World's smallest gun- Swiss Mini Gun

World's smallest gun- Swiss Mini Gun

This is the world's smallest gun that fires deadly 300mph bullets - but is just TWO inches long.

Meet the pistol that fits in your pocket - and packs a hell of a punch. The Swiss Mini Gun is the size of a key fob but fires tiny 270mph bullets powerful enough to kill at close range. There is a key ring holster that comes with the gun when it is bought and can be clipped to a belt loop.

Officially the world's smallest working revolver, the gun is being marketed as a collector's item and measures just 2.16 inches long (5.5cm). It can fire real 4.53 bullets up to a range of 367ft (112m).

Many countries, including the US and the UK, forbid the importation of the Swiss Mini Gun over the ease of concealing the revolver. Swiss Mini Gun is recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's smallest working revolver.

Alfred Hitchcock serving tea to Leo the Lion ( the mascot for the Hollywood Film studio MGM), 1957.

New Island formed in the Pakistan coast

Pakistan has a new island, thanks to a magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck the region last week.

Yes, you heard right. The earthquake managed to jumble the Earth to such a point that a 60 to 70-foot tall, 300-foot -wide and 120-foot-long island FORMED IN THE OCEAN.

So how can this happen? It's a giant mud volcano created by the jostling! And (sadly, or not) it'll probably melt back into the sea over time.

The man who sold Taj Mahal - Mithilesh Kumar Srivastava

The man who sold Taj Mahal

These days when people fake themselves and wear a mask of artificial expressions, this is a real story about a person who faked others in an unique way. But he was not a common conman, but the greatest of his elite category.

Mithilesh Kumar Srivastava (1912-1996/2009), was also popularly known as "Natwarlal", was a noted Indian conman who repeatedly sold The Taj Mahal, the Red Fort, and the Rashtrapati Bhavan and also the Parliament House of India along with its 545 sitting members. He was a living legend in his life time and also continued to be one after his death. He was born in Bangra village in Siwan district of Bihar. He was a lawyer by profession before he turned into a conman.

Modus Operandi :

He was in a wanted list in over a 100 cases in 8 States. He had been sentenced to a massive 113 years in jail by various courts and had made eight daring escapes, each time from a different jail.

He was a master of disguise who used more than 50 names to commit crimes. He once walked out of Kanpur jail dressed as a Sub-Inspector (in a smuggled uniform). He offered an attaché case of money to the guards, addressed a taxi and drove away.

He used to pose as a Government official and fool foreign tourists by selling them famous Indian monuments. He forged President Rajendra Prasad’s signature and sold the Taj Mahal thrice, and the Rashtrapati Bhawan and the Lal Qila twice!!

He is also said to have cheated number of industrialists including Birlas and Dhirubhai Ambani taking from them huge money in cash, posturing as social worker or needy person. Also he had duped many shop-owners with lakhs of rupees, paying them by cheque and demand drafts, which were later found to be forged.

Interestingly, at the age of 84, he was on a wheelchair, old, ill and so disabled that the police were taking him to the AIIMS Hospital for treatment. On the way to the Hospital, at the New Delhi Railway Station, he slipped from right under the Policemen’s nose. He was seen for the last time on June 24, 1996.

His daring acts are often compared with Frank Abagnale of Catch Me If You Can and Victor Lustig. The blockbuster bollywood film Mr. Natwarlal starring Amitabh Bacchan gave a tactful idea of the life of original Natwarlal.

Derinkuyu - the underground city

Derinkuyu - the underground city

The achievements of ancient cultures tend to be woefully unappreciated -- we think of the people as loincloth-wearing savages, and when we're proven wrong by some impressive feat of engineering, we just make a bunch of documentaries about aliens. But the engineers of times past were nothing to sneer at, and some of their accomplishments make ours seem slightly embarrassing.

Derinkuyu's underground city was discovered in the 1960s in Turkey, when a modern house above ground was being renovated. Much to the relief of everyone present, the 18-story underground city was abandoned and not swarming with mole people.

Hidden for centuries right under everyone's noses, Derinkuyu is just the largest of hundreds of underground complexes built around the eighth century B.C. To understand just what's so phenomenal about this feat of engineering, imagine someone handing you a hammer and chisel and telling you to go dig out a system of underground chambers capable of sustaining 20,000 people. And not one of those fancy modern chisels, either -- we're talking about something dug with whatever excavating tools they had 2,800 years ago.

