Carlesimo will take over as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets on an interim basis, but whomever ends up taking a more permanent role as head coach will inherit an organization that has already appropriated a great deal of money to players on its roster.

FORBES: Brooklyn Nets Nix Avery Johnson, But Player Contracts May Cause Concern

Does Hartmut Mehdorn, the head of Deutsche Bahn whose contract ends in 2008, really want to saddle his successor with the kind of problems faced by Mr Obermann at Deutsche Telekom: shareholder pressure on one side and powerful unions, plus a legacy of state ownership on the other?

ECONOMIST: Deutsche Telekom

When brick-ends started hurtling perilously close to my unprotected head and to those of my cameraman and sound recordist, a police superintendant marched sternly towards us with a warning that his officers could no longer guarantee our safety.

BBC: The 'Thatcher Factor': My personal post script

If you drape it around your neck or over your head, or for the athlete, around your neck with the ends tucked inside the collar of your shirt, it does wonders, without getting in the way.

FORBES: Simple Technology Keeps You Cool During Hot Weather Sports

Well fortified, detour back toward the airport for the fascinating tour (1400 local time, Sunday to Thursday) of the Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital where birds of prey are nursed lovingly back to health and whose tour ends with an opportunity to hold a rehabilitated falcon, then head back into town to take high tea at the opulent Emirates Palace Hotel.

BBC: Stopover in Abu Dhabi