Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism

"Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism" (2004), a brilliant documentary by director Robert Greenwald, does a wonderful job at chronicling how media empires,led by Rupert Murdoch's Fox News, have been running a "race to the bottom" in television news.

This film provides an in-depth look at Fox News and the dangers of ever-enlarging corporations taking control of the public's right to know,how network misrepresents facts, manufactures terror and slanders liberals, all with the sole purpose of advancing its right-wing agenda.

Greenwald's film provides stimulating evidence of how thoroughly news can be skewed, political agendas served and a climate of fear created by a news net selling itself as an objective information service but in reality offering little distinction between news and commentary.

The film uncovers daily internal memos that outline conservative talking points, nonconformists that are threatened with their jobs and correspondents that often do not even pretend to be impartial.

WATCH FULL DOCUMENTARY

Squirrels wield a secret weapon

Squirrels have a secret weapon that until now has remained invisible to the human eye.

The Californian ground squirrel heats up its tail then waves it in the snake's face - a form of harassment that confuses the rattler, which has an infrared sensing organ for detecting small mammals.

This defensive tactic remained invisible to biologists until they looked at the animals through an infrared video camera. Now they believe that many other animals might be using infrared weaponry to ward off potential predators.


Squirrel waves hot tail at rattle snake

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Confronted with a gopher snake, which has no infrared sensory organ, the squirrels wagged their tails but didn’t bother to warm them up first.

Squirrel waves cold tail at gopher snake

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http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn12477

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Missing Dolphin

Hey,Google

Never pass wind in your wetsuit!

The First Automated Restaurant In The World Opens In Germany

NUREMBERG,Germany - The first sit-down restaurant in the world that doesn't have waiters opened earlier this month in Nuremberg,Germany. They've been replaced with a fully automated ordering and table service system.

Michael Mack, who got his start operating a profitable iron foundry in Nuremberg, has reinvented the way guests are served food and drinks and infused the culinary world with a bit of the Jetsons.

At the bistro 's Baggers, the waiter of old has been shown the door,and it's uncertain he'll actually be missed. Instead of the classic, apron and tie-wearing waiter, each table has been connected by metal rails to the kitchen. Dishes like "organic beef in buttermilk" and "sausage en croute" glide along the rails to customers, propelled by gravity.

For the magic to work at all, Mack had to install the kitchen directly beneath the roof of the multistory restaurant. Customers order their meals using a touch-screen system that is placed at each table, and the entire restaurant is networked via a computer system.

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Customers' orders are registered upstairs in the kitchen and a computer in the cellar keeps track of supply stocks. The system also calculates the likely delivery times for drinks and meals at every table and keeps customers informed.

Michael Mack believes there is a global market for his new invention. His gravity feed rail system is patented in Germany and he is seeking protection for the invention internationally so that he can license it to restaurants abroad.

"Billions of euros in personnel costs could be saved using this system.We don't need service at the table," Mack said.

The bizarre mechanism certainly lures a large number of curious people to the drab, out of the way Nuremberg industrial park where it is located. Whether or not the guests will take to the restaurant is unclear.

"We prefer a nice friendly waiter to this cold stainless steel system you can't talk to," one visitor complained recently in a posting on the Internet forum Restaurant-Kritik.de.

A comment from another observer demonstrates the automated service system can trigger other unsavory associations too: The spiraling rails remind her of the automated feeding system used to feed pigs on large farms. http://www.restaurant-kritik.de/88343/ http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,501086,00.html

The Long Way To Work

"Flying Creature" Cought On Camera in Germany

Flying Creature - video powered by Metacafe

Keep Dogs Leashed

Trends In Japan : Air-Conditioned Clothing And Beds

Kuchoufuku Chief Executive Officer,Hiroshi Ichigaya, poses with fans from an 'air-conditioned' jacket at the company's offices in Saitama Prefecture northwest of Tokyo August 17, 2007. Two small fans sewn into the back of each garment and powered by a pocket-sized rechargeable battery pack circulate air across the wearer's skin, evaporating perspiration and keeping temperatures down -- a welcome respite from Japan's mid-summer humidity and record-breaking heat in recent days.

The fan sewn into the side of an 'air-conditioned' jacket is pictured at the offices of Japanese manufacturer Kuchou-fuku in Saitama Prefecture, northwest of Tokyo August 17, 2007.

Workers wear 'air-conditioned' jackets at the offices of Japanese manufacturer Kuchou-fuku in Saitama Prefecture, northwest of Tokyo August 17, 2007.

Kuchoufuku has a wide range of products including jackets, pants, white shirts (for both men and women), and workshirts with dual fans that create constant air flow. Combined with the bed, it’s now possible to spend nearly every second of your day being fanned with cool air for those hot and humid summers.

