How can you ever look at a crab from Alaska, or say Maine, and not think about their huge cousin the Coconut Crab now? It’s the biggest land-dwelling arthropod in the world. So if it wants to eat your garbage... let it! They got their moniker because they're actually strong enough to break coconuts with their claws! Ouch! I don't know how eatable the Coconut Crab is...but be assured I'll never go looking for them!
crab photos via Riff Trax
From MOSNEWS we have the following story about cell phone users. I recently wrote a column about cell phones
That column generated a tremendous response and some readers even sent me more information about cell phone dangers in regards to children using them. Since that June 7th column, a steady flow of emails has come in. I just got one yesterday (today's not over yet).
I thought this article was an indirect link to what I wrote about, i.e., cell phone dangers, and an amusing solution to a very serious subject.
The Russian Orthodox Church has started to sell stickers that, when put on a mobile phone, will miraculously protect its owner from hazardous electromagnetic waves.
For 170 rubles, or just $5.5, anyone can purchase the sticker at so-called “church shops” in the Novgorod Region, where they are sold among accessories like crosses, prayer books and candles, Komsomolskaya Pravda daily writes Tuesday.
The round stickers are decorated with images of famous Russian churches and monasteries – such as Christ the Savior or the Trinity Laura. They are extremely popular with customers.
Click here to read the rest.
Photo: www.kp.ru
A Chinese farmer dug a 50ft hole inside his house to go fishing.
Li Huiyan, of Chongqing, hired 30 villagers for six months to dig the hole in his kitchen, reports IC Media.
He wanted to reach an underground river which he suspected was full of fish.
The river had been over ground but had disappeared 30 years ago when the local authorities bombed part of a mountain to pave a road.
Li explained: "The river used to have so many fish, and by simply putting a net there, hundreds of fish would be caught."
After digging his pit down to the river, Li installed a fishing net across it and regularly hauls out fish, so far earning his family nearly £2,000.
"I sell the fish at a wholesale price of 24 yuan (£2.15p) per kilo, but 36 yuan (£3.20p) per kilo for retail," he said.
Li built ladders from his kitchen to the river 16 metres below, and each day he has to go down to check the harvest.
Photo and text via Annanova
photo by easy.tahiti )
Bora Bora - One of the most mythical of the Pacific islands remains the island of all dreams.
The legends, mysteries, and romance associated with the words “Bora Bora” bring an almost mystical presence to the island. The island, located about 230 kilometers northwest of Papeete, is surrounded by a lagoon and a barrier reef.
The island has been made famous by books, movies, and its stunning beauty. Warning- the island is now besieged by tourism and overcrowding. Regardless, if you must visit a South Pacific island, Bora Bora would be an interesting one.
To see some more incredible photos click here.
The astonishing spectacle of a leopard savaging a crocodile has been captured for the first time on camera.
A series of incredible pictures taken at a South African game reserve document the first known time that a leopard has taken on and defeated one of the fearsome reptiles.
The photographs were taken by Hal Brindley, an American wildlife photographer, who was supposed to be taking pictures of hippos from his car in the Kruger National Park.
The giant cat raced out of cover provided by scrub and bushes to surprise the crocodile, which was swimming nearby.
A terrible and bloody struggle ensued. Eventually, onlookers were amazed to see the leopard drag the crocodile from the water as the reptile fought back.
With the crocodile snapping its powerful jaws furiously, the two animals somersaulted and grappled. Despite the crocodile's huge weight and strength, the leopard had the upper hand catching its prey by the throat.
Click here to read the rest and see more photos.
Photo by Hal Brindley Story via the Telegraph
From WBZTV...
A controversial law in Massachusetts could go national if Congressman Barney Frank gets his way.
Frank has filed a bill that would eliminate federal penalties for personal possession of less than 100 grams of marijuana.
It would also make the penalty for using marijuana in public just $100.
"I think John Stuart Mill had it right in the 1850s," said Congressman Frank, "when he argued that individuals should have the right to do what they want in private, so long as they don't hurt anyone else.
It's a matter of personal liberty. Moreover, our courts are already stressed and our prisons are over-crowded. We don't need to spend our scarce resources prosecuting people who are doing no harm to others."
Frank filed a similar bill last year, but it failed.
The law passed in Massachusetts last November.
