Australia

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'Angriest Octopus' Goes After Swimmer

That's one too many scary beasts in Australia for some

(Newser) - A man was taking a dip in sunny Australia—which we might as well call the land of beasts—when he was attacked by the "angriest octopus." Lance Karlson, a geologist and former lifeguard, was walking along the shores of Geographe Bay in Dunsborough, Western Australia, on March...

In This Nation, a 'Fearsome Intruder' Is Surging

Australia slammed with a spike of flesh-eating Buruli ulcers

(Newser) - Australia has been hit with a spike of what the New York Times calls a "fearsome intruder," though it's not a new one. Stretching back as far as the 1940s, cases of Buruli ulcer —an infectious disease caused by the flesh-devouring Mycobacterium ulcerans bacterium, typically found...

Staffer Fired Over Lewd Act at Aussie Lawmaker's Desk

PM Scott Morrison's bad month is only getting worse

(Newser) - Tens of thousands of people marched across Australia last week to protest the sexual abuse and harassment of women, including the former adviser who says she was raped in March 2019 in Parliament House. Brittany Higgins—the first of five women to make such a claim, per the Washington Post...

Swarms of Millions of Spiders Flee Australia Floods

New South Wales has been hit by worst flooding in decades

(Newser) - The worst flooding in decades has forced around 18,000 people from their homes in eastern Australia—and millions of spiders are also on the move. New South Wales residents say swarms of millions of spiders trying to escape rising waters are heading for higher ground. Residents say the arachnids...

This Is the Happiest Country in the World

It's not the US, which comes in at No. 14, per 'Forbes'

(Newser) - Saturday is marked as the International Day of Happiness , and in some parts of the world, that contentment factor is especially prevalent. Forbes reports on the 2021 World Happiness Report , the ninth installation, which calls the past year a year "like no other." The Gallup World Poll team...

China to Reopen to Foreigners, but There's a Significant Catch

Visitors will have to be vaccinated with a Chinese-made product

(Newser) - Chinese embassies in about 20 nations have announced that visas are starting to be processed for foreigners who want to visit again. The guidelines for each country vary, but the usual rules about having to quarantine and test negative for COVID-19 first will be in place, the Guardian reports. But...

Facebook Agrees to Terms on News Content in Australia

News Corp and Google reached a deal already

(Newser) - News Corp and Facebook announced on Tuesday new pay deals for news in Australia, three weeks after the government passed laws that would make digital giants help cover the costs of journalism. The New York-based news business that operates mainly in the US, Britain, and Australia said it had reached...

Italy Keeps AstraZeneca Doses Bound for Australia

Country says company has failed to meet its commitments to bloc

(Newser) - Italy, which has recorded 428,500 new COVID cases and almost 10,000 deaths over the last month, has balked at exporting doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to Australia, which has recorded 190 cases and zero deaths in the same time period. Italy has blocked a shipment to Australia of 250,...

Teen Dies From Jellyfish Sting After Rare Attack

Tommy Johnson, 17, was swimming off Australia's Queensland coast when the box jellyfish struck

(Newser) - The signs usually posted around coastal communities in Australia warn swimmers not to dive in during "stinger season," but those warnings weren't enough to save a 17-year-old boy who died Monday, a week after a rare attack from an extremely poisonous jellyfish in Queensland. Authorities say the...

Australia's Attorney General Denies High School Rape Claim

Christian Porter says he did not rape a fellow member of the debate team in 1988

(Newser) - A 30-page letter anonymously sent to the upper echelons of Australia's government last week contained a decades-old rape allegation, and the man accused spoke up on Wednesday. Attorney General Christian Porter confirmed the letter alleged that he raped a 16-year-old girl in 1988 and categorically denied that such a...

Airline: We'll Tell You Where You're Going, Just Before You Land

Qantas resumes 'mystery flights' for Australian passengers

(Newser) - Australia's flag carrier has just the thing for people desperate to get away, so long as they don't care where they're going. In the hope of boosting the beleaguered tourism industry amid international travel restrictions, Qantas is asking Australian passengers to hop aboard one of three "...

