Alaska Volcano Observatory raises Aviation Color Code to Orange, Alert Level to Watch for Mount Cleveland

The Alaska Volcano Observatory has raised Cleveland Volcano's Aviation Color Code to Orange and the Alert Level to Watch following observations that the small lava dome in its summit crater has resumed growth and now fills the floor of the crater.

Alaska's Cleveland Volcano | Courtesy of the Alaska Volcano Observatory

Observers from the Alaska Volcano Observatory added that there is a persistent thermal anomaly that has been observed since September 3, probably marking the timing of resumed lava dome growth.

As of August 30, the size of the dome when it appeared to have stopped growing was approximately 80 meters (262 feet)in diameter. On September 6, the dome measured approximately 120 meters (394 feet) in diameter.

Scientists from the Alaska Volcano Observatory said that if dome growth continues, lava flows onto the flanks of the volcano may develop but would not be hazardous to aviation. They explained that the presence of the lava dome increases the possibility of an explosive eruption, but does not necessarily indicate that one will occur. Short-lived explosions could produce an ash cloud that exceeds 20,000 ft above sea level. These events can occur without warning and may go undetected in satellite imagery for hours, the scientists added.

Cleveland Volcano, a 1,730 m (5,676 ft) high land mass situated in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, is one of the most active of the 75 or more volcanoes in the larger Aleutian Arc. It has reportedly erupted at least 21 times in the last 230 years. Its most recent eruption was in July 2011.

Seven dogs eat their owner in Indonesia

Skull of the man eaten by his dogs in Indonesia

Abandoned for two weeks, seven dogs ate their owner Andre Lumboga alive when he returned home, several news sites reported Wednesday.

The incident reportedly happened in Indonesia Wednesday last week. The dead body of the 50-year old man was discovered on Monday after a neighborhood guard smelt a foul odor and noticed that the luggage of Lumboga were still at the front of his house.

"His skull was found in the kitchen, and his body was found in the front of his house," Eriyana, a local police chief in Batam, an island off Sumatra, told VIVAnews website.

"We suspect that the dogs were hungry, so they attacked Andre, because they had not been fed for 14 days," the police added.

According to Reuters, Lumboga is a native of Sulawesi island, "a predominantly Christian area, where the local spicy diet is famous in Indonesia for including dogs, bats and forest rats."

Giant crocodile captured in the Philippines becomes an internet sensation

Photo of the giant crocodile caught in Agusan del Sur

The giant crocodile caught alive in Agusan del Sur, Philippines recently has become an instant sensation online. With his videos on Youtube amassing more than 800K hits and the Yahoo article about his capture getting more than 150K Facebook recommends and 4K tweets, Lolong (name given to the giant croc) is no doubt the newest internet celebrity.

Suspected in attacking a fisherman and a water buffalo, the huge reptile, a male saltwater crocodile, was captured over the weekend after 3 weeks of hunt. It measures 21 feet (6.4-meter) in length and weighs 1-ton (2,370 pounds, 1,075 kilograms)! It is believed to be the biggest crocodile ever captured in the world in recent years.

According to the Guinness World Records, the largest crocodile in captivity was caught in Australia. It measures 17 feet 11.75 inches (5.48 meters). There were also reports of a 6.2-meter(20.3-foot) male crocodile that was killed in Papua New Guinea in 1982. With that said, Lolong would easily surpass the largest captive crocodile.

Lolong is soon to become the "biggest attraction" in a nature park in Agusan del Sur, a town mayor said.

Meanwhile, villagers and experts are still continuing their hunt for another crocodile which is believed to be larger.

*Photo courtesy of Facebook and its original owner

IHOP Shooting: Gunman kills 4, self in Nevada

Eduardo Sencion, IHOP shooting gunman

The IHOP shooting incident in Carson City, Nevada Tuesday has left 4 people dead, including the gunman. Eight other individuals were reportedly injured in the shooting spree.

