Sunday, April 26, 2009
And in the US: The Pentagon’s Beetle Borgs…
The first wireless flying-insect cyborg – a remote-controlled beetle – has been developed by engineers at the University of California at Berkeley. The six-legged biomechanical hybrid can rise, hover and fly on command, guided by a radio receiver that relays signals to electrodes connected to the...
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Thursday, April 23, 2009
And in Britain: Inhalable Cocktails…
A London bar has found a novel and highly atmospheric [and profitable] way to deliver the tipples: for a limited time it has been spraying alcohol into the air. Alcoholic Architecture vaporizes gin and tonic, and ticket-buying patrons – garbed in protective clothing so they don’t stink of booze...
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Wednesday, April 22, 2009
And in Poland: The Problem with Ninio the Elephant…
A conservative Polish politician has expressed outrage over a local zoo’s acquiring of a ‘gay’ elephant with public money. Ninio, a 10-year old elephant purchased by the Poznan Zoo in western Poland, has demonstrated a preference for the company of males, and will probably not procreate, according...
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Monday, April 20, 2009
And in Winfield, Mo: Mayor Missed His Own Victory Party…
Harry Stonebraker, the beloved mayor of Winfield, Mo (pop. 723), was re-elected in a landslide victory to a fourth term last week, even though he died back in March. The ballots had already been printed with Stonebraker’s name on them when he passed away. On election day, 90 per cent of the town...
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Sunday, April 19, 2009
And in Milan: Lap Dancer Turns Nun…
Sister Anna, a nun with the Worker Sisters of the Holy House of Nazareth, has turned her former career as a lap dancer to higher use. Until she joined the order, Anna worked in Milan nightclubs. Last week she performed a ballet she created called The Bible: Day and Night, which relates stories from...
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Friday, April 17, 2009
And in the US: Terror in a Tea Bag…
As the American tax-return deadline approached this week, Americans protested tax rates with the memory of the Boston Tea Party. They’ve mailed tea bags to their congressmen. Even Utah Senator Margaret Dayton sent a tea bag to the White House. Unfortunately, the protest set off electronic...
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Thursday, April 16, 2009
And in Rochester, PA: Pie-eyed Logic…
Salmonella bacteria forced the recall of 14 pistachio products in Canada and dozens more across the US. Better vigilance is needed, but, really, was it necessary for inspectors in Rochester, PA, to shut down the home-baking table at St. Cecilia Catholic Church? By all accounts, Josie Reed’s berry...
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Tuesday, April 14, 2009
And in Ohio: John Paul II’s Beads of Revival…
After Jory Aebly was shot in the head by a mugger in Ohio, doctors said he would probably die. But when a hospital padre left a rosary that had been blessed by the late Pope John Paul II, Aebly made an unexpected recovery. Astonishing doctors, the miracle man spoke to reporters last week before...
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Monday, April 13, 2009
And onboard the USS Boxer: A Tribute to Capt. Richard Phillips…
The world has been witness to the finest example of personal and professional honour possible: a captain willing to sacrifice himself for his ship and his crew, in the best tradition of the sea. At a time when the concept of the heroic has become devalued through overuse, Capt. Phillips has...
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Wednesday, April 8, 2009
And in Saudi Arabia: A Fatwa Against Mickey Mouse...
In an interview with Al-Majd Television sheikh Muhammad al-Munajid, a former diplomat who once served in the Saudi Embassy in Washington, condemned cartoons that endear rodents to their viewers. Islamic law, he said, sees the mouse as "a repulsive, corrupting creature" while children today see mice...
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