Bizarre tongue-eating parasite discovered off Jersey Shore

Ain't he cute?

There's been a spate of amazing animal discoveries recently-- the giant rat-eating plants found in the Philippines, a huge woolly rat discovered in a volcanic crater--and now, yet another creature has emerged that could be right out of a sci-fi film. It's a bizarre creature that survives by eating its hosts' tongue and then attaching itself inside the mouth.

The sea-dwelling parasite attacks fish, burrows into it, and then devours its tongue. After eating the tongue, the parasite proceeds to live inside the fish's mouth. There's a horror film waiting to be made about this thing. Surprisingly, the fish doesn't seem to suffer any severe impediment--just the loss of its tongue--and seems to have no trouble surviving with its new, far uglier tongue.

While the isopod, a kind of louse, has been known to exist for a while now, discoveries of live specimens is rare. The BBC reports that "Fishermen near the Minquiers - islands under the jurisdiction of Jersey - found the isopod, a type of louse, inside a weaver fish." So no, the tongue-eater wasn't found in that Jersey. The Jersey Shore is still tongue replacing creature-free, if you stateside Northeasterners were worried about the thing ruining your late summer vacationing.

Not that you'd have to be too concerned anyways--the isopod isn't a threat to humans in the slightest, though it's reportedly vicious, and can deliver quite a little bite. One of the fishermen who found the creature described it thus: "Really quite large, really quite hideous - if you turn it over its got dozens of these really sharp, nasty claws underneath and I thought 'that's a bit of a nasty beast'." And while it can't seriously hurt people, it evidently doesn't like them: "It doesn't affect humans other than if you do actually come across a live one and try and pick it up - they are quite vicious, they will deliver a good nip."

Original article can be found here.

It's 2010 and people still think the Earth is flat.

Daniel Shenton should be the most irrational man in the world. As the new president of the Flat Earth Society, you'd imagine he would also think that evolution is a scam and global warming a myth. He should ­argue that smoking does not cause cancer and HIV does not lead to Aids.

Yes, that Flat Earth Society, a group that has become a living metaphor for backward thinking and a refusal to face scientific facts. Yes, it is still going, and no, this isn't an early April fool.

In fact, Shenton turns out to have resolutely mainstream views on most issues. The 33-year-old American, originally from Virginia but now living and working in London, is happy with the work of Charles Darwin. He thinks the evidence for man-made global warming is strong, and he dismisses suggestions that his own government was involved with the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

He is mainstream on most issues, but not all. For when Shenton rides his motorbike, he says it is not gravity that pins him to the road, but the rapid upward motion of a disc-shaped planet. Countries, according to him, spread across this flat world as they appear to do on a map, with Antarctica as a ring of mountains strung around the edge. And, yes, you can fall off.

If you thought that flat Earthism was gone, think again. The scientific evidence is stacked against Shenton, obviously, just as it is against those who think global warming is a hoax and that the dead stalk the Earth as ghosts – but that doesn't appear to trouble him in the least.

"There is no unified flat Earth model," Shenton suggests, "but the most commonly accepted one is that it's more or less a disc, with a ring of something to hold in the water. The height and substance of that, no one is absolutely sure, but most people think it's mountains with snow and ice."

The Earth is flat, he argues, because it appears flat. The sun and moon are spherical, but much smaller than mainstream science says, and they rotate around a plane of the Earth, because they appear to do so.

Inevitably, Shenton's argument forces him down all kinds of logical blind alleys – the non-existence of gravity, and his argument that most space exploration, and so the moon landings, are faked. But, while many flat Earthers have problems with the idea of orbiting satellites, Shenton navigates the London streets using GPS. He was also happy to fly from the US to Britain, but says an aircraft that flew over the Antarctic barrier would drop from the sky, and from the planet.

The Flat Earth Society was originally formed as the Universal Zetetic Society in 1884, after the Greek word zeteo, "to seek". Zeteticism, Shenton says, emphasises experience and reason over the "trusting acceptance of dogma" – or, it seems, overwhelming evidence. Only a personal trip into space to see the world as it is for himself would ­persuade him. "But even then, in seeing it, I would have to be convinced there weren't any tricks involved."

The International Flat Earth Society was formally founded in 1956. Shenton resurrected the society and claimed its presidency last year, ­following years of inaction after the death of former president Charles Johnson in 2001, who had some 3,000 registered followers. He has so far recruited 60 members through the society's website, which boasts about 9,000 visitors to its discussion forums.

