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Amanda Bynes Arrested After Bong-Toss: Cops

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:30:25 -0500

Amanda Bynes was arrested last night, and—we know you’ll be shocked—a bong was allegedly involved. A doorman at Bynes’ Manhattan apartment building called police to report someone smoking pot in the lobby, and took police to Bynes’ apartment when they arrived, Eyewitness News reports. She answered the door … and then reportedly realized the cops could see her bong. So, they say, she took the obvious route and threw it out the 36th-floor window. She wasn’t fooling anyone, though; police also say the apartment was thick with marijuana smoke at the time.

She was arrested for marijuana possession, reckless endangerment, and tampering with evidence. Police took her to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation before booking her, E! reports. (Click to see a picture of the wig- and sweatpants-wearing Bynes being led away.) In a bizarre development, publicist Jonathan Jaxson (this guy) tells Radar he’s the one who called cops, because he “had proof [Bynes] was suicidal” and “high on drugs,” and wanted to stage an “intervention.” Bynes’ arrest comes on the heels of her getting kicked off a plane because she had no official ID; she told the pilot to look her up on Google. Radar reports that her parents are considering a Britney Spears-style conservatorship, though they’re apparently not having much luck on that front.

Best Beaches of 2013 The annual “best beaches” list...

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:35:00 -0500

Best Beaches of 2013

The annual “best beaches” list compiled by an expert at Florida International University in Miami is out for 2013, with one in the Hamptons taking top honors. Professor Stephen Leatherman, aka Dr. Beach, crunches several factors including water and sand quality, safety, and size of waves, notes LiveScience. Your 2013 winners»

AP Photo/William Kronholm, File

Richard III Had Unpleasant Burial King was given no death...

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:44:00 -0500

Richard III Had Unpleasant Burial

King was given no death shroud, may have been bound

If you thought being found buried under a parking lot was about as unroyal as it could get for King Richard III, think again. In a paper published today in Antiquity, researchers describe his body as being buried in haste, crammed into a too-small grave that was roughly dug (at the time, a proper grave would have had straight walls, not sloping ones). Further indications that the dead king was treated with little respect: He was found in a somewhat folded position with no death shroud, and his hands may have been bound, reports Smithsonian. (The BBC tempers the finding by noting the University of Leicester researchers did acknowledge the treatment could have been the result of harried gravediggers.)

The condition isn’t surprising given that he was killed in battle during the War of the Roses, but it does add to his legend; the story goes that his naked body was carried by horse, and laughed at by spectators en route to his grave. The paper also reveals that it’s likely his body was battered after his death: There were 10 wounds—including stabs to his back and buttocks—in addition to blows to his head. The bottom line, per Smithsonian? The new findings further indicate Richard III died in “violent humiliation.” (Meanwhile, the feud continues over where the body should be reburied.)

AP Photo/ University of Leicester

So, uh, about that 911 call… Man Butt-Dials 911 While...

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:13:09 -0500

So, uh, about that 911 call…

Man Butt-Dials 911 While Discussing Murder Plans

You know that person at the top of your contact list, the one most likely to get an unintended call from your butt? Well, if you’re the murderous type, make sure that number isn’t 911. This lesson comes too late for Scott Simon, who unintentionally dialed 911 while still frothing with rage over a late-night dispute at a Waffle House in Florida. In the recording, Simon is heard saying that he intends to follow the man he was arguing with to his house and shoot him, the Miami Herald and South Florida Sun Sentinel report.

That man, Nicholas Walker, was indeed shot and killed mere minutes later, while he was pulling his car onto I-95. More»

“I never imagined I could make it to the top of Mount...

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:49:00 -0500

“I never imagined I could make it to the top of Mount Everest at age 80. This is the world’s best feeling.”

AP Photo/Miura Dolphins Co. Ltd

Vatican: This Is Not an Exorcism

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:22:35 -0500

Vatican: This Is Not an Exorcism

Think You’re Pretty Hot? You’re Probably Wrong Study...

