The original Mechanical Turk was a "robotic" chess player popular throughout Europe towards the end of the 18th century. There was a real human being hidden within the casing, however, doing tasks a robot couldn't for a couple of hundred years... Amazon's Mechanical Turk is a site where a human user can reach th... More..

Most people think of opera as being an inaccessible art form sung by fat ladies in languages they can't understand for stuck up people in pearls and black tie. Wrong. Most singers these days are as physically fit as athletes, and thanks to a great many education programmes and "pay what you can afford" schemes a... More..

My personal recommendation for buying janitorial supplies online in the UK is Viking. Their website can be found at www.Viking-Direct.co.uk. You will have to create an account to shop, but since all orders are paid for there and then, there should be no delays and/or issues with credit checks and the like. Delivery is ... More..

First of all, opera is my job, so you might think that I was one of those people who grew up "naturally" appreciating opera. Wrong. It took me a long time to learn what I liked, and even now, I wouldn't say I like "opera" as a grouped-together set of every opera ever written. I believe you can com... More..

In short, operas were written for people like you and me. Go in your jeans and be comfortable. Anyone who looks down on you isn't there for the music anyway. So, what to see first? I would recommend something fairly short, unless you've seen a few on DVD and know what to expect. You don't even need to worry about not... More..

I may seem to be a Global Test Market groupie from the number of times it gets a plug in my answers, but if you want to be certain of joining a site that pays for referrals as well as paying you for surveys, you can't go wrong with them. I get at least 5 surveys a week, and more at weekends (I've had three today already)... More..

I do a lot of buying and selling on eBay, simply because it's the best place to get what you want cheaply. And I have 100% feedback. The key things, if you are buying are: 1) If you can possibly be around your PC as an auction you are bidding on ends, do so, and pay IMMEDIATELY if the seller accepts PayPal. 2) ... More..