Will Smith and Scientology, Octopus love

last updated 8 January 2015

An Australian man is lucky to be alive after falling drunkenly asleep on a railroad track and having a freight train roll over him. Ben Reid, 20, says he was walking home after enjoying “a few quiet drinks” with friends, when he remembers “sitting down to have a rest.” Reid remembers hearing a loud horn and a “big bang,” and then woke up in the hospital with a gash on his head, sustained when he tried to sit up beneath the train. “I’d say it was a one-in-a-million chance that I should have survived,” said Reid.

The Church of Scientology’s campaign to recruit actor Will Smith has apparently succeeded, says the New York Daily News. Smith said as recently as last month that while he thought Scientology’s teachings were useful, he didn’t believe in “organized religion.” After finishing his latest movie, however, Smith gave the cast and crew cards offering free personality tests and counseling at Scientology centers. Smith also is telling people that Scientologist Tom Cruise is “one of the greatest spirits that I’ve ever met.”

A giant Pacific octopus now on exhibit at a British aquarium has formed a deep attachment to a Mr. Potato Head doll. The 18-month-old cephalopod is “well-known for his curiosity and intelligence,” says Matt Slater of the Blue Reef Aquarium, and is fascinated by the toy’s bright colors and “movable parts.” Louis is allowed to play with Mr. Potato Head for an hour at a time and “attacks the net we use to fish the toy out every time we try to take it away.”