"I can't say what everybody's motive is for joining, but there are quite a few who I know are as serious as I am," he says. "Lots of people log on once to hurl abuse but they tend to get bored and go away. We're not ­fanatical about it and we're not going to engage in pointless, angry discussions."

The website features scanned issues of the society's newsletter, the notorious Flat Earth News, from its 1970s and 80s heyday. Sample headlines include: Sun Is a Light 32 Miles Across, Australia Not Down Under, and World Is Flat and That's That.

"I thought it was a shame that all these documents would go unseen ­forever," Shenton says. But what about the evidence? In an age where ­astronauts send photographs of a spherical planet from an orbiting space station, how can the concept of a flat Earth persist?

"Look at what special effects are capable of: you can produce any photograph, any video. I don't think there is solid proof. I'm not intentionally being stubborn about it, but I feel our senses tell us these things, and it would take an extraordinarily level of evidence to counteract those. How many people have actually investigated it? Have you?"

Last year, Shenton did just that, travelling to a six-mile stretch of straight water along the Old Bedford River in Norfolk, the scene of many infamous flat Earth experiments. "There should have been curvature, but I didn't see what mainstream science says should have been there," he says.

Shenton's critics, it should be pointed out, can fall back on spherical trigonometry and astronomical observations that date right back to Aristotle in 330BC. In fact, the idea of a flat Earth was widespread only until about the fourth century BC, when the Ancient Greeks first proposed it was a sphere. By the Middle Ages, most people in Europe were convinced, contrary to popular stories. "A lot of the stuff about Columbus isn't true; there weren't mutinies about whether they would fall off the Earth," Shenton says.

The modern Flat Earth movement dates back to Victorian England, and biblical literalist Samuel Rowbotham and his followers, who promoted their cause by engaging top scientists of the day in public debate.

Shenton himself used to accept that the Earth was round, but began ­asking questions after hearing musician Thomas Dolby's 1984 album The Flat Earth. (When Shenton reconvened the society last year, Dolby accepted membership number 00001.) "It was the late 1990s and I started doing research into what the Flat Earth Society was. I had heard of it and, when I did some more research, I eventually ended up believing its ideas were true."

It may sound like Shenton is playing games, that the reborn society is a clever metaphor or marketing tool for another cause – but he insists he is serious.

"I haven't taken this position just to be difficult. To look around, the world does appear to be flat, so I think it is incumbent on others to prove ­decisively that it isn't. And I don't think that burden of proof has been met yet."

Original story can be found here.

Zombies to sue police for wrongful arrest

An appeals court in the northern United States has allowed a group of zombie-dressed protesters to press ahead with their lawsuit against police who arrested them for disorderly conduct.

The Minneapolis appeals court in Minnesota overturned a lower court in finding the group of seven zombies had been wrongfully detained during a 2006 shopping mall protest against consumerism.

The three-judge panel ruled Minneapolis police lacked probable cause to arrest the demonstrators for disorderly conduct.

At the time of the protest, the zombies were wearing make-up including white face powder, fake blood and black circles around their eyes that gave them a "living dead" look.

They lurched stiff-legged through the halls of the mall, urging shoppers to "get your brains here" and "brain clean-up in aisle five".

The protesters carried audio equipment in various bags, including loudspeakers and wireless phone handsets, which police described as "simulated weapons of mass destruction".

But the appeals court sided with the protesters in ruling police had no reason to imprison them for two nights simply for "dressing as zombies and walking erratically in downtown Minneapolis".

"An objectively reasonable person would not think probable cause exists under the Minnesota disorderly conduct statue to arrest a group of peaceful people for engaging in an artistic protest by playing music, broadcasting statements and dressing as zombies," the appeals court ruled.

The decision allows the protesters to revive their lawsuit against Minneapolis and its police.

Original story can be found here.

Sheep gives birth to human-faced lamb

A sheep gave birth to a dead lamb with a human-like face. The lamb was born in a village not far from the city of Izmir, Turkey.

Erhan Elibol, a vet, performed a caesarean on the animal to take the lamb out, but was horrified to see that the features of the lamb's snout bore a striking resemblance to a human face.

“I’ve seen mutations with cows and sheep before. I’ve seen a one-eyed calf, a two-headed calf, a five-legged calf. But when I saw this youngster I could not believe my eyes. His mother could not deliver him so I had to help the animal,” the 29-year-old veterinary said.

