Friday 20 August 1999
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Todays Word
crotchet, miracle, n. /mrk()l/ Forms: 4 maracle, -kle, meracull, -kill, mercle, miracil, -cyl, -kel, myrakil(l, -kyl, 4?5 meracle, myrrakull 4?6 myracle, 5 mirakelle, -ylle, 5?6 mirackle, miracule, 6 mirakill, mirakle, myrackle, 2? miracle. [a. OF. miracle, ad. L. miraculum object of wonder (in Eccl. L. miracle), f. mirari to wonder, f. mir-us wonderful. Cf. Pr. miracle, Sp. milagro, Pg. milagre, It. miracolo.]
What's in a number?
100,000 (NY Times)
About 100,000 protestors rallied in Belgrade, calling for the resignation of President Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia.
Headline News
NSW: No beating around the bush in Braidwood (Sydney Morning Herald)
One little school defies those who believe our public education system has gone to the dogsTAS: Concern over cuts to Tassie uni staff (The Mercury)
New figures showing a sharp increase in the ratio of tertiary students to teachers have fuelled fears about a major deterioration in the quality of Tasmania's tertiary education system.QLD: University reassures nursing degree will continue (ABC)
Deakin University is concerned there may be misconceptions its nursing degree offered in Mount Isa will cease when a James Cook University-run course starts in the city next year.UK: Exam record set again (BBC)
A quarter of a million A level students get their results on Thursday in much of the UK - and once again there has been a record number of passes.USA: Ban upheld on religious ad at school (LA Times)
In a unanimous decision, a state appeals court has upheld a lower court ruling against a Downey businessman who wanted to display the Ten Commandments on a fence at the Downey High School baseball field.CHINA: Western academics held after carrying out interviews in Tibet (HK Standard)
Authorities have detained an American and Australian who were conducting interviews in a remote area of the Tibetan plateau that has been targeted for World Bank aid.UK: Schools accused of manipulating A-level entries (The Times)
A level results published today hit record heights for the 17th year in succession, as evidence emerged of schools manipulating entries to improve their "league" positions. More than 88 per cent of the 852,000 entries passed, with the biggest improvement in grade As, so that one paper in six is now in the top category.UK: Couple win fight over school fees (The Times)
A couple who withdrew their daughter from a private school after complaining of falling standards have won a court battle over unpaid fees of more than £1,000.
IT News
Hackers screw up the sound barrier (AFR)
Microsoft has admitted that hackers have broken the anti-piracy system of its latest internet music software, only days after it was released.MS' massive Y2K campaign (Wired)
The software maker will send 80 million emails and snail mails to customers, reminding them to update computers before the odometer changes to 2000.Christmas virus designed to hit Windows (News.com)
Computer security experts discover a new virus that is designed to damage Windows-based personal computers on Christmas Day.
Sydney 2000
SOCOG soothes staff over band ire (Sydney Morning Herald)
The board of Sydney's Olympic Organising Committee has sought to end damaging disputes with SOCOG's staff stemming from the marching band fiasco with a "robust and frank" debate about its role.Track program on the line in crisis dash (Sydney Morning Herald)
SOCOG's vice-president, Mr John Coates, left Australia yesterday on a crisis mission that may test his diplomatic skills against one of the toughest powerbrokers in world sport.Olympic wrestlers in bid for asylum (The Australian)
The entire Romanian junior wrestling team is seeking political asylum in Australia on the eve of its Olympic test event in Sydney.
News Specials
China's nuclear threat to US in Taiwan row (Sydney Morning Herald)
China warned yesterday that it was ready to fight over Taiwan and that its nuclear weapons could "deal with" aircraft carriers if the United States dared to interfere.Law targets Hanson as One Nation axed (Sydney Morning Herald)
One Nation has been struck off Queensland's political register, leaving its five State MPs without a party and its embattled leadership troika seeking urgentlegal advice as investigations into possible criminal charges beganNew perspective on what it is to be a dinky-di Aussie (The Australian)
Kate Beynon is your typical Aussie. She was born in Hong Kong of Chinese and European parents and came to Australia in 1974, aged four. Her partner, Mike, is dark-skinned, and their five-month-old son, Rali, is a laughing, cuddly, coffee-coloured mixture of the lot.