The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), or Scotland Yard, said the estimated cost of surrounding the Ecuadorean Embassy from June 19, 2012, when Assange entered the building, until Jan. 31, 2013, is the equivalent of $4.5 million.

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In Iceland, a country with a population of 320,000 where most everyone is distantly related, inadvertently kissing cousins is a real risk.

A new smartphone app is on hand to help Icelanders avoid accidental incest. The app lets users "bump" phones, and emits a warning alarm if they are closely related. "Bump the app before you bump in bed," says the catchy slogan.

Some are hailing it as a welcome solution to a very Icelandic form of social embarrassment.

"Everyone has heard the story of going to a family event and running into a girl you hooked up with some time ago," said Einar Magnusson, a graphic designer in Iceland's capital, Reykjavik.

"It's not a good feeling when you realize that girl is a second cousin. People may think it's funny, but (the app) is a necessity."

The Islendiga-App — "App of Icelanders" — is an idea that may only be possible in Iceland, where most of the population shares descent from a group of 9th-century Viking settlers, and where an online database holds genealogical details of almost the entire population.

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Writers, musicians and artists have infinitely varied practices and inspirations. Some artists want nothing more than to live in NYC, work all day in the studio, and rub shoulders with collectors and critics in Chelsea at night. The residency I have spent the last month at in Iceland was not a residency for that type of person.

I came to Iceland at the beginning of August for a monthlong stay at Gullkistan, a residency for creative people in Laugarvatn (pronounced something like Lurrahgahvaht-n) in southern Iceland. The residency fell into my lap and was perfect for what I wanted. Much as I love New York, I wanted to spend a month in a setting that couldn’t be more different — I wanted sublime natural beauty, peace and quiet, relaxation and simplicity — a reset button for myself. Gullkistan was an ideal answer.

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The building from the outside is rather bland, except for the awning, which shoots out over the main entrance. It's covered with the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous transformed into a type of artist’s manifesto — what better way to begin a museum visit? Inside, however, was a modern interior with cool steel walls and a great selection of contemporary art.

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Although Reykjavik is by far Iceland’s biggest city, with a population of 200,000 within the greater metropolitan area, I wasn’t expecting much more than a beautiful, quiet little town. However, as I was walking to my hostel in the downtown area, the graffiti and street art quickly caught my eye.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="640" caption="The outdoor seating at my youth hostel."][/caption]

It seemed that down every other alley, in every little hallway and behind every store there was some quality street art to be found. I definitely wanted to see the touristy things like Hallgrímskirkja, meet Bjork and walk the quaint streets, but I had a new mission; find as much street art as I could. The following images are some of the most colorful, magical and exotic creatures I saw on the back walls of Reykjavik.

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"I've taken it off. Do you want it?" he asked, figuring Hjartarson, the curator of the phallological museum located conveniently a few miles away, might be interested in the genitals of what he described as an extremely old, two ton walrus.

Hjartarson was thrilled. His Icelandic Phallological Museum, which houses the world's largest collection of penises and penile parts, had scored another valuable specimen.

To own the private parts of every male mammal living in Iceland, you see -- a goal he set for himself years ago -- Hjartarson needed a walrus, an animal that's becoming rarer every year.

"Collecting penises is like collecting anything. You can never stop, you can never catch up, you can always get a new one, a better one," Hjartarson said as he reached into the museum's penis-shaped cash register to return some change to a customer, before picking up a phone of the same shape.

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The eruption of the Grimsvotn volcano was far larger than one a year ago at another Icelandic volcano that upended travel plans for 10 million people around the world, but scientists said it was unlikely to have the same widespread effect.

University of Iceland geophysicist Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson said this eruption, which began Saturday, was Grimsvotn's largest eruption for 100 years.

"(It was) much bigger and more intensive than Eyjafjallajokull," the volcano whose April 2010 eruption shut down airspace across Europe for five days, he said.

"There is a very large area in southeast Iceland where there is almost total darkness and heavy fall of ash," he said. "But it is not spreading nearly as much. The winds are not as strong as they were in Eyjafjallajokull."

He said this ash is coarser than last year's eruption, falling to the ground more quickly instead of floating vast distances.

The ash plunged areas near the volcano in southeast Iceland into darkness Sunday and covered buildings, cars and fields in a thick layer of gray soot. Civil protection workers urged residents to wear masks and stay indoors.

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Britain's Serious Fraud Office said seven men aged between 42 and 54 were held in raids on two businesses and eight homes in London. The properties were being searched and the suspects questioned at police stations in the city. Two men, aged 42 and 43, were arrested in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik.

