Odd News Review

Brazil Diver Survives Spear Ricochet In Head

admin — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:11:57 +0000

7:04am UK, Tuesday March 31, 2009

Surgeons have successfully removed a six-inch fishing spear from a man’s head after he was shot while diving off the Brazilian coast.

Image of spear imbeded in a Brazilian diver’s head

Emerson de Oliveira Abreu apparently fired the spike that ricocheted off rocks and hit him, near the city of Rio de Janeiro.

The spike penetrated his head so deeply that only the tip was showing, family members and authorities said.

Reports initially claimed Mr Abreu was accidentally shot by a friend.

Diver is recovering in hospital

Doctor Manoel Moreira told Globo TV it took five hours of high-risk surgery to remove the projectile.

The surgeon said Mr Abreu is expected to show a full recovery and that only his sense of smell may be impaired temporarily.

The spear entered just above Mr Abreu’s left eye and missed the most critical areas of his brain, Dr Moreira said.

Mr Abreu’s friend Douglas Martins, who was fishing with him at the time, said the injured fisherman was conscious and talking after the accident.

“It’s a miracle,” Mr Abreu’s aunt Dilene Moreira told Globo TV.

The patient is set to be released from Saracurana hospital in a week.

Michigan man gets stuck for over 4 hours after sticking his finger in SUV gas tank

admin — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 00:30:09 +0000

SAGINAW, Michigan (AP) — A Michigan man has learned not to stick his fingers in certain places. Victor Harris, of Saginaw, Michigan, was pouring a fuel additive into his Lincoln Navigator sport utility vehicle Thursday when a piece of paper fell into the gas tank. Harris tried to fish the paper out, but his index finger became stuck in the gas tank.

WJRT-TV reported Harris tried to extract his digit for two hours before friends called the fire department. It took another two hours before emergency responders cut the gas tank tube out of the vehicle.

Doctors later removed Harris’ finger from the tube. He received two stitches.

Harris said he’s learned his lesson and won’t put his finger back in the gas tank.

‘Dumbest criminal’ nabbed in cop convention holdup (AP)

admin — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 00:20:11 +0000

HARRISBURG, Pa. – A retired police chief said he was robbed by “probably the dumbest criminal in Pennsylvania,” at a police officers’ convention on Friday morning. John Comparetto said as he came out of a stall in the men’s room, a man pointed a gun in his face and demanded money. There were 300 narcotics officers from Pennsylvania and Ohio at the gathering.

Cheese beats Baboon Metaphysics in odd book prize

admin — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 00:20:07 +0000

LONDON (Reuters) - The prize for oddest book title of 2008 was awarded to “The 2009-2014 World Outlook for 60-milligram Containers of Fromage Frais,” thanks to a late surge in popularity, The Bookseller magazine said Friday.

Astronomers track asteroid’s collision with Earth

admin — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 00:11:27 +0000

Graphic: down to
earth

Spider-Man Saves Boy (Really!)

admin — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:01:43 +0000

A Bangkok fireman rescued an autistic eight-year-old boy who had climbed on to a third-floor window ledge by dressing up as his favorite comic book super-hero, Spider-Man.

Read full story from snafu-ed.blogspot.com

You Ginger Monkey! Mum Rejects New Arrival

admin — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:00:56 +0000

10:08am UK, Tuesday March 24, 2009

A rare ginger monkey born at an Australian zoo has made its public debut - after being rejected by its mother.

A very shy looking Elka makes her debut at Taronga Zoo

Elka, a Francois Langur monkey, is being hand-raised by staff at Taronga Zoo in Sydney.

Her birth came as somewhat of a surprise to zoo keepers who were not entirely sure the mother, Saigon, was even pregnant.

They will now temporarily look after the orange-haired leaf-eating monkey because of her mother’s rejection.

Elka’s parents have black fur but it is common for infants to be bright orange.

It is thought the colour helps parents to spot their infants in the wild.

An adult francois langur monkey

“Primates are quite an intelligent group of animals, a lot of their social development depends on learning,” senior primate keeper Mandy Mclellan said.

“Often first time mums might not have have enough exposure to other females giving birth so they haven’t learned social skills and haven’t learned what they need to do with these little babies.”

Keepers will raise Elka for many months, feeding her baby formula every three hours, and prepare her for reintroduction to her parents.

The birth is significant because the species is very rare and under great pressure from loss of habitat and poachers.

A recent census of the monkeys showed that despite being widespread throughout Vietnam and China, there could be as few as 1,000 of the species left in the wild.

Taronga’s life sciences general manager, Cameron Kerr, said: “Taronga’s keepers were prepared and are managing the difficult process of hand-raising the langur… as the species faces real risk of extinction in the wild.”

Fla. student suspended from riding the bus for 3 days after being accused of passing gas

admin — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 23:50:36 +0000

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — An eighth-grader was suspended from riding the school bus for three days after being accused of passing gas. The bus driver wrote on a misbehavior form that a 15-year-old teen passing gas on the bus Monday to make the other children laugh, creating a stench so bad that it was difficult to breathe. The bus driver handed the teen the suspension form the next day.

Polk County school officials said there’s no rule against flatulence, but there are rules against causing a disturbance on the bus.

The teen said he wasn’t the one passing gas.

Whether he did it or not, he might have gotten off easy. A 13-year-old student at a Stuart school was arrested in November after authorities said he broke wind in class.

Many want RI strip club jobs at door, not on stage (AP)

admin — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 23:40:42 +0000

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Scores of people have applied to work at a Rhode Island strip club but the vast majority don’t need to show any leg to get the job.

Obama apologizes for gaffe

admin — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 23:30:27 +0000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has apologized for a gaffe in which he described his bowling skills as akin to participants in the Special Olympics, a sports program for people with intellectual disabilities.