10 monster traffic jams from around the world 30 September 2012Last updated at 19:15 ET The story of traffic problems in Brazil's biggest city, Sao Paulo, which suffers jams of up to 180km at some points in the week, brought a worldwide response from readers. Here are 10 of their gridlock stories - plus one that's traffic-free. Bangkok's traffic problem has been getting worse since the government introduced a policy to refund tax for first-time car buyers. Coupled with the Thai aspiration to own a car and get some status, this policy has resulted in five million vehicles in a city which can only cope with less than two million cars. Once I got into a jam in downtown Bangkok, when I spent almost two hours moving less than a kilometre. Two or three weeks ago, travelling from Pathum Thani to central Bangkok, it took four and a half hours for a journey which usually takes less than an hour. Indonesians living in Jakarta have their own word for traffic jam - the inevitable "macet". Continue reading the main story Allan Bell's commute
Robinson Crusoe: Life on the real island 1 October 2012Last updated at 18:46 ET By Gideon Long BBC News, Santiago Gideon Long explores the island that inspired Defoe's famous novel Daniel Defoe's famous novel was inspired by the true story of an 18th Century castaway, but the real Robinson Crusoe island bears little resemblance to its fictional counterpart. Think of the island on which Robinson Crusoe is shipwrecked in Daniel Defoe's famous book and you're likely to think of a sun-drenched Caribbean idyll with sandy beaches and palm trees. But the island that supposedly inspired the book is nothing like that. Robinson Crusoe Island is the largest of the Juan Fernandez Islands, a tiny archipelago that is now Chilean territory. The ship was leaking badly and its crew was sick and exhausted. Continue reading the main story Gone native Alexander Selkirk (depicted above), spent more than four years on the Juan Fernandez islands after a dispute with the captain of the ship on which he was serving. What happened next is unclear.
Oregon farmer eaten by his pigs 2 October 2012Last updated at 10:52 ET Pigs are omnivorous Authorities are investigating how a farmer in the US state of Oregon was devoured by his pigs. Terry Vance Garner, 69, went to feed his animals last Wednesday on his farm by the coast, but never returned. His dentures and pieces of his body were found by a family member in the pig enclosure, but the rest of his remains had been consumed. The Coos County district attorney's office said that one of the animals had previously bitten Garner. The animals are estimated by the authorities to each weigh about 700lb (320kg). 'Good-hearted guy' Investigators say it is possible that the hogs knocked Garner over before killing and eating him. But they have not ruled out the possibility that the farmer could have collapsed from a medical emergency, such as a heart attack. A pathologist was unable to determine the cause of Garner's death and his remains have been sent to the University of Oregon to be analysed by a forensic anthropologist.
Researchers grow teeth from gum cells 8 March 2013Last updated at 20:12 ET Researchers combined cells from human gums and cells from mice to create the new teeth Dentists may one day be able to replace missing teeth with ones newly grown from gum cells, say UK researchers. The team from King's College London took cells from adult human gum tissue and combined them with another type of cell from mice to grow a tooth. They say using a readily available source of cells pushes the technology a step nearer to being available to patients. But it is still likely to be many years before dentists can use the method. Other work has focused on using embryonic stem cells to create "bioteeth". It proved it could be done but is expensive and impractical for use in the clinic, the researchers said. In the latest study they took human epithelial cells from the gums of human patients, grew more of them in the lab and mixed them with mesenchyme cells from mice. Next steps An example of the hybrid human/mouse biotooth grown by researchers
Future - Health - A stroke of insight Synopsis Jill Bolte Taylor got a research opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: she had a massive stroke, and watched as her brain functions - motion, speech, self-awareness - shut down one by one. An astonishing story. Talk recorded 27 February 2008. About the Speaker Brain researcher Jill Bolte Taylor studied her own stroke as it happened -- and has become a powerful voice for brain recovery. Amazed to find herself alive, Taylor spent eight years recovering her ability to think, walk and talk. From child bride to multi-millionaire in India 25 May 2012Last updated at 00:50 GMT Kalpana Saroj heads Kamani Tubes, a company worth more than $100m An Indian Dalit (formerly untouchable) woman, who once attempted suicide to escape discrimination, poverty and physical abuse, becomes the CEO of a multi-million dollar company. The BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan in Mumbai captures Kalpana Saroj's journey - a symbol of the Dalit struggle to mark their arrival at the top. Her life reads like the plot of a Bollywood film, with a narrative which has defied so many obstacles, to conclude with a happy ending. The "rags to riches" cliche can be overused, but it goes some way in describing the story of Kalpana Saroj, a woman who struggled on so many occasions on her way to the top. Born into a low-caste Dalit family, she was bullied at school, forced into marriage at the age of 12, fought social pressures to leave her husband, before she tried to take her own life. Today, she is a multi-millionaire. Continue reading the main story “Start Quote
