A 22-year-old woman in the US has ignited a furious online debate about sex and morality, after attempting to publicly auction her virginity on popular bidding site eBay. The Californian student is taking the extreme measures to pay for her college education, Reuters reports.
"We live in a capitalist society," said the woman, who is using the pseudonym Natalie Dylan. "Why shouldn't I be allowed to capitalise on my virginity?"
Unsurprisingly, eBay did not agree, and rejected her attempts. The auction will now take place at a Nevada brothel, where the woman is hoping bidding will reach $1 million, allowing her to start a Master's degree in marriage and family therapy.
Dangerous tech
If you thought being an astronaut mainly consisted of a lot of floating around (with an occasional broken toilet thrown in), think again.
The final mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope hit the news this week. Crucial to expanding our knowledge of the Universe, the assignment is both ambitious and treacherous, with crew facing the additional pressure of knowing they have only one chance to service the telescope, and only 11 days to do so – as this video shows.
Gadget therapy
Move over Breakfast News: times are a-changing. Designer Sung Bae Chang's Scan Toaster printer concept looks set to add a surprising extra dimension to the daily jam/marmalade debate. Not only will it make your toast – it'll also burn the latest in news, sport and local weather conditions onto your bread, should you wish.
Inside the toaster – which is connected to a PC via USB – is a network of "toasting modules". Heated by a hot wire, each module can move by 30 degrees vertically, realigning to burn your selected image. Poised to revolutionise morning routines across the globe, it's been crowned by critics as the best thing since sliced bre…
Flying car? Not quite…
Somewhat less available to the masses is the Eclipse 400 we stumbled across: an aeroplane with a four-seat interior that frankly looks more like a sports car than a plane. At $1.35 million, the 330-knots single-jet engine ain't cheap. On the plus side, it's allegedly the most economical aircraft in the world – and it's the prettiest plane out there.
And finally…
A Canadian man driving across North America on a quest to raise awareness about renewable energy hit an unexpected setback on Wednesday, after Alaskan police mistakenly identified his solar-powered Xof1 as a UFO. It seems that despite the presence of its wheels (which, to some, might indicate an inability to fly), the saucer-shaped vehicle has now been pulled over an impressive seven times during its long-distance journey.
