In a boost for legacy IT systems, Downtime has learnt that a fridge-sized tape recorder is being used to unlock the secrets of space.

A 1960s IBM729 Mark 5 tape drive at the Australian Computer Museum will be used to extract information from tapes in Perth, Australia, containing data on moon dust.

Nasa lost its copies of the tapes before they were archived. But the Perth tapes have been kept safe in a climate-controlled room. Yes another fridge

One in five children under 16 steals money from their parents by buying goods online with parents' credit cards.

This deeply depressing finding comes from a study in which a market researcher interviewed 500 children and 500 adults.

Like many similar studies, it would be most interesting to know where the researchers found the 500 children, including the 100 little sods stealing from their parents - a juvenile detention centre perhaps? Family therapy sessions?

An identity fraud expert was shocked at the discovery, saying, "We knew online and card-not-present fraud was on the rise, but we had no idea of the extent of teens' involvement."

Downtime wonders how many other studies the card protection specialist behind the research will be commissioning into areas of identity fraud that it does not think pose a problem.

For example, Downtime has always assumed that dogs have no involvement in fraud, but following these findings, might it be worth interviewing 500 dogs and 500 dog owners.

Google staff have devised a way to help predict and manage outbreaks of influenza by collating common flu-related search terms such as "headache" and "runny nose".

The company has compared past search terms to real-world data to allow it to model how search data reflects disease trends.

Downtime has been feeling under the weather this week, suffering from the aforementioned "headache" and "runny nose", but a quick Google search confirms that it is not flu.

In fact, on the headache side, likely culprits include meningitis and Aids, and the runny nose is probably symptomatic of cystic fibrosis. It sure is a relief not to have flu.

If you think it is annoying listening to the noise pollution from the headphones of obnoxious teenagers on your daily commute, spare a thought for people suffering from cardiac problems.

A study by William Maisel at Beth Israel Medical Centre in Boston has found that magnetic interference from MP3s can interfere with heart pacemakers and implantable defibrillators.

This latest data, if found to be accurate, may prove rather inconvenient for MP3 makers. Annoying fellow passengers is one thing, but incidentally killing cardiac patients might turn off even the most obnoxious people from their MP3s.

Not content with having far more data than it can competently handle, the government is proposing gathering all citizens' communication data.

The government's plans have been greeted with delight by Computer Weekly journalists who predict a windfall of "Government loses x amount of citizens' data" stories.  

The church has always been unusually preoccupied with sex. Normally this obsession is focused on condemning the rest of us for doing it, but a Swedish clergyman has levelled the playing field somewhat.

The pious chap, when not sermonising about the gnashing of teeth and hot hot fires of hell, was a frequent visitor to hardcore porn sites.

During one of thousands of visits he contracted a computer virus that brought down the church's entire computer network.

Presumably the church disapproves of antivirus software.

Downtime likes nothing more than chatting to double-glazing salesmen and call centre workers, but it seems others do not feel the same.

Two British inventors who fall into the latter category have invented the Truecall device, a neat gizmo that acts as a buffer between your phone and the outside world.

It works by identifying the genuine calls of family and friends, and filtering out nuisance calls.

Downtime's alternative, low-tech filtering service involves a four-year-old picking up calls and repeatedly saying "poo" to callers whose identities are not recognised.

Downtime is a big supporter of businesses recycling technology and last week we saw an innovative re-use of floppy disc labels. A website is flogging packets of five to be used as gift tags for over £4. 

According to the seller, "These make a great addition to any gift, unusual and retro!! They come in red, black, yellow, green and blue."

Downtime prefers ZX81 keyrings.

In a story that will please Jeremy Clarkson and others suspicious of any road-safety measure, a Romanian man received a speed ticket for driving at 310mph. The 62-year-old had been driving a 15-year-old Renault K65, which he claimed he could barely get to 70mph.

Police suspect that a radar malfunction may have been responsible for the ticket, meaning the driver will not be needing Mr Loophole to explain why he was exceeding the top speed of a Formula One car.

It seems the Dutch are taking virtual crime very seriously these days. Two youngsters have been sentenced to community service for stealing virtual goods from another youth on a computer game.

Presumably Dutch authorities will have the youths out sweeping up old joints in coffee shops and washing brothel shop windows where law-abiding citizens spend their time.