There’s been lots of interesting stories from the world of cleaning in the past few months. Here’s our round-up of those which have impressed, informed and titillated us the most!

 How to brush your Teeth

PC World reported that a new toothbrush connected via Bluetooth to a smartphone app tells users how well they are brushing their teeth. The product, by French upstart Kolibree, records the way in which users brush, and advises whether or not enough time has been taken, and if those hard-to-reach areas have been scrubbed satisfactorily. As yet to go on the market, the product is currently being demoed at the International CES trade show. Watch this space.

 The Self-Cleaning plate

In the past, Spotless has reported on the likes of self-cleaning clothes and ovens. Now, the Independent writes about the self-cleaning plate! Created by the Stockholm-based Tomorrow Machine studio, the plate has a “super-hydrophobic” coating, which makes it virtually impossible to get wet, and therefore to stain. What we like best of all is that the plate’s ingeniousness mimics nature; the design is based on the lotus leaf, which also self-cleans. Like the smart toothbrush though, you’ll have to wait for the self-cleaning plate. It’s not in the shops just yet.

 Cleaning: Just for Girls?

Appearing just recently on the web is the story about SportsDirect getting into hot water for selling a set of toy cleaning products labelled “It’s Girl’s Stuff!” Anti-sexism campaigners have taken to the Twittersphere en masse, complaining at SportDirect’s apparent ignorance. Former Tory MP Louise Mensch wrote “Wow. Total fail. @SportsDirectUK = Sexism Direct UK.” Maybe the question that really needs to be asked here is what is a sports retailer doing flogging cheap cleaning toys in the first place?!

 China’s massive Cleaning Bill

Air pollution in Chinese cities is a major problem, and an expensive one too. The Guardian recently reported that it’s expected clearing up this pollution will cost China 1.75 trillion yuan (£176b) between last year and 2017. But the cost will be worth it: currently, the country finds itself having to constantly close schools and offices, and ground flights because of smog. The anti-pollution action plan will also create an estimated two million jobs. Come to think of it, London could do with a bit of that…

 Morrison Skimps on Cleaning Windows

You would have thought that clean windows were a must for any shop. But, as AOL reported last month, supermarket chain Morrisons decided to put a halt on all its window cleaning until February 2014, in order to cut down on costs. One official excuse was that the run-off from windows “can be a slippage hazard in the winter; and so we can spend money on maintenance activity that our customers do care about at this time of year.” Hmm.