Tuesday, November 9, 2010

TV Star dies after being struck by lightning


This is the sort of headline that one might see, however in this case the TV star is a seven-year-old giraffe. 'Playful and charming' Hamley, who has been an on-screen favourite for five years on TV drama Wild At Heart.

Yesterday thunderstorm killed Hamley on Monday on the Glen Afric reserve in South Africa, where the drama, which stars Stephen Tompkinson and Dawn Steele as newlyweds Danny and Alice Trevanion, is filmed.

The cast did not witness the tragedy, as they were away from the reserve filming a scene for the sixth series of the ITV drama.

Producer Nick Goding said: 'We are all desperately upset about the passing of Hamley, who has been part of the Wild At Heart family for five years.
'It was a natural disaster, but nevertheless heartbreaking for everyone who has been involved with him - he was a real character.

'Our wildlife is very much at the heart of the series - Hamley was a gentle, playful and charming animal. He will be greatly missed by everybody.'
Hamley had already filmed scenes, including frightening an environmental agency visitor up a tree, for the next series.

A spokeswoman for the drama said of the scene: 'You can't teach wild animals how to act. But Hamley walked up to the tree afterwards where the actor was and started to lick his face.

"That will stay in (the series). That was just one of his many extraordinary facets, that as a wild animal he had this natural aptitude to do what you wished for."

Scottish actress Steele said she was "so sad" about the death.

She said: "Hamley was a huge part of the show. We still all cannot believe that he will not be wandering around set, trying to get into the make-up truck or trying to get into every scene he could.

"I cannot express how he will be missed on Wild At Heart - he was like another actor - only taller!

"He touched everyone's lives on this set. I am only glad in his short life he touched so many people and left so many memories. It will not, and is not, the same without him."

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Monday, November 1, 2010

"Obeisant" crowns a differant Scrabble champ.

The somewhat stayed reputation of "Scrabble" as a game played in sleepy backwaters by elderly school teachers and has been overturned as a transsexual in a pink wig and matching PVC dress was crowned UK national champion.

Mikki Nicholson, 32, from Carlisle in Cumbria, took the crown with the word "obeisant", which scored 86 points.

She outplayed Mark Nyman, who has won more than 20 major Scrabble contests, including the World Championship.

“People think Scrabble is just about words but it's the numbers that win the game”
Mikki Nicholson
National Scrabble Champion 2010


Other words used in the final were "inficete", meaning unfunny, and "oceanaut", an undersea explorer. "Obeisant", which means obedient or showing respect, proved crucial in the deciding fifth game.

Thrilling victory

Ms Nicholson, who learned to play the game on the internet five years ago, said: "It was a big challenge but I wouldn't have entered if I didn't think I had a chance of winning.

"I'm thrilled to have won and I can't wait to celebrate."

It was scant consolation for Mr Nyman, who has featured in Dictionary Corner on Channel 4's Countdown, that he got the highest scoring word in the final game - "updates" - which scored 105 points.

Explaining her route to victory, Ms Nicholson said: "A good Scrabble player is intuitive. They also need to be good with numbers.

"People think Scrabble is just about words, but it's the numbers that win the game so a sound mathematical brain is an advantage.

"The best word I played was 'inficete' as it changed the flow of the game and my best move was when I played 'tenor', as it allowed me to open up the board for me to play a high-scoring K."

Ms Nicholson, who is currently unemployed, said she planned to spend the £1,500 prize money on a trip to Malaysia in December to compete in another Scrabble tournament.

A Scrabble spokeswoman said: "Scrabble is a game for anyone to enjoy, loved by generations of families, men and women and anyone."

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Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Purple Spud is Good Grub

A purple potato that growers claim is healthier than the standard variety is going on sale in UK supermarkets.

The Purple Majesty has a distinctive deep colour and contains up to 10 times the level of antioxidant, anthocyanins, compared with white potatoes.

It was developed at Colorado State University from a traditional variety.

Despite its appearance, the potato now being grown by Perthshire producer Albert Bartlett after two years of trials, is not genetically modified.

