Katie Adrian, program manager at the summer program run by Camp Fire USA, tells The Anchorage Daily News (http://is.gd/P7BKH2) the bears wandered onto the school's soccer fields Monday, soon after the campers ate lunch at picnic tables, leaving behind some snacks. The bears carried a few lunch boxes into the woods and dug in. The bears weren't aggressive and camp staff corralled the kids. After this, she says the campers will eat elsewhere and store their food indoors.

David Battle of the Alaska Fish and Game Department says there are no plans to remove the bears. He says the agency doesn't consider them a public safety hazard.

___

Information from: Anchorage (Alaska) Daily News, http://www.adn.com]]>

"My boobs and my appearance are more important than the law because my career depends on it," Sophie Dalzell told The Sun.

Apparently, she hasn't been too keen on complying with her court-ordered work either. Dalzell, of Manchester, reportedly refused to complete community service stemming from an assault on police officers because the litter pickup is "too tiring."

"The days are too long and the work is too physical for me, compared to what I’m used to,” she said to the tabloid.

pic.twitter.com/iNv5PDPptb

— SOPHIEDALZELL ♔ (@DalzellSophie) June 6, 2014


The 20-year-old was convicted in 2013 and sentenced to 400 hours of maintenance duty, but she hasn't reported to her assignment in seven months, outlets noted. She reportedly has 180 hours left.

Described by publications as a soft-porn model and adult TV star, Dalzell recently appeared in court to address charges that she missed probation meetings in January. After submitting confirmation that she was in Brussels for breast enhancement surgery at the time, she was excused. The New York Daily News called it her "breast defense."

Some Twitter users also offered colorful comments about recent events:

@ThoughtsOfJonny @DalzellSophie how dare that bastard judge inflict such a barbaric sentence!! this could start the next uk riot i am angry!

— steven jones (@sexynail234) 17 Juin 2014

@DalzellSophie Tits over the law anyday!

— Natalie (@FrostQueenie) 17 Juin 2014
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In a recent video from BBC Earth, a camera crew catches the incredible striking speed of a Puff Adder.



While the video may be too much for anyone with Ophidiophobia, it is a fascinating look at the way snakes go after prey.

Typically, snakes like these eat rats, mice, small mammals or ground birds. In this case, it's just a balloon. ]]>

Most people are now deep into the 2014 World Cup mania, and the caretakers and elephants at the Nairobi Nursery in Kenya are no exception.

Look at that pass!


This has to be the cutest dive we've ever seen!


Good, err, hustle?


From what we can tell, it's black and red plaid versus yellow and red plaid at first, then it just sort of dissolves into adorable chaos. Who wins, you ask? The answer: All of us, for getting to witness the cutest soccer match in history.

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All of this "big data" stored in our heads (some say about 2.5 petabytes) is gold to marketers, but only if they can get to it and find the relevant pieces. And they can't download our brains just yet. One of the biggest limits to consumer research is the finite number of questions we can ask people at any given time. Even if you could pose 100 or 200 questions (let's put aside the issue of survey fatigue -- and don't even think about trying to do this by phone), the respondents will only be answering questions about a narrow list of topics formed by even narrower human-based hypothesis.

Under typical survey constraints, how could you ever learn that the biggest fans of Ellen DeGeneres are two times more likely than non-fans to also like eating at IHOP? That's important data for IHOP (and maybe also Ellen) to know. Or that people who love Thai food are more likely than other cuisine fans to use Twitter and to be influenced by Internet ads vs. TV ads? Thai food restaurants and packaged food makers take heed. These are not questions that would intuitively go together.

The trick is to change the way we view surveys altogether. If you only ask a question or two at a time, more people will answer. Sample sizes of 500 or 1,000 can turn into 10,000 or even 50,000. And let's say you asked 1 Million people to answer two of a possible 1,000 questions. Each of the 1,000 questions would be answered 2,000 times. Then do that every day. Over time, you would have enough data to cross-tabulate all of those thousands of questions against each other and find correlations you would never expect. Advances in data mining technology could do all of that work for you.

