Counter Intelligence: Gold Medalist Gets Sex Test

Runner told to take test before big race

See why one athlete was forced to take a gender test and take a look at our list of must-reads that will have you chatting at the lunch counter, over IM or wherever it is that people actually talk these days.

  • Runner Caster Semenya was forced to undergo a sex test prior to her Gold medal race. The 18-year old from South Africa underwent the gender testing prior to the race at Olympic Stadium in Berlin in order to confirm that she was in fact a female and therefore eligible to race. The head of the International Association of Athletics Federation explained after the race that the test was done because of "ambiguity" not because the sports governing body believed she was cheating.
     
  • The life expectancy for Americans is at an all-time high, according to new statistics. Those in the U.S. are living nearly 2-1/2 months longer and reached a high of nearly 78 years in 2007. The stats are based on 90 percent of death certificates filed in the U.S. and has been on the rise for about 10 years.
     
  • A pet goldfish has survived incredible odds and wound up in a sewage plant -- alive -- after being flushed down the toilet. An employee at the UK-based waste treatment facility spotted the fish, named Pooh, and rushed him to a tank of clean water. 
     
  • Neurotics are more likely to die early than those who are mellowed out, a new study shows. Part of the reason neuroticism contributes to an individuals death is linked to the increased change of smoking. But the research does suggest that personality and psychological features like anger or degree of social engagement can help determine how long you'll live.
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