Aly Raisman released a list of demands for the U.S. Olympic Committee’s investigation into former USA Gymnastics physician Larry Nassar, who was sentenced this week to up to 175 years in prison on sexual assault charges.

In a statement posted to Twitter on Friday, Raisman lauded the USOC’s decision to launch an independent third-party investigation into both USA Gymnastics and the Olympic Committee, but insisted that the details remain open and available to the public. 

The statement she posted was an open letter to Scott Blackmun, CEO of the USOC. She criticized him on Tuesday for “shamelessly taking credit” for the resignation of three USAG board members, while the USOC was “still not acknowledging its own role in this mess.” Read more…

More about Olympics, Sexual Assault, Aly Raisman, Larry Nassar, and Usa Gymnastics

Can’t stand mosquitoes? Don’t stop swatting. 

They can actually learn to associate movements like swatting or shivering with human odors, according to a new study. Presumably not eager to go splat, the mosquitoes in the study learned to avoid the smell of a person who posed a threat. 

And, yes, mosquitoes have preferences when it comes to meals. Human beings are a favorite, and they even gain preferences for certain individuals (all the better if the person’s had a few drinks). 

Researchers for the new study exposed the insects to human odors along with shocks and vibrations. Later, mosquitoes flew upwind and had to choose between the smell of a tasty human — which they previously preferred — and a control odor.  Read more…

More about Mosquito, Insects, Mosquitoes, Science, and Animals

When Larry Nassar was sentenced Wednesday to a maximum of 175 years in prison for sexually assaulting girls and young women in his care, some watched the proceedings in disbelief. 

Maya Weinstein, a 23-year-old law student who followed the case closely, felt relief wash over her when Judge Rosemarie Aquilina handed down the most severe sentence possible to the former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor. Weinstein, a survivor of sexual assault, felt a kinship with Nassar’s victims, one that drew her to the case. She wasn’t sure at first whether they’d see justice, or be met with doubt and blame. Some of the survivors who spoke out against Nassar in court include Olympic gold medalists Aly Raisman and McKayla Maroney. Read more…

More about Social Good, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Rape, and Sexual Abuse

Chrissy Teigen is a talented woman in many guises, from culinary queen to TV host to mother.

She’s also the reigning champion of clapbacks, as someone who just accused her of getting plastic surgery has found out the hard way.

On Thursday, Teigen poked fun at herself on Instagram, posting this photo of her intense tan circa 2008. 

One Instagram user crossed Teigen with a backhanded compliment, pointing out how “natural and stunning” she looked “before the boobies and fillers.”  Read more…

More about Celebrities, Instagram, Chrissy Teigen, Clap Back, and Culture

Air travel can really take a toll on your body, so it’s not uncommon for people to take a few moments and stretch their legs in the aisle during a flight. But when a little stretch becomes straight up yoga, things have gone too far. 

A woman was spotted practicing her yoga poses mid-flight on a commercial plane with almost no regard for the people around her. When your pose places your rear end directly in front of some poor person’s face with an aisle seat, you’ve crossed a line.

At the end of the clip two flight attendants can even be seen laughing at the woman, who thankfully kept her yoga session short.  Read more…

More about Travel, Funny, Yoga, Planes, and Culture

In what may be the sweetest heist of the century, a squirrel in Aurora, Colorado, was just spotted lugging around a stolen frosted Danish. 

The pastry was almost half of the size of its captor, but the squirrel carried it through a parking lot, determined to get away. 

“He was looking for a cup of coffee I think,” said the person who took the video. But before it could enjoy its sugary treasure, a larger squirrel stole it and ran off. 

The pastry thief is still at large.  Read more…

More about Squirrel, Culture, and Animals

If you were an early investor in Bitcoin, you may remember that the now volatile cryptocurrency was once comparable to the honeymoon phase of a fun, new relationship. You watched your earnings increase on the daily, read constant pro-Bitcoin headlines, and felt smart for investing. However, it now feels like you’re in one of those unpredictable roller coaster relationships, where breaking up occurs every other week.  Read more…

More about Bitcoin, Ripple, Ethereum, Cryptocurrency, and Litecoin

I’ve got a gift for all you schadenfreude junkies out there: a man fumbling with, then dropping, an extremely expensive bottle of alcohol.

Originally posted on a Facebook page called Ibiza Club News (party on!), several outlets have referred to the bottle as Champagne worth $42,000. That, unfortunately, is probably not true — the general consensus among commenters seems to be that it’s a Jeroboam (3-liter bottle) of Veuve Cliquot rosé. Even after club markups, it would likely sell for way less than $42,000.

No matter what, though, this video is still deeply disturbing. How bad for this guy do you feel? Do you feel sincerely bad, or do you just feel secondhand embarrassment? Is your sympathy at all tempered by the fact that such an enormous bottle of rosé exists?  Read more…

More about Viral Videos, Fails, Culture, and Web Culture

Lady Bird, the coming-of-age movie that won the Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy and for a few perfect weeks had a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, is pretty much this decade’s magnum opus.

It’s hard to believe that the Oscar contender could get any better, but Twitter user @laterchalemet did just that. In their incredible work of art, @laterchalemet replaced all of the dialogue in Lady Bird with their own anguished yelling. 

More about Twitter, Trailer, Lady Bird, Screams, and Culture

The Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck was hit hard Friday.

A hacker managed to funnel out 500 million NEM coins, a value of more than $424 million USD, one of the exchange’s co-founders said at a news conference in Tokyo Friday, according to Bloomberg. Japan’s Financial Services Agency is also investigating the theft.

Coincheck announced in an updating blog post that it had stopped trading of NEM and other coins as it dealt with the hack. Only Bitcoin services remained available on the exchange.

More about Japan, Hack, Exchange, Cryptocurrency, and Mt. Gox