Author: AFP

The chosen bun

Decade-old burger’s decay livestreamed in Iceland REYKJAVIK: A decade after McDonald’s shut down in Iceland, thousands of online users follow the live slow decay of the last order — a seemingly indestructible burger with a side of fries protected in a glass case like a precious gem. The American chain

Filipinos pack cemeteries to remember the dead

MANILA: Filipinos poured into cemeteries by the millions yesterday for a rite to remember their dead, blending expressions of grief and faith in Catholic-majority Philippines with a party-like ambiance. Vendors hawked cartoon-themed balloons and police seized karaoke machines at graveyard checkpoints, while inside families swept tombs clean and prayed before

From suicide hotline to sex line

LOS ANGELES: Officials from a California school district were left red-faced after students who dialled a suicide prevention hotline listed on their ID badges instead stumbled on a sex line. “I was just kind of flabbergasted. I was very surprised,” parent Janene Lavelle told the local ABC station after her

Struggling to revive Marseille’s fortunes

PARIS: He has only been in charge for 12 games but the pressure is building on Andre Villas-Boas (pic) at Marseille after a disastrous week for the former European champions. Marseille were dumped out of the French League Cup at the first hurdle on Wednesday, going down 2-1 at Monaco

Boosting Bundesliga bid

BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund attacking midfielder Julian Brandt says he hopes his side’s 2-1 midweek win over Borussia Moenchengladbach in the German Cup will mark a turning point in the season.  While some had the black and yellows as favourite to win the Bundesliga after an aggressive off-season recruitment effort, Dortmund

Marathon venue to be moved

TOKYO: The 2020 Olympic marathon and race-walking will be moved to northern Japan over heat concerns, officials said yesterday, after Tokyo’s governor offered her reluctant support. The International Olympic Committee’s plan had caught Tokyo and 2020 organisers by surprise, with Governor Yuriko Koike (pic) repeatedly expressing her opposition. But yesterday,

The science of zombies: Will the undead rise?

Hordes of brain-munching undead terrorising neighbourhoods make for fun television and movies, but zombies could never be real … or could they? There are in fact a growing number of documented examples in the animal kingdom of parasites that change their hosts’ behavior — and increasing evidence that humans are

Energy companies turn to animal poo for clean power

In the search for clean electricity, power companies in Finland are going green by way of brown, and have set their sights on a previously untapped energy source: animal dung. During this month’s FEI World Cup showjumping qualifier at Helsinki International Horse Show, 100 tonnes of manure was loaded up

Rare Bangladesh crocodile lays eggs in new hope for species

A rare river-dwelling crocodile has started to lay eggs after being paired with an introduced male, Bangladesh conservationists said Sunday, raising hopes a successful hatching could save the critically endangered species from extinction. The South Asian nation, with its vast network of rivers, was once a key habitat for the

Democratic voters suffering under Trump

Some broke with pro-Trump friends and family. Many quit social media and now refrain from talking about politics. Others say they had old emotional wounds reopened by his presidency. The anger felt in Democratic strongholds like New York towards Donald Trump since he was elected three years ago has been