Giant 21ft killer croc is caught

Captured ... Mayor Cox Elorde and locals with killer crocodile

A GIANT 21ft crocodile feared to have attacked several villagers has been caught after a three-week hunt.

The one-ton male saltwater beast was trapped in a creek in Bunawan, in the Philippines, on Saturday night.
It is one of the largest crocs ever to be captured alive in the country.
Dozens of locals and staff from a crocodile farm set up traps to catch the monster after reports of a number of savage crocodile attacks.
The reptile is suspected of killing a tragic fisherman who went missing in July.
The croc may now be put into a planned ecotourism park in the southern town.
Mayor Cox Elorde says that this would turn it "from a threat into an asset".
After the hunt, he said: "We were nervous but it's our duty to deal with a threat to the villagers. When I finally stood before it, I couldn't believe my eyes."
About 100 people had to pull the crocodile from the creek to a clearing where a crane lifted it into a truck.

Alfa Romeo updates 4C Concept

Alfa Romeo has previewed an updated 4C Concept which the Italian brand will be taking to Frankfurt next month.

The Alfa 4C Concept is a two-seater, rear-wheel drive coupé with a central engine, a length of about 4 meters and a wheelbase of less than 2.4 meters.

The new color is named Fluid Metal with Alfa claiming that it dynamically enhances the smooth and sinuous lines of the car.

The 4C will have 200bhp, with a weight of just 850kg. It’s light and powerful enough for a top end over 155mph and 0-62mph in less than 5.0sec.

The 4C will go into production and will act as the new flagship for the brand.

The 4C is also expected to be the first of a new line of Alfa Romeos to be offered in North America.

Jungle warrior wasp with massive mandibles discovered

Waspzilla ... the 'Garuda' was found on the remote Indonesian island of Sulawesi

IF you're making a trip to Indonesia any time soon, beware – a new waspzilla has been discovered there with jaws longer than its front legs.

The warrior wasp is found on the remote island of Sulawesi and has been dubbed the 'Komodo dragon' of the wasp family.

And for good reason too - males of this stinging species measure an alarming two and a half inches long and have huge ninja-like mandibles.

Some bite ... the wasp has jaws longer than its legs

Lynn Kimsey, entomologist of the University of California, Davis, encountered these fearsome flying beasts when on an expedition to the island.

"Its jaws are so large that they wrap up either side of the head when closed. When the jaws are open they are actually longer than the male's front legs. I don't know how it can walk."

Although these pesky pests mainly chomp on insects, if threatened they could leave a considerable mark on human flesh too.

Ms Kimskey intends to name the mini-beast 'Garuda' after the part-human, part eagle mythical creature that is a national symbol in Indonesia.

The wasp was discovered in the Mekongga Mountains in south-eastern Sulawesi, a little-explored Indonesian island between Borneo and New Guinea.

Bigger ... the warrior wasp measures 2.5 inches long

Ms Kimskey describes it as one of the top three islands for biodiversity in the world, along with Australia and Madagascar.

She and her team have now received a five-year £2.5 million grant to study the island's rich biodiversity that includes the dwarf buffalo and colonial spiders.

The nature fanatic hopes that the discovery of the warrior wasp will help raise awareness about how unique and treasured the region of Sulawesi is, estimating that hundreds of other new species could be catalogued.

Billionaire to build new countries at sea

ew countries at sea

Island nations ... artist's impression of what new countries could look like

A BILLIONAIRE is planning to create his own countries — by building them on giant floating platforms in international waters.

PayPal founder Peter Thiel is funding a project that intends to create new societies governed in a radically different manner from conventional states.

The communities would be run according to libertarian ideals and be housed on gargantuan ocean platforms.

According to a magazine, the islands would be a "kind of floating Petri dish for implementing policies that libertarians, stymied by indifference at the voting booths, have been unable to advance: no welfare, looser building codes, no minimum wage and few restrictions on weapons".

Giant platform ... new states would be moored in international waters

And the first experimental example of the radical scheme could be built off San Francisco as soon as next year.

Thiel, 43, who is worth an estimated $1.5billion — or £910million — has given £763,000 to the Seasteading Institute planning to build the floating nations.

Funding ... Peter Thiel

Seasteading argues that building in the ocean "is the only option to create new societies on Earth".

The institute is run by Patri Friedman, the grandson of Nobel prize-winning economist Milton Friedman.

He argues that "government is an inefficient industry because it has an insane barrier to entry. To compete with governments on existing land, you have to win a war, an election, or a revolution."

Thiel admitted that many saw the idea of creating societies in the ocean as a crackpot scheme.

He added: "There are quite a lot of people who think it's not possible.

"That's a good thing. We don't need to really worry about those people very much, because since they don't think it's possible they won't take us very seriously. And they will not actually try to stop us until it's too late."

Kapsul belon untuk pelancong lihat Bumi

KAPSUL yang bergerak ke lapisan stratosfera Bumi dengan belon.

