News of the Weird

A daily update on some of the odder news stories from around the world.

Fruit flies on crack: According to research carried out in Bethesda, near Washington, fruit flies show the same "reverse tolerance" to crack cocaine as humans do - over time, the same dosage elicits an increasingly strong response. Low doses of cocaine resulted in the flies continuously grooming themselves; higher doses made them walk backwards, sideways and in circles; and at the highest levels they developed tremors or paralysis, or even died. The research may help uncover the molecular basis for cocaine addiction.

Religious ecstasy: A man was detained when he resisted police efforts to put a stop to what they called "obscene acts" in a church in Valladolid, Spain. "They weren't actually having sex but the girl's trousers were down around her ankles and they were very touchy-feely," said a police spokesman.