• Scientists around the world are working on new male contraceptive techniques one of which involves a remote-controlled sperm valve that can turn off sperm flow at the push of a button. • From today until October 10 a carnival will be held in Nigeria where "bachelor catchers" parade a bachelor around a village in a noose in order to encourage young men to marry. • The Guatemalan government has announced a five-month program to provide some 15,000 lay midwives proper training to avoid preventable childbirth deaths. • A new study from England says that women who are undergoing fertility treatments can increase their chances of having children if they undergo acupuncture during the embryo transfer as part of their regular fertility treatment. • The annulling of a French marriage in 2006 based on the fact that the wife lied about her virginity is currently being appealed because the court decided that a woman's virginity was an "essential quality" and therefore grounds for annulment. • Historians and economists believe that "witch-hunts" tend to occur when times get tough as evidenced by Western history and current persecution of "witches" around the world. • The Japanese Defense Ministry decided today to lift gender restrictions aboard destroyers for female members of the Maritime Self-Defense Force. • An English woman kept a baby hare alive by storing the little fluffball in her bra to keep it warm and feeding the hare baby formula with a syringe. • A pair of cloistered nuns in Spain are the country's newest celebrity chefs with a hybrid reality show and cooking show called Taste of Heaven. • A new rapid test for HPV, careHPV, may be able to help stop cervical cancer for some women in rural villages worldwide. • The Indian government's decision to review the Anti-Dowry Act has been criticized by women's organizations who want the Act to be strengthened instead of dissolved or relaxed. • Okay, so we have been entranced for the past hour by this cute video of a kitty playing "red light, green light" with a camera. Whatevs, it's cute! •

[Photo via Getty.]

• Domestic violence directed towards men goes largely ignored by the media. • A new analysis found that their are no well-constructed studies that show the benefits for removing ovaries during a hysterectomy, meaning that doctors are often guessing based on a woman's age if they should remove the organs or not. • A new study has found that many widowers are not told their wife's illness is terminal and are usually only informed within a week of the wife's death. • Cancer patients are seeing the benefits of writing about their emotions as they go through cancer treatment. • Artist Jocelyn Foye gets roller derby girls from LA Derby Dolls to make indentations in clay with their knees for an exhibition in California. • Women between the ages of 50 to 79 who get nine or more hours of sleep have a 60-70% increased chance of getting a stroke. • The 1995 film version of Sense And Sensibility sparked a rise in wedding requests for a 15th-century church in England, but a broken bell has seen those requests cool off. • A man found with bestiality porn (including octopus porn) avoids jail in Australia after it is revealed he is the most awkward and lonely dude in the world. • Girls in Tech, a group for women in the male-dominated technology field, opens a chapter in LA. • An Indian man tries to use an impostor wife to get a divorce. • Finally, some happy animal news: here's video of a bunny adopted by a cat (via Cute Overload).

• "Experts" claim that U.S. society has more sympathy and interest in female fugitives after they compare a boring male fugitive with a drug-selling female fugitive. • Barbara Morgan, a female astronaut who has logged 305 hours in space, will leave NASA to become an educator at Boise State University. • If Aunt Flo keeps visiting you more often (less than 21 days since her last sojurn) then you might be in the early stages of "the change"! • A rival HPV vaccine similar to Gardasil faces further delays for FDA approval. • A Chinese woman has rescued 100 stray and injured pup-pups after the earthquake (with slideshow!). • An animal study suggests that a diet of junkfood for pregnant and breastfeeding women is bad for the child. Did we really need animal testing to tell us the obvious? • A woman plows into a convenience store and tries to buy a six-pack of beer in Norwalk, CA. • A woman kidnaps and murders a pregnant woman, cut baby from her womb, and tried to pass off the child as her own. • Elizabeth, Illinois tries to gather the greatest number of Lizes, creating a world record with about 400 'Beths. • Meet Purimopueru, a Japanese toy that is meant to substitute a grandchild (or, sometimes child) for older women as birthrates drop in Japan.