The traditional Japanese way to stay cool in the summer months is to lay on a flexible pad of bamboo tiles, but we’ve never quite gotten used to the hard feeling. Enter Kuchofuku, now releasing it’s 2007 series of air-conditioned lifestyle products including a bed!

Using a standard AC adapter, the 2.4kg (5.3lb) Kuchoufuku Air-conditioned Bed is extremely ecological, and the maker claims that with everyday use for eight hours the bed will use less than ¥30 ($.24) for the entire month! It also rolls up into the included bag for compact storage.

8-year-old girl tries to bike 900 miles from Florida to her former home in Ohio to get away from hurricanes

DELAND,USA - An 8-year-old girl who recently moved to Florida caused a panic when she tried to ride back home to Ohio on her bicycle out of fear of hurricanes.Forecasters are predicting that Hurricane Dean will miss Florida, but Heather Snoke,8, didn't get the message.

Heather was riding her bicycle in front of her home Wednesday, mother Melissa Snoke, 37, told police. Twenty minutes later, at 6:30 p.m, the girl's father, John Snoke, 41, came home and noticed Heather was gone.

While the mother called police, her father drove around the neighborhood looking for his daughter but did not find her.

She did not get far from her family's house in Deland,Florida. Neighbors and a police helicopter located her about 75 minutes after she was reported missing,at 7:46 p.m. on East Plymouth Avenue. By that time she had pedaled almost a mile -- still more than 900 miles from Columbus,Ohio.

Police took the girl home and reunited her with her parents.

"It is amusing but at the same time sad," Deputy Police Chief Randel Henderson told The Daytona Beach News on Thursday.

A police report said Heather told officers "she was headed back to Columbus, Ohio, because she was afraid of hurricanes and that was her home."

"No charges are pending.There was no abuse. There was no neglect. It's a happy story. We're just so excited we were able to find this little lady," Henderson said.

Melissa Snoke, Heather's mother, told police the family moved recently and her daughter had not made any friends yet in her new neighborhood.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20314349/

American horror writer Stephen King "mistaken for vandal" in Australia

American best selling author Stephen King ,59, was mistaken for a vandal on Tuesday when he started signing books during an unannounced visit to a shop in Australia, according to Australian media.

A customer at the Dymocks store in remote Alice Springs raised the alarm after noticing a man walk in off the street and begin writing in several books, manager Bev Ellis told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation,but staff at the Alice Springs book store did not initially realise Stephen King was autographing his own novels.

"When you see someone writing in one of your books you get a bit toey (nervous).We immediately ran to the books and lo-and-behold, there was the signature," bookshop manager Bev Ellis said.

Stephen King is an American author of over 200 stories including over 50 bestselling horror and fantasy novels. King was the 2003 recipient of The National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.

Ellis later approached the author at the supermarket across the road in the small desert town and said King was "very nice, charming".

"Well, if we knew you were coming we would have baked you a cake," she told King.

The American horror writer,Stephen King ,best known for works such as Carrie, The Shining,Bag of Bones and Misery, signed six books including his most recent novel, "Lisey's Story".

Five of the six books King signed will be given to local charities, though one was purchased by the customer who mistook him for a vandal. Stephen King was travelling with a friend.Ellis said.

Ellis added that it was common for authors to visit the shop, check if their books are on the shelves and sign some copies.

"If they're not on the shelves, they'll ask about them. It's embarrassing if we haven't got their work," she said.

Stephen King's representative in Australia told the media he was unaware the author was in the country.King was keeping quiet about his travel plans and just smiled when Ellis asked him if he was staying long in Alice Springs

Do Not Protect Pandas Anymore - They Can Protect Themselves Now

A homeowner was arrested and could face a life sentence after a burglar plunged from the balcony of his house

MANCHESTER,ENGLAND - A homeowner was arrested and could face a life sentence after a burglar plunged from the balcony of his house in a suburb of the English city of Manchester.

The intruder suffered head injuries and died in hospital after falling around 30ft from the third floor window on to a concrete path.

Patrick Walsh, 56, awoke to find an intruder in his flat on Corkland Road in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, south Manchester.

"Following an exchange of words" the 43-year-old suspect fell from the third floor window on to the pavement below,police said

He suffered massive injuries from the fall, at around 6.10am on Monday,August 6.

The man was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary with serious head injuries before being transferred to Hope Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at about 11am.

Police conducted a detailed forensic examination of the flat after the incident.

Walsh was arrested on suspicion of causing serious bodily harm and bailed until November pending further police inquirers.

