NFL Playoff Scenarios

The road to Super Bowl XLVIII is nearing its next stage. The NFL playoffs begin in 2 weeks or the first weekend in January. There are a few teams already locked in including: New England, Kansas City, Denver, and Seattle. However the last few World Champions including the Ravens (10-6), Giants (9-7), Packers (10-6) probably weren't favorites but they all pulled out Super Bowl victories. There are a number of different teams who can be players in any of the scenarios. The NFL champion could realistically be any team that makes the playoffs.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/machine

Massive 70 Car Pileup Caught on Camera

As we all know winter is coming. When driving you should take precaution and slow down. However, sometimes the ice decides if we slow down or not. On a Milwaukee area highway, near Germantown, a car slid to avoid other stopped cars causing a chain reaction and more cars sliding into each other. Drivers then proceeded to get out of their cars and possibly were the cause of even more cars sliding on the ice. Drivers were reported to get out to take pictures of the accident and a group of them were almost run into by a sliding car. There is one official death that occurred from the injuries of a man involved in the accident.

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/us/2013/12/10/pkg-wisconsin-snow-wrecks.cnn.html
http://americablog.com/2013/12/70-car-snowstorm-pile-wi-highway-caught-camera.html

Nuclear container found empty after truck was Stolen

The truck was moving radioactive waste from a hospital in Tijuana was stolen in Tepojaco near Mexico City. A container that once held radioactive material that was stolen from the truck it was in. Two people moved it least a kilometer away and it was found empty. The radioactive material was cobalt-60 and it could be used to make what is known as a dirty bomb. Cobalt-60 can also be used to treat certain foods by sterilizing them. If a person is exposed to cobalt-60 without the proper equipment, it can be extremely dangerous to a human. The people who stole it are likely contaminated with radiation poisoning. There was an accident in Thailand that occurred in 2000, when a group of people bought cobalt-60, cut open its container which caused three people to die and almost 2,000 people were contaminated in the area.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/04/world/americas/mexico-radioactive-theft/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

NASCAR Championship Weekend

The 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season ended on Sunday night with the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Miami, Florida. This race was the 36th and final race on the schedule. NASCAR also has a playoff system where the top 12 drivers in points from the first 26 races advance to The Chase for The Sprint Cup. Jimmie Johnson won the Sprint Cup for his sixth title and his sixth in the last eight years. Johnson beat Matt Kenseth by a total of 19 points and third place Kevin Harvick by 34 points. The Sprint Cup Series is the highest series on the NASCAR circuit. The next top series also finish over the weekend with the NASCAR Nationwide Series concluded with Austin Dillon winning the championship over Sam Hornish Jr. by 3 points. Friday night was when the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series finished. The champion was Matt Crafton and he won the title over Ty Dillon by 40 points.

http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/live-standings.html

High School Football Player Collapses, Later Dies

A high school football player in Arizona died at a local hospital after collapsing on the field late in a blowout playoff loss. Charles Youvella, a running back from Keams Canyon Hopi High school, made a catch midway through the fourth quarter, he was tackled and hit his head hard on the field. He got up, looked fine according to sources and then collapsed two plays later. He was conscious when he was taken in an ambulance to St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix. When he arrived in the hospital, he was in critical condition. Late Monday night, Charles Youvella died. He was the second leading rusher on the team during their 9-1 season. His death was likely caused by a major head injury. This brings up more thoughts of concussions and other head injuries at any level of football. Riddel and other helmet providers have been working on making helmets that stop head injuries but they don't look like they'll be perfected in the near future.

http://www.azcentral.com/12news/free/20131111northern-arizona-high-school-football-player-critical.html

World Series Over, Free Agency Begins

The Boston Red Sox won the 2013 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals in six games. Game six was played at Fenway Park and was won by the Red Sox on October 30. Both teams have key players with expiring contracts who may be on the move in free agency. Possible free agents include Jacoby Ellsbury, Stephen Drew, Mike Napoli, Carlos Beltran and Jarrod Saltalamacchia. Teams had five days to offer contracts to their own free agents before they can negotiate with any team. Free agents who received a qualifying offer on Monday, November 4 could award their former team compensation from the signing. Players were offered a $14.1 million dollar-1 year contract if a GM chooses to attempt to sign the player. If a major free agent signs with a team that they didn't play for in 2013, their former team is awarded a draft pick for each player in next year's 2014 MLB First Year Player Draft in June. Players who played in a foreign league don't give their former team a draft pick, instead they are often offered cash value for the player. A few foreign free agents who might play in the Majors next year may be Masahiro Tanaka, Jose Dariel Abreu, Alexander Guerrero and Suk-Min Yoon. Top free agents in this offseason include: Robinson Cano, Shin-Soo Choo, Matt Garza and Brian McCann.
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/transactions/free-agents

Racism in the NFL?

Dez Bryant

If you follow the National Football League, you may have noticed that the New England Patriots haven't been as good as they were last year. Veteran quarterback Tom Brady is getting frustrated with in the inconsistency and his young teammates. Brady blew up on the sideline and yelled at multiple players like his young receivers Kembrell Thompkins, Aaron Dobson, Josh Boyce and Danny Amendola. In the video, Brady is yelling at former Patriots wideout Tiquan Underwood and coach Bill O'Brien. Another NFL player, by the name of Dez Bryant was involved in a similar incident yelling at coaches and a teammate. After their screaming matches, Dez is now known as a cry baby while Brady is referred to as a "fierce competitor." Many people think their reputations are the result of the colors of their skin instead of age, stage of career or role on the team.

audio- http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000273618/article/cowboys-jason-witten-loves-playing-with-dez-bryant

http://thebiglead.com/2013/10/28/dez-bryant-and-tom-brady-both-had-demonstrative-sideline-outbursts-guess-who-is-getting-crushed-harder/ 

