StrangeSights

• They did it. Reports this week that a gathering of people at the University of Melbourne finally broke the record for the most number of people dancing in unison - as robots. Organisers managed to bring together 318 people to break the previous record set by 276 students at the University of Kent in the UK. Isn’t it now time for a moon-walking competition?

• Paris Hilton now stands among the verbal luminaries of the world with news that her phrase “Dress cute where-ever you go, life is too short to blend in” has been included in the new edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. Former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin also made the cut with her line: “What’s the difference between a hockey mom and a pitbull? Lipstick.” They’re just two of the dictionary’s 20,000 new entries.

• And, yes, we too can’t but help put our two cents worth in about iSnack 2.0, the name recently given to Kraft’s new Vegemite and cheese spread after a national contest. Much reviled, the name has now been withdrawn with Kraft announcing it would hold a new competition for a name. Our suggestion? Cheesymite. UPDATE: Apparently the name Cheesymite is owned by Bakers Delight, which explains why Kraft couldn’t use that name. So it’s back to the drawing board!

• It’s certainly copped its share of mockery thanks to those TV infomercials but the ‘Snuggie’ continues to make fashion inroads, recently reportedly appearing in New York Fashion Week. The “blanket with sleeves”, marketed as the ideal way to keep “totally warm” when feeling chilly, was modeled on the catwalk along with one of the latest manifestations of the concept - a snuggie for dogs.

• Colombia has a hippo problem. Authorities there have hippos in their sights as they look to round up the species - first brought to the country by now dead drug lord, Pablo Escobar. A debate has reportedly erupted over what to do with the hippos which Escobar originally imported - along with rhinos, zebras, giraffes and kangaroos - to stock a private retreat he had created. International experts have reportedly been brought in to help come up with a solution amid fears that the animals could cause environmental damage as well as injure people.

• And, yes, time for some more words. This time it’s a new British dictionary called Pimp Your Vocab which is aimed at providing adults with some insights into ‘teenglish’. The book was written by Lucy Tobin while she was at university, inspired when a tutor didn’t know what IM-ing (talking to friends via instant messaging) meant. Among the words explained in the book are ‘cool beans’ (similar to ‘great!’), ‘teek’ (’very old’ as derived from antique), and ‘neek’ (a combination of geek and nerd). Australian-based website Word Up also collates youth slang. It’s entries include ‘devon’ (when something bad happens), ‘chillax’ (combination of chill and relax), and ‘diss’ (meaning to disrespect).

• Don’t expect to knock this 18 holes over in an afternoon. Expected to be opened next month, a new 18 hole, 72 par golf course located on the Nullarbor Plain is being touted as the world’s longest. Nullarbor Links covers some 1,365 kilometres with holes located in both Western Australia and South Australia. Seven of the holes are reportedly located in existing golf clubs while the remaining 11 have been purpose built near roadhouses along the Eyre Highway. The average distance between holes is 66 kilometres but two of the holes are almost 200 kilometres apart. Score cards can be purchased at the Kalgoorlie or Ceduna Visitor Centres and it’s recommended four days be set aside to play the course.

• Time for some new words. The Collins English Dictionary has just published its 30th anniversary edition and it contains a 267 newly added words reflecting life in the new millennium. They include everything from ‘frugalista’ ( a person who tries to stay fashionable on a budget) and ‘Twitterverse’ (a term encompassing social networking site Twitter and its users) to ‘goon bag’ (the plastic bladder inside a cask of wine), ’supernanny’ (need I explain?), ‘mankini’ (a bathing suit made famous by Borat), ‘beer o’clock’ (the time of day when it is customary or acceptable to drink alcohol) and ‘mwah’ (representing the sound of a kiss).

• It was a case of old versus new tech when the pigeons took on the internet in South Africa. Employees of a South African IT firm - determined to show how poor their internet speed was - sent a pigeon to an office 80 kilometres away with a data card strapped to its leg while at the same time sending the same information over the internet. The pigeon reportedly made the delivery in one hour and eight minutes while the electronic data transfer took two hours, six minutes and 57 seconds.

• Google Earth has been responsible for unearthing some interesting photos in the past but now comes word that it may have spotted Nessie (aka The Loch Ness Monster). Englishman Jason Cooke says he spotted a shape which looks something like a giant tadpole while browsing satellite images. With speculation rife as to what the shape could be, Google plan to investigate further. The image can be found by entering coordinates latitude 57°12′52.13″N, longitude 4°34′14.16″W in Google Earth.

• Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s been in the news a bit lately what with the release of the Lockerbie bomber, the staging of celebrations to commemorate the 40th anniversary of his military takeover and, in the US, protests against the dictator’s intention to erect a Bedouin-style tent in New Jersey when he visits the country this month. Now Gaddafi’s making headlines again - this time for reportedly planning to file a motion with the UN to abolish Switzerland and share out its land among neighbouring states. The UK’s Daily Mail reports that he apparently first floated the idea at the G8 summit in Italy in July, saying Switzerland wasn’t a state.

• A 1000 ‘icemen’ took about 30 minutes to melt into oblivion in Berlin this week as part of a campaign to draw attention to the earth’s melting icecaps. The sculptures were made by Brazilian artist Nele Azevedo and the art installation was sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund. The melting denizens of Berlin can be seen here…