I Hope Those Pillars Are Strong [PICS]

below is the recently (2003) extended runway at funchal airport in portugal. the original 1400m runway was notoriously short and, as a result, sometimes dangerous for landing planes (see here). the runway extension won the iabse’s ‘outstanding structures award’ and rightly so: due to an obvious lack of land, engineers have supported the exten

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Don't Swim In the San Francisco Bay

Nearly three million gallons (11 million liters) of partially treated sewage and storm water spilled into San Francisco Bay off the coast of affluent Marin County, officials said on Friday, just months after a major oil spill hit the bay.

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The 5 Most Expensive Universities in the World

“The cost of obtaining a U.S. degree is among the highest in the world and rising, which may discourage international students,” says a 2007 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Globally, the average cost of a public education in the U.S. ($4,587) was second only to Australia ($5,289).

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The Coldest Places on Earth

A few days ago, I woke to find my pipes frozen. The outdoor temperature was in the single digits, and the house temperature hovered in the 50s all day. The next day was warmer, but an ice storm soon followed. I made myself feel better by looking up the coldest places in the world.

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6 Tips on How to Escape Down an Airplane Slide

Emergency airplane evacuations happen more often than most people think: about once every 11 days in the U.S., according to a 2000 report by the National Transportation Safety Board. Some situations are more dire than others, of course, as when the plane is on fire, but in many cases, the biggest challenge of an evacuation can be the airplane slide

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7 Abandoned Wonders of the Former Soviet Union [w/ pics]

There are abandonments all over the world, but the former Soviet Union has some of the most interesting, unique and strange abandoned buildings. The complex political, military and social history of the country has led to everything from almost-finished buildings abandoned before actual use and entire abandoned cities to chilling gulags.

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