Letters: In Brief

Sir: With the looming of the anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, could I suggest that the unbelievers amongst us press for her rapid sanctification, or deification even, so that the mawkish worship of her humble life could at least be contained within official buildings at officially sanctioned times?

LESLEY BROWNE

London SW1

Sir: The trouble with Scottish and Oxbridge MAs is precisely that they do not "differentiate their superior product" (letters, 12 August). I have interviewed more than 2,000 candidates for teaching posts in 20 years. I had only the vaguest idea how to evaluate one university's degree against another's. Considering the largely successful setting of common standards among all the A level and GCSE boards, it irritates me that the same has not been done for universities.

All strength to the Quality Assurance Agency's arm in trying to do this.

JOHN D ANDERSON

Shipley, West Yorkshire

Sir: I note the delight with which the media greets the inclusion of the word "bonk" in the Oxford English Dictionary (report, 13 August). My mother, a lifelong cyclist, always knew the meaning of the word. To "bonk" meant to exhaust one's energy reserves to the point where one could no longer continue cycling (marathon runners call it "hitting the wall"). Do other cyclists of the years between the wars remember a usage that the OED has clearly missed?

ANI HARRIS

High Peak, Derbyshire