Facts & Trends

Redrawing 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 ...

H.S. Football Team of Deaf Players Wins Title

A high school football team of deaf players in Fremont, Calif., has won a league title for the first time.  The Eagles of the California School for the Deaf, already national champions among schools for the deaf, won the regular ...

Can’t Afford To Post Bail

Some 480,000 suspects are currently locked up in American jails awaiting trial.  About 75 percent of them are low-level offenders accused of nonviolent infractions, and are in jail simply because they can't afford to post bail ...

FORCED TO LEAVE HOME

A record 38 million people were displaced in their own countries at the end of 2014, according to the Norwegian Refugee Council. Here’s a sampling: Syria - 7.6 million Colombia - 6 million Democratic Republic of Congo - 2.8 million ...

It was a bad week for . . .

. . . ordering a margarita, after heavy rains, tree disease, and cartel violence sent prices for Mexico’s limes soaring from to $14 a case to $100.  “We don’t buy them [anymore],” said the owner of a San Antonio Mexican ...

Give That Man A Hand . . .

A British pilot momentarily lost control of his passenger plane when his artificial arm fell off during landing. The captain of the FlyBe turboprop was approaching Belfast City Airport in windy conditions with 47 passengers on board when his prosthetic ...

Army Qualification

Just 30 percent of Americans aged 17 to 24 are eligible to become soldiers, according to the U.S. Army. The remaining 70 percent of young people are either too obese or are disqualified because they have a criminal history or ...

Self-Storage Space

The U.S. now has 2.3 billion square feet of self-storage space, constituting more than 7 square feet for every citizen ...

Online education

Police arrested a New Hampshire man who posted 35 videos on YouTube explaining how to grow marijuana at home.  Kyle Berry didn’t appear in the videos, but authorities said his reflection could be seen in one of the tutorials.  “He’s ...

A Knife In The Head

A Chinese pedestrian narrowly escaped death after a knife fell from the sky and stuck in his head. XiaoYunzhi, 57, was walking below a high-rise apartment when the wind blew a kitchen knife from an eighth story balcony. The blade ...