The News Matrix: Thursday 3 October 2013

Honours for Dark Knight composer

The composer of the soundtracks to The Dark Knight Rises and Man of Steel was a double winner at the Classic Brit Awards last night. Hans Zimmer was named "Composer of the Year," as well being given the "Outstanding Contribution to Music" prize. Dutch violinist André Rieu took the "Album of the Year" award.

Probe into Durham chief's payments

Durham's Police and Crime Commissioner is being investigated over allegations he accepted employee benefits he was not entitled to, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said. Ron Hogg has said he was "confident" he acted in "good faith" throughout.

Golden Dawn leader appears in court

The head of Greece's far-right Golden Dawn party testified yesterday on charges of running a criminal organisation, as part of an investigation triggered by the killing of a left-wing rapper. More than 100 supporters chanted "Blood, Honor, Golden Dawn" as Nikos Michaloliakos was led into the courthouse.

Airport in Moscow holding €20bn cash

Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport has been reported to be holding €20bn worth of cash for the past six years – enough money to cover the EU's predicted budget shortfall for 2013. Those trying to claim it allegedly include Ukrainian spies, Chechen gangsters, al-Qa'ida members and even the Knights of Malta. MORE

Fake bomb detectors are still being used

Fake bomb detectors are still being used in Iraq five months after a British businessman who supplied them was convicted of fraud at the Old Bailey in April. More than 4,500 people are estimated to have been killed – 979 of them in September alone – because of the devices based on novelty golf-ball finders that James McCormick made and sold for $40,000 each. MORE

Lady Hale: 'Promote more female judges'

Britain's most senior female judge is disappointed that another woman has not yet been promoted to the Supreme Court. While she was proud of being appointed, Lady Hale said: "I don't want to be the last."

Secret of top insect repellent uncovered

Scientists have discovered how the world's most common insect repellent works, allowing them to screen other substances that could also be used to protect people from deadly diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. The research could lead to cheap, affordable repellents. MORE

Titanic eruptions shaped Mars climate

Mars was blasted by titanic super-volcano eruptions more than three billion years ago that may have shaped the planet's climate, according to scientists. Such eruptions also happened in Earth's past, and a plugged super-volcano is said to be simmering beneath Yellowstone National Park in the US.

GCHQ coders bond with magazine

Staff at the GCHQ intelligence agency have devised five puzzles to celebrate the 25th anniversary of one of the world's leading science magazines. The first puzzle appears on Physics World's blog as a jumbled set of letters which need to be deciphered before arriving at a physics-themed answer. MORE

Murder-for-hire site 'Silk Road' closed

US law enforcement authorities have shut down "Silk Road", an internet marketplace for illegal drugs and criminal activities such as murder for hire, and arrested its alleged owner. The FBI arrested Ross William Ulbricht, 29, known as "Dread Pirate Roberts," in San Francisco.

Treasury pays $500 to fix dog's dinner

A man who painstakingly reassembled parts of five $100 bills eaten by his golden retriever has been reimbursed by the US Treasury. Wayne Klinkel received a $500 (£308) cheque on Monday after his 12-year-old dog, Sundance, downed all but half of one of the bills in December.

Angola Three prisoner freed

A dying member of the "Angola Three", the trio of prisoners who have spent more than 100 years between them in solitary confinement in one of America's toughest jails, has been released. Herman Wallace, 71, has spent 41 years in solitary incarceration and is dying of cancer. MORE