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New Yorkers Marvel at 'Manhattanhenge' Sunset

New Yorkers gathered at dusk to witness "Manhattanhenge" -- a rare alignment of the sun with the east-west street grid in which it appears to set between skyscrapers.

Dozens of people gathered shortly before 8:30 pm Wednesday (0030 GMT Thursday) at the corner of 14th and Sixth Avenue, taking pictures of the huge red sun at the foot of the urban canyon formed by the buildings.

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'Love Hotel' For Dogs to Open In Brazil

Home to a 32-million-strong canine population, the world's second largest after the United States, Brazil is to open a "love hotel" for pets in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte.

The economic daily Valor reported that Fabiano Lourdes and his sister Daniela planned this week to inaugurate "Animalle Mundo Pet," an eight-story building with an entire floor devoted to dog tryst.

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South African Farmer Equips Sheep with Cell Phones

A South African farmer is fielding phone calls from his sheep, after equipping them with cell phones to keep tabs on the flock amid recent livestock thefts, according to local press Wednesday.

When the sheep call, it is always bad news for farmer Erard Louw of the Cape Town suburbs, as the phones around their necks are only set to switch on when the sheep start running, a sign thieves have cut through the fences.

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Gator Severs Florida Boy's Arm

A Florida teenager lost his arm after being attacked by a 10-foot (three meter) long alligator while swimming in a river the southwest of the state, wildlife officials said Tuesday.

Kaleb Langdale, 17, was swimming Monday in the Caloosahatchee River northwest of Miami when he was set upon by the reptile, which severed his right arm below the elbow.

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Cuban Hopes to Pedal Big Bike into Record Books

For years, Felix Guirola has earned stares of astonishment from fellow Cubans as he pedals his giant bicycle down the streets of Havana. Now he hopes to wheel himself into the record books.

From his humble home in Cuba's capital city, Guirola labors away in his small workshop on the mammoth contraptions that have earned him increasing fame.

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Lawmakers Catch Heat for Ogling Pinups at Work

Demonstrators Tuesday called for the resignation of a pair of Guatemalan lawmakers photographed at their bench desks gawking at cellphone images of bikini-clad girls.

Instead of sizing up the merits of a bill, Jose Gandara, 67, and Carlos Rafael Fion, 59, were snapped at their bench on Thursday evaluating models in tiny swimwear.

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Thai Red Shirt Sentenced Over Royal Seating Claim

A key Thai Red Shirt leader was on Tuesday given a suspended jail term for slander over claims he accused the former premier of sitting incorrectly during an audience with Thailand's revered king.

Jatuporn Prompan was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, after the Thai Criminal Court found him guilty of slandering former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva in 2009.

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Russian Wikipedia Shuts Down In Protest at Internet Bill

The Russian-language Wikipedia website shut down Tuesday and symbolically blacked out its logo in protest at a bill that would allow the state to block access to blacklisted websites.

"Imagine a world without free knowledge," it said in a statement on an otherwise white page, saying amendments to be discussed in parliament Wednesday "could lead to the creation of extrajudicial censorship of the whole Russian-language Internet".

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Physicists Find Chink in the Bat Suit

Batman would need a parachute to land safely in real life, say physicists who recommend a cape redesign if the masked superhero is to pursue his exploits outside the pages of comic books or celluloid.

On the big screen, the crime-fighter is able to glide from tall buildings using a cape spread out like wings -- similar to the method used by base jumpers who leap from bridges, buildings and cliffs wearing winged suits.

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Homeless Pair Finds Loot in Brazil, Turns It In

A homeless Brazilian couple that lives under the bridges of Sao Paulo found a garbage bag filled with 20,000 reels ($10,000) on a sidewalk Monday -- and promptly turned it into the police.

Officials said the pair was out for a dawn stroll when they heard an alarm.

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