EUREKA: Scientists May Have Discovered The ‘Thin Pill’ INQUIRER: Today’s booming gym business could start to go bust if scientists confirm the initial promise of two performance-enhancing, fat-melting pills that mimic the physiological benefits of exercise without all the sweat. Results published today in the journal Cell show the drugs turn ordinary mice into trim marathon champions. There should be no shortage of volunteers ready see if they do they same in humans. The two drugs, which go by their scientific names AICAR and GW1516, have two different target demographics: Couch potatoes might consider AICAR, which seems to build endurance […]
DAILY DOS: Elizabeth Edwards On Colbert Report
Last night’s complete Daily Show With Jon Stewart after the jump. Enjoy.
Weapons Scare Shuts Down Independence Mall
INQUIRER: The area around Independence Mall was tied in knots this morning after a man and a woman attempted to enter the William Green Federal Building about 11 a.m. with “prohibited items,” authorities said. The couple was detained and federal agents searched a car in an adjoining garage, where they discovered additional “prohibited items.” Broadcast reports said the couple had ammunition and a knife in their pockets and a shotgun stowed in their car. As a precaution, police evacuated the Federal Building, Philadelphia’s best-known tourist attractions and a daycare center. A garage adjoining the federal building also was evacuated. Traffic […]
BREAKING: Elizabeth Taylor Taken Off Life Support
DAILY MAIL: Elizabeth Taylor was put on a life support machine after suffering congestive heart failure, it was reported this evening. The 76-year-old’s condition was said to have deteriorated after she was initially diagnosed with pneumonia last week. Her children were at her bedside and doctors warned she might not survive, said the U.S. publication National Enquirer. UPDATE: LOS ANGELES — Elizabeth Taylor was hospitalized for an undisclosed reason but was expected to return home soon, representatives for the Oscar-winning actress said Thursday. A statement released by Dick Guttman, her Los Angeles-based publicist, did not say where Taylor was staying, […]
JUDGE: No Legal Precedent For White House Aide ‘Executive Privilege’ Claim, Rove, Miers, Bolten Must Appear Before Congress, Turn Over Documents
ASSOCIATED PRESS: President Bush’s top advisers are not immune from congressional subpoenas, a federal judge ruled Thursday in an unprecedented dispute between the two political branches. House Democrats called the ruling a ringing endorsement of the principle that nobody is above the law. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge John Bates said there’s no legal basis for Bush’s argument and that his former legal counsel, Harriet Miers, must appear before Congress. If she wants to refuse to testify, he said, she must do so in person. The committee also has sought to force testimony from White House chief of staff […]
TRUCKSTOP: The Best Meals On Four Wheels
BY AARON STELLA Welcome my fellow hungry Americans to another edition of Truck Stop, where each week we’ll visit street vendors in different parts of Philadelphia to assist the common wayfarer in their travels and grub scavenging. Hey, don’t give me that look — if you ain’t too proud to get your news off the Internet, then you probably ain’t too proud to eat sushi off a truck. This week: the Center City theater and financial district. As I was zooming down 12th street on my way from Temple University to Center City, I fantasized about the fine cuisine Center […]
GOLIATH: How One Man Brought Comcast To Its Knees
INQUIRER: [T]he FCC, for the first time, will establish enforceable rules for how Comcast and other broadband companies can treat the Internet. The agency is calling the order a precedent-setting move that will provide some consumer protections. The agency’s five commissioners are expected to vote on it tomorrow at the agency headquarters in Washington. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican, has found allies in Democratic Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan S. Adelstein, who reportedly intend to vote for the punishment order. Republican Commissioners Robert M. McDowell and Deborah Taylor Tate are expected to oppose Martin’s order. Comcast and FCC have […]
KILLADELPHIA: 10 Year Old Takes Lead In Gun Battle
NBC10: PHILADELPHIA — Police said Wednesday a 10-year-old girl was caught in the middle of a frightening gun battle on the streets of West Philadelphia.Victoria Green, along with two men, were shot in the area of Ruby and Chestnut streets. Green was shot in the leg and rushed to Children’s Hospital. “Ten years old, out here playing, can’t even play in front of your door with violence going on. I mean it’s ridiculous,” David Smith, the victim’s uncle, said. Police said the shooting began with a cell phone call saying there was going to be a fight. Then, police said […]
LUDACRIS: Obama Is Was Here
ALL HIP-HOP: Presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Barack Obama has condemned an endorsement song from Ludacris, in which the Atlanta MC criticizes rivals Hillary Clinton and John McCain. The song “Politics: Obama Is Here” contains celebratory bars on Obama’s success (“The first is destined and it’s meant to be”), but turns venomous when Obama’s rivals are addressed. Ludacris references the bitter Democratic primary battle by stating “Hillary hated on you/So that b**ch is irrelevant.” Regarding Republican nominee John McCain, the rapper rhymes: “McCain don’t belong in ANY chair unless he’s paralyzed/ Yeah I said it cause Bush is mentally handicapped/ Ball […]
OVERHEARD: Sucking In The 70s
[From today’s edition of Fresh Air] TERRY GROSS: I happen to know you play bassoon. RAINN WILSON: Yeah, I do. TERRY GROSS: Which is great, it’s a great instrument, a lot of people don’t even know what it sounds like. RAINN WILSON: Sounds a little like this [makes bassoon sound]….I think. TERRY GROSS: It’s a hard instrument to play. RAINN WILSON: It’s very hard, it’s a double reed. It’s also a ‘girl repellent.’ TERRY GROSS: [laughs uproariously] RAINN WILSON: So all you aspiring bassoonists out there, thrown down the bassoon and pick up the electric guitar. TERRY GROSS: You have […]
THE EARLY WORD: The Mambo Kings
Details after the jump…
NPR 4 THE DEF: Giving Public Radio Edge Since 2006
FRESH AIR While his Office character may take himself seriously, actor Rainn Wilson seems to be all about the laughs. Wilson plays beet-farming, archery-loving middle-management kook Dwight Schrute on the NBC hit television series. Now, Wilson is trading his crossbow for a guitar in the new film The Rocker. In The Rocker, Wilson plays a failed hair metal musician. After he’s kicked out of his band, the group goes on to achieve great success. But when he joins his nephew’s garage band, he gets a second chance at fame. Wilson made his breakthrough as an actor playing an eccentric mortician […]
We Know It’s Only Rock N’ Roll But We Like It
HEY, MR. SPACEMAN: Spiritualized, TLA, Last Night [Photos by JONATHAN VALANIA]