A glance at the week that was
Exam drama
There are ways to get out of bad exam scores, and then there are ways that lead to global headlines. Well done, then, to an 11-year-old Alabama boy who said he'd been kidnappedby a man with a pistol, but had escaped by jumping out of the car. But, what do you know, the man grabbed his schoolbag. His grandparents became suspicious because the boy had managed to hold on to his band instrument. He owned up, but gets top marks for imagination.
Namarama
So, the Nama “haircut” was revealed finally and it turns out the Government (ie the taxpayer) will spend €54 billion for €77 billion of bank loans. This is 30 per cent below market value of the loans, or 47 per cent below the total value of the property portfolios. Although the original deals were based on mad money anyway, and the market’s stagnant, and just be glad you didn’t have to work it out. You just have to pay for it.
We now know
The Swine Flu infection rate is stable at about 1,500 Irish casesa week, according to the Department of Health.
A UCC scientist has made the world's smallest torch, which is 10,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair.
One in 10 Irish children between five and 12 years old is obese.
The numbers
2,000 years
The age of two feet– one adult, one of a child – found in a Dublin attic. How they got there is a mystery
7.5m
The height a new US military robot can jump
6,000
The number of subscribers to Dublin’s new bike scheme, in its first week
“I swear to God, I’m (expletive) going to take this (expletive) ball and shove it down your (expletive) throat, you hear that?
- Serena Williams gets angry with a referee in the US Open Final