3. april 2003

And what's new about that? "Police in China say they have smashed a gang of attractive women robbers who use their looks to lure their victims." (Ananova) 11:17:17 PM    comment []

This war brought to you by... ...or, fun things to do in PhotoShop. 9:44:32 PM    comment []

Microsoft targets google market Microsoft is planning to enter the search engine market, and they see google as a competitor. "We believe that we can provide customers with a better product and a better user experience.", said Bob Visse, director of marketing for Microsoft's MSN division. 7:27:38 PM    comment []

"Hello, it's the prime minister!" The notourious Norwegian con-man Richard Ringheim (picture), who has successfully evaded arrest despite of his high profile stunts and many serious frauds, Friday called the US embassedor to Norway John Doyle Ong, pretending to be the Norwegian prime minister Kjell Magne Bondevik. Norway has been close to the German-French line on the Iraq war, but the fake prime minister could assure the embassador that he personally gave the US-led coalition his full support, even though he dared not say that publicly. Embassador Ong told the caller he found this very interesting and would bring on the remarks to his government, but he must have had some suspicions. He later called the Prime Minister's office to confirm the call, and found out he had been victimised by the prankster. Both the embassy and the prime minister's office confirmed the story. (From a Norwegian article in Bergensavisen) 5:23:13 PM    comment []

Criticising the afterlife experiments Professor Gary Schwartz, a well-renowed scientist, has added a lot of credibility to the belief that there is an afterlife, and that some mediums can communicate with them. However, Ray Hyman shows in a recent article in the Skeptical Inquirer, Schwartz took quite a few shortcuts in his investigations which seriously undermines his conclusions. 5:15:14 PM    comment []

Deja vu all over again "There is increasing evidence Iraq regime is losing command and control over the country, US military says." (BBC News) I'm quite confident they said exactly the same thing over week ago. Well, this time it might be true, I guess. 3:10:21 PM    comment []

SMSs used to quell SARS rumour When a rumour about SARS started spreading in Hong Kong, threatening to create panic, the authorities responded by sending 6 million SMSs, mobile text message, to deny the rumour. The hoax story, which said Hong Kong had been declared an "infected city", had been started by a 14 year old boy "for fun." People started stocking up on food and supplies, fearing the city would be completely shut down. The authorites probably did a world first by mass-sending SMS to declare that "Director of Health announced at 3pm today there is no plan to declare Hong Kong as an infected area." 2:22:46 PM    comment []

Senator: Try Arnett for treason US Senator Jim Bunning (R-Ky) argues that correspondent Peter Arnett should be arrested and "tried as a traitor" for saying on Iraqi television that the US warplan had failed. To some, freedom of speech just means the freedom to agree with the party line. 11:37:22 AM    comment []

Al-Jazeera thrown out of Baghdad In a rather strange move, Iraqi authorities have banned two Al-Jazeera correspondents from working in Baghdad, prompting the widely popular Arabic news channel to suspend all its reporters in Iraq in protest. The station will still broadcast pictures. 10:15:17 AM    comment []

Cannibal dinosaur "A nine-meter-tall carnivorous dinosaur probably wouldn't need much help establishing a ferocious reputation. But researchers writing in the journal Nature have discovered another trait of the species Majungatholus atopus that is sure to do just that. It seems that this dinosaur, which roamed Madagascar between 65 and 70 million years ago, was a cannibal." (Scientific American) It isn't really astonishing that some dinosaurs were cannibals. After all, quite a few modern predators, like lions, sometimes kill and eat their own kind. What is astonishing is that scientists have found evidence of the diet and behaviour of a species that went extinct 65 million years ago. 10:02:54 AM    comment []

Exhausted As I've told earlier, I belong to a tribe of nomads. Most of those I know have moved the last year, some several times. So today I had to help some friends to move to a new place. There are two essential rules for moving: 1) Pack properly; 2) Get enough people to help. Both rules were violated today, as they had to move in a hurry (crazy neighbour), and most of those who had promised to help didn't. Thus I have been neglecting my blog for dragging around furniture, books, CDs, stereo & computer equipment and an inordinate amount of musical instruments for nine hours. 12:29:46 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.05.2003; 02:58:52.