Ten other states have also reduced penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana – in some cases they are a civil fine. These states include California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, and Oregon.
photo via WBZTV
By Dave Stancliff/The Times-Standard
Posted: 06/21/2009 01:27:13 AM PDT
If you're a Baby Boomer like me, you might feel we are straddling eras. I have one slightly gnarly foot in the 20th century, and the other poking uncertainly into the 21st.
Mine eyes have seen the birth of television and the worldwide web. They have witnessed the end of the Korean War, the middle of the Vietnam War, the start of the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the glory of space travel before it become a common occurrence.
I watched wonders from my Marvel and DC comics from the 1960s become common gadgets in this marvelous age. Wrist phones, wireless phones, and computers that can store limitless knowledge have jumped off those colorful comic pages and landed in today's reality.
If only H.G. Wells or Jules Verne, could have seen their wild ideas about space and inventions come true. Aldous Huxley would be intrigued by what's happening today. George Orwell would probably say, “I told you Big Brother would take over.”
I can still see Robbie The Robot walking awkwardly inside our little black-and-white 1950s television. All those early robots were big and bulky. They spoke in monotones and often looked intimidating.
Click here to read the rest.
image via Google Images
By Bob Unruh
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
Just weeks after a scandal erupted over a Department of Homeland Security report that described as "right-wing extremists" those who oppose abortion and support secure national borders, another report is revealing that the Department of Defense is teaching that protesters are "low-level terrorists."
The newest action to define those who disagree with positions adopted by the government or administration of the United States was revealed by blogger Dennis Loo at Salon.com.
He cited a complaint filed by the northern California branch of the American Civil Liberties Union demanding that the Department of Defense change its instructions and those who have been given the training be told of the modifications by "sending out corrective materials."
According to the ACLU letter, the DoD's "Annual Level 1 Antiterrorism (AT) Awareness Training for 2009" tells department personnel "that certain First Amendment-protected activity may amount to 'low-level terrorism.'"
Specifically the training "Knowledge Check 1" asks, "Which of the following is an example of low-level terrorism activity?"
Click here to read the rest.
Conky is a small, plastic, wind-up toy robot based on the character from the Pee-Wee Herman television show of the late 1980s.
This image shows the packaged box. Click on the image for a larger view.
Click here for the sounds of CONKY (voice by actor Gregory Harrison).
Other images:
Conky, front view
Conky, large front view
Pee-Wee Herman
To see and read all about more Robots from the Good Old Days till present
Image and text via robots@chaoskids.com
We humans are natural dancers. Dances can be celebrations, or for praise, or for an audience - or just a simple act of letting the rhythm move your body. Dancers can communicate ideas, preserve cultural identities, strengthen social bonds, or just have a lot of fun. Collected here are recent photographs of us, human beings around the world, professional and amateur, in motion for all of the reasons above and more. (39 photos total)
photo via The Big Picture
According to Fox News this afternoon...
The U.S. military is preparing for a possible intercept of a North Korean flagged ship suspected of proliferating weapons material in violation of a U.N. Security Council resolution passed last Friday, FOX News has learned.
The USS John McCain, a Navy destroyer, is positioning itself in case it gets orders to intercept the ship Kang Nam (pictured here) as soon as it leaves the vicinity off the coast of China, according to a senior U.S. defense official. The order to inderdict has not been given yet, but the ship is moving into the area.
"Permission has not been requested. Nor is it clear it will be," a military source told FOX News. "This is a very delicate situation and no one is interested in precipitating a confrontation."
The ship left a port in North Korea Wednesday and appears to be heading toward Singapore, according to a senior U.S. military source. The vessel, which the military has been tracking since its departure, could be carrying weaponry, missile parts or nuclear materials, a violation of U.N. Resolution 1874, which put sanctions in place against Pyongyang.
The USS McCain was involved in an incident with a Chinese sub last Friday - near Subic Bay off the Philippines. The Chinese sub was shadowing the destroyer when it hit the underwater sonar array that the USS McCain was towing behind it.
This is the first suspected "proliferator" that the U.S. and its allies have tracked from North Korea since the United Nations authorized the world's navies to enforce compliance with a variety of U.N. sanctions aimed at punishing North Korea for its recent nuclear test.
Click here to read the whole story.
photo via Fox News
Seriously... I've heard people talking about leaving the country if Trump gets back in the Oval Office. That would be deserting our Con...