The city was probably used as a giant bunker to protect its inhabitants from either war or natural disaster, but its architects were clearly determined to make it the most comfortable doomsday bunker ever. It had access to fresh flowing water -- the wells were not connected with the surface to prevent poisoning by crafty land dwellers. It also has individual quarters, shops, communal rooms, tombs, arsenals, livestock, and escape routes. There's even a school, complete with a study room.

It was opened to visitors in 1969 and till date about half of the underground city is accessible to tourists.

The Conjuring (2013) Starring Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Lili Taylor, Ron Livingston based on the case files of Ed & Lorraine Warren

REEL FACE:	REAL FACE:
Vera Farmiga Born: August 6, 1973 Birthplace: Passaic County, New Jersey, USA	Lorraine Warren Born: January 31, 1927 Birthplace: Connecticut, USA
Patrick Wilson Born: July 3, 1973 Birthplace: Norfolk, Virginia, USA	Ed Warren (born Warren Edward Miney) Born: September 7, 1926 Birthplace: Bridgeport, Connecticut, USA Death: August 23, 2006 (complications from a stroke)
Lili Taylor Born: February 20, 1967 Birthplace: Glencoe, Illinois, USA	Carolyn Perron Born: August 1939
Ron Livingston Born: June 5, 1967 Birthplace: Cedar Rapids, Iowa, USA	Roger Perron Born: August 27, 1935 Birthplace: Providence, Rhode Island, USA
Shanley Caswell Born: December 1991 Birthplace: Sarasota, Florida, USA	Andrea Perron Born: October 10, 1958 Birthplace: Rhode Island, USA
Hayley McFarland Born: March 29, 1991 Birthplace: Oklahoma, USA	Nancy Perron Born: February 8, 1960 Birthplace: Willimantic, Connecticut, USA
Joey King Born: July 30, 1999 Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA	Christine Perron Born: January 30, 1961 Birthplace: Willimantic, Connecticut, USA
Mackenzie Foy Born: November 10, 2000 Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA	Cindy Perron Birthplace: Willimantic, Connecticut, USA
Kyla Deaver Born: March 25, 2003	April Perron Birthplace: Willimantic, Connecticut, USA

The Moses Bridge (The Netherlands)

"The Moses Bridge" (The Netherlands) as it appears to have divided the moat's waters. This design allows people to cross virtually undetected from water level except for a few bobbing heads. Its construction is made entirely of wood and waterproofed with foil.

A man broke into Buckingham Palace spending half hour eating cheddar cheese and wandering around.

Michael Fagan incident

A man broke into Buckingham Palace spending half hour eating cheddar cheese and wandering around. He tripped several alarms, but they were faulty. He viewed the royal portraits and rested on the throne for a while. He drank half a bottle of wine before becoming tired and leaving.

Break-ins: It was the 31-year-old's second attempt to break into Buckingham Palace that was successful. On his first attempt he scaled a drainpipe, briefly startling a housemaid who called security. But upon returning to the scene, Fagan had disappeared, leading security to believe the housemaid was mistaken. Fagan entered through an unlocked window on the roof and spent the next half hour eating cheddar cheese and crackers and wandering around. He tripped several alarms, but they were faulty. He viewed the royal portraits and rested on the throne for a while. He then entered the postroom, where Diana, Princess of Wales had hidden presents for her first son, William. Fagan drank half a bottle of white wine before becoming tired and leaving.

On the second attempt, an alarm sensor detected him. A member of the palace staff thought the alarm was faulty, and silenced it. En route to see the Queen, Fagan broke a glass ashtray, lacerating his hand.

The Queen woke when he disturbed a curtain, and initial reports had Fagan sitting on the edge of her bed talking to her for about ten minutes. But in a 2012 interview, he clarified that she in fact left the room immediately, seeking security. She phoned twice for police but none came. Fagan then asked for some cigarettes, which were brought by a maid. When the maid did not return to base for some time, footman Paul Whybrew appeared. The incident happened as the armed police officer outside the royal bedroom came off duty before his replacement arrived. He had been out walking the Queen's Corgis.

Arrest: Since it was then a civil wrong rather than a criminal offence, Michael Fagan was not charged for trespassing in the Queen's bedroom. He was charged with theft (of the half bottle of wine), but the charges were dropped when he was committed for psychiatric evaluation. He spent the next six months in a mental hospital before being released on 21 January 1983. It was not until 2007, when Buckingham Palace became a "designated site" for the purposes of section 128 of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005, that what he did became criminal. Fagan's mother later said, "He thinks so much of the Queen. I can imagine him just wanting to simply talk and say hello and discuss his problems.