In a new eBook called 101 Cool Consumer Insights, we pulled together a compilation of interesting and unexpected insights we found in our database of over 27 Million consumers and their 400+ million answers to 20,000 different questions. Here is my personal Top 5:

5: Despite similar formats, American cuisine casual dining chains have fan differences.

Most people may not expect to see major differences among the customers of casual restaurant "bar and grill" format brands like Chili's, Applebee's, TGI Fridays, and Ruby Tuesday. But as it turns out, there are real differences in their fan bases that set them apart. For example, TGI Fridays fans are more likely than the other brands' fans to be seriously into sports, and Chili's fans rank higher as market mavens, particularly for following music trends. Ruby Tuesday fans are more likely to try new products before others. All of them are more likely to be influenced by ads on TV than the general U.S. population.

Report date: March 19, 2014. Number of respondents analyzed: 188,055

4: The horror movie genre is least loved by hatchback drivers.

Auto makers love to cross-promote with Hollywood. When it comes to comparing car drivers to different movie genres, the data did reveal some obvious things, like people who drive a truck as their primary vehicle are much more likely to prefer Action flicks. Less obvious is that comedies rank highest among people who driver cross-over vehicles. Horror movies were globally the least favorite genre, with hatchback drivers disliking them the most (there's some guidance for an ad strategy that should NOT be pursued) -but horror films are actually most liked by people who don't have a car. So, naturally, think about plugging your next slasher movie on the bus.

Report date: April 29, 2014. Number of respondents analyzed: 9,634

3: The Starbucks happy hour may be ideal for job hunters.

As Starbucks rolls out its concept of an evening beer, wine and small plates menu in certain markets, consumers who say they are unhappy in their current jobs are nearly 3X more likely than the general population to want to check it out. Now, whether this is because they are more interested in all things alcohol in general, or see this as a relaxing environment for updating their resume, we don't know for sure. Nevertheless, the strong correlation here could come in handy to Starbucks or perhaps recruiters.

Report date: April 28, 2014. Number of respondents analyzed: 8,366

2. When it comes to sports marketing partnerships, who knew that a young female pop star would index so high?

Taylor Swift's popularity may rank highest among the younger female demo group (under age 24), but she's also quite liked among the overall population of sports fans. NBA fans are the most likely to also be fans of Ms. Swift, but NFL fans in general like her quite a bit too.

Report date: May 12, 2014. Number of respondents analyzed: 11,276 (NBA question) and 11,915 (NFL question)

1. Winning at "Rock, Paper, Scissors" may not just be about luck

Our data does show that certain consumer segments, based on their psychographic profiles, are more likely to pick either rock, paper, or scissors in this age-old game. Rock is the most popular selection in general, but cat people are more likely to pick scissors and Justin Bieber fans are more likely to pick paper. In fact, the list of rock/paper/scissors correlations is almost too long to name. But I need to keep a couple winning insights to myself.

Report date: April 29, 2014. Number of respondents analyzed: over 80,000 (to various questions cross-tabulated)

Connecting the dots of hundreds of millions of consumer opinions can uncover some revealing and often counter-intuitive insights. But to get there, we need stop treating people like guinea pigs that we bribe or hood-wink into completing lengthy, complex surveys. Instead, we just need to tap into some interesting opinions people want to share, combine them with millions of people like them, and let technology do the rest. How else could we ever know that Gary Busey fans are 288 percent more likely to love Kia cars? It's true.

Note: The survey results included in this article and the referenced eBook reflect the opinions of hundreds of thousands of people collected during the past 12 months. No clients, trademark owners, or celebrities have participated in conducting these surveys and they have not endorsed, approved, or otherwise provided any input regarding the survey results published here or in the eBook. The report date for the Thai cuisine fan data was April 28, 2014 with 23,448 respondents (Internet ads) and 14,767 respondents (Twitter data). The report date for the Ellen DeGeneres-IHOP data was May 12, 2014 with 8,928 respondents. All respondent data has been weighted for U.S. Census representativeness by gender and age, 13 years and older. ]]>

The sister, along with two other teachers, had to kiss a live pig on Field Dayafter students raised about $1,000 in less than a month for the Catholic school.