BARCELONA - Sebuah syarikat Sepanyol mencipta sebuah kapsul yang akan membawa pelancong ke stratosfera Bumi dengan menggunakan belon helium pada 2013, lapor sebuah akhbar kelmarin.

Stratosfera berada pada ketinggian di antara 12 hingga 50 kilometer dari Bumi.

Syarikat Zero 2 Infinity itu mengenakan tambang sebanyak £90,000 (RM442,734) untuk setiap pelancong yang berada di dalam kapsul tersebut selama lima jam.

Para pelancong akan menikmati pemandangan Bumi. Kapsul tersebut direka supaya mereka boleh memakai baju-T semasa berada di dalamnya.

BENTUK kapsul yang akan dinaiki oleh pelancong.

Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Zero 2 Infinity, Jose Mariano Lopez-Urdiales berkata, dia mendapat idea untuk melaksanakan projek tersebut sepuluh tahun lalu.

Setakat ini tiga ujian sudah dilakukan pada jarak 32.18 kilometer dari bumi.

Para pelancong akan disajikan makanan semasa mereka berada di dalam kapsul itu. - Agensi

Nelayan tangkap ketam ganjil

RUPA bentuk ketam ganjil yang kini dipelihara di Akuarium Blue Reef, Southsea, Hampshire, Britain.

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SOUTHSEA - Seorang nelayan menangkap seekor ketam ganjil yang wajahnya dikatakan mirip makhluk asing dalam filem Predator yang dibintangi pelakon Arnold Schwazenegger pada tahun 1980-an, lapor sebuah akhbar semalam.

Ketam itu kini ditempatkan di Akuarium Blue Reef di Southsea, Hampshire, Britain selepas haiwan tersebut diserahkan untuk dipamerkan baru-baru ini.

Haiwan tersebut turut dikenali sebagai ketam span dan ia boleh menyamar dan mengelak daripada dilihat menerusi pemandangan mata semasa haiwan tersebut berada di dasar laut.

Ketam itu akan dipamerkan kepada orang ramai selepas ia selesai dikuarantin. - Agensi

This port ain't big enough for the both of us

Even billionaires sometimes struggle to find space to park.

For Roman Abramovich, that moment came when he tried to moor his £1billion yacht Eclipse - the largest in the world at 557ft long.

The Russian tycoon was beaten to the only space in the harbour big enough to moor his giant vessel, Eclipse.

Chelsea battleship: Eclipse, the world's biggest yacht, owned by Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, lies at anchor off the coast of Antibes, near Nice, south-eastern France

Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Alsaud - whose own yacht Kingdom KR5 is a mere 265ft long - took the coveted mooring in ‘Millionaire’s Quay’ in Antibes, in the French Riviera.

Prince Al-Waleed is the world’s 26th richest man with £12.3billion, according to Forbes magazine, while Mr Abramovich is 53rd with a fortune of £8.4billion.

Holiday on the Med: Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich and girlfriend Dasha Zhukova

The last space in Europe’s biggest yachting harbour simply wasn’t big enough for the two superyachts.

So the Chelsea FC owner was left with little option but to drop anchor several hundred feet out at sea - and then travel to his villa on the shore by motorboat.

Mr Abramovich’s crew had pleaded to be allowed to moor in the harbour, but were told it would be impossible to ‘squeeze Eclipse in’ as it was ‘far too big’.

‘Mr Abramovich has a villa in the town, and is, of course, always welcome to disembark with his family, but with a yacht this size it was not possible,’ a source at the port said yesterday.

‘Instead Eclipse had to be sailed out to sea and left there.’

Mr Abramovich, 41, who has six children with his first wife Irina and girlfriend Daria Zhukova, often uses his fleet of luxury boats to ferry his family up and down the Mediterranean.

But none has ever compared to Eclipse, which has two swimming pools, two helicopter pads, a dedicated disco hall, around 30 cabins, a mini-submarine, and even a missile defence system.

Inconvenient: Eclipse is too large to fit in next to all the other tycoons' boats moored in Antibes, said port authorities

People carrier: Mr Abramovich often uses his fleet of yachts to ferry his family, including his six children, up and down the Mediterranean

Luxury: Eclipse had an initial order cost of £300million, but this rose to nearly £1billion after all the fixtures and fittings Mr Abramovich wanted were added to the boat

This port ain't big enough for the both of us: The super yacht of Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Alsaud was already moored in Antibes preventing Abramovich from parking his vessel

It also has armour-plating around Abramovich’s master suite, bullet-proof windows and a laser system designed to dazzle long-lens photographers.

Fabulous wealth: Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal Alsaud

When it was ordered the initial cost was estimated at around £330million, but by the time Mr Abramovich took delivery last year it was spiralling towards the £1billion mark because of the extra luxury fittings and security measures.

Prince Al-Waleed’s vessel, though smaller, has a fascinating history of its own.

The boat, which can carry 22 passengers and 31 crew, was built in 1980 and bought by Saudi billionaire, Adnan Khashoggi under the name Nabila.

