Your shopping trolley will soon be knowing what you want

October 1st, 2009 MELBOURNE - Watching a four-year-old boy smoking a cigarette is enough to shock anyone. But what about knowing that he is a heavy smoker? Well, Dong Dong, from Banqiao village in China's Anhui province, has been smoking since he was only two.

September 19th, 2009 LONDON - A robot walking up to you to collect the daily garbage and another one sweeping the street. Soon, this fond dream may turn into reality.

September 19th, 2009 MADRID - An European company has developed innovative robots which are mobile, multifunctional, collaborative, autonomous and polyvalent, suitable for a wide range of work from street cleaning and rubbish collection to accompanying elderly people. According to a report carried out in www.basqueresearch.com, this new generation of robots have been developed by TECNALIA Technological Corporation, and are a part of the European DUSTBOT research project under the remit of the VI European Framework Programme and in which TECNALIA is participating.

August 18th, 2009 WASHINGTON - An exhibit of stunning photographs of the night sky as viewed over many of the most beautiful natural, historic and cultural landmarks in the world is being shown at 24 shopping centers across the United States from now through November 8. Known as "The World At Night," the exhibit is a special project of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009), an ongoing global celebration of the science of astronomy and its contributions to society over the 400 years since Galileo's first use of the telescope.

August 12th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Britons' lazy lifestyle is destroying their sex lives. According to a new survey, three-quarters of couples in the UK have trouble mustering enough energy at the end of the day for a night of passion with their partner.

August 12th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Forget Viagra, potions, and even sex toys - a new flavour of ice cream has been unveiled which is filled with sexy ingredients to boost the libido in the bedroom. The ice cream, called The Sex Pistol, contains ginkgo, biloba, arginine and guarana - and it is served with a shot of the highly intoxicating La Fee Absinthe, reports The Daily Telegraph.

June 4th, 2009 WASHINGTON - In a new microbiological study of reusable shopping bags, scientists have warned of the risks that unclean reusable bags can have on human health. The study was commissioned and funded by the Environment and Plastics Industry Council (EPIC), a Canadian industry group which promotes responsible use and recovery of plastic resources.

May 28th, 2009 MELBOURNE - A thief feeling guilty after stealing more than 10,000 dollars from a butcher returned most of the money a week later. Mark Bollinghaus, owner of Albury-Wodonga Haus of Meat chain of stores, said he was stunned to find 90 per cent of the cash accompanied by a note slipped under the door of his store.

May 23rd, 2009 MELBOURNE - Australian wicket keeper Brad Haddin, who was hit by a London cab when crossing the street during Ashes 2005, doesn't carry mental scars from that Ashes tour, and is focused on the series against England, starting in June 2009. Though only an unused back-up keeper on the ill-fated trip, the bad karma floating over Australia's cricketers even snared Haddin when he was hit right in the knee.

May 23rd, 2009 LONDON - Women seem to shop more when they are depressed because of recession, a new study suggests. A survey conducted by Karen Pine, professor at the University of Hertfordshire and author of Sheconomics, found that 79 percent women go on a spending spree to cheer themselves up.

May 10th, 2009 MELBOURNE - A new magazine published by Australian Consolidated Press, SHOP Girl targeting girls aged seven to 12 has raised community concern. The mag, an extension of Australia's top-selling fashion magazine Shop Til You Drop, SHOP Girl, will be launched as a one-off magazine in September, and its editor has said it aims at helping parents cope with the demands of shopping for "tween-agers".

April 2nd, 2009 MELBOURNE - A new study has offered employees the best excuse to check out their Facebook or Orkut accounts during work hours: turning to social networking sites or general Internet surfing for breaks leads to better office productivity. According to Dr Brent Coker, from Melbourne University, staff members who surf the web for leisure, called 'Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing' (WILB), yield better results on the work front than those who don't.

April 1st, 2009 MELBOURNE - Even Kylie Monigue has not been able to get away from the ill effects of the ongoing recession, as she was seen shopping at Salvation Army shop in Melbourne. Minogue bought two dresses, a hat, and a skirt at the shop all for a meager 40 dollars.

March 19th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Nicolas Cage was taken aback when he saw Melbourne's boozy street violence, while shooting for a film in the city. The 'City of Angels' star revealed that he witnessed one nasty incident in Docklands last year.

January 21st, 2009 MELBOURNE - Hard economic times have not come down too hard on Serena Williams with the second seed making a lightning raid on a Chapel Street boutique. But the world number two might have tipped her hand that even she might be feeling the heat as she bought a pair of items from a rack filled with merchandise marked down to half-price.