Potatoes originate from the high reaches of the Andes and come in thousands of varieties, with many having developed deep red and purple colouring.

The trials found that the Purple Majesty could be grown in Scotland.

'Positive effect'

An initial crop of 400 tonnes of the variety will go on sale in Sainsbury's stores across Scotland and the south-east of England this week, with a larger yield expected next year.

Albert Bartlett, which has its headquarter in Airdrie, has been working with Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh and the Scottish Crop Research Institute to determine what health benefits there could be from eating the potato.

Dr Catherine Tsang, who took part in research, said: "Our research specifically looked at Purple Majesty potatoes which, unlike white potatoes, contain a natural pigment called anthocyanins.

"It's this pigment that gives the potato the purple appearance, but more importantly, it possesses antioxidant properties, which are maintained even after cooking."

She added: "We're all aware of the stories about red wine having a more positive effect on the heart than white wine, due to their higher levels of antioxidant.

Dr Tsang said anthocyanins contained antioxidant properties which some studies had suggested could have a positive effect on blood vessels and reducing blood pressure."

However, other studies have found little evidence of the conclusion.




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Monday, September 6, 2010

Colombian declared world's shortest man

A 70cm (27-inch) tall Colombian has been named the world's shortest living man by Guinness World Records.

Edward Nino Hernandez, 24, weighs only 10kg (22lbs). His mother said he had not grown since he was two years old.

Mr Hernandez, who works part-time as a dancer, told the Associated Press: "I feel happy because I'm unique."

The previous record holder was He Pingping of China, who was 4cm (1.5 inches) taller and died in March - before Mr Hernandez was discovered.

Mr Hernandez is not expected to keep the title for long, however, as Khagendra Thapa Magar of Nepal is expected to take the title when he turns 18 in October.

Khagendra, currently recognised as the world's shortest living teenager, is only 56cm (22in) tall. The shortest man on record was Gul Mohammed of India, who measured just 57cm - 1cm taller than Khagendra.

Mr Hernandez's mother, Noemi, said doctors in the Colombian capital, Bogota, never explained why he had grown only 40cm since birth.

She said doctors at the National University studied him until he was three and then lost interest. Her youngest child, 11-year-old Miguel Angel, is himself only 93cm (37in) tall

Mr Hernandez left school in the eighth grade and now earns some money dancing at department stores. He is also currently playing the role of a drug dealer in a film.

Although he liked the attention, he said there were some drawbacks.

"It bothers me that people are always touching me and picking me up."





Don't Forget November is MALE YA MONTH




Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Friday, August 13, 2010

World Record $1m speeding fine

For those of you who have ever had a speeding ticket, they have been nothing compared to a driver in Sweden who has clocked up (in more ways than one) a world record speeding fine.

A Swedish driver who was caught driving at 290km/h (180mph) in Switzerland could be given a world-record speeding fine of SFr1.08m ($1m; £656,000), prosecutors say.

The 37-year-old, who has not been named, was clocked driving his Mercedes sports car at 170km/h over the limit.

Under Swiss law, the level of fine is determined by the wealth of the driver and the speed recorded.

In January, a Swiss driver was fined $290,000 - the current world record.

Local police spokesman Benoit Dumas said of the latest case that "nothing can justify a speed of 290km/h".

"It is not controllable. It must have taken 500m to stop," he said.

The Swede's car - a Mercedes SLS AMG - has been impounded and in principle he could be forced to pay a daily fine of SFr3,600 for 300 days



Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Sunday, August 8, 2010

Herby Goes Poo Powered


Adam Sandler has a song quite often heard around the more rowdy Karaoke bars called "Ode to the car" or "Piece of s**t car".

This now seems to be not far from the point as a car has been developed in Bristol, England that runs on methane, generated by human excrement, trying to aid the search for sustainable motoring.

One of the largest sewage works in England, Avonmouth (Bristol) sewage treatment plant have taken a VW Beetle and powered it by methane, with the gas stored in tanks in the boot (trunk), enough to power the VW for around 200 miles. The plan is to bring in waste from other areas like supermarkets ti increase the amount of methane available.

