Amsterdam hotel proud to be the world’s worst

While another hotel might brag about its comfortable beds, spectacular views and excellent customer service, the Hans Brinker Budget Hotel in Amsterdam promises a lift that rarely breaks down, a door that locks and comfort comparable to a minimum security prison. 

Advertisements for the Hans Brinker Budget Hotel in Amsterdam.

Proclaiming itself as “The Worst Hotel in the World”, the Hans Brinker goes so far as to recommend a list of nicer places to stay in the Dutch capital, including the Hotel de L’Europe, Hotel Krasnapolsky and the Intercontinental Hotel — all luxury spots with the finest amenities. In fact, of the hotel’s 16 recommendations, the Hans Brinker clocks in at 15, just below an abandoned mine shaft and just above an unmarked grave.

Micropayments: Would you pay 20p to read an article?

How much is an online article worth to you? After reading the first few lines, would you pay a bit of money to read the rest of it? 

A plethora of titles - but for how long? Without devising a fresh way to make money, newspapers will continue to suffer from falling sales

Consider this as a future: paying small amounts to read, watch and listen to content online. 20 pence (32 US cents) for a feature here, 10p for a news story there. 

It's a system called micropayments, and some believe it is the future for supporting journalism, and other creative content, on the internet.
The likes of Google and Paypal have begun to roll out and promote their technologies, and there are a number of smaller players hoping to break-through.

Whatever happened to 3D?

Has 3D – the once fanfared technology – already faded into the background?

Just three years ago we were told that the 3D revolution was upon us.
It had been tried several times in the past but failed to catch on. This time we were told it would be different because you could watch it in the home.
Ian Hardy reports on the recently fanfared technology to see if it's already fading into the background.



 For source go here.

Dirt cuisine: are you adventurous enough to taste?

Adventurous diners can enjoy a menu made with soil, if they so wish, at a Tokyo restaurant normally specialising in seafood. 

For the last three weeks, chef Toshio Tanabe has been serving 'dirt cuisine' to customers, saying he's trying to reflect nature's life in his food. The menu includes soil soup and potato balls with soil sauce and costs around £70

Unhappy Customers Sue Subway Over One Inch

Some so-called "footlong" subs only measure 11 inches.

In this week's episode of "people who have too much time and money on their hands," two men from New Jersey have filed a lawsuit against Subway, claiming that the sandwich shop's "footlong" sandwiches are only 11 inches and thus, the men are being ripped off.

How long was your last Subway footlong?

Oceans are blue heart of the planet

We are only now beginning to understand how essential the oceans are for us. Watch this short but amazing BBC video and find out what really stands behind the name of "the Blue Planet".

News headlines used to predict future events

Researchers have developed software which could predict future events such as disease outbreak.

The prototype software uses a combination of archive material from the New York Times and data from other websites, including Wikipedia.

The experts focused on predicting riots, deaths and disease outbreaks and say their accuracy was between 70%-90%.

The work is a collaboration between Microsoft Research and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology.

In their research paper, the two scientists say that using a mixture of archived news reports and real-time data, they were able to see links between droughts and storms in parts of Africa and cholera outbreaks.

Can testosterone make you live longer?

Dr Jeffry Life, a Las Vegas-based age management doctor, is 74. He has the body of a man half his age. In fact he has a level of muscular definition that many men never achieve.

He was in his late 50s when he realised that as a paunchy middle-aged man, he could drop dead at any time.


For full article on this story go here.

Words are fun

Check out this funny comic showing examples of English homophones, words that are pronounced the same but differ in meaning.

The President’s Favorite Phrase: A Video Mash-Up

President Obama is known for his eloquent speeches, but above all, he just wants to be clear...

For source go here.