Sometimes the events on Jersey Shore, the greatest sociological experiment of our time, get extraordinarily trashy. That doesn't mean they aren't revelatory. What, exactly, can we learn about living in the modern age from our eight favorite guidos? More »

It's another 9/11 Eve, with the usual 9/11 polls. This year, only 30% of the country believes our government is "likely" to "ever capture or kill bin Laden." C'mon, people! It's only been nine years, give the government a chance. More »

Episode Five of this Mid-Atlantic torture chamber descended upon us last night and it was as crazy (or crazier?) as everything that came before it. Accusations were hurled, wigs were worn, and someone went to the hospital. More »

[Prince Charles operates a sewing machine an event for his charitable foundation for the environment. Want to see what he made? Read on!] More »

After Koran-burning pastor Terry Jones received enough mainstream media attention to merit a cease-and-desist phone call from the Secretary of Defense yesterday, some major news outlets are trying to absolve themselves of guilt. But how will they treat Jones' copycats? More »

Ponzi schemer to the stars Ken Starr pleaded guilty today to wire fraud, money laundering, and investment advisor fraud; his plea deal will put him behind bars for10-12 years. His pole-dancing wife was "notably absent" from the courtroom. [image via] More »

Planning your Fashion's Night Out itinerary? Take your camera and join our FNO Scavenger Hunt! More »

Fashion kills! NYC's Parks Department chopped down 56 trees and uprooted 11 more to make room for the Fashion Week tents in Lincoln Center, apparently. The agency's response: The trees were dying anyway, and they'll plant new ones later. [NYDN] More »

Fussy flight attendant turned folk hero Steven Slater quit his job with aplomb, but he just can't quit his love of airplanes. He was spotted last night hanging out at Flight 151, an aviation theme restaurant in Chelsea. [Zagat] More »

The company behind Mafia Wars and Farmville doesn't like to talk about the sad addicts who fuel its profits. But it does quietly run a special store for them, where imaginary credits are bought with very real bank transfers. More »

Sheyla Hershey—recipient of the largest fake breasts in the world, size 38KKK—has finally had all four implants removed after they nearly killed her. Her natural breast tissue was so damaged, doctors had to remove most of that, too. More »

The chipper actress gave birth to a daughter in May and now she's bought a cozy new Beverly Hills home. It's got 4,311 square feet, 4 bedrooms, and 3.5 bathrooms. And it's almost all one floor! Perfect for Baby. More »

This woman is both Momma Rose and Gypsy Rose Lee! An actress loves to laugh at her famously short husband, and this actress has some incredible demands in her rider. She wants everything to come up roses. More »

When you type the letters "j-e-s" into Google, the first suggestion to come up as part of its new "instant search" feature is 11-year-old viral video star and internet punching bag Jessi Slaughter. The second name on the list: "Jesus." More »

Well, sorta gritty. Feel good movie costarring Tim McGraw gritty, at least. Here's the trailer for Paltrow's sappy-lookin' country drama about a washed-up, rehab-sprung country singer (Jo Dee Messina?) trying to pick herself up and be rich and famous again. More »

Tim Gunn worries about running into Anna at Fashion Week. Angelina Jolie has barely any friends. 26-year-old Kim Kardashian gets Botox. Snooki insulted to be compared to Lindsay Lohan. TGIFriday gossip. More »

Over 250,000 Japanese citizens aged 100 years or more are "missing," a nationwide inquiry finds. More »

Officials from an LA area prison are showing off their newest crowd control weapon — an "Assault Intervention Device" that blasts millimeter waves at rowdy inmates, creating an "intense burning sensation real quick." An NPR reporter tried it out! More »

War ravaged Iraq has agreed to pay $400 million to a group of Americans who say they were traumatized or tortured during Saddam Hussein's rule after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. What's so unfair about that? Oh, right. More »

Thomas Guinzburg, co-founder of The Paris Review and later the president of Viking Press, died in New York on Wednesday at 84. Guinzburg published Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity's Rainbow," hired Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis as an editor, and served in WW2. [NYT] More »

60 mph wind gusts are pushing the Colorado wildfire closer to the town of Boulder, and authorities have told residents that the western part of town may be evacuated. At least 170 homes have been destroyed this week. More »

About 300 people wearing matching shirts and sushi chef caps got together to roll the world's longest California roll at UMass Amherst on Monday, and beat UC Berkeley's previous record by 92 feet, for a total of 422 feet. More »

It's been a hard week, between the Koran-burning man, and the enormous explosion in California, and the accusations of war crimes. You deserve a massage and a cold drink. But more than that: You deserve a monkey riding a pig. More »

What is going on with Fidel Castro? The former Cuban President has been rather... candid, lately, admitting gay persecution was his fault and condemning anti-Semitism. Most recently? He told a reporter that the Cuban model of economics "doesn't even work." More »

Poor Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino! The Jersey Shore star lost a bid to trademark his nickname for a line of clothing. It gets worse: Mike's last name was just trademarked by someone else. For a line of clothing. Last week. More »