The lamb’s head had human features on – the eyes, the nose and the mouth – only the ears were those of a sheep.

Vets said that the rare mutation most likely occurred as a result of improper mutation since the fodder for the lamb’s mother was abundant with vitamin A, CNNTurk.com reports.

A goat from Zimbabwe gave birth to a similar youngster in September 2009. The mutant baby born with a human-like head stayed alive for several hours until the frightened village residents killed him.

The governor of the province where the ugly goat was born said that the little goat was the fruit of unnatural relationship between the female goat and a man.

"This incident is very shocking. It is my first time to see such an evil thing. It is really embarrassing," he reportedly said. "The head belongs to a man while the body is that of a goat. This is evident that an adult human being was responsible. Evil powers caused this person to lose self control. We often hear cases of human beings who commit bestiality but this is the first time for such an act to produce a product with human features," he added.

The mutant creature was hairless. Local residents said that even dogs were afraid to approach the bizarre animal.

The locals burnt the body of the little goat, and biologists had no chance to study the rare mutation.

Link to the original article can be found here.

UFO researchers called in to investigate strange object that crashed in Mongolia

Could this 2 ton metal object be part of a UFO?

Very little information accompanied a photo of what is claimed is an object that fell from the sky near the Mongolian capital, according to a report filed February 23 with the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) witness database.

The report states that two objects fell near the Mongolian capital on February 19. The first object, according to the report, weighed 10 kg, while the second larger object weighed "approximately 2 tons."

Could this simply be an engine that fell off a jet?

Ulan Bator is the capital city of Mongolia.

Reports of crashed UFOs and the construction of an alien embassy were reported out of nearby Kazakhstan in 2009, but an American living there reported to the UFO Examiner that the stories were posted to advance tourism.

Link to the original story can be found here. And thanks to Brodiemash over at the Dumbdrum for sending me the link.

Couple call 911 after Bigfoot sighting

San Antonio police have released a 911 dispatch call reporting a "Bigfoot" sighting.

The audio recording between a dispatcher and the homeless couple lasts more than eight minutes. In it, the primary caller appears sober and deliberate as she describes the beast Nov. 30.

“And I know you guys are going to think I'm crazy, but I'm dead serious," she says on the recording. "This big thing was 75 feet away from me, smelled awful, devoured a whole deer carcass, and then took off and screamed, screeched, and took off across the street.”

“I'm going to tell you right now, I've lived in the woods six years. Swear to God, I've never seen nothing like this. I'm 6'3"; it's bigger than me,” said her 63-year old husband.

The couple claims the creature walked upright as it carried the deer carcass off into the woods.

Police reports indicate dispatchers sent an officer by the location that night, but he found no sign of the couple or the beast.

The callers said they were living in a tent in the woods in northwest San Antonio, near the intersection of Highway 151 and Loop 1604. The area has acres of wooded terrain surrounding it.

Original article can be found here.

Haunted bar in Bozeman, MT is remodeled using timber from Fresno

This rumored haunted hotel was remodeled using materials

from Fresno.

Rumor has it that over the years, nine people have died in the Bozeman Hotel and its annex. “I don’t know how much truth there is to that, but we definitely hear some weird noises around here,” said Chad Yurashak, owner of Bar 9, a new bar and restaurant scheduled to open this spring. The name, Bar 9, pays tribute to the rumor, to the fact that this is Yurashak’s ninth business, and to the nature of the Western-style branding logo. The business will be housed in two storefronts of the old hotel at Main Street and Rouse Avenue. The space is already being remodeled and filled with copper, steel and old wood. The fir timbers that form the bar were reclaimed from a World War II bunkhouse in Fresno, Calif.

“I’m calling it a ‘Western-industrial’ look,” Yurashak said. “It has a rustic feel, but still caters to the modern day.” The space will be split between the restaurant and bar, which will also include a stage for live music. But it is still a work in progress. “We’ve had a few concepts, but none have come to fruition,” Yurashak said. Outside Bar 9, Yurashak is setting up a patio directly behind the building, under the large trees, with Bozeman Creek babbling beside it. “I feel it’s unparalleled in Bozeman,” Yurashak said. “It’s going to be a very interesting and unique place.” Once open, Yurashak said he hopes Bar 9 will help enhance a downtown demoralized by the March 5, 2009, explosion. “Anything being down here will help increase foot traffic and boost downtown,” he said.

Original story can be found here. And thanks to Kiel over at Archop for sending me the story.

