AND I QUOTE

"Youth is a wonderful thing. What a crime to waste it on children."-George Bernard Shaw

PEOPLE BEING PEOPLE

A sting operation by a suburban Houston police department netted one of their own when surveillance cameras caught an officer repeatedly stealing colleagues' food and drinks from the refrigerator in the station's break room.

Deer Park police Officer Kevin Yang was charged with misdemeanor theft and suspended for 30 days without pay. Deer Park Police Chief Greg Griggs tells KTRK-TV of Houston that a class C misdemeanor conviction would not keep Yang from returning to duty.

Griggs says he authorized the video sting because the thefts have been going on for too long. Even though the items being stolen may be of trivial value, Griggs says theft is theft.

LIGHT UP THE WORLD

BACON LOVERS UNITE

Today pork aficionados are meeting  in Des Moines, Iowa, for the fifth annual Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival, billed as America's "premier" bacon celebration.
The event, which sold out all 4,000 tickets in 25 minutes, offers something to make every swine lover swoon: unlimited bacon samples, a bacon-eating contest, educational lectures, a bacon-themed songwriting contest and crowning of a new bacon queen. Organizers plan to serve up about three tons of the fatty strips.They're also prepared for a bit of oinking from outsiders. (click below to read more)

TODAY IN HISTORY

FEBRUARY 25
1986:Corazon Aquino is sworn in as president of the Philippines after Ferdinand Marcos — who ruled the country for over 20 years — flees following a disputed election. Aquino was the widow of assassinated Philippine Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. and the mother of the current president, Benigno S. Aquino III.

1950: Your Show of Shows, a variety program starring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca, premieres on NBC; the writing staff includes Mel Brooks, Neil Simon and Carl Reiner.

1964: Cassius Clay, a 22-year-old boxing underdog, wins the world heavyweight championship by dethroning Sonny Liston in seven rounds at the Convention Hall arena in Miami Beach, Fla. Shortly afterward, Clay would change his name to Muhammad Ali.

REAL TEAMWORK

VERY ADAPTABLE

SPACE, ON EARTH

A Sailing Stone in Death Valley
Image Credit: Nathan Alexander, Wikipedia

Explanation: How did this big rock end up on this strange terrain? One of the more unusual places here on Earth occurs inside Death Valley, California, USA. There a dried lakebed named Racetrack Playa exists that is almost perfectly flat, with the odd exception of some very large stones, one of which is pictured above. Now the flatness and texture of large playa like Racetrack are fascinating but not scientifically puzzling -- they are caused by mud flowing, drying, and cracking after a heavy rain. Only recently, however, has a viable scientific hypothesis been given to explain how 300-kilogram sailing stones ended up near the middle of such a large flat surface. Unfortunately, as frequently happens in science, a seemingly surreal problem ends up having a relatively mundane solution. It turns out that high winds after a rain can push even heavy rocks across a temporarily slick lakebed.

INTERACT CHAT ON FACEBOOK

Interactors and Rotarians from Chile, Egypt, South Africa, Uganda, the United States, and elsewhere participated in a Facebook chat on 7 February to discuss one Interact club’s efforts to raise funds and awareness for polio eradication. Members of the Interact Club of the Episcopal School of Knoxville, Tennessee, USA, spoke about their winning entry in the 2011 Interact video contest, which tells a dramatic story about the fight to end polio. Read what they had to say and see their photos.

ROTARY WEBINAR

Looking for ways to enhance your club or district’s literacy project? Starting a literacy project and not sure where to begin?(click below to read more)

WINNING