Tuesday 30 November 2010

Photos of the day 11/29 - The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com

Animal rights activist Park So-youn holds stray dogs rescued from a village on Yeonpyeong Island damaged by North Korean artillery shelling, as South Korean marines stand nearby. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak labelled North Korea's artillery attack on a southern island a crime against humanity and said Pyongyang will pay the price for any further provocation. North Korea fired shells at the island off the peninsula's west coast on Tuesday, killing two civilians and two soldiers and destroying dozens of houses.

Forget Iran. In Britain, WikiLeaks focus is on details about Prince Andrew.

WikiLeaks' diplomatic cables revealed how Prince Andrew, in his role as a UK trade ambassador, criticized France and America and condemned 'idiotic' British anticorruption investigators.

Monday 29 November 2010

Sunday 28 November 2010

BBC News - Tube strike threatens delays for London commuters

London's Underground network is set to face further disruption as the fourth 24-hour strike by thousands of workers continues.

Members of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) and the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) walked out at 1829 GMT on Sunday.

The unions have warned of widespread disruption for the morning rush hour.

BBC News - Siberian winds set to create further weather disruption

29 November 2010 Last updated at 05:34

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Siberian winds set to create further weather disruption

People stand in the snow on Calton Hill in Edinburgh The snow is expected to head south later in the week

Siberian winds are set to cause further disruption during the UK's "big freeze" by blowing snow back into cleared areas, forecasters warn.

Parts of eastern England and Scotland already under thick snow could see further showers.

BBC meteorologist Philip Avery said it was likely the strong winds would cause significant drifting.

Meanwhile, the Local Government Association said councils had increased stockpiles of salt and grit this year.

Mr Avery warned that plummeting temperatures overnight on Monday were likely to lead to icy roads in many places, while the strengthening winds will make it feel even colder.

The UK has been experiencing the earliest widespread snowfall since 1993.

Met Office severe weather warnings for heavy snow and icy roads are in place for central and eastern Scotland, including the Borders, and north east England down to the east Midlands.

There are early warnings of more to come on Monday and Tuesday, with eastern counties again the most at risk.

Mr Avery said the worst weather would be in central and eastern Scotland and north eastern England but added: "There is a likelihood of wind in the northern half of the British Isles picking up in strength leading to more significant drifting."

But for some regions, Monday's forecast is for a nicer day, he said.

But, he warned the biting winds would have an impact and make it feel colder than it was.

The Greater London area and Kent are at risk of snowfall from Tuesday, with the Met Office warning that drifting snow could cause disruption to road and rail networks towards the end of the week.

David Sparks from the Local Government Association said councils are prepared this year to cope with the winter weather.

David Sparks

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Councils boost salt and grit stockpile in big freeze

He told the BBC: "Local authorities this year have made unprecedented preparations for the winter.

"We've got well over a third more salt and grit in our stocks than we had last year and over a half of local authorities have invested in new gritting lorries."

He added that individuals also had to make their own preparations and added: "What everyone needs to realise is that you cannot control or battle with the weather if it is unprecedented. You need to try to mitigate the effects."

But motoring organisations the AA and the RAC warned commuters to continue to take great care, even on major roads that have been gritted.

AA spokesman Gavin Hill-Smith said the organisation had experienced "virtually unheard of" numbers of call-outs on Sunday and patrols were expecting even more on Monday morning.

"A lot of cars haven't been used over the weekend, but when people come to go to work or school on Monday they'll find the battery is flat or they can't get out of the drive," he said.

He warned people to take extra care: "The main concern is always ice. People must not get complacent - even on major roads that have been treated patches of ice can still develop.

Continue reading the main story Map key

"They also need to leave themselves extra time in the morning - for the drive itself and to make sure the car is completely clear of snow and ice before they set off."

Stephen Alambritis from the Federation of Small Businesses said commuters needed to do their best to get to work despite the weather.

He said: "If we look at absence from work as costing the UK each year 13bn, then obviously, one day's absence will be into the millions, in terms of cost but also in terms of foregone business.

"If staff are not in place at work, calls are missed, contracts are not signed, invoices are not sent out and cheques are not banked."

A number of airports, including Edinburgh, Glasgow, Derry, Newcastle and Durham-Tees Valley, were affected over the weekend and disruption is likely to continue on Monday.

Rail and bus services in parts of Scotland and north-east England are also likely to face further problems.

