schliz writes "Like in World of Warcraft, students of Indiana University's game design classes start as Level 1 avatars with 0 XP, and progress by completing quests solo, as guilds, or in 'pick up groups.' Course coordinator Lee Sheldon says students are responding with 'far greater enthusiasm,' and many specifics of game design could also be directly applied to the workforce. These included: clearly defining goals for workers; providing incremental rewards; and balancing effort and reward."

hansamurai writes "Over one hundred cars equipped with a Webtech Plus blackbox were remotely disabled when a former employee of dealership Texas Auto Center got hold of his employer's database of users. Webtech Plus is repossession software that allows the dealership to disable a car's ignition or trigger the horn to honk when a payment is due. Owners had to remove the battery to stop the incessant honking. After the dealership began fielding an unusually high number of calls from upset car owners, they changed the passwords to the Webtech Plus software and then traced the IP address used to access the client to its former employee."

swandives writes "Australian gamers will dress as zombies to raise awareness about the lack of an R18+ rating for video games in the country. The protest will begin at Hyde Park Fountain on March 27 and lumber through Sydney, raising awareness of the need for a higher classification rating and hopefully causing a bit of havoc at the same time! Computerworld Australia has pictures of previous zombie protests in the lead-up to the event. Australia has a long history of lobbying for an R18+ games classification but, even after a decade, video games are banned from sale if they exceed the maximum M15+ classification. So far, the list of banned titles includes 7 Sins, Risen, Left 4 Dead 2 and Dark Sector. Others, like Alien vs. Predator, were initially banned but appealed the rating and are now MA15+."

Dr. Iona Heath has criticized rules that prevent doctors or visitors from sitting on patients' beds, calling them "demeaning" and "joyless." Some hospitals have also banned flowers in an attempt to reduce MRSA infections. The UK Department of Health says such rules are determined by individual hospitals, but thinks such policies are good. Dr. Heath says that there is, "no hard evidence for either of these demeaning prohibitions. Doctors should never be discouraged from sitting, because patients consistently estimate that they have been given more time when the doctor sits down rather than stands. Such interactions are precious and should be made easier rather than more difficult."

Maple syrup producers are taking some heat over tapping trees in a few Massachusetts cemeteries. From the article: "In Lancaster’s Old Settlers and Eastwood cemeteries, the Lancaster Cub Scout Pack 9 tapped trees as part of a project after receiving permission. But Lancaster selectmen said they didn’t know cemetery trees would be tapped and they received several calls about it. Walsh said tapping trees along roads is normal, but in cemeteries it’s 'a little tacky.'" It should be noted that grave syrup is an important part of a balanced goth breakfast.

Thousands of anti-government protesters in Bangkok dumped their blood in front of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's house. The previous day saw a similar bloodbath at his office and the Democrat Party headquarters. Protest leaders claim to have spilled 600 liters of blood collected from 60,000 people in the two-day gore fest. "Hundreds of liters of blood of the common people are mixing together to express one common demand — and that demand is for Abhisit to get out!" said protest leader Nattawut Saikua.

indiavision writes "A host of young Japanese are drawn to the allure of 'therapeutic ringtones' — a genre of melodies that promises to ease a range of day-to-day gripes, from chronic insomnia to a rotten hangover. Developed by Matsumi Suzuki, the head of the Japan Ringing Tone Laboratory, an eight-year-old subsidiary of the Japan Acoustic Laboratory, the tones are a hit with housewives as well as teenagers."

An anonymous reader writes "Chris Jarvis, 31, is described as a Star Wars fan and member of the International Church of Jediism. Said church's intergalactic hoodie uniform is at odds with the strict doctrine of the Department for Work and Pensions, which may require Jobcentre 'customers' to remove crash helmets or hoods for 'security reasons.' Following his ejection, Jarvis filled out a complaint form and within three days got a written apology from branch boss Wendy Flewers. She said: 'We are committed to provide a customer service which embraces diversity and respects customers' religion.'"

You might think a raccoon that has been smashed flat by a car is disgusting, but aspiring fashion designer James Faulkner thinks it would make a wonderful hat. Faulkner's makes hats from the feather and fur of animals that have been killed on roads. Most of his hats are made of foxes, magpies, rabbits, wood pigeons, pheasants, mallards, crows and peacocks. Faulkner says, "It sounds very sinister, but I find it very satisfying to make something beautiful from something gruesome. It started when my friend wanted to buy a hat for her wedding. Without thinking, I said I'd make one, then I instantly panicked, but one day I was walking along the road and I spotted a magpie in quite a sorry state. I knew that my friend's dress was black and white so I thought it could work. I picked it up using a plastic bag and later used the wing feathers to make the hat. It sounds awful, but I cut off the wings with an axe."

angry tapir writes "The Xbox 360 RROD coffin was created by Aussie designer Alexis Vanamois, and it does exactly what it says on the tin. It's the ultimate final resting place for 'bricked' Xbox 360 consoles that have suffered the Red Ring of Death; it even has a cavity for your controller!"