The amusing event was captured on video, with Sister Hermann, Mrs. Verkey, and Mrs. Wylie all puckering up to the the little pig.

Sixth-grade student Kent Vacarro told WPTZ News that the event wasn't that out-of-character for the jovial nun. "She's a funny person. She's a principal so she has order but she's definitely nice when you get to know her."

Hermann has no regrets about her smooch. "We've had successful fundraisers but this one has been real morale booster -- especially at the end of the year when people are getting kind of tired," she said.
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lot of potential as good friends.

But a lot could go wrong on a date, too -- very, very wrong. Take it from the people who recently shared their worst dating experiences on Whisper, a free online app that allows users to anonymously share their secrets. Dating can be god-awful.

See below for 13 of the most train-wreck-y anecdotes. A few things you'll learn? It is not OK to float the idea of having a fart war at Red Lobster (or anywhere else, for that matter) and asking a random person for their number while on a date with someone else entirely is off limits. (Way to be a multi-tasker, though.)

Take it away, you poor single people:





No. Just no.

For more anonymous confessions, download Whisper.

Keep in touch! Check out HuffPost Divorce on Facebook and Twitter. Sign up for our newsletter here. ]]>

Chen Guangbiao, a recycling tycoon, wants to show Americans how generous people in his country truly are. So, he took out a half-page ad in The Wall Street Journal and a full-page ad in The New York Times on Monday, inviting people who are struggling in New York City to lunch at Central Park's Boathouse on June 25, the South China Morning Post reported.

(Story continues below)

Ad courtesy of Jim Romenesko

"I want to spread the message in the U.S. that there are good philanthropists in China and not all are crazy spenders on luxury goods," Chen told South China Morning Post.

The guest list will be capped at 1,000 people and is expected to cost at least $1 million. In addition to getting a free meal, diners will also receive $300, a gift that’s expected to be used for occupational training.

Creating a spectacle is what has helped to make Chen a household name in China, and actually get people talking about important issues.

Last January, the vocal activist handed out free cans of "fresh air" on the streets of Beijing to draw attention to the area’s ever-increasing pollution problem, the Guardian reported.

"If we don't act in the next 10 years, our descendants will have to carry oxygen tanks and wear masks all the time," he told the paper.

If you’re eligible and would like to attend the free Central Park lunch, RSVP to weishanzuile@hotmail.com.

h/t Business Insider

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Recently, there has been an upsurge in the news about how a harmless fictional character brainwashed two 12-year-olds into committing a brutal assault and attempted murder of a classmate. While it seemed in the beginning to be an isolated case of mental trouble in pre-teens, the theory has quickly been dismissed as multiple cases of so-called Slender Man attacks have sprung up across the country.

First, there was the two girls Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier in Waukesha, Wisconsin, who stabbed their classmate in a wooden park, as they were walking during a sleepover. The girls confessed that they did this to become apprentices for Slender Man, an infamous character from an internet urban legend, with abnormally long hands and feet, who is said to wear a white mask on his face and stalk and torture children for enjoyment. The victim, who was stabbed 19 times, is making a quick recovery, and even began walking a few days ago.

While this could've been dismissed as a distinctive case of obsession-driven violent youth crime, the case was soon succeeded by a mother in Hamilton County, Ohio being attacked by her own daughter in their kitchen, after she became obsessed with Slender Man, and other mythical demons.

The third case of Slenderman attack was carried out by a couple in Las Vegas, who shot at police officers Alyn Beck and Igor Soldo, who were having lunch in a strip mall, fled to a nearby Walmart, killed a third man, and jointly committed suicide. Jerad and Amanda Miller, the concerned couple, are alleged to have dressed up as Slender Man and Harley Quinn respectively, according to neighbor Krista Koch.

