1. Megan Young, Miss Philippines, crowned Miss World 2013
United States born Megan Young won Miss World, which was hosted on the Indonesian island of Bali. Young, 23, beat 126 other contestants. Runner-ups in the event included Miss France, who took second, and Miss Ghana, who took third.
Young moved to the Philippines at the age of 10. She has appeared in many Filipino films and is a television host. Wenxia Yu of China, Miss World 2012, crowned Young.
2. New evidence rises in Amanda Knox case
Amanda Knox was convicted in 2009 for the murder of Meredith Kercher in Italy. In 2011, she was released after serving four years in prison of her 26-year-sentence due to the overturning of the murder conviction. Her release, however, in March 2013, was overturned by the Italian Supreme Court.
Knox first moved to Italy to study at the University for Foreigners for one year, where she shared an apartment with Meredith Kercher, who was from England, along with two Italian women.
The new piece of evidence that has not been used in court is a trace of material on the blade of the knife that prosecutors claim was used to kill Kercher. The knife was found in Raffaele Sollecito’s, Knox’s former Italian boyfriend, kitchen drawer. If the results show that Kercher’s DNA is on the knife, this could mean that Knox is once again found guilty. However, if there are no traces of such, then Knox will be acquitted once and for all.
3. Man-made sinkhole belching natural gas in Louisiana bayou
Over a year ago, residents of Bayou Corne, Louisiana discovered mysterious methane bubbles rising from a local stream. The bubbles marked the opening of a huge sinkhole which has since grown into a 24 acre maw swallowing trees whole and belching out natural gas and oily liquids.
The sinkhole opened over a salt cavern carved out by local chemical companies to store hydrocarbons and brine. When the half-mile deep cavern collapsed, the overlying rock began to slip down, taking anything on the surface with it. Natural gas stored in the well and small amounts of crude oil naturally trapped in the salt escaped as the rock squeezed it out.
Local authorities evacuated Bayou Corne’s several hundred residents because of the risks posed by the unpredictable natural gas. They will not likely return anytime soon: geologists predict that the still widening sinkhole could double in size in the next few years.
4. Elderly couple charged for murder
Gerald Uden, 71, and Alice Uden, 74, are currently being convicted for murders that occurred over 30 years ago. Both are being held for murder charges of their ex-spouses and children. Alice Uden is being convicted for the murder of her ex-husband, Ronald Holtz, who vanished in early 1974. Back in August, Holtz’s remains were found in Laramie County, Wyoming. The autopsy showed that a small caliber gunshot to the back of the head was the reason for death due to a bullet found inside the skull.
Gerald Uden is accused for the murders of his ex-wife and her two children. They were all last seen in September 1980 in Fremont County. Uden has confessed to the killings, stating the weapon he used was the gun his wife had brought so that they could go bird hunting.