APPLE records and keeps users' Siri queries for up to 2 years -

APPLE records and keeps users' Siri queries for up to 2 years -



Siri isn't just a pretty voice with the answers. It's also been recording and keeping all the questions users ask.

Exactly what the voice assistant does with the data isn't clear, but Apple confirmed that it keeps users' questions for up to two years. Siri, which needs to be connected to the Internet to function, sends all of its users' queries to Apple.

Apple revealed the information after Wired posted an article this week raising the question and highlighting the fact that the privacy statement for Siri wasn't very clear about how long that information is kept or what would be done with it.

Technically Apple keeps Siri user data for six months, associating that data with the user. After that time, the company will disassociate users from the data, meaning it will remove any identifiers for who input that particular query into Siri. But for the next 18 months, Apple said, it keeps the disassociated data for the sake of product testing and improvement purposes.

Read more -

http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-apple-siri-queries-20130419,0,7117017.story

Russian becomes world's oldest spacewalker at 59 -

Russian becomes world's oldest spacewalker at 59 - 


A 59-year-old Russian cosmonaut became the world's oldest spacewalker Friday, joining a much younger cosmonaut's son for maintenance work outside the International Space Station.
Pavel Vinogradov, a cosmonaut for two decades, claimed the honor as he emerged from the hatch with Roman Romanenko. But he inadvertently added to the booming population of space junk when he lost his grip on an experiment tray that he was retrieving toward the end of the 6 1/2-hour spacewalk.
The lost aluminum panel -- 18 inches by 12 inches and about 6 1/2 pounds -- contained metal samples. Scientists wanted to see how the samples had fared after a year out in the vacuum of space.
Otherwise, the spacewalk had gone well, with the spacewalkers installing new science equipment and replacing a navigation device needed for the June arrival of a European cargo ship.
Collecting the experiment tray was Vinogradov's last task outside.
The tray drifted toward the solar panels of the main Russian space station compartment, called Zvezda, Russian for Star. Flight controllers did not believe it struck anything, and the object was not thought to pose a safety hazard in the hours and days ahead.
"That's unfortunate," someone radioed in Russian.
Another panel of similar experiments will be collected on a future spacewalk.
This is the first of eight spacewalks to be conducted this year, most of them by Russians. Two will be led by NASA this summer.
Until Friday, the oldest spacewalker was retired NASA astronaut Story Musgrave, who was 58 when he helped fix the Hubble Space Telescope in 1993.
Romanenko, 41, is a second-generation spaceman who's following in his father's bootsteps. Retired cosmonaut Yuri Romanenko performed spacewalks back in the 1970s and 1980s. This is the son's first experience out in the vacuum of space.
Vinogradov made his seventh spacewalk; he ventured into a dark, ruptured chamber at Russia's old Mir space station in 1997 following a cargo ship collision. He arrived late last month for a six-month stay at the space station; he'll turn 60 aboard the orbiting complex in August.
The spacewalkers joked as they toiled 260 miles above the planet.
"I'm afraid of the darkness," one of them said in Russian as the space station passed over the night side of Earth.
Russian flight controllers outside Moscow oversaw Friday's action. The four other space station residents monitored the activity from inside; Canadian commander Chris Hadfield drew the short straw and had to work on a balky toilet.


Read more: - 

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/04/19/2-russian-cosmonauts-take-spacewalk-outside-space-station-1-following-in-father/?test=latestnews

Chinese Gold Exchange Sold Out - Begins Importing From Switzerland -

Chinese Gold Exchange Sold Out - Begins Importing From Switzerland - 


Hong Kong’s Chinese Gold & Silver Exchange Society has been in operations for over a century, and it’s President Haywood Cheung was interviewed by Bloomberg news earlier today.  Whoever orchestrated the attack on gold and silver in the last week or so has gravely miscalculated, since the response to the drop has been surging demand for physical gold and silver.  While I tend to be skeptical when I hear about silver shortages since these reports have been so exaggerated in the past, the lack of silver coin availability and premiums are the most extreme I have seen since the financial and economic meltdown of 2008.  Now we discover that the Chinese Gold & Silver Exchange Society has essentially sold out of gold bullion, and must wait until Wednesday for shipments to arrive from Switzerland and London.

