Tony Curtis, the Professor of Poetry at the University of Glamorgan - and a keen golfer to boot - had a timely poem to read as the train sped through the landscape of early autumn.

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The coffee on the way to work in the morning, the newspaper or magazine to read on the train, the sandwich and chocolate bar at lunchtime, the gin and tonic on the way home, the DVD you rent when you get home - everything.

BBC: Pile of coins

Read through their list anyway to train your eye toward good taste.

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Critics deplored newspaper tabloids, which catered to first-generation immigrants learning the language and time-pressed laborers grabbing a few minutes to read lurid headlines on the train.

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Taking a bus or train can free you to finish up work, read or just relax.

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Panasonic showed off a system that can pipe terrestrial digital broadcasts into trains, coupled with a wireless system to allow commuters to hear a broadcast's audio via headsets without disturbing other passengers (hey, some of us like to work, read -- or sleep -- on the train).

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These people, American and local, collect our intelligence, design and inform our early warning systems, quell political unrest through diplomacy and development, and train the next generation of leaders in conflict regions to read and write, legislate and litigate, reignite broken economies and repair eroded social fabric.

CNN: Stop atrocities before they start