A stroke turned a butch British rugby player gay, the Daily Mail claims.

Chris Birch, 26, a Welsh bank clerk, broke his neck while attempting a back flip and then suffered a stroke, the Daily Mail reported Tuesday.

When he woke up, he told his family he had changed.

"It sounds strange, but when I came round, I immediately felt different," Birch told the paper. "I wasn't interested in women any more. I was definitely gay. I had never been attracted to a man before - I'd never even had any gay friends."

He quit his job, dropped his old friends, and began studying hairdressing, the Daily Mail reported.

Birch lost 110 pounds, cut his hair and started dating men.

The London Mirror, which first carried the story in September, said Birch’s accident took place in 2005 after Birch broke up with his fiance.

Birch spent months in recovery.

“I had to learn to walk, eat, even speak again and all my family were supporting me, hoping they would see the old Chris come back soon enough,” he told the Mirror.

“My old friends would come round and visit me but the conversation would dry up straightaway. I wasn’t interested in the rugby scores, going down the pub to watch football or anything else I used to do.

“Suddenly, I hated everything about my old life. I didn't get on with my friends, I hated sport and found my job boring.

“Everyone said I was more sarcastic, behaved differently and that even my mannerisms had changed, but to me the way I felt was natural. So I started avoiding seeing my old friends who wanted me to be someone I wasn’t,” he said.

Instead he began going to local dance clubs and made new friends, including one special man.

“I continued seeing this man and then one night we slept together. I knew then that I wasn’t interested in women any more. I was definitely gay,” he told the Mirror.

For the last 18 months he has been living with a 19-year-old lover above the hair salon he works in, the Mirror and Daily Mail said.

Neither paper interviewed any of Birch’s family members or friends, or any of his doctors or neurologists.

Fashion crimes are committed every day, but this Boobie Trap campaign depicts why certain offenses qualify as truly horrific for everybody involved. It is one thing to have an unusual taste in clothing, but another to self-inflict chest discomfort that makes your fellow women empathetic.

This misdemeanor is wearing a brassiere of the wrong size, and more often than not, too small. Breasts squeezed into relatively tiny cups can produce what these two print ads portray as the dreaded “Shelf,” “Sagging” or the undesirable “Quadraboob.”



The Target Marketing advertising agency of Canada has designed the Boobie Trap campaign for an intimates store that strives to fit women with well-matched lingerie. But first, to adequately communicate the abomination that is a bulging bust line, the studio worked this unmentionable subject into mock horror film posters.

We should feel good when we wake up, not tired and exhausted," said Michael Decker, Ph.D., an associate professor at Georgia State University and spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. "That may indicate that something is happening during sleep that we're not aware of."

Sometimes it's not just an issue of not getting enough sleep -- it's a matter of getting good quality sleep, Decker said. Poor sleep quality has been linked in studies to increased inflammation (which can lead to heart disease and stroke), high blood pressure, and increased blood glucose levels and insulin resistance among people with Type 2 diabetes. Getting good, quality sleep -- on the other hand -- is linked with a longer life, PsychCentral reported.

Sleep quality "is important -- it's not not just the duration of sleep, but the quality that determines health outcomes," he said. "We feel better when we sleep for the right amount of time. That's the foundation of where to start."

Take a look at some everyday factors that could be impacting how well you sleep.

Loneliness
Loneliness isn't just an issue of the heart and mind -- it's also an issue of sleep, a new study shows.

The small study of 95 adults in South Dakota shows that people who perceived themselves as lonely had more fragmented sleep (which affects sleep quality, but not total sleep amount) than people who didn't think they were lonely. The findings mirror a 2002 study that showed that college students who felt lonely also had more fragmented sleep.

High Altitude
High altitudes can also impact sleep, leading to "increased awakenings, frequent brief arousals, marked nocturnal hypoxemia [low blood oxygen], and periodic breathing," according to a 1999 review article in the journal Sleep and Breathing.

Even though most of us don't live in extremely high-altitude areas of the world, nor are we all world-class climbers who regularly scale tall mountains, some people will still experience fragmented sleep if they are spending just a few days in a higher-than-normal altitude area (say, Denver, Colo.) or trying to sleep on an airplane, Decker said.

Sleeping With Fido
Veterinarians already advise against sleeping with pets because of the risk of contracting diseases. But sleeping with pets can also take a toll on your sleep quality.

