Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Man charged with toilet paper assault
A New York man was charged with assault after allegedly hitting his girlfriend in the eye with a roll of toilet paper.
Richard Bigonzi, 38, allegedly attacked Marit Ekeland, 62, with the toilet paper on Sunday in the apartment they share.
"She was drunk," Bigonzi told police. "I threw her wine out the window. I'm not saying whether I threw the toilet paper." Ekeland said Bigonzi is after her money.
"I'm where he gets his money," she said. "I don't have any children. He wants to inherit all my wealth."
Richard Bigonzi, 38, allegedly attacked Marit Ekeland, 62, with the toilet paper on Sunday in the apartment they share.
"She was drunk," Bigonzi told police. "I threw her wine out the window. I'm not saying whether I threw the toilet paper." Ekeland said Bigonzi is after her money.
"I'm where he gets his money," she said. "I don't have any children. He wants to inherit all my wealth."
Pigeon lays egg on stove in New Zealand
It was a normal Sunday afternoon at Pat Cowie's place. Until a pigeon laid an egg on the stovetop.
The pigeon popped in an open door at Pat's Evans Street home, climbed 14 stairs (leaving an incriminating trail of pigeon poo on the way), turned hard left at the top, wandered into the kitchen, and chose a smooth ceramic stove top as the ideal location for a spot of ovular action.
Pat was outside when the pigeon arrived and didn't know she had a bird burglar until she wandered into the kitchen. It took a moment to register the pigeon was there, let alone the fact it had laid an egg.
The pigeon then made herself at home on the benchtop, investigated the pot plants on the windowsill, and partook of a little post-egg preening.
But, after submitting to an intensive photo session, she became unsettled and began flying. Concerned she might hurt herself, the family opened doors and off she went, leaving the egg behind.
While pigeons can lay two eggs, often a day-and-a-half apart, this may have been her first and only. As for abandoning the egg, it's the cock bird's job to sit during the day. The hens take the night shift.
The pigeon popped in an open door at Pat's Evans Street home, climbed 14 stairs (leaving an incriminating trail of pigeon poo on the way), turned hard left at the top, wandered into the kitchen, and chose a smooth ceramic stove top as the ideal location for a spot of ovular action.
Pat was outside when the pigeon arrived and didn't know she had a bird burglar until she wandered into the kitchen. It took a moment to register the pigeon was there, let alone the fact it had laid an egg.
The pigeon then made herself at home on the benchtop, investigated the pot plants on the windowsill, and partook of a little post-egg preening.
But, after submitting to an intensive photo session, she became unsettled and began flying. Concerned she might hurt herself, the family opened doors and off she went, leaving the egg behind.
While pigeons can lay two eggs, often a day-and-a-half apart, this may have been her first and only. As for abandoning the egg, it's the cock bird's job to sit during the day. The hens take the night shift.
Woman's fishy-smelling mystery solved
An Australian woman who spent four decades puzzled by a pungent body odour "resembling rotting fish" has finally had the smell explained by Australian doctors.
The woman has been diagnosed with an incurable genetic condition called trimethylaminuria, or fish malodour syndrome, which affects the smell of sweat, breath and urine.
"The characteristic body odour resembling rotting fish can be intermittent, variable and influenced by diet, hormones and medications," her doctors said in the Medical Journal of Australia.
Professor John Burnett, of the school of medicine and pharmacology at the University of Western Australia, said the unpleasant body odour was first noticed when the woman was just seven, but the path to diagnosis had been "extremely difficult".
"After experiencing ridicule, distress, shame, anxiety and low self esteem during her school years, she first consulted a doctor about the problem at the age of 17, then again two years later, followed by a further four doctors over the next 20 years," Prof Burnett said.
Part of doctors' examinations included "being sniffed", with all writing her off as a hypochondriac. "She was repeatedly told that she had a hygiene neurosis," the specialist said. The woman, now 41, has finally been diagnosed by a microbiologist with the condition, a genetic mutation which triggers excess excretion of trimethylamine, a compound found in fish.
The woman has been diagnosed with an incurable genetic condition called trimethylaminuria, or fish malodour syndrome, which affects the smell of sweat, breath and urine.
"The characteristic body odour resembling rotting fish can be intermittent, variable and influenced by diet, hormones and medications," her doctors said in the Medical Journal of Australia.
Professor John Burnett, of the school of medicine and pharmacology at the University of Western Australia, said the unpleasant body odour was first noticed when the woman was just seven, but the path to diagnosis had been "extremely difficult".
