Hiroko Makino of Japan swims on her way to winning the gold medal during the Women’s 400-meter Individual Medley final at the 9th Asian Swimming Championships, in Dubai, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

HERE ARE THE things you need to know as we round off the day in three easy steps.

THINGS WE LEARNED:

#SAVITA: Outrage over the death of Savita Halappanavar in Galway continues today, with the tragic story making headlines around the world and prompting officials in both Ireland and India to express deep concern over the circumstances surrounding her death. As two inquires are launched, Savita’s mother told several Indian television stations: “In an attempt to save a 4-month-old foetus they killed my 30-year-old daughter. How is that fair you tell me?”

#DIGITAL: A major new report commissioned by cable company UPC has suggested that the internet will contribute €11.3 billion to the Irish economy on an annual basis by 2016. The projected increase will be underpinned by 2.6 million online shoppers who are expected to spend €3.7 billion in 2012, rising to €5.7 billion (7 per cent of all consumer spending) in 2016

#GULF OF MEXICO: BP has agreed to pay a the US government a €3.52 billion settlement over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill – the largest accidental marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry, which caused serious and wide-ranging environmental and economic damage. The company also pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to the deaths of 11 workers and to lying to Congress.

#PASSPORT: Long lines in the Passport office may soon be a thing of the past following the launch of a new trial website by the Department of Foreign Affairs, which aims to give people planning travelling in less than 10 days a chance to book a specific appointment for the first time ever.

#INDUSTRIAL ACTION: Unite union members are to pursue industrial action after the Institute of Chartered Accountants today served notices of dismissal on 11 staff at the body – a move the union’s regional officer Claire Keane described as “a terrible abuse of lower paid staff members”.

A member of staff looks at Jake and Dinos Chapman’s work ‘Forehead’ during a preview of the Royal College of Art’s ‘The Perfect Place to Grow: 175 Years of the Royal College of Art’ exhibition at the Royal College of Art, London. (Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)

THINGS WE LOVED:

• How terrifying is the fridge in your office? Is if full of mouldy sandwiches and notes bitching about mouldy sandwiches? If so, you are not alone.
• Skydiving cats. Yes, you read that right: SKYDIVING CATS.
• This quaint AOL advert from 1995 explaining “the internet” has made us feel superior to the previous generation. And very old. (via Buzzfeed)

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THINGS WE SHARED:

• Can an assassination ever be justified? In the aftermath of Israel’s killing of a senior military leader of Hamas, five experts discuss their views of the legal and moral implications of targeted killings by governments in the New York Times.
• “David” suffers from a condition known as Body Integrity Identity Disorder – a condition experienced by a small percentage of the population which is commonly manifested by a desire to have an amputation of a specific body part. Ever since childhood, he says he’s been desperate to remove one of his legs because, as he puts it: “It doesn’t feel like my soul extends to it.”
• Following the fall of the Soviet Union, many monuments and sculptures created during Communism’s heyday were destroyed or relocated, However, several remain where they were first erected and, not to put too fine a point on it, are seriously weird looking. Check out io9′s list of imposing Communist design.

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