Carrying an AK-47-type assault rifle and reloading it at least once, Eduardo Sencion, 32, walked into the IHOP restaurant and opened fire, killing 4 and wounding 8. Among the dead were reportedly three National Guardsmen and a civilian female.

According to reports, Sencion then turned the rifle on himself eight minutes into the shooting. He was rushed to the Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead two hours later.

The motive of the gunman still remains unknown. One police officer said Sencion might have had some "mental issues." Investigation, however, is still undergoing.

At least 30 people were reportedly at IHOP and its vicinity when the shooting incident happened.

Giant crocodile has an even larger mate: wildlife official

The giant crocodile that was captured alive in the Philippines over the weekend is believed to have an even larger mate.

Giant crocodile caught alive in the Philippines | Video courtesy of "popis191"

Despite the capture of the one-ton saltwater crocodile, villagers and expert hunters continue their hunt for a possibly larger one.

"There is a bigger one, and it could be the one creating problems," wildlife official Ronnie Sumiller told The Associated Press

"The villagers were saying 10 percent of their fear was gone because of the first capture," Sumiller said. "But there is still the other 90 percent to take care of."

It took about 100 men to pull the huge saltwater crocodile measuring 21 feet long from a river in Barangay Era in Bunawan, Agusan del Sur Sunday morning. Weighing 2,370 pounds (1,075 kilograms), the crocodile was the biggest to be caught alive in the Philippines in recent years.

The effort to capture the giant crocodile has been intensified after several residents have reportedly gone missing for months now. Residents had also reported witnessing the crocodile preying on their carabaos (water buffaloes).

Shortly after midnight Sunday, villagers and veteran hunters set up trap made of wood and steel cables which trapped the crocodile as he went for the bait. It took them at least 4 hours to successfully pull the giant croc out the river.

The crocodile has been placed in a fenced cage in an area where the town plans to build an eco-tourism park.

According to the Guinness World Records, the largest crocodile in captivity was caught in Australia. It measures 17 feet 11.75 inches (5.48 meters). Last Sunday's catch then is the biggest in the world.

Saltwater crocodiles can live for more than 100 years and can grow up to 23 feet (7 meters) long.

Happy Feet the penguin starts long journey home (Video)

Happy Feet, the lost emperor penguin who won the hearts of many people from all over the world, has been released Sunday after months of rehabilitation at the Wellington Zoo in New Zealand. Check out a video of the release of Happy Feet the penguin below:

Happy Feet penguin starts his swim home | Video courtesy of ITN News

On June 20, Happy Feet was found on a New Zealand beach, nearly 4,000 miles from his home in Antarctica.

He was sent to Wellington Zoo where he underwent three surgeries to remove stones and sticks from his stomach.

Regaining 18 pounds of weight after the medical procedures, Happy Feet was finally cleared for release over the weekend.

"It's very exciting for me to get him to this point where we can release him," zoo veterinarian Lisa Argilla told ABC News.

According to a CBS report, the release which happened on Sunday "went remarkably smoothly, given that the boat was being tossed about in 25-foot swells in the unforgiving Antarctic ocean."

A GPS tracker has been fitted to the penguin and fans can follow his progress online via the Zoo's website.

Four-day workweek or 10-hour workday proposed in the Philippines

Four-day workweek proposed in the Philippines

A 10-hour workday or a 4-day workweek (10/4 formula) is now being proposed in the Philippine Congress.

Titled “Four-Day Work Week Act of 2011,” the proposal said the traditional 40 hours of work per week will still be implemented only that employees in both public and private sectors are to work for 10 hours per day instead of 8 hours and thus cutting the number of workdays per week to 4.

“It will still be 40 hours a week, but the work schedule will run from Monday to Thursday instead of until Friday. Public- and private-sector employees will put in two additional hours of work daily,” Quezon City representative Winston Castelo, its author, told ABS-CBN

The Congressman said the 10/4 formula will allow workers to save more money.

“If a worker in Metro Manila spends P200 a day in transport fare, food and snacks, and other expenses in going to work—or P1,000 every week, the 10/4 workweek will mean a savings of P200 per week. For workers in the provinces, who spend an average of P100 a day, the weekly savings can reach P100,” Castelo said.

