New computerized casts of abnormally small Homo sapiens brains are reigniting the debate over the skeletal remains nicknamed “The Hobbit.” Ever since the 18,000-year-old remains of the three-foot-tall adult female hominid were unearthed in 2003 on the remote Indonesian island of Flores, scientists have argued whether the specimen was a human with an abnormally small head or represents a new species in the human family tree. The diminutive creature had a brain approximately one-third the size of modern adult humans. [More]
Category: Miscellaneous
So what’s with all the head-banging bookworms? Brazilian heavy-metal band Sepultura released Dante XXI, an album based on Dante’s Divine Comedy. And Mastodon recently became metal’s newest stars with Leviathan, a Moby Dick-inspired album with songs such as “I Am Ahab” and “Seabeast.” With its preoccupation with evil, dry ice and alternately shrieking and growling vocals, heavy metal has come by its goofball image honestly. But wearing leather and spikes doesn’t mean you don’t crack open a book occasionally. [More]
Moviefone.com collected millions of votes from movie fans everywhere and the results are now official. According to moviegoers, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the Movie of the Year! Although each Harry Potter film has been nominated for Movie of the Year, Goblet of Fire is the first movie in the series to take the top prize.
In addition, Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon were voted Actor and Actress of the Year, respectively, for their roles in Walk the Line. Click below to see the full list of winners including Sexiest Kiss, Most Hysterical Performance, Biggest Badass and more. [More]
Ringer Spy Cheryl writes: I found an interesting joke in the September issue of Reader’s Digest on page 98. Here’s the joke: “How many quarters does it take to play the new Lord of the Rings pinball game? Answer: None. It only takes Tolkiens.” Haha!
Keith writes: Sean Astin’s mother, Patty Duke, finally got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The unveiling was on August 17, 2004. [More]
Sad news this morning as TORN learns that Peter Woodthorpe, who brough Gollum’s voice to life in the BBC radio presentation and animated version of The Lord of the Rings, has died. According to monkeyheaven.com Woodthorpe had not been too well for a while. He was 72.