B377PG - NASA's Super Guppy Turbine cargo plane

B377PG - NASA's Super Guppy Turbine cargo plane, first flew in its outsized form in 1980. Photo: NASA/DFRC

Alexander Lippisch's Aerodyne, a wingless experimental aircraft

Alexander Lippisch's Aerodyne, a wingless experimental aircraft. The propulsion was generated by two co-axial shrouded propellers (1968). Photo: Flying Magazine, Apr 1960

The Caproni Ca.60 Noviplano was a nine-wing flying boat

The Caproni Ca.60 Noviplano was a nine-wing flying boat intended to be a prototype for a 100-passenger trans-atlantic airliner. It featured eight engines and three sets of triple wings. Two pontoons, mounted on each side, were intended to give the aircraft stability. Only one example of this aircraft was built by Caproni. The prototype only made one short flight on 4 March 1921 over Lake Maggiore in Italy. The aircraft attained an altitude of only 18 m (60 ft), then dived and crashed, breaking up on impact. The pilot escaped unscathed. Caproni had the wrecked airplane towed to shore, and announced that he would rebuild it, but that night it burned to ashes.

Bill Clinton meets John F. Kennedy.

poo dance

Sloths only poop once a week in an event called the "poo dance."

Eighteen year old Princess Elizabeth of England pictured during her time in the Auxiliary Territorial Service during WWII where she drove and repaired heavy vehicles, 1945

 Eighteen year old Princess Elizabeth of England pictured during her time in the Auxiliary Territorial Service during WWII where she drove and repaired heavy vehicles, 1945

REAL STORY OF AMERICAN DOLLAR VS INDIAN RUPEE

REAL STORY OF AMERICAN DOLLAR VS INDIAN RUPEE

An Advice to all who are worrying about fall of Indian Rupee.
Throughout the country please stop using cars except for emergency for only seven days (Just 7 days)
Definitely Dollar rate will come down. This is true. The value to dollar is given by petrol only.This is called Derivative Trading. America has stopped valuing its Dollar with Gold 70 years ago.
Americans understood that Petrol is equally valuable as Gold so they made Agreement with all the Middle East countries to sell petrol in Dollars only. That is why Americans print their Dollar as legal tender for debts. This mean if you don't like their American Dollar and go to their Governor and ask for repayment in form of Gold,as in India they won't give you Gold.

You observe Indian Rupee, " I promise to pay the bearer..." is clearly printed along with the signature of Reserve Bank Governor. This mean, if you don't like Indian Rupee and ask for repayment,Reserve Bank of India will pay you back an equal value of gold.(Actually there may be minor differences in the Transaction dealing rules, but for easy comprehension I am explaining this)

Let us see an example. Indian petroleum minister goes to Middle East country to purchase petrol, the Middle East petrol bunk people will say that liter petrol is one Dollar.
But Indians won't have dollars. They have Indian Rupees. So what to do now? So That Indian Minister will ask America to give Dollars. American Federal Reserve will take a white paper , print Dollars on it and give it to the Indian Minister. Like this we get dollars , pay it to petrol bunks and buy petrol.

But there is a fraud here. If you change your mind and want to give back the Dollars to America we can't demand them to pay Gold in return for the Dollars. They will say " Have we promised to return something back to you? Haven't you checked the Dollar ? We clearly printed on the Dollar that it is Debt"
So, Americans don't need any Gold with them to print Dollars. They will print Dollars on white papers as they like.

But what will Americans give to the Middle East countries for selling petrol in Dollars only?

Middle East kings pay rent to America for protecting their kings and heirs. Similarly they are still paying back the Debt to America for constructing Roads and Buildings in their countries. This is the value of American Dollar. That is why Many say some day the Dollar will be destroyed.

At present the problem of India is the result of buying those American Dollars. American white papers are equal to Indian Gold. So if we reduce the consumption of petrol and cars, Dollar will come down

The Above Details are translated originally from Telugu Language to English by Radhika Gr.
Kindly share this and make everyone aware of the facts of American Dollar V/s Indian Rupee.

And here is a small thing other than petrol , what we can do to our Indian Rupee

YOU CAN MAKE A HUGE DIFFERENCE TO THE INDIAN ECONOMY BY FOLLOWING FEW SIMPLE STEPS:-

Please spare a couple of minutes here for the sake of India.
Here's a small example:-

Before 12 months 1 US $ = INR Rs 39
After 12 months, now 1 $ = INR Rs 62

Do you think US Economy is booming? No, but Indian Economy is Going Down.