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap2000000273618/article/cowboys-jason-witten-loves-playing-with-dez-bryant

MLB World Series Starts Tonight in Boston

The St. Louis Cardinals will play game 1 of the fall classic against the Red Sox. This is the 109th World Series. The Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in 6 games to reach the World Series. The Red Sox took a similar path winning in game six against the Detroit Tigers. Game 1 has Adam Wainwright pitching for St. Louis and Jon Lester opposing for the Red Sox. The game will be played at Boston's Fenway Park as well as game 2 and also games 6 and 7 if necessary. Games 3, 4 and 5 will be played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri. Each game will be televised on FOX and the first pitches will be 7:07 CT except game 4 which will start at 7:15 CT. Game 2's starting pitchers are scheduled to be Michael Wacha for the Cardinals and John Lackey for Boston. The World Series last year was won by the San Francisco Giants over the Detroit Tigers in four games.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/mlb/2013-major-league-baseball-postseason-schedule-and-matchups?ymd=20130928&content_id=62076888&vkey=news_mlb

Typhoon Hits Small Island South of Tokyo

The small island of Oshima was pounded by a large typhoon on Wednesday. The island is located south of Japan’s capital and largest city, Tokyo. Typhoon Wipha has caused at least 17 deaths and is estimated to continue north along the Pacific coast. It may even hit the northernmost part of the island. Heavy rains have also caused flooding, mudslides, blocked roads and crushed homes. Rescuers are unable to find everyone dead and discover an accurate death count. About 56 thousand homes lost power according to TEPCO, the main electrical provider in the country. Over 500 flights have been delayed and the rains have stopped trains and almost any other ways of transportation.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/16/world/asia/japan-typhoon-deaths/index.html?hpt=hp_bn2

Indiana Lottery Winner Unable to Cash Prize

Your chance of winning the lottery is 1 in 175 million, but what if you win and don’t get the money? A lottery winner in the state of Indiana failed to claim their $1 million prize in time. The drawing was on April 10 and Indiana gives winners 180 days to claim the prize. This person wasn't able to submit the ticket within the given time and they were unable to collect their winnings. This wasn't the first time that a winner from the state didn't claim their prize within the time window. In 2002, a winner also from Indiana lost out on $50 million Powerball jackpot because of the same reason. 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/08/us/indiana-lottery-loser/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1

Cities Going (Partially) Underwater

By the year 2100, over 1,700 cities in the United States will be partially submerged along with another large amount of port cities around the world. This is caused by global warming. Global warming is most commonly known to be caused by the constant depleting ozone layer, which has been vanishing from the carbon pollution from cars and other burning of fossil fuels. The heat causes melting of the polar ice caps in the North and South Poles and water rises all around the world. Kivalina, a small city in Alaska could be submerged before 2025. Cities like Miami and New Orleans could be partially under water as early as 2040.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/29/more-than-1700-u-s-cities-will-be-partially-underwater-by-2100-study/

NFL Player Loses Finger During Game

During Sunday's Cardinals-Saints matchup in New Orleans, Louisiana, the tip of Rashad Johnson's middle finger was severed from his hand. He was attempting to make a tackle on Darren Sproles just before halftime.  Blood was "leaking like a faucet" out of his glove when he confronted a trainer. Johnson said he had some numbness and thought he broke a nail. He didn't end up breaking the nail because the tip of his finger stayed in the bloody glove once it was taken off. Rashad is listed as day-to-day and is expected to play on Sunday against the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay.

http://www.azcardinals.com/news-and-events/article-2/Rashad-Johnson-Fingertip-Loss-Got-9-more/9fc32981-1f41-406c-9a5c-b704948351b4
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/cardinals/2013/09/23/rashad-johnson-finger-ripped-off-sliced-blood/2857675/

Python Strangles Dog to Death

A Florida home had an unwelcome guest come into their house and strangled the family dog to death. A ten foot long African Rock Python slithered its way through the backyard into a home in the Miami area. The large snake wrapped itself around the Siberian Husky killing it within minutes as the family watched in horror. Duke was the ten year-old, ninety pound dog had his life squeezed out of him. The snake was sent to the University of Florida for an autopsy. The African Rock Python is the largest snake species in Africa however they lack venom to kill their prey so they actually squeeze the life out of their victim.

http://guardianlv.com/2013/09/10-foot-long-python-crushed-family-dog-to-death-video/

Remembering 9/11

Today is obviously the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Terrorists, associated with a larger terrorist group named Al-qaeda, flew commercial planes into New York City's World Trade Centers, the Pentagon in Washington D.C. and another into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. This terrorist attack killed over two thousand Americans. Today New Yorkers and Americans all across the country remember the tragedy that happened twelve years ago to the day. There will be moments of silence all across the country but more specifically in Washington D.C. and New York City.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/09/11/obama-barack-michelle-911-commemoration/2797435/

Major League Baseball player caught mailing marijuana to his Dog

Chris Perez was fined and placed on probation after mailing a package of marijuana to his dog. A six ounce package was sent to Brody Baum, the couple’s dog, from Los Angeles in early June to the closer’s home near Cleveland, Ohio. The package was discovered by a postal worker and was opened in the post office. The package was then resealed and delivered to the home. An undercover officer asked Melanie Perez about the package and she confirmed the content was marijuana. The Cleveland Indians closer and his wife were found guilty for drug abuse and fourth-degree misdemeanor. Perez was fined $250 and placed on one year probation. Perez, 28, must go through Major League Baseball’s drug program and talk to a local high school for 15-20 minutes about the danger of drugs. I feel that this punishment isn’t severe enough for the circumstance and the popularity of the athlete.

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2013/09/cleveland_indians_closer_chris.html