Scorecard

Beer

Australian brewer Foster's is planning to install a 2,500-litre bacterial fuel cell at its Brisbane plant, to produce clean energy from sugary waste water...

Beer

...While German drinkers are facing the sobering prospect of a price hike for their favourite brew, as many of the country's barley farmers are switching to heavily subsidized biofuel crops.

On the record

“A scientist by day, he is a lead Chippendale dancer by night.”

Promotional material for the US reality-TV show Pirate Master describes John Lakness, who will compete with 15 others for a $1- million prize. Lakness reportedly studied electrical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Hobbit news

Fossil fiction

Homo floresiensis fans will be excited to learn that the tiny hominins have spawned a novel, Flores Girl — and it's free to download at http://www.floresgirl.com. Author Erik John Bertel promises that a sequel is already under way.

Zoo news

Credit: T. UHLMAN/AP

Rhino record

Emi, a Sumatran rhino at Cincinnati Zoo, has given birth to a record-breaking third calf (pictured). The proud mum is the first of this species to bear more than a single calf in captivity.

Sources: Associated Press, Czech Business Weekly, CBS