kiran’s pensieve

BBC NEWS | Health | Woman sees own heart on display

Accompanied by a video of this rare sort of news story.

How about Adrienne Claire? Or Fleur Jade?

Isn’t Fleur Jade that dim sum place down the street?

Check out this Primer on Parent Cruelty

Because there really aren’t bigger problems in the world.

The professor had hoped to spend the afternoon listening to discourse on arcane topics. Instead, he was handcuffed to another suspect and fingerprinted in a detention centre, where his peppermints were confiscated, “presumably on the suspicion that they might be some kind of narcotic”.

This is hilarious!

Stumbling across the Free Patents website couple of days ago, I put it into my del.icio.us bookmarks and revisited it today. After registering with a free account, I was able to view the detailed patent information for all the patents listed here (like, lots).
Anyway, I’ve been browsing through the Crazy Patents listings on the site and there’s some really twisted stuff people come up with! Like the “vehicle mounted toilet seat” (When you’re on the go and you gotta go??) or the nifty “inclining coffin” (When you’re dead but want a seat on the breakfast table??). Complete w/ wild illustrations this site has some great (and many insane) ideas… for something… I know I can figure out what.

I’ve been getting about 50-80 spam comments on this blog everyday. And that makes me sad. :*(

It’s all for some aol webpage selling insurance (supposedly). I’d report to aol but who gives a shit?

Call me sick but I find the comedic talent of one Sacha Baron Cohen painfully funny. We just got done watching Borat and though I had heard from everyone I know that it is hilarious, I was still blown away by many parts! This guy is a sheer genius and I cannot wait to see his next 2 films based on the other characters he plays on TV, Brumo and Ali G. Now, it’s time for Stranger Than Fiction, the literary comedy starring Will Ferrel, Emma Thompson and the effervescent Dustin Hoffman, all 3 of whom just keep getting better and better with time…

These stories don’t even require commentary…

“NJ Supreme Court gives same-sex couples more rights”

The case that resulted in Wednesday’s ruling was brought by seven same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses in New Jersey. The dissenting justices, led by Chief Justice Deborah Poritz, argued that the majority did not go far enough, saying that only marriage would allow gay couples to achieve equal benefits.

In making its ruling, the court reflected on the changes that have transformed marriage during the last 200 years, such as granting women greater rights within marriage.

“The institution of marriage reflects society’s changing social mores and values,” the majority said in its opinion. “Although courts can ensure equal treatment, they cannot guarantee social acceptance, which must come through the evolving ethos of a maturing society.”

“Bush concedes depth of domestic unease over war but vows new tactics will earn victory”

With less than two weeks to go before midterm elections in which the Republican party is expected to suffer heavily because of doubts about Mr Bush’s leadership of the war, yesterday’s press conference at the Oval Office was intended to convince ordinary Americans that the president has a credible plan for Iraq.

“Apple Hacking Could Be Good for iTunes”

What will this mean for Apple?

It’s too early to say. The company will clearly mount a legal challenge, but some analysts believe Apple could end up selling fewer iPods but more music.

“It could be in Apple’s interest that when people download music from iTunes, that consumers will be able to import it to other places: your home, your computer, your car,” McSherry says.

And other lawyers say there’s a big difference between “reverse engineering” and hacking into a company’s internal, confidential information or a bank’s records, for example. That is clearly against the law.

“Radio host accuses Fox of faking Parkinson’s”

In a new embarrassment for the Republicans, Rush Limbaugh, the doyen of conservative talk radio hosts, has issued a graceless apology after suggesting the actor Michael J Fox might have faked the effects of Parkinson’s disease in an election campaign advertisement pleading for embryonic stem cell research.

And last, but not least…

“Canada troops battle 10-ft Afghan marijuana plants”

“We tried burning them with white phosphorous — it didn’t work. We tried burning them with diesel — it didn’t work. The plants are so full of water right now … that we simply couldn’t burn them,” he said.

Even successful incineration had its drawbacks.

“A couple of brown plants on the edges of some of those (forests) did catch on fire. But a section of soldiers that was downwind from that had some ill effects and decided that was probably not the right course of action,” Hiller said dryly.