strange stuff

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

Stories 2801 - 2820 | << Prev   Next >>

Band Bills Military $666K for Using Its Song at Gitmo

Skinny Puppy says its music was used as a 'weapon'

(Newser) - Some bands are "proud" when their music is used to interrogate Guantanamo Bay detainees; other bands, not so much . You can count Skinny Puppy among the latter group. The Canadian industrial rock band says it has invoiced the US military for $666,000 after finding out its music was...

Big Mouth Billy Bass May Have Foiled Burglary

Singing novelty fish fell from his perch during alleged would-be crime

(Newser) - Remember when Big Mouth Billy Bass, a motion-activated, singing bass, was all the rage? It seems the nearly inanimate object is now being lauded as a bit of a hero by authorities in Rochester, Minn., who say the novelty bass thwarted a robbery on Sunday night. The owner of Hooked...

Man Could Get 18 Months in Jail for Peeing on Alamo

Texan pleads guilty, will have to pay hefty fine, too

(Newser) - On April 14, 2012, Daniel Athens just couldn't hold it any longer, so he ducked under a chain and relieved himself on the big building behind it. Because that building happened to be the Alamo—as in, the Alamo—the 23-year-old found himself in a San Antonio court yesterday...

Maine Police Investigate Screams, Find Amorous Pig

Neighbor thought it was domestic violence; it wasn't

(Newser) - Police responding to reports of screams coming from a home in Maine didn't find a victim of domestic violence as they feared. Instead, they found an amorous pig. State police say a woman called last week after hearing what she believed to be a fight coming from a neighbor'...

Man's Incredible Year-at-Sea Story Is 'Plausible'

Mexican officials seem to back some details of Jose Salvador Alvarenga's tale

(Newser) - A mysterious man drifted ashore in the Marshall Islands last week, and his story is almost unbelievable—but is it too unbelievable? A refresher : Jose Salvador Alvarenga says he and a teen named Ezekiel set out from Mexico in December 2012 and ended up adrift at sea; Ezekiel perished, but...

Calif. Man Pulls Gun on Girl Selling Cookies

Cops say he opened door to Girl Scout with gun in his hand

(Newser) - No more Thin Mints for this guy: A California man has been arrested for allegedly pointing a gun at a young girl who was selling cookies door-to-door. Police say that when the girl knocked on the door of John Dodrill, 59, he answered with a gun pointed at her, the...

In Antarctica, a Waterfall Runs Red

Inside the wonders of Blood Falls

(Newser) - It's as eerie as it is breathtaking and surprising: a waterfall in Antarctica that runs blood-red. The appropriately named Blood Falls drops five stories from the Taylor Glacier and into Lake Bonney, its bright red hue like a wound through the glacier. The Smithsonian digs into the story behind...

Couple Die Having Sex in Car
 Couple Die Having Sex in Car 
Feb 3, 2014 2:33 AM CST

Couple Die Having Sex in Car

They left engine running inside garage

(Newser) - A Pennsylvania couple apparently overcome by passion made the fatal mistake of leaving the engine running after they pulled into a Williamsport garage and had sex in their car, police say. The bodies of the partially clad couple, both 40 years old, were found inside the vehicle, which had run...

Meet the Guys Building World's Tallest Flagpoles

Trident Support makes them for governments in Middle East, Asia

(Newser) - Marc Summers and David Chambers got their start in defense logistics, but their company, Trident Support Corporation, now focuses on something rather different: Building really, really big flagpoles. They built the tallest one in the world, a 541-footer in Dushanbe, Tajikistan; they also built the prior record-holder in Baku, Azerbaijan,...

To Scratch That Itch, Get a ... Mirror?
 To Scratch That Itch, 
 Get a ... Mirror? 
STUDY SAYS
Feb 2, 2014 10:45 AM CST

To Scratch That Itch, Get a ... Mirror?

Scientists hit upon unusual solution for hard-to-reach itches

(Newser) - Scientists have come upon a trick to battle hard-to-reach itches—and it doesn't require any medical gear. All you need is a mirror. The researchers in Germany injected 26 men's right arms with histamine, which causes an itch and a red mark. They then painted a similar mark...