For the amazingly low price of £149 per person, plus flights, two British companies, Last Night of Freedom and Chillisauce, have come up with the final solution for your stag party. You'll enjoy drinking till you pass out, paint ball, white-water rafting, strippers and a tour of the Auschwitz concentration camp. From the article: "Holocaust groups are appalled, while one tour organiser admitted last week that it conjured up 'a horrible impression of lap dancers' at the Nazi death camp."

If you know why a person would need: two handguns, marijuana, five knives, a machete, a stun gun, handcuffs, a bail bondsman badge, an open container of Captain Morgan rum and one clown mask, the Oregon State Troopers would like to know. Troopers found the collection after pulling over a Ford Crown Victoria occupied by three men on their way to a night to remember.

A South African prostitute known only as "Kylie" has decided she's not going to take her firing lying down. She has gone to court, claiming she was unfairly released from her job at a massage parlor. The problem for Kylie is that prostitution is illegal in South Africa so the judge at the labour appeals court has expressed his doubts about the legality of a person engaged in illegal activity challenging a dismissal. "When dismissed you are made to stop with something criminal... but then you say 'please protect me from someone who is stopping me from doing something criminal' — it doesn't makes sense to me," Judge President Raymond Zondo said.

Nieriko writes "The Planet is holding competitions to speed-assemble rack-mounted servers. It's like watching latter-day Marines field-strip and assemble their weapons. There is a video on YouTube about this incredible contest. Looks pretty challenging."

In an attempt to deal with autistic children who "have no sense of boundaries and do not respond to staff asking them to stop," a Sydney primary school has created pens which hold the disabled children during play time. As you might expect, parents have expressed outrage that their kids are forced to stand inside a fenced enclosure that has one tree, a bench and a dirt floor. The Department of Education said in a statement: "The school is located on a busy road. Without this area, the students may leave the school grounds and could potentially be injured. Some of these children have no sense of boundaries and do not respond to staff asking them to stop. Once the school is satisfied a student will listen to directions from staff members and is also aware of playground boundaries, the child can use the playground."

An anonymous reader writes "Students at Grace Academy in Chelmsley Wood, UK, have returned from half-term break to find staff had installed cameras in bathrooms without notifying them or their parents. Some parents are furious at what they say is a 'total invasion of privacy' and claim some pupils are so anxious about being watched they are refusing to use the facilities."

hargrand writes "The US Department of Education (ED) intends to purchase twenty-seven shotguns with very specific criteria. According to the article they want: '(27) Remington brand model 870 police 12/14P mod GRWC XS4 KXCS SF. RAMAC #24587 gauge: 12 barrel: 14" - Parkerized choke: modified sights: ghost ring rear Wilson combat; front - XS Contour bead sight stock: Knoxx reduce recoil adjustable stock fore-end: speedfeed sport-solid - 14" LOP'. Place of delivery: US Department of Education Office of Inspector General, Chicago, IL.'" I'm surprised they didn't ask for them to be sent to Knoxx first to be fitted with Sidewinder Tactical 10-round drums.

Lanxon writes "It's true: 'Effects of cocaine on honeybee dance behavior,' 'Fellatio by fruit bats prolongs copulation time,' and 'Are full or empty beer bottles sturdier and does their fracture-threshold suffice to break the human skull?' are all genuine scientific research papers, and all were genuinely published in journals or similar publications. Wired's presentation of a collection of the most bizarrely-named research papers contains seven other gems, including one about naval fluff and another published in The Journal of Sex Research."

Jim Kennedy lost his six-figure corporate development job 19 months ago, his house went into foreclosure, and his bankruptcy will be finalized in January. A story that is not uncommon these days. What is unusual about Kennedy is how he has been living since his financial meltdown. He has been supplementing his cost of living with reward points from hotel and airline loyalty programs. From the article: "This week, Kennedy is at the Holiday Inn Express in San Clemente, where he converted his United Airlines miles. He brought down the 7,000-points a night cost to 5,000 by adding $100 for his four-night stay, so it costs him $25 a night. But there’s an added benefit because he can expand his food budget with the free breakfast. It’s also convenient, as he can drive up the 5 Freeway to get his mail at the Mailboxes Plus in Irvine – he has a post office box because he has no address. It’s here he gets his unemployment checks, which he and 147,000 other jobless people in Orange County are using for survival."

Have you ever wanted to secretively spike an entire community's food supply with psychoactive drugs and see what happens? If so, then you should have joined the CIA in 1951. H .P. Albarelli Jr., an investigative journalist, claims that a sudden outbreak of mass insanity and hallucinations in the French town of Pont-Saint-Esprit 50 years ago was part of a CIA experiment with LSD, and not caused by flour contaminated with ergot as had been theorized. The brown bread that is circulating around us is not, specifically, too good. It's suggested that you do stay away from that.