98-year-old woman accused of killing 100-year-old room-mate after complaining of too many visitors. Police in Dartmouth initially believed the victim had committed suicide.

Man reports theft of Ecstasy pill collection.

4-year-old boy was found roaming his neighborhood in the night, drinking beer and wearing a little girl’s dress.

40-year-old decided to castrate himself to avoid cheating on his wife who refused to have sex with him.

A French court has split the jackpot from a casino slot machine between the woman who put in the money and the man who pulled the lever, ending months of argument between the two.

Chinese man gets remote control stuck in bottom after drunk prank. While being examined, the tipsy student turned over in bed, and inadvertently changed channel on the ward’s telly.


Giant penis sparks bizarre media war in Germany.

Accenture ends 6-year relationship with Tiger Woods; says no longer the ‘right representative’.

Abu Dhabi gives Dubai $10 billion for use on debt. [previously]

Drug money saved banks in global crisis?

In doing research for my latest book, I was delighted to bump into an equation that predicted the value of wines from Bordeaux without relying on anyone from the swirl, sip, and swish crowd. [PDF]

How to keep the planet’s temperature from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius (35 degrees Fahrenheit).

It may seem odd to add scent to products like sewing thread, automobile tires, and tennis balls, as some companies have done. But a new study says scent helps consumers remember product information.

New quantum theory topples Einstein’s spacetime.

Controversial signs of mass cannibalism 7,000 years ago.

Ancient DNA retrieved from extinct horse species from around the world has challenged one of the textbook examples of evolution - the fossil record of the horse family Equidae over the past 55 million years.

Panda genome unveiled. DNA clues suggest little inbreeding, surprise on the bamboo diet.

Octopus observed using tools.

Treatment for sleep apnea.

New study shows that women rate men’s photos as more attractive when they’re placed near the top of the screen. By contrast, men rate women’s photos as more attractive when they’re located near the bottom of the screen.

Postpartum depression strikes fathers, too.

A revolution in how people access and use pornography has taken the therapy community by surprise. Now some experts believe that an epidemic of porn use is society’s newest and most challenging mental health problem.

Women are more likely to be chatting it up on Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites you’ve probably never heard of, like “Bebo.”

Malicious programs are rampaging through Web sites like Facebook and Twitter, spreading themselves by taking over people’s accounts and sending out messages to all of their friends and followers.

Scientists follow earthquakes on Twitter.

Google Analytics is illegal, say German government officials.

How to think like Bill Gates. Related: Stuff I’ve learned at Microsoft.

VC predictions for cell phones in 2010.

10 brands that will disappear in 2010.

Chess boxing is a hybrid sport which combines the sport of boxing with games of chess in alternating rounds.

NYC’s toniest neighborhood also its most polluted.

Finding a parking spot with a broken meter may be the New York equivalent of hitting the jackpot — but, thanks to a new iPhone application, everyone can now be a winner.

Reasons to love NY. [15. Because girls have more fun.]

The world’s fastest animal (the peregrine falcon) takes New York.

275 magazines launched in 2009. Related: After 55 years in publication, I.D. Magazine, America’s foremost design publication, has folded.

The rise of poetry in advertising.

Why Wittgenstein rejected theories.

Flipism is an imaginary philosophy, letting all decisions be made by flipping a coin.

On the Origin of Stories attempts an evolutionary explanation of the appearance of art—and, more specifically, of the utility of fiction.

The art market has suffered from the recession, but globalisation should help it recover.

Larry Sultan dies at 63.

Secrets of a food photographer.

On properly heating your pan.

Top Ten Astronomy Pictures of 2009.

Hello from Parrot Jungle.

New Obama.

Soldiers of the U.S. Army 1st Battalion take defensive positions at fire base Restrepo after receiving fire from Taliban positions in Afghanistan’s Korengal Valley. [PIC]

Chocolate-covered bacon on a stick.

Rabbit by street artist Roa.

Successful jump off building.

Santa intimate. [NSFW]

Loop.

every day the same again | December 15th, 2009