Thursday, January 31, 2008
Metals
Kenneth Chang of the New York Times: "In a feat of optical alchemy, researchers have used ultrashort laser bursts to alter how metals absorb and reflect light, changing their appearance dramatically."
Missing Link
Via IOL: "Brazilian paleontologists said on Thursday they had found the fossil of a new species of prehistoric predator that represented a 'missing link' to modern-day crocodiles."
Update: Xinhua News Agency has photos.
Update: Xinhua News Agency has photos.
Wall
In the Indian state of Orissa, a wild elephant destroyed six houses, killing a 5-year-old girl.
"A falling wall crushed the child," a traveler said.
"A falling wall crushed the child," a traveler said.
One Less Tiger
Responding to a request from villagers to free a Sumatran tiger from a pig snare, an Indonesian solder shot the cat. The soldier kept the pelt. Fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild.
Blue Eyes
University of Copenhagen:
New research shows that people with blue eyes have a single, common ancestor. A team at the University of Copenhagen has tracked down a genetic mutation which took place 6-10,000 years ago and is the cause of the eye color of all blue-eyed humans alive on the planet today.
Rock Art
The BBC:
UN peacekeepers in the disputed African territory of Western Sahara have vandalized ancient rock paintings, a UN official has told a UK newspaper.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Schoolteacher
According to Asian news media, a 44-year-old schoolteacher used his bare hands to kill an attacking leopard during a 15-minute fight at a pond in India's state of Himachal Pradesh. The man went to a local hospital, where he received treatment for injuries to his arms and legs.
Snake Wrangler
A 37-year-old snake wrangler died from a rattlesnake bite in Deming, New Mexico. He reportedly had 179 snakes in his home.
Cameroon
Fergal Keane of BBC News:
Read more.
Late in the night we hear a low howling across the forest. It builds to a crescendo until I am certain that what I am hearing is the sound of murder.
The contrast is extraordinary. Through a gap in the canopy I can see a sky full of stars.
The rest of the village is asleep. There is peace — except for the blood-chilling screams.
"My God, what is that?" I ask.
Read more.
Hiding in Caves
Joe De Capua at Voice of America: "The violence in Kenya’s Rift Valley is now targeting the Ogiek people, who are indigenous hunter-gatherers in the Mau Forest."
Mount Nimba
Environmentalists face resistance from villagers around Guinea's Mount Nimba. Nico Colombant at Voice of America has a report.
Probe Widens
Edward Wyatt of the New York Times: "The federal investigation into looted Asian and American Indian antiquities has been expanded to include stolen artifacts from Central America."
Previous: Raids in California
Previous: Raids in California
Statue
Karishma Vaswani of BBC News: "Indian brokers at the Bombay Stock Exchange are calling on the authorities to bring in religious experts to change the direction of a bronze bull statue."
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Lake Tanganyika
"More than 55 passengers are feared dead after a boat sank on Lake Tanganyika, off the Democratic Republic of Congo," the BBC reports.
Walking Safari
Joseph J. Schatz in Zambia:
Walking in the bush at dawn without the safety and distance afforded by vehicle affords a rare opportunity to learn about plants, animals, birds, and local beliefs up close. And offers more than you ever wanted to know about animal droppings.
Bashi-Bazouk Dancing
Artist: Jean-Léon Gérôme, French, 1824-1904Photogravure by Goupil & Cie, Paris, 1881
African Waters
Pirates stole supplies from a tanker off the coast of Nigeria and a cargo ship off the coast of Angola.
Chameleons
Anna-Marie Lever of BBC News:
Chameleons first used color change to make them more noticeable rather than, as is popularly believed, to blend in, a study suggests.
Mine
Purdue University:
A Purdue University archaeologist discovered an intact ancient iron ore mine in South America that shows how civilizations before the Inca Empire were mining this valuable ore.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Calf
RIA Novosti:
A passenger plane collided with a calf on an airport runway in Indonesia's eastern province of Papua, the country's Antara news agency reported on Monday.
The Boeing 737 was carrying 141 people, none of whom were injured in the accident.