Our economy is in your hands.INDIAN economy is in a crisis. Our country like many other ASIAN countries, is undergoing a severe economic crunch. Many INDIAN industries are closing down. The INDIAN economy is in a crisis and if we do not take proper steps to control those, we will be in a critical situation. More than 30,000 crore rupees of foreign exchange are being siphoned out of our country on products such as cosmetics, snacks, tea, beverages, etc. which are grown, produced and consumed here.

A cold drink that costs only 70 / 80 paise to produce, is sold for Rs.9 and a major chunk of profits from these are sent abroad. This is a serious drain on INDIAN economy. We have nothing against Multinational companies, but to protect our own interest we request everybody to use INDIAN products only at least for the next two years. With the rise in petrol prices, if we do not do this, the Rupee will devalue further and we will end up paying much more for the same products in the near future.

What you can do about it?
Buy only products manufactured by WHOLLY INDIAN COMPANIES.Each individual should become a leader for this awareness. This is the only way to save our country from severe economic crisis. You don't need to give-up your lifestyle. You just need to choose an alternate product.

Daily products which are COLD DRINKS,BATHING SOAP ,TOOTH PASTE,TOOTH BRUSH ,SHAVING CREAM,BLADE, TALCUM POWDER ,MILK POWDER ,SHAMPOO , Food Items etc. all you need to do is buy Indian Goods and Make sure Indian rupee is not crossing outside India.

Every INDIAN product you buy makes a big difference. It saves INDIA. Let us take a firm decision today.

we are not anti-multinational. we are trying to save our nation. every day is a struggle for a real freedom. we achieved our independence after losing many lives.
they died painfully to ensure that we live peacefully. the current trend is very threatening.

multinationals call it globalization of indian economy. for indians like you and me, it is re-colonization of india. the colonist's left india then. but this time, they will make sure they don't make any mistakes.

russia, s.korea, mexico - the list is very long!! let us learn from their experience and from our history. let us do the duty of every true indian. finally, it's obvious that you can't give up all of the items mentioned above. so give up at least one item for the sake of our country!

We would be sending useless forwards to our friends daily. Instead, please forward this to all your friends to create awareness.

The Man Who Could Survive Being Impaled by a Sword

The Man Who Could Survive Being Impaled by a Sword

On June 23, 1947, Time Magazine reported from Switzerland on what it called the “Miracle Man” – a mysterious 35-year old Dutchman by the name of Mirin Dajo who confounded onlooking scientists, doctors and ordinary spectators when, apparently without any pain or internal injury, he was skewered straight through the chest with a 28-inch fencing foil. The skin on his torso appeared to bulge as the solid steel blade was pushed through by an assistant, but Dajo stayed stoic, unflinching. In the wake of the harsh reality of the Second World War, people were in search of miracles. Through Mirin Dajo, that is exactly what they seemed to get.

Long before the Jim Rose Circus came to fame in the 1990s, there was a single-man sideshow who put all their masochistic acts into the shade. Claiming he was invulnerable, Mirin Dajo became notorious for radical body piercings more extreme than any seen before or since. During the 40s, this living enigma was run through with sharp objects like spears and swords without suffering physical damage or even bleeding. How was he left alive? Was he, as some of the headlines of the time read, some kind of “second Messiah”? Was it just a trick, some kind of elaborate sleight of hand? Or could the truth be explained by science?

If science could shed any light on the mystery of how Dajo was able perform these seemingly superhuman feats, the medical men of the time couldn’t. On May 31, 1947, the Swiss doctor, Hans Naegeli-Osjord, having heard of Dajo's talent, took tests on the man at a hospital in Zurich, assisted by several other doctors. As usual, Dajo stripped to the waist and was impaled with a rapier, yet he neither bled nor felt a thing. The foil still in place, Dajo then walked to the X-ray theatre, where results showed the foil had pierced through parts of the body where his heart, lung and kidneys were located. The blade remained inside.

The doctors in Zurich had prepared for the onset of massive internal bleeding once the steel blade was withdrawn, but when the time came only the smallest traces of damage were visible in the skin, with only a minimal amount of body fluid running from the openings. The tiny wounds were cleansed, but Dajo and his assistant knew no infection would occur anyway. More renowned for performing in public theatres, Dajo had defied the scrutiny of the medical community. What’s more, Dajo did not stop at one hole but had many, and footage shows his assistant puncturing one clean through his lower abdomen from one side to the other.