Rescued Sheep Sported Nearly 80 Pounds of Wool

Baarack has now been sheared

(Newser) - How do you lose nearly 80 pounds overnight? For a wild sheep in Australia, all it took was a haircut. The sheep, nicknamed Baarack by its rescuers, was sheared for the first time in a long time earlier this month, yielding a fleece that weighed about 78 pounds, USA Today ...

Barnacles May Hold Clues in Lost-at-Sea Searches
Barnacles May Hold Clues
in Lost-at-Sea Searches
NEW STUDY
Feb 26, 2021 12:44 PM CST

Barnacles May Hold Clues in Lost-at-Sea Searches

Researchers say Lepas anserifera can reveal debris drift times and patterns

(Newser) - Never underestimate barnacles. According to researchers in Australia, they might just help in tracing people lost at sea. Species of the Lepas anserifera genus of goose barnacle are among the most common found in biofouling, a fancy word for the buildup of organisms on a surface, and "play an...

Campers Find Foot of Missing Fraud Suspect

Police believe Australian woman Melissa Caddick stole up to $30M from investors

(Newser) - When Australian businesswoman Melissa Caddick disappeared in November, hours after police raided her Sydney home, there was widespread speculation that she had staged her disappearance after stealing millions of dollars from investors. The speculation ended when her foot was found washed up on a remote beach. Authorities said Friday that...

Facebook Backs Down in Fight Down Under

Social media giant strikes deal with Aussie government

(Newser) - Facebook said on Tuesday it will lift its ban on Australians sharing news after it struck a deal with Australia's government on legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism, the AP reports. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Facebook confirmed that they have agreed on amendments to proposed legislation...

Facebook Blocks Its Own Page in Botched Australia News Ban

PM accuses company of 'unfriending' country

(Newser) - Facebook blocked Australians from sharing news Thursday amid a dispute over a proposed law—but news outlets weren't the only ones who found themselves blocked. The ban affected dozens of pages run by state governments, health authorities, charities, and even Facebook's own page, the Guardian reports. State health...

Australians Blocked From Sharing News on Facebook

While Google strikes a deal

(Newser) - Google is striking deals in Australia to pay for journalism but Facebook is vowing to restrict news sharing as Australian lawmakers consider forcing digital giants into payment agreements, reports the AP . Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. announced a wide-ranging deal with Google Wednesday; major Australian media organization Seven West Media...

PM Responds to Alleged Rape in Australian Parliament

Adviser Brittany Higgins plans to reopen 2019 police complaint against colleague

(Newser) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has apologized to a former adviser who says she was raped in a parliamentary office. In a Monday interview with The Project , Brittany Higgins said she'd been working with Defence Industry Minister Linda Reynolds for a few weeks when she went out for drinks...

Olympic Swimmer Arrested After Cops Find $1.5M in Meth

Scott Miller won silver for Australia in 1996

(Newser) - Australian Olympic swimmer Scott Miller avoided prison time after earlier drug busts—but the latest one could put him away for a long time. The 45-year-old was arrested Tuesday morning after a huge stash of crystal meth was found concealed in candles during raids in Sydney, the Age reports. Police...

Behind the Wheel Amid 6-Car Pileup: This Guy
Behind the Wheel Amid 
6-Car Pileup: This Guy
in case you missed it
Feb 13, 2021 7:00 AM CST

Behind the Wheel Amid 6-Car Pileup: This Guy

Wild koala had quite a day on Monday

(Newser) - A koala marched onto a busy freeway in Australia on Monday, prompting a six-car pileup, before deciding he, too, should get behind the wheel. Photos of the koala gripping a vehicle's steering wheel have now gone viral. They were taken by Nadia Tugwell, who was caught in traffic behind...

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