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WANTED: POLAR BEAR SPOTTER (Rebecca)
The lucky applicant will be expected to watch over scientists as they go about their research in the snow valleys and mountains of the islands, which lie between Norway and the North Pole. The month long job which starts on July 8 and with white polar bear as it lumbering towards you against a backdrop of ice and snow you’d imagine it would take a lot of concentration… never mind a familiarity with firearms! The spotter is likely to be kept busy as Svalbard’s human population of 2,400 is outnumbered by a polar bear population of more than 3,000 – a fully grown male bear can weigh up to 1,700lb. The job opening comes two years after British public school boy Horatio Chapple, 17, was mauled to death by a polar bear when it entered his tent.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/16/svalbard-job-vacancy-polar-bear-spotter
POWERFUL FLARES ERUPT ON THE SUN (Melissa)
Experts say that a rise in solar activity is common right now because the Sun is in a phase of its 11 year activity cycle that is nearing the solar maximum which is expected in 2013. According to space weather experts at NOAA more strong solar flares may be expected in the coming days – although CMEs send off potent radiation, Earth is protected by its magnetic field. Solar activity can momentarily disrupt GPS signals and communications satellites, but most people will not notice any effects in their daily lives. The first X-class flare of this solar cycle occurred in February 2011 and the largest so far of the current cycle was documented as an X6.9 in August 2011.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5JScQltIuI
HOME ALONE (Aoibhínn)
If you were Macauly Culkin, who would your perfect roommate be… well the answer’s obvious isn’t it, none other than ex-Libertines musician Pete Doherty. The pair who met a few years back when they collaborated on a film, The Wrong Ferrari, “inspired” by post party drug and horse tranquiliser, ketamine. Macauly has now moved into Pete’s home in Paris to follow the star’s ‘bohemian’ lifestyle. What I wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall in that place, watch this space I’m sure there’s plenty of antics to come.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/4917487/macaulay-culkin-moves-in-to-pete-dohertys-home-in-paris.html
ASTRONAUT’S SPACE ODDITY VIDEO BECOMES AN INTERNET SENSATION (Aimee)
A music video shot aboard the International Space Station went viral on Monday turning an astronaut into an overnight music sensation with his zero gravity version of David Bowie’s hit “Space Oddity.” The video, with its familiar refrain “Ground Control to Major Tom,” has had more than 12 million hits on YouTube and its being said that it’s the first music video ever filmed in space. Hadfield’s singing and acoustic guitar playing is accompanied by remarkable shots of the space station flying around the planet, a floating guitar and a shot of a spacesuit at night. The video was put together with the help of Hadfield’s son, Evan and with the support of David Bowie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo
WHO DOESN’T LOVE A CAT WITH A LION HAT ON?! (Sarah)
Cats who wish they were lions can wear one of the hats designed by Yumiko Landers of Seattle in the US, to help them stand out from the crowd! The creative headwear is designed to fit snuggly around your cats head giving them a temporary thick mane of golden hair with a pair of ears on the top. Pet owners can order the furry fashion accessory in a variety of colours as well as choose from different animals including: a monkey or even a leopard.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2324997/Do-like-mane-Cat-owners-transform-pets-lions-latest-internet-craze.html
