Leave it to Big Sis!
Maddie Weiler, only 12 years old, didn't have time to waste when her mother stopped on the way to Virginia's Busch Garden Theme Park to aid the victims of a roadway accident this past Saturday. With her mother dialing 911, and despite her own shock at witnessing the crash, Maddie had to think and act fast when the driver who had caused the accident slipped into the Weiler's van and attempted to make off with her and the younger Molly, aged 7.
"The perpetrator, 21-year-old Paul Salsman, wasn't expecting the beatdown that followed," according to Good News Network.
Not about to go down without a fight, Maddie shifted the van into drive, something she knew wouldn't allow the van to start. Then she came down with a vengeance, beating the would-be adductor and screaming at full volume until her little sister exited the vehicle. The reaction, carried out to perfection by Maddie, was the result of years of parental training. Always resist kidnapping! Lash back and make as much noise as possible.
TRENDING: To DEI for
After the incident, Fox News reports that Maddie, an accomplished horseback rider, told her mother: "Mama, if I can control a 1,500-pound animal, then I was sure going to try to take care of him."
Maddie has not come away unscathed from her encounter but suffered a fractured growth plate in her wrist. But, true to the form demonstrated by Maddie's heroic and successful defense of her sister, this incident is not about to get her down. Or to get Maddie to back off doing what needs must.
"I just went for it," Maddie told WTKR. "Nothing passed my mind except, 'He is a psycho and he needs to get out of the car.'"
Salsman, thankfully, has been nabbed … but only after attempting two more carjackings. "He is currently being charged with three counts of felony carjacking, felony hit and run, and driving under the influence of drugs," Good News Network concludes.
Thank goodness for Maddie Weiler and the solid training that helped her and her sister survive!
Shipworm aphrodiasiacs
Yummy. Forget Viagra; chow down this aphrodisiac shipworm.
Locals of Mindanao, one of the Philippine's southernmost islands, have lauded the benefit of the giant shipworm, dubbed tamilok in culinary circles, since the 1800s.
The worm itself – that is, a live specimen of the mythical master of the three-to-five foot tusk-like shell most commonly found drilled into rotting wood – has evaded scientists ... until now.
Dredged from the depths of what Philstar reports as "smelly toxic gas-emitting mud" in Sultan Kudaratof, a Philippine lagoon, our slimy-but-elusive friend is now providing scientists with much to study.
And while aphrodisiacs are increasingly popular, the scientific hubbub about having a live specimen has nothing to do with romance. The real prize is the ability to probe the shipworm's uncanny ability to thrive amid bacteria; bacteria that, in most species, would cause infection and death.
The shipworm, however, is a creature misnamed. The "worm" is really a mollusk and has evolved not only to withstand infectious material, but to the point where its own digestive system has atrophied into virtual non-function. These creatures "are nourished by carbon produced by bacteria that feed on the toxic and rotten egg-smelling hydrogen sulfide" emitted by the decaying wood they eat. "The bacteria is found in its gills."
Philstar notes, "Medicinal chemist Margo Haygood, part of the team that studied it, said the find was a highlight of her career."
Not exactly an appetizing discovery; but, in today's increasingly toxic world, a worm to be watched.
Little Red Corvette? Baby, not so fast
If news of Prince's passing last year hit you hard, if you're awaiting the release of all those songs diligently stored in the Paisley Park vault by the Purple One, you may just have to cool your jets.
Mashable reports:
On Friday, April 21, one year to the day after Prince's death at the age of 57, Rogue Music Alliance is releasing new, previously unheard Prince music.
In a new EP (Extended Play) titled "Deliverance," fans will be able to listen to six Prince songs recorded between 2006 and 2008. The EP will give listeners another chance to experience the voice of the pop culture icon like never before.
But the hard copy release, currently scheduled for nationwide distribution on June 2 of this year, may not be forthcoming. The reason: Ian Boxill, who worked as an engineer for Prince at his private label (also dubbed Paisley Park) has chosen an independent production entity, presuming to say, "This is what Prince would have wanted," according to ENews.
And maybe he would have. Back in 1993, the deceased icon went so far as to change his name from Prince to an unpronounceable symbol, commonly referred to as the "love symbol," in an effort to forestall the predation of major music labels. The man himself answered to "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince." Without question, Prince was wary of traditional distribution methods.
But Paisley Park and Prince's estate have filed a lawsuit, according to KTSP, alleging that Boxill is precluded from using the recordings due to a signed confidentiality agreement that would render all recordings the undisputed and exclusive property of Prince. The lawsuit explains further that the objection is not with the release of the music, but with what is presumed an exploitation by Boxill of what should, rightfully, only benefit the Prince estate.
So, the saga continues. And who knows how long it will be until the plumbed contents of that famous vault are ever heard or enjoyed?
Hungry for that happily, ever after? Look no further
You can satisfy that craving by watching the clip below where Oscar winner Anne Hathaway and comic James Corden wrap up all "That's Rom-Com" in just five minutes.
Now doesn't that make you feel better?