Read more - 
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-19/chinese-gold-exchange-sold-out-begins-importing-switzerland

10 Signs The Takedown Of Paper Gold Has Unleashed An Unprecedented Global Run On Physical Gold And Silver -

10 Signs The Takedown Of Paper Gold Has Unleashed An Unprecedented Global Run On Physical Gold And Silver - 


The crash of the price of paper gold on Monday has unleashed an unprecedented global frenzy to buy physical gold and silver.  All over the planet, people are recognizing that this is a unique opportunity to be able to acquire large amounts of gold and silver at a bargain price.  So precious metals dealers now find themselves being overwhelmed with orders in the United States, in Canada, in Europe and over in Asia.  Will this massive run on physical gold and silver soon lead to widespread shortages of those metals?  Instead of frightening people away from gold and silver, the takedown of paper goldseems to have had just the opposite effect.  People just can’t seem to get enough physical gold and silver right now.  Those that wish that they had gotten into gold when it was less than $1400 an ounce are able to do so now, and it is absolutely insane that silver is sitting at about $23 an ounce.  If the big banks continue to play games with the price of gold, we are going to see existing supplies of physical gold and silver dry up very quickly.  And once reports of physical shortages of gold and silver become widespread, it is going to absolutely rock the financial world.  But this is what happens when you manipulate free markets – it often has unintended consequences far beyond anything that you ever imagined.

The following are 10 signs that the takedown of paper gold has unleashed an unprecedented global run on physical gold and silver…

#1 According to Zero Hedge, the U.S. Mint set a new all-time record for the number of gold ounces sold on Wednesday…

According to today’s data from the US Mint, a record 63,500 ounces, or a whopping 2 tons, of gold were reported sold on April 17th alone, bringing the total sales for the month to a whopping 147,000 ounces or more than the previous two months combined with just half of the month gone.

#2 Precious metals dealers all over the United States are having a really hard time keeping up with demand right now.  According toChris Martenson, many are warning customers to expect waiting times of five to six weeks at this point…

In the U.S., all of the dealers I talk to are reporting huge demand and brisk buying. Silver in any form is quite hard to come by unless you want to pay premiums of 20%+ per ounce above spot price. Delivery times are 5 to 6 weeks out now –that’s an unusual situation.  If this recent slam was designed to scare people away from gold, it did not have that desired outcome; in fact, just the opposite.

#3 Individual dealers all over the country are confirming that we are seeing a voracious appetite for precious metals at the moment.  For example, the following is what a spokesperson for JM Bullion had to say…

We still have certain things in stock, like 10 oz bars, while others, like Silver Eagles, are a bit of revolving inventory.

The shipments are going out as soon as inventory comes in.

Our main challenge right now is actually getting the silver into the boxes and shipped out – we have been experiencing astounding volume.

This appears to be a widespread phenomenon.  Just check outwhat other dealers are reporting…

“There has been a marked increase in demand since the plunge,” said Mark O’Byrne, executive director at Dublin-based investment and bullion specialist GoldCore, referring to the drop in gold prices seen Friday and Monday. Gold futures lost more than $200 an ounce, or over 13%, on those two days. They were at $1,392 an ounce, moving higher ahead of the close on Thursday.

GoldCore has seen more buying than selling on Wednesday and Thursday, with buy orders “lumpier and from high net worth clients, and with most of the selling in small orders of less than 50 ounces, said O’Byrne.

On Wednesday, David Beahm, executive vice president at Blanchard & Co., said his precious-metals investment firm has seen “2008-like demand” for gold since Monday.

#4 Large international banks are also experiencing tremendous demand for physical gold and silver by customers right now.  The following is what Keith Barron told King World News about what he is hearing…

At the Bank of Nova Scotia in Toronto the gold window has been absolutely swamped. I have confirmed there were people lined up in droves recently for multiple-hours at a time to buy gold and silver bars and coins….

I then confirmed with UBS today in Zurich, Switzerland, that they are experiencing exactly the same thing. They told me people are waiting in long lines for bullion related bars and coins. The physical market is incredibly tight, and there is a huge buying opportunity right here.

The damage in gold will not be long-term because physical supply is already drying up. Asian countries have been aggressively buying gold. This really is an unprecedented opportunity for investors. This takedown in the metals has created incredible demand for both gold and silver, and anyone who wants to unload dollars or euros and put them into gold because they don’t trust the currency, now is the time to do it.