"After experiencing ridicule, distress, shame, anxiety and low self esteem during her school years, she first consulted a doctor about the problem at the age of 17, then again two years later, followed by a further four doctors over the next 20 years," Prof Burnett said.
Part of doctors' examinations included "being sniffed", with all writing her off as a hypochondriac. "She was repeatedly told that she had a hygiene neurosis," the specialist said. The woman, now 41, has finally been diagnosed by a microbiologist with the condition, a genetic mutation which triggers excess excretion of trimethylamine, a compound found in fish.
Woman ordered out of chemical-free `bubble'
Ten hours a day, every day, Elizabeth Feudale-Bowes confines herself to a galvanized-steel-and-porcelain shed outside her house. Inside are a toilet, a metal cabinet, a box spring with the metal coils exposed, and a pile of organic cotton blankets. Aluminum foil covers the window.
The place is as austere as a prison cell — but it's also her sanctuary from an outside world that she says makes her violently ill. She and her husband call the structure "the bubble." This bubble, though, may be about to burst: A judge has ordered it taken down by the end of the month.
Some of the couple's neighbors in suburban South Whitehall Township complained that the 160-square-foot building is unstable and so unsightly it could drag down their property values. The couple also hooked up electrical, water and sewer service without securing permits.
"For the wife's medical problems, there is sympathy. For the owner's defiance of the township's lawful directives, there is no excuse," Judge Carol McGinley ruled earlier this month.
Feudale-Bowes, 52, says she was diagnosed several years ago with "environmental illness," described as extreme sensitivity to everyday substances.
Some doctors question whether environmental illness is a genuine physical disorder and suggest it is psychological. Feudale-Bowles says she was diagnosed by Dr. William Rea of Texas, who has been accused by the Texas Medical Board of promoting "pseudoscience." He vigorously disputes the charge and continues to see patients.
Full story here.
The place is as austere as a prison cell — but it's also her sanctuary from an outside world that she says makes her violently ill. She and her husband call the structure "the bubble." This bubble, though, may be about to burst: A judge has ordered it taken down by the end of the month.
Some of the couple's neighbors in suburban South Whitehall Township complained that the 160-square-foot building is unstable and so unsightly it could drag down their property values. The couple also hooked up electrical, water and sewer service without securing permits.
"For the wife's medical problems, there is sympathy. For the owner's defiance of the township's lawful directives, there is no excuse," Judge Carol McGinley ruled earlier this month.
Feudale-Bowes, 52, says she was diagnosed several years ago with "environmental illness," described as extreme sensitivity to everyday substances.
Some doctors question whether environmental illness is a genuine physical disorder and suggest it is psychological. Feudale-Bowles says she was diagnosed by Dr. William Rea of Texas, who has been accused by the Texas Medical Board of promoting "pseudoscience." He vigorously disputes the charge and continues to see patients.
Full story here.
1,500-ton Catholic church moved 248ft and rotated 90 degrees to make way for a new road
Part of the Cathedral of St Dominic in Fuzhou, China, was taken 75.6m (248ft) from its original position to move it out of the way of a construction project.
Click for bigger.
Engineers set the two-storey building on 400 wheels to run on rails before gradually turning it.
There are more photos here.
Click for bigger.
Engineers set the two-storey building on 400 wheels to run on rails before gradually turning it.
There are more photos here.
Horse gets head stuck in tree
A horse had to be cut free with a chainsaw after it managed to get its head stuck in a tree.
The young filly needed to be freed from the tree after curiosity got the better of it and it wedged its head between separate sections of the trunk.
The horse, called Gracie, was unable to free itself and could have been in danger were it not for a passer-by who was able to come to the rescue after he heard the horse whinnying .
Jason Harschbarger, a neighbour in the town of Pullman, West Virginia, USA, arrived at the scene which resembled the image of Winnie the Pooh getting stuck in the honey tree.
Mr Harschbarger collected his tools and was able to carefully set the horse free by using a chainsaw to slowly cut the wood around its neck.
Fortunately for Gracie, she was able to escape her ordeal with only a few minor injuries and, according to Mr Harschbarger, is on the road to recovery.
The young filly needed to be freed from the tree after curiosity got the better of it and it wedged its head between separate sections of the trunk.
The horse, called Gracie, was unable to free itself and could have been in danger were it not for a passer-by who was able to come to the rescue after he heard the horse whinnying .
Jason Harschbarger, a neighbour in the town of Pullman, West Virginia, USA, arrived at the scene which resembled the image of Winnie the Pooh getting stuck in the honey tree.