So how was he able to do this? If, as experts then and now seem to agree, this was no illusion, but a real sword going through a real body, how did Dajo’s vital organs survive without any ill effects? Dajo maintained that the areas through which the weapons went became ‘lighter’, ‘less physical’ – that there was nothing solid to injure – but a recent BBC TV programme disputes this account. According to magician and Dajo authority, Ali Bongo, Dajo travelled to India and talked to Fakirs – mystics known for piercing their cheeks and skin with knives. There he may have learned a safe way to pass a blade through his body – but how?

According to Dr Jennifer Saw, even such an extreme feat might be biologically possible aided by what are called fistulas, probably the simplest example of which is an ear ring hole: “It’s quite likely that he had perhaps a few centimetres done at a time, the hole that was created was kept open, and then they advanced it again a little bit at a time staying clear of any organs.” So Dajo had tubes made from scar tissue running through his body that allowed thin objects to be inserted through them. “If you looked at his back he had several holes on them, and I think those were failed fistulas – ones where they couldn’t advance any further,” says Saw.

If such an explanation goes some way to penetrating the mystery of Mirin Dajo’s incredible talent, it doesn’t diminish quite how amazing it is that the man survived the making of these passageways. No known Indian Fakir has ever gone to such extremes, and the pain and possible infection of creating them would have been risks no magic could have conjured away.

Born in Rotterdam, Mirin Dajo was trained in the Beaux Arts and headed a design team during the 1920s. In his youth he reported having various allegedly paranormal experiences, such as visions and telepathy, but it wasn’t until he turned 33 that Dajo professed to realise his body was ‘invulnerable’. After quitting his job and heading to Amsterdam, he began to perform in street cafes, making money by allowing people to pierce his body with dagger-like objects or by eating glass and razor blades. He later stated that the objects he swallowed must have dissolved inside his body – a claim disputed by the circumstances of his death.

There can be little doubt Dajo sought a certain amount of fame through his displays, but he also had a desire to show that there was more to reality than most accepted. A self-proclaimed prophet, he used his act as basis for preaching his message and explaining his world view – which included accepting that there was a higher force, the Source, and that man’s materialistic ways would only lead him to misery and war and should therefore be abandoned. Ironically, Dajo was granted licenses to perform but not to speak during his show, a fact that frustrated him because one was meant to lead to the other.

The other reason Dajo was bogged down in bureaucracy was because so many audience members fainted, and as a consequence he was denied a licence for public demonstrations. Dajo himself never came to any harm while on stage, but even so his abilities sent him to an early grave. At the end of May, 1938, Dajo died of an aortic rupture two week after a needle he had eaten was surgically removed. According to his loyal assistant, Jan Dirk de Groot, the man who called himself Mirin Dajo – which roughly translates as “wonderful” in Esperanto – had several “guardian angels”. They evidently failed him when it mattered most.

Mudskippers are a fish that have adapted to live outside of water.

Mudskippers are a fish that have adapted to live outside of water.

They are amphibious fish that use their pectoral (swimming) fins to walk on land. They retain water in their large gill chamber which closes tightly when the fish is above water.

Kim Ung-Yong (IQ of 210): The Super-Genius

Kim Ung-Yong (IQ of 210): The Super-Genius

Kim Ung-yong (born March 7, 1963) is a Korean civil engineer and former child prodigy. Kim was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records under "Highest IQ"; the book gave the boy's score as about 210. 

Kim was born in Hongje-dong, Seoul, South Korea. His father was Kim Soo-Sun, a professor. He started speaking at the age of 6 months and was able to read Japanese, Korean, German, English and many other languages by his third birthday. When he was four years old, his father said he had memorized about 2000 words in both English and German. He was writing poetry in Korean and Chinese and wrote two very short books of essays and poems (less than 20 pages). An article was published about him in Look magazine. After reading the article, a teacher and students at Grant High School in Los Angeles began writing to him and in February 1967 his father applied for Kim to be enrolled at Grant High School. By four years old, he had scored more than 200 on an IQ test normally given to seven-year-olds. On November 5, 1977, Kim solved complicated differential and integral calculus problems on Japanese television. As of 2007 he also serves as adjunct faculty at Chungbuk National University.

Cat and Dogs Meat shop. Bishopsgate Road, London,

Cat and Dogs Meat shop. Bishopsgate Road, London, 1935.

An image that makes the devastation of the American buffalo much more tangible

An image that makes the devastation of the American buffalo much more tangible, 1870s.

Leafy Sea Dragons (Phycodurus eques) are native to the oceans south of Australia

Leafy Sea Dragons (Phycodurus eques) are native to the oceans south of Australia. Measuring up to 35cm (13.8 inches), they have long, slender bodies, decorated with elaborate leaf-like appendages to help them blend in with the plant life of the water. They are closely related to sea horses, and should not be confused with their much less spectacular cousins, the aptly named Weedy Sea Dragon.

