Researchers say Western IQs dropped 14 points over last century By Eric Pfeiffer, Yahoo! News Reporter A new study from researchers in Europe claims that the average IQ in Western nations dropped by a staggering 14.1 points over the past century. "We tested the hypothesis that the Victorians were cleverer than modern populations using high-quality instruments, namely measures of simple visual reaction time in a meta-analytic study," the researchers wrote in the study, which was published online in the journal Intelligence on Thursday. "Simple reaction time measures correlate substantially with measures of general intelligence and are considered elementary measures of cognition." The results might surprise some. Especially if the researchers were simply measuring visual response times. After all, in a digital world constantly competing for our attention, it would seem people generally respond more quickly to visual stimuli. However, the results appear to indicate something different. The Victorian era ran roughly from 1837 to 1901, coinciding with the reign of England's Queen Victoria. Some have credited the Reform Act of 1832 with sparking an era of previously unprecedented peace and prosperity in the U.K. The results were measured using data from 1889 to 2004 and were analyzed by Michael A. Woodley of Vrije Universiteit in Brussels, Jan te Nijenhuis of the University of Amsterdam and Raegan Murphy of the University College Cork in Ireland. So why has there been such a steady drop? As UPI notes, previous research studies have found that women of higher intelligence tend to have fewer children on average, meaning that population growth may be driven by those with a lower IQ. And over time, the abundance of less intelligent offspring would affect the overall IQ average. On average, the general intelligence of those populations measured dropped by 1.23 points per decade. "These findings strongly indicate that with respect to general intelligence the Victorians were substantially cleverer than modern Western populations," the study says. The study had other positive observations about the Victorian era, noting that economic efficiency began to flourish during the period and that the “height of the per capita numbers of significant innovations in science and technology, and also the per capita numbers of scientific geniuses,” occurred during that time, followed by a steady decline.

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What I find very frustrating about these objections, though, is that they pre-suppose the incompetence of the armed citizen, an point of view not borne out by real-world experience. Millions of law-abiding citizens carry firearms and tens of thousands of defensive gun uses occur every year. And the fact is that accidents are relatively rare, and mishaps during DGUs are statistically insignificant compared to their success in preventing injury or death by an attacker . . . The source of these objections is a caricature of those of us who are willing to carry a firearm for their own defense or the defense of others and it amounts to a type of “contempt of citizen.” Anti-gunners are contemptuous of those of us who strive to be sturdy and self-reliant. We are painted as paranoid yahoos, called foul names and treated like illiterate trolls. Their kneejerk bigotry relieves them of the need to take our arguments seriously.

Living legend Sir Christopher Lee is releasing a second heavy metal album next week – on the day of his 91st legend! What a total dude! Charlemagne: The Omens of Death is the follow-up to 2010′s Charlemagne. “The first Charlemagne album is metal, of course, but what I sang was more symphonic,” says the great man himself. “Now on the second one, The Omens Of Death, it is 100% heavy metal. I’ve done my bits and pieces, and they are heavy metal. I’m not screaming or anything like that, but it is definitely heavy metal.” So basically, it’s heavy metal.

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TROIS-RIVIERES, Que. - A woman is recovering following a bizarre accident in which she was run over three times by her own car. Trois-Rivieres, Que., police say the newspaper delivery woman was making her rounds this week and jumping in and out of her car frequently to drop copies of Le Nouvelliste on subscribers' doorsteps. But things went awry during one parking attempt. Her transmission wound up in "reverse" instead of "park" as she got out. The woman got smacked by the car's open door as it backed up and ran over one of her legs as she was knocked to the ground. She attempted to pull herself up and reached into the car to shift the gears. But she fumbled and was struck a second time, resulting in her being run over again. A third attempt produced the same results. Residents of the area awakened by the woman's distress cries at 4 a.m. rushed to give her aid when she limped to a home. The car, which continued to move at increasing speed in a widening circle, was finally stopped by Trois-Rivieres police. The woman is being treated for serious injuries to her leg. The incident yesterday was reported in the newspaper where she works, Trois-Rivieres' Le Nouvelliste.

