GemMan
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Multi-millionaire computer scientist found dead in waters off Bermuda A multi-millionaire computer scientist who became the largest single donor in the 900-year history of Oxford University has been found dead in the water off his home on a private island.
Dr James Martin became the largest single donor in the 900-year history of Oxford University Photo: Rex FeaturesThe body of Dr James Martin – who gave $150 million to Oxford more than a decade ago – was found by a kayaker floating in the water near his home on Agar’s Island close to Two Rock Passage in Hamilton Harbour.
Bermuda Police said an investigation into Dr Martin's death was ongoing.
But a spokesman added: "There does not appear to be any suspicious circumstances."
British-born Dr Martin, who was 80, became the author of more than 100 books and a globally-renowned speaker on the computer revolution after starting his career with computer giants IBM in the 1950s.
He made his million-dollar fortune through a business that taught other businesses how to benefit from computers.
One of his books – 1978’s The Wired Society which predicted the internet revolution – was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
He was also ranked fourth of the 25 most influential people in computer science by Computerworld.
Dr Martin, who had lived in Bermuda for many years, bought Agar’s Island in 1997 with US-born third wife Lillian and turned it into his private sanctuary.
The island home features a 300-year-old temple.
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It's Down My Pants: Pregnant Wearside Drug Dealer's Confession To CopsBy Kevin Donald Location: Sunderland
A heavily pregnant mum-to-be had 14 wraps of heroin in her knickers when police caught her carrying out a drug deal.
Robyn Nelson confessed “it’s down my pants”, when officers swooped as she carried out a sale at a pub car park.
The 19-year-old, of Patterdale Street, Hetton-le-Hole, who has never been in trouble before, was sentenced to two years jail, suspended for two years, with supervision and curfew requirements, when she appeared at Newcastle Crown Court.
Anthony Burdess, of Wetherburn Avenue, Murton, Seaham, was jailed for four years.
The 42-year-old, who has served a previous prison sentence for drug dealing, had driven Nelson to the illegal liaison, and police found 44 wraps of heroin at his home during a search.
Prosecutor Graeme O’Sullivan told the court the pair had been spotted in a Volkswagen Golf which pulled into a car park at the Mill Inn pub at Houghton last November.
Undercover officers saw an exchange taking place between Nelson, who was in the passenger seat, and a woman who had approached her window.
Mr O’Sullivan told the court the police stepped in when it appeared cash had exchanged hands.
He said: “Nelson began to cry, she was asked if she had anything on her she shouldn’t have and she nodded and said ‘it’s down my pants’.
“She produced 14 wraps of heroin, totalling 2g, from her underwear.”
Nelson pleaded guilty to possession of heroin with intent to supply.
Martin Scarborough, defending, said Nelson, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was working “under someone’s direction”, who she refused to name.
Burdess admitted being concerned in the supply and possession with intent in relation to the drugs found in his home, which he said he would have shared with his partner.
Bob Spragg, defending Burdess, said: “He was delivering drugs and he was being paid in drugs for doing that.
“He was a heroin addict at the time.”
Judge David Wood told Nelson and Burdess: “Both of you were well aware of the scale of the operation and both had an operational function to perform.”
The judge told Nelson: “You knew what the operation was and allowed yourself to get involved in it which, given that you were pregnant at the time, was very irresponsible.”
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Wearside Conman Caught Playing Rugby After Making £900k Injury Claim JailedBy Andy Hughes Location: Washington
VIDEO: Footage of David Ribchester playing rugby
A man has been jailed for eight months after he was caught playing rugby while making a £923,000 claim for wrist injuries.
The Old Bailey heard David Ribchester, 31, was secretly filmed at his local rugby club where he was "seen to grab the ball with both hands and go into a hard tackle" despite claiming he was unable to carry out the most basic of tasks and even tie his shoelaces.
Ribchester, who exaggerated the injuries he received to his hands and wrists in a workplace accident in February 2006, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation at the court last month.
Sentencing him, Judge Nicholas Cooke told him: "David Ribchester, it is greed that has brought you to this and unfortunately there is a lot of greed out there.
"Genuinely injured people putting forward wholly honest claims are viewed sceptically because of the publicity in relation to this sort of matter.