Why 3 Women Ditched Toilet Paper


 Why 3 Women 
 Ditched Toilet Paper 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Feb 2, 2014 6:50 AM CST

Why 3 Women Ditched Toilet Paper

They tell Huff Post Live of their switch to reusable cloths to help the environment

(Newser) - There's going green—dutifully recycling, switching to Al-Gore-approved light bulbs, reusing your grocery bags—and then there's this: going without toilet paper. Three women explain to Huff Post Live why they made the switch to reusable cloths and discuss the logistics of the choice that even they admit...

Rolling Boulder Leaves Wild Path of Destruction

No one hurt, but repairs could cost millions

(Newser) - Some 141,000 cubic feet of rock tumbled from the face of an Italian cliff this month, sending a boulder tearing through a 300-year-old farm. The rock rolled through a barn in the Alto-Adige region, resulting in millions of dollars' worth of damage, says the manager of the site, which...

Scientists Explain Underwater 'Fairy Rings'

They're caused by tainted mud, not aliens

(Newser) - Scientists have ruined a perfectly good mystery off the coast of Denmark—weird circles spotted on the ocean floor aren't so magical after all, despite their nickname of "fairy rings." Nor are they caused by World War II bombs or aliens, two of the more interesting theories....

81-Year-Old Jailed for Excessive Bear-Feeding

She feared they'd starve otherwise: officials

(Newser) - An 81-year-old woman is in prison without bond for feeding bears vast quantities of dog food—and refusing to stop, officials say. Mary Musselman, a retired gym teacher, allegedly fed bears when they visited her property in Sebring, Florida. "We are talking about putting out as many as 17...

Girl's iPhone Catches Fire in Pants

Teen suffers minor burns in Maine classroom

(Newser) - A weird one from Maine, where school officials say a 13-year-old girl suffered first- and second-degree burns when her iPhone caught fire in her pants, reports WMTW . The trouble began when the girl sat down, heard a popping sound from the back pocket where her phone was located, and noticed...

Woman Trying to Change Her Name to 'Sexy'

Ranea Crabtree goes before the judge next month in Ohio

(Newser) - While lots of folks might want to be known as sexy, one woman in Ohio wants to be known as Sexy, with a capital S. Yes, Ranea Crabtree will appear before a judge next month to request the name change, reports the Columbus Dispatch . Her real first name is actually...

After Shark Bite, Guy Stitches Leg, Grabs a Beer

New Zealand doctor wasn't too worried

(Newser) - When a New Zealand man felt something odd on his leg while spearfishing, he assumed it was one of his buddies. "I looked behind to see who it was and got a bit of a shock," James Grant, a 24-year-old doctor, tells Radio New Zealand . It was, apparently,...

Meet the Purple Tomato
 Meet the Purple Tomato 
Jan 27, 2014 11:13 AM CST

Meet the Purple Tomato

It's got blueberry-like health benefits: researchers

(Newser) - Finally: the health benefits of a blueberry in the shape of a tomato. That's how researchers are billing a genetically-modified purple tomato that may soon be available to shoppers. "With these purple tomatoes you can get the same compounds that are present in blueberries and cranberries that give...

UK Fears Approach of Rat-Infested &#39;Ghost Ship&#39;
UK Fears Approach of
Rat-Infested 'Ghost Ship'
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jan 26, 2014 10:10 AM CST

UK Fears Approach of Rat-Infested 'Ghost Ship'

Though Lyubov Orlova hasn't been heard from since March

(Newser) - The Russian "ghost ship" that was last heard from in March has all but vanished—but a flurry of reports now have it on a potential collision-course with Britain's coast, and packed with rats. Experts are warning that the Lyubov Orlova could be headed that way in the...

Family: Young Teen Killed Sister Over Laundry

Justice Toliver had reportedly bleached her brother's clothes

(Newser) - A 14-year-old girl allegedly stabbed her younger half-sister to death on Tuesday, telling the 11-year-old she was ungrateful for the older girl's housework as she did so—and shockingly, it's not the only alleged chore-related teen murder of the week. A 17-year-old girl was shot to death in...

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