2008 Woodie Awards
Top 10 recent odd news stories
Information gathered by Brandon Williams
Issue date: 10/11/07 Section: Feature
- Page 1 of 1
1. Crews surprised by heavy equipment theft
In Des Moines, a construction crew left a site near the interchange of Interstates
235, 35 and 80. When a new crew arrived the next day they found an earthmover and
an excavator had been stolen. The equipment is valued at about $150, 000.
2. Man allegedly flashes gun at bus stop
A woman in Jacksonville, Fla. pulled out a gun at a school bus stop because her son was
being bullied. A police report said the mother pointed the gun at children getting off the
bus and said, "Does anyone have something to say?" She is charged with improper
exhibition of a firearm.
3. Woman has baby on Oct. 2nd for third time
In Marysville, Ohio, a women had a daughter on Oct. 2, the same birth date of her two
sons (one born in 2003 and the other in 2006). The odds of a family having three
children born on the same date are about 7.5 in 1 million said a statistics professor at
Ohio State University.
4. Mother lets seven-year-old steer van before crashing into tree
A 7-year-old sitting on her mother's lap steered a van into some mailboxes and into
a palm tree in Lake Mary, Fla. The girl was treated for minor injuries and the mother
has posted a $2,000 bond on a charge of felony child abuse.
5. Scientists breed see-through frogs
The world's first see-through frogs have been bred by Japanese scientists. Transparent frogs
allow observation of the internal organs and blood vessels without having to dissect
them.
6. Excel thinks 65,535 = 100,000
An employee from Microsoft said in a blog post that when computer users attempted to
get Excel 2007 to multiply pairs of numbers where the result was 65,535, Excel would
display 100,000 as the answer. The employee said the program correctly calculates the
numbers but has some issue when displaying them. Microsoft is working to fix the problem.
7. Artist can only draw asleep
A man in North Wales sleepwalks and is a talented artist while he sleeps but can't draw when awake. The man can't remember drawing and can't recreate his sketches when he wakes up.
8. Man arrested for having rocket launcher
In Port Lavaca, Texas a man was arrested by federal agents and sheriff's officials acting on a tip that the convicted burglar had a rocket launcher. Members of the sheriff's office SWAT team and ATF agents seized the launcher, four rifles, a handgun and several boxes of ammunition. The man has served prison time for 10 convictions of burgelry
9. Parachutist survives 2,000 ft. fall
An Italian man survived a 2,000 foot jump after his parachute failed and he landed in a field. Both the main and reserve parachute failed as he fell. He was taken to the hospital but had no injuries.
10. Man jailed for trying to pass $1M bill
A man in Pittsburgh tried to use a $1 million bill at a supermarket. When the employee refused to accept the bill and the manager confiscated it, the man slammed a electronic funds-transfer machine into the counter. Police arrested the man.
In Des Moines, a construction crew left a site near the interchange of Interstates
235, 35 and 80. When a new crew arrived the next day they found an earthmover and
an excavator had been stolen. The equipment is valued at about $150, 000.
2. Man allegedly flashes gun at bus stop
A woman in Jacksonville, Fla. pulled out a gun at a school bus stop because her son was
being bullied. A police report said the mother pointed the gun at children getting off the
bus and said, "Does anyone have something to say?" She is charged with improper
exhibition of a firearm.
3. Woman has baby on Oct. 2nd for third time
In Marysville, Ohio, a women had a daughter on Oct. 2, the same birth date of her two
sons (one born in 2003 and the other in 2006). The odds of a family having three
children born on the same date are about 7.5 in 1 million said a statistics professor at
Ohio State University.
4. Mother lets seven-year-old steer van before crashing into tree
A 7-year-old sitting on her mother's lap steered a van into some mailboxes and into
a palm tree in Lake Mary, Fla. The girl was treated for minor injuries and the mother
has posted a $2,000 bond on a charge of felony child abuse.
5. Scientists breed see-through frogs
The world's first see-through frogs have been bred by Japanese scientists. Transparent frogs
allow observation of the internal organs and blood vessels without having to dissect
them.
6. Excel thinks 65,535 = 100,000
An employee from Microsoft said in a blog post that when computer users attempted to
get Excel 2007 to multiply pairs of numbers where the result was 65,535, Excel would
display 100,000 as the answer. The employee said the program correctly calculates the
numbers but has some issue when displaying them. Microsoft is working to fix the problem.
7. Artist can only draw asleep
A man in North Wales sleepwalks and is a talented artist while he sleeps but can't draw when awake. The man can't remember drawing and can't recreate his sketches when he wakes up.
8. Man arrested for having rocket launcher
In Port Lavaca, Texas a man was arrested by federal agents and sheriff's officials acting on a tip that the convicted burglar had a rocket launcher. Members of the sheriff's office SWAT team and ATF agents seized the launcher, four rifles, a handgun and several boxes of ammunition. The man has served prison time for 10 convictions of burgelry
9. Parachutist survives 2,000 ft. fall
An Italian man survived a 2,000 foot jump after his parachute failed and he landed in a field. Both the main and reserve parachute failed as he fell. He was taken to the hospital but had no injuries.
10. Man jailed for trying to pass $1M bill
A man in Pittsburgh tried to use a $1 million bill at a supermarket. When the employee refused to accept the bill and the manager confiscated it, the man slammed a electronic funds-transfer machine into the counter. Police arrested the man.
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