20-foot-tall bubbles sprout in Indiana waste pools, and more

20-foot-tall bubbles sprout in Indiana waste pools

An Indiana farm community is alarmed over giant bubbles that have sprouted in lagoons of liquid manure. Farmer Tony Goltstein has asked if he can cut holes in the growing, 20-foot-tall bubbles, which were created when methane released by the manure got under plastic linings in the waste pools on his property. But neighbors fear that any hasty action could cause a devastating explosion. Last year, the gas in a single waste pit in Minnesota exploded, hurling a singed farmer 40 feet in the air. “We’re concerned with just cutting a hole,” says state official Bruce Palin. “Obviously, you don’t want to be smoking a cigarette when you open this thing up.”

Elderly woman in China grows a horn

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An elderly woman in China has startled her family by sprouting a horn on her forehead. Zhang Ruifang, 101, of Henan province began developing the protrusion four months ago. It’s now 2½ inches long, and another one appears to be emerging on the other side of her forehead. The horn, which causes her no pain, began as a patch of rough skin, and just kept getting bigger.

Wife scatters husband's ashes in 12 countries

A British man whose travel bug was thwarted by a fear of flying is finally taking a 55,000-mile world tour—three years after he died. Rita Munns, 63, is carrying husband Richard’s ashes to 12 countries on four continents, leaving a bit of him at each location. “He never liked flying,” Munns said. “He always wanted to be able to see so much more of the world than he did.” She’s carrying his ashes in an envelope, to avoid having to explain her mission to customs officials.