Make no mistake about it, Italy is not an easy place to come and play rugby. They gave Ireland a run for their money last week at Croke Park. I am quite happy to go away with a win."

Heroes & Villains: We Want It That Way

We're kvelling like Boca Raton bubbes down at the Bat Cave this week. It turns out that one of the HEROES of NBC's resurrected American Gladiators series went to Cornell, proving once again that Cornell is the only Ivy that offers a practical, real-world education.

The Gladiators, incidentally, are a clear sign that the '80s are the number one decade for dancing around in your underwear. Risky Business, anyone? Reed's scrunchie in particular, and the show's revival in general, make us hope that the '80s have, at long last, jumped the shark, paving the way — in our darkest fantasies — for the HEROIC return of Power Rangers, Oval Office oral, and flannel.

Gadgets Microsoft Insider: Xbox 360 Team Knowingly Launched Faulty ...

During the previous generation, Microsoft attributed much of PlayStation 2's lead over the Xbox to its earlier arrival on the market. Microsoft was determined to beat Sony to the punch for the next generation, as the source explained, "MS was so focused on beating Sony this cycle that the 360 was rushed to market when all indications were that it had serious flaws. The design [quality] testing was insufficient and incomplete when the product was released to production. The manufacturing test equipment had major gaps in test coverage and wasn't reliable or repeatable. Manufacturing processes at [all] levels of suppliers were immature and not in control. Initial end to end yields were in the mid 30%. Low yields always indicate serious design and manufacturing defects.

"Management chose to continue to ship anyways, and keep the lines running while trying to solve problems and bring the yields up.

Novacta Receives 3.5 Million Pounds Strategic Translation Award From ...

Novacta Biosystems, a UK-based anti-infective therapeutics company, announces that the Wellcome Trust, the UK's largest medical research charity, has awarded it £3.5 million as part of the Trust's Strategic Translational Award programme. Novacta will use the award to progress development of a drug which, it is hoped, will help combat hospital-based Clostridium difficile (C.difficile) infections.

C. Difficile infections (CDIs) are a growing and serious problem and have, for example, been associated with twice as many deaths in UK hospitals last year as MRSA. Cases of C.difficile infections, which occur in the lower digestive tract, rose by 22 per cent in the past year and affected more than 15,500 people over 65 in the first quarter of 2007. New anti-infective drugs are needed to target C.difficile without depleting other beneficial bacteria in the gut.

Food Industry 1991-2000

According to some data, the food industry accounts for up to 60% of all direct foreign investments made in Russia after the crisis. This is not surprising, since market capacity, and hence food production, is growing steadily. Today, the domestic food industry is growing by 5-7% annually; in some sectors, this figure is 15-20%. In addition, the investment cycle of an average food-industry project is one and a half times shorter than for similar-sized investments in any other industry. Finally, food production (except for vodka) is not as politicized as the gas or oil industries. The result is the successful operation of tens of thousands of Russian and Western companies in their combined efforts to feed Russia.
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Opinion: Romo is pulling his late fade again

Here's Tony's stop-the-presses moment: He ain't none of them, yet.