A new wave of demonstrations across Australia is planned for June after the government of Western Australia moved to close remote Aboriginal settlements, saying it could no longer afford to subsidize communities plagued by social problems such as alcohol and drug abuse.
Read more
The pork industry is renaming various cuts of meat to give them “consumer-friendly” names. The National Pork Board has been given approval from the USDA to rename pork chops “porterhouse chops,” “ribeye chops,” and “New York chops,” depending on the cut, while pork butt—which is from the shoulder—will be labeled “Boston roast”.
Read more
$15.6 BILLION – The amount of money Quebec Justice Brian Riordan ruled three tobacco companies must pay to more than 1 million smokers in Quebec who have become ill from tobacco use or say they can’t quit smoking. The companies said they would appeal the ruling.
Read more
Of the approximately 11,000 people murdered with guns in the U.S. in 2012, just 322 were killed by an assault weapon or any kind of rifle.The vast majority of killers used handguns.
Read more
A solar-powered airplane landed in India on March 10, completing the second leg of its bid to become the first aircraft to circle the world by solar energy alone. Solar Impulse 2, which launched in Abu Dhabi, will make 12 stops on its 22,000-mile (35,000 km) journey.
Read more
A magnetic levitation passenger train set a world speed record of 375 m.p.h. (603 km/h) on a test track in Japan on April 21. Here are top operating speeds, in miles per hour, of some of the world’s other fastest trains: Shanghai Maglev Train, China: 268 TGV, France: 199 AVE, Spain: 193 Sapsan, Russia: 155 Acela Express, U.S.: 150
Read more
Knowing your limits, after Molly Schuyler, a 120-pound mother of four, won a Texas eating competition by wolfing down 13 pounds of steak in four minutes, 18 seconds. Schuyler said she had room for more steak but got sick of the taste.
Read more
Percentage of Americans aged 18 to 31 with credit-card and student-loan debt, respectively, in 1989: 43, 18 Today: 36, 40
Read more
The Commonwealth Fund ranked health care systems in 11 wealthy nations according to criteria such as quality and access. Below, a sampling of the rankings:
Read more
Yearly odds of an adult being hit by lightning: 1 in 1 million
Read more