A sperm whale: Known to his comrades as Bernard, perhaps? Recent analysis of sperm-whale calls suggests that these communicative beasts announce themselves with discrete personal identifiers. The findings are based on observations of only three whales and so are speculative at this point, but are, according to biologist Luke Rendell of Scotland’s University of St. […]
Yesterday we spoke highly of Meatcards, a company that etches business cards onto beef jerky. In other meat-related office supplies news, Seattle-based novelty store Archie MacPhee sells an assortment of beef bandages – a noble, practical idea. Each tin contains three large and ten small T-bone steak sterile bandages with absorbent, non-stick pad and long-lasting […]
Kudos to a couple of entrepreneurial young men from Connecticut whose plans to rob a bank were foiled because they phoned the bank in advance. With efficiency in mind, they called the People’s United Bank in Fairfield, informing staff there would be a “blood bath” if a duly filled money bag was not waiting for […]
Mayor Petru Antal of Peccia, Romania has ordered signs to warn drivers that they are at risk of running over locals who are fond of a drink or two. The inscription Cetateni turmentati translates more or less as ‘Attention – Drunks’. The signs are in the familiar abstracted iconography of everyday signs and feature […]
Signs are everything. Language is a system of signs and the more one examines this system, the more apparent it becomes that its got something of a life of its own. And any picture or sound or object or anything can be used as sign in context. There is a very readable six-part history of […]
After America joined World War II in 1942, millions of women joined the workforce as part of the Home Front effort. Styles, attitudes, sexual mores – the works – changed as a result. In this United States Office of Education training film, male bosses are given tips on treating their female workers right. Younger […]
At 10:23 am, 30 January 2010, over 300 homeopathy sceptics will swallow entire bottles of ‘pillules’ to protest against Boots’ continued endorsements and sale of homeopathic remedies and to raise awareness “about the fact that homeopathic remedies have nothing in them.” According to the website of the 10:23 Event organisers – whose strapline is, “Homeopathy […]
Frequently seen sporting them himself, Snoop Dogg, aka ‘Tha Doggfather’, has recently added Serious Pimp OG Bandana sunglasses to his range of accessories for today’s gangsta. Other wearers include other members of da Dogg Pound and Ice-T. The news has sent shock waves around the protective eyeware market. Serious Pimp sunglasses will surely pose a […]
Tory leader David Cameron has hit out at the UK’s “over the top” health and safety culture in a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank, saying a noble intention “has mutated into a stultifying blanket of bureaucracy, suspicion and fear that has saturated our country, covering the actions of millions of individuals as they […]
A third of office workers would steal company data to help family or friends get a job, a new survey by information security company Cyber-Ark has revealed. Six hundred office workers were interviewed in London’s Canary Wharf and New York’s Wall Street. Over 40% have already stolen company data in case they are made redundant […]
How to plan the office Christmas party Whether you count down the days, or desperately scrabble around for an excuse not to go, the office Christmas party is an event on almost every company’s calendar. So, how do you plan a party that everyone will enjoy? It’s a tricky balance to get Bob from Accounts […]
Top tips to improve your time management skills Despite what people say, time is not a commodity. It cannot be traded, expanded or reduced. It is fixed. Our perception of time, however, is another concept. How often do you think at 4pm “Where has the day gone?” and go into panic mode to try to […]
Planning in business is essential Everything from the monthly sales drive to a new product launch or project needs planning. It promotes joined-up thinking and good decision-making throughout the whole organisation. “A goal without a plan is just a wish”, observed the famous writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery, summing up a key business principle. Each business […]
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