On Saturday night temperatures in Wales and Northern Ireland fell to the lowest on record for November, reaching -18C (0F) and -9.5C (15F) respectively.

The unusual weather is being caused by high pressure over Greenland and low pressure in the Baltic states, forcing cold winds from the north-east across Europe.

Is it snowing where you live? Have you been affected by the conditions? Send us your comments using the form below.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or 44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

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Ooohhh its cold!

State Department says new WikiLeaks document dump would risk lives

(CNN) -- If any materials in the next posting of documents by the WikiLeaks site were provided by government officials without proper authorization, "they were provided in violation of U.S. law and without regard for the grave consequences of this action," the U.S. State Department's legal adviser said.

In a letter to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange dated Saturday, State Department Legal Adviser Harold Hongju Koh said he was responding to a letter about plans to publish "what you claim to be classified U.S. government documents."

Koh wrote that the department had spoken with representatives from The New York Times, The Guardian and Der Spiegel newspapers about 250,000 documents the whistleblower organization provided to them for publication.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/US/11/28/wikileaks.response/index.html?hpt=T2

BBC News - Coldest November night on record in parts of UK

Temperatures plummeted to the coldest on record for November in parts of the UK overnight.

Northern Ireland hit a new low of -8.6C (17F) at Aldergrove, in Belfast, and in Wales, a record minimum of -18C (0F) was reached at Llysdinam, in Powys.

Heavy snow is still falling in much of Scotland and north-east England, bringing travel disruption, and is set to last until Tuesday.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11855579

Friday 26 November 2010

BBC News - Fast Track - Hotel industry faces price fixing claims

he UK Office of Fair Trading has launched a formal investigation into alleged price fixing in the online sale of hotel rooms.

Forces of change, this is actually very interesting in it's implications,
the big boys are pressurising this business owner, they are being
undercut, and overtaken by technology.

It occured to me the other day, that the man who invented the umbrella,
was subject to abuse by the sedan carriers, because they saw they would
be put out of business. Where are they now?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/fast_track/9032068.stm

Filipinos embrace Hero of the Year, 'pushcart classrooms' for poor

Cavite City, Philippines (CNN) -- Not many people recognized Efren Peñaflorida as he left the Philippines last fall to attend a Hollywood gala for CNN Heroes.

But when Peñaflorida returned from the event as CNN's Hero of the Year, he was greeted by hundreds of screaming fans at the airport in Manila.

"The moment we got home, I ... seemed to have become a celebrity," he said.

Peñaflorida was honored for creating mobile "pushcart classrooms," carts stocked with books, chalkboards and other supplies, that bring education to poor children in the Philippines. Since 1997, he and more than 12,000 teenage volunteers have taught basic reading and writing skills to more than 1,800 children living on the streets.

"The award and the title [are] really significant," said Peñaflorida, 29. "It gave me and my co-volunteers an affirmation that what we are doing is a worthy cause."

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/09/16/cnnheroes.penaflorida.update/...

Awesome post #2 today, though you will probably see this one first.

Woman fighting sex slavery named CNN Hero of the Year

I would like to make a special post today.

"Since 1993, she has helped rescue more than 12,000 women and girls. Through her organization Maiti Nepal, she has provided more than a shelter for these girls and young women, she has created a home. It is a place for them to heal, go to school, learn a skill, and for some who are infected with HIV/AIDS, it is the place where they can spend their days surrounded by love."

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/11/21/cnnheroes.hero.of.year/?hpt=C2

Awesome.

Thursday 25 November 2010

BBC News - Heavy early snow grips parts of UK amid fresh warnings

25 November 2010 Last updated at 18:12

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Heavy early snow grips parts of UK amid fresh warnings

Boy sledging in the snow

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The BBC's Danny Savage, James Cook and Adrian Pitches descibe the snow conditions in north-east England and Scotland

It was very cold today.

BBC News - Snow conditions around the UK

25 November 2010 09:55 AM
The earliest widespread snowfall for 17 years has begun to grip many parts of the UK. Up to 10cm of snow settled in north-east Scotland and northern England overnight, with falls also reported in Cornwall, Northern Ireland and Wales.

The Met Office has issued warnings of heavy or drifting snow and widespread icy roads particularly for the eastern side of the UK.

BBC News - Leaving the euro: how would it work?

Tantalizing article, but to be honest, they will find another way to
screw it up for everyone. Why bother?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11830532

Wednesday 24 November 2010

BBC News - Airport security and the American soul

The lady in the picture, is definitely not involved in any unlawful activity.
Is it not obvious, it is just that they have to make the law fair to all, or the civil liberties lawyers will bring a law suit.

