Snippets from the week's news, sliced, diced and processed for your convenience.
1. Gordon Brown gave up a £2m pension on his first day in office
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2. At peak times, 32,000 pedestrians cross Oxford Circus junction in one hour.
More details (Times)
3. Lyrics from Jon Bon Jovi's new album are framed and hanging up in the White House.
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4. Journalists visiting Sesame Street are banned from asking Bert and Ernie if they are gay.
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5. The BBC rejected Sesame Street in 1971 because it was "too authoritarian".
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6. Elmo's favourite food is wasabi .
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7. Tall men can have small parents.
More details (Guardian)
8. Part-time veggies are called flexitarians.
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9. A missing child must usually have been missing for at least two years to warrant an age progression image.
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10. French babies cry with an accent.
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Seen 10 things? Send us a picture to use next week. Thanks to Alan Chesterman for this week's picture of 10 gold rings.
Welcome to the Weekly Bonus Question.
Each week the news quiz 7 days 7 questions will offer an answer. You are invited to suggest what the question might have been.
Suggestions should be sent using the COMMENTS BOX IN THIS ENTRY. And since nobody likes a smart alec, kudos will be deducted for predictability in your suggestions.
This week's answer is UNCANNY VALLEY. But what's the question?
UPDATE 1609 BST: The correct question is what is the name for the disquiet caused by synthetic people which almost, but not quite, match human expressiveness.
(More details)
Of your wilfully and deliberately wrong questions, we liked:
- How best describes the Rhondda now that the last tin manufacturer closed
- An Area of Outstanding Supernatural Beauty
- Where do Charlton Telepathic play?
- Where are all tin-openers manufactured?
Thanks to all who entered.
As a child of the 80s/90s, I clearly remember my parents banning any form of 'accent' on television. Sesame Street, Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles... even Eastenders. Though distraught at the time, I'm glad that they did. My job involves working with children on a regular basis, and I notice that some of them have distinct American twangs to their voices, particularly the girls, due to the influences of Hannah Montana and the High School Musicals. Rant over.
Caroline Wallis, via Facebook
Re Stadium Naming Rights. "One wonders if there are any fans now who refer to it as Ashburton Grove." Yes, there are quite a few fans who refer to the E******* as Ashburton Grove.
Edd, Cardiff
Yes, there are still people who call it Ashburton Grove.
Ian C, Kent
Michael (Thursday's letters), only if it sells cupcakes.
Jim O'Connor, Winchester
She blamed it all on a mix-up, I see...
Graham, Frome
Thank you for this week's Friday bear story. Can we have another one next week too?
Dr Toes, Carharrack
If this is a fish: ><(((((((o> (Thursday's letters), then this: ><(((((((>, is a fsh! It's got no "i"!
Ahahahahaha... Er. I'll get me oilskins.
James, Stockport
To Angela (Thursday's letters), this is a mouse ~~( )8>
Emily Parry, Portsmouth
Winning entries in the Caption Competition.
The competition is now closed. Full rules can be seen here [PDF].
This week it's Sofus the Harbour Seal from the Blue Reef Aquarium in Tynemouth. He's having his gnashers cleaned in preparation for an operation to have one of his front teeth removed because it has broken.
Thanks to all who entered. The prize of a small amount of kudos to the following:
6. nick-fowler
"Well, I just can't see what attracted Heidi Klum to him."
5. MrSnoozy
"New novelty glove range proves less popular than anticipated..."
4. bampot-bob
"Is it safe?"
3. SimonRooke
"He's never been the same since David Attenborough did that three minutes to camera next to him."
2. jtotheglo
"Danny's work experience position wasn't quite as fun as the poster made out."
1. SeanieSmith
"Springwatch USA."
A service highlighting the riches of the daily press.
Some Friday punning fun with a collection of good and bad headlines from the tabs:
"IT'S PEACE IN OUR CHRISTMAS TIME" - postal strikes truce (Mirror)
"AN INSPECTRE CALLS" - police investigating a murder acted on the advice of a mystic (Mirror)
"CHEQUES FACTOR" - professional singers pay thousands to appear on the X Factor (Mirror)
"MERRY CHRISLESS" - price wars at the supermarkets (Sun)
"BOT A ROTTER" - Conservative MP Sir Nicholas Winterton says he may have slapped a woman's bottom (Mirror)
The Sun also reported on the Winterton story and referred to a "girl MP", Natascha Engel. At what age does a girl become a woman? Ms Engel is 42.
"Wow, 20 years huh?... I'm not responsible for the Wall coming down" - David Hasselhoff finally admits he did not cause the fall of the Berlin Wall.
It is one of the great canards of European modern history/bad popular music. Now the Hoff has finally laid it to rest. He magnanimously added: "The East Germans are responsible for the Wall coming down... because they believe in freedom."
More details (Daily Telegraph)
To Liam, Northampton (Wednesday's letters), steam engines where used to power machinery (pumping water out of mines, operating the machines in cotton mills), before the invention of the steam train. I'll get me coat.
Martin, Manchester, Lancashire
Liam (Wednesday's letters), it took over a century of development to get from the first stationary steam engines to the point where they could be made powerful and light enough to be used for locomotion.
Tim, London
The CIA's favourite Xtreme sport?
Rahere, Smithfield
So, after the Wicker Man, it's the Silicon Woman
Rob, Wales
I believe it's traditional in most cultures for people to turn up at their own funeral. The only thing that made this story remarkable, but that wasn't mentioned in the headline, was that the individual was still alive.
Bob Peters, Leeds, UK
They're reopening a cafe on the ground floor of the building where I work. Does this mean that the recession is over?
Michael Hall, Croydon, UK
Okay I'm a little behind the times here (been busy, went out for lunch etc) but I'd just like to thank Fi (Wednesday's letters) for spelling her evil laugh with a "B". I have had looong discussions with a colleague who maintains it begins with an "M". But it doesn't. "Mwah ha ha" is someone laughing after they've air-kissed you.
Kaylie, Runcorn, UK
This is a fish ><(((((((o>.
Angelina Williams
17:37 UK time, Friday, 6 November 2009
The 
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