Jackson Country, Oregon, have joined an ever-increasing number of “GE-free” areas in the U.S., where farmers do not cultivate GMO crops.  It’s the eight county in the country to ban the practise of GE farming, as farmers across the land drop producing GMO crops en masse. Washingtonpost.com reports: The Jackson County designation was made final on Dec. 22, when a federal judge approved a consent decree protecting the zone.

A 16-year-old orphaned white boy from Boston rose up through the ranks of Chinatown’s underworld to become a major Chinese mafia crime boss. John Willis was only sixteen, down on his luck and looking for his next meal when he first ran into the Chinese mafia in Boston. The Daily Mail reports: With his father long gone and his mother dead, he was taking steroids to beef himself up and convince the owner of a club in Boston that he was 18 and therefore old enough to be a bouncer.

On Tuesday this week there will be a spectacular meteor shower visible from Earth from 11 p.m. Pravdareport.com reports: One will not need to have any special equipment to see the space extravaganza. It will be possible to enjoy the view of the quadrantids – particles of an extinct comet – with the naked eye. Astronomers say that in clear weather it will be possible to see up to 200 meteors per hour. On January 9, 2016, Saturn and Venus will showcase their closest conjunction since August 26, 2006. This phenomenon was dubbed as the kiss of two planets.

Submitted by Salil Mehta via Statistical Ideas blog,

Panic. That is, according to some of the best strategists on Wall Street, the most concise summary of trader sentiment today following a near history rout in the market on the first day of trading of 2016.

But don't worry: according to Citi's Brent Donnelly, "It is too early to panic."

Here's why:

First is a link from Bloomberg on how the first day of the year does not predict the rest of year.