As Americans count the blessings which providence has showered over them this Thanksgiving holiday, a division has emerged over how they should view the security staff on duty at the nation's airports.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11834185

BBC News - Should Obama's 'internet kill switch' power be curbed?

The internet was actually developed for ARPA, in the event of war,
it would provide communications re-routing if part of the network
went down or was destroyed.

Under a World War II-era law, the US president appears to have authority to disconnect computer systems and servers from the internet in the event of a national emergency. But the next US Congress is poised to change that.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11736545

Tuesday 23 November 2010

John Soane - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Just a great image from the John Soane page.

BBC News - Pterosaurs' wings 'key to their size'

This creature had wingspans believed to be up to thirty meters.

David Attenborough said in one of his BBC programs that in the age
of the dinosaurs, dragonflys had a wingspan of two feet!

Ancient flying reptiles called pterosaurs were adapted to fly in a slow, controlled manner in gentle tropical breezes, researchers say.

Their conclusions are drawn from the first detailed aerodynamic study of the wings, which suggests they did not evolve to fly fast and powerfully in stormy winds.

The research, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, may also explain how the creatures were able to become the largest flying animals ever known.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11815320

BBC News - US economy grew 'faster than thought'

The question this article prompts for me, is ...

Interesting that this news is being released right before the busiest shopping
day of the year. Perhaps a ploy to stimulate confidence in the economy.
Who knows?

The US economy grew at a faster pace than initially thought, figures show.

The economy grew at an annualised rate of 2.5% in the July-to-September period, up from an earlier estimate of 2%, the Commerce Department said.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11822802

Akon refuses to release unfinished Michael Jackson tracks | Music | guardian.co.uk

Vivaldi manuscripts are being discovered left and right!

Perhaps a timed release?

Something's going on. It's as if Vivaldi deliberately left some of his original manuscripts around locations in Britain as part of a deliberate attempt to keep posterity interested in his music, creating a posthumous treasure hunt that would take more than two and a half centuries to solve. There must be more out there. The Gran Mogol concerto was one of a set of four, all previously thought lost, so the other three must be lurking in libraries and private collections somewhere. And given the Vivaldi hit rate over the last few weeks, I reckon it's worth us all checking our lofts. Who knows what Antonio and his successors might have left in attics from Stoke to Southwold, from Bo'ness to Bournemouth? Even if you haven't got a couple of Scottish marquesses in your family, you too could be sitting on some Vivaldian treasure.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/tomserviceblog/2010/nov/22/vivaldi-attic-lost...

Monday 22 November 2010

BBC News - Sutton Hoo dig holiday 'snaps' on display in Suffolk

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-11803037

This is brilliant, I am not sure if they said when the exhibition will start and end.

BBC News - Passenger jet lands safely after reports of fire on wing

A US passenger jet bound for Moscow has returned safely to a New York airport after reports its wing had caught fire.

The Delta Airlines Boeing 767 dumped fuel and turned back to John F Kennedy Airport after reports of engine trouble soon after take-off.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11808062

BBC News - Harry Potter film set to break UK box office record

The latest Harry Potter movie looks set to smash UK cinema box office records, according to studio estimates.

Warner Bros said Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 took £5.9m on Friday and £6.6m on Saturday.

This already breaks previous records of biggest Friday, biggest Saturday and biggest single day.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-11807279

Sunday 21 November 2010

U2 - Intro/Return of the Stingray Guitar/Beautiful Day/I Will Follow

Very nicely shot.

BBC News - Spain 'orgasm' video criticised by politicians

Isn't Europe Great?

Spanish politicians have criticised a video by the Young Socialists in Catalonia in which a woman simulates an orgasm while casting her vote.

Both Socialist and opposition politicians have attacked the campaign video.

The equality minister called it "misleading" advertising.

In the video the young woman gets increasingly excited as she votes for the Socialist Party in this month's regional elections in Catalonia.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11795407

Daniel Day-Lewis Will Be Steven Spielberg's Abraham Lincoln - MOVIE TALK on Yahoo! Movies

For what seems like forever, director Steven Spielberg has talked about wanting to do a biopic on Abraham Lincoln from a script by "Angels in America" playwright Tony Kushner. But for the past decade, Spielberg has instead focused on other projects while Liam Neeson remained committed to playing our 16th president. When Neeson announced this summer that he was finally leaving the project, that seemed to be the end of it ever happening, but now the film is very much back on track: Daniel Day-Lewis going to play Lincoln.

http://blog.movies.yahoo.com/blog/169-daniel-day-lewis-will-be-steven-spielbe...

