Two controversial television shows in Peru have the public crying foul, and the Peruvian Congress debating whether to take action. The shows dare audience members to perform disgusting acts for money, and then broadcast their exploits nationwide. Peru's ombudsman has written a letter to Prime Minister Alberto Bustamante calling for government intervention. "It affects the dignity of some people, asking them to carry out degrading acts and taking advantage ... of the poverty of large sectors of society," he wrote.

Recent shows have included a woman licking the armpits and feet of sweaty, half-naked men, two scantily clad women lying in a pool of frog piss, and an elderly man riding a tricycle around the studio dressed in a diaper. The recent complaints have sparked debate about freedom of expression, but Martha Chavez, a member of the Peruvian Congress, told El Sol newspaper that the show exceeds the boundaries of good taste: "Nothing justifies what has been done, and even less so when it is for money."

There's only one way to deal with a grasshopper infestation following the seasonal rains: Eat 'em. At least, that's how they're solving the problem in Uganda. Tens of thousands of grasshoppers are snared in the evenings under the streetlights and consumed. Ugandans say you can strip the wings and fry them, or serve them in a bowl and munch on them while downing a few brewskies. Nutritionists say the insects get a bad rap because they're... well... insects. But they are high in protein and carbohydrates, and the legs are what some call "nature's toothpick."

The next time you sell a naval destroyer to a private citizen, be sure to remove all the weapons and high-tech equipment first. Take it from the Canadian navy -- you'll saveyourself a lot of trouble later. The Canadian government sold two destroyers to Richard Crawford of Florida, but left the ships armed to the hilt. Naval officials say Crawford won't let them on board to retrieve their weaponry unless they compensate him for anything they remove. No one is sure how naval personnel overlooked the eight-barreled missile launcher, which is difficult to miss since it looms a full 10 feet above the deck, but they did. And now they want it back. "We're still seeking permission [from Crawford] to do a final survey of the ships," a spokesman for the Canadian Department of National Defense said.

Men, protect your scrotum. That may be the ultimate message of a study by Ferdinand Frauscher and five colleagues at University Hospital in Innsbruck, Austria, which concluded that the bouncing caused by off-road mountain biking is to blame for scrotal problems ranging from swelling to benign tumors. The researchers are calling for bike manufacturers to redesign the bicycle.

"[W]e think full-suspension bikes with shock systems, or those with shock absorbers in the seat are probably more beneficial in this case, because the bike, rather than the body, absorbs the shock," Frauscher said. Frauscher told the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago that they studied 45 mountain bikers ages 17-44 and compared their scrotal ultrasound examinations with a similar group of non-bikers. Researchers discovered that 96 percent of the bikers had scrotal abnormalities compared to just 16 percent of the non-bikers.

We've all done it at some point, mowed our lawn during a snowstorm. But following a tragic death in Ontario, Canada, we should all re-think this fun pastime. 34-year-old David Campbell was burned over 95 percent of his body when his gas-powered lawnmower exploded. Sgt. John O'Flaherty of the London City Police Department said they remain perplexed by the explosion. "We're not sure if he was actually trying to mow the lawn or if he was just working with the machine," O'Flaherty said.

Campbell's neighbor, Lynda Gavigan, told the London Free Press newspaper that she heard screams and looked outside her window in time to see a flaming body running across the lawn. Caught off guard momentarily by such a sight in the middle of a blizzard, she finally realized she wasn't watching a bad movie. She ran outside and covered him with a blanket to smother the flames. Campbell was transported to the hospital, where he later died.

A Japanese company has filed for a patent on curry, stating they invented the dish that has been served daily in India since before they were born. A London newspaper, The Independent, reported that under World Trade Organization rules, The House Foods Corporation would be able to collect royalties on all curry entering Japan if their patent were granted. Rumor has it that the House Foods Corporation also claims to have invented wood, fish eggs, and air.

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