As part of its operations in clearing the Taliban occupied areas of the Malakand region the Pakistani army is distributing pamphlets claiming that they (the Taliban) "... are the same as Jewish forces who are against the existence and security of the country ... "

Read the entire article here.

Image credit: daylife / Getty Images

Sometimes, things work out just right (or wrong, depending on your point of view) to create a deliciously ironic situation.

An expedition which set off from Plymouth on a 5,000 mile carbon-emission-free trip to Greenland ran into trouble and needed to be rescues by .... wait for it .... an 110,000 ton oil tanker.

I think they might have preferred to drown.
(Picture and story credit - The BBC)

Georg Steinhauser is a researcher from the Vienna Institute of Technology who apparently has way too much time on his hands.  Following in the footsteps of great scientists like Louis Pasteur, who used their own bodies as guinea pigs, for the past three years Dr. Steinhauser has been collecting fluff (a.k.a body lint) from his own bellybutton and analyzing it.

Three years of diligent harvesting yielded him 503 pieces of fluff (Just 503? I’m sure virtually every male I know can produce that much in a week!) which he then proceeded to study.  He also surveyed his family, friends and staff about their own body lint.

Chemical analysis revealed the pieces of fluff were not made up of only cotton from clothing. Wrapped up in the lint were also flecks of dead skin, fat, sweat and dust.  Dr Steinhauser's observations showed that 'small pieces of fluff first form in the hair and then end up in the navel at the end of the day'.

Writing in the journal Medical Hypotheses, he said the scaly structure of the hair enhances the 'abrasion of minuscule fibers from the shirt' and directs the lint towards the belly button. “The hair's scales act like a kind of barbed hooks," he said. "Abdominal hair often seems to grow in concentric circles around the navel."

Dr. Steinhauser also has some suggestions on how we can reduce the amount of fluff collected in the belly button.  These include shaving one's belly (only until the hairs grow back), wearing old clothes, as they tend to shed less lint than newer garments and body piercings can also be used, with belly button rings particularly effective at sweeping away fibers before they lodge.

(from The Telegraph)

A Chinese company is marketing a Viagra-style drug called USA Selikon (I love that name!) with Sean Connery, David Beckham and Keanu Reeves endorsing the product on Chinese TV.  Sounds legitimate right?  There’s just one thing … none of them know that they’re the brand ambassadors for this wonderful product!

The commercials feature badly dubbed interviews with the stars with quotes like …

“It’s also the secret weapon with which I can satisfy Victoria” – David Beckham

Sean Connery recommends the stuff to his ‘aged friends’ since it’s what keeps his love life with his wife Barbara spiced up (He’s married to Michelene Roquebrune for over 32 years now).

The biggest endorsement comes from Keanu Reeves, who says, “The feelings after my kidneys got washed by USA Selikon capsules are surprising and give me multiple girlfriends.”

Check out the video.

(from the Daily Mail via The Mental Floss Blog)