HABITAT LOSS
The sicker the oceans get, the more of their habitable regions vanish. Loss of aquatic habitats is mirroring the earlier pattern on land, which began with the Industrial Revolution and continues today.
Read moreCategory: Facts & Trends
Outsmarting the NSA
Russia’s secret service ordered dozens of electric typewriters, saying that recent revelations about the U.S. National Security Agency’s online surveillance program made them distrust computer communications.
Read moreHaving No Religion
A Pew survey found that one in five Americans is not affiliated with any religion. “Nones” are growing faster than any religious group in America.
Read moreHomicide
Homicide is the leading cause of on-the-job death among women. And taxi drivers are the people most likely to be murdered while working.
Read moreHeatwave In India
A farmer sits on his parched land in the village of Gauribidanur in India’s southern Karnataka state on May 26, as a brutal heat wave continued to blister the country, claiming at least 1,100 lives and causing roads to melt in New Delhi. Pre-monsoon showers were forecast to soon provide relief to the south, where temperatures in some areas neared […]
Read morePolitics – Men vs. Women
“In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” – Margaret Thatcher
Read moreRedrawing Borders
Italy and Switzerland have agreed to redraw their border because global warming is melting the Alpine glaciers that mark their respective boundaries. The border had been fixed since 1861.
Read moreIt was a good week for . . .
. . . painless budget cuts, after 14-year-old Suvir Mirchandani of Pittsburgh calculated that government agencies could save $370 million a year in ink and paper costs by printing all documents in the thinner Garamond typeface instead of Times New Roman.
Read moreInteresting States
PENNSYLVANIA Longest-running gas station (since 1909) RHODE ISLAND First U.S. circus performance SOUTH CAROLINA Largest sculpture garden (more than 1,400 works) SOUTH DAKOTA Most well-rested state TENNESSEE First self-service grocery store TEXAS Largest bat colony UTAH Highest per capita consumption of Jell-0 VERMONT Highest percentage of cat owners
Read moreMan Bitten By Shark Goes To Pub
A New Zealand man who was bitten by a shark calmly stitched up his own wounds, then joined his friends at the pub while still bleeding and drank a beer before heading to the hospital. James Grant was spearfishing when the shark clamped down on his leg. “[| thought], ‘Bugger, now I have to try and get this thing off,’ “he said. […]
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