World News Instant Index 10/17/2012: Pilot's Odd Request; Google's 'Willy Wonka' HQ

From the unconventional and awe-inspiring to the hilarious and heartwarming, here's a look at some of the most interesting photos, videos and stories that have our newsroom talking today. What's capturing your attention, filling your inbox and cluttering your Facebook/Twitter feed? Comment below with the stories you're talking about or tweet them to us using #InstantIndex and they could appear on World News.

Orphaned Elephant Moses, a 7-month-old orphaned elephant, was found clinging to life in the Vwaza Wildlife Reserve in Malawi. Since being discovered in the tall grass of a riverbed, he has been nursed back to health by Jenny Webb, the founder of the Jumbo Foundation, an orphanage for large animals. Webb adopted the baby elephant in February and now even sleeps with Moses so she can feed him every few hours.

Image credit: Denis Farrell/AP Photo

Image credit: Associated Press

To the Rescue Passengers and crew on an Air Canada flight bound for Sydney, Australia, joined the search for a yacht that had activated its emergency beacon Tuesday morning. Using the beacon's GPS coordinates, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority asked the plane to confirm the yacht's location. The Air Canada flight diverted from its route and dipped to 1,200 meters to try and spot the vessel. The crew borrowed binoculars from a passenger and located the vessel. The man on the yacht was later rescued.

The Guts of Google As of today, Google is allowing anyone to take a look inside its data centers. The company unveiled a website where people can see the machines and employees that allow us to search, send emails and upload videos. In one image from Google's Street View tour of the facility, R2-D2 and a stormtrooper can be seen guarding the servers.

Image credit: Google

Credit: Connie Zhou/Google

Bamboo for Breakfast Cute, cuddly and chowing down on bamboo shoots, these pandas in Chengdu, China, have the life.

TV's Highest-Paid Actors Forbes has released its list of the highest-paid TV actors and Ashton Kutcher has snagged the top spot. Last year Charlie Sheen, whom Kutcher replaced on "Two and A Half Men," was No. 1.

Earnings (in millions): 1. Ashton Kutcher - 24 2. Hugh Laurie - 18 2. Ray Romano - 18 4. Alec Baldwin - 15 4. Mark Harmon - 15 6. Tim Allen - 14 7. Jon Cryer - 13 8. Patrick Dempsey - 12 9. Jason Segel - 8 9. Jim Parsons - 8 9. Johnny Galecki - 8

Noel Vasquez/Getty Images

Puppet March On Nov. 3, puppets, puppeteers and their supports plan to take over the National Mall in Washington D.C. to rally for public broadcasting. Called the Million Puppet March, the event was organized after Mitt Romney said he would cut funding to PBS during the first presidential debate. So far more than 1,000 people have said on Facebook they plan to attend.

Image credit: Amanda Gordon/Bloomberg/Getty Images

Honey , I Shrunk the Apartment One-hundred and sixty square feet for $21,500 - that is what Chinese property developer China Vanke is betting will be the apartment of the future for tens of millions of Chinese people, according to The Wall Street Journal. Vanke told the paper that the country is in massive need of low-income housing. Currently 50 million people live without their own toilet and kitchen. Vanke estimates that to meet the demand, 10 million apartments will need to be built per year until 2030.

Down Goes Gillard Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard took a tumble while visiting the Gandhi Memorial in New Delhi, India. Gillard's heel got stuck in the soft sod causing her to fall on her face. Gillard was fine and later joked about the incident.

Hotter Earth Just outside our solar system, 25 trillion miles away, European astronomers say there is a planet that is about the same size as Earth. The planet circles its star every couple of days, the close proximity creates temperatures higher than 2,000 degrees and a surface that may be molten lava.

Credit: ESO/L. Calcada