It featured in the 1983 James Bond film Never Say Never Again – as ‘The Flying Saucer’ – owned by villain Maximilian Largo.

Its other owners have included Donald Trump, who named it the Trump Princess.

Prince Al-Waleed bought the yacht in 1991, and renamed it Kingdom 5KR after his investment company Kingdom Holdings, his lucky number 5 and the initials of two of his children.

The prince is the owner of the Savoy hotel in London, and his investment company plans to finance the construction of the world’s tallest building - the Kingdom Tower - in Saudi Arabia.

Antibes is the largest yachting harbour in Europe with more than 2,000 moorings - but only one spot big enough for Eclipse.

Mr Abramovich had applied to Antibes council three years ago to build his own pontoon at the villa, but the plans were rejected.

A spokesman for the Antibes International Yacht Club said: ‘The only space where it could fit is already taken, though there are plans to build another large berth in the coming coming years.’

Eclipse was built by the Blohm and Voss shipyard in Hamburg, Germany, and delivered to Abramovich last December.

The oligarch also owns three other mega-yachts, the Pelorus (377ft), the Ecstasea (282ft) and the Sussurro (161ft).

Abramovich once lent the Pelorus to Chelsea footballers Frank Lampard and John Terry as a ‘bonus’ for playing well.

Annual running costs for his fleet are around £16million including full tanks of petrol at around £70,000 per yacht.

Ferrari 458 Spider

Ferrari officially released today the first images, together with all the details and a video of the new open-top, Ferrari 458 Spider.

The top is made from aluminium, achieving a 25 kilogram weight reduction over the previous system, and Ferrari says it can be raised or lowered in 14 seconds.

Power is supplied by the same 4.5 liter V8 unit from the 458 Italis coupe which delivers 570 PS (425 kW / 563 bhp) and 540 Nm of torque (398 lb-ft).

Ferrari claims a 0-to-62-mph time of 3.5 seconds, or a tenth of a second slower than the fixed-roof model, and a top speed of 198 mph.

The way the top is stowed has also freed up a storage compartment behind the seats – but removing the roof hasn’t harmed the 458’s striking appearance.

With the hood down, the main attraction is a pair of buttresses, allowing air to be channelled to the engine intakes and radiators.

Ferrari also includes an electrically adjustable wind deflector, which bosses claim allows occupants to have a normal conversation even at speeds of up to 124mph.

The Ferrari 458 Spider price list and exact “on sale” date will be announced later.

Cadillac Ciel Concept unveiled

Iconic American luxury auto brand Cadillac has unveiled its new hybrid concept, described as an “expression of Cadillac’s historical grandeur.”

The Ciel concept, which will be on show at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, is a four-seat convertible powered by a 3.6-liter V-6 engine, paired with hybrid drive.

Designed to fit in with the touring cars on display at Pebble Beach, the model is “about the romance of the drive,” says Cadillac-owner General Motors, featuring generous room for two couples across two rows.

Complete with rear-hinged rear doors, the Ciel concept is clearly trying to evoke a sense of the freedom and history of motoring through the great outdoors, with a polished aluminium windshield frame and vertical lights.

Inside, the passenger space is characterized by Italian olive wood, machined aluminium and hand-tipped leather designed to add to the romance, with interior design manager Gael Buzyn likening the design to a “vintage wooden boat.”

Luxury touches include a small humidor for holding cigars and an in-built cashmere blanket which appears at the pull of a tag to cover up the rear seat passengers, should they get chilly.

The concept is among several new models on show at this week’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, including models from Infiniti and Lexus.

Kerching! Samuel Eto'o quits Inter Milan to earn £345,000 a week AFTER tax at Anzhi

QUIDS IN ... Samuel Eto'o is the highest paid player in the world on £345,000 a week AFTER tax

SAMUEL ETO'O has become the highest paid player in the world after quitting Inter Milan to join Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala.

The Cameroon striker, 30, will pocket a mind boggling £345,000 per week AFTER tax with Anzhi agreeing a £22million transfer fee for his services.

A statement on Anzhi's website read: "Today an agreement was reached between the football clubs, Anzhi and Inter, for the transfer of Samuel Eto'o.

"The terms of the transfer are completely agreed on both sides.

"Anzhi expresses gratitude to the leadership of Inter Milan for their professional and constructive approach in the negotiations.

"Tomorrow the player will undergo a medical examination, following which the player will be awarded a three-year contract.

"On Thursday, Samuel will arrive at the location of his new team and will begin preparations for the match against FC Rostov."

Anzhi are owned by billionaire Russian Suleyman Kerimov and also have Brazilian legend Roberto Carlos and former Chelsea player Yuri Zhirkov on their playing staff.

Eto'o scored 21 goals in 35 Serie A appearances for Inter last season, having helped Barcelona to Champions League glory in 2006 and 2009. He scored in the final victories over Arsenal and Manchester United.