The News Matrix: Tuesday 14 August 2012

‘No-one to blame’ for school trip tragedy

A judge says no-one is to blame for a freak accident that left a teacher paralysed. Glennroy Blair- Ford, 45, sought £5m from CRS Adventures Ltd after injuring himself during a school trip to Dartmoor. He was trying to toss a Wellington boot from between his legs at the time. MORE

Girl, 8, dies from E.coli infection

An eight-year-old girl has died at a Glasgow hospital after contracting E.coli. A spokesperson for NHS Ayrshire and Arran said there was no risk of an outbreak. Dr Jane Cooper, a consultant in public health medicine, said: "Our thoughts are with the family."

Breakthrough in vision technology

Scientists are closer to developing Star Trek-style "bionic" implants to restore sight to blind people after a breakthrough in understanding the neural code used to send images from the eye's retina to the visual centres of the brain. Tests on blind mice have been successful. MORE

OAP the latest victim of Legionnaires'

A 70-year-old man is the latest victim of a Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Stoke-on-Trent, bringing the total number of cases to 21. Two people have died since mid-July, while three remain hospitalised. A hot tub in a discount warehouse may be the cause of the recent cases.

Grande dame of 'Cosmopolitan' dies

Helen Gurley Brown, left, legendary editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, has died at 90. Her death was announced in a press release yesterday from the owners of the magazine, which she edited for 30 years.

Google buys another guide book brand

Google has bought its second major guide book brand in less than a year, as it seeks to create more of its own content. The search engine has agreed an undisclosed deal to buy Frommer's travel books and is set to merge the group with Zagat, the restaurant guide it bought last September. More than 75 million Frommer's guides have been sold since 1957.

Boris: 'I'm more likely to go to Mars'

Boris Johnson says he will more likely be found on Mars with Elvis Presley than be leader of the Tory party. The Mayor of London insisted he had no ambition to lead the Conservatives, echoing Michael Heseltine's claim he "could not foresee the circumstances" in which he would go for the job.

Police 'could have prevented Breivik'

The police could have prevented or interrupted the bomb and gun attacks by Anders Breivik, who killed 77 people last year, a government commission said. The report also said the intelligence service could have done more to track down the gunman. MORE

PM writes to boy 'kidnapped' in Qatar

David Cameron has intervened to help a 12-year-old boy who wrote him a letter last year pleading for help after his family allegedly kept him in Qatar under false pretences. Adam Jones claimed he was "kidnapped" by his uncle after he visited Qatar with his mother in 2009.

Funding begins for coastal communities

The first wave of a £24m Coastal Communities Fund will support tourism and sustainable lobster fishing. Communities Secretary Eric Pickles announced the first six coastal communities to benefit from the fund yesterday.

Police arrest two on fraud charges

Police arrested two people yesterday on suspicion of conspiracy to commit fraud following the death of oil executive Carole Waugh. A spokesman for Scotland Yard said that two men aged 55 and 39 were being held in custody in south London.

Castro marks 86th birthday in private

Cuba marked Fidel Castro's 86th birthday yesterday with congratulatory messages in state media but no appearance by the retired leader, who has faded from public view. Communist Party newspaper Granma published memories of Castro from people including Cuban journalists.

Couple who won £148m to go public

A couple who have become the country's second biggest lottery winners will reveal their identities today. The pair from Haverhill, Suffolk, are ready to go public after winning the £148.6m EuroMillions jackpot last week. They are unlikely to mind that their win falls just short of the £161m record.

Neanderthals theory in doubt

Early humans did not breed with Neanderthals despite genetic evidence, according to new research. A 2010 study found that modern humans shared up to 4 per cent of their DNA with Neanderthals. But scientists now say the shared DNA is a leftover from when they and modern humans shared an ancestor. MORE

RiRi's on top but sales hit bottom

Rihanna's Talk That Talk has hit No 1 in the album charts, despite selling less than 10,000 copies, marking a record low for album sales. It is the lowest sales figure for the top spot since the Official Charts Company began releasing data in 1994.

Kangaroo on the run after escaping

A kangaroo is on the run after breaking out of a wildlife park, with a fox and a wild boar his suspected accomplices. Staff at Hochwildschutzpark Hunsrueck, near Frankfurt, said the male kangaroo was one of three that escaped after a fox dug a hole next to the cage's fencing.

CNN's Crowley to host election debate

CNN's Candy Crowley will become the first woman in 20 years to moderate a US presidential debate when she questions Barack Obama and his Republican rival Mitt Romney in October. The political correspondent is set to lead one of three debates before the 6 November election.

Mother bear and cubs binge drink

A family of bears has broken into a holiday cabin in Norway and consumed more than 100 cans of beer. A mother bear and her three cubs broke into the wooden lodge in the north of the country by ripping off a wall, according to Norway's Finnmarken newspaper.