Castelo added that the new formula will help workers become more productive and increase their morale.

“In the end, the 10/4 workweek can provide a positive impact on the worker’s morale and productivity in the workplace,” Castelo said.

According to Castelo, the 10/4 workweek has been enforced at the House of Representatives.

“Employees at the House of Representatives start at 8 a.m. and end up at 7 p.m. for a total of 10 hours of work every day. Yet service and productivity is never compromised by the shorter workweek and longer weekend,” Castelo said.

In the US, the state of Utah had experimented on the 10/4 schedule for a year which resulted to the following:

--13% reduction in energy use,
--$6 million savings in gasoline costs, and
--12,000 metric tons a year cut on greenhouse-gas emissions

Eighty-two percent (82%) also favored in keeping the schedule.

Meanwhile, another US state Ohio, which also tried out the formula, went back to the 5-day schedule after complaints about a lack of service on Fridays.

What do you think? Do you favor the four-day workweek schedule?

Tropical Storm Lee weakens but still expected to cause flooding

Tropical Storm Lee, September 5, 2011 NASA image

Tropical Storm Lee has been downgraded to a tropical depression but it is still expected to cause flooding, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Monday.

According to the bulletin issued by the NHC at 10:00 a.m. CDT, "the remnants of Lee are expected to cause flooding from the Gulf Coast states to New England."

The NHC has hoisted Flash Flood Watches and Warnings from the Central Gulf Coast states, Northeastward across the Southern and Central Appalachians.

"Lee was last located near latitude 30.5 N and longitude 89.9 W. It has become extratropical over Southern Louisiana as it merged with a frontal zone with cool and dry air infiltrating the circulation center from the North and West. The extratropical low center is expected to turn towards the Northeast, bringing the center into Alabama by Monday night. Tropical moisture associated with the remnants of Lee will continue to interact with the frontal zone and extremely heavy rain is expected to fall in locations well in advance of the circulation center." the NHC bulletin reads.

Tropical Storm Lee was the twelfth named storm and thirteenth system overall of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season, developing from a broad tropical disturbance over the Gulf on September 1. It was designated as Tropical Storm Lee the next day. Due to the large size, as well as the slow forward movement of the storm, heavy rainfall has occurred, and prolonged rainfall is expected in the southern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle. The storm was expected to drop 10–15 inches (250–380 mm) of rain in coastal areas of those states, or as much as 20 inches (510 mm) in some areas. Lee was the first tropical cyclone to make landfall in Louisiana since Hurricane Gustav in 2008.

Giant crocodile caught alive in the Philippines (Video)

A giant crocodile suspected in attacking several people has been captured alive in the Philippines after 21 days of hunt.

Giant crocodile caught alive in the Philippines | Video courtesy of Associated Press

It took about 100 men to pull the huge saltwater crocodile, which is 21 feet long, from a river in Barangay Era in Bunawan, Agusan del Sur Sunday morning. Weighing 2,370 pounds (1,075 kilograms), the crocodile was the biggest to be caught alive in the Philippines in recent years.

The effort to capture the giant crocodile has been intensified after several residents have reportedly gone missing for months now. Residents had also reported witnessing the crocodile preying on their carabaos (water buffaloes).

Shortly after midnight Sunday, villagers and veteran hunters set up trap made of wood and steel cables which trapped the crocodile as he went for the bait. It took them at least 4 hours to successfully pull the giant croc out the river.

The crocodile has been placed in a fenced cage in an area where the town plans to build an eco-tourism park.

"It will be the biggest star of the park," Mayor Edwin Cox Elorde told Associated Press.

Elorde added that his village was happy that the dangerous crocodile would be turned "from a threat into an asset."

Despite the giant croc's capture, villagers were still warned on venturing alone at night since several crocodiles still roam the outskirts of their farming town, Elorde said.

