UbuneBlog

Clad in samurai armour, Ishin Takahashi was among thousands who took part in an ancient festival at the weekend in the shadow of the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. With an evacuation order following last year’s atomic crisis and rampant fears about radiation, the 1,000-year-old “Soma Nomaoi”, or wild horse chase, was all but cancelled following […]

The grandson of former U.S. President Harry Truman, who authorized the atomic bombing of Japan during World War II, visited Hiroshima Saturday before the 67th anniversary of its devastation. Clifton Truman Daniel, 55, toured the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and offered a silent prayer for victims of the 1945 wartime nuclear bombing, press reports said. […]

South African Oscar Pistorius made history on Saturday when he became the first double amputee to compete in an athletics event at the Olympics. The 25-year-old qualified for the semifinals of the 400 meters by running a season’s best of 45.44 seconds in finishing second. Pistorius, who had both legs amputated below the knee before […]

Just before sunrise, a select group of Syrian rebel fighters step away from the front lines here for a task their commanders now consider a vital and urgent part of the war effort: baking bread. The floppy moons that they produce usually go quickly to hungry residents and rebels. Bread is a staple of the […]

All you “Walking Dead” fans out there probably feel pretty confident you could handle a zombie apocalypse. But how would you really react if you witnessed actual in-the-rotting-flesh walkers hobbling through the streets of your town? You’d probably scream and run away, if this “Walking Dead” promo clip is any indication. AMC teamed up with […]

South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, the world’s top smartphone maker, has sold more than 10 million units of its newest Galaxy S III model since its launch about two months ago, a report said Sunday. The company said earlier this month it expected a record operating profit of 6.7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in the second […]

A 70,000-strong volunteer army from across the globe is helping to put on the 2012 Olympics, giving up their free time or holidays in return for a part in the biggest show on Earth. Teachers, lawyers and students are among the “Games Makers” eagerly taking a role in London’s Olympic adventure and relishing the chance […]

Nobel prize winner Muhammad Yunus said Thursday that microfinance could help disaster-struck Japan rebuild, even though the concept he pioneered is usually associated with poor and developing nations. Yunus, seen as one of the world’s leading anti-poverty activists, said extending small loans could help people in regions devastated by last year’s quake-tsunami disaster, despite Japan […]

The UK and India have called on China and other countries to ban tiger farms because they undermine conservation efforts. But China responded strongly at the meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species in Geneva, challenging delegates to “show us the evidence that [tiger farms] encourage poaching of wild tigers”. There are […]

GUN sales in Colorado have soared following the shootings in a cinema that claimed 12 lives and left 58 wounded. Background checks on customers who bought guns were up 41 per cent after Friday’s shooting at a packed cinema screening of the latest Batman film The Dark Knight Rises, according to The Denver Post. The […]