If you've ever struggled to decipher a graphics-only IKEA instruction manual while putting together a large piece of furniture with the help of only a miniature wrench (and who hasn't?), you will be relieved to know that Northampton College in England has recently announced a new course: flat-pack furniture assembly 101. The problem, explains Helene Parker, the college's marketing manager, is that "men tend to do the whole caveman thing and rush in there without looking at the instructions." Parker goes on to explain that women, being more logical and rational, tend to "look at all the parts and check them off against the instructions before they try to assemble it." The three-hour course is free, and, according to an IKEA spokeswoman, it will "provide people with confidence and encourage them to do more home improvements rather than paying tradesmen."
"At last, a college course for all: How to build IKEA furniture," by Steve Bloomfield, The Independent, January 11, 2004