"My client is not at liberty to say anything because he is under police bail.However we appreciate that the public view might be that this is a man arrested in his own home defending his own property ",Walsh's lawyer, Victor Wozny, said

A spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Police said, "Inquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances surrounding this incident.A 56-year-old man from Chorlton has been arrested on suspicion of section 18 assault and bailed, pending further inquiries."

It is believed the intruder then smashed the window and clambered out on to a narrow ledge and fell to the ground.


Walsh phoned police and at around 6.30am officers found the man on the ground outside the smart Victorian apartment block in Chorlton-cum-Hardy,


He was taken to hospital with serious head injuries.Officers arrested Walsh on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and are trying to establish whether the intruder was forced out of the window.

The arrest is expected to fuel arguments about the rights of householders in UK to defend themselves against burglars.

The burglar fell from this third floor window

"Police arrived in what seemed to be minutes and were there for the whole day.It's shocking to find out what has happened but people shouldn't break into other people's houses," a neighbour said.

Another resident said: "I presume we will have to respect the burglar's rights while his victim has the nightmare of court hanging over his head. It all seems so unfair."

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said they had been called following reports that an intruder had fallen from a top-floor flat.

"Following an exchange of words, the alleged burglar was found unconscious on the pavement outside the flat,"police said.

Mr Walsh has been released on bail until November. If charged and convicted he could face a life sentence.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/

Microsoft Word For Blondes 1.0

Be Aware And Warn Others - Ice Cream Truck Drivers Are Selling Drugs!

NEW YORK,USA - An ice cream truck parked in front of a New York City junior high school was offering cocaine and marijuana,along with some ice cream, police said.

A police search of the vehicle uncovered a loaded pistol along with the drugs, police said Friday after arresting 26-year-old Jermaine Jordan,a Mr. Softee ice cream truck driver,on charges including criminal possession of a weapon near a school and criminal sale of a controlled substance near a school. There was no listed number at Jordan's address, and it was not immediately clear whether he had a lawyer.The school, J.H.S. 008, is in city's Queens borough.

For certain customers, Jermaine Jordan, 26, of St. Albans, would double-cup his cold concoctions,tucking the drugs neatly between the two containers and giving new meaning to the term "coke float", police said.

"People would approach and place their order.The bottom of their cup would contain their purchase, either cocaine or marijuana,"a police source said.

Jermaine Jordan was arrested as he made his usual stop in front of Intermediate School 8 just as kids were being dismissed from summer camp, police said.

Parents outside IS 8 said they were disgusted by the alleged drug-dealing - especially since the suspect is a man they had come to know from his three years of driving the ice-cream truck.

"We trusted this guy. We send kids out there every day. I feel betrayed," said Donald Williams, 53, who regularly gave money to his granddaughter for ice cream.

"I've been here for 40 years and ain't never would've thought Mister Softee was dealing drugs. Not Mister Softee," Williams said.

Armed with a search warrant, four squad cars descended on the ice-cream truck about 5p.m., and cops grabbed Jordan, who has served time on a weapons charge, police said.

Last month,another ice cream truck driver was arrested for selling marijuana in Michigan.Southwestern Michigan authorities said tips led to the arrest of an ice cream truck operator who was selling marijuana along with his frozen desserts.

After authorities got tips about the alleged pot-peddler, a deputy "heard jingling bells" and saw the ice cream truck entering a trailer park in Benton Township, about 70 miles southwest of Grand Rapids,Michigan, Berrien County sheriff's Lt. Keith Hafer said in a written statement.

The deputy John Hopkins stopped the truck, spoke with the driver and smelled marijuana.
Authorities searched the van and found several packages of marijuana under the dashboard.The 36-year-old suspect was jailed on marijuana charges.

Authorities released the vehicle to the vending company "in spite of an effort by Narcotics Officers to devise a way to forfeit the vehicle and its icy cold treats," Hafer said. He said police would seek revocation of the company's license to operate in Benton Township.

Raymundo Flores, a 40-year-old illegal immigrant from Mexico, was arrested In Mission,Texas in late May of this year on charges of possession of marijuana. He was transported to Hidalgo County jail after a judge set bond at $30,000.

News video showed the driver may have been doing some subtle advertising. While the outside of the truck was festooned with pictures of ice cream, pendants in the shape of marijuana leaves dangled inside the truck.

This ice cream man was selling more than ice cream and pop-sickles.Flores was arrested after the customers who were mostly in the third through the fifth grade went to the police and told them their ice cream man was selling more than ice cream.The driver was apparently selling bags of marijuana for $5 to $10 per bag.

"It's a scary thought, but that's the info we received," Mission police Chief Leo Longoria said.