“They get bored and they shit on the keyboard rather than type.â€
Geoff Cox of the University of Plymouth commenting on a study to see how close six macaques given a computer would get to the complete works of Shakespeare in four weeks (The Guardian, London, 9 May)
“By the law of averages Jonathan should be dead. But his swallow has got stronger and his gag reflex has strengthened.â€
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Don Simms, father of vCJD patient Jonathan Simms on his progress since having a course of the blood-thinning drug PPS injected into his brain (The Times, London, 12 May)
“They are simple people, they don’t know about radiation and uranium. They went to the ‘yellow cake’ factory.â€
Iraqi nuclear expert Hisham Abdel-Malik warns of the radiation risk faced by locals who looted uranium-tainted barrels from the former nuclear facility in Tuwaitha (Reuters, 13 May)
“Europeans have to know they cannot use this as a trade barrier against us.â€
US farm group lobbyist Mary Kay Thatcher on rumours that the US is about to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization over the EU’s moratorium on genetically modified foods (Associated Press, 13 May)
“Two identical spacecraft will slam into the Martian atmosphere, bounce like giant beach balls across the frozen surface and then unfold like flower blossoms to reveal a pair of monster trucks.â€
Space journalist William Harwood describes NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover mission, due to launch next month (The Washington Post, 12 May)