Methane was discovered in 1776 by Alessandro Volta (the inventor of the battery)
This is not something new, California garbage trucks are running on their own rubbish, bananas are being used for methane power in Australia, during the world wars; farmers used methane from their cows to power trucks.

Once good thing from the broadcast (see link below) it seems the smell is not as bad as one might think

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-10884539

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Friday, July 30, 2010

Camp Equality

Luxury car worth £1.2m clamped outside Harrods

A luxury car valued at £1.2m was clamped outside Harrods in central London after being illegally parked.

The Koenigsegg CCXR and a £350,000 Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SuperVeloce were both clamped on the afternoon of 22 July.

Kensington and Chelsea Council said the light-blue vehicles were in serious contravention of parking rules.

The Knightsbridge store was bought by members of the Qatari royal family in April for £1.5bn.

It was bought by the Qatar Holding group, led by the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, from Mohammed Al Fayed

Both the cars are very rare with the Swedish-made Koenigsegg being one of only six ever made.

'Effective deterrent'

A Harrods spokesman said: "Any matters relating to parking tickets and enforcement are strictly the domain of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea."

The council said £120 penalty charge notices were issued, but the cars were released for £70 each as the fines were paid within 14 days.

A spokesman said: "There is a greater shortage of parking space for residents in Kensington and Chelsea than practically anywhere else in the country.

"At the same time we have a huge number of visiting motorists attracted here by our fine shops, restaurants and other attractions.

"Our priority is our residents. To keep space available for them, we must deter visitors from taking up residents' bays and our experience is that clamping is simply the most effective deterrent."



Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Monday, July 26, 2010

"Smarter than your average bear"


Not exactly Yogi, but is seems there was one smart bear who wanted to go joy riding.

A bear climbed into an empty car in the US state of Colorado, sounded the horn and sent the vehicle rolling down hill with the terrified animal still inside.

The car's owner, 17-year-old Ben Story, took a snap of the panic-stricken bear as it demolished the inside of his vehicle in its bid to escape.

Police in Larkspur, near Denver, eventually freed the animal by opening the door from a distance using a rope.

It is believed the bear was attracted by a sandwich left on the back seat.

Mr Story and his family were asleep when the bear opened the unlocked door of his 2008 Toyota Corolla in the early hours of the morning and climbed inside.

'Flashers on'

Mr Story's father, Ralph, said the bear must have hit the car's automatic transmission into neutral sending it rolling backwards 125ft (38m), off the driveway, down an embankment and into a thicket of trees.

"The four-way flashers were on. It's like he knew what was going on, and kept hitting the horn," he told Denver's 7News.

Once the car door closed behind the bear, it was trapped inside.

Ben Story said his car was wrecked.

"It [the bear] was a pretty good size, actually it was pretty big. If you look at the inside of the car, there's nothing left at all. You could see it moving around, it like took up the entire inside of the car."

The bear was last seen running into the woods.

Colorado wildlife expert Tyler Baskfield said bears often entered cars and houses in search of food.

"It happens all the time," he said. "They're very smart."



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Thursday, July 22, 2010

First Bottled Water... Now Sandwich in a Can


Can you remeber when botled water first came out, and we all sniggered and said, "Who'd pay for a bottle of water, when you can just turn on the tap?" Now it's become the staple drinking water supply for people around the world. So what's next?

Marc Kirkland, 50, of Salt Lake City, Utah, has dedicated more than a decade of his life to a single concept: The sandwich in a can.

Or, actually, make that a few concepts: Sandwiches in a can. Pizza in a can. French toast in a can. Cinnamon rolls in a can.

Why a can? Because, when combined with techniques similar to those used to preserve Meals Ready-to-Eat for soldiers, an aluminum can keeps food fresh for a full year or even longer. Yes, that’s right: A fresh, year-old sandwich.