Mr Harschbarger collected his tools and was able to carefully set the horse free by using a chainsaw to slowly cut the wood around its neck.
Fortunately for Gracie, she was able to escape her ordeal with only a few minor injuries and, according to Mr Harschbarger, is on the road to recovery.
Door thief, piglet rustler, pudding snatcher: British courts despair at extradition requests
The number of extradition cases being dealt with in the UK courts has reached record levels, fuelled by a number of "trivial" requests from Europe that have exasperated the police and clogged up the system.
Up to 1,000 extradition cases are expected to have been dealt with by the end of the year, more than double the number last year, and four times the number in 2006 according to figures from the City of Westminster magistrates court, which handles all extradition hearings.
The increase is largely down to the volume of European arrest warrants (EAWs), many of them issued by Poland.
It is estimated that 40% of all extradition cases dealt with by the Metropolitan police originated in Poland, adding that many of the offences were so minor they would lead to either a caution or no investigation at all in England and Wales.
In one case a carpenter who fitted wardrobe doors and then removed them when the client refused to pay him, was subject to an extradition request by Poland so that they could try him for theft. In another case, the Polish authorities requested the extradition of a suspect for theft of a dessert. "The European arrest warrant contained a list of the ingredients."
Although Poland is not the only culprit - a Lithuanian was extradited last year on a charge of "piglet-rustling" - it has made the most requests by far.
Up to 1,000 extradition cases are expected to have been dealt with by the end of the year, more than double the number last year, and four times the number in 2006 according to figures from the City of Westminster magistrates court, which handles all extradition hearings.
The increase is largely down to the volume of European arrest warrants (EAWs), many of them issued by Poland.
It is estimated that 40% of all extradition cases dealt with by the Metropolitan police originated in Poland, adding that many of the offences were so minor they would lead to either a caution or no investigation at all in England and Wales.
In one case a carpenter who fitted wardrobe doors and then removed them when the client refused to pay him, was subject to an extradition request by Poland so that they could try him for theft. In another case, the Polish authorities requested the extradition of a suspect for theft of a dessert. "The European arrest warrant contained a list of the ingredients."
Although Poland is not the only culprit - a Lithuanian was extradited last year on a charge of "piglet-rustling" - it has made the most requests by far.
Five tonne digger in dance duet
Dance Umbrella's international festival of contemporary dance 2008 breaks boundaries with a performance uniting man and machine like never before.
The show, called "Transports Exceptionnels", was put on by French experimental dance group Compagnie Beau Geste and mesmerised audiences in London's Victoria Park.
The show, called "Transports Exceptionnels", was put on by French experimental dance group Compagnie Beau Geste and mesmerised audiences in London's Victoria Park.
Shock for man after finding dead biker in his spare room
A man found a dead biker in his spare room - after the rider flew through a window crashing off a country road.
John Botwright, 71, heard "a noise louder than a bomb explosion". And when he investigated, the body was in the midst of the wrecked extension of his home.
The unnamed biker, in his 50s and from Exmouth, Devon, was catapulted over a hedge while his Triumph Tiger 650 landed on the garage roof on Saturday.
The now-unsafe 300-year-old cottage, in a dip on the B3919 at nearby Doddiscombsleigh, must be partly demolished and rebuilt.
But retired London traffic cop Mr Botwright, who was about to sell up before joining his wife at their new house in Dorset, said: "My thoughts are more with the poor man's family.
"What I saw after a noise louder than a bomb explosion was very distressing."
John Botwright, 71, heard "a noise louder than a bomb explosion". And when he investigated, the body was in the midst of the wrecked extension of his home.
The unnamed biker, in his 50s and from Exmouth, Devon, was catapulted over a hedge while his Triumph Tiger 650 landed on the garage roof on Saturday.
The now-unsafe 300-year-old cottage, in a dip on the B3919 at nearby Doddiscombsleigh, must be partly demolished and rebuilt.
But retired London traffic cop Mr Botwright, who was about to sell up before joining his wife at their new house in Dorset, said: "My thoughts are more with the poor man's family.
"What I saw after a noise louder than a bomb explosion was very distressing."
Spinster, 72, jailed for spade attack on neighbour
An elderly spinster who broke her neighbour's arm by attacking him with a spade during a dispute over a garden fence has been jailed for 24 weeks.
June Iddon, 72, who has terminal cancer, hit Jeffrey Grundy, 62, with the implement after bringing it over her head "like an axeman" during the row over the long-running boundary dispute.
He managed to block the weapon which had been aimed at his head, but the blow broke his right arm which was in plaster for 14 weeks.
