Robot newsreader unveiled in Japan

Japan – Scientists have unveiled what they claim is the first newsreading android – with a sense of humour to match her language skills.

The adolescent-looking “Kodomoroid” – an amalgamation of the Japanese word “kodomo” (child) and “android” – delivered news of an earthquake and an FBI raid to reporters in Tokyo.

She even poked fun at her creator, telling robotics professor Hiroshi Ishiguro: “You’re starting to look like a robot!”

As the line between humans and machines continued to blur, Ishiguro’s mechanical newscaster performed tongue-twisters, to the amazement of their human counterparts. More

Police call in bomb expert to ‘defuse’ toy lightsaber

Alaska – A plastic toy lightsaber discarded on a road in Alaska caused a bomb scare, prompting local police to dispatch a bomb expert.

An unidentified Juneau resident became suspicious of an object on the side of the road.

Rather than call 911, the concerned citizen phoned the Juneau Police Department’s business line to report the mystery.

Not taking any chances, a member of the force with formal Explosive Ordnance Disposal training was dispatched, and quickly realized he was sent to contain a plastic Star Wars toy. More

Dog sneaks onto ambulance to be close to owner

Texas – Without the drivers knowing, a dog hitched a ride on the outside of an ambulance to accompany his owner to a hospital in Texas.

Mason County EMS were transporting an elderly man to the hospital when, 20 miles into their journey, they were told by another driver that a dog had leaped onto the small side step of the ambulance, according to The Standard-Times.

The almost 40-pound Beagle mix, Buddy, just wanted to be close to his owner JR Nicholson.

One of the EMT’s told the Standard-Times that they had no choice but to bring the dog into the ambulance and hospital. More

Punxsutawney Phil predicts more winter gloom

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pennsylvania -The handlers for groundhog Punxsutawney Phil say he`s forecasting six more weeks of what already has felt like a brutally long and cold winter. Pennsylvania`s famed groundhog emerged from his lair in front of thousands of fans around daybreak Sunday. Legend has it that if the furry rodent sees his shadow on Feb. 2, winter will last another month-and-a-half. If he doesn`t see it, spring will come early. In reality, Phil`s prediction is decided ahead of time by a group called the Inner Circle, whose members don top hats and tuxedos for the annual Groundhog Day ceremony on Gobblers Knob, the tiny hill in the town for which he`s named about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. More

Zoo cuts bananas out of monkey diets

England - A British zoo said its monkeys have been put on a banana-free diet because the fruits are too sweet and sugary. Officials at the Paignton Zoo Environmental Park in Devon, England, said the facility weaned its monkeys off of fruit and onto a more vegetable-focused diet because it is healthier for the primates. "People usually try to improve their diet by eating more fruit -- but fruit cultivated for humans is much higher in sugar and much lower in protein and fiber than most wild fruit because we like our fruit to be so sweet and juicy. Giving this fruit to animals is equivalent to giving them cake and chocolate," said Amy Plowman, the zoo`s head of conservation and advocacy. and an expert in animal nutrition. More

Triple-dog dare? Girl gets tongue stuck to flagpole

New Hampshire – In a scene straight out of “A Christmas Story,” a New Hampshire girl got her tongue stuck to a flagpole after licking it during a blizzard.

And it wasn’t even a triple-dog dare.

Maddie Gilmartin, 12, of East Kingston, said she was helping her dad clean up outside last week when an idea popped into her head to stick her tongue on a flagpole.

Gilmartin thought her tongue would come right off, but it didn’t, WMUR reports.

“I see her standing at the flagpole, her arms are waving,” said Maddie’s dad, Shawn Gilmartin.  ”I’m not sure what’s going on until I got closer.” More

Soon animals will be able to sue owners

Switzerland – The reason is that the country has an extraordinary set of animal protection laws that closely define the obligations of pet owners and farmers. Now it is about to go a step farther: a national referendum will decide whether to allow animals official legal representation. More

Study: Elephants Can Suffer From Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome

LONDON (CBS Atlavnta) – African elephants are suffering from mass killings that took place decades ago, says a new study.

While they may appear normal to the average human, the experts say these elephants show clear signs of social disorders, similar to post-traumatic stress.

Wildlife officials often used culling as a management tool from the 1960s to the 1990s.

The managers worried that too many elephants would overrun and destroy the preserve.

Park officials would then send young male survivors to other facilities.

“Some of these elephants ended up in Pilanesberg National Park,” in South Africa’s North West Province where part of the new study was carried out, says Graeme Shannon, a behavioral ecologist at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, and the lead author of the new study. More

Scientists upbeat on development of invisibility cloak

China – Mainland scientists are increasingly confident of developing the world’s first invisibility cloak, using technology to hide objects from view and make them “disappear”.

The central government has funded at least 40 research teams over the past three years to develop the idea, which until now has largely been the stuff of science fiction and fantasy novels like the Harry Potter series.

The technology would have obvious military uses such as developing stealth aircraft, but Beijing believes the research could lead to wider technological breakthroughs with broader uses, scientists involved in the research said.