Field of Death
A leopard killed a 10-year-old boy at a sugarcane field in India's state of Uttar Pradesh. The child's parents found their son's bloodstained lunch box and half-eaten body on Sunday.
Cobra in the Bedroom
An aggressive spitting cobra bit a sleeping woman on the face at a house in Namibia's capital, Windhoek. The victim survived the attack.
"I woke up from this sensation of having been hit with the sharp end of a hammer in the face," the woman told a local newspaper.
She said the snake had crawled through an open door.
"I woke up from this sensation of having been hit with the sharp end of a hammer in the face," the woman told a local newspaper.
She said the snake had crawled through an open door.
Arrests in Zimbabwe
Lawmen nabbed 11 suspected poachers in Zimbabwe.
"The suspects allegedly killed 15 elephants in a two-week period this month," a traveling businessman said in an email to me.
"The suspects allegedly killed 15 elephants in a two-week period this month," a traveling businessman said in an email to me.
Lake Kariba
At Lake Kariba a hippo killed a 32-year-old man in a small boat. The lake lies along the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Madagascar
Jonny Hogg of BBC News: "Conservationists are celebrating a double victory over tortoise smugglers in Madagascar."
Heads of Rebel Beys
Cairo, EgyptArtist: Jean-Léon Gérôme, French, 1824-1904
Photogravure by Goupil & Cie, Paris, 1881
Kill the Cat
In India's state of Jammu and Kashmir, a man-eating leopard escaped from Dachigam National Park near the city of Srinagar.
"Last year the leopard killed eight people before its capture," a trader said.
Wildlife authorities issued a shoot-on-sight order after the escape.
"Last year the leopard killed eight people before its capture," a trader said.
Wildlife authorities issued a shoot-on-sight order after the escape.
Night Attack
A large herd of wild elephants killed a sleeping villager in the Indian state of Assam.
Poll
China's Xinhua News Agency:
International conservation groups are renewing calls for the Chinese government to maintain a 15-year moratorium on the trade in tiger parts with a poll showing 95 percent of Chinese support the ban.
An American in China
Wild elephants seriously injured an American at a nature reserve in China's Yunnan Province.
Shark Bite
Near Australia a commercial fisherman suffered a severe bite on one of his legs when he stepped on a shark's tail.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Suharto
Seth Mydans of the New York Times reports from the city of Solo (Surakarta) on the island of Java:
Update: Suharto died.
On a personal level, I liked Suharto. We used the same tailor in Jakarta.
As former President Suharto hovers on the edge of death, some people here say it is not doctors and machines that have kept him alive, but an unseen cosmos of mystical forces.
Update: Suharto died.
On a personal level, I liked Suharto. We used the same tailor in Jakarta.
Panic
For more than three hours, a domesticated elephant scared people and disrupted traffic near Alappuzha in the Indian state of Kerala. The pachyderm dragged an SUV more than 100 meters. Fortunately, the passengers managed to leap out of the vehicle.
Parthia
Archaeologists excavated more than 200 rare Parthian artifacts at a site in southern Iraq. Among the items is a silver cobra.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Karnak
Ancient EgyptFeeding the sacred ibis in the halls of Karnak
Steel engraving from the 1870s
Artist: Sir Edward John Poynter (British, 1836-1919)
Engraver: Jean Ferdinand Joubert de la Ferté (French 1810-1884)
Steel engraving from the 1870s
Artist: Sir Edward John Poynter (British, 1836-1919)
Engraver: Jean Ferdinand Joubert de la Ferté (French 1810-1884)
Raids in California
In Southern California the feds raided a gallery and four museums as part of an investigation into the smuggling of looted antiquities from China, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), and Native American sites.
World War II
Plans are under way to build a memorial for the Soldier Bear.
From the BBC:
From the BBC:
The bear—named Voytek—was adopted in the Middle East by Polish troops in 1943, becoming much more than a mascot.
The large animal even helped their armed forces to carry ammunition at the Battle of Monte Cassino.