"Anyone who is tempted to behave in a dishonest way to the extent that you did by attempting to exploit a system which exists to compensate the genuinely injured will end up going to prison."
The court heard Ribchester told doctors he needed help with his personal care including getting in and out of the bath and that he could not open jars, carry out housework, play the drums or drive his car.
He also conned psychiatrists into thinking he was emotionally scarred by the accident and was diagnosed with moderate post-traumatic stress disorder and with showing features of a major depressive disorder.
He even told them he felt like he was not a proper father as he could not pick his young daughter up.
But insurers began to suspect him after his injuries seemed to be getting worse over time, and referred him to their in-house counter fraud team who carried out surveillance.
Between February 2008 and October 2009, he was filmed on a number of occasions driving his car, carrying his daughter, constructing garden furniture, pushing a trolley, and loading and unloading heavy shopping bags.
Prosecutor James Byrne told the court that on October 10, 2009 Ribchester was filmed watching rugby at the club, before being seen taking part in non-contact training the next day.
Then on October 24, he was filmed joining in training once again where he was seen to tackle another player.
The judge added: "It costs a lot of money to set up surveillance operations, to have contacted the fraud department in the insurance company. Such things probably didn't exist decades ago, such is the extent that dishonesty may have become endemic in this world."
The court heard Ribchester had genuinely injured soft tissue damage to both wrists after he fell around 5ft to the ground when a ladder came away from a refrigerated HGV lorry owned by Schmitz Cargobull in Durham.
The court heard that on March 6, 2006, the company received a letter alleging negligence on their part for their failure to ensure the ladder was properly fixed to the trailer.
The letter was written by his sister, Andrea Ribchester, a qualified personal insurance solicitor, although the court heard there was no suggestion she had committed any wrongdoing.
An investigation was carried out concluding an admission of liability for the accident by Schmitz Cargobull.
But the court heard that nothing was then heard by the insurers from the defendant or his sister for more than eight months, and then in September 2007 they received a letter which for the first time described Ribchester as having suffered from "significant physical injuries".
The letter, from Paul D'Ambrogio Solicitors, who Mrs Ribchester was by this time working for, also claimed the defendant had been "adversely psychologically affected by the injuries upon his life and the ongoing pain from which he is suffering."
Mr Byrne said that the insurance company began to become suspicious at the defendant's seemingly worsening symptoms and also by the fact that his sister appeared to be running the claim on his behalf and secret surveillance was carried out.
The insurers, RSA Group Insurance Company, also instructed their own solicitors who arranged for a doctor to assess Ribchester.
The court heard his report said: "I have never come across a case of complex regional pain syndrome which has allegedly developed in this way. If it is due to an accident, it occurs within a few weeks following trauma, it does not simply occur many months later."
Mr Byrne said Ribchester's claims were then laid out, which included £24,175 for childcare and £19,382 for future childcare, while he expected £321,901 for future nursing costs for himself along with £89,253 future expenses.
The court heard the defendant later settled for just £50,000 but was then arrested on April 3 this year.
He gave police a prepared statement in which he claimed that the extent of his pain varied from day to day and when he had spoken to doctors he was giving an indication of how they were at their worst.
In mitigation Flavia Kenyon, defending Ribchester, said he was a hard-working family man of previous good character who had never offended before.
Ribchester, of the John F Kennedy estate, Washington, Tyne and Wear, showed no emotion as the sentence was passed
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Charity Workers Sacked After Being Caught In Sex Act On Disabled BusBy Hugh Macknight Location: Sunderland
They pleaded guilty to outraging public decency
Two charity workers have been sacked after they were caught in a sex act on a bus carrying disabled students.
A shocked passer-by called police after seeing Lesley Armour, 47, and 64-year-old Terence Webb, who were working for Educational Services for People with Autism (Espa) College in Sunderland at the time, enjoying a steamy session on a college minibus in broad daylight.
The man was so incensed by their display on Hendon Promenade that he banged on the window of the bus.
They drove off and later told bosses that the man had reacted angrily to the students, who are autistic.
But the sordid secret of the two learning skills assistants was revealed after police were called in.
They pleaded guilty to outraging public decency during separate hearings at Sunderland Magistrates’ Court.
