All True Stories
Smart Weapons
~Weapons experts have been busy refining their lethal craft over the past year. Recently the US Air Force announced the developement of 'smart bullets' ~ projectiles that have the ability to track a moving target. Each bullet has a twitching 'nose' which angles the airflow over the bullet, and at supersonic speeds these fluctuations create lift and directional control.
Before firing, the gun 'paints the target with a laser
which the bullet locks on to. As the target twists and turns, the
bullet responds by angling it's nose to home in on the laser.
Ant Attack
~On 20th May 1997 the UKs Express newspaper reported on a species of ant that was causing technological chaos across the US.
The ant, immune to most pesticides, is attracted to the warmth
of computer terminals, and has developed a taste for the
protective gel that covers circuit boards.
Infested machines have been known to explode due to short
circuits.
The ants have also been found in telephones, televisions and
other electrical equipment.
Floating Frogs
~In Nov.1996, pioneering work under the direction of Professor Andrey Geim at the University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands, has resulted in the successful levitation of a frog.
By generating a powerful magnetic field, scientists were able
to distort the orbit of electrons in the frog's atoms, which
produced an electrical current oposite in direction to the
magnet's field.
Assuming that the frog doesn't panic and wriggle free, the
resulting force is enough to float the amphibian.
Using a huge magnet, there's no reason why a human could not manage the same feat.
Three men who went streaking through a restaurant watched in
horror as a thief drove off in their getaway car.
Naked in minus 7C temperatures, the three youngsters huddled
behind cars in a car park in Spokane, Washington state until
police arrived.
"I don't think they were hiding. I think they were just
concealing themselves," police spokesman Dick Cottam said.
The three entered the restaurant early on Wednesday morning
wearing only shoes and hats. They left their car running so they
could make a quick escape.
But the streakers watched as a man who had been eating inside the
restaurant drove off in their car.
No charges were brought against the streakers.
"I think it was just three kids who decided to fool around,"
Cottam said.
He added: "We always tell people to not leave their car
running."
Thought Provoking
~Japanese scientists at the University of Tottori have developed a machine with the ability to read minds.
By monitoring electrical activity in the part of the brain
that focuses on ideas, the computer is able to recognize certain
brainwaves ~ known as P300 ~ and match them with word patterns
stored in it's memory.
Under test conditions, a subject was placed in front of a
monitor and told to concentrate on one of five words appearing on
the screen.Via electrodes attached to the subject's head, the
computer was able to tell correctly which of the words was being
focused on based on brainwave activity.
Twin Tragedy
~Two 61 year old twin brothers from Perth, Australia, died within minutes of each other, both from fatal heart attacks.
The first collapsed while they were watching a body-building
contest at a local casino. A few minutes later the second twin
collapsed and died.Police will not release the names until dental
records are checked and they can determine which twin died
first.
Earth Movers and Shakers
~Geophysicists studying seismic activity in the Canadian Rockies were alarmed to detect a sustained earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale.The Canadian Mounted Police rushed to the scene, but as they reached the epicentre the signal suddenly stopped.
The police, however, quickly located the source of the strange
seismic signals. A couple were enthusiastically enjoying each
other's company on the roof of the bunker that housed the
detection equipment, and their passion had registered as an
earthquake.
Dispite solving the problem, the geophysicists still had to
submit a research paper documenting the event, which they
entitled 'Anomalous Love Waves in the Cascadia Subduction
Zone.
Modern Times
~A futuristic watch has been developed by Seiko of Japan to help meet the enviromental challenges of the the next few years.
The Black Rain timepiece combines a smog reader, an oxygen
supply and a watch. It also houses, somewhere, a miniture
weapon.
However, dispite it's aesthetic design and practicality, Seiko have no plans to produce the watch commercially.
Subliminal Sex
~Three residents of Lufkin, Texas, are taking legal action against the Walt Disney Company, claiming that three of their family films contain subliminal sexual messages.
The supposed culprits are The Little Mermaid which, allegedly
features a minister sporting a prominent erection. The Lion King
where, the Texas trio claim, the word sex is spelt out in the
clouds, and Aladin, where subliminal voice overs encourage the
audience to take off their clothes.
Disney are allegedly consulting their lawers.
Foot In Mouth
~Conditions are continually arising that baffle the medical profession. A case in point is that of a 22 year old woman from Seattle who has an insatiable desire to eat socks.
The unnamed woman developed the craving in her late teens, and
was eating half a sock a night by her early twenties. She was
hospitalized after suffering from vomiting and nausia, and
doctors found a large bezoer ~ the human equivalent of a hairball
~ in her stomach.
Although there are cases of people eating such things as clay,
hair, dirt, chalk, and glue, this is the only documented case of
sock eating so far recorded.
Hunt Aliens From Home
~Faced with budget problems, the Search for Extraterrestial Intelligence organization ~ SETI ~ formerly sponsored by NASA, has devised a novel solution to it's financial problems.
Would-be alien hunters can now download radio-telescope data
from outer space off the internet, which a standard home computer
can analyse while the machine is not being worked at.
The computer uploads to a central server if it detects any
anomalies in the signal, and any significant discovery is
explained to the machine's owner.
SETI organizers are hoping that 50,000 people will contribute
to the project.
Find out more from seti@home.com
A man stole a pony to ride home after his local pub had shut, then took it up to his ninth floor apartment.The next morning he thought he had the DT's when he woke up, feeling a little unwell to find the pony standing next to his bed staring at him. The 59 year old drunk called the emergency services thinking he was suffering from some sort of sudden mental illness. The ambulance finally came around with a police escort. The old guy is currently under arrest for horse theft.
Nude Drive Through
A Wollongong man who stood naked, wearing only joggers and socks, near a McDonald's restaurant drive-thru as a dare was fined $400 in Port Kembla Local Court on Wednesday, June 19. Ronald John Bates, 33, a machine operator, pleaded guilty to obscene exposure in a public place on May 31 this year. Prosecutor Sergeant Greg Campbell said ploice were called to McDonald's Warilla at about 8:55pm. Police found Bates on the grass area in full view of drive-thru traffic. Unfortunately when Bates saw the police he ran towards a nearby stormwater drain and fell in.
Chinese Man Eats Live Animals
HONG KONG - A Chinese man's diet consists of live animals, including poisonous snakes, without any apparent ill effects. Tang Yushen, 45, of Xupu county in the province of Hunan, started his strange diet following an illness. For the past year he has swallowed numerous live animals including six chickens, 25 frogs, two ducks, 20 lizards and 15 rats. Tang, immune to snake poison, has also swallowed four poisonous snakes. Occasionally he eats uncooked pork, raw fish and roots, China News Service said.
Gang Member Urinates In Court
PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island - A gang member began urinating inside the U.S. District courtroom during his own trial. George "King Animal" Perry, 22, was one of the six defendants accused of murder, drug dealing and extortion. Perry, a member of the Latin Kings street gang, asked his lawyer if he could go to the bathroom. His attorney, John Cicilline, passed a note to the judge who called a bench conference. Perry turned his back to the jury and began urinating. Perry was ordered to a cell for the rest of the trial, but the judge reversed the decision after the gang member apologized. "I'd like to apologize to your honor and everyone else in the courtroom ... I will maintain myself," Perry said. "Your behavior here was absolutely outrageous," U.S. District Judge Mary Lisi said. "I will permit you to stay, but if you so much as cross your eyes or look the wrong way, the marshals will take you out," she added. The attorneys for the other five defendants immediately asked for a mistrial claiming the jury has been prejudiced by Perry's actions. "Whatever he did to himself, he did to himself," the judge said while denying the mistrial.