Angry Wife
In Uganda a wife killed her husband for selling a piglet without her permission. The woman beat the man to death with a stick.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Woman Attacked
Before dawn a leopard mauled a 19-year-old woman on the outskirts of Visakhapatnam in India's state of Andhra Pradesh. Other women threw stones to chase away the cat.
Pigs
Miss Piggy, Porky Pig, and other ham actors may have trouble finding work in the United Kingdom.
Poor Widow
A 29-year-old Egyptian widow plans to sell one of her kidneys to pay off her dead husband's debts.
Naked Women
Yesterday an Arab businessman mentioned the nude photos of French President Nicholas Sarkozy's fiancée. I quickly ended the conversation because I had to meet a former exotic dancer for dinner.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Mummies
In Egypt archaeologists discovered several mummies from the Greco-Roman period. One of the mummies wore a golden face mask.
Tropical Bird
Peter Fimrite of the San Francisco Chronicle:
A giant tropical bird—a type rarely, if ever, seen in the Bay Area—got stuck in the vortex of a hurricane-force Pacific storm this month and took a dizzying Wizard of Oz-like ride hundreds, maybe thousands, of miles off course.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Death
According to an archaeologist at the University of Yucatan, Mexico's ancient Mayans probably sacrificed males, not females.
Bit and Shot
An Austalian man suffered a gunshot wound during a successful effort to free his arm from the jaws of a crocodile.
What! No Beer?
Looking for rice beer, a herd of 150 elephants damaged 55 houses and 19 granaries on a river island in the Indian state of Assam. The herd also damaged more than 100 acres of crops.
Skull
Wang Shanshan of China Daily:
An almost complete human skull fossil that could date back 100,000 years was unearthed in Henan last month, Chinese archaeologists announced yesterday.
Venezuela
Five heavily armed pirates robbed a yacht off the coast of Venezuela. The cutthroats shot one man.
Illegal Ivory Trade
Police arrested three suspected smugglers after the discovery of 13 elephant tusks on a bus at a checkpoint in Namibia.
Twelve Elephants
Last week a dozen elephants killed five people at a village in the Nigerian state of Zamfara. News about the attack reached major trading centers today.
Cold
From RIA Novosti, the official Russian news agency:
Related: A cold spell soon to replace global warming
Temperatures on Earth have stabilized in the past decade, and the planet should brace itself for a new Ice Age rather than global warming, a Russian scientist said in an interview with RIA Novosti Tuesday.
Related: A cold spell soon to replace global warming
Down by the River
Saher Mahmood of the New York Times has the latest info about the mysterious gharial deaths in India.
Previous: Gharials
Previous: Gharials
Political Animals
Natalie Angier of the New York Times: "Some brainy animal species, besides humans, campaign across sophisticated and far-flung social networks."
Monday, January 21, 2008
Refugee Camps
"Conservation groups say they have found an unusual threat to East Africa's wildlife — hunting by hungry refugees," reports Richard Black of BBC News.
General Butt Naked
Jonathan Paye-Layleh of BBC News:
The former warlord earned the nickname General Butt Naked because he fought in the nude to frighten his enemies.
Milton Blahyi, a former feared rebel commander in Liberia's brutal civil war, has admitted to taking part in human sacrifices as part of traditional ceremonies intended to ensure victory in battle.
He said the sacrifices "included the killing of an innocent child and plucking out the heart, which was divided into pieces for us to eat."
The former warlord earned the nickname General Butt Naked because he fought in the nude to frighten his enemies.
Islamic Sex
From the official Russian news agency RIA Novosti:
Algerian police have uncovered a criminal group that made pornographic DVDs and put well-known Islamic preachers on the covers to disguise the films, the Al Shuruk al Yawmi daily reported on Monday.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Domestic Violence
A soldier allegedly killed his mother-in-law and beheaded his 5-year-old son in Zimbabwe. The man reportedly chopped off the boy's head with a hoe.
Talking about the 35-year-old murder suspect, a police spokesman said, "We shot him on the leg after he slit and pulled out his dead son's intestines."
Talking about the 35-year-old murder suspect, a police spokesman said, "We shot him on the leg after he slit and pulled out his dead son's intestines."
