No Man Is an Island: 20K People Want to Become Citizens of "Nowhereisland"

The poet John Donne said "No man is an island, entire of itself" but a British artist has decided to create a unique art project by having a small, arctic island towed by boat around the world.

Dubbed "Nowhereisland" (or Nyskjaeret in Norwegian), artist Alex Hartley discovered the unmapped island off the coast of Svalbard, Norway, in 2004. (You are correct, grasshopper...Svalbard is the home of the infamous "Doomsday Seed Vault".) He then asked the Norwegian government if he could haul the 144-foot chunk of rock south, which they agreed to allow him to do.

The aim of the art project is to " encourage people to think about what it would be like to start up a completely new nation," Hartley tells The Telegraph, "to get them to make proposals for what life should be like on Nowhereisland, what the constitution should consist of, and so on."

In that vein, over 20,000 people have requested "citizenship" of Nowhereisland. After requesting to become a citizen of the tiny chunk of rock and ice, potential immigrants can then suggest measures and laws to pass, to make the "country" a unique, safe and happy place to live. Some more inspired suggestions from asylum-seekers include a ban on all telemarketers, a free after-dinner drink for all citizens as well as a national currency based not on money but rather "the ability to tell a good story".

If you would like to request citizenship of this Nirvana-in-the-making, you may visit Nowhereisland's official website here.

Seeds of Life: Doomsday Seed Vault Receives 25,000 New Seeds

Does the fate of humanity hide inside this cold, stark vault?

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault (better known as the "Doomsday" Seed Vault) has added  25,000 new rare seeds to its already impressive collection.

Opening in 2008 in Svalbard, Norway, the steel and concrete vault was constructed high above the Arctic Circle as a way for humans to preserve precious seeds of practically every plant, flower, fruit and vegetable on Earth. The idea is when a cataclysmic event strikes the Earth, the seeds preserved at the vault will be able to replenish the planet and provide food, should humans even survive the catastrophe.

This week, the Seed Vault is set to receive nearly 25,000 samples of seeds from around the world, including those of grains that grow on one of the world's highest mountain ranges and a plant whose stems redden an Ecuadorean drink on the "Day of the Dead." Scientists hope they will be able to use "Jurassic Park" technology to bring back plants in the future, even after becoming extinct.

The cold, stark location was chosen for its permafrost, which will be able to keep the fragile seeds cool, even should power be cut to the location. Funding for the enormous project came from a host of generous benefactors, including Microsoft founder billionaire Bill Gates as well as the wealthy Rockefeller family. 

OMG: Norwegian Newscast Uses Eye Chart Displaying Cyber-Slang

"This is the segment where we tell our viewers calling in to STFU!"

Television presenters for the Norwegian news magazine program Dagsrevyen were left with some 'splainin' to do when an eye chart used as a visual aid regarding a story on aging pensioners was laced with mildly profane cyber-slang!

The segment featured two presenters flanking the blown-up graphic, which was clearly marked with abbreviated Internet acronyms such as OMG (Oh My God), WTF (What the F@#&!), STFU (Shut the F@#& Up!) and PWN3D (cyber-slang for P-Owned, which obviously the newsroom editors have been). The amusing televised moment has become a viral sensation throughout the Scandinavian nation as well as the rest of the world!

Regarding the sneaky text-speak debacle, newsroom editor Solveig Tvedt conceded that she and her team "hadn't properly examined the chart before going to air." She went on to explain, "We retrieved the picture from one of our image agencies and took it without taking a closer look. If we'd seen what it said we wouldn't have used it." Not taking the scrutiny too seriously, she humorously added, "I think it's good that people are following [the show] so closely." 


Maybe you need to check out one of those eye-charts at the optometrists' clinic, Solveig...

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter: Norwegian Butter Shortage Pushes Cost to $400 a Lb.

Gingerbread men might be a little lonely this year in Norway, as a shortage of butter has increased the price of the kitchen staple to an astonishing $400 a pound! The cooking necessity is being traded on the Internet like stock in Apple!

The shortage creates a serious challenge for Norwegians who are trying to finish their traditional Christmas baking, a task which usually requires them to make at least seven different kinds of cookies and yummy treats.

The shortage has been blamed on an extremely rainy summer that cut into feed production and therefore dairy output, but also the popularity of a fad, low-carbohydrate, fat-rich diet that has sent demand for butter soaring in the wealthy Scandinavian nation.

The price for butter has jumped so much, it's even being illegally smuggled! On Friday, customs officers stopped a Russian citizen at the Norwegian-Swedish border and seized 200 pounds of rich, creamery butter stashed in his car.

 God Jul, Norway...go easy on the cookies!

Drop It Like It's Hot! Snoop Dog Stopped at Norway Border for Carrying Too Much Cash

Rap superstar Snoop Dog had to "drop it like it's hot" while trying to enter Norway for a scheduled appearance at an Adidas superstore in Oslo. Seems like border patrol agents thought the Doggfather was carrying way too much bling to be allowed entry into the Scandinavian nation. Snoop immediately took to twitter looking for some assistance: "At the Norway border right now being sweated for havin 2much money!!” he tweeted: "Norway standup 4 the biggdogg the border guys r cool but they talkn bout [takin] my $$!! That aint rite!! Norway standup 4 the biggdogg!! they [makin] me late 4 this adidas instore autograph signin!” The tweeting must have worked, because he was eventually allowed entry into the country. Snoop apologized to his fans for his late arrival but quickly made up for it by being all Snoop-like and all was forgiven.

Snoop is no stranger to having problems crossing borders. After a three-year battle, Snoop was allowed last year to travel across the Big Pond after a UK Border Agency banned him from Britain because of his 2006 arrest stemming from a brawl with police at a London airport.