Hottest Planet Ever Discovered

A planet called WASP-12b is the hottest planet ever discovered (about 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit, or 2,200 degrees Celsius), and orbits its star faster and closer in than any other known world.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20081016/sc_space/hottestplaneteverdiscovered

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WASP-12b

http://www.universetoday.com/2008/10/15/hottest-ever-exoplanet-discovered-wasp-12b/

Rare Islamic artifact sells for $5.5 million

A rare Islamic crystal jug that was mistaken earlier this year for a cheap French claret pitcher has sold at auction for almost $5.6 million. ...

The slim-necked vessel, carved from a single piece of rock crystal and decorated with elaborate engravings of cheetahs, was made for the court of the Cairo-based Fatimid dynasty, which ruled a swath of the Middle East and North Africa between 908 and 1187.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081007/ap_en_ot/eu_britain_expensive_jug;_ylt=Am0J2JGiC3K81sXnCNXPYUGs0NUE

UK experts say Stonehenge was place of healing

People came from all over Europe for Stonehenge's healing powers, and chipped off blue stones to make amulets:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080922/ap_on_sc/eu_britain_stonehenge

Super Volcanos

Several volcanoes around the world are capable of gigantic eruptions unlike anything witnessed in recorded history, based on geologic evidence of past events, the scientists said. Such eruptions would dwarf those of Mount St. Helens, Krakatoa, Pinatubo and anything else going back dozens of millennia.

"Super-eruptions are up to hundreds of times larger than these," said Stephen Self of the United Kingdom's (U.K.) Open University.

From: http://www.livescience.com/environment/050308_super_volcano.html

More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supervolcano

Vog — volcanic smog — kills plants, casts a haze over Hawaii

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20080506/ap_tr_ge/travel_brief_hawaii_volcanic_gas;_ylt=Ake38EdfrvN.18I9SLQekVWs0NUE
is a newspaper article on the effects of volcanic smoke on crops and plants. World make a good adventure seed for many different low tech worlds.

Pictographic Language from Easter Island

This is a description of a strange/unique pictographic language found only on Easter Island:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rongorongo
I suspect that there are lots of good RPG ideas here!

Traveller Adventures from Zhodani Base

http://zho.berka.com/amber/ as a couple of adventures on it.