#5 The demand for physical gold and silver is heating up over in Europe as well.  For example, the following is from an emergency message posted on the website of a precious metals dealer in the UK…

Due to the unprecedented demand triggered by the recent fall in the Gold Price we are currently not able to guarantee Next Day Delivery of orders.

We anticipate that all orders will be delivered within 7 days of receipt by us.

Whilst we appreciate that these delays are frustrating for our customers we would like to stress that all accepted orders are guaranteed at the order price and will be dispatched as soon as possible.

It is necessary for all of our staff to be utilised in fulfilling orders and we ask for your cooperation by not calling us to query delivery times. If you do need to contact us, please do so by e-mail and we will endeavour to respond within 48hrs.

#6 On the other side of the globe, demand for precious metals is skyrocketing as well.  According to Bloomberg, people are “running through the gate” to get gold in Australia…

Gold sales from Australia’s Perth Mint, which refines nearly all of the nation’s bullion, surged after prices plunged, adding to signs that the metal’s slump to a two-year low is spurring increased demand.

“The volume of business that we’re putting through is way in excess of double what we did last week,” Treasurer Nigel Moffatt said by phone, without giving precise figures. “There’s been people running through the gate.”

#7 Reuters is reporting that customers are waiting for up to three hours to buy gold in Japan…

A week ago, as the yen-denominated price neared a new peak, jewelry stores and gold merchants across Japan saw long lines of mostly older Japanese looking to cash in on unwanted jewelry and other items that they had held for years.

But on Tuesday, buyers outnumbered sellers by a wide margin. At Ginza Tanaka, the headquarters shop of Tanaka Holdings, gold buyers waited for as long as three hours for a chance to complete a transaction.

#8 According to a Chinese article quoted by the Blaze, there is a mad rush to buy gold in China right now…

People have to rush to buy gold … gold bullion out of stock yesterday, investors yesterday to spend as much as 600 million yuan to buy 20 kilograms of gold bars

The mad pursuit gold insufficiency is not just a game for the rich. Yesterday, the Yangcheng Evening News reporter learned from the East flowers to Bay store, many growers, pork traffickers, fishmonger recently put down his job went straight to the mall to buy gold.

#9 According to Reuters, dealers in Singapore are having significant trouble finding enough of a supply to keep up with the intense demand for gold that has erupted this week…

“People are actually buying everything, gold bars, gold coins. People are rushing to get a hand on it. We have a problem meeting the demand because we are unable to get new supply,” said Brian Lan, managing director of GoldSilver Central Pte Ltd in Singapore.

#10 Bloomberg is reporting that over in India people are “flocking to stores” to purchase gold jewelry and coins…

Gold buyers in India, the world’s biggest consumer, are flocking to stores to buy jewelry and coins, betting a selloff that plunged bullion to a two-year low may be overdone.

“My daughter is just six months old, but I think it is never too early to buy gold,” said Sharmila Shirodkar, a 28- year-old housewife, while displaying a new pair of earrings she bought from a store in Mumbai’s Zaveri Bazaar. “I had been asking my husband every day if prices will go down more. I couldn’t wait anymore.”

If the big banks were trying to scare people away from gold and silver by crashing paper prices for those metals then they have utterly failed.

Instead of being frightened away, the global appetite for physical gold and silver is now more voracious than ever.

If the prices for gold and silver stay this low, we are eventually going to start seeing some very serious shortages in the marketplace.

And once reports of shortages of the actual physical metals become widely circulated, it will cause an “adjustment” in the marketplace that will shock everyone.

So hold on to your hats.  We are entering a period of time when there will be unprecedented volatility for the prices of precious metals.  It will be quite a roller coaster ride, but if you can handle the ups and downs it will be worth it in the end.

Read more - 

http://www.blacklistednews.com/10_Signs_The_Takedown_Of_Paper_Gold_Has_Unleashed_An_Unprecedented_Global_Run_On_Physical_Gold_And_Silver/25427/0/38/38/Y/M.html

Semen Has Anti-Aging Benefits? Heather Locklear Says So... -

Semen Has Anti-Aging Benefits? Heather Locklear Says So... - 


It's already been proven that Heather Locklear is doing a bang-up job aging with grace. (Seriously, she looks the same age as her 15-year-old daughter.) So when the 51-year-old actress offered up the secret to her great skin, we listened closely... and were subsequently grossed out.