And cans have an added benefit, Kirkland noted: They fit perfectly inside all the soda vending machines that exist, well, everywhere. That means his “Candwich” products could be sold in both stores and vending machines.


markonefoods.com
Have you been hankering for a food product that can roll around inside your car for months before you eat it? If so, look no further. by Laura T. Coffey
TODAYshow.com contributor
updated 7/21/2010 2:32:16 AM ET
Share Print Font: + - Mark Kirkland is used to skeptics. He’s comfortable with critics. He’s unfazed by the reaction he typically gets the first time people hear about his invention: “Ewwwwwwww.”

Kirkland, 50, of Salt Lake City, Utah, has dedicated more than a decade of his life to a single concept: The sandwich in a can.

Or, actually, make that a few concepts: Sandwiches in a can. Pizza in a can. French toast in a can. Cinnamon rolls in a can.

Why a can? Because, when combined with techniques similar to those used to preserve Meals Ready-to-Eat for soldiers, an aluminum can keeps food fresh for a full year or even longer. Yes, that’s right: A fresh, year-old sandwich.

And cans have an added benefit, Kirkland noted: They fit perfectly inside all the soda vending machines that exist, well, everywhere. That means his “Candwich” products could be sold in both stores and vending machines.

“So think about it,” Kirkland explained. “You’re a mom running your kids between school, piano lessons, soccer. Stopping at a fast-food restaurant takes time. This is something that literally could roll around the car for a few months. ... I kind of compare it to bottled water when it first came out. At the time I thought, ‘Why would I pay a dollar for a bottle of water when I can just go to the water fountain?’ Now I drink bottled water every day. It’s convenient.”

But how does it taste?
Thus far, Kirkland’s assurances haven’t done much to stem the snickering and giggling. On his late-night Comedy Central show “The Colbert Report,” Stephen Colbert joked about preserving sandwiches with the same technology used to store motor oil. Colbert said of the “BBQ Chicken Candwich”: “I am confident only one of those B’s stands for botulism.”


Jac Howard
TODAYshow.com writer Laura T. Coffey conducts a taste test and gives the PB&J Candwich a thumbs-up.
Kirkland knows his products won’t be a hit with busy moms, kids or anybody else if they don’t taste good. To demonstrate the virtues of “shelf-stable bread” and sandwich fixings that have a long shelf life, he sent two peanut-butter-and-jelly Candwich samples to TODAYshow.com. This writer tried them, and you know what? They weren’t bad at all. In fact, they tasted just like standard peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches made with hot-dog buns — a perennial kid-lunch staple.

In the interest of full disclosure, Kirkland did not send the sample sandwiches in a fully canned state. (The cans are in the process of being mass-produced for his PB&J Candwich product launch in August.) When canned, his food products will undergo the rigors of “hurdle technology” — that is, hurdles to prevent the growth of any pathogens or unwanted organisms in the food. By controlling the amount of oxygen, acidity and water inside the packaging and the sandwich itself, pathogens can be stopped in their tracks, Kirkland said.


markonefoods.com
To build a PB&J Candwich, you spread the contents of squeezable peanut-butter and jelly packets onto a hot-dog bun that has been stored separately in cellophane.The sandwich samples Kirkland shared with TODAYshow.com included the ingredients that would have gone inside a can: A hot-dog bun wrapped in cellophane; a squeezable packet of peanut butter; a squeezable packet of jelly; and a small piece of taffy for dessert. You just build your own sandwich and nosh. The shelf-stable bread Kirkland uses for the hot-dog buns wound up sitting in a FedEx package for five days, but it still tasted, smelled and felt just fine.

But what about pre-built sandwiches and pizza pockets that have meat baked into them? How do those hold up after months and months inside a can?

Jeff Pierson, 46, a nature and wildlife photographer based in Salt Lake City, loves the BBQ Chicken Candwich so much that he’s devoured dozens of them. A few years back, he tried his first canned sandwich courtesy of one of his buddies, a longtime friend of Kirkland’s.

“When it was just peanut butter and jelly, I was pretty excited about it, but when I was handed my first meat sandwich I was a little hesitant,” Pierson recalled. “I thought, ‘How safe could this be?’ But I’ve eaten them after a full year, and they were still good — and I’m still here.”

