strange stuff

From strange crimes to strange celebrity deaths, read all of the latest weird and strange stuff news stories on Newser.com

Stories 161 - 180 | << Prev   Next >>

Trekkie Quirk Makes AI Chatbots Better at Math

Opening queries with a 'Star Trek' catchphrase yields more accurate results

(Newser) - Bet you didn't have this one on your AI bingo card. New research has found that when fed phrases that simulated being on the Starship Enterprise, chatbots spit out more accurate results to math problems. The study, published on arXiv and first reported by New Scientist , didn't set...

Police: Women Propped Up Dead Man in Car, Drove to Bank

The women allegedly withdrew money from Douglas Layman's account

(Newser) - It's a story that's drawing plenty of Weekend at Bernie's references: Police say two Ohio women drove their dead roommate's body—propped up in the car's front seat—to a bank's drive-through window on Monday in order to get money from his account. NBC...

Skiing Plus Rodeo = Wild Sport of 'Skijoring'

Saddle up!

(Newser) - Nick Burri clicks into his ski bindings, squats to stretch his knees, and scans the snowy racecourse. Moments later, he's zipping past a series of gates at high speed and hurtling off jumps. But it's not gravity pulling him toward the finish line: It's the brute force...

Wonka Debacle Is Being Made Into a Horror Flick

Its villain, 'The Unknown,' will star

(Newser) - Glasgow's unfortunate Wonka experience is coming back to haunt us, only this time in the form of a feature-length film. If you missed the story, the Scottish city experienced the children's version of Fyre Fest in February when parents forked over $45 per ticket to what was billed...

The Bellagio Turns Off Its Fountains for 'Exclusive Guest'

A rare yellow-billed loon has shown up on its lake

(Newser) - A visit from a rare, fine-feathered tourist has interrupted one of Las Vegas' prominent shows. The Bellagio said in a social media post Tuesday that it paused its fountains as it worked with state wildlife officials to rescue a yellow-billed loon that "found comfort on Las Vegas' own Lake...

Feds Find Goose Intestines Under Dead Rattlesnakes

Feds bust 6 for illegally importing gross stuff hidden under other gross stuff

(Newser) - Six people were arrested in New York on Tuesday on charges of illegally importing goose and duck intestines from China, in some cases by hiding them under packaged rattlesnakes or mislabeling them as pet grooming products on customs forms, federal officials announced. The scheme, which the AP reports also included...

Library Comes Up With Purrfect Way to Forgive Lost Books

Worcester Public Library in Massachusetts is granting amnesty if you bring in cat pics

(Newser) - A Massachusetts library has implemented a temporary—and arguably purrfect—forgiveness program for those who've lost or damaged materials they've borrowed. The New York Times reports on the "March Meowness" initiative currently happening at the Worcester Public Library: For this month only, borrowers whose library cards have...

&#39;Tumble-Mageddon&#39; Hits Utah Town
'Tumble-Mageddon'
Hits Utah Town
Mar 5, 2024 2:00 AM CST

'Tumble-Mageddon' Hits Utah Town

A wild number of tumbleweeds blew in

(Newser) - As a storm blew through Utah Saturday, it blew thousands of tumbleweeds through the streets of parts of Salt Lake County. Residents woke up to front yards full of tumbleweeds, cars covered in them, roads blocked by them, some piles reaching as high as 10 feet. "Luckily, it's...

Formula One Ferrari Swiped in 1995 Turns Up in 2024

British cops recover a sports car stolen long ago from F1 driver Gerhard Berger

(Newser) - A very fast car has made a very slow return. As the AP reports, British police said Monday they have recovered a Ferrari stolen from Austrian Formula One driver Gerhard Berger in Italy almost three decades ago. The red Ferrari F512M was one of two sports cars taken while their...

Police Horses on the Loose Cause Traffic Jam on Highway

Horses trotted against traffic down the interstate before being recovered by police

(Newser) - Drivers on an Ohio interstate came upon an unusual traffic hazard over the weekend—a pair of police horses trotting against traffic on the highway, the AP reports. The two animals on the lam caused an unusual traffic jam Saturday afternoon as they wove through slowing traffic and then stopped...

