Ole the Corgi Survives Avalanche

This plucky little guy is Ole, a Welsh Corgi who somehow managed to survive a horrific avalanche that killed one of his owners near Cooke City, Montana. After presumably tunnelling out from under snow many times deeper than the small dog’s stature, Ole walked for four days before finally coming to rest at a local motel. This is one incredible little dog.

Ole’s owner Dave Gaillard was out skiing with his wife Kerry along Hayden Creek with their diminutive dog this past Saturday. Dave happened to spot the avalanche which broke in the mountains above, and shouted to Kerry that she should Retreat to the trees. These would be his last words. Dave was buried under some 14 feet of snow. Kerry, heading his warning, survived by clinging to a tree. Ole was nowhere in sight.

Four days later, to everyone’s surprise, the little orange and white dog appeared at the Alpine Motel — some four miles away from where the Gaillards had been. He was dazed, hungry, and scared, but Bill Whittle says the little dog responded to his calls and ate and drank happily — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Camera-maker Olympus could sue directors over cover-up

Olympus is considering suing its executives after an accounting cover-up at the firm called into question corporate governance in Japan.

The camera company said it had received the results of an investigation into management responsibility for the scandal.

It said it was now considering legal proceedings against current and former directors.

Olympus has admitted that $1.5bn (£968m) in losses was covered up — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Arche Nebra / Holzer Kobler Architekturen

An architectural competition was launched to design a public archaeological centre and an observation tower that would showcase the disc and come to symbolise the region. Holzer Kobler Architekturen chose the symbol of the solar barge for the construction of the centre. Visible from far away, the body of the building is covered with yellow anodised aluminium and appears to float above the glass-encased entry level, in which the admission desk and café are located. The 60-metre-long abstracted ship houses two exhibition rooms and the planetarium — via ArchDaily

Boy ‘tortured and drowned’ over witchcraft claims, court told

A teenage boy underwent unimaginable physical torture before being drowned by his sister and her partner because they believed he was a sorcerer who was practising witchcraft, a court heard on Thursday.

Eric Bikubi and Magalie Bamu, both 28, killed 15-year-old Kristy Bamu in their east London flat after violently abusing him for several days, and repeatedly attacked the victim’s two sisters, whom they accused of sorcery, the Old Bailey heard on the opening day of the trial.

Over four days Kristy, who was visiting his sister from France, was tortured with metal bars, wooden sticks, a hammer and a pair of pliers in a prolonged attack of unspeakable savagery and brutality, the court was told.

After being denied sleep and food and having being repeatedly attacked, Kristy admitted to being a sorcerer in the hope that the violence would stop. He finally begged to be allowed to die.

On Christmas Day 2010 the defendants, who both deny murder, allegedly forced the boy and his siblings into a bath, submerging him in water. Pathologist reports revealed he suffered 101 injuries, and died as a result of drowning and the injuries — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Brown slams surveillance of green activists

Greens leader Bob Brown has accused Federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson of turning Australia into a police state, after reports he pushed for increased surveillance of environmental activists.

A report in Fairfax newspapers details documents, obtained under Freedom of Information laws, that show Mr Ferguson requested additional monitoring of anti-coal mining groups and other environmental groups.

Senator Brown claims coal and fossil fuel companies pressured Mr Ferguson into having the federal police spy on environment groups who protest against energy companies — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Lake Lugano House / JM Architecture

Lying on the slope of a hill, on the shores of Lake Lugano, the villa [JM Architecture] consists of two volumes organized on different levels due to the particular topography of the site.

A polygonal shaped glass pavilion with rounded edges stands above a linear underground block. The living and dining room, the kitchen and storage spaces are located in the pavilion, while bedrooms, bathrooms and garage are in the lower level. Each level relates itself with independent outdoor spaces, which are closely related with the interiors — via ArchDaily

US Threatened To Blacklist Spain For Not Implementing Site Blocking Law

In a leaked letter sent to Spain’s outgoing President, the US ambassador to the country warned that as punishment for not passing a SOPA-style file-sharing site blocking law, Spain risked being put on a United States trade blacklist. Inclusion would have left Spain open to a range of retaliatory options but already the US was working with the incoming government to reach its goals.

United States government interference in Spain’s intellectual property laws had long been suspected, but it was revelations from Wikileaks that finally confirmed the depth of its involvement.

More than 100 leaked cables showed that the US had helped draft new Spanish copyright legislation and had heavily influenced the decisions of both the government and opposition.

Now, another diplomatic leak has revealed how the US voiced its anger towards outgoing President Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero last month upon realizing that his government was unlikely to pass the US-drafted Sinde (site blocking) Law before leaving office — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Canadian Government Considers Plan To Block Public Domain

Canada celebrated New Year’s Day this year by welcoming the likes of Ernest Hemingway and Carl Jung into the public domain just as European countries were celebrating the arrival of James Joyce and Virginia Woolf, 20 years after both entered the Canadian public domain. The Canadian government is now considering a plan to enter trade negotiations that would extend the term of copyright by 20 years, meaning nothing new would enter the public domain in Canada until at least 2032. The government is holding a public consultation with the chance for Canadians to speak out to save the public domain — via Slashdot

Tinta / Ochs Und Junior

The Ochs Und Junior Tinta is a fascinating marriage of form and function that offers a set of very cool features in a very cool package. Around the edge you have dots for the current date, starting at the double dot at about 12:01. This is set as you would a normal date setting. Then you have a standard set of hands with a sweep second hand to tell the time. Finally you have the real draw — an accurate moonphase register that uses a set of rotating disks attached to an ETA 2824 movement — via Wrist Watch Review

Hard and Fast Hands-Only CPR / Vinnie Jones

Vinnie Jones shows how hard and fast hands-only CPR to Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees can help save the life of someone who has had a cardiac arrest. The Hollywood hardman is starring in a British Heart Foundation TV advert urging more people to carry out CPR in a medical emergency

Bronze Spine Cuff Bracelet / coreyegan

This intricate cuff bracelet features 24 individually carved vertebrae. Created through lost wax carving and casting, each vertebrae was formed and assembled into a smooth cuff shape before casting. Three sizes of vertebrae make up the full spine, there are 5 Lumbar (largest), 12 thoracic (medium), and 7 cervical (smallest) that taper from one end of the cuff to the other. It’s finished off with a stippled matte texture. As the bronze ages it will gain a natural patina — via Etsy

Virus theory for chronic fatigue dismissed

The latest theory that chronic fatigue syndrome is caused by a virus has been killed off.

It is just two years since researchers gave hope to sufferers that a cure may be on the horizon.

Just before Christmas two of the global giants of science publishing from the United United States, Science and Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, withdrew published papers which claimed sufferers carried a virus — via redwolf.newsvine.com

Coroner stole spine to train dog

An American medical examiner faces criminal charges for keeping part of a human spine so she could train one of her dogs to search for corpses.

Traci England, 44, of Wyoming, was released on a $5,000 ($4877) bond but faces charges of misconduct in public office and theft, according to a statement from the Oneida County Sheriff’s office — via redwolf.newsvine.com