Fire and Ice
More than 2,000 years ago, a powerful volcano erupted under the ice sheet of West Antarctica. The volcano remains active.
Mother and Calf
Early this morning poachers killed a rhino calf and seriously wounded her mother near Kaziranga National Park in India's state of Assam. The illegal hunters took the adult rhino's horn.
Update: The mother died.
Update: The mother died.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Shepherd
A tiger killed a 45-year-old shepherd in India's state of Maharashtra. The big cat dragged the man's body into the jungle. Searchers found the partially eaten corpse on Friday.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Sea God
Amy Chavez at the Japan Times:
Now, you'd think that a sea god would live at sea level, or under the sea. After all, Davey Jones' Locker is at the bottom of the sea and King Neptune, ruler of the seas, lives in the sea. But not the Japanese sea god. In Japan, the gods live on top of mountains.
U.S. Navy
"Uncertainty looms over the Navy’s role in the event of a mine attack on a U.S. port," the Navy Times says.
Colombian Volcano
The BBC:
Thousands of people have been evacuated after a volcano erupted in southern Colombia, throwing out clouds of ash several kilometres high.
Traveling Snakes
Vietnamese customs officials confiscated a ton of snakes from an airline passenger.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Armed Rovers
Pirates used guns to rob two fishermen near the Philippine island of Mindanao. The raiders took money and equipment from the victims.
City Tiger
Staff writer Jaxon Van Derbeken of the San Francisco Chronicle has another update on the recent tiger attack at the San Francisco Zoo.
Philippine Pirates
Sea pirates probably killed three fishermen near the island of Basilan in the Philippines. Island residents pulled one body from the water.
Crotch Shot
Firing a homemade shotgun, a 32-year-old man shot his 38-year-old brother-in-law in the crotch during a hunting misadventure in the Malaysian state of Sabah.
"The hunter mistook the victim for a wild boar," a businessman said.
"The hunter mistook the victim for a wild boar," a businessman said.
Coffee
Residents used clubs and stones to kill a 30-year-old thief for stealing a sack of coffee at a Ugandan village.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Man-Eating Lion
In Zimbabwe a lion killed three members of a family. Searchers found the remains of the victims in the lion's den. Cops and wildlife rangers shot the cat.
Mermaid in South Africa
Aldo Pekeur in South Africa:
IOL has the article.
In what can best be described as the Western Cape's own Loch Ness monster, the legendary "mermaid" known as the Kaaiman has reportedly been spotted in the Buffelsjags River at Suurbraak, a village close to Swellendam.
IOL has the article.
Tiger Killed
RIA Novosti:
Previous: Drunk
A tiger that attacked a man in the Khabarovsk Territory in Russia's Far East two weeks ago was put down by Russian wildlife officers on Wednesday, the deputy chief of a local wildlife watchdog said.
Previous: Drunk
Raccoon Dogs
RIA Novosti:
Background: Raccoon dog
Raccoon dogs thought extinct in the Altai Mountains since the early 1950s have been again detected in Russia's south Siberian Altai Republic, a source in the regional government said on Wednesday.
Background: Raccoon dog
Big Rodent
Two to four million years ago, a one-ton rodent roamed forests and estuaries in South America.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Wind and Waves
Carrying more than 100 tons of seafood, a cargo ship sank off the southern coast of China.
Young Elephant
In the Indian state of West Bengal, a speeding freight train mowed down a 10-month-old male elephant.
"The train cut the animal into pieces," a local businessman said in an email to me.
"The train cut the animal into pieces," a local businessman said in an email to me.
Wounded
Rangers shot a poacher at Zimbabwe's Matusadona National Park. The seriously wounded man had a rifle and two rhinoceros horns in his possession.
Freest Economy
For the 14th consecutive year, residents of Hong Kong enjoy the world's freest economy, according to the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom.
Previous: Economic Freedom
Previous: Economic Freedom
Timber
Tne BBC:
Sierra Leone has re-imposed a timber export ban because of what it says is indiscriminate plundering of forests by Chinese and other foreign companies.
"They just invaded and started doing what they felt like doing," Forestry Minister Joseph Sam Sesay told the BBC.
