From BBC NEWS…

A breakdown patrol man who came to the rescue of a woman motorist has managed to get her car started using her dog.

Juliette Piesley, 39, had changed the battery in her electronic key fob but was then unable to start her car.

When AA patrolman Kevin Gorman arrived at the scene in Addlestone, Surrey, he found its immobiliser chip was missing.

Ms Piesley said her dog George had eaten something, and realising it was the chip, he put the dog in the front seat and started the car with the key.

Mr Gorman said: “I was glad to get the car started for the member.

“They will now have to take George [the dog] with them in the car until things take their natural course.

“It is the first time that I have had to get a dog to help me to start a car.”

“Free Bruce Schneier talk in LA today, 7PM” is the headline on a Boing Boing post today. My first reaction was: “Huh? Bruce Schneier has been arrested?” And then the correct interpretation dawned.

Reminds me of that old joke about the graffiti response to notices on walls in public spaces saying “Bill Stickers will be Prosecuted”: BILL STICKERS IS INNOCENT!

From BBC NEWS…

A book by left-wing US author Noam Chomsky has reached a bestsellers’ list after Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez praised it at the UN last week.

A speech by Mr Chavez cited Chomsky’s 2003 critique of US policy, Hegemony or Survival: America’s Quest for Global Dominance, as an “excellent book”.

Mr Chavez also said US President George W Bush was the “devil” who had left the UN podium smelling of “sulphur”.

Chomsky’s book spent the weekend at the top of Amazon.com’s bestseller list…

Thanks to Gerard for the link.

Rob Hodgetts, writing in the BBC’s Ryder Cup Blog…

K CLUB – Absorbing, illuminating, tense, amusing. And a massive privilege. Not many Saturday mornings come close to leaning against a tree just yards from the action as four Ryder Cup matches unfold in front of you.

The tree in question, an oak, stands behind the par-three 8th hole in one of the most picturesque corners of the K Cub beside the River Liffey.

It’s 0930, the grandstand is full and an expectant crowd stands patiently in broken sunshine waiting for the fourballs.

Cheers and groans ring out from somewhere on the course, getting louder as the first group edges nearer.

Photographers prowl, snapping the masses, and a tournament official practises his golf swing with an umbrella. The crowd lets out a huge cheer, and he gives them a proud fist-pump.

But they are responding to the scoreboard, which has changed to show Darren Clarke and Lee Westwood going 1 up back at the 4th. And the official sheepishly tries to disguise his gesture as a scratch of the head.

A couple of fish leap in the river. Someone in the crowd collapses, prompting a call for medics. “He must be American and just saw the score,” says an NBC cameraman…

Use two giant dice! This ingenious solution was devised by a friend. She wondered if it would be worth patenting. I said it might be more lucrative to design her own line of personalised dice.

Did you know there is an “eBay University”? Neither did I. But there is. Mind you, it’s not Harvard, but then if you want to earn a living as an online trader, a Harvard degree won’t be much use. (Also, all the smart entrepreneurs seem to drop out of Harvard. Think of Bill Gates. Think of Mark Zuckerberg, the 22-year-old founder of FaceBook, now apparently worth $900.)