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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2009
Jackson fans attempt to set 'Thriller'dance record
Zombies,aliens and Stormtroopers join forces in the effort
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Michael Jackson fans perform at the Monument of the Revolution in Mexico City during an attempt to break the Guinness World record of music dancing Michael Jackson's Thriller Aug. 29. Another 900-person Guinness record attempt took place during Dragon Con on Sunday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATLANTA — It wasn't under the moonlight, and it wasn't quite the funk of 40,000 years. But 900 zombies, aliens and Star Wars Stormtroopers boogeying to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" might be a sight that almost stops your heart.
The crowd turned out in a downtown Atlanta hotel ballroom during Dragon Con. which is billed as the country's largest convention dedicated to science fiction, fantasy, gaming, comics and more.
The masquerade of sci-fi faithful performed Michael Jackson's signature "Thriller" music video dance routine on Sunday. And if officials approve, they will have set a new Guinness World Record.
The iconic video played on a huge video screen as a lackson
look-alike channeled the pop star in red jeans, a red leather jacket, and white socks and black penny loafers.
decision this week on whether a record was set.
The current record was set in May by a group of 242 College of William & Mary students who performed the routine in Williamsburg, Va., according to Guinness World Records.
Dragon Con special events director Mandy Collier expects a
More than 12,000 people claimed they broke the record in front of Mexico City's Monument of the Revolution on Aug. 29, which would have been Jackson's 51st birthday.
However, the record was not accepted by Guinness.
NASA
Astronauts complete last task before undocking
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. The astronauts aboard the orbiting shuttle and station will soon part company.
The shuttle will undock Tuesday
The 13 space travelers have one last job to accomplish together before the hatches between their spacecraft are closed late Monday. A moving van holding a ton of trash and discarded equipment will be moved back aboard Discovery.
On Monday, shuttle astronaut Jose Hernandez told a TV interviewer his presence in space is proof that by working and studying hard,"any dream can be achieved."He grew up in a migrant worker family from Mexico.
CRIME Three people found shot to death in Tennessee
WSM-VT reported the shooting happened early Monday morning at a home about five miles from Lafayette. The station said the sheriff's department received a call from a person who witnessed the shooting.
LAFAYETTE, Tenn. — Authorities said three people were shot to death at a mobile home in
Authorities found two people dead of multiple gunshot wounds, while a third person was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
Associated Press
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Alessandra Costanzo, left, reacts at a press conference in Ortona's city hall, central Italy, after the announcement that her husband Cmdr. Marino laforti of the Buccaneer cargo船 seized by pirates four months ago was released with his crew Aug. 10. Twenty-three suspected Somali pirates were released from the Seychelles in what appeared to be a trade for three hostages from the Seychelles Monday.
23 suspected Somali pirates released from the Seychelles
INTERNATIONAL
ASSOCIATED PRESS
MOGADISHU, Somalia — A dispute erupted between authorities in Somalia and the Seychelles Monday after the island nation released 23 suspected Somali pirates in what appeared to be a trade for hostages from the Seychelles.
Authorities in the Seychelles denied that they had agreed to swap the captured pirates for the three freed hostages.
Somali officials nonetheless stopped the former hostages from returning to the Seychelles Monday, saying Somalia had been deceived by Seychelles authorities.
The Seychelles government said it was releasing the 23 suspects because it lacked evidence needed to prosecute them.
The 23 prisoners had been captured by international warships and held on piracy charges in the Seychelles, which sits southeast of Somalia's coastline.
Ahmed Elmi Karash, the aviation minister in Somalia's semiautonomous northern region of
this weekend," said Minister Joel Morgan, who leads Seychelles government efforts on piracy. "An exchange of Seychellos and Somalis did not take place."
The governor of Somalia's Mudug region, Ahmed Ali Salad, said the planes' crews misinformed Somali authorities, claiming they were carrying humanitarian supplies.
He added that no ransom was paid.
It is almost unheard of for pirates to release sailors without a cash payment.
"An exchange of Seychellois and Somalis did not take place."
JOEL MORGAN Government leader on piracy efforts
The planes were detained by Somali officials while refueling. The planes' seven crew members also were held.
The Seychelles authorities said the simultaneous repatriation of their three citizens — held hostage since their yacht Serenity was seized in February — was simply a cost-effective way to use the planes and did not imply a swap. The hostages' yacht sank in poor weather after their capture.
"The release of the Seychellois hostages is not related to the repatriation of the 23 Somali men
Morgan said the two governments were in contact and the situation would soon be resolved.
Pirates captured more than 100 ships last year and attacks
Warships from Japan, America. Germany, Portugal and other nations are patrolling the water off Somalia to combat piracy.
off Somalia are expected to increase dramatically in coming months as the monsoon season ends.
When the warships capture suspected pirates, the prisoners are often delivered to nearby Kenya or the Seychelles for trial.
BY KATHY MATHESON
FINANCE
Associated Press
Scholarship recipients give back
But given the tough economic times, the school is making an unusual request. Would parents consider donating that money back?
PHILADELPHIA — Students who are accepted into Penn State University's prestigious honors college get more than academic feathers in their caps. They get $3,500 annual merit scholarships.
The fundraising appeal for Schreyer Honors College leans on parents who have not applied for financial aid for their children, encouraging them to share their good fortune with needier students. It appears to be working. The first appeal to 75 families last year raised about $228,000.
Schreyer parents, with administrators' backing, made their first appeal in a letter to other parents as the recession worsened. Students had begun turning to the college for additional financial help; in all, there was more than $1 million in unmet need at this time a year ago, said Dean Christian Brady.
After the success of that campaign, parents this year doubled the number of solicitations, which went
Some schools and states have tightened criteria for merit aid or eliminated it altogether to focus on students with the most need. Still, merit aid helps colleges lure top students and improve their rankings and reputations. Penn State is continuing the scholarships but hoping to persuade recipients' parents to return the favor.
"When you pay that tuition bill, I am asking you to assess whether you 'need' the scholarship and, if you do not, please join me and my husband by making a donation in the amount of the scholarship to the Schreyer Honors College," reads the letter from Kristin Hayes, mother of a junior in the program. "In these challenging economic times, many of our children's fellow Schreyer classmates have significant needs that are becoming increasingly difficult for Schreyer and Penn State to meet."
Hayes, whose husband serves on the Schreyer board, did not write last year's letter but made follow-up phone calls. No parents reacted negatively, even if they declined to make a donation, she said.
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INTERNATIONAL Flood waters cover streets, homes in Mexico City area
MEXICO CITY — Heavy rains have flooded hundreds of homes in the Mexico City metropolitan area and turned streets into rivers that dragged cars in their currents
Officials say the downpour briefly closed Mexico City's airport and swamped four subway stations that were out of operation on Monday.
In the suburb of Tlalnepantla, a water drain broke, knocking down walls and sending cars floating down streets with water 5 feet deep.
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Drought-plagued Mexico City has been begging for rain. Officials say up to 3.5 inches fell Sunday, but it was not enough to fill dams and allow an end to water rationing.
Associated Press
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