Paul Anderson, prosecuting, said it was about noon on May 10 when the witness spotted the defendants in such a “passionate embrace” that he decided to confront them, as he was worried about the two students.
Mr Anderson said: “He got out of his car and knocked on the window of the minibus.
"Mr Webb looked shocked. He was sitting in the middle seat of three and his trousers were open. Mrs Armour was naked from the waist down. Her underwear and trousers were in the foot well of the passenger side of the bus.”
Armour, from Boldon Colliery, who had worked at the college for 11 years, told police that they had left an event at Raich Carter sports centre in Hendon early, as one of the students became upset.
They decided to drive to the beach before lunch, as the sea helped calm the student down.
She admitted they began kissing and Webb had touched her underneath her clothes, but she denied taking off her trousers.
Mr Anderson added: “She said she had been involved with Terry for three to four years, though they are both married to other people.”
Jaxon Taylor, defending Armour, of Topping Street, said there were discrepancies between the prosecution case and what she told police.
“The fact is she engaged in some form of sexual activity with Mr Webb, although there were two adults with learning difficulties in the back of the bus.
“Albeit they did not see the sexual activity, there was one person who could have witnessed the incident that was being undertaken.”
Webb, of Compton Court, in Oxclose, Washington, denied having his trousers open during the tryst, which he claimed was a one-off.
Andy Travis, defending, said: “It should never have happened, but it was not pre-planned. He is a man of good character.”
Both cases were adjourned for three weeks so pre-sentence reports could be prepared.
Speaking after the case, Lesley Lane, chief executive of Espa – which its website said provides “a positive educational experience that prepares both day and residential students for their future life, well-being and work” – stressed that the students were not aware of what was going on.
She said: “There was an incident involving two members of staff. They were immediately suspended and have been subsequently dismissed.
“There was never a point where any one we support was put at risk and we fully complied with the police investigation.”
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Pelka Case: Mum 'Gave Salt To Thirsty Boy'A court hears four-year-old Daniel Pelka, who was allegedly starved for months, made his mother angry by asking for food.6:36pm UK, Monday 08 July 2013
Daniel was physically punished for stealing food, jurors were told
By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent
A man accused of murdering his stepson has told a court there was no deliberate campaign to starve the child as punishment.
Daniel Pelka was allegedly beaten to death and deprived of food for months before he died at home in Coventry last March.
His mother Magdelena Luczak and her partner Mariusz Krezolek deny murdering the four-year-old and causing or allowing his death.
Krezolek told Birmingham Crown Court that Daniel was fed the same amount of food as his sibling.
He said: "Magda would call and say he had his cereal and five pieces of toast and 10 minutes later on the way to school he would cry for food again."
Krezolek said it made Luczak angry.
"She would take a belt and hit him," he said, on Daniel's back, bottom and arms.
He admitted hitting Daniel on his bottom too, but said he did not "beat him up the way Magda would".
Speaking though a Polish interpreter, he told jurors Luczak had asked him to secure Daniel's bedroom so he could not get out at night and steal food.
He said her view was that "Daniel should feel a man's hand. It's the man that should be punishing".
Krezolek said that as punishment for Daniel's bad behaviour, and when he stole food from school, he made Daniel kneel for up to 20 minutes, run round the living room, and do 10 minutes of squats.
"I did it because I was stupid and listened to Magda," he said.
Krezolek also said that when Daniel cried for a drink, Luczak gave him salt so "he would feel even more thirsty".
"I had never seen a mother giving salt to a child out of spite yet Magda thought he'd be alright," he said.
He admitted giving Daniel around a "teaspoonful" of salt on two occasions. But after the second time, when Daniel was sick, he said he never did it again.
Krezolek said he noticed Daniel getting thinner in the February, before his death the following month, but "when I saw him in the morgue he looked somehow smaller, he had a big head".
Earlier, Krezolek, who described Daniel as a "cheeky boy" but "completely normal", said his relationship with Luczak had been "wonderful" at first, and he got on well with Daniel and his sibling.
But he said Luczak became "sick" with jealousy and smashed up four or five computers to stop him contacting female friends in Poland.
He said he did not like her smoking marijuana and drinking heavily, and denied that he had ever been violent towards her.
He told the court that Luczak once chased him around a room with two knives.
The trial continues.
