Scientists Discuss the Taste of the First Lab-Grown Hamburger: VIDEO

On Friday, Towleroad reported that today the first lab-grown beef hamburger was scheduled to be assembled, cooked, and devoured in the hopes that it would be a viable replacement for that raised in factory farms.

Today, Mark Post, the scientist who led the team, and two volunteers tried it out. The AP reports:

Two volunteers who took the first public bites of hamburger grown in a laboratory gave it good marks for texture but agreed there was something missing. "I miss the salt and pepper," said Austrian nutritionist Hanni Ruetzler.

U.S. journalist Josh Schonwald confessed to a difficulty in judging a burger "without ketchup or onions or jalapenos or bacon." Both tasters shunned the bun, lettuce and sliced tomatoes offered to them to concentrate on the flavor of the meat itself.

Mark Post, the Dutch scientist who led the team that grew the meat from cattle stem cells, regretted having served the patty without his favorite topping: aged gouda cheese. "That would have enhanced the whole experience tremendously," he told The Associated Press. He said he was pleased with the reviews: "It's not perfect, but it's a good start."

Watch the taste tester discussion, and Google founder Sergey Brin talks about why he funded the project, AFTER THE JUMP...

Sergey Brin, the Google founder who backed the project, talks about lab-made beef:

Spike Lee: I'm Not Homophobic But My Characters Might Be

Spike Lee talks to BET:

First of all, I'm not homophobic. Because I have a character say the word "f----t" or "homo" that does not mean that I'm homophobic.  Martin Scorsese is not racist. The characters are people he grew up with, characters in the mean streets — that's those people talking, not him. In that world, those are the things people say. When I went to Morehouse College that's the way they spoke, thought and talked about homosexuals.

'Russia Today': America's View of Anti-Gay Laws is 'Warped' — VIDEO

RT (formerly Russia Today), the partially state-funded network founded with the intention of improving Russia's image abroad, takes a look at American anger at Russia's ban on "gay propaganda" and tries to make the argument that the silly "warped" Americans don't know what they're talking about and the law is simply in place to protect children from the evils of homosexuality.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Gay Man Beaten in Seattle's Capitol Hill Neighborhood

A gay man was beaten early Monday morning in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, KOMO News reports:

Jason Jacobs told officers he was walking in the 200 block of Summit Avenue East shortly after midnight when he was approached by three men and two women, who started calling him derogatory names based on his sexual orientation.

The group chased Jacobs down the street and attacked him when they caught up, leaving him with a broken nose and cuts to his face and knees, according to police. He was later taken to Harborview Medical Center for treatment.

The attack is being investigated as a hate crime.

KIRO reports that Jacobs was attacked near the 200 block of Summit Avenue East. He could only tell police that his attackers were two white women and three white men because he had been drinking at the time.

Lady Gaga to Russia: 'Why Didn't You Arrest Me When You Had the Chance?'

Earlier today Towleroad reported that Lady Gaga and Madonna had been put under investigation by Russian authorities for not obtaining appropriate visas for their recent visits in what is being seen as a veiled warning to artists that pro-gay activism in the country will be punished.

Lady Gaga is now firing back on Twitter:

"Sending bravery to LGBTs in Russia. The rise in government abuse is archaic. Hosing teenagers with pepper spray? Beatings? Mother Russia?... The Russian government is criminal. Oppression will be met with revolution. Russian LGBTs you are not alone. We will fight for your freedom... Why didn't you arrest me when you had the chance, Russia? Because you didn't want answer to the world?"

Above, Gaga's cover art for her upcoming single "Applause".

'Washington Post' Sold to Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos

The Washington Post and its assets have been sold to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (pictured, with his wife Mackenzie), ending four generations of ownership under the Graham family, the paper reports:

Bezos, whose entrepreneurship has made him one of the world’s richest men, will pay $250 million in cash for The Post and affiliated publications to the Washington Post Co., which owns the newspaper and other businesses.

Seattle-based Amazon will have no role in the purchase; Bezos himself will buy the news organization and become its sole owner when the sale is completed, probably within 60 days. The Post Co. will change to a new, still-undecided name and continue as a publicly traded company without The Post thereafter.

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