But why? Has the entire world gone berserk? While the three cases can't simply be dismissed as isolated cases of psychiatric disorder, it is impossible to find any clue that links them together, other than, of course, the Slender Man. Another question will be, why now? Slender Man has been around since 2009. If a certain mass hysteria were to occur, why now? My theory of things will be that it isn't just Slender Man, but the plethora of shrouded, mysterious and dark creatures that have been in our fiction and mythology. Take vampires for example. Everybody knows they aren't real. And yet vampirism is often linked to crimes. Especially among the youth, where vampirism represents strength, masculineness, the brutal ability to possess and feed off a harmless subject. To normal people, that's horror, insanity, but to those who think crooked, these are the heroes. A very recent case in the United States is the "vampire trucker." Timothy Jay Vafeades, a mentally disturbed man who kept his own 19-year-old daughter locked up in his car for six months, constantly abusing her sexually and physically. As if this wasn't twisted enough, he is said to have dental inserts to make his canines look like vampire teeth, and he is said to fill his victims' teeth to make them look like vampires too. He is said to have been performing these vampire crimes since 25 years, and has been arrested recently by the FBI.

The Slender Man attackers, it would seem, just chose to give their villainous counterparts a new name, instead of the more conventional Count Dracula or Lycanthrope. And especially after the public hype concerning the Slender Man, these troubled individuals may have indeed been tempted to use this more "fashionable" entity as their face, as it not only gives them instant newsworthiness, but also makes them the center of a rather huge spotlight. ]]>

Douglas Odolecki, 43, warned motorists with the sign Friday night in Parma that said: "Check point ahead! Turn now!" Parma police spokesman Kevin Riley said officers cited Odolecki after he refused to remove the "Turn now!" portion of the sign. Officers had previously consulted with city attorneys to determine if Odolecki violated any laws by displaying the sign, Riley said.

Odolecki plans to fight the citation for obstructing official business.

It's not the first time Odolecki has used the sign or has gotten into trouble because of it. Parma police arrested him in September 2012 for having a knife in his pocket while holding the same sign. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and was sentenced to community service. Charges of carrying a concealed weapon and obstructing official business were dismissed.

Odolecki has made warning motorists of drunken-driving checkpoints his mission. He says he'll go "anywhere I'm called, anywhere I'm needed, anywhere I see injustice happening."

He said he was a "hell-raiser" as a young man, but has stayed out of trouble the last 24 years. He conceded he has animosity toward police officers because they have hassled him numerous times he says for no reason.

Odolecki said he has used the sign to warn motorists about the checkpoints in his hometown of Parma on at least five occasions, in Columbus and several Cleveland suburbs. He said that since his arrest in 2012, he carries a video camera to record any interactions with police. A video of Friday's incident showed that the officers were polite to him when they issued the citation.

"I bet if I wasn't filming, I would have been in handcuffs," Odolecki said.

Attorney John Gold is representing Odolecki for free. Gold said police must alert the public in advance of setting up a drunken-driving checkpoint and that motorists are permitted to drive around them, which means Odolecki did nothing wrong when he held up the sign.]]>

The embarrassing and dangerous moment for Denver's police was highlighted Monday when the district attorney announced no charges would be filed against a corporal for shooting the armed suspect.

On May 14, Isaac Vigil, 32, was picked up at a McDonald’s on suspicion of using methamphetamine. He was also wanted on a nationwide felony warrant for weapons violations.

Upon arriving at a police station for booking, he refused to get out of a patrol car and allegedly got off two shots before his gun jammed.

He was wounded in the abdomen when Corporal John Sisneros returned fire.

Officers had previously searched Vigil's body at least three times, according to Westword.

During those searches, officers claimed that they recovered a knife from the waistband of Vigil's pants, a bank card in his name and a crack pipe.

However, they missed a semi-automatic .25 caliber pistol and three bags of meth hidden in his anus, according to the report from District Attorney Mitch Morrissey to Police Chief Robert White.

While being driven to the station, Vigil screamed “I’ve got something for you," and “You better have a vest on” from the backseat. He even allegedly said “I’m gonna shoot you," according to KDVR TV.



Vigil has been charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault, possession of a controlled substance, possession of a weapon by a previous offender, and possession of a defaced firearm, CBS Denver reports.

