The Weird Bit

Landscape With Duck

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:35:00 PST

A wayward duck tries to catch up with his companions on their migration south in this hand-drawn animated short.

Vimeo link

(thanks Cora)

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The Myth Of The Eight-Hour Sleep

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:33:00 PST

We often worry about lying awake in the middle of the night - but it could be good for you. A growing body of evidence from both science and history suggests that the eight-hour sleep may be unnatural. In 2001, historian Roger Ekirch of Virginia Tech published a seminal paper, drawn from 16 years of research, revealing a wealth of historical evidence that humans used to sleep in two distinct chunks.

His book At Day's Close: Night in Times Past, published four years later, unearths more than 500 references to a segmented sleeping pattern - in diaries, court records, medical books and literature, from Homer's Odyssey to an anthropological account of modern tribes in Nigeria. These references describe a first sleep which began about two hours after dusk, followed by a waking period of one or two hours and then a second sleep. (...)

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Au Revoir, Mademoiselle

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:31:00 PST

France has abolished the term Mademoiselle from all official documents because it suggests a woman is 'available'. Prime minister Francois Fillon said the word - the French equivalent of 'Miss' - discriminates against women by asking them to reveal if they are married.

In a major victory for French feminists, the change was revealed in an official decree to ministries and regional authorities. From now on, Mademoiselle should be replaced with 'Madame', the female equivalent of 'Monsieur', because it does not indicate marital status, the order said.

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The Unearthly Beauty Of Antelope Canyon

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:27:00 PST

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The Navajo call it 'the place where water runs through rocks' and that is literally true. The peculiar formation of a slot canyon can make for an eerie experience and certainly the Antelope Canyon, on the lands of the LeChee people of the Navajo Nation is one of the stranger places you might choose to visit if your budget doesn't quite run to a space shuttle.

The shuttle, though, never lands on alien planets - yet you can still get the experience for very little here on our very own third rock from the sun. One of the most unearthly places on the planet, take a look at the astounding Antelope Canyon.

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Incredible Ice City

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:25:00 PST

The temperature in Harbin, China reaches forty below zero and stays below freezing nearly half the year. The city is actually further north than notoriously cold Vladivostok, Russia, just 300 miles away.

So what does one do here every winter? Hold an outdoor festival, of course! Rather than suffer the cold, the residents of Harbin celebrate it, with an annual festival of snow and ice sculptures and competitions. (...)

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Crazy Stuff People Do To Get Jobs

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:23:00 PST

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Would you auction yourself on eBay to get a job? Or spent $7,000 to rent a billboard to advertise yourself? Or write a song that explains your qualifications? Some people do! Here are some of the crazy stunts people pulled to solidify employment for themselves. (...)

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Top 10 Worst Food And Drink World Records

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:21:00 PST

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People have set world records for most 'ghost chillis' eaten in two minutes, eating the world's largest burger, fastest ice cream eating, drinking the largest cup of coffee, etc. But it's really not that healthy.

Top 10 Worst Food And Drink World Records.

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MyAllSearch

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:19:00 PST

MyAllSearch is an internet search tool that saves you time and makes your Web searches much easier. With MyAllSearch you only enter keywords once, then getting and comparing original results from over sixty search engines across seven categories is as simple as clicking the engine's name. No more retyping keywords into different search engines.

MyAllSearch gives one click access to the search results of the best search providers on the Internet, featuring Google, Bing, Ask.com, Yahoo! (...)

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Driver stopped with five reindeer in back of car

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:39:32 PST

Police in Norway were shocked to see a motorist driving with three reindeer sitting on the back seat of his car… and that was before they stopped him and found two more in the boot.The driver is said to have been moving the animals around 60 miles from Karasjok to Børselv and claimed to have clearance from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority to transport them.A spokesperson from the Norwegian Public Roads Administration is reported to have said: "There are no limits to what people will get up to in traffic. I've stopped being surprised," And before you ask, no, none of the reindeer were wearing seatbelts.

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1-in-4 of Brits have sex photos on their phone

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:35:29 PST

More than a quarter of Brits have taken ‘sex’ photos or videos of their partner with their mobile phone, it has been found.The poll also found that 34% of those with saucy photo or video on their smartphone had shared it with friends.And even if they've not been actively shared the photos might not stay private, because 65% are kept on phones without a PIN lock.12% of the almost 2,000 polled even admitted keeping sexy snaps of ex-partners on their mobiles.Of the respondents who'd never taken a sexy snap or video on their phone, 38% said they would consider doing so in the future. (...)