The main approaches are developing materials that guide light away from an object, creating electromagnetic fields to bend light away from what one is trying to hide and copying nature to make hi-tech camouflage materials. More

Dog Needs Surgery After Eating Girls Homework

Colorado – A family dog is recovering after emergency surgery after eating a girl’s homework.
It’s the oldest line in the classroom - ”My dog ate my homework.” But in this case it was painfully true.
“I made a volcano project out of candy and I pinned the candy to a foam base,” Payton said.
Payton and her dog Reggie share a love of school science projects.
“It was Mt. Haleakala in Maui,” Payton said.
Reggie’s hunger for knowledge landed him in surgery. Fifty straight pins showed up on his abdominal X-ray. More

Fallen tree looks like a dog

UK – Council workers in Ipswich thought they were barking up the wrong tree when they saw this.
Workmen were clearing up the town’s Alexander Park after the recent storms, and discovered a dog’s head in the upturned roots of a fallen oak tree.
Alexandra Park and Holywells Park in Ipswich have still not re-opened due to damage by St Jude’s storm, reports the Ipswich Star. More

This company will send your stuffed animal on a vacation

Your teddy bear has always wanted to visit Tokyo in the spring. Fortunately for Mr. Bobo, there’s Unagi Travel, the “Japan Travel Agency for Stuffed Animals.”
The travel agency gives tours not to you but to your favorite plush toy.
For fans of the movie “Amelie,” in which a garden gnome disappears from a front yard and mysteriously appears in photos taken at tourist sites around the globe, this is kind of like that: Give your teddy a grand adventure while you sit at home. Talk about a toy story.
The odd but oddly adorable idea goes like this: Head to the Unagi Travel website and book your toy’s tour. Price points are reasonable, but you pay for shipping to Japan. They send your toy back for free.  More

Violin that played as Titanic sank sells for $1.5 million

A violin that was being played as the Titanic went down was sold for 900,000 pounds ($1.46 million) at auction on Saturday, a record price for memorabilia from the doomed ocean liner. Band leader Wallace Hartley played the instrument, trying to calm passengers as the ship slipped into the frozen waters of the North Atlantic in April 1912 after colliding with an iceberg during its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. Hartley`s band played the hymn "Nearer, My God, To Thee" as passengers climbed into lifeboats. Hartley and his seven fellow band members all died after choosing to play on. More than 1,500 people died. When Hartley`s body was recovered more than 10 days after the disaster, the violin was found in a leather case strapped to him, according to the folklore that has grown up around the event. More

Kitten survives 40-minutes inside a running washing machine

California - The ordeal of a California cat that survived a 40-minute ride in a washing machine was selected as one of the most bizarre pet insurance claims of the year. Veterinary Pet Insurance, based in California, said the 11 finalists for then Hambone Award, given annually to the strangest claims each year, includes Natasha, a 6-month-old kitten that took a ride in Oakland owner Daryl Humdy`s washing machine along with a load of laundry, the Oakland Bee reported Friday. "She had always been very nosy about the washing machine," Humdy said. "She would always peek inside it, but I never thought she would hop in." More

Blind chicken brought back to life

A blind chicken has been brought back to life after its dedicated owner gave it CPR for over three hours. Chooky Wooky was recently blown into the backyard pool at 14-year-old owner Rayna Rapo`s home in Sydney, Australia. Fearing that her pet was dead, Rayna plucked her out of the water and tried to revive her. And even when her mother Roberta suggested that Chooky Wooky couldn`t be saved Rayna was determined not to give up. More

Steve Jobs was given the night shift at Atari because of his personal hygiene

Steve Jobs is undoubtedly one of the most successful men of the century. He was the mind behind all the Apple products that we know and love. In 2010, it was estimated that Steve Jobs net worth was $8.3 billion. However, when he was younger, he may have had questionable hygiene. Steve Jobs used to work at Atari in order to provide himself with a wage so he could survive. Allegedly, Jobs was actually put on the night shift because of his hygiene. It is said that he never bathed, and would walk around the office in his bare feet.

Fencing coach stops robbery

Tennessee – A fencing teacher put his sword to good use, foiling a robbery he stumbled upon during a trip to the local shopping center.
Franco Scaramuzza was pulling into the shopping center’s parking lot when he saw two men attack a couple with pepper spray and take a purse, WSMV.com reported.
“The first thing that went through my head is somebody should do something, and that’s when I got really upset and disappointed with myself, because I realized I had the opportunity to do something.
And I didn’t want to be a hypocrite who just tweeted about it,” Scaramuzza told the station.
The instructor grabbed his epee, jumped out of the car and charged the suspects. More

Attempt to fly phone into prison on pigeon fails

Brazil – A woman’s attempt to fly a mobile phone into a prison on the back of a pigeon failed when the exhausted bird collapsed just after clearing the jail walls.
Cristielli Mansa, 21, had attempted to send the device to her boyfriend, Wagner Machado Rodrigues, 19, who had been arrested for drug trafficking.
Unfortunately for the pair, the pigeon cleared the three-meter high wall of the Central Prison in Porto Alegre, Brazil, but then fell right in front of a patrolling prison officer’s vehicle. More