Pierson said the sandwiches are convenient when he spends multiple days outside — nowhere near a store or refrigerator — taking photos of grizzly bears and other wildlife. When closer to home, he’s also devised a method for enjoying hot chicken sandwiches.

“I keep ’em in my car,” he said. “I put ’em in a heavy plastic sack and leave them on the dashboard, and I have a hot sandwich for lunch. ... I’ve never been sick and I’ve had a lot of them that have been kicking around in the car for a spring and a winter, a few seasons, and it’s always been OK.”

No need for refrigeration
Because of their staying power, inventor Kirkland also sees a place for Candwiches in emergency-preparedness kits and at times when natural disasters strike.

“I wish I would have had about 100 million of these when the earthquake hit Haiti,” Kirkland said. “Or any time there’s a hurricane or the power goes out. ... I think of it as more of a convenience item than an emergency item, but I do think it’s perfect for emergencies.”

In August, peanut-butter-and-jelly Candwiches will go on the market for the first time in limited areas of the United States. That will be followed by a nationwide product launch. Next will be the Pepperoni Pizza Pocket Candwich, which has the pepperoni, sauce and cheese baked into the bread.

Next up: The BBQ Chicken Candwich, the BBQ Beef Candwich, French toast that contains a maple filling, and cinnamon rolls that come with a spreadable chocolate sauce. Kirkland also has plans to unveil canned calzones and canned wrapped sandwiches in the future.


Pretty soon consumers will be able to add a sandwich to their soda order when they do business with a vending machine.He foresees the products selling in soda vending machines for $2 to $3, and in grocery stores and convenience stores for varying prices.


Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Friday, July 16, 2010

Move a dead badger? More a case of "weasel overcome"


We have been a little light on the funny side of life over the last few weeks, but today is a good one...

Workmen painting white lines on a main road left a gap for a dead badger because it was not their responsibility to clear up the carcass, a council has said.
The animal was killed on the A338 near Downton on the Hampshire-Wiltshire border but when Hampshire County Council workmen came to paint white lines in the centre of the road, they decided to leave a space until the body had been removed.

The responsibility for picking up the remains was the responsibility of New Forest District Council.

Businessman Kevin Maul, of Winterbourne Dauntsey, Salisbury, Wiltshire, who spotted the gap in the lines, said: "I couldn't quite believe my eyes when I saw this poor old badger who had been there over a week.

"Then I drove home to see his body between the lines - they had painted the road, but left a gap where he lay."

Mel Kendal, Hampshire County Council executive member for the environment, said: "We would usually liaise with our colleagues at the district council, who dispose of animal carcasses on the highways, to ensure the badger was removed before the white line-painting crew did this stretch of road.

"This appears not to have happened in this case and the white line-painting crew did what they thought was best until arrangements could be made to dispose of the carcass.

"These arrangements have now been made and the gap in the white lines will be filled in, at no extra cost to the council tax-payer


Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Monday, July 12, 2010

Cat, Bear or Seagull?

Mr Pooh: lives in Shoreham by Sea, on the Sussex coast (in England), which is just a stones throw from where I used to live in Engalnd, okay a very long stobnes throw, but close enough.

He's a seagull. Or maybe he's a cat. Or maybe, given his nickname, he's actually a bear.

Whatever he 'thinks' he is, Pooh the seagull is a family pet.

He has been part of the Grimwood family from Shoreham-by-Sea ever since he arrived unexpectedly as a baby.

Pooh didn't even arrive conventionally by exiting an egg.

In fact the Grimwoods found him in their fireplace one day.

"We heard a rustle in the lounge when we were watching telly and we suddenly thought 'Ooh - what's that?" said June Grimwood.

"We reached into the chimney and pulled out this young chick."
He was just a baby gull at the time, albeit an ash-covered baby after falling down the chimney.

"We put him back on the roof, but it was a bit of a windy day and he fell back off."