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Finnish president’s husband busted sneaking a peek at Princess’s boobs

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:32:40 PST

The boobs of a Princess of Denmark almost caused a diplomatic incident recently -- when the Finnish president's husband got busted ogling them on TV.Princess Mary of Denmark was attending a state banquet and had been seated next to Pentti Arajarvi who is married to Finnish president Tarja Halonen.And when the princess was looking to her side, Arajarvi decided to have a sneaky look at her cleavage.Only it wasn't that sneaky, he was caught by TV cameras and judging by the way she spun around and looked at him, the princess knew he wasn't just admiring her neckless.

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Dining tables only 5th most popular breakfast spot

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:28:28 PST

The dining table is only the fifth most popular place to eat breakfast, a study revealed yesterday.Despite being the traditional place to start your day, the dining table was beaten by our desks, the sofa and even the commute to work. Researchers found a third of Brits say that they never sit down and eat breakfast at a table and those that do are unlikely to do it at any point other than at the weekend. Instead the study revealed that people were likely to squeeze in brekkie while driving or even while getting dressed or showered. Time emerged as the main factor for Brits who said they were too busy rushing around of a morning to take the time and sit down and eat properly. (...)

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M25 orbital coach tour is surprise hit — sells out

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:18:42 PST

Sitting in a traffic jam on the M25 isn't exactly our idea of a good day out, but apparently for some people it must be… Bosses of the Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company say their £15 coach tour of the M25 has proven a bizarre hit and sold out.Complete with a commentary detailing "interesting facts about the motorway’s evolution" and pointing out landmarks the tour takes in the entire 117-mile London orbital.A spokesperson for Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company said: "We’re keeping it as a surprise whether we’ll travel clockwise or anti-clockwise but all the great opportunities to see the amazing sights around this iconic motorway will be available."Sights include including Epping Forest, Heathrow Airport’s Terminal Five, Lakeside, the magnificent Dartford River Crossing bridge and much more… apparently.

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Birdman releases footage of his 120mph crash into South Africa’s Table Mountain

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:31:30 PST

Job Corliss, a daredevil who nearly died after crashing into Table Mountain in South Africa, has posted footage only of the accident.

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Chinese ‘ghost bride’ sold twice into marriage

theweirdbit — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 00:21:56 PST

A woman in China was sold twice into marriage within days, despite both she and the grooms being dead.

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GPs overpaid for 95,000 ‘ghost’ patients

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:30:40 PST

The NHS is overpaying millions of pounds to GPs for "ghost" patients who have moved practice, died or left the country, a government spending watchdog has found.

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My wife was second best hotel receptionist we ever had

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:30:18 PST

A multi-millionaire hotel boss who told his wife she was the second best receptionist he ever had is fighting in the Appeal Court to reduce her £2.7 million divorce payout.

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ITV News sorry over race ‘coloured’ remark

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:15:50 PST

ITV News has apologised after using the term "coloured" during a report about racism in football on Wednesday.

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Woman ‘who ran prostitutes trapped by her laptop’

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:00:46 PST

A businesswoman who earned £300,000 by running an escort agency was caught when she reported a burglary at her Kensington home, a court heard.

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Trees cut down after single complaint at ‘slippery berries’

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:00:19 PST

A council cut down three well-loved rowan trees after receiving just one complaint that fallen berries posed a "slip risk".

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Wartime population faced ‘eating plankton to avert food shortages’

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:00:12 PST

Britain's wartime population would have been fed plankton by scientists under proposals to avert critical food shortages, newly discovered documents have disclosed.

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Male chromosome is not doomed, say scientists

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 22:47:40 PST

Fears that the male Y chromosome could be wiped out within five million years have been undermined by new research showing the drop in genes has stabilised.

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Totnes divided over gnome ornaments designed to brighten up the Devon town

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 22:30:35 PST

A war of words has broken out in an upmarket town over a collection of bright blue gnomes designed to add a splash of colour to the community.

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Rare US comic books fetch $3.5m

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:31:07 PST

A collection of early comic books - including those featuring the debuts of Batman and Superman - is sold for $3.5m (£2.2m) at auction in New York.

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Pawnshops for prosperous accept wine as collateral (Reuters)

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:36:23 PST

Reuters - literally.