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:39:00 -0500

Think You’re Pretty Hot? You’re Probably Wrong

Study finds we believe we’re more attractive than we actually are

The latest video in Dove’s “Real Beauty” campaign featured women describing themselves to an unseen forensic sketch artist, who drew them as they were described by themselves and then as they were described by a stranger. The sketches based on the stranger’s description turned out more attractive, hence Dove’s message: “You are more beautiful than you think.” But as Scientific American explains, Dove is just plain wrong, and science proves it.

Take, for example, one study, in which participants were presented with images of themselves: One was the real image; others were modified on a computer to look more and less attractive. When asked to select the true image, subjects typically picked a more attractive one; further study showed that they really believed this selection. But Scientific American takes it a step further, noting that science shows we tend to think of ourselves as better than we truly are in plenty of ways: Other studies have shown people also overestimate the likelihood they’ll do something good, like vote or donate money to charity; still more research has found that most people believe they are above average in many areas, like driving. What researchers also found: This positive bias does not exist when people are asked to assess strangers.

The National Weather Service says the tornado that hit...

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:56:00 -0500

The National Weather Service says the tornado that hit Oklahoma yesterday was a top-of-the-scale EF-5 twister with winds between 200 and 210mph. Details»

Picture credit: Alonzo Adams

Explained: Why Penguins Can’t Fly Wouldn’t the March...

Tue, 21 May 2013 17:28:08 -0500

Explained: Why Penguins Can’t Fly

Wouldn’t the March of the Penguins have been a whole lot easier as Flight of the Penguins? Perhaps—but if penguins were able to fly, they might have to give up their incredible swimming ability, scientists say: It’s a tradeoff. A team looked at the guillemot, a relative of the penguin that can both swim and fly, in order to figure out why penguins can’t achieve liftoff. For guillemots, the researchers found, “the energy costs (of flying) are very, very high.”

Diving, however, is fairly easy for the birds, the BBC notes. That seems to support the “biomechanical hypothesis” as to why penguins can’t fly. The theory suggests»>

Tumblr Founder a High School Drop-Out How David Karp left...

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:17:00 -0500

Tumblr Founder a High School Drop-Out

How David Karp left school, found success

At 14, David Karp—who would one day found Tumblr—was already obsessed with computers and bored with school. So his mom, a science teacher, suggested he drop out. “It became very clear that David needed the space to live his passion. Which was computers,” Barbara Ackerman tells the New York Times. Her son dropped out to be home-schooled, but ultimately he never finished high school. Instead, he started working with TV producer Fred Seibert, learning everything he could about engineering; ultimately, he built a video app for Seibert that was one of the first to be sold on iTunes. From there he moved to other startups before ultimately starting his own company in 2006 and then founding Tumblr.

Now 26, Karp is a Mark Zuckerberg-like, sneakers-and-jeans-wearing entrepreneur (his response to Yahoo’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr this week: “F—- yeah.”) who has been a somewhat controversial figure, often blogging about partying and showing up on the gossip pages. He’s currently fighting rumors that investors want to replace him as Tumblr’s CEO. More»

(AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Where can you buy Gandhi's blood and Hitler's Christmas card in the same place?

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:09:59 -0500

A few drops of Mahatma Gandhi’s blood are among the oddest items on sale at an auction of historical goods in London today, Reuters reports. The blood samples, taken when the Indian nationalist leader was recovering from an appendectomy in 1924, are expected to fetch around $20,000. Gandhi fans will also have the chance to buy his sandals, shawl, and rice bowl. Bizarrely, the auction will also include some Adolf Hitler-related items, including a marble block from the Nazi leader’s bunker and a signed 1936 Christmas card from Berlin. »>

New Home to Most Poor Americans: the 'Burbs

Mon, 20 May 2013 19:30:26 -0500

he face of American poverty is now a suburban one, according to new research from the Brookings Institution. Researchers found that the number of people living in poverty in the suburbs soared 64% between 2000 and 2010, more than twice the rate of urban areas—meaning that now more poor people live in suburbs than in cities or rural areas, although the overall poverty rate remains higher in cities, the Miami Herald reports.

