316 YEARS AGO TODAY
Sep 26 1687
Troops laying siege to Athens led by Venetian general Francesco Morosini rain cannonfire down on the Acropolis and the Turkish soldiers garrisoned inside. One cannonball penetrates the Parthenon, which happened to serve as the Turks' gunpowder magazine. The roof, walls, and 16 columns are blown off by the resulting explosion.
By Jill Serjeant
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Muscles rippled, heads appeared in impossible places and the sweet smell of incense wafted in the air as the first World Yoga Championship ever staged in the United States got off to a start.
Practitioners will be judged on grace, proportion, flexibility, endurance and balance for five compulsory poses and two optionals carried out in three minutes. The winner will receive a two-week trip to the country of their choice and $3,000 in cash.
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| Ban on 'classroom brothels' |
A ban on allowing school classrooms to be used as brothels and strip bars has been ordered by education officials in Ukraine.
Headteachers in the country have often leased out excess space to firms to raise extra income . . .
The brothel management had converted the cellar at the school and installed a sauna and a bar selling alcoholic drinks.
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| Pigeon droppings cause roof collapse |
The roof of a house in Chile has collapsed under the weight of accumulated pigeon droppings.
Ana María Bustos said the roof crashed down into her living room in Santiago because pigeons had been using it as a roost.
Jewish? Africans knew it all along
DNA: Genes support a tribe's belief that it migrated 2,500 years ago from the Holy Land.
"I hereby certify that I possess the intellectual and emotional maturity required to consent to sex. I have not in any way been coerced into signing this form, and I have not rececived, and do not expect to receive, any payment or remuneration whatsoever for performing the specified sex acts. I am 18 years or older and am not intoxicated with alcohol or drugs. Though I offer this form as consent to sex, I reserve the right to withdraw consent at any time, verbally, in writing, gesture, or any other clearly discernible means. . ."
More at http://www.sex-contract.com/
DES MOINES, Iowa - Darden Restaurants Inc. Wednesday said it had replaced the head of Red Lobster after an all-you-can-eat crab promotion went awry.
Darden executives said Red Lobster management had badly miscalculated how many times customers would refill their plates after paying $20 for an "endless" crab entree. Meanwhile, crab prices were going up . . .
"It wasn't the second helping on all-you-can-eat but the third."
"And maybe the fourth."
XIAN (Shaanxi) - A five-year-old girl chewed off all her 10 fingers in three years after a fever that is believed to have damaged her nerves . . .
A doctor who examined her suspected that the fever brought on cerebral palsy.
As a result, both her brain and nerve endings were damaged, blocking the sensation of pain when she bit her fingers.
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The gene map of man's best friend shows dogs are closely related to people and will add insights into our own genetics, U.S. scientists say.
The study found that, out of 24,000 clearly identified human genes, we share at least 18,000 with dogs.
The researchers hope to get some insight into what makes a Labrador want to swim and a border collie want to herd things.
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