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Street artists join the war on Manila smog

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 09:56:48 PST

MANILA (Reuters) - Their canvas is a stretch of dingy concrete wall along Manila's main highway, where millions of vehicles stream past every day, belching exhaust that helps to create a noxious, unhealthy smog.

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Rio Tinto finds biggest Australia rough pink diamond

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 09:11:49 PST

LONDON (Reuters) - Mining group Rio Tinto has unearthed an extremely rare pink diamond, Australia's biggest rough pink diamond weighing 12.76 carats at its Argyle mine.

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Landmark bridge demolished in US

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:55:38 PST

The Fort Steuben bridge, more than 83-years-old, is violently and swiftly demolished in Steubenville, Ohio.

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Homer Simpson’s favourite drink Duff beer goes on sale in the UK

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:42:29 PST

It's a beverage that has been synonymous with The Simpsons for over 23 years and now fans of the animated sitcom can try Duff beer for themselves.

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‘Moo-ve along, nothing to see here’ – police called to investigate fake cow

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:20:20 PST

Police in Germany have been accused of milking it after a cow reported to be waiting on a train platform turned out to be a fake.

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Unusual wedding invitations

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:16:41 PST

Unusual wedding invitations made from tea towels, CDs and even playable vinyl records

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Did David Cameron really ‘fist bump’ Andrew Lansley after PMQs?

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 08:03:37 PST

Andrew Lansley may have already been buoyed by David Cameron's defence of his controversial health reforms in the Commons, but he has reportedly received a further morale boost in the form of a friendly "fist bump" from the Prime Minister.

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Chinese Woman Gives Birth to 15.4-pound Baby

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 07:00:52 PST

A mother from central China has given birth to a baby weighing a whopping 7 kg. That’s 15.4 pounds for you non-metric people. For some perspective, an average baby would check in at just over half that weight. (...)

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Indonesia’s Seven-year-old Mountain Climber

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 07:00:20 PST

Arya Cahaya Mulya Sugiarto, 7, from Pemekasan, Madura, East Java, has an unusual mission. He climbs mountains simply because they are there. Arya has already climbed 14 mountains and has set his sights on the world’s highest peaks. His achievements include: Mount Semeru in Java in August 2010 when he was just 5, and then [... (...)

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Divers’ faces during the FINA Diving World Cup at the London 2012 Aquatics Centre

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 06:13:17 PST

Slideshow: Amazing images of divers competing at FINA World Cup.

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Recycled toilets made into school desks by potty Chinese inventor

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 05:30:38 PST

It may seem a bit potty but one inventor believes he has found the perfect way to salvage unwanted toilets - by turning them into desks for local schoolchildren.

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Pictures of the day: 22 February 2012

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:20:53 PST

Fighting elephants, a kissing contest, and a large pink diamond.

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FriendSheep

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:14:00 PST

A short film made entirely by students from the Valencia-based school of animation PrimerFrame , pre-production began in March 2010, completing a year later and has since received numerous awards, nominations and national projections and internationally.

Vimeo link

(thanks Cora)

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Worf Is Always Wrong

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:13:00 PST

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Worf is a Klingon character in 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' and in seasons four to seven of 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.' Worf is a character who doesn't get much respect - despite frequent suggestions for action, he is routinely denied, his orders belayed, and his opinion generally disrespected. In fact, frustration is his primary emotion. Despite this, he never loses his cool.

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Google Doodle Pays Tribute To Heinrich Hertz

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:10:00 PST

Today's Google doodle takes the form of electromagnetic waves to pay tribute to German physicist Heinrich Rudolf Hertz on his 155th birth anniversary. Hertz was born at Hamburg on February 22, 1857. Hertz was the first to broadcast and receive radio waves. His pioneering work laid the way for the development of radio, television and radar.

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Portrait Made With Coffe Cup Rings

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:08:00 PST

Malaysian artist Hong Yi (nicknamed Red) graduated from the University of Melbourne, Australia, with a Master of Architecture degree and a Bachelor of Planning and Design degree. In her final year, she was awarded a Melbourne Abroad Scholarship to study at the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands, which broadened her perspective and exposure in the field of European architecture.

She also likes to create art. Not with the usual paintbrush and pencils though but with whatever she can get hold of. Using nothing but coffee cup rings she created a portrait of Taiwanese musician Jay Chou. (...)

