A strike by the Dutch police union could interfere with Sunday's Amstel Gold cycling race in the Netherlands. The 160-mile race is expected to draw a number of high-level professional riders and could lead officials to implement a court order to put police on the streets if the racers appear to be in danger. Tom Boonen, the current WorldTour leader who recently took classics victories at both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, has announced that he will not compete to allow an infection i... Read More
On Saturday, urban explorer Bradley L. Garrett announced that he has climbed London's Shard, the tallest building in Europe. Garrett, 31, says he sneaked past a security guard with two friends and charged up 76 stories, then exited a hatch onto the roof and climbed a crane on top of the building. It is unclear when the trespass occurred, though Garrett says he has broken into the site "half a dozen times" since December 2010. In February 2011, a fox was found living on the Shard's 72nd floor, ... Read More
The island nation of Niue has invited singer Lady Gaga to perform after she visits New Zealand for a show in June. Niue spokesman Mike Hogan has promised to bring all of the country's 1,600 citizens to the show and has offered to host Gaga at one of the island's nicest resorts. Niue, known as "The Rock of Polynesia," is 1,500 miles north of New Zealand in the Pacific Ocean. "There's only one flight a week from New Zealand," Hogan said, "but I presume she'd have her own jet, so she could stay a... Read More
Escaped pet parrots in Australia are teaching wild birds English, including some unsavory words. The Australian Museum says it has received a number of reports from people who say they've heard wild parrots and cockatoos speaking to them, often cursing or repeating greetings like "hello cockie." Naturalist Martyn Robinson told Australian Geographic that some of these words will likely be passed down through generations in wild flocks. "If the parents are talkers and they produce chicks,... Read More
On Saturday, the Chilean navy rescued four documentary filmmakers from Brazil after their yacht became trapped in ice off the coast of Antarctica. The crew was working on a project about navigating the Antarctic when their vessel, the Endless Sea, became stuck near a Chilean naval base. The yacht is owned by the Brazilian journalist João Lara Mesquita, who led the expedition and wrote about their rescue in his blog. "Our evacuation was epic. Waves of more than 1.5 meters and winds over ... Read More
