EVERY DAY, TheJournal.ie brings you a round-up of all the latest news as well as the bits and pieces that you may have missed.

• Today will be remembered, in Greece anyway, as the day the country was given the dubious honour of having the lowest Standard and Poor’s credit rating in the world. The agency has told Greece that any attempt to restructure repayments on its debt will be deemed to be a default. Greece’s credit rating downgrade brought the price of US crude oil down with it, although the price has rallied today.
• On the day when his country hit an all-time low in its debt crisis Dublin-dwelling Greek Dr. Labros Chatzis took the opportunity to tell us why things aren’t so bad here in Ireland.
• Three people were hospitalised in Dublin today after their rubber dinghy capsized in Killiney Bay. A fourth person swam to shore to raise the alarm. An RNLI spokesperson said the craft they were in would have been more suitable for use in a swimming pool.
• Under fifties win a gold medal for saving, according to a new survey, with 30 per cent of people who do put away money saving between €51 and €100 a month. And it’s not just them doing some saving: AIB says it’s saved the taxpayer €1.6bn by burning junior bondholders. Saving might not be enough to keep Ireland’s credit unions afloat without help in the form of taxpayer funding though. It’s been revealed that the sector is awaiting the results of stress tests to see if action is needed.
• Bouncy castles, white dresses and the odd stretch hummer have contributed almost €58 million to the Irish economy. That’s how much parents have paid out on First Holy Communions this year according to a survey by Ulster Bank. The survey also revealed that children received an average of €468 in cash gifts. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to put on tax on Communion money after all…

(Thanks to @DAngland for pointing us in the direction of the Republic of Telly video)

• RTÉ’s Miriam O’Callaghan has made it clear that she doesn’t think a woman’s place is in the home minding the children, despite being thusly quoted in an article on the RTE website. The article was removed and changed, but not before it became the hot topic for discussion on TV3′s Midday Show today. O’Callaghan called the show to say that “never even in my life – ever” had she said that women belonged at home with the kids.
• Record companies could soon be able to predict which songs will top the charts by scanning the brains of teenagers as they listen. Researchers at a university in Atlanta have found that playing tunes which later became hits provoked strong brain activity among 12 to 15-year-olds.
• Have a fear of flying? Then it’s probably best to look away now. The aircraft manufacturer Airbus has unveiled images of its “cabin of the future” which features translucent walls to allow passengers to see through the aircraft. There’s a video if you’re feeling brave.
• Finally, just when you thought that asking for “no brown M&Ms” or “20 white kittens” (we’re looking at you Van Halen and Mariah Carey) was the height of crazy backstage behaviour, along come Foo Fighters to knock the ball right out of the park. The band has compiled 52 pages of demands for their 2011 tour. However, their rider is more in jest that anything, and includes a colouring book, catering wordsearch and a guide to perfect ice cubes.

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