Meanwhile, the authorities are also concerned about the country’s tourism industry. In order to reassure foreign visitors, Thailand’s Tourism Office is regularly posting videos like this one online. Objective: show them that the current situation will have no effect on their trip.

On Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of independence, the Senegalese President, Abdoulaye Wade unveiled a 50 meter high bronze statue in Dakar. It’s called The African Renaissance Statue and had provoked a lot of reaction online.

Many local web users have mixed feelings about the statue. This blogger for example criticizes the monument’s Stalin aspect and says it is an architectural monstrosity. He thinks the sculpture makes Senegal the most artistically challenged African country. 

But as this web user stresses, the controversy surrounding this statue is not only linked to what it looks like. He says that some Senegalese people are criticizing President Wade, not only for the exorbitant amount of money spent on the statue, but also the fact that he will personally make money from the monument, as he claims he is entitled to a percentage of the profits it generates due to intellectual property rights.

Some are already wondering about the possibility of destroying the statue.  Here, this blogger explains it is unlikely to disappear any time soon for financial reasons. But he says he hopes the statue will be got rid of one day, as he sees it as a symbol of the country’s bad governing.  

And opinions in the streets appear to be more divided than on the web. As these images taken from the streets of Dakar on Saturday show, many Senegalese wanted to show the president their support at the inauguration of the monument. And these street interviews show that some citizens, like this man, are overwhelmingly in favour of this initiative.

SISTINE CHAPEL

In 2009, the team from Villanova University created virtual visits of the Basilica of St. John Lateran and the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls and posted them online. They have now done the same thing for the Sistine Chapel. The American University has been working with the Vatican for two years on a virtual reality project aimed at digitizing the Catholic Church’s best landmarks and frescos and making them available online.  

Do you dream of creating your own Chatroulette? On this site which enjoyed huge success several weeks ago, you can chat with random strangers from all over the world using a web cam. Now, thanks to the site camchat, anyone can create their private Chatroulette. For 29 dollars, web users can download the script from the original site and install it on their computer, and then chat via web cam with other members.  

VIDEO OF THE DAY

If you have had enough of housework then do not worry because robots will soon be available to help you. This robot created by a student from the University of Berkeley with the help of his professor, can fold towels. But he’s still a little slow; the video has been accelerated to 50 times its original speed.