In an on-camera conversation with TMZ reporters, she was asked if she had any recommendations for anti-aging skincare products. Her reply? "You just put semen on your face."

Leaving aside the fact that we can't tell if she's kidding, we have reason to actually take this one seriously. Sure, the thought is gross (as are TMZ's puns on the matter -- "shot to the face," anyone?) but the research is there: Semen may have anti-aging benefits.

Semen as an anti-aging treatment saw a spike in popularity (or at least curiosity) around 2009. Turns out spermine, one of the components of semen, is high in anti-oxidants and can be used to smooth out wrinkles. An enterprising Cosmo reporter even went and got a sperm facial at a swanky New York spa, confirming that her skin did feel smoother afterwards.

None of which convinces us to start incorporating spunk into our beauty routines. But hey, have you seen Heather Locklear lately? Her skin looks amazing.

Read more - 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/17/semen-anti-aging_n_3101168.html

Iceland Incest App Determines If Couples Are Too Closely Related To Have Sex -

Iceland Incest App Determines If Couples Are Too Closely Related To Have Sex - 



Avoiding incest in Iceland just got easier. A new app determines if hookups on the close-knit island nation are sharing too many roots in the family tree, News Of Iceland reports.

The "Islendingabók" ("Book of Icelanders") app allows amorous users to tap into a bloodline registry that judges whether romance is advisable.

The app's slogan, "bump the app before you bump in bed," invites would-be couples to bump their smartphones together for a verdict to prevent problems later.

Watch a demonstration of the app, above.

The database, which draws from 1,200 years of genealogical info, has been around since 1997, according to the New York Daily News. Before the app was developed, couples in Iceland had to search the database by typing in their names and Icelandic ID numbers. In the heat of the moment, that might be difficult.

Now, all it takes is a phone kiss.

As previously reported, the possibility of romancing a too-close relative is relatively high in Iceland, given that the island has around 300,000 mostly native residents.

According to GlobalPost, a little verbal investigation also helps to avoid inbreeding. "Hverra manna ert þú?" ("Who are your people?") is a common question exchanged.

Read more - 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/17/iceland-incest-app_n_3102152.html?utm_hp_ref=world

Google Glass will SELF-DESTRUCT if flogged on eBay - Techno-specs are for life, not just for Christmas -

Google Glass will SELF-DESTRUCT if flogged on eBay - Techno-specs are for life, not just for Christmas - 



Buyers of Google Glass have been warned they cannot sell their pricey new techno-spectacles on eBay or anywhere else.

In terms of sale posted on its website, the advertising giant said a Google Glass was for life, unless you wanted to give it away for nothing. Anyone who failed to follow the rules will have their devices remotely shut down.

The first Google Glass Explorer editions are rolling off the production lines and into the hands of early adopters who each paid $1,500 for an early version of the headgear. The hardware projects information into the wearer's field of view.

Google stated: "You may not commercially resell any device, but you may give the device as a gift. Recipients of gifts may need to open and maintain a Google Wallet account in order to receive support from Google. These terms will also apply to any gift recipient."

Then, tucked away in the footnotes, the Chocolate Factory added: "Unless otherwise authorized by Google, you may only purchase one device, and you may not resell, loan, transfer, or give your device to any other person. If you [do this] without Google’s authorization, Google reserves the right to deactivate the device, and neither you nor the unauthorized person using the device will be entitled to any refund, product support, or product warranty."

Google Glass is about as powerful as a mid-range smartphone. Although details of which processor its uses have not yet emerged, we do know it has a 5-megapixel camera, can shoot 720p video and features about 12GB of usuable storage from a total of 16GB. A battery charge will last the best part of a day, unless the wearer conducts video chats or records a lot of footage.

Apparently, the display is equivalent to watching a 25-inch television from eight feet away, we're told. Perhaps its strangest feature is its bone-conduction transducer, which generates sound by sending vibrations through bones in the ear.

It has already been banned from several places, including some strip clubs, over fears it could be used to film people without their knowledge.

A group called Stop the Cyborgs has launched a campaign against Google Glass after warning the device will create a world where "privacy is impossible and corporate control total".

Google is reportedly planning to set up stalls in America to sell Glass and big up the web giant's other products.