Iddon, a retired civil servant who was given a prognosis of five to ten years to live in 2003, claimed she had been acting in self defence.
However, she was convicted of assault causing actual bodily harm after a three-day trial at Preston Crown Court.
Passing sentence, Recorder Lesley Anderson QC told her: "Notwithstanding your age and physical frailty a message needs to be sent to you that your behaviour cannot be acceptable." She was led to the cells by two burly prison guards and still shouting: "I'm innocent, it's my land entirely."
June Iddon, 72, who has terminal cancer, hit Jeffrey Grundy, 62, with the implement after bringing it over her head "like an axeman" during the row over the long-running boundary dispute.
He managed to block the weapon which had been aimed at his head, but the blow broke his right arm which was in plaster for 14 weeks.
Iddon, a retired civil servant who was given a prognosis of five to ten years to live in 2003, claimed she had been acting in self defence.
However, she was convicted of assault causing actual bodily harm after a three-day trial at Preston Crown Court.
Passing sentence, Recorder Lesley Anderson QC told her: "Notwithstanding your age and physical frailty a message needs to be sent to you that your behaviour cannot be acceptable." She was led to the cells by two burly prison guards and still shouting: "I'm innocent, it's my land entirely."
Monday, October 20, 2008
Why your hi-tech front room is a peril to your pet
PlayStations and iPods have emerged as greater threats to the nation's pets than traditional dangers found in the home such as tumble driers, washing machines and electric cables. The finding that new technology can cause widespread pet mayhem is revealed in a survey, by insurance specialist Petplan, of 3,000 pet owners across Britain.
According to the survey, iPods are most likely to cause injury to cats; rabbits are particularly at risk from Sony PlayStations; while the biggest dangers to guinea pigs come from DVD players and remote controls,
A typical example of this pet vulnerability is provided by Pugsley, a Jack Russell cross belonging to Jemma Scott, 22, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, which has repeatedly injured itself by jumping at dogs that appear on TV, entangling itself in wires linking the set to Jemma's Playstation, which then falls on top of the dog. The 14-year-old animal has been injured repeatedly by the games machine. 'Pugsley gets overexcited when he sees another dog on the television and jumps up at it,' Ms Scott said.
Other pet disasters revealed by the study include a cat that tried to sniff a candle and singed the whiskers off one side of her head and a dog that swallowed a pair of knickers and landed its owner with a £1,200 vet's bill to have them recovered.
Top 10 gadgets most likely in injure pets:
1) iPod (15 per cent)
2) Laptop (10.8 per cent)
3) Remote Control (10.8 per cent)
4) Plasma TV (10.8 per cent)
5) Wii (10 per cent)
6) DVD Player (10 per cent)
7) Playstation (8.3 per cent)
8) Nintendo DS (5.8 per cent)
9) Mobile Phone (5.8 per cent)
10) Karaoke Machine (5.8 per cent)
According to the survey, iPods are most likely to cause injury to cats; rabbits are particularly at risk from Sony PlayStations; while the biggest dangers to guinea pigs come from DVD players and remote controls,
A typical example of this pet vulnerability is provided by Pugsley, a Jack Russell cross belonging to Jemma Scott, 22, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, which has repeatedly injured itself by jumping at dogs that appear on TV, entangling itself in wires linking the set to Jemma's Playstation, which then falls on top of the dog. The 14-year-old animal has been injured repeatedly by the games machine. 'Pugsley gets overexcited when he sees another dog on the television and jumps up at it,' Ms Scott said.
Other pet disasters revealed by the study include a cat that tried to sniff a candle and singed the whiskers off one side of her head and a dog that swallowed a pair of knickers and landed its owner with a £1,200 vet's bill to have them recovered.
Top 10 gadgets most likely in injure pets:
1) iPod (15 per cent)
2) Laptop (10.8 per cent)
3) Remote Control (10.8 per cent)
4) Plasma TV (10.8 per cent)
5) Wii (10 per cent)
6) DVD Player (10 per cent)
7) Playstation (8.3 per cent)
8) Nintendo DS (5.8 per cent)
9) Mobile Phone (5.8 per cent)
10) Karaoke Machine (5.8 per cent)
Teenager pays back debt by walking
An 18-year-old from Dorset has arrived in Wales has part of a round Britain coastal walk as a way of saying sorry.
Three years ago Seb Green stole a boat in Weymouth, leading to a £20,000 RNLI rescue. Now he has completed 2,500 miles in eight months walking the coast with his dog to raise money.
Video.
Seb's website.