Vanautu Earthquake, September 4, 2011: Magnitude 7.0 quake hits Tanna

Vanautu Earthquake Map, September 4, 2011

A powerful earthquake has struck the South Pacific island of Vanuatu on Sunday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported.

According to the USGS, the quake measured 7.0 magnitude on the Richter Scale and was 132.4 km (82.3 miles) deep. It centered at 122 km (75 miles) SSE of Isangel, Tanna, Vanuatu and jolted the area at 09:55:36 AM on September 24, 2011 (Vanuatu Time).

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake did not generate a destructive tsunami.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries from the Vanautu quake.

Vanuatu sits on the "Pacific Ring of Fire", an geographic zone where seismic activities are frequently experienced.

Eiffel Tower gets struck by lightning, caught on photo

Eiffel Tower struck by lightning |  Caters

Eiffel Tower, France's most popular landmark, was photographed being struck by a huge lighting bolt last summer.

The astounding photo of the Eiffel Tower, which was captured by an amateur photographer named Bertrand Kulik, made its way online after it was published in a French magazine recently, creating some buzz in social media sites.

The said photo is currently going viral in the internet. In fact, "Eiffel Tower" trended on Twitter yesterday and as well as on Yahoo! Philippines, today.

"The weather was dry and the sky appeared to be completely clear, but suddenly it started to thunder. I quickly grabbed my ­camera and put it on a tripod by the window in the hope I could get an action picture – but I never thought I would get such a ­magnificent shot," Kulik told British news website Daily Mail.

Standing very tall at 1,063ft, it is no surprise that the Eiffel Tower gets struck by thunderbolts occasionally. It is not often that someone catches it on photos, though.

Alaska Earthquake 2011: Magnitude 6.8 quake jolts Alaska

Alaska Earthquake Map, September 2, 2011 | USGS

A major earthquake with a preliminary measurement of magnitude 7.1 has jolted the remote portions of Alaska, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported Friday.

The USGS issued, then later canceled, a tsunami warning and also lowered the magnitude to 6.8.

The quake centered at 45 km (27 miles) Southwest of Amukta Island, Alaska, approximately half-way between Atka and Nikolski. The 35.5 km deep temblor hit the area at 10:55 UTC (01:55 AM, local time).

Almost half an hour later, an aftershock which measured 4.5 occurred, the USGS said. Earlier reports had it much closer to the surface.

There were no reports of damage or injuries from the quakes.

According to an Alaska Native News report, the area frequently experiences earthquakes "every day, although a majority of them have a magnitude less than this."

"There have been numerous earthquakes in the Alaska region in the past week with a majority of the larger ones taking place off-shore of Kodiak Island far out to sea. The last comparable earthquake of similar size occurred on June 23, 2011, at shortly after 6 in the evening and was located in approximately in the same place. It measured 7.2," the report added.

Cebu Pacific 'Piso Fare' ends today

Cebu Pacific announced a seat sale yesterday wherein base fares for all domestic flights scheduled on December 1, 2011 to January 31, 2012 were all set to Php1. The said "Piso Fare" seat sale will end today, August 30, 2011.

Cebu Pacific Piso Fare 2011

To book a flight, please visit the Cebu Pacific website: www.cebupacificair.com.

Here are more details about the promo:

--Domestic Seat Sale
--Pick your favourite seat from as low as P200
--Supersize your baggage! Pre-book and SAVE up to 50%
--Get insured in travel insurance.
--Choose from available domestic and international rooms with Hotels
--Get exclusive deals! Sign up for SeatSaleAlert!.
--Sale Period: Up to Aug. 30, 2011 or until seats last
--Travel Period: Dec. 1, 2011 - Jan. 31, 2012
--Quoted fares are one way. Limited availability. Fares are non-refundable.
--Fares are exclusive of government fees, taxes and fuel surcharges.
--Flight changes must be made more than 24 hours before scheduled time of departure.
--At time of booking, pre-purchase your baggage allowance to save time and money at check-in.
--CAB approved terms and conditions of carriage apply and are available online.

