Blog Posts by Piper Weiss, Shine Staff

Karla Perez speaks on Mexican TV about being pregnant with nine children (via info7)One of the most unbelievable pregnancy claims has been confirmed as a hoax. Karla Vanessa Perez told a major Mexican news station she was pregnant with nine kids.

Mexico's main broadcaster Televisa broke the story of the 32-year-old mother's record-breaking multiple pregnancy Thursday, and major news outlets around the world picked it up overnight. Gawker already has a tabloid-ready nickname for her: "Nonomom."

But by end of day Friday, the local newspaper in Perez's Mexican town challenged her claims. According to a reporter from El Diario de Coahuila who spoke with Perez's mother, she is not pregnant at all. A Telemundo reporter also claimed to have evidence that Perez is lying, according to MSNBC. By Friday evening, Reuters, one of the first major U.S. news outlets to pick up the original story, confirmed what we were already beginning to think. We'd been had. 

Televisa says she provided them with very convincing evidence of her condition, including an ultrasound. Health

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Once upon a time one year ago, a 21st century couple threw a 16th century wedding for all the world to attend. There was a chariot, a very long bridal train, and a balcony kiss. Honestly, it could have all been a little much, if not for the two people getting married. Kate Middleton and Prince William--college roommates, best friends, long-term partners--were totally, genuinely and powerfully in love. But could this kind of moony-eyed companionship hold up in the first year of marriage? It's been said that year one is the toughest, but from the looks of these two it's been one big, royal honeymoon.

Read More »from Kate Middleton and Prince William's Romantic Year: The Photographic Evidence

Laxmi holds up her hard-won annulment. (AFP)At an age when most kids are learning to walk, Laxmi Sargara was already married. Her husband, Rakesh, was just three-years-old when family sealed the deal on their fate. She was one.

How a child bride finally made her escape

Now seventeen years later the couple have set a history-making precedent by having their marriage annulled. But the real hero of this story is Laxmi, now 18, who took remarkably brave steps to reverse the archaic tradition and opened the door for more child brides to follow.

Though technically illegal in India, poor families living in rural areas often rely on these types of partnerships, using kids as pawns in order to provide more financial stability to those who can't afford to feed their children long-term. The fall-out is hardest felt for child brides, plucked from their parents' homes in their teens and forced to live with the husband they wed as a toddler and his family. The girls are expected to play the role of obedient wife and daughter-in-law, and in

Read More »from Child Bride Has Marriage Annulled. Laxmi Sargara is Our Hero of the Day

Nobody ever questioned Kate Middleton's style credentials. Even before she was married, she did for fashion what Oprah did for publishing, jumpstarting a sluggish industry with a single wardrobe decision. But while Kate's boarding school girl-next-door worked for the public, it didn't immediately translate to Buckingham Palace. Over the past year, the Duchess has had to step up her game in order to please the Queen, the people, the critics, the Prince and herself. Lucky for all, Kate was a fast learner. -- By Piper Weiss, Shine staff

Read More »from Kate Middleton's Dazzling Princess Transformation

Twelve years ago, filmmaker Frans Hofmeester embarked on the greatest work of his life: becoming a father. Every week, the Dutch video artist would hover over his newborn daughter Lotte's crib and capture stills. Those weekly photo shoots continued, even as Lotte began sitting upright, her features growing more defined by the day.



Over a decade later, Hofmeester had taken 600-plus photos of Lotte, tracking the minutiae of her development in ways that albums and scrapbooks simply can't capture. Stringing each photo together with the editing tool Final Cut Pro, Hofmeester created a remarkable time-lapse video of Lotte's evolution from newborn to tween in under 3 minutes. In the video her emotions run the gamut, from curiosity to bleary-eyed frustration to wide-eyed enthusiasm. The only thing that remains unchanged is a baby blanket. The keepsake that Lotte lay on as a newborn remains in the background of every photo throughout her 12-year journey.

Since Hofmeester posted the video to Read More »from Girl's Amazing Time-Lapse Video: From Birth to Age 12 in Minutes. Time Flies.

This is what life on Earth will be like in the future. Another good reason to move to mars. (AP Photos) Robot sex are right this very instant trending online, so naturally Shine needed to investigate.

What we found is: Yup. People like to fantasize about having sex with robots. But this fact is pulsing now because of a new report published in the very legit, non-pornographic scientific journal Futures.

In a paper called "Robots, Men and Sex Tourism," two researchers from New Zealand's University of Wellington prophesize that robots will replace prostitutes in the next thirty to forty years.

"In 2050, Amsterdam's red light district will all be about android prostitutes who are clean of sexual transmitted infections, not smuggled in from Eastern Europe and forced into slavery, the city council will have direct control over android sex workers controlling prices, hours of operations and sexual services," posit researchers Ian Yeoman and Michelle Mars.

Overall, they believe it's a good thing for our society. Paid sex will be more hygienic (depending on a robot pimp's attention to

Read More »from Weird Sex: Robot Sex is in All of Our Futures

It took $500,000, 16 carats worth of diamonds and a year of planning to make Angelina Jolie's engagement ring, and only days to knock it off. Robert Procop's emerald-cut ring has already be reincarnated by both high and low-end designers. Thanks to the internet and factory-style jewelry making, you don't need Brad or a bank account to try your hand at the look. As of now, Kate's blue sapphire still holds the lead for most reproductions. But by the time you get to the end of this Jolie knock-off slideshow that could have changed.

More celeb ring talk:

Stars and their copycat rings

Kate Middleton ripped off, from head to toe

Brangelina's engagement: the details

Read More »from Angelina's Engagement Ring Knock-offs Arrive, Inevitably

(ThinkStock Photos)If you're deciding where to raise your children, you may want to consult with the Center for Disease Control. The agency's new report maps the states with the highest rates of deadly accidents among kids.

More: most dangerous sport for kids?

In 2009, the country lost 9,000 to preventable injuries, according to the CDC's Vital Signs report. While accidental deaths among children have dropped by 30 percent nationwide, the U.S. still had one of the worst records in comparison to other high-income countries worldwide.

Overall, motor vehicle crashes remained the number-one cause of death. Suffocation among infants went up over 50 percent and poisoning rates among teens spiked, mainly due to prescription painkillers. "The same drug epidemic we've been describing in our adult population is also now happening with our kids," Dr. Julie Gilchrist, a CDC medical epidemiologist and co-author of the study, told Shine.

More: Report reveals brutal conditions of children worldwide

Despite the

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