Researchers say the explosion in suburban poverty is the result of many factors, including the housing bust, urban gentrification, and the loss of manufacturing jobs. In places like Orange County, California, “everything is nicely maintained. Things look good on the surface,” the director of a charity helping struggling families tells the LA Times. ”But the need has just skyrocketed.” Article»

Yahoo Promises Not to 'Screw Up' Tumblr

Mon, 20 May 2013 19:01:01 -0500

As Marissa Mayer puts it, “Tumblr. + Yahoo! = !!” As Tumblr CEO David Karp puts it, “F—- yeah.” The two companies this morning announced that a definitive agreement has been reached and that Yahoo will indeed acquire Tumblr for $1.1 billion, a transaction that Mayer expects will close in the latter half of 2013. In her own Tumblr post announcing the deal (via animated gif), she writes, “We promise not to screw it up.” More on that theme»>

"We are outraged to learn today that James Rosen was named a criminal co-conspirator for simply doing..."

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:30:32 -0500

““We are outraged to learn today that James Rosen was named a criminal co-conspirator for simply doing his job as a reporter,” the network’s VP of news said in a statement, as reported by Fox News. “In fact, it is downright chilling. We will unequivocally defend his right to operate as a member of what up until now has always been a free press.””

- http://www.newser.com/story/168218/govt-spied-on-fox-journalist-too.html

Kayne West will only use $400 Versace towels to wipe his face...

Mon, 20 May 2013 15:55:06 -0500

Kayne West will only use $400 Versace towels to wipe his face when performing…

See the 17 other crazy male diva demands.

AP Photo/Charles Sykes, File

Scientist’s Quest: Unlock Secret of Ancient...

Mon, 20 May 2013 15:44:00 -0500

Scientist’s Quest: Unlock Secret of Ancient Coins

He’s returning to islands where WWII soldier found 1K-year-old coins

Ancient coins, a map with an “X,” a secret cave: It sounds like something out of a kid’s book. Instead, it’s an Australian professor’s archaeological quest. During World War II, a soldier stationed on the Wessel Islands off northern Australia found several mysterious coins in the sand. Years later, a museum pegged their age at about 1,000 years old, the Age reports. That’s when the former soldier marked the location of his discovery on a map with an “X.”

Now, Aussie anthropologist Ian McIntosh wants to know more. The coins are from between 900 and 1300 AD and apparently come from »>

'Space Ark' Returns, With Lots of Dead Animals

Mon, 20 May 2013 11:58:13 -0500

'Space Ark' Returns, With Lots of Dead Animals:

The first Russian critter on Mars likely won’t be a mouse, if the results of a month-long “space ark” mission are anything to go by. A capsule containing 45 mice, along with eight gerbils,… Science News Summaries. | Newser

Justin Bieber Gets Booed, Pouts at Billboard Awards Also manages...

Mon, 20 May 2013 10:54:00 -0500

Justin Bieber Gets Booed, Pouts at Billboard Awards

Also manages to gross out Taylor Swift…

Quite a few gossip outlets are gleefully crowing today that Justin Bieber got booed last night while accepting the Milestone Award at the Billboard Music Awards. (Though the cheers from the Beliebers in the audience seem to drown out a lot of the boos in the video, Vulture notes that the jeering was so obvious in the auditorium itself that host Tracy Morgan commented on it.) Sample headlines»

Found in Cookie Jar: $4.85M

Fri, 17 May 2013 15:58:30 -0500

Found in Cookie Jar: $4.85M:

Ricardo Cerezo’s wife was cleaning the kitchen when she told the Illinois man he’d better get the lottery tickets that had been piling up in a cookie jar for the past month checked

Fired Groupon CEO Records ‘Business Music’...

Fri, 17 May 2013 10:46:00 -0500

Fired Groupon CEO Records ‘Business Music’ Album

Groupon’s co-founder seemed to take it pretty well when he got fired, which somehow still doesn’t detract from the nuttiness of what Andrew Mason has done since: recorded an album … of “motivational business music.” The tidbit comes in an otherwise fairly unremarkable Chicago Tribune piece about Mason’s decision to start a new company (in the fall, in SF, no word on what it is), and was originally revealed by Mason on hiswebsite. The seven-song album is aimed at young adults making their first foray into the working world, and Mason (who has a music degree from Northwestern) plans to release it “as soon as I figure out how to load music onto iTunes.” More»

AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File