WORLDLY UNWISE

Dog8217;s life
New York: The matchbook-size SNIF Tag isn8217;t just a fashion statement. Its motion-sensing circuitry can tell an owner whether Foofy is walking, running, snoozing or even playing with a fellow SNIF-wearing friend8212;provided it is within 80 feet of the base station. By logging on to the website, you can check in on your dog8217;s activity but, unlike global-positioning systems, you won8217;t be able to pinpoint his location. This will let you verify if, say, the dog walker is doing her job, but that8217;s not the tag8217;s main purpose, anyway: It is, according to the website, 8220;a real-time device interfacing with online social networking.8221; In other words, maybe there8217;s a play date in it for your dog8212;or maybe a date for you. The company is planning beta-tests in Boston and New York next month.

Candy tough
OSLO: Norway8217;s largest erotic chain store was forced to change the labelling on products such as penis pasta, candy cuffs and chocolate body painting, to comply with Norwegian food regulations. The Norwegian Food Safety Authority, whose goal it is to make sure consumers have healthy and safe food, conducted a surprise inspection at one of the chain8217;s stores and found that several products violated food labelling regulations, top-selling tabloid VG reported. 8220;We were a bit surprised to have the food safety authority on inspection. Food is not really our core product,8221; Kjersti Antonsen, a sexual adviser in the store, told VG. Products containing food must be marked with a Norwegian label, listing all ingredients. 8220;We have panties, bras, handcuffs and suspender belts made out of candy,8221; Antonsen said, adding that the store will comply with the regulations and label all its food products.

Monkey business
Taiwan: Coffee connoisseurs are going ape for a rare brew that Taiwanese farmers are producing with the help of monkeys. Formosan rock monkeys have long been a scourge to coffee farmers in Taiwan8217;s mountains because they eat the ripe berries and spit out the seeds. But now, the farmers are collecting these half-chewed seeds and roasting them to produce a coffee that is being brewed all over the island. Coffee farmer Liao Jingdong tried to roast beans which had been spat out by monkeys and discovered a unique taste, different from the original. Liao says the discarded seeds yield a sweeter coffee with a vanilla-like scent, which sells for about 56 a pound 450 grams. LAT-WP, Reuters