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/ 8 September 2005

Google’s soul search

If there’s one company that gets people talking technology, it’s Google. Many love it, and a handful hate it — but more often than not, we are interested in it. Not only does Google organise our information, but it shapes the way we think about the web. Indeed for many, it is the telescope through which they see the world.

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/ 8 September 2005

Germany, Russia seal $5bn gas pipeline deal

Russian energy giant Gazprom and German firms EON and BASF signed a deal on Thursday to build a $5-billion pipeline linking the Russian Federation and Germany, at a ceremony attended by President Vladimir Putin and Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The North European Gas Pipeline will allow the world’s largest gas reserves to be piped directly to the western European market.

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/ 8 September 2005

EU urges Yushchenko to restore stability

The European Union urged President Viktor Yushchenko Thursday to act fast to restore stability after sacking Ukraine’s government, while saying it is sure he remains committed to western values. The European Commission said it was watching developments closely after Yushchenko — who was elected in December after the country’s ”Orange revolution” — appointed a senior regional official as acting prime minister.

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/ 8 September 2005

Oilgate: the global setting

The most authoritative report yet on the $100-billion Iraq Oil-for-Food Programme describes a litany of abuses, including how Saddam Hussein’s regime bestowed lucrative oil allocations to buy international support. This is consistent with <i>Mail & Guardian</i>’s exposés on Oilgate company Imvume Management and its boss, Sandi Majali.

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/ 8 September 2005

Donkey dressed as tiger

A restaurant in north-east China has been raided and closed for listing stir-fried tiger meat on its menu, a dish that turned out to be donkey dressed with tiger urine. The Hufulou restaurant in Hailin city in Heilongjiang province is located barely 1km from the Hengdaohezi Siberian Tiger Park.

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/ 8 September 2005

Japan to leap one second ahead

Wanting to be as punctual as possible, Japan will next year move its clocks ahead — by one second. Japan will head one second into the future on January 1 2006 when it adjusts the high-precision atomic clock that keeps Japan Standard Time using advanced physics.