Bird Flu is back, mutant strain spreading: UN

Bird Flu resurgence feared

Bird Flu or the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 cases are on the rise again and the possibility of a major resurgence is being feared. These prompted the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to advise health authorities around the world to step up surveillance and readiness.

"Wild birds may introduce the virus, but people's actions in poultry production and marketing spread it," said Juan Lubroth, the chief veterinary officer of FAO.

Lubroth added, "The general departure from the progressive decline in 2004-08 could mean that there will be a flare-up of H5N1 this autumn and winter, with people unexpectedly finding the virus in their backyard."

Since 2003, there have been 565 individuals reported to have contracted Bird Flu. According to the UN, at least 331 of them died.

Because of the Bird Flu, more than 400 million domestic poultry have been destroyed since 2003, damaging $20 billion to world's economies before bird flu was supposedly eradicated from the majority of the 63 nations infected in 2006 (bird flu peak).

However, H5N1 has continued to be endemic in six countries - Vietnam, Indonesia, India, Egypt, China and Bangladesh.

The number of domestic and wild birds infected fell from 4000 in 2006 to 302 in 2008. However, over the last twenty-four months, numbers have been steadily rising. 800 cases were reported in 2010-2011.

A mutant strain of the deadly Bird Flu is reportedly spreading in Asia and other parts of the world. The FAO has described its risks to the human health as "unpredictable."

At least eight people have reportedly died of Bird Flu in Cambodia this year. 

'Bromance', 'social media', 'tweet' added to Merriam-Webster dictionary

"Bromance," "social media," "tweet" and over 150 more new words have been added to the pages of the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.



In a statement, Merriam-Webster's Editor at Large Peter Sokolowski said, "From the dramatic events of the Arab Spring to the scandal that brought down Congressman Anthony Weiner, tweet is a word that has been part of the story."



"We've been tracking words like social media and tweet for years, of course, and now we feel their meanings have stabilized enough to include them in the dictionary," he added.



Some of the words that also made it to the dictionary include the following:



Americana -- "a genre of American music having roots in early folk and country music"

boomerang child -- "a young adult who returns to live at his or her family home especially for financial reasons"

bromance -- "a close nonsexual friendship between men"

cougar -- "a middle-aged woman seeking a romantic relationship with a younger man"

crowdsourcing -- "the practice of obtaining information from a large group of people who contribute online"

duathlon -- "a three-part long-distance race with a running phase, a bicycling phase, and a final running phase"

first bump -- "a gesture in which two people bump their fists together"

helicopter parent -- "a parent who is overly involved in the life of his or her child"

m-commerce -- "a business transaction conducted using a mobile electronic device"

parkour -- "rapid and efficient running, climbing, or leaping over environmental obstacles"

robocall -- "a telephone call from an automated source that delivers a prerecorded message to a large number of people"

walk-off -- "ending a baseball game immediately by causing the winning run to score for the home team in the bottom of the last inning"



Earlier this month, Oxford Dictionary also released the list of new words that included "cyberbullying," "retweet" and "sexting" among others.

Earthquake in the Philippines, August 25, 2011 | 4.5-magnitude quake jolts Panay

A tectonic earthquake which registered a Richter Scale reading of magnitude 4.5 struck Panay Thursday morning, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported.

The red dot marks the epicenter of the August 25, 2011 Panay earthquake | Source: Phivolcs

According to Phivolcs, the quake centered at San Jose de Buenavista, Antique and has a depth of 16 kilometers.



The temblor was felt at the following intensities in the following areas:



Intensity IV - Valderrama, Antique



Intensity III - San Jose de Buenavista, Hamtic, Barbaza, Sebaste, Sibalom, Pandan, Culasi & Libertad Antique; Iloilo City



Intensity II - Bingawan, New Lucena, Oton, Leon, (Iloilo); Lezo, New Washington, Kalibo & Malay, (Aklan)



The were no immediate reports of damage to property or casualities from the quake.