A 2002 study conducted by researchers from the Mayo Clinic shows that 53 percent of pet owners reported they had disrupted sleep every single night, although only 1 percent of the pet owners said that their sleep was interrupted by more than 20 minutes a night because of the pet, ScienceDaily reported.

In addition, 21 percent of the pet owners said their dogs snore at night, and 7 percent said their cats snore at night.

"Pets in the bedroom can disrupt sleep because of the noise they make," Decker said.

Working The Night Shift
Decker explained that the problems that come with working during the nighttime and sleeping during the daytime occur because of our body's sensitivity to light, and the cues we take from light to signal sleep time.

"Light and dark are cues that help synchronize our circadian system to our environment," Decker said.

The same concept goes for why people experience jet lag -- when you're crossing time zones, your brain is preparing to fall asleep because it's dark in your time zone. "But if you're suddenly waking up and receiving new light, your brain's sleep-wake cycle becomes desynchronized, and it takes several days to be resynchronized," Decker said.

Decker recommends shift workers wear eyeshades when they sleep in the daytime to simulate darkness.

Room Temperature
In the evenings, our core body temperature begins to drop, Decker said, and that drop in temperature is the signal that it's time to go to sleep. Taking a hot bath or drinking something warm raises their core body so that it's able to drop and people are able to get that physiological cue for sleep, he said.

As the night goes on and the morning begins to approach, our body temperature begins to gradually increase, until it reaches the room temperature and signals our brains to wake up, Decker explained.

"So if a room is too warm, our body temperature can actually increase," and can lead to us waking up, he said. "Keeping the room cool helps ensure that we have a better quality of sleep and that we allow our brain temperature mechanisms to do what they're supposed to do."

PCB Creations calls this toilet they made from recycled circuit boards “The Royal Data Throne.”

At just 12-inches tall, and 5-inches wide, this circuit board toilet is way too small to sit on, so unless you’ve got a really small (and well-padded) ass, don’t get any funny ideas about actually taking a dump in it.

If you’ve got $500 (USD) to waste, go hit a casino and bet it all on number 2 on the roulette wheel. Then bet your winnings all on the same number again. If you still have $500 left afterwards, you can grab this oddity over on Etsy now.

Steve Jobs biography preliminary review indicates this book is very interesting. Jobs biography was said to be a rich portrait of one person with the best minds of his era. Here are some startling facts about Steve Jobs in the biography.

1. Where did the name Apple originate?

Executek, Matrix, to Personal Computers Inc. are the names that had considered Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak for technology companies that will they founded. Jobs express the name Apple after returning from an apple farm and eventually the name was used. "This name sounds fun, vibrant and not intimidating," said Jobs.

2. Bill Clinton asked for advice to Jobs about Monica Lewinski scandal

Bill Clinton's scandalous affair with Monica Lewinski had horrendous United States in the decade of the 1990s. Clinton who looked confuse, asked Jobs for advice. "I do not know you had an affair, but if it is true, you must tell that thing to (citizens) this country," advices of Jobs to Clinton.

3. Why Jobs is always wearing a black sweater?

Jobs appearance identically with a black sweater, it started when Jobs visited the Sony factory in Japan and meet employees there in uniform. He loved it and had thought that Apple employees were in uniform too. Although it was not so accomplished, Jobs decided to create a unique outfit for himself. So he always wore a black sweater, designed by Japanese designer Issey Miyake.

4. Jobs disillusioned with Barack Obama

Jobs is a supporter of President Barack Obama. But he was disappointed with some of Obama's policies and at the time the two met, Jobs are expecting Obama will serve only one period. Jobs argued the government should be more friendly to business circles and reforming education.

5. Jobs initially refusing cancer surgery

At first Jobs refused a cancer operation that could potentially save his life. Jobs apparently did not like if someone ‘open’ his body . "He really not ready to 'open' his body," said Jobs's wife, Laurene Powell.

6. Jobs had rejected the idea of ​​an application for Apple devices

Application services are Apple's key success factors. But who would have thought at first Jobs does not like the idea of ​​a third party may make application for Apple devices due to various reasons such as the possibility of virus attacks. But finally, Jobs was convinced to allow the application on the Apple device.

7. Jobs felt depressed during the launch of the iPad first generation

Various criticisms lunged at the launch of the Apple iPad though ultimately this gadget is successful. This device was considered lack features. "'I seem to get depressed today," Jobs said in Isaacson, night after Jobs introduced the iPad.

