Chinese accent brought on by severe migraine
A British woman who suffered a severe migraine headache suddenly developed a strong Chinese accent. Sarah Colwill’s headache was so severe she went to the hospital; when she woke there the next day, she sounded like she’d been born in China, and her friends and family no longer recognized her voice on the phone. Doctors diagnosed foreign accent syndrome, a rare condition caused by damage to the brain, and said Colwill’s speech may never return. “I want my own voice back,” said Colwill. “I have never even been to China.”
Whose overdue library books? George Washington's?
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Former President George Washington owes more than $300,000 in late fees to a New York library, says the New York Daily News. On Oct. 5, 1789, Washington borrowed a treatise on “the Law of Nations” and a volume of transcripts from the British House of Commons from the New York Society Library in Manhattan, and has yet to return them. “We’re not actively pursuing the overdue fines,” said head librarian Mark Bartlett. “But we would be very happy if we were able to get the books back.”
Rare leech discovered in nose of 9-year-old
A rare species of leech has been discovered in the nostril of a 9-year-old Peruvian girl. After she complained that something was moving in her nose, her parents took her to a doctor, who extracted a 2-inch-long leech with a row of teeth arranged along a single jaw. Naturalist Mark Siddall said the girl probably acquired the leech while swimming in a rural stream, and was lucky not to be in more pain. “Their teeth are big and these things hurt,” said Siddall.
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Violent videos of Charlie Kirk’s death are renewing debate over online censorshipTalking Points Social media ‘promises unfiltered access, but without guarantees of truth and without protection from harm’
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What led to Poland invoking NATO’s Article 4 and where could it lead?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION After a Russian drone blitz, Warsaw’s rare move to invoke the important NATO statute has potentially moved Europe closer to continent-wide warfare
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Africa could become the next frontier for space programsThe Explainer China and the US are both working on space applications for Africa
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Too drunk to get married, and morefeature An Australian groom showed up so drunk for his wedding that a minister refused to perform the ceremony.
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Romanian swallows a metal fork, and more
feature A Romanian man went to the emergency room complaining of intense chest pain.
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Suicidal man helps save a stranger, and more
feature A suicidal man who was threatening to jump off London Bridge helped save the life of a complete stranger drowning in the waters below.
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Morticians discover live man in body bag, and more
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How to shake a vending machine, and more
feature An Iowa man was fired from his warehouse job after he allegedly used a forklift to pick up a vending machine and shake loose a stuck candy bar.
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Young boy goes joyriding, and more
feature A 10-year-old Norwegian boy took his parents’ car for a joyride, then told police that he was a dwarf who had forgotten his driver’s license.
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Taking aim at Kroger's, and more
feature A Kentucky woman allegedly bought a car just so she could ram it into a supermarket that she hates.
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A name like no other, and more
feature Britain’s most heavily tattooed man has been refused a passport because of his unusual name.