Turns Out You Can Fall 70 Feet Into Kīlauea Volcano and Survive

Not that you should follow this man’s lead.

Ted Bundy: Who was the serial killer and how did he die?

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, a biopic about serial killer Ted Bundy, has just been released.Zac Efron portrays the murderer in the Netflix film, while Lily Collins stars as Bundy's former girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer.Bundy is believed to have started killing and assaulting women in the 1970s, murdering dozens of them until the end of the decade.Here is what you should know about Bundy before you see Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile:Who was Ted Bundy?Theodore Robert Bundy was born on 24 November, 1946 in Burlington, Vermont, and grew up in Tacoma, Washington. He dropped out of college before returning to the University of Washington and obtaining a degree in psychology in 1970, per a New York Times article published in 1978 while he was on trial.Bundy later entered law school but abandoned those studies as well. By 1971, Bundy was volunteering at a suicide hotline where he met the true crime writer Ann Rule, who later authored the book The Stranger Beside Me about her friendship with Bundy.Did Ted Bundy confess to his crimes?Bundy confessed to 30 killings across seven states by the time of his death.However, the actual death toll might be higher. Several unsolved murders have been linked to Bundy, even though evidence hasn't been sufficient to establish culpability.Bundy himself suggested that the actual number of his victims might be higher.When and how did he die?Bundy was executed by electrocution on 24 January, 1989, after being convicted on three separate murder cases – the killing of 12-year-old Kimberly Diane Leach, and the slayings of Margaret Bowman and Lisa Levy at the Chi Omega sorority house at Florida State University.He was 42 years old at the time of his death.More than 100 people cheered outside the Florida State Prison, setting off firecrackers and lighting sparklers, according to the Associated Press's report of the execution.Who was his girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer?Kloepfer, a single mother, started dating Bundy in 1969. The relationship started until the mid 1970s.Around that time, Kloepfer developed doubts about Bundy and gave his name to the police, though authorities didn't consider him a serious suspect.Kloepfer published a book about her relationship with Bundy, titled The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy, in 1981 under the name Elizabeth Kendall. Bundy was on death row at the time.She has remained out of the public eye for years, and Michael Werwie, the screenwriter of Extremely Wicked, told Vanity Fair she was "not findable".

'Scientology' cruise ship detained in St Lucia after discovery of measles

A cruise ship which acts as a religious retreat for the Church of Scientology has been quarantined in the Caribbean after a person on board was diagnosed with measles. The Freewinds, a 440ft vessel, was prevented from disembarking by authorities on the island of St.Lucia. It was believed to have nearly 300 passengers on board, and the infected person was reportedly a female crew member. Dr Merlene Fredericks-James, the island's chief medical officer, said: "Because of the risk of potential infection, not just from the confirmed measles case, but from other persons who may be on the boat at the time, we thought it prudent to make a decision not to allow anyone to disembark. "One infected person can easily infect others. We thought it prudent that we quarantine the ship."  She did not name the vessel but officials with St. Lucia's Marine Police confirmed it was the Freewinds. The impounded cruise ship is used by the Church of Scientology  Credit: Paul Mounce/Corbis via Getty Images The development came as the United States is facing an outbreak that has led to the highest number of measles cases in 25 years. More than 700 people have been infected in 22 US states this year. Health officials have blamed the resurgence on misinformation being spread about vaccinations. Amid the outbreak Los Angeles ordered quarantines on two university campuses last month after each reported at least one confirmed measles case. The vast majority of US cases have occurred in children who have not received the three-way vaccines against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), which confers immunity to the disease. Measles is spread through casual contact with the virus, which can remain infectious in the air of an enclosed space for up to two hours after it is breathed out by someone carrying the disease. The rate of transmission from an infected person to another person nearby who lacks immunity is about 90 per cent, and an infected person can be contagious for four days before showing signs. Global measles immunisation rate Alex Azar, the US health and human services secretary, has called the measles outbreak "completely avoidable". He attacked the belief, debunked by scientific studies, that vaccine ingredients can cause autism, which has led to pockets of low vaccination rates in some communities. US states including New York, New Jersey, Maine, Oregon, Vermont, Minnesota and Iowa are considering laws to ban parents from citing religious or personal beliefs to avoid vaccinating their children. The Church of Scientology has never made any pronouncements discouraging its members from getting vaccinated. A person answering the phone at the church's media centre said no one was immediately available for comment. According to Scientology's website the Freewinds is home to its Flag Ship Service Organization (FSSO) and was bought in 1986. It is described as a "religious retreat ministering the most advanced level of spiritual counseling in the Scientology religion." What is Scientology? In 2004 it was the scene of a surprise 42nd birthday party for Tom Cruise, Scientology's best known member. The website also describes it as the "pinnacle of a deeply spiritual journey," and described how it is used for "humanitarian missions" around the world. "The Freewinds is a very special place," the website says. "It is the one place a Scientologist may go and be certain he will be able to devote himself entirely to his religious practice, and in the company of people who share his religious commitment and outlook on life in general." It is normally docked in the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao. MarineTraffic.com, the vessel-monitoring website, showed the Panamanian-flagged ship docked in port near the St. Lucia capital of Castries, and indicated it had been heading next to the island of Dominica.

