A cluster of towns in Algeria endured over a week of catastrophic and fatal flash floods after the banks of the Oued M'Zab burst, leaving nearby buildings buried under thick sludge. Our Observer in the area filmed the extent of the damage on his mobile phone. Read more...

The online version of British publication The Telegraph reported on Wednesday that an elderly-caring, human-like robot had been unveiled in Japan and was set to be flying off the assembly line "within days". Yet one of the scientists who worked on "robogirl" tells us that it was "unveiled" six years ago, and has no chance of being mass produced for the next ten years. Read more....

French writer Jean-Marie Le Clézio has just received the Nobel Prize for Literature. For blogger Guillaume Thouroude, the award is proof that despite "American sniggers", French culture is not dead after all. Read more...

We asked our Observers if racial prejudice could lead to Sen. Obama's defeat.

The world's scaling petrol prices and deepening financial woes have left no stone unturned. Even in the corners of Southeast Asia, where water buffaloes are grudgingly being brought back from retirement... Read more.

According to bloggers, this video shows the abuse of young recruits to the Azerbaijani Army. The authorities, however, say it is a fake; a montage of scenes acted out by civilians. Warning: you might find these images upsetting. Read more and see the video.

A document from Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's past may be coming back to haunt her - just not in the way you might expect. See Palin's doodles...

We asked our Observers, from Cotonou to Melbourne, if they were starting to feel worried by the financial crisis that's wreaking havoc on the world's stock markets. You too - send us your comments. Read more...

We asked our Observers if their questions and concerns were answered during the latest face-off between Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and Republican candidate John McCain. Most of them said no. Read more...

For the past month, a group of Chiapas Indians had been occupying an archaeological site, demanding a better share of tourism profits. On Friday, state police arrived, killing six of them. Now a video showing the start of the police intervention is circulating on Indian blogs. Read more...

Can we create the perfect face with a software program? A Canadian Web user tries to find out...

The latest Internet video sensation of the U.S. election cycle doesn't feature a bumbling running mate, a "gotcha" moment or a new attack on a candidate. It features a group of children praising Democratic candidate Barack Obama, and has led to some virulent reactions. Read more...

While a road accident has just killed three motorists and emergency services are still getting to the site, passengers nearby have left their cars and sat down around a little table for a game of cards. Read more...

It seems that no matter what Sarah Palin does during the week, the last word on her performance will come on Saturday night, when she is lampooned on national television. Read more...

A report by a Canadian research institute (Open Net Initiative) has revealed that the Chinese version of Skype records information about people who use "sensitive" keywords. It was only in 2006 that Skype vowed to all of its users, including those in China, that their confidentiality was in safe hands. Read more...