That's because a Dutchman has created a life-size replica, with a slight modern day twist!...
Read news articleFlurry Of 'Shooting Stars' To Zoom Across The Skies This WeekHoping for lots of presents this Christmas? Then you may want to glance up at the skies this Thursday and Friday. That's because if researchers are right, on December 13th and 14th you will be treated to a flurry of 'shooting' stars. What's even more interesting is that one will emanate from an asteroid, the other, from a comet...
Read news articleDogs That Can Drive A Car? You Better Believe It!It is often said that you cannot 'teach an old dog new tricks', but either these three New Zealand pooches have never heard of the idiom or have decided to prove otherwise by learning a skill that even most of you have yet to master - Driving a car!...
Read news articleNew York City Lights Up World's Largest Menorah To Mark Start Of HanukkahYesterday after sundown, thousands of people gathered at New York City's Grand Army Plaza to witness the lighting of the world's largest menorah. The 32-foot high, 4,000 pound gold-colored steel candelabrum that had to be lit with the help of a cherry picker, marked the beginning of Hanukkah, the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lights....
Read news articleVeteran Astronauts To Test Effects Of Weightlessness On Human Mind And Body By Spending A Year At The ISSThough many astronauts have spent more than 365 days in Space, it has not been in one long stretch, but instead broken up through several missions. That is because scientists are not sure of the long-term effects of weightlessness on both the human body and mind, and therefore restrict stays to a maximum of six months....
Read news articlePong - The Video Game That Started It All, Turns 40!November 29th, was a landmark day for anybody that has ever touched a gaming console - That's because it was on this day, 40 years ago that Pong, the first successful commercial video game was introduced to the world....
Read news articleLava From Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano Spills Into The OceanHawaii's Big Island is home to some of the world's most active volcanoes. However, none are as dynamic or spectacular as the Kilauea, which has been erupting almost nonstop since 1983. However, its recent explosion was so large that for the first time ever, the lava has made a seven-mile journey right into the ocean, making for some stunning visuals!...
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