Instead of getting into a flap, June and Steve Grimwood calmly nursed him and fed him cat food.

He ate it alongside some unlikely companions - the family cats.

"He slept in the cats' basket, mingled in amongst the cats and was happy as Larry,"

Then, one day, Pooh flew the nest.

But he still returns for six months every year. In fact, in a sense, he's still at home with Mum and Dad, because he and his partner nest on their roof.

Pooh comes in for meals three times a day, with the cats Mitzi, Gus and Henry.

"He feeds out of the cat bowls, he comes indoors and takes the cats' biscuits out of their feeder. I think he does believe that he is actually a cat," said Mrs Grimwood.

"I wouldn't say he's mixed up. He's just very clever. He knows where to go for a good B&B (Bed and Breakfast)is by the seaside every year."

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Sunday, July 11, 2010

California Grins and Bares It!



The southern Californian city of Laguna Niguel has been enjoying an annual ritual, in which locals and visitors bare their bottoms at passing trains.

For 30 years, the city has hosted "Mooning Amtrak" as crowds line up along the railway tracks, dropping their trousers when a train passes by.

Up to 10,000 people take part, and visitors are encouraged to leave their cars at home and arrive by train.

Local legend has it the tradition began in 1979, after a bar room bet.

A drinker at the Mugs Away Saloon, which stands directly across the road from the railway, offered to buy a drink for anyone who would run outside and moon at the next train.

One customer took him at his word, and a ritual was born.

Each year the event grows, with crowds swelled by word of mouth and enthusiastic reports from radio DJs on local radio stations.

There were reports in 2008 of surging crowds and drunkenness, and police and a helicopter were called in from neighbouring towns to maintain order.

Last year the city, which lies in Orange County between Los Angeles and San Diego, decided enough was enough.

"Avoid the area this year," the city warned on its website home page. It added in a breezy Twitter feed that the city was "saying 'NO' to crack".

Moon Amtrak enthusiasts were not impressed.

Mugs Away regular Rick Sanchez blamed a "stuffy, yuppie mayor" who had "never even been to a mooning", the Wall Street Journal reported.

The event even has its own website, this year proudly headed "31st Annual Mooning of Amtrak". It also promoted a newer offshoot: "5th Annual Mooning of Metrolink".

It features directions to Camino Capistrano, the road where trousers and dignity are dropped each year, and helpfully lists train times through the day, so that people can schedule their disrobing.

And after 8pm, there is night mooning. "Bring a flash light with plenty of batteries, or better yet, bring a camping lantern," the website advises.

There is even a "Frequently Asked Questions" section for mooning debutantes. "Can I decorate my butt?" is one FAQ.

Yes, that's OK, apparently

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Wednesday, July 7, 2010

I know we've been around a long time but...

Humans' early arrival in Britain


Researchers have discovered stone tools in Norfolk, UK, that suggest that early humans arrived in Britain nearly a million years ago - or even earlier.

The find, published in the journal Nature, pushes back the arrival of the first humans in what is now the UK by several hundred thousand years.

Environmental data suggests that temperatures were relatively cool.

This raises the possibility that these early Britons may have been among the first humans to use fire to keep warm.

They may also have been some of the earliest humans to wear fur clothing.

The discoveries were made in Happisburgh, in the north of Norfolk. At the time there was a land bridge connecting what is now southern Britain with continental Europe.

There are no early human remains, but the researchers speculate that the most likely species was Homo antecessor, more commonly - and possibly appropriately - known as "Pioneer Man".

Remains of the species have been found in the Atapuerca region of northern Spain, and dated to 0.8-1.2 million years ago. So the species could well have been in Britain at around that time, according to Professor Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London.

"If the climate was good and the land bridge was there, there's no real reason they couldn't have come (to Britain) as far back as 1.2 million years ago," he told BBC News.
Pioneer Man was much like our own species in that it walked upright, used tools and was a hunter gatherer.

But physically the species looked rather different. It had a smaller brain, strong brow ridges and big teeth, with some primitive features such as a flat face and no prominent chin on the lower jaw.

