Strange Stuff: Weird Crimes, Crazy Laws, and Other Interesting News Stories - Page 174

Cops: Burglar
Stole Presents,
Regifted Them

Dec 26, 2012 2:05 PM CST

Cops: Burglar Stole Presents, Regifted Them

But he rewrapped them first

(Newser) - The ultimate in regifting: Cops near Chicago say a man broke into two homes, swiped wrapped presents, then rewrapped them to give to his own friends and family, reports the Chicago Tribune . The 42-year-old suspect even installed a stolen ceiling fan in his bedroom, police say. His undoing was that...

Grinch N. Korea Shakes Fist at South's Christmas Lights

Dec 24, 2012 4:45 PM CST

Grinch N. Korea Shakes Fist at South's Christmas Lights

Pyongyang is not happy with Christmas tree-shaped tower on border

(Newser) - Dear Whos in Whoville, South Korea can surely feel your pain: It seems that Seoul opted to let Christians light a Christmas tree-shaped tower on the frontline over the weekend. This egregious affront predictably triggered a not-over-the-top-whatsoever response from Mount Crumpit, er, Pyongyang, which is now accusing its southern neighbor...

TSA OKs ...
Snow Globes

Dec 24, 2012 6:45 AM CST

TSA OKs ... Snow Globes

Finally!

(Newser) - Today, in really important travel news: You can finally carry that snow globe on your flight. That is, as long as it "appears to contain less than 3.4 ounces" of liquid, explains the TSA blog . How to tell if yours qualifies? Make sure it's smaller than a...

Smartphones Can Turn Your Car or House Into a Deadly Weapon

Murder Weapon
of the Future:
the Smartphone

Dec 23, 2012 5:03 PM CST

Murder Weapon of the Future: the Smartphone

Phones can disable cars, homes, electrical systems

(Newser) - As we all know, smartphones are terrific tools—but in the wrong hands they can become weapons capable of mass murder, Vanity Fair reports. Terrorists already use them to trigger bombs, but tech-security experts are finding that phones can also shut off pacemakers, make cars crash, hijack houses, exhaust batteries...

Your Christmas Tree:
Home to 25K Bugs?

Dec 23, 2012 12:33 PM CST

Your Christmas Tree: Home to 25K Bugs?

The good news is, they'll end up dead

(Newser) - Santa may be sneaking down your chimney, but he's not the only one making his way into your home. An avalanche of bugs is likely riding the Christmas Tree Express straight into your living room, reports the AFP . It spoke to a scientist who cited research that has found...

Judge: Woman
Can Flip Off
Neighbors Via
Holiday Lights

Judge: Woman Can Flip Off Neighbors Via Holiday Lights

Louisiana resident has a unique display

(Newser) - A Louisiana woman can resume giving her neighbors an unusual holiday greeting— Christmas lights in the shape of a middle finger. Sarah Childs was in a dispute with some of her neighbors in Denham Springs, just east of Baton Rouge, and decided to send a message with her decorations. Neighbors...

UChicago's
Indiana Jones
Mystery Solved

UChicago's Indiana Jones Mystery Solved

Journal was en route to Italy from Guam

(Newser) - The University of Chicago has cracked its Indiana Jones mystery —and it involves an international route that wouldn't have been out of place in a Jones movie. The copy of Jones mentor Abner Ravenwood's journal that turned up in a weatherbeaten envelope was the misplaced creation of...

5-Day-Old
Dead People
Great for
Stem Cells

study says

Dec 22, 2012 2:55 PM CST

5-Day-Old Dead People Great for Stem Cells

Bone-marrow cells have a variety of uses

(Newser) - Even after five days, corpses are an excellent source of stem cells to replace fat, cartilage, bone, and other kinds of cells, New Scientist reports. A research team from the University of Miami, Florida, found it could mine mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from the bone marrow of finger bones stored...

Chicago Bus Driver
Plows Into 20 Cars

Dec 22, 2012 2:30 PM CST

Chicago Bus Driver Plows Into 20 Cars

Tow truck driver: It 'looked like a scene out of a movie'

(Newser) - Amazingly no one was killed when a Chicago bus driver passed out at the wheel yesterday and plowed into at least 20 cars and a laundromat, CBS Chicago reports. "Literally looked like a scene out of a movie," said a tow truck driver who estimated the damage at...

French Secret
for Long Life:
Stinky Cheese?

French Secret for Long Life: Stinky Cheese?

Researchers investigate 'French paradox' of longevity

(Newser) - It's packed with fat and salt—yet a moldy blue cheese could help you live longer, say researchers. Though the French enjoy a diet high in saturated fats, its women share the title of Europe's longest-living, with a life expectancy of 85.3 years. That prompted researchers to...