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Indonesia: Prisoners Escape Amid Jail RiotSecurity forces take control of a maximum security jail after inmates set it ablaze in a protest over conditions.9:55am UK, Friday 12 July 2013
Video: Prisoners Recaptured After Prison Break
Security forces have retaken control of a crowded prison in western Indonesia where inmates started a massive riot that left five people dead and hundreds of prisoners, including convicted terrorists, on the loose.
About 500 policemen and 300 soldiers have been deployed around Tanjung Gusta prison in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, where the riot broke out on Thursday night.
Fire brigades have also been battling fires started by prisoners which had engulfed the jail.
Prison directorate spokesman Akbar Hadi said the situation is now under control after soldiers entered the prison without resistance.
Prisoners stand inside the Tanjung Gusta prison amid the riotHundreds of policemen have blocked roads linking Medan to the provinces of Aceh, Jambi and West Sumatra while searching for inmates who escaped during the riot, which began after a protest over a lack of water and electricity turned violent.
Indonesian authorities said security forces had recaptured 64 out of 240 prisoners who fled the facility in the nation's third-largest city.
Inmates had been in control of the jail until early on Friday morning, casually chatting outside their cells while heavily armed security forces formed a cordon round the building.
Five people, three prisoners and two prison staff, were killed in the riots. Ten civilian guards had briefly been held hostage but were later released.
The jail was set ablaze by inmatesPrisoners still on the loose included five of the 14 terror convicts that were being held at the institution.
The terrorists are believed to have links to Toni Togar, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence in a separate prison for a series of church bombings in Sumatra in 2000, according to the Jakarta Post.
A spokesman for the justice and human rights ministry, Goncang Raharjo, said that, like many jails in Indonesia, Tanjung Gusta was overcrowded - holding more than double its official capacity.
"The prison capacity is only 1,054 but it now holds about 2,600 convicts and suspects on trials.
"Most prisons across the country have this problem," he said.
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Earlier:
Jammie Thomas' file-sharing caseThe Minnesota woman who took on the recording industry over a $222,000 verdict for sharing copyrighted songs has to pay up.
Jammie Thomas-Rasset
(Credit: Jammie Thomas-Rasset)A Minnesota woman's fight with the recording industry over her illegally sharing copyrighted songs is finally over.
The Supreme court has denied the petition of Jammie Thomas-Rasset to hear her case, leaving Thomas-Rasset to pay $222,000 to an industry group.
The five-year-long case started in 2007 when the Recording Industry Association of America accused Thomas-Rasset of sharing 1,700 copyrighted songs. After the case's initial filing, the RIAA reduced the number of songs to 24 and the jury rendered a $222,000 verdict in the case.
After multiple appearances and decisions in court -- which included the original decision being thrown out for a technical error and then a retrial that led to a verdict of $1.92 million instead of the $222,000 award -- the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reinstated the original $222,000 in September.
Faced with the decision, Thomas-Rasset decided to petition the Supreme Court, but the court declining to hear the case means she has run out of choices.
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Convicted Music Pirate Refuses to Work For The RIAA
- Jammie Thomas, a 36-year woman from Minnesota, owes the RIAA $222,000 for sharing 24 songs online. The case was one of the first file-sharing related lawsuits ever and has cost the major music labels millions of dollars in legal fees. Still, the RIAA is now offering Thomas a discount if she will agree to do some anti-piracy work for them in return. However, Thomas is not biting and has resolutely refused the gesture.
During the last decade the RIAA targeted about 35,000 people in their file-sharing lawsuits and Jammie Thomas is one of their most famous defendants.The case is best known for being the first major file-sharing case in the US concerning the P2P activity of a regular user and the vast swings in damages awarded over multiple court hearings.
Even the Obama administration got involved earlier this year, arguing that the Supreme Court should not reduce the $222,000 fine as that would be an encouragement to other music pirates.
The Supreme Court listened and eventually refused to review the case.
The end result is that Thomas now owes the RIAA more money than she can pay, and she’s even considering filing for bankruptcy to avoid paying anything. However, the RIAA sees another opportunity.
Wired reports that the anti-piracy group has offered to reduce Thomas’s fine if she agrees to “work” for them campaigning against piracy. While the RIAA probably has the best intentions, for someone who fought legal battles against the music group for nearly a decade, the gesture probably feels like a slap in the face.