Read more -

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/04/18/google_glass_sales/

US Mint Sells Record 63,500 Ounces Of Gold In One Day - a whopping 2 tons on April 17th, 2013 -

US Mint Sells Record 63,500 Ounces Of Gold In One Day - a whopping 2 tons on April 17th, 2013 - 


One of the more curious revelations of the New Normal is the fundamental dichotomy when investing between paper "investors", or those who chase returns based on intangible, fiat-based and central bank-backed promises, such as capital appreciation or cash flow streams, and those who would rather convert their paper money into hard assets, even if said assets can not be, in the immortal words of Warren Buffett, fondled, or otherwise generate a cash-based return. Such as gold.

Today provides perhaps the perfect example of how the former increasingly trade on nothing but momentum and speculative mania (such as the previously reported record inflow of foreign capital into the Japanese stock market well after the bulk of the easy upside has already been made and at this point there is mostly downside) and where buying begets only more buying, while rampant selling only leads to liquidations, while those who invest in hard assets (and thus have little to no leverage) have become the true value investors, purchasing more as the price of the underlying asset drops. Yes, a novel concept to most High Frequency Trading vacuum tubes, and the momentum-chasing, equity trading "expert" du jour, but nothing new to Indians, Australians, Chinese or the Japanese.

And apparently to at least some Americans.

According to today's data from the US Mint, a record 63,500 ounces, or a whopping 2 tons, of gold were reported sold on April 17th alone, bringing the total sales for the month to a whopping 147,000 ounces or more than the previous two months combined with just half of the month gone.

Punchline number one, as the chart below shows, is that the more the price of gold fell, the more aggressive the purchases of physical gold through the Mint became, rising to 96,500 oz in the last two days alone. Buying more of something you want when the price drops: what a stunning concept - explain that to the algos who nearly crashed the German stock market overnight.

Punchline number two, of course, is that the US mint charges a hefty premium for purchases: much more so than traditional vendors like Apmex or Gainesville Coins, and is usually the last resort for when nobody else has any physical at a lower premium to spot (or any metal in inventory).



So how long until the US mint "runs out" of American Eagles and Buffaloes in inventory, along with the depletion of all other precious metal vendors? And what happens if the price of paper gold hits zero (or goes negative) courtesy of bank and financial institution liquidation selling of paper derivative contracts nebulously referencing some yellow metal somewhere, even as suddenly there is no physical to be delivered to anyone, anywhere?

Inquiring minds really want to know.

Read more - 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-17/us-mint-sells-record-63500-ounces-gold-one-day

Gold Buying Frenzy Continues: China, Japan, And Australia Scramble For Physical -

Gold Buying Frenzy Continues: China, Japan, And Australia Scramble For Physical - 


We noted here that the plunge in the paper price of gold (and silver) had prompted considerable renewed demand for physical and now it seems the scramble among the "more stable investor base" is increasing. The shake out of ETFs and futures has left the Australian mint short of deliverables and Japanese and Chinese gold retailers seeing a "frenzied" surge in demand. The customers are not just the 'rich' or 'elderly'; in China "they tend to wear water shoes and come directly from the market...;" in Australia, "the volume of business... is way in excess of double what we did last week,... there’s been people running through the gate," and Japanese individual investors doubled gold purchases yesterday at Tokuriki Honten, the country’s second-largest retailer of the precious metal. The panic selling by a weaker 'imminent inflation-based' investor base has sparked physical shortages - "there’s been significant sales made as people see this as great value." It seems our previous discussions of a rotation from paper to physical were correct and this physical demand will eventually leak back into the paper markets.



Australia (via The Age):

Gold sales from Perth Mint, which refines nearly all of the nation’s bullion, have surged after prices plunged, adding to signs that the metal’s slump to a two-year low is spurring increased demand.

“The volume of business that we’re putting through is way in excess of double what we did last week,” Treasurer Nigel Moffatt said, without giving precise figures. “There’s been people running through the gate.”

...

“There’s been significant sales made as people see this as great value,” Mr Moffatt said. “Gold owners are very reactive to significant market movements.”

...

