In theory, at least, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) prevents websites from collecting personal information about children who are under the age of 13 without their parents’ permission. In practice, a simple adjustment of date of birth enables access to numerous social sites. There are, however, a number of social sites available for younger children which might, as …
Bardot for President?
Brigitte Bardot, sex symbol of the Sixties, has announced she may run for president in France’s next elections in 2012 as the candidate for the Ecology Alliance party. The Ecology Alliance party believes she is the best person to represent them for the presidency and if she accepts, a final decision will be taken next year.
Potty shortage forces cancellation of Glastonbury 2012
The Glastonbury Festival 2012 has been cancelled….due to a lack of portable toilets and police officers caused by the Olympic Games being held in London.
On yer scooter
We have recently seen a new land speed record for a lawnmower, a Queen Anne dining table setting a new speed record for furniture and a souped-up Trabant hurtling around at phenominal speeds. So it is not unexpected that someone would makes some improvements to a mobility scooter which enable it to reach speeds of 69 mph…Man builds world’s fastest …
Photos from Chile
The rescue of the 33 Chilean miners trapped 700 metres underground after the collapse, on August 5th, of the San Jose mine near Copiapo, has to have been one of the most uplifting events of recent times. The men were kept alive over that time by supplies delivered through narrow holes drilled down to them, and kept hope through video …
When in Rome
While politicians in France and Belgium have voted in favour of banning the full veil, or ‘niqab’, and other European countries are thought to be considering similar action, the latest report by the government think-tank Civitas says Britain should take a different approach.
Some people have all the luck
My luck, two socks, odd, a half-eaten burger, a silverfish, a huge pile of dust and cobwebs and the pen I misplaced ages ago. Martin Kober’s luck, possibly the find of the century…$300m ‘Michelangelo painting’ found behind sofa… Only kidding. Doubt I’d find the pen.
Advancement through inactivity
English golfer Lee Westwood will not compete for at least a month to recover from injury – a move which should guarantee he becomes the new world number one. This is a result of the strange machinations of the ranking system, rather akin to Formula One whereby the only possibility to overtake is in the pit lane when the car …
More shelf space
The Bodleian Libraries at the University of Oxford, who are entitled to a copy of every book published in the UK, has been running out of places to store works for decades. Now, though, they have a new warehouse facility to store 8.4 million books and maps…Bodleian Library opens giant new space to store 8.4m books on shelves 153 miles …
Street gangs
Gangs are a common problem in many cities around the world, and that is also true of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. However, the gangs that roam the streets, day and night, in Calgary are a bit different to the ‘norm’.