Talk of the Town: Zoo experiment to create a real stink

THERE will be something rotten in the state of Edinburgh this summer and it won't be anything to do with striking bin men.

As part of science project called Afterlife, aimed at monitoring exactly what happens when something turns into nothing, a purpose-built box will be set up in Edinburgh Zoo containing foods and other substances which will slowly decompose.

The event will be recorded for a BBC Four programme to be broadcast later in the year.

Local sceptics might suggest that for a far grander example of something, such as 545 million, turning into nothing, the Beeb could have simply turned its cameras on the city's tram project.

Council chief scores own goal with smart remark

MYSTERY surrounds the football-supporting loyalty of the leader of West Lothian Council.

Dundonian Peter Johnston, who also sits on the board of NHS Lothian, was asking a question of a leading liver consultant on the issue of alcohol-related illness.

He had noticed from a chart that in 1993 a bizarre pattern emerged revealing a hike in drinking consumption.

He said: "Was this increase in 1993 down to Dundee United winning the Scottish Cup?"

It was in fact 1994 that the Arabs won the national trophy and his remark raised eyebrows as to which half of Dundee his alliance lies.

Facing the wrong way

FACEBOOK has upset hundreds of people in Broxburn with a slip-up about where they live.

When users choose their location to display on their profiles, it lists them as living in "Broxburn, Fife". Oops.

Almost 500 people have now joined a Facebook cause page called "Broxburn is in West Lothian not Fife", where they are calling on the site to reclassify the town.

Drip feed of innovation

THE sight of an IV drip in the corner of your living room might not be everyone's idea of decorative credibility.

But a new invention marrying the workings of the medical machinery to the form of a household pot plant is set to be a hit in city homes.

The device, named the IV Drip Feed Plant Pot, has no known medical benefit but it does allow you to water your plants on a regular basis without needing to reach for a watering can.