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Wau: The Most Amazing, Ancient, And Singular Number

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:06:00 PST

Wau (the ancestor of the Latin letter F) is an archaic letter of the Greek alphabet which originally stood for the sound /w/ and later remained in use only as a numeral symbol for the number '6'. Whereas it was originally called wau, its most common appellation in classical Greek is digamma.

YouTube link

(via Reality Carnival)

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Dune De Pyla – A New ‘Sahara’ Desert Being Born In France

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:04:00 PST

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It looks like Europe has started turning into a new sahara desert. The Great Dune of Pyla is the tallest sand dune in Europe. It is located in the Arcachon Bay area in France.

The dune has a volume of about 60,000,000 m³, measuring around 1,640 ft (500 m) wide from east to west and 1,9 miles (3 km) in length from north to south. The dune moves relentlessly towards the interior of the country and gradually covers buildings and roads. (...)

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Listerine Cigarettes

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:02:00 PST

Listerine is a brand of antiseptic mouthwash. It was named after Joseph Lister who promoted the idea of sterile surgery by sterilizing instruments.

Originally marketed by the Lambert Pharmacal Company (which later became Warner-Lambert), it is currently manufactured and distributed by Johnson and Johnson. For a short time, beginning in 1927, the Lambert Pharmacal Company even marketed Listerine Cigarettes.

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Photographer Spends Over 10 Years Building 35-Foot-Long Camera

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:00:00 PST

In a world where all things small are considered beautiful and cool, a photographer is doing something quite drastically different from the norm. Dennis Manarchy is in the process of creating a camera that is so huge, it captures 24-foot tall realistic photographs of incredible detail.

The camera itself is huge. Being 35 feet long, 12 feet tall and 8 feet wide, it's large enough to fit a small apartment into. It uses negatives that are 4. (...)

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Superman stunt shows man flying past car window

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:50:54 PST

A video of a real-life superman flying besides a car in Costa Rica, has become a hit on YouTube, as well it might.The 24 second clip appears to show the sunglasses-wearing man flying beside the car before knocking on the window and asking for directions to to San José.But the Superman isn't really flying (sorry to spoil it for you) and the man is actually leaning forwards from the rear of the car.Personally our favourite touch is the way in which he swoops up and down for added authenticity… and that he didn't clip a lamppost.

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Rhino horn robbers strike in Norwich… yes we said Norwich!

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:40:28 PST

Norwich might not be the most likely location to find rhinos, but a gang of would-be rhino horn robbers recently struck there.Police say the gang targeted the Norwich Castle Museum where they forced open a display case containing the head.After failing to dislodge the horn -- which can sell for £50,000 per kilogram on the black market -- they tried to make off with the entire head.However the heavy head slowed the four men and they were disturbed by museum staff who grabbed the rhino head and caused the men to flee.A spokesperson for the museum said that as the robbers had paid to enter the museum and left empty-handed, they had done better of of the crime than the crooks. (...)

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British women are hoarding 156 million bras

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:30:43 PST

British women are hoarding 156 MILLION bras they don’t wear, it has been claimed.Researchers found the average female has a collection of nine bras, but more than half of these are sat gathering dust in drawers.Additionally nearly half of women own bras they have NEVER worn.The biggest reason for discarded underwear was because women find their bras uncomfortable with a third keeping them despite being the wrong size.Other reasons were that the bras were unflattering, unfashionable or made their breasts look funny under certain clothes. (...)

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Dogs teach baby how to chew toys (VIDEO)

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:05:54 PST

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks… but old dogs are perfectly capable of teaching tricks to babies, as this video shows.Currently going viral, the video entitled 'Puggles teach baby to chew' starts off showing a dog munching on a toy, before panning over to a little boy lying on his belly.After examining what the dog was doing the baby then proceeds to chew his toy in a very similar manner.The video has already been viewed more than 140,000 times. It's not known if the dogs went on to teach the lad how to chase cats or pee up lamp-posts. (...)

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Man survived months trapped in snowed-in car

theweirdbit — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:00:08 PST

A Swedish man has somehow survived being trapped in a snowed-in car for two months, it's been reported.The 45-year-old man is said to have crashed his car on a forest track near the city of Umea in the north of Sweden on December 19th.And after being trapped in the vehicle by heavy snow, he's said to have stayed there until he was recently rescued after being spotted by snowmobilers.Police were called and the man was rushed to a nearby hospital where he's said to be recovering and in a stable condition.It's understood he survived by wrapping up in a sleeping bag and conserving his energy… not by munching frozen beer like this guy. (...)

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