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By CARLI TEPROFF — Miami Herald Tip: If you’re plotting to kill somebody, try not to “pocket dial” 911 and have your plans recorded. That’s exactly what Scott Simon did after getting into a fight with another man at a Waffle House in the early hours of May 5, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday. On a recorded line, Simon can be heard telling someone else that he’s going to follow the victim home and kill him. Minutes later, 33-year-old Nicholas Walker was shot and killed while driving his car onto Interstate 95 in Oakland Park. “This is a first for me,” said BSO spokeswoman Dani Moschella. “Criminals say crazy things all the time, but I’ve never seen anyone call a recorded line.” Homicide detectives arrested Simon, 24, of Pompano Beach Tuesday night. He is charged with first-degree murder. Moschella said while detectives do not believe Simon was the triggerman, he did coordinate the shooting. When deputies arrived at the shooting scene shortly after 6:40 a.m. May 5, they found Walker’s silver Buick crashed into a guard rail. Deputies and Oakland Park Fire-Rescue put out a fire in the engine compartment, but Walker had already died of gunshot wounds. The investigation prompted a three-hour closure of all southbound lanes of I-95. Detectives are now seeking two other suspects: the person who pulled the trigger, and another man, who was seen in the 2012 black Buick GS with him the morning of the shooting. BSO has released two surveillance tapes, one showing the men arguing outside the Waffle House with several witnesses watching, and another of the black Buick and a silver car leaving the restaurant. Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Bryan Tutler at 954-321-4281. Anonymous tips can be reported to Crime Stoppers of Broward County at 954-493-8477 or online at Broward County Crime Stoppers. Crime Stoppers will pay up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest. The errant 911 call, BSO said, will not be released. Scott remains in Broward’s main jail with no bond. As for the call, Moschella said Simon’s apparent butt-dial helped police. “He had no idea he called 911,” Moschella said. “He basically told on himself.”

Read more here: Murder plot recorded on phone after Florida man butt-dials 911 | Crime | Bradenton Herald

Read more here: Murder plot recorded on phone after Florida man butt-dials 911 | Crime | Bradenton Herald

Behold the full-scale Legos X-wing fighter By Mike Krumboltz | The Sideshow – 2 hrs 16 mins ago Thousands gathered in New York City's Times Square on May 22 to see the world's largest Legos model. Click image to see more photos. (Amy Sussman/AP) The mad geniuses at Legos have created a full-scale X-wing fighter made from more than 5 million bricks—the most ever used to build a model. It's currently on display in New York City's Times Square. The X-wing, for those who didn't study under Professor Yoda, was the ship that destroyed the (first) Death Star in the original "Star Wars." Gizmodo reports that the behemoth 1:1 scale model, based on Legos' $60 X-wing set, is 11 feet tall and 43 feet long with a wingspan of 44 feet. The X-wing will hang out in New York for a few days before being transported to the West Coast, where it will reside at Legoland in San Diego. Thirty-two model builders worked on the fighter. It took more than 17,000 hours to complete and weighs approximately 45,980 pounds, according to Wired. From Wired: Twenty-three tons is a whole lot of anything, especially Lego bricks, but much of the model’s weight lies in the model’s steel skeleton, which it needed in order to withstand the vibrations from the subway that runs beneath Duffy Square in Manhattan and any seismic activity it could face in Southern California. Just like Luke Skywalker, this fighter is ready for anything. Also, here's a PSA for fans of the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy: A similar (and in many ways far more ambitious) project is under way near Nashville, Tenn., where an unspecified number of Star Wars nuts are attempting to build a full-scale Millennium Falcon. It won't fly, but, according to their blog, it will "hold together." You can check out their progress here.

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Cops report a Lafourche Parish man killed another man because he was in his neighborhood and wouldn't tell him why he was there. Police say it does not qualify as self defense. "Patrol deputies and detectives responded to ABC Lane at around 4:45 a.m. on Wednesday, May 22 after receiving a call about the shooting," Deputy Brennan Matherne said in a news release. When they arrived, they found 41-year-old Shawn Paul Galjour of Larose dead. They say 30-year-old Robert Paul Chouest (above) shot and killed him. "Thorough investigation, detectives learned Galjour had been walking along ABC Lane early Wednesday morning. According to Chouest, he noticed Galjour lying in a neighbor's driveway and attempted to make verbal contact with him. According to Chouest, when Galjour did not respond, he fired one round from a scoped rifle striking Galjour in the head," Matherne detailed. Why did he do it? "Chouest told detectives that he shot him because he did not know Galjour's intentions, but also admitted he felt Galjour posed no threat to him. Additionally, Chouest admitted to smoking crack cocaine prior to the incident." Chouest was arrested and charged with second degree murder. The Sheriff says that's because he was not acting in self defense. "Louisiana law clearly defines when a homicide can be considered justifiable, and the circumstances of this shooting do not make it justifiable," said Sheriff Webre said in the release. "It is unknown at this time why Galjour was in that neighborhood, but through Chouest's own admission, Galjour was lying down and had not made any threatening movement or given any other indication that would have led a reasonable person to be in fear of his life thereby justifying the use of deadly force."