Plague
Via People's Daily: 'The disease that devastated medieval Europe is re-emerging worldwide and poses a growing but overlooked threat, researchers cautioned Tuesday."
Water Buffalo
A water buffalo gored four people and damaged food stalls during a one-hour rampage in northern Vietnam. Cops shot the beast.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Northern Bald Ibis
"Efforts to save the Middle East’s rarest bird have been boosted by two chance sightings of the species 1,500 miles apart," says BirdLife International.
Death of a Fisherman
In India's state of West Bengal, a tiger killed a 45-year-old fishermen yesterday. Searchers found the man's half-eaten body in a mangrove forest.
One Jump Ahead
RIA Novosti:
A 25-year-old man died after falling from a fifth-floor window in Cairo, Egypt, after trying to escape a furious husband who had caught him with his wife, the Al-Masaa newspaper said on Monday.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Eight Hurt
A tiger injured eight villagers near a sugarcane field in India's state of Bihar. Some of the victims sustained serious injuries.
British Dinosaur
University of Bristol:
An unusual British dinosaur has been shown to have a skull that functioned like a fish-eating crocodile, despite looking like a dinosaur. It also possessed two huge hand claws, perhaps used as grappling hooks to lift fish from the water.
Mansa Musa
Mansa Musa (Mansa Moussa) holding a gold nuggetMap, 1375
At lunch two American traders knew nothing about Mansa Musa. The Web site of the History Channel has the story of the legendary Malian king's pilgrimage to Mecca during the 14th century:
He arrived in Cairo at the head of a huge caravan, which included 60,000 people and 80 camels carrying more than two tons of gold to be distributed among the poor. Of the 12,000 servants who accompanied the caravan, 500 carried staffs of pure gold. Moussa spent lavishly in Egypt, giving away so many gold gifts—and making gold so plentiful—that its value fell in Cairo and did not recover for a number of years!
Mugabe
Basildon Peta at IOL in South Africa:
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and his wife Grace withdrew $100 000 (R700 000) of scarce foreign currency from their country's central bank to finance a lavish three-week holiday and shopping spree in Asia, even as poverty in the country dramatically worsened.
Blood Donor
In China a woman saved her marriage by donating lifesaving blood to her husband's pregnant mistress.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Piracy Suspects
Surinamese police recently captured a dozen suspected pirates from Guyana.
"The suspects allegedly preyed on fishing boats in the area," a trader said.
"The suspects allegedly preyed on fishing boats in the area," a trader said.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Tamil Tigers
The FBI warns Americans about the Tamil Tigers:
They are among the most dangerous and deadly extremists in the world. They have murdered some 4,000 people in the past two years alone and have inspired terrorist groups like al Qaeda. And they have operatives here in our own backyard.
Escape Attempts
San Francisco Chronicle: A snow leopard and a polar bear tried to make a break for it at the San Francisco Zoo (updated).
Communes
Three wild elephants damaged homes and crushed motorbikes at two communes in Vietnam's province of Ha Tinh.
Mad Elephant
A wild elephant killed a farmer in Bangladesh. The pachyderm injured 20 other people and damaged at least 25 houses.
Update: The elephant killed another person and danaged another 30 homes. Paramilitary soldiers gunned down the tusker.
Update: The elephant killed another person and danaged another 30 homes. Paramilitary soldiers gunned down the tusker.
Mustache War
RIA Novosti:
Two families in southern Egypt that captured and forcefully shaved each others' leaders earlier in the year have agreed to end their dispute, the Al Ahram daily reported on Friday.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Turtle Traders
WWF:
More than half the freshwater turtle and tortoise species sold by pet dealers in Jakarta markets are threatened and nearly all are obtained illegally, according to a survey by the WWF-linked wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC.
Dealers told the survey team that protected status was a selling point for freshwater turtles and tortoises and they were able to ask higher prices for them. They were also quite open on most stock being sourced through illegal capture or imports.
Hanoi Zoo
According to newspaper reports, the Hanoi Zoo sold dead tigers to Vietnamese animal traffickers.
