A top 10 of irritating expressions has been compiled by researchers at Oxford University. At the end of the day the phrases will appear in a book called Damp Squid, named after the mistake of confusing a squid with a squib, a type of firework. The research team work 24/7 to monitor the use of phrases in a fairly unique database called the Oxford University Corpus, which comprises books, papers, magazines, broadcast, the internet and other sources.

At this moment of time the top ten most irritating phrases are:

• At the end of the day
• Fairly unique
• I personally
• At this moment in time
• With all due respect
• Absolutely
• It's a nightmare
• Shouldn't of
• 24/7
• It's not rocket science

With all due respect for irritating words like "literally" and "ironically", at the end of the day this list is absolutely the last word. Asked whether Oxford research funds should be used to further this ilk of study, University Rector Professor Isiah Olchap responded, I personally feel it's a nightmare. They shouldn't of.

The Belgian city of Antwerp has come up with a solution to the problem of pedestrians bumping into other people while sending text messages from their mobile phones. Smartphone users now have their own designated lanes, where they can walk while texting or otherwise using their mobile devices without irritating or endangering others.

These lanes are marked 'text walking lane’ in English on a number of busy pedestrian shopping streets in the city centre. The markings on the ground are in highly visible white paint, but some lanes wind through narrow cobbled streets. Negotiating the corners is likely to remain challenging for people whose eyes are glued to their phone screens.

The scheme is the brainchild of city councilwoman, Frieda Wander, who says many smartphones are broken in collisions among pedestrians.

Everyone 'textwalks,’ says Wander. You probably walk through the streets while texting and not paying attention to your surroundings – only to whomever is chatting on your screen. This causes collisions with other pedestrians. You could, unknowingly, even walk right into your text mate.

If pedestrian lanes are successful, Wander plans next year to propose a similar solution for texting drivers.

A Russian operator of mobile advertising, Superfon, registered a smiley as its trademark. Now the company intends to charge everyone who uses its trademark in its commercial advertising. Many well-known Russian companies have already said that they are not going to pay a ruble for that. The incident marked yet another attempt to claim the rights for the smiley in Russia. Smileys have become extremely popular all over the world for their ability to help people express their simple emotions online. Superfon registered the winking smiley – ;-) - at the Russian Patent Agency (Rospatent), the president of the mobile operator, Oleg Teterin said. Other smileys - :-), ;), :) - are considered similar to the registered winking smiley and thus should not be used in commercial purposes.

The head of Superfon reminded that smileys were used in Russia on Nestle’s and McDonald’s street billboards. Superfon will be sending written complaints to those who now use the registered trademark of the Russian operator of mobile advertising. If no reaction is going to follow then we will have to sue those companies and claim financial compensation, Oleg Teterin added.

Legal expert Viktor Naumov said that Rospatent’s decision guaranteed exclusive rights for the use of the smiley to Superfon. He added, Have a nice day.

Japan, the country that gave the world condom cookbooks, burgers that are completely black and men who eat their own genitals in the name of art is giving the world something almost as weird: suits that double as futon mattresses.

King Jim, a Japanese company specializing in office equipment and supplies, recently started selling something called the Wearable Futon Air Mat Set. It's a jumpsuit made of nylon, polyethylene and polyester that can double between as an overcoat and a bed, for those times when you're not sure where you're going to sleep.

The product is available in Japan for about $40 from supplier King Jim -- and that includes an air mattress, according to the Daily Mail. There is no news of a release in other territories yet. So far, reaction in Japan has been mixed, according to RocketNews24.com. Some people admire the ingenuity of the idea, while others fear it may make it easier for Japanese companies to force employees to pull all-nighters at the office.

In a bid they say will raise fitness consciousness, Moscow’s city officials are replacing ordinary park benches with high-tech scales. Soon park visitors sitting and enjoying pastila will be revealing their secrets to the world.

The change, which will affect the city’s most popular parks, is being sponsored by gyms hoping to attract more weight-obsessed clients. A similar campaign is already in place at a public bus stop in the Netherlands, where benches are attached to large electronic panels that display the seated person’s weight in kilograms. The panels also feature nutrition-related information and gym advertisements.

One of the first parks in Moscow to experience the new technology is Sokolniki Park on the north side. Park Director Andrei Lapshin said that twenty weighing benches should be in place by the end of the year. Moscow’s media and advertising head Vladimir Chernikov supports this ambitious project by saying that he’s for everything progressive and interesting that has been approved from above. He stated the high-tech benches will also be wired with electricity as phone-charging stations, but definitely not miked so authorities can listen in on conversations.