A plane flies past the moon in Loreto, central Italy, earlier today. Image: Alessandra Tarantino/AP/Press Association Images

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

THINGS WE LEARNED

#APRIL JONES: The search for missing five-year-old Welsh girl April Jones will continue through the night despite harsh weather conditions, police have said. Detectives have until 5pm tomorrow to charge or release suspect Mark Bridger.

#ANONYMOUS: Finance Minister Michael Noonan has told the Dáil that there is no way to identify bondholders in Allied Irish Bank.

#GONE THE WAY OF THE INTER CERT: The formal Junior Certificate exams taken by Third Year students are to be abolished.

#DALKEY OIL: Drilling can now go ahead off the coast of Dalkey in Dublin after a licence was granted to Providence Resources by junior environment minister Jan O’Sullivan today.

#SPILLOVER: The civil war in Syria has spilled across the border for a second day in-a-row with Turkey’s parliament authorising military operations against its neighbour again today.

#FACEBOOK: Are you one of the one billion? Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg updated his status today to confirm that the social media site now has more than one billion active users each month. Like?

THINGS WE LOVED

Image: Niall Carson/PA Wire/Press Association Images

• The effort that three-year-old Cillian Byrne put into the launch of the inaugural Bram Stoker Hallowe’en Festival at Marsh’s Library in Dublin today.
• The #A1980sChildhood hashtag started by 2FM’s Rick O’Shea today after he was inspired by this Daily Edge video post, featuring the best local Irish disco footage you will ever see. It is, we promise.
• This headline: Woman Photographed Riding A Manatee Turns Herself In

THINGS WE SHARED

• To determine if bald men are perceived as more powerful, the Guardian has mocked up images of a number of well-known heads famous for their coiffures. Ever wanted so see what David Cameron would be like without the quiff, or Simon Cowell sans the lego-piece? If you are a One Direction fan though, look away now.
• Is this a cure for greed? Dutch designer Diddo’s latest project involves destroying US$10,000 to examine the question.

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