And indeed, Thomas has resolutely refused the offer. “I’m not doing it,” she said.
According to Thomas’s lawyer the RIAA hasn’t yet put a number on the discount, but it was made clear that she wouldn’t have to pay the full amount. This wasn’t the first offer either, previously Thomas was given the opportunity to settle the case in exchange for a donation to a music charity.
Commenting on the issue, the RIAA maintains that its intention is to resolve the manner in a “reasonable way,” minimizing harm for all involved.
“We have communicated to Ms. Thomas that we would consider a variety of non-monetary settlement options, which is up to her to offer. We think this is a gesture of a good will and we’re doing what we can to resolve this case in a manner that works for everyone,” an RIAA spokesman says.
Willingly or not, if Thomas ends up paying even a small amount she will indirectly contribute to the RIAA’s anti-piracy efforts. The RIAA previously stated that piracy damages do not flow to the artists, but are reinvested in anti-piracy efforts.
The only way for Thomas to escape paying is by her going bankrupt, although that would mean that everyone involved in the case ends up losing. Except the lawyers.
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Here`s a Question--
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Amar G. Bose, Acoustic Engineer and Inventor, Dies at 83
Amar G. Bose, the visionary engineer, inventor and billionaire entrepreneur whose namesake company, the Bose Corporation, became synonymous with high-quality audio systems and speakers for home users, auditoriums and automobiles, died on Friday at his home in Wayland, Mass. He was 83.
Michael Quan
Amar G. Bose, chairman of Bose, with a Wave radio in 1993.
His death was confirmed by his son, Dr. Vanu G. Bose.
As founder and chairman of the privately held company, Dr. Bose focused relentlessly on acoustic engineering innovation. His speakers, though expensive, earned a reputation for bringing concert-hall-quality audio into the home.
And by refusing to offer stock to the public, Dr. Bose was able to pursue risky long-term research, such as noise-canceling headphones and an innovative suspension system for cars, without the pressures of quarterly earnings announcements.
In a 2004 interview in Popular Science magazine, he said: “I would have been fired a hundred times at a company run by M.B.A.’s. But I never went into business to make money. I went into business so that I could do interesting things that hadn’t been done before.”
A perfectionist and a devotee of classical music, Dr. Bose was disappointed by the inferior sound of a high-priced stereo system he purchased when he was an M.I.T. engineering student in the 1950s. His interest in acoustic engineering piqued, he realized that 80 percent of the sound experienced in a concert hall was indirect, meaning that it bounced off walls and ceilings before reaching the audience.
This realization, using basic concepts of physics, formed the basis of his research. In the early 1960s, Dr. Bose invented a new type of stereo speaker based on psychoacoustics, the study of sound perception. His design incorporated multiple small speakers aimed at the surrounding walls, rather than directly at the listener, to reflect the sound and, in essence, recreate the larger sound heard in concert halls. In 1964, at the urging of his mentor and adviser at M.I.T., Dr. Y. W. Lee, he founded his company to pursue long-term research in acoustics. The Bose Corporation initially pursued military contracts, but Dr. Bose’s vision was to produce a new generation of stereo speakers.
Though his first speakers fell short of expectations, Dr. Bose kept at it. In 1968, he introduced the Bose 901 Direct/Reflecting speaker system, which became a best seller for more than 25 years and firmly entrenched Bose, based in Framingham, Mass., as a leader in a highly competitive audio components marketplace. Unlike conventional loudspeakers, which radiated sound only forward, the 901s used a blend of direct and reflected sound.
Later inventions included the popular Bose Wave radio and the Bose noise-canceling headphones, which were so effective they were adopted by the military and commercial pilots.
A Bose software program enabled acoustic engineers to simulate the sound from any seat in a large hall, even before the site was built. The system was used to create sound systems for such diverse spaces as Staples Center in Los Angeles, the Sistine Chapel and the Masjid al-Haram, the grand mosque in Mecca.
In 1982, some of the world’s top automakers, including Mercedes and Porsche, began to install Bose audio systems in their vehicles, and the brand remains a favorite in that market segment.
Dr. Bose’s devotion to research was matched by his passion for teaching. Having earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the 1950s, Dr. Bose returned from a Fulbright scholarship at the National Physical Laboratory in New Delhi and joined the M.I.T. faculty in 1956.
