Free Republic

Stunned scientists have uncovered more than 900 never-before-seen species of microbes living inside glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau. Analysis of the microbes' genomes revealed that some have the potential to spawn new pandemics, if rapid melting caused by climate change releases them from their icy prisons.

However, there is no need to panic; astronomers say the massive space rock will miss us by around 4.6 million miles (7.4 million kilometers). The asteroid, known as 2007 FF1, is between 360 feet and 656 feet (110 and 260 meters) in diameter, according to SpaceReference.com, a database that compiles information from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and the International Astronomical Union. The rock 2007 FF1 is known as an Apollo-class asteroid, of which there are around 15,000, meaning that its orbit around the sun (which takes 684 days) crosses with Earth's orbit. The asteroid is classified as potentially...

Harry Baker's parents' pain and anguish was laid bare in moving impact statementsThe killers sat in court as 17-year-old Harry's mother and father described in heartbreaking details the impact her son's vicious murder on the family. Mum Emma Baker said she had taken the brave decision to read out her victim impact statement in front of the seven people who had taken her son's life because it was "one of the last things I can do for Harry". She had had to listen in court about how her son was found bloodied, stripped, and covered in stab wounds after being...

Imagine Shakespeare walking into his local pub and there is his ole friend and competitor Ben Johnson. They have a few drinks while discussing who is the better poet. Drinks are flowing and the conversation gets heated so they decide to have a poetry rap/slam contest to determine the winner. Word play as sword play and an insult competition... like a Dean Martin Roast among poets. Here is what it might have looked like if it happened today in England. Note: Both Harry Baker and Soweto are Oxford students. Harry Baker is also a Christian and does Ted Talks. Some...