1. It combats the ridiculous frothiness of reality TV and the consumerism that has sort of become our national religion.

2. But signs of frothiness are also cropping up in odd places: garlic has become an unlikely target for Chinese speculators.

3. They had suspected that part of the frothiness in the markets was the result of too much illicit lending. Their investigations appear to have uncovered the bank's existence.

4. They had suspected that part of the frothiness in the markets was the result of too much illicit lending.

5. What is scary is that the current frothiness of emerging markets, centred on China, may be only a taste of what is to come.

6. Technology executives, ensconced here at a seaside golf resort, declared the current frothiness in the Internet market as the early days of a boom -- but not the peak of a bubble.