Entrepreneurs Robert and Vincent Tchenguiz confirmed they were among those arrested in London and said they were "cooperating fully" with authorities.

A police van was parked outside the office of the brothers' investment firm, Rotch Property, in the upmarket Mayfair area.

The Tchenguiz brothers amassed a large property portfolio and had investments in some of Britain's best-known retail brands, including grocer J. Sainsbury PLC and pub chain Mitchells & Butlers.

But the business borrowed more than 1 billion pounds ($1.62 billion) from Kaupthing, and was plunged into crisis when the bank collapsed.

Icelandic media said former Kaupthing chairman Sigurdur Einarsson was also arrested in London.

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The test result was announced in Reykjavik District Court, said lawyer Gudjon Olafur Jonsson, who represents Fischer's two American nephews in their own claim on his estate.

Fischer's remains were exhumed in July so samples could be taken to determine if he had fathered Jinky Young, whose mother Marilyn said she had a relationship with the chess icon. Jinky, who lives in the Philippines with her mother, flew to Iceland last year to provide her own sample.

"I can confirm that the result of the DNA report excluded Bobby Fisher from being the father of Jinky Young, and therefore the case has come to a close," said lawyer Thordur Bogason, who represents Jinky.

Though the paternity case has ended, the wrangling over Fischer's estate continues. He died aged 64 in Iceland in January 2008, leaving no will.

Jonsson said the elimination of the paternity claim simplifies the case between Fischer's nephews and the woman who was his long-term partner. The case is scheduled to be heard in Reykjavik next month, Jonsson said, adding he hopes for a result by the end of the year.

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The breakdown put diplomatic efforts on ice for at least a year, raised the possibility that South Korea might join the whaling nations and raised questions about the global drive to prevent the extinction of the most endangered whale species.

It also revived doubts about the effectiveness and future of the International Whaling Commission. The agency was created after World War II to oversee the hunting of tens of thousands of whales a year but gradually evolved into a body at least partly dedicated to keeping whales from vanishing from the Earth's oceans.

"I think ultimately if we don't make some changes to this organization in the next few years it may be very serious, possibly fatal for the organization -- and the whales will be worse off," said former New Zealand Prime Minister Geoffrey Palmer.

Japanese officials and environmentalists traded charges of blame after two days of intense, closed-door talks failed to break a deadlock in which the three whaling nations offered to limit their catch but refused to phase it out completely.

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Thordur Bogason, a lawyer based in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, said the country's Supreme Court made the decision earlier this week in order to allow for tests so his client, Jinky Young, can find out who her father is.

"At this point we are just trying to establish this," he said. "And if she is confirmed as the daughter of Bobby Fischer, then by Icelandic law she is his legal heir."

Fischer, 64, died in Iceland in January 2008. He left no will, Bogason said, adding that legal cases over who has the right to the U.S.-born player's estate are ongoing.

Bogason said he had no information on the size of the estate left by Fischer. His longtime partner and relatives in the United States are also involved in the dispute, the lawyer said.

Gudjon Olafur Jonsson, who represents the American relatives, said his clients accepted the court's decision and awaited the results of the paternity tests. Representatives of Fischer's partner could not be immediately reached.

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Five airports in Morocco -- Casablanca, Rabat-Sale, Tangiers, Tetouan and Essaouira -- were closed Tuesday afternoon "to guarantee a maximum level of security for passengers," the Moroccan civil aviation authorities said.

Morocco's airports were not affected last month when the April 14 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokul (pronounced ay-yah-FYAH-lah-yer-kuhl) volcano forced at least a five-day suspension of air traffic in Europe.

The ash was also causing havoc Tuesday in nearby Spain, forcing airports to shut down in the Canary islands of Tenerife, La Palma and La Gomera, affecting dozens of tourist flights. On the Spanish mainland, airports at Seville and Jerez in the south and Badajoz in the east were closed.

Spain also kept restrictions on planes flying between 20,000 feet and 35,000 feet above the ground, mainly affecting trans-Atlantic flights to and from other European countries. Up to 20 Spanish airports, including international hub at Barcelona, had to close over the weekend because of the ash.

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We passed over Poland, Sweden and Norway before proceeding north of Iceland all the way to 70 degrees latitude, above the Arctic Circle and over the heart of Greenland.