The Perth Mint’s sales of gold coins climbed 49 per cent to 97,541 ounces in the three months ended March 31 from a year earlier
China (via China News):

Beijing gold store two hours to sell 20,000 grams of gold bullion trading volume of nearly 200 million
and (via YCWB):

People have to rush to buy gold, ... gold bullion out of stock yesterday, investors yesterday to spend as much as 600 million yuan to buy 20 kilograms of gold bars

The mad pursuit gold insufficiency is not just a game for the rich. Yesterday, the Yangcheng Evening News reporter learned from the East flowers to Bay store, many growers, pork traffickers, fishmonger recently put down his job went straight to the mall to buy gold.
Japan (via Reuters):

Some Japanese also harbor fears that the expansionary monetary and fiscal policies dubbed "Abenomics", coupled with a national debt more than twice as large as annual economic output, could trigger a crisis down the line.

Skeptics about the radical attempt to reflate the economy -- or those simply worried that a slide in the yen that began in anticipation of Abe's election victory last December will continue unabated -- are still buying gold, dealers say.

"Investors in gold are convinced that Japan's fiscal position will get worse," said Wakako Harada, general manager of Japan's top bullion house, Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo.

"What I see at our counter is that more people are getting worried about Japan. That's why we are seeing a lot of buying."

...

"In contrast this time, we are seeing interest to buy on dips to take exposures to gold,"

...

"Investors are using this opportunity to buy gold to diversify beyond bonds, stocks and the yen currency as Japan's fiscal situation could deteriorate."
(via The Age):

Japanese individual investors doubled gold purchases yesterday at Tokuriki Honten, the country’s second-largest retailer of the precious metal.

Read more - 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-17/gold-buying-frenzy-continues-china-japan-and-australia-scramble-physical

Florida battles giant stucco-eating Snails - can grow as big as a Rat -

Florida battles giant stucco-eating Snails - can grow as big as a Rat - 


South Florida is fighting a growing infestation of one of the world’s most destructive invasive species: the giant African land snail, which can grow as big as a rat and gnaw through stucco and plaster.
More than 1,000 of the molluscs are being caught each week in the Miami-Dade area and 117,000 in total since the first snail was spotted by a homeowner in September 2011, said Denise Feiber, a spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
Residents will soon likely begin encountering them more often, crunching them underfoot as the snails emerge from underground hibernation at the start of the state’s rainy season in just seven weeks, Feiber said.
The snails attack “over 500 known species of plants ... pretty much anything that’s in their path and green,” Feiber said.
In some Caribbean countries, such as Barbados, which are overrun with the creatures, the snails’ shells blow out tires on the highway and turn into hurling projectiles from lawn mower blades, while their slime and excrement coat walls and pavement.
“It becomes a slick mess,” Feiber said.
A typical snail can produce about 1,200 eggs a year and the creatures are a particular pest in homes because of their fondness for stucco, devoured for the calcium content they need for their shells.
The snails also carry a parasitic rat lungworm that can cause illness in humans, including a form of meningitis, Feiber said, although no such cases have yet been identified in the United States.
The snails’ saga is something of a sequel to the Florida horror show of exotic species invasions, including the well-known infestation of giant Burmese pythons, which became established in the Everglades in 2000. There is a long list of destructive non-native species that thrive in the state’s moist, subtropical climate.
Experts gathered last week in Gainesville, Fla., for a Giant African Land Snail Science Symposium to seek the best ways to eradicate the molluscs, including use of a stronger bait approved recently by Washington.
Feiber said investigators were trying to trace the snail infestation source. One possibility being examined is a Miami Santeria group, a religion with West African and Caribbean roots, which was found in 2010 to be using the large snails in its rituals, she said. But many exotic species come into the United States unintentionally in freight or tourists’ baggage.
“If you got a ham sandwich in Jamaica or the Dominican Republic, or an orange, and you didn’t eat it all and you bring it back into the States and then you discard it, at some point, things can emerge from those products,” Feiber said.
Authorities are expanding a series of announcements on buses, billboards and in movie theatres urging the public to be on the lookout.
The last known Florida invasion of the giant molluscs occurred in 1966, when a boy returning to Miami from a vacation in Hawaii brought back three of them, possibly in his jacket pockets. His grandmother eventually released the snails into her garden, where the population grew in seven years to 17,000 snails. The state spent $1 million and 10 years eradicating them.
Feiber said many people unfamiliar with the danger viewed the snails as cute pets.
“They’re huge, they move around, they look like they’re looking at you ... communicating with you, and people enjoy them for that,” Feiber said. “But they don’t realize the devastation they can create if they are released into the environment where they don’t have any natural enemies and they thrive.”

Read more -

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2013/04/14/florida_battles_giant_stuccoeating_snails.html