Gastric bypass surgery performed by remote control

Sunday, August 21, 2005 A robotic system at Stanford Medical Center was used to perform a laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery successfully with a theoretically similar rate of complications to that seen in standard operations. However, as there were only 10 people in the experimental group (and another 10 in the control group), this is not…

Funding gap forces library closures in Jackson County, Oregon

Wednesday, February 14, 2007 Due to a US$23 million budget shortfall, all public libraries in Jackson County, Oregon are scheduled to close April 6. The U.S. Congress did not renew the Secure Rural Schools and Self-Determination Act, which replaces property tax revenues with revenue sharing from timber harvests. Jackson County used the revenue to pay…

One dead in Michigan school shooting

Wednesday, March 7, 2007 At least one person is seriously wounded and one dead after a 17 year-old male opened fire and shot his ex-girlfriend, Jessica Forsyth, 17, four times outside the Herbert Henry Dow High School located in Midland, Michigan before turning the gun on himself. The shooter was pronounced dead on the scene…

Interview with dismissed Ocean Drive columnist Trisha Posner

Saturday, September 22, 2007 Critic Robert Fulford wrote of legendary civic preservationist Jane Jacobs that she “came down firmly on the side of spontaneous inventiveness of individuals, as against abstract plans imposed by governments and corporations.” With certain alterations, the same could be said of author and journalist Trisha Posner, who penned the popular Health…

Canada posts record $14 billion budget surplus

Thursday, September 27, 2007 Canada has a budget surplus of CA$13.8 billion for the 2006–2007 fiscal year, totaling 1% of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP), Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced today. The record surplus was boosted by revenue from government corporations to $14.2 billion, far exceeding the government’s projections of $9.2 billion and surpassing the…

Swiss canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden fights back after invasion of German naked hikers

Saturday, January 31, 2009 A local Swiss government has shown some bare cheek and has taken action, after hordes of German naked hikers rambling across the Swiss alps au naturel, caused indignation amongst locals. Authorities in Swiss canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden have warned that starting from February 9, the government will impose hefty fines of…