An expanding Apple

January 13, 2011 at 2:18 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

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THE NEWS

Odd news from around the world

Earth’s rotation skews astrology: “Brace for the worst: You may be a Virgo, scientists say. There are many newspapers and websites that promise to tell your fortune, detailing where the planets were when you were born and what their future movements suggest about your future. It’s called astrology, and whether or not you believe in it, you won’t believe this: It’s all wrong. Astronomers with the Minnesota Planetarium Society have dropped a bomb on the zodiac, noting that thanks to the millennia-long effect of the moon’s gravitational pull on the Earth, there’s about a one-month bump in the alignment of the stars.”

Judge threatens to tape man’s mouth: “An Ohio judge threatened to have a defendant’s mouth duct-taped shut after he caused a disruption in court, a lawyer said today. Duniek Christian, 26, appeared before Judge Elizabeth Kobly last week on a charge of obstructing official business and a traffic offence. Mr Christian was using expletives and was shouting at the judge on Friday because he wanted a jury trial, not a bench trial, said his former lawyer, David Gerchak. He said the judge repeatedly held his client in contempt and finally asked officers in court to get some duct tape. Mr Gerchak said he didn’t know if the judge was serious, but as for his former client, “the threat certainly got to him”.

World’s oldest winery found in cave: “The world’s oldest winery has been discovered in a cave in a mountainous area of Armenia. A 6000-year-old stone vat in which to press the grapes, jars for fermentation and drinking bowls were found by archaeologists from the University of California, Los Angeles. The winery, at least 1000 years older than any similar find, was discovered in the same cave where researchers in June announced the discovery of the world’s oldest leather shoe. Archaeologists believe that the Copper Age inhabitants of the area crushed wine grapes with their feet in a metre-wide clay basin. The grape juice was channelled into a 60-centimetre-deep stone vat, where it fermented, before being drained into jars. The team found the remains of pressed grape skins as well as grape seeds, which were from a type of grape – Vitis vinifera – still used to make wine today.”

The unbreakable metallic glass that’s stronger and tougher than steel: “The days of boys accidentally kicking footballs through windows may finally be at an end. Scientists in the U.S. have created glass that’s tougher to breaker than steel. The damage-tolerant metallic glass was fabricated by combining up to five elements, including the rare metal palladium. Whereas the other metals add strength, palladium increases the plasticity of the glass and prevents cracks from spreading. Dr Robert Ritchie, a material scientist at the U.S. Department of Energy, said: ‘The result is that glass undergoes extensive plasticity in response to stress, allowing it to bend rather than crack. ‘The rare combination of toughness and strength, or damage tolerance, extends beyond the benchmark ranges established by the toughest and strongest materials known.'”

British women soldiers warned ‘drinking alcohol makes you fat’: “Women soldiers have been warned to drink sensibly by their bosses at the Ministry of Defence – or they will end up with a large bottom. A new advert is targeting their vanity to improve their health, after the MoD found thousands of servicemen and women were drinking ‘hazardous and harmful’ amounts of alcohol. The ad in Soldier magazine has the line ‘Does My Bum Look Big in This?’ next to a beer glass shaped into a large bottom on legs wearing high heels. It then asks ‘Are You Drinking to Excess?’. An insider told the Daily Mirror: ‘We are determined to show there is no place for excess drinking in the British Army and shock tactics are a great way to get the message across to both men and women.'”

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