BBC News - New stretcher promises to help mountain rescuers

A specially designed stretcher which will make it easier to take casualties off mountains has been unveiled.

The Katie Stretcher is the brainchild of Scottish mountain rescue teams.

It is made of lightweight carbon fibre and can break up into three sections, making it much easier to transport to accident sites.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-11803763

Saturday 20 November 2010

BBC News - Charles Dickens Museum in Bloomsbury given £2m grant

The central London house where Charles Dickens wrote The Pickwick Papers and Oliver Twist has been given a £2m grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

He lived in the Doughty Street property in Bloomsbury for two years before moving to a house in Regent's Park.

It was converted into a museum in 1925 and his study and the desk where he penned the novels have been preserved.

The money from the grant will be used to restore the 19th Century townhouse and double the exhibition space.

Full article:..http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-11798825

Friday 19 November 2010

Don't put your foot in your mouth with this one!

 

It was Guinness World Records Day on Wednesday and as part of the celebrations this replica of the world's largest shoe was unveiled in Amsterdam. It is equivalent to a UK size 845.

BBC News - Cameron adviser quits over 'never had it so good' claim

David Cameron's enterprise adviser Lord Young has quit after claiming most Britons "had never had it so good".

The Tory peer said many people had gained from low interest rates during this "so-called recession", remarks Mr Cameron said were "unacceptable".

No 10 said Mr Cameron had accepted the peer's resignation from the unpaid advisory role he took on last month.
Full Article...http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11798366

Lord Young apology over 'never had it so good' remarks

Lord Young of Graffham

The prime minister's enterprise adviser has apologised after saying most Britons had "never had it so good" despite the "so-called recession".

Lord Young of Graffham told the Daily Telegraph the Bank of England's decision to cut the base rates to 0.5% meant many homeowners were better off.

Full article.....http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11793486

 

Thursday 18 November 2010

BBC News - President John F Kennedy and the art of dirty politics

Fifty years since he was elected US president, there is still an aura around John F Kennedy's White House, yet arguably the dirtier side of modern politics has its roots in his rise to power.

Full article.....http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11718369

BBC News - The secrets of Britain's abandoned villages

The ghosts of thousands of long-forgotten villages haunt Britain, inhabitations suddenly deserted and left to ruin. As a new campaign begins to shed further light on these forgotten histories, the Magazine asks - what happened and why?

Full article......http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11765712

Things to do in Paris from Time Out

The Moulin Rouge, Paris
 

Treat yourself to a gourmet surprise

Le Restaurant
Restaurants

With the talented Philippe Bélisse in charge of the kitchen you are guaranteed a gastronomic treat.

Modern masters inside and out

Centre Pompidou
Art

The 'inside-out' building, and the largest collection of modern art in Europe, make this an umissable stop.

Paris's hippest spot for an aperitif

Chez Jeanette
Bars & pubs

The kitsch 1940s lights, tobacco-stained wallpaper and PVC-covered banquettes are actually what make this bar special

Wednesday 17 November 2010

Welfare

 
 
In the Victorian and Edwardian periods, it was often the working class that policed its own welfare morality. Historian Jose Harris of Oxford University has studied trade union schemes. A man receiving help "would regularly be visited by a brother from the local union committee, who would make sure he wasn't working on the sly".
 

GoldenSectionDemo.jpg

Higher math.
This is brilliant stuff.

BBC News - Royal wedding: William and Kate start planning

Royal wedding: William and Kate start planning
rince William said Kate would be "in big trouble" if she lost her engagement ring Continue reading the main story Royal wedding * As it happened: Royal engagement * Royal wedding preparations begin * In pictures: A royal romance * Royal wedding's global headlines Prince William and Kate Middleton have been holding discussions over the royal wedding, which is due to take place in London next spring or summer. The couple, both 28, were "still on cloud nine" after their engagement was announced on Tuesday, a spokesman for St James's Palace said. They have given royal aides a list of possible wedding dates and venues, which will now be considered.

