Don't Panic! Lighten Up!S


Cloud Lightning

Noah's Ark ready for floods in Holland



©
Huibers' ark stands at 150 cubits (68 metres) - three-quarters of the length of a football pitch

Following in Noah's footsteps, Dutchman Johan Huibers is ready for any floods Holland may experience - thanks to his own special ark.

Coffee

Just when you thought it was safe - Dumm DUmm dumM - 'Hogzilla' to Hit Big Screen

ALAPAHA, Ga. - Hogzilla, a near-mythical monster hog that roamed south Georgia, is about to get a little bigger. An independent filmmaker is producing a horror movie about the super swine called "The Legend of Hogzilla," and has even enlisted the beast's killer on the set as an adviser.

©AP
Chris Griffin, 31, poses beside the half-ton wild hog he shot near Alapaha, Ga., in a Thursday, June 17, 2004

Comment: In other news: Godzilla's agent is reported to be missing.


Rocket

Dead star's ashes blasted into space in fitting stellar send-off

THEY had gathered before dawn for the spectacle and in the end they got the promised "fiery streak across the sky".

And all were agreed - Trekkies, anxious relatives and the gathered ranks of the media - that last night Scotty the Scottish engineer from Star Trek got the send-off he deserved.


Health

How long will a bell bong? Scientist do a Bell Check Up

VIENNA - With the precision of a surgeon, Andreas Rupp carefully wraps sensor strips around a 21-tonne bell in Vienna's famous St Stephen's Cathedral.

Europe's second-largest bell, nicknamed "Pummerin", is one of several famous bells across the continent being checked to determine their life spans, and unlock the secret of the optimum chime.

Magic Wand

Cartoon to tempt teenagers into priesthood

Japanese manga cartoons have become a multi-billion pound global market, commonly associated with martial arts warriors rather than with nuns and monks. But the Catholic Church in England and Wales is launching its own comic strip this week to attract teenagers into the priesthood.

It is using the comic book art form in an advertising campaign that aims to combat the dramatic decline in the number of applicants for ordination, and the resulting dearth of young priests.

The Church hopes that its manga comic, with pictures of nuns and monks playing pool and surfing the internet, will help to improve the image of the vocation, which leaders believe is seen as "monotonous and boring".

Question

Trivial Pursuit! Police Say Man Was Love-Struck Thief

LOS ANGELES - Whenever Antonio Moreno wanted to see his girlfriend, police say, he'd jump in a car and drive right over.

Heart

Sydney's "free hugs guy" grapples with global fame

SYDNEY - It's close to midday on one of the busiest streets in Sydney's centre and Juan Mann is getting nervous. Known to millions as the "free hugs guy," he is worried about the lunchtime rush. And with good reason.

©AFP
Sydney's 'free hugs guy'.

Magnify

Need a Break from Action Movies? Watch a Cheese Ripen Live!

LONDON - A large English cheddar cheese has become a star of the Internet, attracting more than 1 million viewers to sit and stare at it as it slowly ripens.

Sheeple

Box of Condoms Leads to Evacuation

ANKENY, Iowa - Several classrooms at Des Moines Area Community College were evacuated after college officials became nervous about a suspicious package.

Light Sabers

Speeding on the Internet gets Loic in hot water

A French man who posted a clip on the Internet that showed him driving at 225 kph in street with a speed limit of 110 kph was arrested and is to be tried, police in the eastern French city of Luneville said.

The young man signed his video clip 'Loic and his Push Scooter' and posted it on the site YouTube, where a police officer, made curious by the subtitle I Will Never Be Late, came upon it.

To prove how fast he was driving, Loic had a passenger film the speedometre, which showed his car reaching a speed of 225 kph. The video also revealed the make and model of his car and a scratch on the windshield that made it easy to identify.