Janet Jackson music video ‘has power to crash laptops’

And other stories from the stranger side of life

Janet Jackson performing
(Image credit: Christopher Polk/Getty Images)

At one time, the music video for Janet Jackson’s hit Rhythm Nation had the power to crash laptops, reported Sky News. In a blog post, Microsoft’s principal software engineer, Raymond Chen, wrote that “a major computer manufacturer discovered that playing the music video for Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation would crash certain models of laptops”. Stranger still, playing the music video on one laptop could cause another close by to crash due to “natural resonant frequencies”.

Dogs cry tears of joy when owners return

Dogs cry tears of joy when their owners return home, a study has found. Scientists in Japan believe dogs start sobbing due to the release of oxytocin, the cuddle hormone, which sparks feelings of love and affection. “We had never heard of the discovery that animals shed tears in joyful situations, such as reuniting with their owners, and we were all excited that this would be a world first,” said Professor Takefumi Kikusui, the study’s author. No other animal is known to be capable of happy tears, said The Telegraph.

Couple ‘baffled’ by speeding ticket

A couple were “left baffled” when they received a prosecution notice that their car had been caught speeding while they were over 1,500 miles away on a holiday in Spain, said the Manchester Evening News. Gary Thornburn and Clare Beards dropped their car off at Manchester airport on 3 August and enjoyed almost two weeks in the sun. They were then met with a prosecution letter from police on their return, on 16 August. The airport insists the car did not leave the compound between the dates of the trip.

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