Merlet’s Scorpionfish

Merlet’s Scorpionfish (Rhinopias Aphanes) have a variety of other names, many of which include the word “lacy”. This is because they have a considerable amount of tentacles and skin flaps, as well as an unusual shape overall, which gives them their so-called lacy look. They use all of these factors to look like plant life, blending in with coral reefs. They will stay still for hours until they get an opportunity to jump out, and inhale their prey with their enormous mouths.Other names include Lacy Scorpionfish, Weedy Scorpionfish, Merlot Scorpionfish, Lacy Stingfish, Lacy Firefish, Lacy Goblinfish and Lacy Rockfish.

The Baron Caterpillar (Euthalia aconthea gurda) is native to India and Southeast Asia.

The Baron Caterpillar (Euthalia aconthea gurda) is native to India and Southeast Asia. They are about 4mm long with small spikes when they hatch, but as they reach their 4th and 5th stage of growth (known as instars), they can grow to be about 45mm, with much more elongated spikes. These spikes, along with the caterpillar’s colour, allow it to blend in with leaves to avoid predators until it’s ready to mature.

Pangboche Hand: Hand of a Yeti

Pangboche Hand: Hand of a Yeti

Brief: Held sacred in a Buddhist monastery in Tibet is what some claim to be the hand of a yeti. While many believe the hand is fake, many flock to the monastery to catch a glimpse. The monks consider the hand sacred and won’t allow any scientific testing. It has been said that a man named Peter Byrne smuggled the hand out of Nepal, giving it to London University for testing. William Hill ran tests on the hand with surprising results. He concluded the hand was indeed hominid, but more closely matched that of Neanderthal than modern man. In addition, tests were run by NBC for the show Unsolved Mysteries and found the hand to be “near human”. The hand was then stolen, and its current location is a mystery. It is thought to be in a private collection—traded through the black market.

Full Story: The Pangboche Hand is an artifact from a Buddhist monastery in Pangboche, Nepal. Supporters contend that the hand is from a Yeti, a scientifically unrecognized animal purported to live in the Himalayan mountains. Critics argue the artifact is a fraud.

Oil businessman and adventurer Tom Slick first heard accounts of the possible existence of a "Yeti hand" held as a ritual artifact in the monastery at Pangboche during one of his first "Abominable Snowman" treks in 1957. The Slick expeditions were the first to bring photographs of the hand back to the West.

During later Tom Slick-sponsored expeditions in and around the Himalayas, his associates gathered more information on the "Pangboche hand," and an effort to further examine it was planned. In 1959 Peter Byrne, a member of Slick's expedition that year, reportedly stole pieces of the artifact after the monks who owned it refused to allow its removal for study. Byrne claimed to have replaced the stolen bone fragments with human bones, rewrapping the hand to disguise his theft.

Byrne smuggled the bones from Nepal into India, after which actor James Stewart allegedly smuggled the hand out of the country in his luggage. Cryptozoologist Loren Coleman rediscovered this story while writing Tom Slick's biography in the 1980s. Coleman confirmed details of the incidents with written materials in the Slick archives, interviews with Byrne, and correspondence with Stewart. Byrne later confirmed the Pangboche hand story via a letter from Stewart that Byrne published in a general book on Nepalese wildlife.

During the highly-publicized 1960 World Book expedition, which had many goals including gathering intelligence on Chinese rocket launchings, Sir Edmund Hillary and Marlin Perkins took a sidetrip in Nepal to investigate the hand. Hillary was unaware of the possibility that he was looking at a combination of the original material and the human bones placed there by Byrne. Hillary determined the artifact was a hoax.

Tests and analyses:
London University primatologist William Charles Osman Hill conducted a physical examination of the pieces that Byrne supplied. His first findings were that it was hominid, and later in 1960 he decided that the Pangboche fragments were a closer match with a Neanderthal.

In 1991, in conjunction with Coleman's research, it was discovered that the Slick expedition consultant, an American anthropologist by the name of George Agogino, had retained samples of the alleged Yeti hand. The NBC program Unsolved Mysteries obtained samples and determined they were similar to human tissue, but were not human, and could only verify they were "near human." After the broadcast of the program, the entire hand was stolen from the Pangboche monastery, and reportedly disappeared into a private collection via the illegal underground in the sale of antiquities. George Agogino, before his death on September 11, 2000, transferred his important files on the Pangboche Yeti hand to Loren Coleman.