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LiveLeak.com - Must See: Scooter man ends up in big hole after hitting multiple vehicles

By Barbara Hijek FloriDUH 7:29 a.m. EDT, May 21, 2013 Who's the luckiest person in Florida? Even luckier than Lotto ticket holder of the $590-million jackpot purchased at a Publix in Zephyrhills on Saturday? Maybe this woman -- the estranged wife of Julio Villanueva-Vasque. Julio Villanueva-Vasquez is accused of using a tool to puncture the tires of a friend who was visiting his estranged wife before trying to pry open the front door of home in the wee hours of Sunday morning, according to a news release from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's office. The estranged wife reportedly had heard strange noises at the door and then saw her hubby through the window crouched down, deputies said. As she opened the door to snap a photo as proof that Villanueva-Vasquezo was at her residence, he reportedly rushed inside...uninvited. A domestic violence injunction had been in effect against the Villanueva-Vasque, deputies said. A physical struggle ensued before the 44-year-old Tampa man allegedly pulled a semi-auto handgun from his waist area, pointed the weapon at his 23-year-old wife's chest and pulled the trigger. When the gun did not fire Villanueva-Vasquez then racked the slide twice and fired twice more, but still the gun malfunctioned. Villanueva-Vasquez fled the scene on foot. The woman sustained a small cut to her face and positively identified Villanueva-Vasquez as her attacker.

A former Teacher of the Year at North Marion High School in Marion County, Florida, was suspended without pay after a student complained that he touched her inappropriately with a banana during a college-level lecture on "cylinder objects, phalluses and/or sex symbols." The incident took place three months ago, but the student only came forward last week. A discipline letter sent to Jonathan Hampton claims the teacher "crossed a line" while discussing the "Freudian implications" of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The student alleges that Hampton "rubbed [her] head and neck area with a banana," leaving her embarrassed and humiliated. "That is disgusting, very disgusting," said the grandmother of a student at the school. "I don't think he should be allowed to teach kids. You don't do stuff like that and get away with it." Hampton's lawyer (and stepfather) Mark Fiedelholtz says the entire thing was blown out of proportion, and that Hampton tapped a student with a banana from his lunch to get her attention, and that sometimes a banana is just a banana. "There was nothing else to it," the attorney said. After conducting its own investigation into the matter, the school district issued Hampton an official reprimand saying it was poor judgement on his part to use "a banana to make physical contact with a student." The teacher has since completed the three-day suspension and was allowed to return to class.

16 discussions displayed because an author is participating or following a participant. 21 additional replies awaiting review. 18 participants k2bNeetzan Zimmerman He really slipped up on this one - I mean, I could see how that was unappeeling to the poor kid. Teachers should know better than to monkey around like that. Today 12:19pm BedandBreakfastMank2b He should probably split town. Today 12:23pm k2bBedandBreakfastMan That's pudding a lot of pressure on him, don't you think? Today 12:33pm

Treat all firearms as if they were loaded.

Never point the muzzle at anything you don't wish to destroy.

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Is This The Worst Scooter Driver In China? - YouTube

Worst Driver in China (Video) Submitted by NewsGuy on May 21st, 2013 – Flag this news as inappropriate Category: Humor This guy was having a bad day on the road. And THEN it got worse. A traffic camera in China recently recorded what has to be a contender for the worst driver in China award. And he's not even driving a car. In the video below a man on a scooter is trying to navigate the whirlwind traffic at one of China's confusing and congested traffic circles. And this one is made worse by the construction of some kind of giant hole right in the middle of the street. The hole has barricades and warning signs plastered all around it, but, by the end of this clip, it's obvious it's all for naught. The hapless man strikes no less than four vehicles as he tries to evade the increasingly angry drivers who try to prevent him from climbing back in the saddle. After hitting a panel truck (twice) the man inexplicably revs up the engine and, bursting through the flimsy barriers, dives headfirst into the gigantic cement pit poking up through the asphalt. There's no word on whether or not the man was injured. Or ended up on the other side of the world...

A 37-year-old woman allegedly stabbed her boyfriend because he farted in her face during an argument. Deborah Ann Burns is accused of knifing her partner of six years, Willie Butler, with an eight-inch blade at their Florida apartment last week. Burns claims the couple were rowing over money while watching TV when her 53-year-old lover got up to go to the kitchen and broke wind in her face. She told police she confronted him but Mr Butler became "agitated" and allegedly threw a kitchen knife at her, which missed. Burns reportedly picked up the blade and threw it back, hitting him in the stomach. Police arrived following reports of a stabbing to find Mr Butler standing in front of his home, bleeding from wounds to his abdomen and left arm, according to a Collier County Sheriff's Office report. Burns was arrested and charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, according to 14News. She is currently being held on a $50,000 bond.