Smugglers Sentenced
Two gang leaders received suspended death sentences for smuggling pangolins and other exotic animals into China. Three other members of the gang received life sentences in the case.
Dead Bodies
The widespread violence in Kenya created a buffet of human meat for lions and other carnivorous animals.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Tiger Fight
At India's Kanha National Park a 10-year-old male tiger died in a territorial fight with another male tiger. Rangers recovered the badly torn carcass yesterday.
Mark of the Beast
A man who believed he bore the "mark of the beast" sawed off one of his hands and microwaved it.
Rhinoceros
This week poachers killed a rhinoceros at Kaziranga National Park in India's state of Assam. Last year illegal hunters slaughtered 21 rhinos in the area.
Crocodile in South Africa
Apparently one crocodile ate at least two people in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Crocodile in Uganda
Five rangers captured a four-meter crocodile along a river in Uganda.
"The crocodile had terrorized herdsmen and fishermen for months," a trader said.
"The crocodile had terrorized herdsmen and fishermen for months," a trader said.
Donkey Boy
Cairo, 19th centuryArtist: Jean-Léon Gérôme, French, 1824-1904
Photogravure by Goupil & Cie
Piracy Incidents
International Maritime Bureau:
Reported piracy incidents rose 10% in 2007 compared to the previous year, as attacks grew more violent, and increased significantly in Nigerian and Somalian waters, the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) said Wednesday upon release of its annual report.
Attacks on ships numbered 263 for 2007, versus the 239 recorded in 2006, based on statistics compiled by the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre in Kuala Lumpur. At the same time, pirates and robbers boarding vessels were better armed and more brazen in assaulting and injuring crew members, with a 35% increase reported in the number of incidents involving guns, with 64 crew injured or assaulted, compared with 17 in 2006.
Fossil
"A fossil unearthed in China has given scientists a rare glimpse of what dinosaurs were like in the flesh," reports Helen Briggs of BBC News.
One Man's Wish
From Time magazine, May 19, 1934:
In Denver Max Mannison snapped his fingers and said: "When I die I want to go just like that." Thereupon he did.
Dog Food
A Russian man beheaded two friends after he had discovered them butchering his favorite dog.
Asphalt Jungle
New York Times:
Two men were arrested on Tuesday after pushing a corpse, seated in an office chair, along the sidewalk to a check-cashing store to cash the dead man’s Social Security check.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Bathroom
Indian wildlife rangers captured a wild leopard in the city of Nashik. The men caught the cat in the bathroom of a home.
The Cook
"God told me to do it," said a Texas man who allegedly cooked pieces of his murdered girlfriend.
Last Sunday: Boiled Meat
Last Sunday: Boiled Meat
Cubs
"Experts at Germany's Nuremberg Zoo say a female polar bear may have eaten her cubs, as there is no sign of them," the BBC reports.
Update here.
Update here.
Horn Traders
Acting on a tip, South African cops seized two rhino horns from a trio of suspected dealers.
Central Sumatra
WWF: Illegal logging and road building threatens tigers and tribes in the heart of Sumatra.
Loot
From the BBC:
The threat of witchcraft has scared looters into returning goods they stole during unrest which followed last month's disputed Kenyan elections.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Anaconda
News report at IOL:
A seven-year-old girl was saved from being dragged off into the Brazilian jungle by an anaconda when a quick-witted young man hacked off the snake's head.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Boiled Meat
At a house in Tyler, Texas, a 25-year-old man allegedly cooked part of 21-year-old woman after her murder.
New Ear
Via IOL:
A New Zealand burglar whose ear was bitten off by a police dog when he was arrested will get a new one paid for by taxpayers, a newspaper reported on Sunday.
Rocky the Rooster
In South Africa, Rocky the rooster lost his tail feathers. Journalist Myrtle Ryan writes, "For the past 21 months Rocky has been living in the dune bush north of the snake park, but there have been attempts on his life: a business of water mongooses has taken up lodgings in the bush — and chicken is a tasty treat."
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Rhino Horns
Vietnamese customs officers confiscated five rhinoceros horns from a Vietnamese man at Tan Son Nhat International Airport.