DNA Results:
On 27 December 2011 it was announced that a finger belonging to the hand contained human DNA, following tests carried out in Edinburgh.

Albert Einstein with an Albert Einstein puppet.

Albert Einstein with an Albert Einstein puppet.

SS Brigadeführer seconds before his execution.

Dramatic Photo Before Execution: SS Brigadeführer seconds before his execution.

A Native American overlooking the newly completed transcontinental railroad

The Legend of Cliff Young: The 61 Year Old Farmer Who Won the World’s Toughest Race

The Legend of Cliff Young: The 61 Year Old Farmer Who Won the World’s Toughest Race

In 1983 a 61 Year Old Farmer Won a 544 mile endurance race because he ran throughout the night while the younger 'professional' athletes slept

An Unlikely Competitor: Every year, Australia hosts 543.7-mile (875-kilometer) endurance racing from Sydney to Melbourne. It is considered among the world's most grueling ultra-marathons. The race takes five days to complete and is normally only attempted by world-class athletes who train specially for the event. These athletes are typically less than 30 years old and backed by large companies such as Nike.

In 1983, a man named Cliff Young showed up at the start of this race. Cliff was 61 years old and wore overalls and work boots. To everyone's shock, Cliff wasn't a spectator. He picked up his race number and joined the other runners. The press and other athletes became curious and questioned Cliff. They told him, "You're crazy, there's no way you can finish this race." To which he replied, "Yes I can. See, I grew up on a farm where we couldn't afford horses or tractors, and the whole time I was growing up, whenever the storms would roll in, I'd have to go out and round up the sheep. We had 2,000 sheep on 2,000 acres. Sometimes I would have to run those sheep for two or three days. It took a long time, but I'd always catch them. I believe I can run this race."

When the race started, the pros quickly left Cliff behind. The crowds and television audience were entertained because Cliff didn't even run properly; he appeared to shuffle. Many even feared for the old farmer's safety.

The Tortoise and the Hare: All of the professional athletes knew that it took about 5 days to finish the race. In order to compete, one had to run about 18 hours a day and sleep the remaining 6 hours. The thing is, Cliff Young didn't know that! When the morning of the second day came, everyone was in for another surprise. Not only was Cliff still in the race, he had continued jogging all night. Eventually Cliff was asked about his tactics for the rest of the race. To everyone's disbelief, he claimed he would run straight through to the finish without sleeping.

Cliff kept running. Each night he came a little closer to the leading pack. By the final night, he had surpassed all of the young, world-class athletes. He was the first competitor to cross the finish line and he set a new course record.

When Cliff was awarded the winning prize of $10,000, he said he didn't know there was a prize and insisted that he did not enter for the money. He ended up giving all of his winnings to several other runners, an act that endeared him to all of Australia.

Continued Inspiration: In the following year, Cliff entered the same race and took 7th place. Not even a displaced hip during the race stopped him.

Cliff came to prominence again in 1997, aged 76, when he attempted to raise money for homeless children by running around Australia's border. He completed 6,520 kilometers of the 16,000-kilometer run before he had to pull out because his only crew member became ill. Cliff Young passed away in 2003 at age 81.

Today, the "Young-shuffle" has been adopted by ultra-marathon runners because it is considered more energy-efficient. At least three champions of the Sydney to Melbourne race have used the shuffle to win the race. Furthermore, during the Sydney to Melbourne race, modern competitors do not sleep. Winning the race requires runners to go all night as well as all day, just like Cliff Young.

Sunset on Mars

Sunset on Mars

The 'Cassowary' can kill people with one strike of their feet

The 'Cassowary' is a huge bird somewhat similar to the Ostrich, that can kill people with one strike of their feet and some experts have claimed it can disembowel a man.

Lincoln Assassination conspirator Lewis Payne in custody, April 1865. Photo credit: Alexander Gardner

Lincoln Assassination conspirator Lewis Payne in custody, April 1865. Photo credit: Alexander Gardner

Adolf Hitler playing with his dog

Adolf Hitler playing with his dog, presumably Blondi, at field headquarters, probably 1943.

SAM ALEXANDER – The man with two faces

SAM ALEXANDER – The man with two faces

Sam Alexander was born a relatively average man. In his early 20’s he was actively pursuing a career in theatre and had been recently promoted at the Shubert Theatre in Chicago when personal disaster struck. Although the details are a little sketchy, Sam was ultimately involved in a huge gasoline explosion that was the result of his own carelessness. While he was able to instinctively save his eyes by raising his arm, he received deep burns around his lips and lower face. Even more unfortunate, his wounds festered and became severely infected. Doctors were forced to remove much of his lower face and lips, practically to the bone. As a result, Sam Alexander was left with a permanent and disturbing teeth-gnashing grimace and a gruesome visage.

