>OMG and LOL make it in the Oxford English Dictionary

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Mark Williams – … OMG stands for “Oh my God” or “Oh my goodness” or gosh, according to the OED. LOL stands for “laughing out loud”. It is used to describe ones reaction to a statement, picture of video.

The makers of the dictionary say the expressions are associated with the “language of electronic communications”. They are commonly used on forums, in emails, Tweets and text messages. Users may also see them on blogs and in Facebook entries.

The dictionary previously inserted IMHO, BFF and TMI into their publication. IMHO stands for “In my humble opinion”. Many users have shorted it to IMO – in my opinion – especially if they don’t feel their opinion is “humble” LOL.

BFF stands for “Best Friends Forever” and TMI stands for “Too much information”. TMI is commonly used when some describes bodily functions or explicit acts.

The OED says that the words are typically not spoken, but they are written. “in print, and even in spoken use… where there often seems to be a bit more than simple abbreviation going on,” their statement read.

via OMG and LOL make it in the Oxford English Dictionary | Digital News Report.

>Yemen’s President Saleh ‘negotiating’ departure

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Agreement is close on a transfer of power from Yemen’s veteran President, Ali Abdullah Saleh, a government minister says.

After six weeks of protests, Mr Saleh has said he is willing to step down this year.

But the demonstrators want him to go immediately.

This is the first time the government has confirmed that President Saleh is negotiating the terms of his departure, observers say.

They add that amid the growing pressure, many see the statement by Foreign Minister Abubakr al-Qirbi – a close ally of the president – as a clear sign that Mr Saleh’s resignation is now a matter of time.

It comes a day after tens of thousands people attended rival mass rallies in the capital Sanaa.

Last week some 50 people were shot dead at an anti-government protest.

In recent weeks, Mr Saleh’s power base has been hit by top military figures and tribal leaders joining the opposition. …

via BBC News – Yemen’s President Saleh ‘negotiating’ departure.

>Snakes on the plane: Jakarta police foil smuggling bid

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Customs officers found the sedated pythons in the men’s bags

Indonesian customs officials have arrested two men suspected of trying to take 40 snakes on to a flight to Dubai.

The two were about to enter the departure area at Jakarta airport when X-rays showed their bags were filled with sedated pythons, officials say.

The two suspects told investigators they planned to sell the animals to collectors in the United Arab Emirates, the AP news agency reports.

They face up to seven years in jail if found guilty of attempted smuggling.

“People often use the flights to Dubai to smuggle illegal animals,” an official at Jakarta airport told AFP news agency.

“For the sake of flight safety and security, no animals are allowed to be brought on to aircraft without permission and special handling,” the official, Salahudin Rafi, added.

The pythons have been taken to the animal quarantine centre at Jakarta’s Sukarno-Hatta airport. …

via BBC News – Snakes on the plane: Jakarta police foil smuggling bid.

Awesome colors.  Is this a baby Green Tree Python (Morelia viridis)?

>A Nuclear Cannon

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YouTube – NUCLEAR CANNON.

Nuclear artillery is a subset of limited-yield tactical nuclear weapons, in particular those weapons that are launched from the ground at battlefield targets. Nuclear artillery is commonly associated with shells delivered by a cannon, but in a technical sense short-range rockets or missiles are also included.

The development of nuclear artillery was part of a broad push by nuclear weapons countries to develop nuclear weapons which could be used tactically against enemy armies in the field (as opposed to strategic uses against cities, military bases, and heavy industry). Nuclear artillery was both developed and deployed by a small group of nations, including the USA, USSR, and France. The United Kingdom planned and partially developed such weapon systems (the Blue water missile and the Yellow Anvil artillery shell) but did not put these systems into production. …

Nowadays, nuclear artillery has almost been replaced with mobile tactical ballistic missile launchers carrying missiles with nuclear warheads. However, some countries, such as China, India and Pakistan (and there is a rumor that North Korea is capable of using nuclear artillery), are still using nuclear artillery as an alternative method derived from conventional ballistic missiles.

via wikipedia

>A Nuclear Cannon

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YouTube – NUCLEAR CANNON.

Nuclear artillery is a subset of limited-yield tactical nuclear weapons, in particular those weapons that are launched from the ground at battlefield targets. Nuclear artillery is commonly associated with shells delivered by a cannon, but in a technical sense short-range rockets or missiles are also included.

The development of nuclear artillery was part of a broad push by nuclear weapons countries to develop nuclear weapons which could be used tactically against enemy armies in the field (as opposed to strategic uses against cities, military bases, and heavy industry). Nuclear artillery was both developed and deployed by a small group of nations, including the USA, USSR, and France. The United Kingdom planned and partially developed such weapon systems (the Blue water missile and the Yellow Anvil artillery shell) but did not put these systems into production. …

Nowadays, nuclear artillery has almost been replaced with mobile tactical ballistic missile launchers carrying missiles with nuclear warheads. However, some countries, such as China, India and Pakistan (and there is a rumor that North Korea is capable of using nuclear artillery), are still using nuclear artillery as an alternative method derived from conventional ballistic missiles.

via wikipedia

>NATO divided over removal of US nukes from their territories

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YouTube – NATO divided over removal of US nukes from their territories – PressTV 100429.

>Lights Out: Cities go dark as world turns off power for Earth Hour

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Houses and businesses across Asia turned off power on Saturday in support of the so-called “Earth Hour”. In Sydney, ferries blew their horns as the lights went out on the Sydney Opera House. China’s “Earth Hour” kicked off on Saturday night with the tallest building in the capital Beijing – Tower 3 of the China World Trade Centre – turning off its lights. In India, lights at the India Gate were turned off and lit balloons released as a crowd holding candles watched. In Indonesia, the lights on several landmarks, were also turned off or dimmed, and in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi, young people gathered outside the city’s opera house holding candles as lights went off.

YouTube – Lights Out: Cities go dark as world turns off power for Earth Hour.

My lights are out.