The Octopus: Honorary Vertebrate?
They’re smart enough to be in the club, according to the EU.
Science
Judge Rules Man Fathered Only One Twin
That ruling might seem either stupid or worthy of Solomon, but it’s just what the DNA evidence showed.
DEA Agent: If You Legalize Pot, Rabbits Will Get High
In which a DEA testifies to witnessing “rabbits that had cultivated a taste for … marijuana,” and had lost all motivation.
Whereas, South Florida Should Become the 51st State
That's the view of the City of South Miami, at least, or to be more specific it's the view of three of its five commissioners. By a 3-2 vote, the city commission has, for the second time, passed a resolution…
Followup to the Camera-Comment Controversy
Here's an update to yesterday's item on the Idaho legislator who asked whether a swallowed camera could be used for a gynecological exam. This clip from a local news report (thanks, J) includes some video from the hearing in question,…
Male Legislator Asks If Swallowed Camera Could Be Used for Gynecology
This has stunned me into a near-silence so I'm going to rely mostly on the Associated Press (thanks, Adam): BOISE, Idaho — An Idaho lawmaker received a brief lesson on female anatomy after asking if a woman can swallow a…
Counsel, That’s Not Your Normal Speaking Voice, Is It?
This is a couple of weeks old, so avert your eyes if you object to that. Also avert them if you are a male lawyer with a really deep masculine-sounding voice, because this may make you cry like a little…
Court Suggests Plaintiff Could Have Grounded His Brain
A statement in a judicial opinion that isn't necessary to the holding is called a dictum (pl. dicta), and isn't technically binding (though it may or may not be persuasive). Here's a good example of that from a 1976 federal case (thanks,…
Scientists’ Earthquake-Manslaughter Convictions Overturned
The credibility of Italy's entire scientific community has been restored. —Stefano Gresta, President of the NationalInstitute of Geophysics (Nov. 11, 2014) Well, we never doubted its scientific community. <checks blog to confirm that he never mocked Italy's scientific community> Just the legal one….
The 2014 Ig Nobel Prizes
As long as I'm on the topic of Nobel-Prize-Related Comedy With at Best a Tenuous Connection to Legal Humor (see "Did You Pack This Nobel Prize Yourself?" (Oct. 16)), I should mention this year's Ig Nobel Prize winners, which were announced not…