Sam spent thirteen months physically recovering from his wounds in a Chicago hospital. His mental scars perhaps ran deeper than his physical ones as he was forced to endure the gasps of new nurses and the lack of eye contact from visiting loved ones. Following his recovery, Sam Alexander was placed in a halfway house, a facility for people with little or no hope of social recovery. However his fortunes changed slightly when a doctor referred him to a prosthetics master and a lifelike mask was cast and created in an effort to fake a normal appearance. In a certain light, the facade was somewhat convincing but extremely limiting and Sam Alexander was still despondent as his saw little chance to earn a livelihood in a society that was appearance driven.

Sam was a driven and ambitious man, which made his confinement all the more unbearable. One morning, as Sam read the paper, he saw an ad for the Pete Kortes Sideshow. The show was touring and was set up close to the halfway house. Same attended the show, introduced himself to Kortes and unmasked to show the ringmaster what he had to offer. Kortes was horrified and hired Sam on the spot. Sam began touring almost immediately and instantly caused a stir.

Billed as ‘The Man with Two Faces’, Sam’s exhibition consisted primarily of a stage monologue detailing his story. Sam was a soft-spoken man with a gentle manner and soothing voice. He so lulled the crowd with his tale of heartbreak that when he revealed his face in a surprising flourish, people screamed and women cried. His showcase was so disturbing that Kortes made Sam the Blow Off attraction, an extra attraction patrons had to pay a premium to see and he was sincerely billed as ‘not for the weak of heart’.At more than one venue, Sam Alexander was paid not to perform.

Sam Alexander was soon in demand. During his career he joined the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show, the Clyde Beatty Circus and worked for venerable showman Ward Hall from 1960 to 1967. Sam Alexander eventually even created and ran his own sideshow and was ultimately responsible for rescuing the legendary Schlitzie the Pinhead from institutionalized life.

Despite it eventually becoming his livelihood, Sam Alexander endured seventy-two operations in his lifetime in the effort to restore his damaged face. While the operations were never quite completely successful, Sam eventually retired his mask regardless of the patchwork appearance his face bore. Sam was a man without a prejudice or bitter bone in his body and he was determined to live the last years of his life as himself – without hiding behind a mask.

Sam Alexander passed away in 1997 and today is remembered fondly by all who knew him as a man with a kind heart and a face to match.

In 1945, a B25 bomber flew into Empire State Building

In 1945, a B25 bomber flew into Empire State Building

The B-25 Empire State Building crash was a 1945 aircraft accident in which a B-25 Mitchell piloted in thick fog crashed into the Empire State Building. The accident did not compromise the building's structural integrity, but it did cause fourteen deaths (three crewmen and eleven people in the building) and damage estimated at $1,000,000 ($13,000,000 current dollar adjustment).

Details: On Saturday, July 28, 1945, Lieutenant Colonel William Franklin Smith, Jr. was piloting a B-25 Mitchell bomber on a routine personnel transport mission from Bedford Army Air Field to Newark Airport. Smith asked for clearance to land, but was advised of zero visibility. Proceeding anyway, he became disoriented by the fog, and started turning right instead of left after passing the Chrysler Building.

At 9:40 a.m., the plane crashed into the north side of the Empire State Building, between the 78th and 80th floors, carving an 18 ft (5.5 m) x 20 ft (6.1 m) hole in the building where the offices of the National Catholic Welfare Council were located. One engine shot through the side opposite the impact and flew as far as the next block, landing on the roof of a nearby building and starting a fire that destroyed a penthouse. The other engine and part of the landing gear plummeted down an elevator shaft. The resulting fire was extinguished in 40 minutes. It is still the only fire at such a height that has ever been successfully controlled.

Fourteen people were killed: Smith, the two others aboard the bomber (Staff Sergeant Christopher Domitrovich and Albert Perna, a Navy aviation machinist's mate hitching a ride), and eleven people in the building. Elevator operator Betty Lou Oliver was injured. Rescuers decided to transport her on an elevator which they did not know had weakened cables. She survived a plunge of 75 stories, which still stands as the Guinness World Record for the longest survived elevator fall.

Despite the damage and loss of life, the building was open for business on many floors on the following Monday. The crash helped spur the passage of the long-pending Federal Tort Claims Act of 1946, as well as the insertion of retroactive provisions into the law, allowing people to sue the government for the accident.