Unusual News
To Beat Statute of Limitations, Authorities Indict DNA of Unknown Rapists
There may come a time when statutes of limitations no longer have any bearing on cases involving rape and other crimes. Although time limits still exist in state and federal laws, prosecutors are getting around them by indicting the DNA of culprit... read more
Somalia Quiz Winner Given AK-47, Hand Grenades…and a Laptop
In the southern Somalia port city of Kismayo, academic achievement is rewarded with military hardware. To help celebrate the holy holiday of Ramadan, the al Qaeda-inspired Shabab insurgency sponsored a Koran recitation and general knowledge comp... read more
Cold War Spies Collected East German Jokes
Back during the Cold War when Germany was still divided, government officials in West Germany looked forward to the regularly updated “joke report.” This collection of jokes told among those living in East Germany was gathered by West German spi... read more
World Sniper Championships Open at Fort Benning
Sniper teams from across the United States and overseas have converged at Fort Benning, Georgia, to determine the world’s best marksmen. The Ninth Annual U.S. Army International Sniper Competition has attracted 31 teams, including those from the ... read more
California Judge Allows Student Artists to Decorate Courthouse
When the new 4th District Court of Appeal building was completed in Santa Ana, California, Justice Eileen Moore was given the task of acquiring art for the courthouse. The problem was that she was not given a budget to do so. She tried getting ar... read more
Web Founder Apologizes for “//”
It was all so unnecessary, it turns out. Those wasted seconds, collectively adding up to hours and days, typing in the two forward slashes (“//”) as part of website addresses. That’s what Internet guru Tim Berners-Lee has to say now, looking back ... read more
Stupid Criminal of the Month…Bragged of Fugitive Life on Facebook
Maxi Sopo apparently never learned one of the basic rules of being a criminal on the run: keep a low profile. The 26-year-old from Cameroon decided to brag on Facebook about what a great time he was having in Mexico while hiding out from U.S. auth... read more
Kansas Salesman Claims He was Fired for Voting for Obama
Matthew Brandt, owner of KK Office Solutions in Kansas, did not favor the election of Barack Obama as president, and he let his employees know it. In an email to his workers on October 29, 2008, Brandt warned them “to rethink” their vote on Novemb... read more
Clotheslines Become “Wind Energy Drying Devices”
Democratic state Senator Linda Puller of Virginia thinks it’s wrong that at a time when energy consumption is vital and money tight, Americans are forbidden from using clotheslines to do their laundry. So Puller introduced legislation in the Virgi... read more
Air Force Wife in Philippines Uses Webcam to Catch Thieves…in Oklahoma
Being separated by thousands of miles turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Jim and Maribel Chouinard. With Jim, a flight chief stationed at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and his newlywed wife, Maribel, still in the Phili... read more
Maldives Cabinet Meeting to be Held Underwater
To call attention to the threat that global warming poses for his island country, President Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldives has ordered his cabinet ministers to prepare to meet underwater and sign an international treaty cutting greenhouse gas e... read more
Australian Auto Race Fans to be Limited to 24 Cans of Beer a Day
What’s a bloke to do when he’s forced to limit his alcoholic consumption to a mere 24 cans of beer—per day—during “The Great Race” of Australia? That’s the situation facing fans of the Bathurst 1000, a three-day automobile race that attracts thous... read more
Christian Group Sued for Praying that Jewish Republican’s “Days are Few”
A self-described unlikely civil rights activist, Mikey Weinstein is suing a Texas-based evangelical church with ties to the Department of Defense for praying for his demise. Weinstein, a Jewish Republican and former military lawyer who served unde... read more
Was Iran’s Ahmadinejad Born Jewish?
Photographic evidence has led some Western experts to wonder if Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has been using his vitriolic hatred for Israel to cover up his own Jewish roots. A photograph of Ahmadinejad holding up his ID card during the p... read more
Deer Collisions in Major Rise; West Virginia Most Dangerous
In some areas of the United States, driving down a country road comes with the increased risk of colliding with a deer. According to data collected by auto insurance provider State Farm, the number of auto-deer collisions from 2007-2009 increased ... read more
Ig Nobel Prizes Go to Gas Mask Bras and Creating Diamonds from Tequila
The Ig Nobel Prizes, awarded to those whose achievements make people laugh first, and think second, were given out recently for what is typically an odd assortment of accomplishments.
Katherine K. Whitcome, Daniel E. Lieberman and Liza J. Shap... read more