He taught there for more than 45 years, and in 2011, donated a majority of his company’s shares to the school. The gift provides M.I.T. with annual cash dividends. M.I.T. cannot sell the shares and does not participate in the company’s management.
Dr. Bose made a lasting impression in the classroom as well as in his company. His popular course on acoustics was as much about life as about electronics, said Alan V. Oppenheim, an M.I.T. engineering professor and a longtime colleague.
“He talked not only about acoustics but about philosophy, personal behavior, what is important in life. He was somebody with extraordinary standards,” Professor Oppenheim said.
Dr. William R. Brody, head of the Salk Institute in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, was a student in Dr. Bose’s class in 1962. He told Popular Science: “His class gave me the courage to tackle high-risk problems and equipped me with the problem-solving skills I needed to be successful in several careers. Amar Bose taught me how to think.”
Amar Gopal Bose was born on Nov. 2, 1929, in Philadelphia. His father, Noni Gopal Bose, was a Bengali freedom fighter who was studying physics at Calcutta University when he was arrested and imprisoned for his opposition to British rule in India. He escaped and fled to the United States in 1920, where he married an American schoolteacher.
At age 13, Dr. Bose began repairing radio sets for pocket money for repair shops in Philadelphia. During World War II, when his father’s import business struggled, Dr. Bose’s electronics repairs helped support the family. After graduating from high school, Dr. Bose was admitted to M.I.T. in 1947, where he studied under the mathematician Norbert Weiner, along with Dr. Lee.
An avid badminton player and swimmer, Dr. Bose spent several weeks each year at his vacation home in Hawaii.
Dr. Bose and his ex-wife, Prema, had two children, Vanu, now the head of his own company, Vanu Inc. in Cambridge, Mass., and Maya Bose, who survive him, as does his second wife, Ursula, and one grandchild.
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These people should not own guns
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Grandparents On Facebook
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This guy probably thought he'd receive some positive feedback upon changing his status to "In a Relationship," but what he got was a slew of pun-filled jokes that are almost too funny to handle.
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Third victim of Asiana plane crash dies
Published July 12, 2013A girl critically injured in the Asiana Airlines plane crash died Friday morning, making her the third victim of the disaster at the San Francisco airport.
San Francisco General Hospital released a statement saying the patient who died there was "a girl who had been in critical condition and died as the result of her injuries. Her parents have asked that we reveal no further information at this time. We will respect their wishes while they grieve."
Earlier Friday, police said one of the two Chinese teenagers who died was struck by a fire truck while she was covered in foam that crews had sprayed to douse the fire aboard the plane.
It wasn't clear, however, whether 16-year-old Ye Meng Yuan was already dead or whether sh was alive after the crash Saturday at San Francisco airport. Authorities were still trying to determine the cause of death.
Police officials confirmed that she was hit by the truck.
"When the fire truck repositioned itself to continue battling flames from the fuselage, the victim passenger was found in the tire track of the fire truck," police spokesman Albie Esparza said.
Asiana Flight 214 collided with a rocky seawall just short of its intended airport runway. Investigators have said the plane came in too low and slow.
In addition to the deaths, 182 people were taken to hospitals although most suffered only minor injuries.
Nearly a week after the crash, investigators have pieced together an outline of the event.
With each new bit of information, the picture emerging is of pilots who were supposed to be closely monitoring the plane's airspeed, but who didn't realize until too late that the aircraft was dangerously low and slow. Nothing disclosed so far by the National Transportation Safety Board investigators indicates any problems with the Boeing 777's engines or the functioning of its computers and automated systems.
"The first thing that's taught to a pilot is to look at the airspeed indicator. It is the most important instrument in the cockpit," said Lee Collins, a pilot with 29 years and 18,000 hours experience flying a variety of airliners. "Airspeed is everything. You have airspeed, you live. You don't, you die."
Investigators are still trying to nail down hundreds of details about the crash last Saturday that killed two people and injured dozens. NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman has cautioned against reaching conclusions.
But investigators already know a great deal. They've listened to the Boeing 777's voice recorder, which captured the last two hours of conversation in the cockpit. They've downloaded its flight data recorder, which captured 1,400 indicators of what was happening on the plane, from the temperatures inside and out to the positions of cockpit instruments.