Radio-controlled planes have some Modesto residents seeing UFOs

They come in peace.

Those lights you've seen swooping and swerving across the Modesto night sky are not extraterrestrial. They do not want to be taken to your leader. They're not even unidentified anymore.

Instead, the culprits are a bunch of model plane enthusiasts who have attached lights to their radio- controlled aircraft and fly them through the night sky for fun.

"This was never intended to be seen as a UFO," said Robert Merrill, the de facto captain of the Nor Cal Nite Fliers. "We figured we'd try something, fly at night. Next thing you know people are calling the cops, TV and thinking they're UFOs. We never really thought it'd be this kind of a spectacle."

The 39-year-old Modesto resident and a group of about eight other men often meet at Modesto Hobby & Crafts, off McHenry and Bangs avenues in north Modesto, for their night flights.

They've flown all over Modesto and across the area, including Ripon and Tracy.

The crafts have about a 6-foot wingspan and weigh about 2 pounds. Each flier has customized his lights design.

Merrill, who had been flying model planes for about eight years, came up with the idea in August when he found the lights online from a manufacturer in Hong Kong.

The 1-meter adhesive LED strip is about a quarter-inch wide and comes in red, white, blue, green and amber.

Because they run on batteries and turn off to glide at altitude, the crafts are nearly soundless. In flight, the planes resemble a graceful, digital albatross.

So why fly a $250 model plane at night when it's, well, dark?

"I think (it's) just the calmness of it. The whole thing is, when you get off work, you bring your plane out to the park and literally kick back in a chair and fly them," Merrill said. "Nighttime, you can fly it farther because the lights are so bright you can see it farther than in the daytime."

Some members admit the E.T. factor adds to the excitement.

"Honestly, the most fun is messing with people," said Modesto resident Rick Sanchez, 40. "People will see the lights (from their cars) and their heads will hang out the windows. It's amazing how many people think they are UFOs."

The group flies almost every night that the sky is clear. Manteca resident John Gilmore, 46, started about eight months ago.

"The challenge of it interested me. And it's definitely a challenge," he said. "We're having fun. We're not trying to freak anyone out or cause problems. It's just good, clean fun."

The Modesto Police Department is well aware of the group. Lt. Clint Raymer said he first saw the lights driving to his north Modesto home. He has since talked with the men and discussed the pertinent municipal city codes.

"They're not supposed to fly them in the city limits," he said. "But the industrial area (off Bangs) is fine. I see the cars pulled over and people gazing at those things in the sky. They catch people's attention; they're neat to see."

He said the planes haven't set off anything close to a "War of the Worlds"-level hysteria. While the department has fielded a few UFO calls, Raymer said "it's not a burden."

"Whenever I see people looking, I pull over and tell them it's remote-control planes," he said. "It kind of takes the fun out of (it) then."

Modesto Airport has fielded a handful of calls about the lights in the sky. Airport manager Jerome Thiele said the Federal Aviation Administration has an advisory circular with guidelines for model aircraft standards.

The circular encourages "voluntary compliance" and includes cautions about operating near airports, hospitals and schools. It recommends flying no higher than 400 feet.

"I just want to make sure that they don't intentionally fly close to the airport and keep clear of the medical helipads close to the hospital and other populated areas," Thiele said.

No specific complaints about the model crafts have been filed with the FAA's Flight Standards District Office in Fresno. FAA Inspector Jim Henry said the advisory circular is meant to encourage hobbyists to be careful in the airspace.

"We can do the enforcement if it's an egregious danger to the public," he said.

Merrill said he was familiar with the FAA advisory and that the group never tries to interfere with active aircraft.

"If we see a plane fly by, we'll move away," he said. "We try to stay out of people's way."

The group caused a minor commotion over Super Bowl Sunday when members flew their planes near Briggsmore Avenue. Modesto Hobby & Crafts owner Joe Keevil said drivers stopped along the busy thoroughfare to rubberneck at the night sky. Police later came and asked them to stop.

"We try to stay away from busy roads now," said Keevil, who doesn't participate in flying planes but knows all the men from his store, where they all met.

Even from their north Modesto flight area, the planes and their lights can be seen all around town. Merrill said he can fly as high as 1,000 feet with his craft. He has heard reports of sightings as far away as Maze Boulevard near Highway 99 and in Riverbank.

"Every single night (we fly) somebody comes out and wonders what they are, if they're a UFO," Merrill said. "We sort of laugh about it."

Original story can be found here.