The Latest: Venezuela's top court orders López's arrest

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The latest on the political crisis in Venezuela (all times local):

UPDATE 2-McKesson to pay $37 million to resolve West Virginia opioid lawsuit

Drug distributor McKesson Corp has agreed to pay $37 million to resolve a lawsuit by the state of West Virginia alleging it helped fuel a U.S. opioid epidemic by failing to stop suspicious orders of painkillers by pharmacies in the state. The settlement announced by West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey on Thursday came in one of hundreds of similar lawsuits by states and local governments against McKesson and other distributors over their roles in the opioid crisis. The settlement was the largest that a distributor has agreed with a state in the litigation.

College admissions scandal: Chinese family 'paid $6.5 million for spot at Stanford University’

The family of a Chinese student admitted to Stanford University paid $6.5m to the man at the heart of the college admissions scandal, according to reports.Yusi Zhao, also known as Molly, was admitted to Stanford in 2017 after her parents paid Newport Beach college consultant William Singer the seven-figure sum, the Los Angeles Times reported.Neither Ms Zhao nor her parents, who live in Beijing, have been charged, and it is unclear whether they are currently being investigated. Stanford University rescinded Ms Zhao’s admission in April, and she is no longer a student there.The person with knowledge of the inquiry said that Ms Zhao’s family was introduced to Mr Singer by Michael Wu, a financial adviser at Morgan Stanley based in Pasadena, California. A spokesperson for Morgan Stanley said that Wu had been terminated for not cooperating with an internal investigation into the matter and that the firm was cooperating with the officials. Mr Wu did not respond to a phone call.At a court hearing in March, the lead prosecutor in the admissions case, Eric S Rosen, said that Mr Singer had tried to get Ms Zhao – whom Rosen did not identify by name – recruited to the Stanford sailing team and created a false profile of her supposed sailing achievements.She was ultimately not recruited, but Mr Rosen said that she was admitted to Stanford University partly on the basis of those false credentials. He added that after Ms Zhao's admission, Mr Singer made a $500,000 donation to the Stanford sailing program.Mr Singer has pleaded guilty to racketeering and other charges, for masterminding a scheme that prosecutors say included both cheating on college entrance exams and bribing coaches to recruit students who were not actually competitive athletes.The former Stanford sailing coach, John Vandemoer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering.According to Mr Rosen’s comments in his plea hearing in March, Mr Vandemoer did not help Zhao’s application “in any material way”, but accepted other donations from Singer to his programme in exchange for agreeing to reserve recruiting spots for Mr Singer’s clients.Mr Vandemoer’s lawyer, Robert Fisher, declined to comment.Ms Zhao appears to have participated in a recent conference hosted by the Princeton-US China Coalition. Her biography on the group’s website said she was planning to major in psychology and East Asian Studies and was interested in education policy in China. It added that she hoped to be involved in the Chinese government in the future.Ms Zhao worked during a recent summer in a biology and chemistry research lab at Harvard, under the direction of Daniel G Nocera, a professor of energy at the university. Mr Nocera said in an email that Ms Zhao was unpaid and worked for Stanford University credit.At the Stanford campus, several students seemed unfazed by the news that one of their colleagues had paid millions to be there. Tamara Morris, a 20-year-old junior studying political science and African American studies, said she was unaware of the Zhao case. Conversation about the college admissions scandal had died down in recent weeks on campus, Ms Morris said, adding that she was not particularly bothered by the news.“I know how I got in,” she said.New York Times

Occidental shareholders criticize bid for Anadarko, Buffett financing

Several major Occidental Petroleum Corp shareholders have voiced opposition to the oil company's $38 billion bid for rival Anadarko Petroleum Corp that now includes a pricey financing deal with billionaire Warren Buffett. Occidental and Chevron Corp are battling for Anadarko and its holdings of nearly a quarter million acres in the Permian Basin, the top U.S. shale field, where low-cost production has helped turn the United States into the world's top oil producer at 12.3 million barrels per day. Occidental shares were trading on Thursday at $57.48, down sharply from $66.63 a month ago, prior to rumors it might challenge Chevron.