Coaxial helicopters still have a tail due to the controls on the empennage. Helicopters are a bit odd in that the pilot is basically flying the rotor disk, and the fuselage is kinda just "along for the ride". So, if you wanted to rotate or adjust the pitch of the fuselage, you'd need some sort of controls on the fuselage to do so. (Some adjustment can be made with the rotors, but the standard tail controls are a bit simpler.) So, while coaxial helicopters are more inherently stable and don't need a tail rotor, they'll still have a tail. (See the Ka-50, X2 and Ka-27 among others, as examples.)

The reason you want controls at the aft end of the the tail is because for things like the elevator, you want as big a moment arm as possible to reduce the force required to adjust the pitch of the aircraft. Similarly, the vertical stabilizers are there to help reduce sideslip at higher speed, since a helicopter can fly in any direction, regardless of the orientation of the fuselage. (Generally for lighter helicopters, the vertical stabilizers are fixed, though the larger ones can have a movable rudder.)

Additionally, having a tail will help you if you need to do an autorotation, as it will help prevent the rotors from impacting the ground at the rear when you flare it right before landing. (Here are some examples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-5ARzqF3R4)

Disclaimer: While I'm a helicopter engineer, I don't work on the controls, so this may be a bit of a simplistic explanation. :)

You can already get around the restrictions if you want an old fashioned light bulb, they're just called Heatballs instead. Two guys in Germany started marketing them as "heaters that fit into a light socket" last year after a similar law went through in the EU.

A system like this was proposed for the 2006 World Cup, but Adidas and FIFA opted not to use it because they found some issues with it. http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/view/2029/ I also heard somewhere that a few teams tried it in a few exhibition games (not sure if it was this same system), and the fans didn't like it because they couldn't argue with one another about whether someone actually scored or not! And since pro sports is just entertainment, you certainly don't want to alienate your fan base...

Someone proposed this concept last year, but unfortunately I don't think anyone's actually selling it: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/02/cork-mouse-charges-itself/

According to this earlier article, the police and TSA talked to him, but surprisingly didn't charge him with anything. He said they were "more curious than confrontational."

Nope, but there *is* enough for a Christmas Tree. :) http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=72584

You're probably just joking around, but there is at least one pretty advanced carbon-epoxy spacecraft, the White Knight. Plus, there have been a couple of new American carbon-epoxy aircraft in production the past few years:

Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey
Boeing 787
Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor

But it would be the most protected area during a tornado, which is the most common natural disaster in North Texas.

Sounds like they took a page straight from The Producers.

You can do both: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_farm.

You could also keep it as a defense for your island fortress against James Bond a la Dr. No! (The novel, not the movie.)

My first thought was the Mobile Infantry from Starship Troopers (the book not the movie), even though he's jumping from a balloon, and not from orbit.

There was an incident where an octopus didn't like a light shining on him, and started shorting it out by climbing out of the tank and squirting it with water. I definitely wouldn't be surprised if one figured out how to get a little extra food.