Vienna: The city that loves to grumble 23 May 2012Last updated at 20:36 ET By Bethany Bell BBC, Vienna, Austria For a number of years Vienna has scored top marks in international surveys for safety, cleanliness and public services, but while many Viennese are fiercely proud of their city, there is also an unexpectedly strong tradition of discontent and complaint. The Volksgarten in central Vienna is a particularly beautiful spot. The public garden, with its fountains and shady chestnut trees, is surrounded by some of Vienna's most magnificent buildings: the neo-Gothic town hall, parliament with its classical columns, and the baroque splendours of the Hofburg Palace, once home to the Habsburg Emperors. And in May and June, its formal flowerbeds are filled to bursting with a riotous display of multi-coloured roses. Once, as I was wandering through the rose garden, I fell in step behind a couple of elderly Viennese ladies, who were taking their two small dogs for a walk. Continue reading the main story “Start Quote End Quote
Satan and the partying bunnies By Lucy Nicholson For those who have a dark view of Southern California, it might seem fitting to find Satan buried in a cemetery in Orange County next to a Carl’s Jr burger joint. That’s where I found him resting on another heavenly day in sunny California, in between gravestones for other beloved pets that had departed for the great beyond. The Sea Breeze Pet Cemetery in Huntington Beach has gone to the dogs. And cats. And bunnies. I was driving to lunch between assignments photographing Olympic swimming champ Janet Evans when a flash of color caught my eye on a wide boulevard in Huntington Beach. I’d never seen a graveyard quite so full of bouquets. A floral scent wafted across the peaceful garden. I was dismayed, although not surprised, to see how often I spotted my own name. My boyfriend likes to joke that it’s only British women and American dogs who are named Lucy. The epitaphs brought to mind their owners with varying degrees of poignancy and humor.
Indian helicopter makes emergency landing on rooftop 12 April 2012Last updated at 10:45 ET There was no open space on the ground for the pilots to land A helicopter has made an emergency landing on the roof of an apartment building in a busy residential area of the Indian city of Bangalore. Reports say the helicopter was on a routine training flight when its engine failed, forcing the aircraft down. The five-storey building was evacuated with no injuries reported and both the pilot and co-pilot are safe, an official said. With its rotor damaged, officials are looking at how to move the helicopter. The helicopter belongs to the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (Hal) and was flying out of a nearby airport. Residents said they heard a loud noise when the helicopter began its descent and everyone gathered on rooftops to watch. Without a clear space on the ground to land, the pilots opted to land on the roof of the Maitree Apartments building, Hal chief test pilot Wing Commander Unni Pillai told the TV channel Times Now.
Die Weltwoche sparks anger over 'racist' Roma story 12 April 2012Last updated at 07:27 ET The article suggested: "They come, they steal and they go" The council for Germany's Roma (Gypsies) has gone to court to get a Swiss magazine banned in the country after it used an image of a Roma boy pointing a gun on its cover. Headlined "The Roma are coming", Die Weltwoche's publication amounts to racial incitement, the Central Council of German Sinti and Roma says. The agency that supplied the picture says its meaning was distorted. Die Weltwoche deputy editor Philipp Gut said the article was justified. He accepted that it had sparked outrage but said it highlighted growing "crime tourism" in Switzerland. The article was headlined "They come, they steal and they go" and suggested: "Roma families from Eastern Europe are responsible for a large part of the increasing crime tourism". It examined issues such as prostitution and the use of children for begging and theft, adding caveats that not all Roma are involved. 'Altered meaning'
Ireland garlic scam: Paul Begley jailed for six years 9 March 2012Last updated at 17:17 ET The court heard the import duty on garlic is "inexplicably high" The head of Ireland's largest fruit and vegetable producers has been jailed for six years for a 1.6m euros (£1.3m) scam involving the importation of garlic. Paul Begley, 46, of Woodlock, Redgap, Rathcoole, avoided paying customs duty on more than 1,000 tonnes of garlic from China by having them labelled as apples. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard the import duty on garlic is "inexplicably" high and can be up to 232%. Onions have an import duty of 9%. The maximum sentence for the offence is five years in prison or a fine of three times the value of the goods. Judge Martin Nolan imposed the maximum term on one count and one year on another count. These are to run consecutively, meaning a total of six years. "It gives me no joy at all to jail a decent man," Judge Nolan said. He said Begley was a "success story" and an "asset to the country" in supporting the economy and providing employment.