'Real pioneers'

The discovery raises many new questions, such as how these creatures dealt with the cold winters that existed at the time. Scientists have also speculated that they may have used shelters and clothing.

It also raises the possibility that Britain was the first place where fire was used in a controlled way for warmth.

"Although we don't have the evidence for fire or of clothing to get through the winters up here, I think they must have had some extra adaptations," said Professor Stringer.

"I think the evidence suggests that they were living at the edge of the inhabited world in a really challenging environment and indeed they were real pioneers living here in Britain, nearly a million years ago," he said.

"The discovery is immensely surprising because we are dealing with an incredibly early date," Dr Ashton said.

He added that the environmental data that indicated the relatively low tempertures was "even more surprising".

"It's unusual to find humans in such a cool climate this far north at this very early date," he said.

This area of Norfolk was quite a different place one million years ago.

"The [River] Thames was flowing through this area. And at the site we have sediments laid down by the Thames," he explained.

Pioneer man was eventually wiped out by an Ice Age. These occurred about every 100,000 years, and each time that happened Britain was depopulated.

As conditions became more benign, a new group of humans arrived.

There were at least eight different waves of people that came in and died out before the last wave, which is the one that survives today.

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Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Chateau be the day.


With the French soccer team, leaving the world cup with it's tail between it's numerous legs, and the not much state of the Euro, I was wondering what France would be "crowing" about next.

It seems they are very proud of building an ancient building... If that makes sense.

Deep in the forests of central France, an unusual architectural experiment is half-way to completion, as a team of masons replicates in painstaking detail the construction of an entire medieval castle.

The ­Chateau de Guedelon was started in 1998, after local landowner Michel Guyot wondered whether it would be possible to build a castle from scratch, using only contemporary tools and materials.

Today, the walls are rising gradually from the red Burgundy clay. The great hall is almost finished, with only part of the roof remaining, while the main tower edges past the 15m (50ft) mark.

Builders use sandstone quarried from the very ground from which the castle is emerging.

Modern cement did not exist in the 13th Century, so mortar is made from slaked lime and sand. For tools they have basic ironware.

Eccentric pipe dream

In woods surrounding the castle, craftsmen ply all the trades required for so monumental an endeavour. Stone-cutters and carpenters fashion the raw materials. A blacksmith forges the nails. Ropes, baskets and roof-tiles are all made on site.

"The rule is that only what we know from documents that existed at the time is allowed," says Sarah Preston, an English guide.

What started out as an eccentric pipe dream is now an established enterprise, drawing in tens of thousands of visitors from around Europe every year.

And Guedelon is also highly respected in the academic world. Experts are fascinated by what the experiment can teach about medieval building methods.

One example concerns lime kilns, used for making the mortar. Archaeologists had often wondered why they found traces of two separate kilns at construction sites.

Experience at Guedelon showed that, in a day's work, builders often needed to top up the mortar brought in from the main kiln with small amounts made close at hand. Hence the small second kiln actually inside the castle.

The discolouring of lime-based mortar is another revelation. Within one or two years of being laid, Guedelon's walls are already showing streaks of unsightly white where the lime is leaching.

Archaeologists think this is a clue to why medieval castles were very quickly plastered and painted: it was to hide the mess.

Mr Guyot, who owns the nearby castle of St Fargeau, teamed up with businesswoman Maryline Martin to launch the project in 1996. Part of the rationale was simply to provide employment for local people.

France's new medieval castle
Page last updated at 08:54 GMT, Wednesday, 30 June 2010 09:54 UK
E-mail this to a friend Printable version By Hugh Schofield

BBC News, Paris

Deep in the forests of central France, an unusual architectural experiment is half-way to completion, as a team of masons replicates in painstaking detail the construction of an entire medieval castle.

The ­chateau was started in 1998 in a project to build a castle from scratch The ­Chateau de Guedelon was started in 1998, after local landowner Michel Guyot wondered whether it would be possible to build a castle from scratch, using only contemporary tools and materials.

