Silly/Odd News Stories from around the World

[TinyRedLeaf]

Well, well, well....it seems that we've got one step closer to the future of motoring.

'Flying saucer' nears US take-off

BBC News (30 Aug , 2007) -- It has been called the vehicle of the future and the ultimate way to beat the rush hour commute.

It is the M 200G, otherwise known as a "flying saucer", which is being built by a company in Davis, California called Moller International. It says the futuristic contraption will go on sale in a few months and hopes to expand production to 250 a year.

Capable of vertical take-off and landing, the craft hovers like a helicopter up to 10ft off the ground. Any higher and the driver would need a pilot's licence.

It is the brainchild of Dr Paul Moller, an aeronautics engineer who envisions a "highway in the sky" which he believes could cut conventional commuter traffic in half.

"We have this wonderful natural resource above us," Dr Moller told the BBC.

"Look at the sky above us - how many aircraft do you see? It's a great space that is not being utilised. That is what we plan to use. Cars are finished as a means of getting around. It's only a matter of time."

The flying saucer is powered by eight engines which can run on petrol, diesel or even ethanol. Dr Moller and his team have already conducted more than 200 test flights and say the flying saucer could prove useful to rescue teams as well as landowners.

[anti-random]

That's not bad not bad at all.

[User65554]

I have seen the future...and it is The Jetsons

Actually, most movies/tv shows that deal with the future have had some sort of hover car...
Life imitates art.

[anti-random]

FTW with The Jetsons.

[Kamui4356]

There's a reason we don't have flying cars, and it isn't that we can't make them. Think of it this way, how often have you seen a car accident or a car that's obviously very poorly maintained? Now what happens if you give those same drivers something that goes much faster and flys? Not a good idea.

[Aoie_Emesai]

You must have severe restriction if you were given the chance to buy or ride one

[User65554]

You'd have to pass a test that would have such high standards that only those who'd had many years experience flying one of them would actually be allowed to fly them.

Also you couldn't use them on roads. Or any place with trees/buildings/high signs/lamp posts etc.

But then they said that they coulden't be used immediatly as 'cars', at least for now.

[Kamui4356]

Originally Posted by VK-Pitt

You'd have to pass a test that would have such high standards that only those who'd had many years experience flying one of them would actually be allowed to fly them.

Also you couldn't use them on roads. Or any place with trees/buildings/high signs/lamp posts etc.

But then they said that they coulden't be used immediatly as 'cars', at least for now.

No matter the standards, if they become widespread they will fall into the hands of someone who's careless or won't keep it in top shape. Not to mention the FAA has regulations about keeping aircraft a good distance apart for a reason. Flying cars might be cool, but they're a bad idea in real life. It's best they stay in the realm of scifi where they belong.

[Kensuke]

What if one of the engines fail whole hovering, it won't matter if that happens to car's engine because you can stop quite safely but while airborne that might be very bad, for yourself and anyone nearby.

Well, I don't think that the flying car is totally out of question, it is definitely not for everyone, but perhaps as a fast taxi, much like we use helicopters today, flown by actual pilots.

[anti-random]

Whose read Hover car Racer by Matthew Reily. The cars in there use magnetic replusion so as long as the world spins the car floats.

[User65554]

Originally Posted by Kensuke

Well, I don't think that the flying car is totally out of question, it is definitely not for everyone, but perhaps as a fast taxi, much like we use helicopters today, flown by actual pilots.

I think that that's probaby the most likely possibility, as you would need to be quite good to fly one, much like a real pilot (and they manage).

They would need to have safety precautions and backup engines etc, otherwise they wouldn't be allowed to fly.

[Laura25]

How about this one?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070901...ewbS7GFhIDW7oF

SYDNEY (AFP) - An agitated pet cat left in a cupboard overnight turned out to be high on cocaine and benzodiazepines left over from a wild weekend dinner party, a report said Saturday.

The eight-month-old Himalayan cat arrived at a veterinary clinic with dilated pupils and a racing heart, while the owner said it had trouble walking and was easily startled, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Vets Dominic Barfield and Richard Malik, who run a clinic in the Sydney suburb of Double Bay, were unable to take blood or use a thermometer to take the cat's temperature as it was pacing incessantly around its cage.