8. Jobs wrath on Google

"I'll spend my last breath if necessary and I would spend all the Apple money of USD 40 billion in the bank, to correct this error. I will destroy the Android because it is a stolen product," said Jobs on Android. He did not accept Google's stealing iPhone ideas on Android.

A poor government clerk from a remote and poverty-stricken region of northern India was partying with film stars on Thursday night after becoming the first person to win 50 million rupees, worth over $1m or £634,000, on an Indian gameshow.

In an astonishing real life version of the plot of the 2008 Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire, whose impoverished hero from a tough neighbourhood of the Indian commercial capital Mumbai wins the biggest prize on a TV quiz show, 27-year-old Sushil Kumar answered a final question correctly to take the jackpot of the massively popular local edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

"We can't believe it. The whole village have come to our house. We are worried that my dad will die of happiness," Sunil Kumar Patel, the winner's brother, told the Guardian. "We can't speak to Sushil. His mobile is off because he is out with the stars and on and off planes."

Kumar, who has a master's degree in psychology from a local college, wept when the Indian movie legend Amitabh Bachchan, the show's host, handed him a cheque for 50 million rupees after the contestant gave all the right answers in the show's final round.

On his blog Bachchan described "the tension as each question was meticulously answered … and then [he] waited … till almost eternity to decide on that final answer.

"The entire place just exploded. The family of the contestant … ran on to the set in uncontrollable joy and screams and tears of happiness, whilst the live audience were whooping it up on their feet with the loudest scream I have ever heard," Bachchan wrote.

Before Kumar went on the programme, which was recorded on Tuesday and will air next week, he earned around £90 a month as a government office worker and supplemented his income as a private tutor in the small town of Motihari in the eastern state of Bihar.

The third of five sons, he was working on a short-term contract as a computer operator on a public works scheme in the rural West Champaran district, close to the Nepali border.

Bihar is one of the poorest states of India and its remoter areas, such as Motihari, have been largely untouched by India's phenomenal recent economic growth. Social indicators in much of Bihar are on a par with sub-Saharan Africa or worse.

Kumar's brother said his family had been too poor to afford a television set and had watched the quiz show at a neighbour's home. "We all used to watch the show from its beginnings years ago and Sushil always knew all the answers. People used to say: 'Why don't you try it? You could win the money!'"

Another reason was the dream of meeting Bachchan in person. A cousin, Sanjay Kumar, told the Calcutta Telegraph newspaper that the winner had first learned about his selection to appear on the programme – known locally as KBC, short for Kaun Banega Crorepati in Hindi – only two weeks ago. He had travelled to Mumbai with his wife Seema and two brothers last week. None had flown in an aeroplane before, or travelled to a big city.

On his crucial ninth question in the final round, Kumar sought the help of a local teacher on his "phone-a-friend" lifeline, the cousin told the newspaper.

According to the Associated Press news agency, Kumar said he would spend some of his prize money on a preparatory course for India's tough civil service exam, which could lead to a secure and prestigious lifetime job.

Kumar said he would also buy a new home for his wife, pay off his parents' debts, give his brothers cash to set up small businesses and build a library in Motihari so the children of his village would have access to "books and knowledge".

Full story at theguardian

The Eh`häusl in Amberg, Germany bills itself as the smallest hotel in the world. It is only eight feet wide! The structure was built on a property of only 20 square meters, between two other houses. The history of the hotel is interesting, as told by Metafilter member woodblock100:

So here’s the story:
It’s 1728 and you live in Amberg, a little Bavarian town somewhere north of Munich. You and your lady friend really, really want to get married, but there is a little snag; the council laws permit only homeowners to marry, and you’re still stuck renting a place. But all is not lost! You pick up a little strip of empty land between two other buildings – just 2.5 meters wide. You run up a quick wall on the front, another on the back, slap a roof on top, and presto – you’re a homeowner. The council falls for it, and allows you to get married.

But now what? Well, it’s not liveable, so you head back to the rental place to live, but you recoup your investment by selling the Eh’häusl (Little Wedding House) to the next couple with the same problem.

There is no reliable record of how long the practice continued, but the building survived, and in 2008 it received a complete refurbishment, transforming it into a luxury hotel. Total size? 56 square meters. Maximum number of guests at any one time? Two. [Google street view]

But there's more! According to an old legend told by the locals, couples who spend their wedding night at the tiny hotel are guaranteed* to live happily ever after and never get divorced!