As frequent transatlantic fliers know, routings over Greenland aren't uncommon even in normal times, depending on traffic flow and the location of the jet streams. Keep an eye on the moving map display on the seat back in front of you. If you are going to pass over Greenland, be sure to crack open your window shade, lest you miss one of the most spectacular views ever to be seen from 35,000 feet. The picture above was snapped from the cabin on such a crossing. As was this one, and this one.

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The airlines, along with their advocacy groups, have grown increasingly vocal over the past few days, urging that restrictions be lifted and, in some cases, accusing European authorities of having mucked up the whole affair through overreaction and bureaucratic bungle.

Taking that second point first, I'm not sure what we were supposed to expect when a sudden natural calamity affects more than 20 sovereign nations simultaneously. Such events lend themselves to a certain, let's just say, logistical disorientation.

The airlines' comments have, not unpredictably, brought out the cynics. With carriers losing an estimated $200 million daily, it's easy to understand the eagerness to get flying again, but are they being reckless about it?

There are millions of people out there who see airlines as the embodiment of evil on earth, but let me remind you of the immense liability issues at hand. Contrary to prevailing wisdom, airlines are not looking to play fast and loose with the lives of their customers. They have too much to lose. Call me a shill if you want, but remember that I'm a crew member too. Speaking as a pilot, rest assured that I am not particularly eager to put myself, never mind those people on my plane, in harm's way.

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Those of you planning to fly anywhere in Europe should check with your airline as soon as possible. Flights beyond Europe, to portions of Asia and the Middle East, could also be affected, as the closures pose complications to long-haul flight planning. Having fewer alternate and diversionary airports available, for example, could mean circuitous routings and payload limitations.

(The name "Eyjafjallajokull," by the way, can only be pronounced correctly after consuming at least six cocktails.)

Volcanic ash is a long-recognized hazard for commercial planes, but typically plumes are localized and easily circumvented. This one is different, having spread horizontally over thousands of square miles, at an altitude between 20,000 feet and 36,000 feet -- smack in the middle of densely packed airspace.

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Just last year, Iceland outlawed prostitution, and now it's squelching "adult entertainment" entirely. (Apparently the near-bankrupt country isn't buying the pop wisdom that the sex industry is recession-proof.) The politician behind the bill, Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir, explained: "It is not acceptable that women or people in general are a product to be sold." Johanna Sigurðardottir, Iceland's prime minister -- an openly gay politician, which is a first for a head of government -- added: "The Nordic countries are leading the way on women's equality, recognizing women as equal citizens rather than commodities for sale."

What most impresses the Guardian's Julie Bindel is that "the Nordic state is the first country in the world to ban stripping and lapdancing for feminist, rather than religious, reasons." There is no question that Iceland has impressive feminist cred -- nearly half of its lawmakers are ladies -- but, forgive me, I'm hesitant to announce it the world's most "feminist" and "female-friendly" country in response to a law prohibiting women from voluntarily taking off their clothes for money. It may not be a religiously motivated move, but it sure is a dogmatic one.

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Here's the Financial Times' lead sentence:

Iceland edged further towards the margins of the global economy on Monday when McDonald's announced the closure of its three restaurants in the crisis-hit country and said that it had no plans to return.

Even worse: Look at the company Iceland is keeping. The only other European countries without a McDonald's are "Albania, Armenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina." The shame. The shame! Bar the door and pull the curtains down, Sigrid, we can't let the neighbors see us like this!

Iceland's economic woes are no secret. The country's banks tried to play with the big boys of international finance and got burned by the meltdown. The nation's currency, the krona, has collapsed, causing great hardship for a small island nation that had become accustomed to importing all manner of goods. That's no joke.

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If you want to know what just happened in Iceland, it's a great story. But the parallels with what happened/is happening on Wall Street are unavoidable. It doesn't take much of a leap to imagine that we are all Iceland now.

The world is now pocked with cities that feel as if they are perched on top of bombs. The bombs have yet to explode, but the fuses have been lit, and there's nothing anyone can do to extinguish them. Walk around Manhattan and you see empty stores, empty streets, and, even when it's raining, empty taxis: people have fled before the bomb explodes.

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If you haven't been following the Icelandic credit freeze saga, the Cliff Notes version is that a handful of entrepreneurs and banks borrowed massive amounts of capital abroad and then got caught in the post-Lehman Bros. bankruptcy global credit crunch. All of Iceland's major banks ended up nationalized, the country has been forced to beg for an emergency loan from the IMF, and the nation of 300,000 is now facing a brutal economic contraction -- unemployment alone is predicted to jump from one to eight percent.

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