Morrissey said in the letter to White that no charges will be filed against Sisneros because the shooting was justified, the Denver Channel reports.



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The Daily Dot first reported on the tweet, which was quickly taken down. PoliticMo writer Eli Yokley managed to grab a screenshot of the tweet before it was removed:

#MOLeg --> RT @markparkinson: pic.twitter.com/vBqA9r3PTp pic.twitter.com/AT7nD1fIG9

— Eli Yokley (@eyokley) June 16, 2014


Parkinson followed the awkward tweet up with an apology, saying he'd never seen the image before.

Obviously, I need to change my twitter password. Random pics and tweets are being sent that I have never seen before. Apologies!

— Rep. Mark Parkinson (@markparkinson) June 16, 2014


Parkinson is definitely not the first politician with penis problems on Twitter. Former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) was dogged by sexting scandals while both in Congress and running for mayor of New York City.

(h/t Business Insider) ]]>

A British teen lost part of his finger at a rave in East Croydon on Sunday. But instead of seeking medical attention, he decided to keep on dancing.

(Story continues below.)

I spoke to the guy who lost his finger at the East Croydon rave: http://t.co/ELOzJOiuNe pic.twitter.com/VMS9nMZMWC

— VICE UK (@VICEUK) June 18, 2014


The 16-year-old, who goes by "Josh," described what happened in a Q&A with Vice:

Well, at about 1AM we were up in the house room, but I don’t really like house so I was waiting for the drum 'n' bass to kick in. As soon as I heard it, me and my mate went down there. Five minutes in, the fire alarm starting going off and everyone was like, "Rip it off! Rip it off!" So I thought I’d give it a go. I was completely sober at the time. I jumped up, grabbed it and my little finger got caught in the case because it was all broken, and as I came to rip it back down, my little finger got ripped off completely.

In a graphic photo shared with the publication, it appears that the teen lost a portion of his left pinky finger. The bone is clearly visible in the image.

After the accident, which left the teen heavily bleeding, he apparently did not want the night to be a waste. As the bass dropped, he danced with his hand rolled up in his shirt. It wasn't until later -- at a friend's urging -- that Josh finally got his finger mended.

The severed digit wasn't the only injury from the massive, illegal party held in an abandoned mail processing and distribution center. Police were called in early to control the crowd of more than 1,000 people. Ultimately, the revelry continued with a cordon around the premises.

Aside from the teen who lost part of his finger, three others were taken to the hospital with injuries, the Independent reports. In addition, a 15-year-old died from drinking what police suspect was a beer laced with ketamine. ]]>

In January, the senior at Rogers High School in Rogers, Minnesota was asked by a Twitter user if he had ever "made out" with a 28-year-old teacher at his school.

"Actually, yeah" Sagehorn tweeted, according to the Star Tribune.

That tweet earned Sagehorn a lengthy suspension for damaging a teacher’s reputation, officials said. But the tweet was meant to be taken as sarcasm, according to a lawsuit Sagehorn filed last week that says the school officials and the police tarnished his reputation.

Sagehorn's "conduct in no way constituted threatening, intimidating or assault of a teacher, administrator or other staff member, and any reasonable school official or police officer would understand that to be the case,” the suit said.

Sagehorn's lawyers contend that their client's reputation and civil rights were violated.

The suit, which seeks compensation for damages, names the Elk River School District and the Rogers Police Department as defendants.

MyFoxTwinCities reports that Sagehorn was also investigated by police for criminal defamation, a felony.

No charges were ever filed, but the lawsuit claims, “Reid Sagehorn’s name is forever linked with the term ‘felony,' as any Google search can confirm,” according to NBC News.

A spokesperson for the Elk River School District did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Huffington Post.

William McGeveran, a professor of law at the University of Minnesota Law School, told NBC News the school went too far.

"This two-word post was foolish and thoughtless and he said he's sorry — kids do that and they always have," McGeveran said. "If some of this same story had played out and you took the Internet out of it, I doubt there would have been this same level of concern." ]]>