Man arrested in Las Vegas ricin case - CNN.com

Man arrested in Las Vegas ricin case - CNN.com: "'FBI searches of Salt Lake City [Utah] storage units rented by Von Bergendorff resulted in the discovery of castor beans, various chemicals used in the production of ricin, a respirator, filters, painter's mask, laboratory glassware, syringes and a notebook on ricin production,' the Justice Department release said.

Bergendorff is charged with possession of a biological toxin, possession of unregistered firearms and possession of firearms not identified by serial number, according to the U.S. attorney's office. If convicted of all charges, he would face a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a fine of $750,000."

Exploding Unicorn: View From Somewhere Else [Update]

Exploding Unicorn: View From Somewhere Else [Update]: "In terms of the raw altruism required, working for a newspaper is kind of like doing a stint in the Peace Corps, only the hours are worse and everybody hates you."

AFP: German schoolboy, 13, corrects NASA's asteroid figures: paper

AFP: German schoolboy, 13, corrects NASA's asteroid figures: paper: "Both NASA and Marquardt agree that if the asteroid does collide with earth, it will create a ball of iron and iridium 320 metres (1049 feet) wide and weighing 200 billion tonnes, which will crash into the Atlantic Ocean.

The shockwaves from that would create huge tsunami waves, destroying both coastlines and inland areas, whilst creating a thick cloud of dust that would darken the skies indefinitely.

The 13-year old made his discovery as part of a regional science competition for which he submitted a project entitled: 'Apophis -- The Killer Astroid.'"

Exploding Unicorn: View From Somewhere Else [Update]

Exploding Unicorn: View From Somewhere Else [Update]: "This is the point where I should plead for readers to treat reporters decently, but I haven't helped anybody with my articles in the past 12 months and it seems kind of misguided to try to start now. Writing, like any drug, is best enjoyed when done recreationally. I’ll continue to update my Web site, but I don’t have any plans to write professionally in the future. It’s time for me to grow up and focus on a more traditional career path, like professional kickboxing."

Our Local Correspondents: Up and Then Down: Reporting & Essays: The New Yorker

Our Local Correspondents: Up and Then Down: Reporting & Essays: The New Yorker: "White never went back to work at the magazine. Caught up in media attention (which he shunned but thrilled to), prodded by friends, and perhaps provoked by overly solicitous overtures from McGraw-Hill, White fell under the sway of renown and grievance, and then that of the legal establishment. He got a lawyer, and came to believe that returning to work might signal a degree of mental fitness detrimental to litigation. Instead, he spent eight weeks in Anguilla. Eventually, Business Week had to let him go. The lawsuit he filed, for twenty-five million dollars, against the building’s management and the elevator-maintenance company, took four years."