A noisy office is not only irritating, it can affect your work performance, writes Peter Baker Colleagues talking, telephones ringing, e-mails bleeping, photocopiers whirring: these everyday sounds make up an “acoustic wallpaper” in most offices -and one that can affect productivity and stress levels. Noise impairs people’s ability to perform simple tasks such as remembering […]

Melvyn Minnaar Wine Versace probably would have liked this. While certainly not flamboyantly haute couture, Versus would have appealed to him and Donnatella, who would not have turned down a glass or two of this prt- a-porter wine. And not only because it too goes under the same name as their garments and potions for […]

Andy Capostagno Rugby The Currie Cup has reached its halfway stage and no one is yet counting any chickens. That in itself is remarkable, for the competition has been shared between an elite four provinces for so long that at the very least a well-informed guess should be able to provide the semi-finalists. Natal have […]

Michael Finch Commonwealth Games Dope tests on lawn bowlers? Believe it. That’s how serious the South African team is taking its participation in the Commonwealth Games starting in Kuala Lumpur next week. Despite 13 medal-melting withdrawals, including athletics gold medal certainty Llewellyn Herbert, the team will travel to their second Commonwealth Games almost sure to […]

David Sharrock in Zahara de los Atunes, Spain The rich, beautiful and powerful of Spanish society have chosen this wild corner of the Costa de la Luz, on the Atlantic side of the Rock of Gibraltar, as this summer’s place to see and be seen. But by night the beaches play host to a desperate […]

JUSTIN ARENSTEIN, Nelspruit | Friday 5.30PM. THREE promissory notes worth US$50-million which were issued by Mpumalanga’s Parks Board are legally binding and could potentially be used to take ownership of the province’s core game parks, Judge Willem Heath said on Friday. The notes, which are still in America but will be returned to South Africa […]

Traditional chiefs may abstain from voting in next year’s elections, writes Sechaba ka’Nkosi KwaZulu-Natal chiefs who voted for the African National Congress in the last election are signalling they are likely to abstain from party political activity in next year’s election. At the heart of their dissension is unhappiness with the recognition and remuneration they […]

Robert Kirby: Loose cannon I hope this isn’t too naive a question, but do we still have a minister of environment? I seem to recall that Pallo Jordan was in charge of that area. The last I heard of him was when he gallantly saved some rare butterflies from being wiped off the planet in […]

John Grobler The first body bags arrived in Namibia from Kinshasa this week as a credibility gap as wide as the Congo started opening up around President Sam Nujoma. After days of obdurate denials, the Ministry of Defence confirmed this week that Namibian Defence Force (NDF) soldier Lazarus Hiskia had been killed in fighting on […]

Peter Makurube Live in Johannesburg The annual Jazz on the Lake festival is back and the organisers are hoping to beat their own record of 30E0000 revellers. Too bad, however, because the park is becoming too small for people to enjoy music. The public toilets can’t cope. The music comes first and the audience prefers […]