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POPSAramaic Writing Found on Turin Shroud more: She said it would not be unusual for something to be written on a burial cloth in order to indicate the identity of the deceased. Frale, who is a researcher at the Vatican Secret Archives, has written a new book on the shroud and the Knights Templar, the medieval crusading order which, she says, may have held secret custody of the Shroud of Turin during the 13th and 14th centuries. She told Vatican Radio that she has studied the writings on the shroud in an effort to find out if the Knights had written them. "When I analyzed these writings, I saw that they had nothing to do with the Templars because they were written at least 1,000 years before the Order of the Temple was founded" in the 12th century, she said.
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POPSChampion snowboarder falls to death Ruby won a gold medal in the giant slalom at the 1998 Nagano Olympics and a silver in the parallel giant slalom at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games. She was a six-time world champion with 65 snowboard World Cup victories. She retired after the 2006 Turin Olympics, where she was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the snowboardcross event. Ruby had since been working toward becoming a mountain guide and was expected to finish her training in the coming weeks.
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POPSThe SECRET Warehouse from Indiana Jones with contents I use a similar concept in a role playing game. This was a HUGE list and hard to pare down to 1000 characters and have to skip some hilarious items like: Two strange electronic devices, found with a set of identifcation for "Commander Pavel Chekov, Starfleet." A heave metal box, 75cm on a side, painted in military green. Each side has the words, "This side towards enemy" printed on it. (Nuclear claymore mine) The "magic gun" that fired the "magic bullet" that killed JFK A large stone tablet, reconstructed from pieces, with writing on it. It is Hebrew and has Commandments 11 through 17 Microscope slide labelled "Turin Shroud section No. 325", with piece of material reading "Made In Korea" in tiny letters Snake Plisken's death certificate A searchlight with the sillouette of a bat on it and Universal Solvent (we think) (bring your own container) (hurry) (never mind...) A great and funny list
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POPSFirst 'placebo gene' discovered 
To see if there were genetic differences between responders and non-responders, Furmark screened them for a variant of the gene for tryptophan hydroxylase-2, which makes the brain chemical, serotonin. Previous studies suggested that people with two copies of a particular "G" variant are less anxious in standard "fear" tests. Sure enough 8 of the 10 responders had two copies, while none of the non-responders did (Journal of Neuroscience (DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2534-08.2008). Furmark believes the effect of the gene may extend to other conditions where the amygdala is involved, such as phobias, pain disorders and even depression. However, he cautions that only further studies will reveal whether the gene influences the placebo effect more generally. Echoing Furmark's caution is Fabrizio Benedetti of the University of Turin, Italy. "We know that there's not a single placebo effect but many." Some may work through genetics, he adds, others through the expectation of a reward.
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POPSShroud Stirs A New Controversy It's like looking for Noah's Ark to me. Why would you want to search when the truth is right here before you? Regardless of that, I'm awed and amazed by the story.
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POPSList Universe's Top 10 Unsolved Mysteries Excellent primer on many of the more well known mysteries like the Shroud, the Black Dahlia, Mary Celeste and Jack the Ripper. The less well-known mysteries like the Babushka Lady, the Voynich Manuscript, The Taos Hum, The Zodiac Killer and the Comte de Sainte-Germaine are informative in a few short paragraphs and I suggest those interested to use this as a stepping stone into their own search for the weird, unusual, bizarre and truly unsolved mysteries.
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POPSEvolution of the Olympic Torch The 2008 Beijing Olympic torch can reportedly withstand winds of up to 40 miles an hour (65 kilometers an hour), partly due to the flat top of its Chinese-scroll-based design, according to engineer Richard Kelso.The exterior of the torch is made of aluminum-magnesium alloy and is decorated with 56 swirling clouds, one for each of China's ethnic groups.<<
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