The flight's four pilots have been interviewed, as have passengers and dozens of witnesses. Air traffic control recordings and video of the flight's last moments, including the crash itself, have been examined.
Airport officials hope to re-open the runway by late Sunday. The closure has led to flight cancellations and delays.
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MANKATO, Minn. -- A southern Minnesota college student's spoof video of an apparently tumorous rabbit that he dubbed "Frankenstein" has attracted hundreds of thousands of Internet viewers.
Gunnar Boettcher, a 20-year-old student at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, and his brother took photos and video of the rabbit, which looks to have tumors growing on its head, on June 26.
"We've seen it before around the house but we've never been able to get a close look," Boettcher said. "But we went over to him that day and he didn't run away like he normally does."
In the video, entitled "The World's Scariest Rabbit," Boettcher speaks in an Australian accent, imitating the late crocodile hunter Steve Irwin.
Boettcher put it on Facebook, and a friend of his posted it to Reddit. Within four days, more than 200,000 people had watched, according to The Free Press of Mankato
Boettcher last saw the rabbit Wednesday night. He thinks it might have a papilloma virus that's a form of cancer.
Joe Stangel, area wildlife supervisor for the state Department Natural Resources, said he also suspects that is what it is but is waiting for confirmation from a veterinarian. It's not an uncommon ailment in rabbits, Stangel said, but he's not seen it on the top of the head.
It's generally a fatal ailment, Stangel said, noting the DNR would just let nature take its course.
Some of the video comments haven't been particularly kind to Boettcher. Some say it's wrong to get a few laughs from a disease that certainly will kill the animal. Others say he has a responsibility to get it some veterinary help.
Boettcher disagrees.
"It's a great idea to try to help him and make him healthy again, but it's a little ridiculous to blame me for not helping the rabbit and taking him to the vet when it's a wild rabbit," he said. "It's turning into a thing on animal rights ... it was just supposed to be something fun between me and my brother."
This June 26, 2013 photo provided by Gunnar Boettcher shows a rabbit that Boettcher dubbed "Frankenstein" with what looks like a series of horns growing out of its head outside his home in Mankato, Minn. (AP Photo/Courtesy Gunnar Boettcher) -
Breakup Advice: Restaurant Leaves Inspiring Message On Takeout Box After Customer Is Dumped (PHOTO)
Posted: 07/10/2013 4:25 pm EDT | Updated: 07/11/2013 12:12 pm
After a bad breakup, moral support can be found in the most unlikely places.
Even, it seems, on takeout containers. On Monday, Redditor Icanteven721, whose real name is Sam, shared the message the staff at Truly Vegan in Los Angeles scribbled on her takeout box after she ordered some food online and left some pretty specific directions in the special instructions box: "Please draw something uplifting on the container, I just got dumped," she wrote.
Here's what they drew:
"I was very very pleased with the result," Sam told the Huffington Post via email. "I've kept the container. I look at it when I feel particularly down about this relationship, or when some other dude does some other stupid dude thing."
Our hats are off to you, staff at Truly Vegan. Underlining "have a nice day" and adding a few extra smiley faces would have sufficed, but this is so much better.
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Floating Forest on a 100 year old Abandoned Ship
in World News
Posted · Report reply
Floating Forest on a 100 year old Abandoned Ship
Image by Neerav Bhatt
Image by Steve Dorman
Image by Rodney Campbell
Image by Louise Evangelique
Image by Louise Evangelique
The SS Ayrfield also known as the “floating forest” is one of many decommissioned ships in the Homebush Bay, just west of Sydney, Australia. Launched in 1911, the massive 1,140-tonne steel behemoth was built in the UK and registered in Sydney in 1912 as a steam collier which was later used to transport supplies to American troops stationed in the Pacific region during World War II.
Eventually, in 1972, the SS Ayrfield was retired and sent to Homebush Bay which served as a ship-breaking yard. While many ships were taken apart, about four metallic bodies of vessels that are over 75 years old currently float in the bay, though none are enveloped by nature quite like the Ayrfield. The ship attracts all sorts of visitors (human and wildlife) that come to spend time in with mangrove trees and to enjoy its beauty.