Three years ago Seb Green stole a boat in Weymouth, leading to a £20,000 RNLI rescue. Now he has completed 2,500 miles in eight months walking the coast with his dog to raise money.
Video.
Seb's website.
Atlas reveals how you are likely to die
The geographical pattern of mortality in Great Britain over the past quarter century has been mapped for the first time, revealing how each of us is most likely to die depending on where we live. The Grim Reaper's Road Map: An Atlas of Mortality in Britain shows exactly how people's deaths are affected by where they live, how much money they have, the type of work they do and their lifestyle.
The maps, published today by Policy Press, show patterns that are very different to those created in previous attempts to understand the spread of death across the country. 'Most maps of mortality simply show that more people die in those towns and cities where more people live, particularly in the places where there are lots of elderly people,' said co-author Danny Dorling, professor of human geography at the University of Sheffield. 'But our maps show a person's chances of dying from a particular cause in a particular place, compared to the national average chance for that cause of death, having standardised for distributions of population and by age and sex in each area.'
The maps show deaths from a range of causes, including heart attack, cancer, murder, electrocution and deaths during surgery.
Dorling studied 14,833,696 death records to produce the maps, which show the standardised mortality ratios of every town and city in Britain from 1981 to 2004. The first map in the atlas is of all deaths that have taken place in Britain over the past 24 years. This is then broken down into nine causes, including all cancers and all deaths related to transport. Those maps are then subdivided into 99 categories.
The Grim Reaper's road map: An atlas of mortality in Britain.
The maps, published today by Policy Press, show patterns that are very different to those created in previous attempts to understand the spread of death across the country. 'Most maps of mortality simply show that more people die in those towns and cities where more people live, particularly in the places where there are lots of elderly people,' said co-author Danny Dorling, professor of human geography at the University of Sheffield. 'But our maps show a person's chances of dying from a particular cause in a particular place, compared to the national average chance for that cause of death, having standardised for distributions of population and by age and sex in each area.'
The maps show deaths from a range of causes, including heart attack, cancer, murder, electrocution and deaths during surgery.
Dorling studied 14,833,696 death records to produce the maps, which show the standardised mortality ratios of every town and city in Britain from 1981 to 2004. The first map in the atlas is of all deaths that have taken place in Britain over the past 24 years. This is then broken down into nine causes, including all cancers and all deaths related to transport. Those maps are then subdivided into 99 categories.
The Grim Reaper's road map: An atlas of mortality in Britain.
Passports will be needed to buy mobile phones
Everyone who buys a mobile telephone will be forced to register their identity on a national database under government plans to extend massively the powers of state surveillance.
Phone buyers would have to present a passport or other official form of identification at the point of purchase. Privacy campaigners fear it marks the latest government move to create a surveillance society.
A compulsory national register for the owners of all 72m mobile phones in Britain would be part of a much bigger database to combat terrorism and crime. Whitehall officials have raised the idea of a register containing the names and addresses of everyone who buys a phone in recent talks with Vodafone and other telephone companies, insiders say.
The move is targeted at monitoring the owners of Britain’s estimated 40m prepaid mobile phones. They can be purchased with cash by customers who do not wish to give their names, addresses or credit card details.
The pay-as-you-go phones are popular with criminals and terrorists because their anonymity shields their activities from the authorities. But they are also used by thousands of law-abiding citizens who wish to communicate in private.
The move aims to close a loophole in plans being drawn up by GCHQ, the government’s eavesdropping centre in Cheltenham, to create a huge database to monitor and store the internet browsing habits, e-mail and telephone records of everyone in Britain.
Phone buyers would have to present a passport or other official form of identification at the point of purchase. Privacy campaigners fear it marks the latest government move to create a surveillance society.
A compulsory national register for the owners of all 72m mobile phones in Britain would be part of a much bigger database to combat terrorism and crime. Whitehall officials have raised the idea of a register containing the names and addresses of everyone who buys a phone in recent talks with Vodafone and other telephone companies, insiders say.
The move is targeted at monitoring the owners of Britain’s estimated 40m prepaid mobile phones. They can be purchased with cash by customers who do not wish to give their names, addresses or credit card details.
The pay-as-you-go phones are popular with criminals and terrorists because their anonymity shields their activities from the authorities. But they are also used by thousands of law-abiding citizens who wish to communicate in private.
The move aims to close a loophole in plans being drawn up by GCHQ, the government’s eavesdropping centre in Cheltenham, to create a huge database to monitor and store the internet browsing habits, e-mail and telephone records of everyone in Britain.
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