While the owner was adamant the cat had not been exposed to toxic plants, mouldy foods or drugs, when contacted by telephone the owner's wife admitted the cat could have licked "plates of cocaine" which had been served at a dinner party two days earlier.

A drug screen also revealed the cat had benzodiazepines in its system.

The "remorseful" owner, who was not identified, was counselled and allowed to take the pet home, but no legal action was taken as there is no legal requirement in Australia for vets to report such cases to police.

The case was reported in this month's edition of the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, the newspaper said, but did not specify when the incident happened, other than that it was on a Monday morning.

Poor Cat

[User65554]

Another good one; http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/sussex/6972315.stm

Some of the world's most hirsute faces gathered on the English south coast to see who had the fullest beard or the most stylish moustache.
Competitors from the UK, America, Germany and many other countries took part in the World Beard and Moustache Championships in Brighton.

The categories include;

• Moustaches - Natural, English, Dali, Imperial, Hungarian, Freestyle
• Partial Beards - Natural Goatee, Chinese, Musketeer, Imperial, Freestyle, Sideburns Freestyle
• Full Beards - Verdi, Garibaldi, Natural Full, Natural Full with Styled Moustache, Freestyle

With pictures!

Spoiler for Willi Chevalier, from Germany, was entering the Full Beard Freestyle category.:

[TinyRedLeaf]

Australians cook up wild cat stew

BBC News (2 Sep 2007): Australians have come up with a novel solution to the millions of feral cats roaming the outback - eat them.

The felines are the descendants of domestic pets and kill millions of small native animals each year. A recent Alice Springs contest featured wild cat casserole. The meat is said to taste like a cross between rabbit and, perhaps inevitably, chicken.

But wildlife campaigners have expressed their dismay that Australia's wild cat now finds itself on the nation's menus.

Hmm, well, it seems that at least one species of cat has outlived its nine lives.

[Terrestrial Dream]

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

Australians cook up wild cat stew



Hmm, well, it seems that at least one species of cat has outlived its nine lives.

Pretty strange that a country like Australia would eat cat. Who knows it might be good I might consider it if I would get a chance to eat.

[User65554]

Originally Posted by Laura25

How about this one?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070901...ewbS7GFhIDW7oF

Poor Cat

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

Australians cook up wild cat stew

Hmm, well, it seems that at least one species of cat has outlived its nine lives.

Ah, Australia, why do you hate your cats?

[aohige]

Well, the feline that's been eaten in Australia are no longer house pets, but wildlife animals.
I don't see any diffrence in eating wild feline, with eating deers and rabbits, as long as the health and safety issues are resolved.

I do wonder if they taste any good though.
It seems to me that a wild feline would be too skinny and tough meat.

[Asai]

Originally Posted by hyperlion

Pretty strange that a country like Australia would eat cat. Who knows it might be good I might consider it if I would get a chance to eat.

You have to note it says Alice Springs, which is in the middle of nowhere. A very backwater region full of people akin to 'hicks' in the US. Can't really put anything past them.

[User65554]

Nepal's state-run airline has confirmed that it sacrificed two goats to appease a Hindu god, following technical problems with one of its aircraft.

Nepal Airlines said the animals were slaughtered in front of the plane - a Boeing 757 - at Kathmandu airport.

The offering was made to Akash Bhairab, the Hindu god of sky protection, whose symbol is seen on the company's planes.

The airline said that after Sunday's ceremony the plane successfully completed a flight to Hong Kong.

"The snag in the plane has now been fixed and the aircraft has resumed its flights," senior airline official Raju KC was quoted as saying by Reuters.

...

[anti-random]

Seriously did that happen. Crap. Just read the colourofchange website. This can't be right. I mean come on. Hasn't anybody from outside the city intervened in this? I mean gangs from LA or the governer. Rubbbish. Racial turmoil in this age. Whats happening. DjTrizz make a thread for this topic and don't let it die until the issue is resolved. If a mod says someething about this complain. This is one of those things that do not belong in silly news.