Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame, jck, and JeremyBloom. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man (RIP), wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw.
OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time.
Please feel free to share your articles and stories in the comments.
Photos of the week from The Guardian as do the photos of wildlife this week.
And our first story comes from The Guardian as well:
The sand swirled, and cleared. A flash of gold appeared and my heart leapt
Andy ElliottI was 10 when I went on my first archaeological dig. I’d been exploring a clay pit near Bletchley Park, Milton Keynes, where I grew up, and found the fossilised jawbone of a small ichthyosaurus, complete with tiny teeth. I took it to a local geologist – he was amazed at what I’d found and put me in touch with an archaeologist in Buckinghamshire, who took me to a dig site. I found a bucket full of historical items in a spoil heap. From then on, I went to dig sites every weekend.
I like to work with my hands, so pursued a career as a brick- and stonemason; I even taught the trade in a college for three years. In 1984, I was working as a builder when a former student invited me to try scuba diving. It was exciting being able to see underwater. Over the next two years, I trained for a diving qualification and became close with some guys in a scuba club.
From Asahi Shimbun:
Oslo gets lesson in origami cranes at Nobel Prize ceremony
By ASAKO HANAFUSA
OSLO—The Nobel Peace Prize ceremony gave both Norwegian and Japanese citizens an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of making “orizuru” folded-paper cranes, a symbol of prayers for peace in Japan.
The Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) was awarded the prize in Oslo on Dec. 10.
And one of a few more from Asahi Shimbun:
Troubled artist finds solace in photorealistic drawings
By NATSUKI KAWAHARA
HAMAMATSU--From one angle, it’s a glass bottle of Coca Cola lying on a piece of paper.
But when seen from the side, there is just a thin sheet of paper with nothing on it.
The illustration, drawn with colored pencils, was by a young artist named Keito who lives in Osaka Prefecture.
That is it. The only truly positive stories I found in a quick perusal of the international news this evening. The rest of it is below the fold.