Our Hands Evolved
to Help Us ... Punch?

study says

Dec 20, 2012 6:41 PM CST

Our Hands Evolved to Help Us ... Punch?

Opposable thumbs weren't for tools, says a Salt Lake researcher

(Newser) - Human hands evolved the way they did not so we could use tools but so we could punch each other better, says a new study out of the University of Utah. The lead researcher argues that we could have ended up with any of several different shapes if it were...

Lawmaker Keeps Voting—
From the Grave

Dec 20, 2012 4:43 AM CST

Lawmaker Keeps Voting— From the Grave

Russian voted 'aye' 31 times yesterday, after his death

(Newser) - A Russian lawmaker was so devoted to his job, even death couldn't stop him from doing it. Vyacheslav Osipov voted "aye" on 31 measures in parliament yesterday, the same day fellow legislators held a late-afternoon moment of silence for the newly deceased 75-year-old. The votes were made by...

Woman Scores $7M Fortune
From Long-Lost Relative

Dec 19, 2012 11:10 AM CST

Woman Scores $7M Fortune From Long-Lost Relative

Cleaning crew finds thousands of gold coins in dead man's garage

(Newser) - For those who dream of some long-lost dead relative leaving you a fortune, it apparently can actually happen. Arlene Magdanz, a San Francisco-area substitute teacher, is now officially a millionaire seven times over thanks to a dead first cousin. The AP reports that a crew cleaning out Walter Samaszko Jr....

Powerball Winners
to Fund School
Stadium...

Dec 18, 2012 7:17 PM CST

Powerball Winners to Fund School Stadium...

...as long as visitors' locker room is pink

(Newser) - An Iowa couple who won a $202 million Powerball jackpot in September is giving $3 million to the local high school to build a new football stadium. One catch: the visitors' locker room must be pink, reports the Des Moines Register . “I was sort of half joking and half...

Church Billboard:
'Time for Jesus
to Come Out'

Dec 17, 2012 7:15 PM CST

Church Billboard: 'Time for Jesus to Come Out'

New Zealand reverend: 'Would it make a difference?'

(Newser) - Nothing controversial here: A church in New Zealand has put up a billboard urging Jesus to come out of the closet as gay, Stuff (NZ) reports. "It's Christmas," reads the billboard in Auckland. "Time for Jesus to come out." But Rev. Glynn Cardy at St....

Woman Hurt
During Sex
Wins Long
Court Battle

Dec 17, 2012 3:59 PM CST

Woman Hurt During Sex Wins Long Court Battle

Government worker will receive health compensation

(Newser) - At least in Australia, sex on the job is legally part of the job: A woman injured while fooling around on a business trip has won health compensation in federal court, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. The government worker, who remains unnamed, was on a work trip south of Sydney...

Indiana Jones Journal
Stumps UChicago

Dec 17, 2012 8:41 AM CST

Indiana Jones Journal Stumps UChicago

Is it a clue in a game, or something else entirely?

(Newser) - Call this one Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Higher Learning: The latest Jones-themed mystery is taking place not on the silver screen but in the University of Chicago's mail room. Its admissions office's Tumblr explains that late last week a package addressed to "Henry Walton Jones,...

Thieves Steal
Woman's ... Driveway

Thieves Steal Woman's ... Driveway

Only in Florida...

(Newser) - Another reason why Florida can't have nice things: A woman came home Tuesday night to discover something had been stolen from her home: her driveway. The Ocala Star-Banner reports that 300 square feet of brick pavers were carted away sometime between 7:30am and 6pm. The homeowner was alerted...

Freezing Elephants
'Saved' by
Vodka

Dec 15, 2012 9:30 AM CST

Freezing Elephants 'Saved' by Vodka

After trailer catches fire in Siberia, Russia's favorite drink keeps them warm

(Newser) - Sometimes you really need a drink. One of those times: When your truck has caught fire and you're standing by the side of a Siberian highway in freezing weather with frostbite setting in. That's the predicament a pair of Indian elephants found themselves in, and their quick-thinking handlers...

20 Years Later,
Noah's Ark
Replica
Complete

20 Years Later, Noah's Ark Replica Complete

'Johan's Ark' filled with animals: real, stuffed, and plastic

(Newser) - If the world floods, whether from an angry God or climate change, Johan Huibers is ready. After 20 years of work, the Dutchman has completed a full-sized replica of Noah's Ark as described in the Bible, the AP reports. He followed Biblical instructions precisely to create a boat 427...

strange stuff

From strange crimes to strange celebrity deaths, read all of the latest weird and strange stuff news stories on Newser.com