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/ 18 November 2005

Age-old craft in a classic Russian souvenir

Dressed in a dark blue smock, Alexander Dorofeyev stoops over his lathe, honing limewood into tiny, perfectly formed dolls. Here, ancient craft skills are used to turn out the ultimate Russian souvenir — the matryoshka doll, famous for opening up when its two halves are twisted apart, to reveal another slightly smaller doll inside.

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/ 18 November 2005

Pop tunes prove a hit at British funerals

Contemporary music, from pop songs to film and show tunes, is now almost as likely to be chosen for a funeral in Britain as traditional religious pieces are, according to a study released on Thursday. One of the country’s largest funeral providers found more than 40% of ceremonies involved modern music.

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/ 18 November 2005

Smelly new service on the internet

Moving beyond the monopoly of sight and touch in the computer world, a Japanese company is offering a service to download aromatic scents at a click of a button. A customer who wants to be surrounded by a new fragrance has a choice of six scented oils ready to mix in a blender, which is hooked up to the computer like a mouse.

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/ 18 November 2005

Teachers ‘swamped by admin’

Teachers spend less than half the working week actually teaching, with administrative tasks taking up more than half their time. And more than three-quarters of teachers say their workload has increased ”a lot” since 2000, with 90% ascribing this increase to the demands of the new curriculum.

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/ 18 November 2005

Trouble in DA house

The Democratic Alliance has changed its selection procedures for local government candidates in Cape Town after discrepancies in membership lists were discovered in a number of branches in the city. Branches send delegates to an electoral college in accordance with membership size. But a recent federal audit of the party’s structures found variations paid for by other members to boost numbers.

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/ 18 November 2005

Google boosted by new classifieds service

United States internet search giant Google saw its stock price surge to new highs on Thursday after launching an online service that challenges classified-advertising sites such as eBay and Craigslist. Google Base is an online service enabling people to advertise freely anything from apartment rentals to used sporting goods.