"The smuggler flew into the airport from South Africa," a merchant reported. "He was carrying the items for a Vietnamese-American in the United States."
Local cops have the smuggler in custody.
"The smuggler flew into the airport from South Africa," a merchant reported. "He was carrying the items for a Vietnamese-American in the United States."
Local cops have the smuggler in custody.
The Clash
Fouad Ajami has an essay in the Sunday Book Review section of the New York Times: "I doubted Samuel Huntington when he predicted a struggle between Islam and the West. My mistake."
CWCID: TigerHawk
CWCID: TigerHawk
Friday, January 4, 2008
Silence Pact
Jaxon Van Derbeken of the San Francisco Chronicle:
Previous: San Francisco Tiger
Soon after their 17-year-old friend was mauled to death by a tiger at the San Francisco Zoo, the two brothers who survived the attack made a quick pact not to cooperate with the police as they rode in an ambulance to the hospital, sources told the Chronicle.
Previous: San Francisco Tiger
Flier
In Malawi a court sentenced a suspected sorcerer to five years in prison for practicing witchcraft.
"On Christmas Eve the man reportedly fell from his magic airplane," a trader said. "Drunks found him and called police."
"On Christmas Eve the man reportedly fell from his magic airplane," a trader said. "Drunks found him and called police."
Shipwrecked
The BBC: "Rescuers have saved 11 people who were shipwrecked nearly three months ago in the remote Russian Far East, Russian media reports say."
Murdered?
Survival International:
Previous: Headman
Penan tribal headman Kelesau Naan of Sarawak, Malaysia, who went missing on 23 October, has been found dead. His relatives suspect he has been murdered due to his resistance to illegal logging on the Penan’s land.
Previous: Headman
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Albino Alligators
"Police in Brazil are investigating the disappearance of seven rare albino alligators from a university zoo in the western state of Mato Grosso," reports Gary Duffy of BBC News.
Solution
USA Today: "Indian state's solution to monkey menace involves 'laser sterilization,' unemployed youth."
Insects and Dinosaurs
Oregon State University:
Asteroid impacts or massive volcanic flows might have occurred around the time dinosaurs became extinct, but a new book argues that the mightiest creatures the world has ever known may have been brought down by a tiny, much less dramatic force—biting, disease-carrying insects.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Street Dogs
A dogfight frightened an 11-year-old female elephant in India's city of Madurai. The domesticated pachyderm ran into a hotel to get away from the barking animals.
San Francisco Tiger
San Francisco Chronicle: "Tiger attack survivors' attorney says zoo ignored cries for help."
Previous:
It's a Zoo
San Francisco Zoo
San Francisco
Fatal Attack
Tiger Escapes
Previous:
It's a Zoo
San Francisco Zoo
San Francisco
Fatal Attack
Tiger Escapes
Moreton Island
A 1.8-meter snake attacked a 26-year-old woman on Moreton Island in Australia. Rescuers killed the reptile to pry it off the woman's leg.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Black Bart
The proprietor of a laundry played a role in the capture of the 19th-century American outlaw Black Bart.
Asphalt Jungle
A father lost his life when he shielded his 9-year-old daughter from bullets in San Francisco.
D.B. Cooper
From the FBI:
On a cold November night 36 years ago, in the driving wind and rain, somewhere between southern Washington state and just north of Portland, Oregon, a man calling himself Dan Cooper parachuted out of a plane he’d just hijacked clutching a bag filled with $200,000 in stolen cash.
Who was Cooper? Did he survive the jump? And what happened to the loot, only a small part of which has ever surfaced?
It’s a mystery, frankly. We’ve run down thousands of leads and considered all sorts of scenarios. And amateur sleuths have put forward plenty of their own theories. Yet the case remains unsolved.
Would we still like to get our man? Absolutely. And we have reignited the case—thanks to a Seattle case agent named Larry Carr and new technologies like DNA testing.
You can help. We’re providing here, for the first time, a series of pictures and information on the case. Please look it all over carefully to see if it triggers a memory or if you can provide any useful information.
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