Meanwhile, here are the Phivolcs description of the intensities above :



Intensity IV (Moderately Strong) - Felt generally by people indoors and by some people outdoors. Light sleepers are awakened. Vibration is felt like a passing of heavy truck. Hanging objects swing considerably. Dinner, plates, glasses, windows and doors rattle. Floors and walls of wood framed buildings creak. Standing motor cars may rock slightly. Liquids in containers are slightly disturbed. Water in containers oscillate strongly. Rumbling sound may sometimes be heard.



Intensity III (Weak) - Felt by many people indoors especially in upper floors of buildings. Vibration is felt like one passing of a light truck. Dizziness and nausea are experienced by some people. Hanging objects swing moderately. Still water in containers oscillates moderately.



Intensity II (Slightly Felt) - Felt by few individuals at rest indoors. Hanging objects swing slightly. Still Water in containers oscillates noticeably.

Bank of America 'most systematically risky' among major banks: NYU professor

Bank of America is the most vulnerable and the most "systematically risky" of the major banks in the US, NYU finance professor Viral Acharya told Yahoo Finance. According to him, Bank of America will need more capital under some economic scenarios. He added that it is necessary for the government to analyze its books, perform another round of stress-tests, and, if needed, re-capitalize it.



Check out the video Acharya's Yahoo Finance interview below:

Ipo-ipo (Twister) in Surigao caught on cam | Video

An amateur video captures a twister, locally known as "ipo-ipo" or "buhawi," as it strikes off the shore of UM Tagago, Lianga, Surigao Del Sur.

A screen grap of the Surigao tornado video

The incident reportedly happened at around 3 p.m. last Sunday. The said video was then uploaded on Youtube. Check it out below:

Surigao Ipo-ipo caught on cam | Video courtesy of "markey7137"

A tornado over water is called a waterspout. It is characterized by a spiraling funnel-shaped wind current, connecting to a large cumulus or cumulonimbus cloud. Waterspouts frequently occur in tropical areas near the equator.

5.8-magnitude earthquake jolts Virginia, USA on August 23, 2011

Just hours after the Colorado earthquake, another temblor struck a US state Tuesday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported.

A map of the August 23, 2011 Virginia Earthquake | Source: USGS

According to its bulletin, the quake measured a Richter Scale reading of magnitude 5.8 (earlier reported to be 5.9) and had an epicenter located 14 km (9 miles) South Southwest of Mineral, Virgina at 17:51:04 UTC at a depth of 6 km (3.7 miles).

The intraplate earthquake reportedly was the strongest in Virginia's recorded history since 1897. It was felt as far away as Ontario, Canada; Michigan; Pennsylvania; Ohio; South Carolina; North Carolina; New York and Massachusetts. Many buildings were evacuated in New York and Philadelphia including the Capitol building and the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

There are also reports that it damaged the Pentagon, Washington National Cathedral and the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

A couple of airports were temporarily closed and two nuclear plants in Virginia were taken offline because of the quake.

There were no reports of casualties.

Best Places To Live In America 2011 List

Planning to migrate to the United States? Have you decided on where to reside in America? You might consider this "America's Best Places To Live 2011" list by CNN Money which ranks various towns in America based on job opportunities, fiscal strength, top-notch schools, safe streets, good healthcare, cultural and outdoor activities, even nice weather.

Louisville, Colorado tops this year's list of CNN's "Best Places to Live in America" | Photo courtesy of city-data.com

Here's CNN Money's "Best Places To Live In America 2011" list:



1. Louisville, CO

2. Milton, MA

3. Solon, OH

4. Leesburg, VA

5. Papillion, NE

6. Hanover, NH

7. Liberty, MO

8. Middleton, WI

9. Mukilteo, WA

10. Chanhassen, MN

11. Sharon, MA

12. Farmington, UT

13. Johnston, IA

14. Arden Hills, MN

15. Sammamish, WA

16. Acton, MA

17. Montville, NJ

18. Newcastle, WA

19. Castle Rock, CO

20. Superior, CO



You can read info about the towns and the rest of the places included in the list here: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2011/snapshots/PL0846355.html?iid=Lead