Iceland

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Best, Worst Places to Be Female

Iceland, Rwanda, and Norway top the Independent's 'best' list

(Newser) - With International Women's Day coming up Thursday, should we weep or rejoice? While British women will likely face 14 more elections before women equal men in Parliament, women in Qatar are far more likely to attend university than men. That said, the Independent picked its best and worse nations...

For Icelandic Lovers, an Incest Database
 For Icelandic Lovers, 
 an Incest Database 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Feb 12, 2012 12:07 PM CST

For Icelandic Lovers, an Incest Database

Íslendingabók tells Icelanders if they're related to their dates

(Newser) - An Icelander's pre-date checklist: Put on a nice shirt, buy some flowers … run date's name through incest database? It sounds crazy, but with Iceland's population at just 300,000, the risk of accidentally romancing a relative is high. Íslendingabók, or the Book of Icelanders,...

How Iceland Got Its Groove Back

Letting its banks perish worked out for island nation

(Newser) - Don't look now, but Iceland's economy is growing. Tourism is up, the standard of living remains high, and unemployment is down to 7%. "For a country whose entire financial system collapsed, Iceland is doing remarkably well," the IMF's mission chief there tells the Washington Post...

Iceland Votes to Recognize Palestine

Country becomes first in western Europe to do so

(Newser) - Iceland has become the first Western European nation to recognize Palestine as an independent state. A resolution to recognize Palestine as "an independent and sovereign state" based on borders predating the Six Day War of 1967 passed the country's parliament with 38 of 63 votes. Iceland's foreign...

Dear Financial &#39;Experts,&#39; Check Out Iceland
Dear Financial 'Experts,' Check Out Iceland
paul krugman
Oct 28, 2011 12:16 PM CDT

Dear Financial 'Experts,' Check Out Iceland

It avoided harsh austerity measures and is doing better: Paul Krugman

(Newser) - Markets are thrilled that Europe finally cut a deal, "however vague the details and however inadequate it may prove," writes Paul Krugman in the New York Times . The deal is better than nothing, he writes, but it once again highlights the misguided doctrine he says is doing great...

Chinese Tycoon to Buy Chunk of Iceland

Put critics are worried about the idea of China getting its hands on their land

(Newser) - How much does it cost to purchase 0.3% of Iceland? About $8.8 million, learned one Chinese tycoon who plans to do just that. Huang Nubo has made a provisional deal to buy 115 square miles of wilderness in the northeastern part of the country, which the real estate...

US Threatens Sanctions on Iceland Over Whaling

Obama administration will consider trade and diplomatic penalties

(Newser) - The US is set to announce possible trade and diplomatic sanctions against Iceland for ramping up its whale hunts despite an international moratorium on commercial whaling. The Obama administration will cite Iceland under a domestic law that allows the president to act against foreign nationals or countries who flout international...

New Iceland Volcano Shows Signs of Activity

Hekla erupts every decade or so, and she's overdue

(Newser) - Scientists are monitoring unusual underground activity that could signal an eruption at the Hekla volcano in southern Iceland. Magma appears to be moving deep beneath the volcano, and while that doesn't necessarily mean an eruption is imminent, scientists expect Hekla, one of Iceland's most active volcanoes, to erupt...

Iceland Debates Making Cigarettes Prescription-Only

Country will consider banning normal sales

(Newser) - In Iceland, you may soon need to head to the pharmacy to get your cigarettes. The country is considering a counter-intuitive measure that would make cigarettes a prescription-only product. The bill would ban the sale of cigarettes anywhere except pharmacies, and would initially require pharmacies to sell cigarettes only to...

Iceland Begins Talks on Joining EU

It's an unpopular notion within the country

(Newser) - Iceland is beginning formal accession talks with the European Union, following several months of preparation by both sides. Iceland applied for membership following the collapse of its bloated banking industry in 2008, but joining the EU is unpopular with large sections of the public. Iceland's membership in the EU...

Iceland Lets Facebook Fans Help Write New Constitution

Highly-wired country crowdsources new document

(Newser) - The council drafting Iceland’s new constitution is out to bring new meaning to the term “by the people.” They’re essentially crowdsourcing the document, the Guardian reports, using social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to solicit ideas and get feedback from citizens. “I believe this...

Icelandic Ash Nears UK Airspace

Nervous officials monitoring cranky volcano

(Newser) - Volcanic ash from a spewing Icelandic volcano is drifting toward UK airspace, threatening a possible repeat of last year's travel debacle. Iceland grounded all flights at its main Keflavik airport yesterday after the Grimsvotn volcano shot steam and ash 12 miles into the air. The ash is expected to...

New Volcano Eruption Closes Iceland Airport

But Grimsvotn should not disrupt air travel, scientists say

(Newser) - More than a year after an Iceland volcano spewed ash high into the atmosphere, wreaking havoc on European air travel, another volcano has erupted in the small, island nation, reports the AP . The Grimsvotn volcano—Iceland's most active, with 13 eruptions in the last century—began erupting yesterday just...

Best Place to Be a Mom Is ...
 Best Place to Be a Mom Is... 
May 3, 2011 5:05 AM CDT

Best Place to Be a Mom Is...

...Norway, says index that considers maternity leave, mortality rates

(Newser) - Moms who want the good life should consider heading north. That's because Norway is the best place in the world to be a mother, according to new survey. Why? Norway has great health benefits, an average year-long maternity leave from work, and low child mortality rates, along with a...

Finally, a Human Specimen for Iceland Penis Museum

95-year-old's pickled member will go on display

(Newser) - Whale penises, seal penises, bear penises: Iceland's Phallological Museum has them all, but it was missing one thing: a human member. That all changed when 95-year-old Pall Arason died, leaving his penis to the museum, which opened in 1997. Sigurdur Hjartarson, Arason's friend who runs the museum in Husavik, says...

Average Joes Will Rewrite Iceland Constitution

523 people campaigning for spot on Constitutional Assembly

(Newser) - Hundreds of ordinary people, from truck drivers to teachers, are vying to be elected to one of up to 31 spots on Iceland's Constitutional Assembly, which will convene early next year to perform the first major rewrite to the charter since Iceland gained independence from Denmark in 1944, reports AP...

Iceland Thinks US May Be Spying on Its Citizens

Embassy surveillance program may have violated law

(Newser) - All five Nordic nations now suspect the US has been using its embassies to spy on their citizens: Iceland has joined Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland in launching a probe into whether American embassies acted illegally by carrying out surveillance of protesters without permission from national authorities, the BBC reports....

Iceland Best Nation for Women; US 19th

World Economic Forum releases annual rankings

(Newser) - Iceland leads the world in gender equality, says a new report from the World Economic Forum, with the United States rising 12 spots to 19th. Nordic nations again dominated the list, with Norway, Finland, and Sweden also near the top. Ireland, the UK, Germany, and Spain did well, but France...

Ex-World Leader Indicted Over Financial Crisis

Iceland's Geir Haarde says charge 'borders on political persecution'

(Newser) - Iceland’s legislature has decided to file charges against the country’s ex-prime minister over his role in the financial crisis. After a contentious vote yesterday, lawmakers voted 33-30 to refer charges against Geir Haarde to a special court, the AP reports. That’ll make Haarde the first world leader...

US Asks Allies to Hunt Assange

Wikileaks founder may have worn out his welcome

(Newser) - The US has asked Britain, Germany, Australia, and other allies to consider arresting Julian Assange for leaking Afghan war documents. Washington believes Assange’s WikiLeaks, and organizations like it, pose a national security risk, and suspects Assange has worn out his welcome in many countries, officials tell the Daily Beast...

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