Royal wedding: William and Kate start planning

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11776941

Royal Marriage

Prince William and Kate Middleton: split made us stronger

Royal wedding: Kate and William longing for a happy family of their own

The royal couple on his cooking, her meeting the in-laws and carrying Diana’s sapphire and diamond ring around Africa for weeks in a rucksack

Tuesday 16 November 2010

Royal Marriage

MediaItem: 50010233
 
Prince William and girlfriend Kate Middleton are sent congratulations from around the world after announcing their engagement.
 

Monday 15 November 2010

BBC News - Shutters and curtains 'act' as double glazing

People living in period properties are being told they can dramatically reduce their energy bills, simply by closing their curtains or shutters at dusk.

Edinburgh researchers claim it could be as effective as fitting double glazing.

The Edinburgh World Heritage Trust has been using thermal imaging cameras to show residents of the capital's old and new towns how best to cut their bills.

Full article..http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-11759023

Benefits explained: A basic guide to entitlements

Millions of pounds in benefits - which people are perfectly entitled to - go unclaimed each year, partly as a result of a lack of awareness of the system.

Here is a basic guide to some of the main benefits in the UK, and some of the less well-known funds. Not all of the benefits below will be swallowed up by the government's planned new single universal credit; many will continue to exist.

 
Full article worth looking over: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11717254

 

Housing market falls further as first time buyers shut out - Telegraph

Housing market falls further as first time buyers shut out
The housing market is in its worst state for 18 months, according to a leading house price survey which suggested a "whole generation" of first time buyers were being shut out.
Possibilities may be created here.
Full article..http://tiny.cc/a2h93

CNN World Sport: Blog Archive - Vettel triumph ushers in new era in Formula One « - CNN.com Blogs

Fernando Alonso might have been going for a third F1 championship, and it was well within his grasp. But he was almost a forgotten man at the finish in Abu Dhabi.

A disastrous race meant that the Spaniard trailed home in a useless seventh place, and as the 2008 champion Lewis Hamilton and the '09 winner Jensen Button sprayed a delirious Sebastian Vettel with champagne, Alonso's last title ('06) must have felt like a long time ago.

It has been a spectacular sporting year for Spain, but this one eluded them. And while Spaniards and Ferrari fanatics will be crushed, few others will have sympathy for a driver and a team that many said cheated its way to the top of the standings.

In a clear breach of the rules, Alonso's teammate Felipe Massa was ordered to let him past in the German Grand Prix. If he'd won the title by any less than the seven points he gained that day, some would have forever viewed his third title as tainted and it's hard to disagree with

Full article here:http://worldsport.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/14/vettel-triumph-ushers-in-new-era-in-formula-one/?hpt=C1

BBC News - Panorama - Should the UK tax high-fat junk food to cut obesity rates?

This is the culimination of years of low quality food that has been pushed out to people, cheap and tasty, convenient and quick.
The demands of modern life, are probably relecting at every level, in our energy, physical state, and health level.
Was it ever better in other ages when food was more scarce?

Full article
http://news.bbc.co.uk/panorama/hi/front_page/newsid_9176000/9176897.stm

Sunday 14 November 2010

BBC News - Somali pirates free UK couple Paul and Rachel Chandler

A retired British couple have been released by Somali pirates after being held captive for more than a year.

Paul, 60, and Rachel Chandler, 56, from Kent, were seized from their yacht off the Seychelles in October 2009.

Mrs Chandler said: "I'm enjoying being free". The couple said they were fine, but will undergo medical checks.

Well, at least it is in time for Christmas, it is amazing that this can go on in this century.

BBC News - Is making the Tudors sexy a mistake?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11743600

In a way, it is only 400 years or so ago.
The first world war is almost 100 years behind us.
It is just three times more distant.

Not so far I think to realize that they were people, similiar to ourselves in many ways. Check out the audio or book Elizabethan London.

Saturday 13 November 2010

OK Go Is Toast Of YouTube Again « Matt-of-all-trades Blog

Pretty Cool, especially when it's Toasty!

BBC News - Profile: Aung San Suu Kyi

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11685977

Like the South African leader Nelson Mandela, Aung San Suu Kyi has become an international symbol of peaceful resistance in the face of oppression.

The 65-year-old has spent most of the last 20 years in some form of detention because of her efforts to bring democracy to military-ruled Burma.

I still think why now?

Something fishy is going on, I know the release date was due.

But, something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

Ready to let go of the steering wheel? U2

With the situation in Burma, hi to U2
perhaps a big part of the story.

The bottom-line diet: Eat less

I don't believe in quick weight-loss diets," Posnanski said. "I believe in the rest of my life.

The bottom-line diet: Eat less