Do you know Marie-Fortunée Lafarge?

Marie-Fortunée Lafarge was French and she was convicted of murder. She was accused of murdering her husband by poisoning his food-the very ancient method that we have read in mythological stories.

Lafarge must have been a fan of reading such stories and got that idea of committing this heinous act. The trail was reported widely in news papers and attracted widespred public following.

The muder was committed in the year 1840.

Earlier, she was believed to have stolen jewels from her friend's house.
Courtesy: Wikipedia

Do you know parahumans?

Image via Wikipedia
Indians won't be surprised about mention of parahumans in any literature. Indian mythology is abundant with stories of parahuman characters. Even God is depicted as a parahuman (paraGod?) with a human head in an animal body.

There is the legends of Lord Narashimah, the sacred cow Kamadhenu (picture at the right) etc are examples of parahuman characters.

Now those mythological mentions have entered the realm of reality. Efforts to combine genes from different species for medical and industrial purposes are now fairly common. Though such research could prove useful for the production of drugs and transplant-ready organs, it has raised numerous ethical, moral, and legal issues.

Nevertheless, British scientists plan to create hybrid embryos by injecting human DNA into the ova of what animal?

Thanks to thefreedictionary.com

Do you know carnivorous plants?

Carnivorous plants?

I remember such mystic stories when I was growing up but gave another thought till I read about it today in the Internet.

They are mostly found in places where the soil is not so fertile. This makes the plants look for alternative sources for food. They are naturally equipped to attract/trap insects and sometimes small animals too.

There are as many as 600 such species. Here is the image of one such plant called Heliamphora that is found in South America.

South America, it seems to offer more for nature lovers with Amazon and the likes of it-right?

Courtesy:Wikipedia

Do you know Survivalism?

Yes, it was in the 1970s, the nation was gripped with widespread rumor about the several natural calamities that were expected to affect the world at large.

It is so widespread that people for a moment didn't treat it as a rumor and started instinctive developing a sense of survivalism. This involved stockpiling of food and water, build shelters, and learn skills that they believe will help them live through apocalyptic chaos. Today, many survivalists exchange information via the Internet.

The roots of the modern survivalist movement in the United States and Britain can be traced to several sources, including government policies, religious beliefs, and writers warning of social or economic collapse.

What are Alpha-Rubicon and the Zombie Squad?

Read at the free dictionary.

Do you know the flying squirrels?

Flying squirrels-do they really fly or jump long distances with the aid of wing like organs? Is it a misnomer?

Do you know that there are 43 species of flying squirrel that actually cannot fly but only glide while moving between trees?

Once airborne, the squirrels have a high degree of maneuverability and are able to steer by adjusting the tautness of the patagia and using their tails as stabilizers.

How do they "brake"?
I have seem them in action but I never wondered how do they halt? In other words, how do they brake?
"The tail acts as a stabilizer in flight, much like the tail of a kite and as an adjunct airfoil when braking prior to landing on a tree trunk. "

Source: The Free Dictionary

Do you know the most expensive remote control?

Remote Control-the one gadget that made us all accumulate blood glucose, unnecessary fat and an inertia. Also, it made us all look ugly and manners less because we order people around like to switch on the light, move that leg rest here while we laze around with the remote control.

Now, someone has invented the most expensive remote control in the world; I believe it costs around $55,000.

Yes, 55 grand dollars!

"This Danish hi-tech manufacturer specializes in developing individual subsystems covering entertainment, surveillance, lighting and electronics control. Lantic Systems presented the Gold RC1 Remote Control at The Worlds Biggest Marine Equipment Trade Show at METS 2007 in Amsterdam, Holland."

Source with gratitude: Gadget for Girls.

Who is born on 8/8/08 at 8.08 AM?

Hailey Jo Hauer was born on the eighth day of the eighth month in 2008 at 8:08 a.m.
What a birthday to remember! Oh, God, I am too old to sire a child!

And did she weigh 8 pounds and 8 ounces?

When the mother of the baby Lindsey Hauerwas told of the birthday timings, she could not believe it. The baby would hit several headlines in newspapers across the world, happily unaware of her celebrity status.

The staff at the hospital where she was delivered are planning to buy her a bunch of lottery tickets. I would place the odds heavily on her favor.

Is there another baby born at the same hour?

Source: Fergusfalljournal.com

Who's Getting Paid During the Subprime Crisis?

Wouldn't we all like to know the answer to this big question? Even Indian economy is affected by this enigmatic subprime crisis!

What exactly is Subprime crisis? How it started? Who is responsible for its origin?

Newspapers scream that only the U.S people are responsible for this world economic crisis. There may be some truth in it but I don't think they alone should take the blame.

Then who else should take the blame?

Traditional industry consensus is that consumers typically pay their bills according to a certain hierarchy. The subprime mortgage dilemma, however, has facilitated an emerging trend in consumer payment prioritization. This white paper details Equifax research that examines how prevalent this reprioritization is and provides insight into the type of consumers who exhibit this behavior.

Request for your free white paper.

Do you know the dark side?

Do you know the dark side of psychiatry? Yes, there is more to it than just pure fascination.

I have met several youth who were taken to the legendary couch but never got up after that. They were made to dependent of psychiatrists for he rest of their life. Of course, there are always exceptions that can't be brushed aside.

Students in India who are not good performers in their schools and colleges were subjected to this misery mainly by their parents because of too much expectations from their children.

Read here for more information on the dark side of psychiatry.

Do you know the ghost chili?

We spell it 'chilli' because we pronounce stressing on the double 'L'. I think it ads flavour when you pronounce 'chilli'.

Ok, Chilli it is then. It is the number ingredient in our cuisine. Do you know that there are more than 20 varieties of chilli in India?

But the ghost chilli is new to me. No, I am not ashamed to admit ot even though it grown in India. It has another name-"poison chili; and another-"naga jolokia". It is said to be the hottest chili pepper in the world, as certified by Guinness World Records in 2007.

Originally grown in northeastern India and Bangladesh, the naga jolokia has measured over 1,000,000 on the Scoville scale, a system developed to measure the "hotness" or piquancy of chili peppers. In comparison, jalapeño peppers range from 2,500 to 8,000.

Source: Did you know?

Text messaging? It injures the composer.

The growing health hazards that arise from using cell phone excessively has added one more concern to the long list.

Now it is the excessive sending of short messages (SMS) that adds to the vulnerability to ill-health. The name christened to this ailment is TMI (Test message injury). Quite straight forward name-right. I was expecting a word that ends with 'itis' like arthritis.

Symptoms include aches and strains in the hands, wrists, arms, shoulders and neck.The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy said 16 per cent of 16 to 24 year-olds have had TMI or Text Message Injury.

Retict txt ssns to 5-10 mtes. I suppose you can make out what preceded this sentence.

Abbreviations are recommended while texting.

Source: yahoo! News.