Crocodile Cage of Death
July 29, 2008
Ever wanted to come face-to-face with a real live crocodile? Well, now you can, at the newly-opened Crocosaurus Cove theme park in Darwin, Australia.
The park’s star attraction, the “Cage of Death”, allows visitors to have a close-encounter with a crocodile from within the safety of a 4-cm-thick acrylic tank that separates them from “Choppa,” a saltwater crocodile who lost both front feet from fighting with other crocodiles.
Visitors will be submerged in the tank for 15 minutes while Choppa tries to take a bite out of them.
While this may sound appealing to thrill seekers, the attraction has sparked criticism from animal rights activists who see it as a cruel way of taunting the crocodile and intruding its home.
Skiing…on Long Island??
June 4, 2008
A proposed plan by Riverhead Resorts to build a $2 billion resort with a 35-story indoor ski mountain in Calverton, NY is receiving opposition from environmentalists.
The massive resort would also include a convention center and hotel, indoor water park, campgrounds, winery, equestrian trails and an artificial lake and spa surrounded by botanical gardens.
However, the property that Riverhead Resorts wants to build on is considered to be part of 100,000 acres of mostly undeveloped land that is over an aquifer which provides the only natural source of drinking water for 3 million Long Island residents. Endangered species such as the eastern tiger salamander and the short-eared owl also live in the area and are protected under state conservation law.
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Museums: The Strange and Weird
May 15, 2008
Museums can be educational, informative, fascinating, and occasionally very weird. Below are some that range from completely bizarre to flat-out grotesque, so you might not want to read on if you are squeamish or sitting down for lunch.
The Mutter Museum
The secret tumor of Grover Cleveland, the thorax of John Wilkes Booth and a really big 9-foot colon are just a few of the wonders that you can expect to encounter at Philadelphia’s Mütter Museum, a museum of historical pathology containing about 20,000 fluid-preserved anatomical and pathological specimens, models, medical instruments, and memorabilia of famous scientists and physicians.
See the “Soap Lady”—the body of a woman who died of Yellow Fever during the 19th century that turned into soap due to the chemical properties of the soil she was buried in.
Then there’s the huge 9-foot colon of a man who took a dump only once a month for his whole life until he died. It is perhaps no great surprise that he only lived into his late 20s.
If that wasn’t enough for you, there are skeletons of a giant and a midget, various skull collections, the brains of epileptics and a murderer, and drawers filled with objects removed from the windpipes of choking people.
Feast your eyes on a plaster cast of the conjoined twins Chang and Eng, various baby deformities and many more displays that will fascinate you and make you feel totally creeped-out.
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