A new service promises Londoners they'll never have to spend much time looking for the loo.

Bids for a giant truffle that may get blessed by the Pope are expected to exceed $206,000 US at a weekend charity auction, media reports say.

It's the stuff that many people find addictively fun to pop after opening a fragile package.

But for a group of young inventors, Bubble Wrap is more than something to stomp on - it's a source of inspiration. To 11-year-old Kayla Weston, it's a building material for shock-absorbing flooring for dancers; Max Wallack, also 11, used it to create wrist cushions for carpal tunnel syndrome sufferers.

"What's better than resting on air?" asked Wallack, of Natick, Mass.

Wallack is among 15 semifinalists competing in the second year of the Bubble Wrap Competition for Young Inventors in New Jersey, sponsored by Sealed Air Corp., the creator of the packaging material. More than 1,400 entries were received from students in 39 states.

Once relegated to the backs of roadies and the bottoms of closets, the rock and roll T-shirt is hanging around some nicer venues these days — like Christie's auction house, where they're expected to sell for up to $4,500 US apiece.

At the newly opened Liberty Hotel, it's hard to escape what this building once was: a decrepit jail where Boston locked up its most notorious prisoners.

A rich blend of cocoas from 14 different countries, mixed with five grams of gold and served with a side of French truffles, has set a Guinness world record for the priciest dessert, ringing in at $25,000 US.

Utility workers in a pair of Quebec-Vermont border towns have asked to be paid in Canadian dollars instead of American dollars, thanks to the soaring value of the loonie.

A nine-year-old Iowa boy has created a foot-activated toilet seat lever, named the Privy Prop, in a bid to end a long-running feud between the sexes.

A section of the Eiffel Tower stairway, weighing 700 kg, will be offered for sale at Paris auction on Nov. 19.