So, the latest incantation of this dreary format has started again. Last year I didn't watch "Big Brother", but instead spent the odd free evening watching otters and badgers with Bill Oddie on the BBC. Yes, BB4 was universally hated.

I have had every intention of not bothering watching again this year, however an accidental exposure (well, there was nothing else to watch) to the opening night has got me hooked I fear.

How have they managed to do this? The key ingredients that the viewing public wishes to see are essentially sex and masses of bitching and backstabbing. To this end they have filled the place with a bunch of nuts, fruit loops and psychopaths; thrown in several gay men (renowned to be promiscuous), a militant lesbian (I dislike her intensely already), a bisexual porn obsessed lady from the north and a post-op transsexual; then added in a religious fanatic.

Excellent - a recipe for sniping all around: BB5 shall have my limited viewing attention. Fuck - another summer wasted.

Apologies for the distinct lack of activity - this last week seems to have been rather busy for some reason.

My main focus of rant today is the current plethora of bullshit science in adverts for all sorted of facial concoctions, lotions and potions. These use words such as dematifying and redensifying and contain essence of cherries and other such "exotics". The added clincher for these sorts of ads is the pseudo-scientific trial which found 55% of the 19 women who used the product found some sort of improvement in a self-evaluated questionnaire.

I feel that this is the modern day equivalent of snake oil; charging astronomic prices for little more than grease and perfume in a bottle. Surely there should be a law against this sort of thing, but maybe we shouldn't bother protecting the stupid with far too much money at their disposal; maybe I should even get in on the act: Lomas' patent skinjuvenating cream. Has a certain ring about it don't you think?

Yay - I have a new job! Still at Imperial though, but now I have the snazzy job title of:

Senior Windows Infrastructure Analyst

If you know what that means exactly, do let me know won't you.

There's currently a political storm brewing in the UK this morning over the mistreatment of prisoners in Irag (following on from those dastardly Americans), leading with the following photograph on the front pages:

Personally speaking, I'd rather enjoying being tied up, hooded and pissed over by a squaddie in uniform... ho hum.