Isolated Staffers in Antarctica Show How New Accents Begin

During months of isolation, staffers at British Antarctic Survey began talking differently

(Newser) - Together through extreme isolation for months on end, wintering researchers in Antarctica develop close relationships—and, as one study found, a new way of talking, too. The BBC reports that over six months, staff members at British Antarctic Survey's (BAS) Rothera Research Station slowly began to pronounce certain words...

To Listen to This Song, You'll Have to Buy a Slice

Metal band Belushi Speed Ball's apparent industry first: a piece of pizza that plays group's new single

(Newser) - What goes better together than headbanging and pizza? Nothing as much as the latest production from Belushi Speed Ball, a thrash metal band that's come up with a most unique way to deliver its latest single. Gizmodo reports that the band—apparently named after the drug combo that helped...

Smuggling of Rare Butterflies Doesn't End Well for NY Man

Long Island man who labeled rare insects as 'wall decorations' pleads guilty

(Newser) - A Long Island man has pleaded guilty to illegally trafficking bird-wing butterflies and other rare insects, according to a plea deal filed in Brooklyn federal court. Charles Limmer, 75, of Commack, pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to smuggle wildlife into the country and agreed to pay a $30,...

Angry Farmers Organize Very Smelly Protest

Cops in Belgium get sprayed with liquid manure amid protests over EU policies

(Newser) - Farmers clashed with Belgium police on Monday, spraying officers with liquid manure and setting fire to tire piles in a fresh show of force as European Union agriculture ministers met in search of ways to address their concerns. Brussels police said 900 tractors entered the city, many bearing down on...

Christmas Tree-Tossing Hobby Costs Woman Big

Kamila Grabska's $825K suit for 2017 car crash injuries nixed after she won unusual competition

(Newser) - If you're going to claim serious injuries from a car crash have left you unable to work or play with your kids, entering a Christmas tree-throwing contest probably shouldn't be on your to-do list as your case winds its way through the courts. Kamila Grabska found that out...

Museum Seeks the 'Most Studious Swiftie'

London's Victoria and Albert Museum needs someone well versed on pop star to help curators

(Newser) - Are you the "most studious Swiftie"? London's Victoria and Albert Museum wants you stat, as a new "Superfan Advisor" to help inform curators on the museum's Taylor Swift collection, reports the Guardian . Candidates for this part-time gig, which will pay per session, "will meet...

At CPAC, Jan. 6 Is 'a Joke and a Game'

Jonathan Linowes says his pinball creation touts 'the truth of what happened'

(Newser) - Conservative Political Action Conference attendees have been having a ball playing a very MAGA-esque version of pinball. Touted as an "educational documentary game," per NewsNation , the game on display in the basement ballroom of Maryland's National Harbor resort claims the fatal shooting of protester Ashli Babbitt as...

A New Kind of Love Is Here, 'Whether We Want It or Not'

Spanish-Dutch artist Alicia Framis will wed an AI-driven hologram named AILex this summer

(Newser) - If Alicia Framis' friends and family thought it was bizarre that she once dated a mannequin, things are about to head to the next level. The Spanish-Dutch artist has a wedding planned for this summer at a museum in the Netherlands, to AILex—the first two letters of his name...

What Is Going On With Colorado Funeral Homes?

Cops say ex-funeral home director there kept a corpse in his hearse for 2 years

(Newser) - A former funeral home owner accused of hiding a woman's corpse in the back of a hearse for two years and hoarding the cremated remains of at least 30 people has been arrested, authorities said. Thursday night's arrest of Miles Harford, 33, is the latest allegation of misconduct...

Human Leg Found on NYC Subway Track
Gruesome Subway
Mystery May Be Solved
UPDATED
Feb 22, 2024 11:42 AM CST

Gruesome Subway Mystery May Be Solved

Severed leg found on tracks may be that of man who was killed by train days earlier

(Newser) - The disturbing mystery of a severed leg found on subway tracks in the Bronx may have been solved. Police sources tell the New York Post and PIX11 that investigators believe the leg is that of a man who was fatally hit by a train at the Spring Street subway station...

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