Today, the walls are rising gradually from the red Burgundy clay. The great hall is almost finished, with only part of the roof remaining, while the main tower edges past the 15m (50ft) mark.

Builders use sandstone quarried from the very ground from which the castle is emerging.

Modern cement did not exist in the 13th Century, so mortar is made from slaked lime and sand. For tools they have basic ironware.

Eccentric pipe dream

In woods surrounding the castle, craftsmen ply all the trades required for so monumental an endeavour. Stone-cutters and carpenters fashion the raw materials. A blacksmith forges the nails. Ropes, baskets and roof-tiles are all made on site.

"The rule is that only what we know from documents that existed at the time is allowed," says Sarah Preston, an English guide.

Only contemporary tools and materials are used in the construction What started out as an eccentric pipe dream is now an established enterprise, drawing in tens of thousands of visitors from around Europe every year.

And Guedelon is also highly respected in the academic world. Experts are fascinated by what the experiment can teach about medieval building methods.

One example concerns lime kilns, used for making the mortar. Archaeologists had often wondered why they found traces of two separate kilns at construction sites.

Experience at Guedelon showed that, in a day's work, builders often needed to top up the mortar brought in from the main kiln with small amounts made close at hand. Hence the small second kiln actually inside the castle.

The discolouring of lime-based mortar is another revelation. Within one or two years of being laid, Guedelon's walls are already showing streaks of unsightly white where the lime is leaching.

Archaeologists think this is a clue to why medieval castles were very quickly plastered and painted: it was to hide the mess.

Mr Guyot, who owns the nearby castle of St Fargeau, teamed up with businesswoman Maryline Martin to launch the project in 1996. Part of the rationale was simply to provide employment for local people.


AdvertisementHow to build a medieval castle
The Guedelon site was chosen because it contained all the necessary materials: plentiful oak from the forests, as well as clay and water. Stone from the quarry had actually been used in the building of real-life medieval chateaux.

'Lacking soul'

The castle's design is based on a style made popular by French King Philippe-Auguste in the early 13th Century.

An architectural team approves each year's building plans, after a master mason has sketched details from dozens of contemporary castles. Again, nothing that is not referenced in equivalent 13th Century buildings is permitted.

"Funnily enough, we found that even though we knew we were being accurate, somehow the castle lacked soul. So we invented a character - the owner - who would have likes and dislikes, wanting this and not wanting that," says Ms Preston.

ranking feudal lord, who has been granted the right to build his castle because he sided with the crown during a baronial rebellion in 1226.

The rebellion - at the accession of the 12-year-old Louis IX (later Saint Louis) - did actually take place, and was suppressed by his mother Blanche de Castile.

In the annals of Guedelonconstruction started in 1228. Each year that passes is a year in historical time too, so we are now in 1240. Completion is due around 1253 - or 2023 in today's calendar.

What happens when the castle is finally finished, no-one is really sure. One option is to start extending.

"Remember, medieval castles were often works in progress. In the 15th Century they might have added new bits with different architectural styles, and then again and again," says Preston. "So we could keep going for ever."




Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Saturday, June 26, 2010

'Psychic' octopus predicts Germany victory over England

Ask any English soccer fan who is the one team that England always wants to beat and they will answer Germany. Since England beat them to won the 1966 world cup several times often in a penalty shoot out the Germans have put an end to England dreams. So saying guess who Enland play in the next round of the soccer world cup. None other than Germany once more. While ex yers are predicting another shoot out win, the folk at Oberhausen Sea Life Aquarium have the prediction from one of there own.

"psychic" octopus is said by its aquarium owners to have predicted the country's football team will knock England out of the World Cup.

When consulted, Paul the octopus chose a mussel from a jar with the German flag on it ahead of one in a similar jar bearing the cross of St George.

The two-year-old cephalopod has a record of predicting past German results in this manner, his owners say.

Paul has so far correctly predicted all of Germany's results in South Africa.

His keepers say he correctly predicted nearly 70% of Germany's results during the 2008 European Championship.

In that contest, Germany finished as runners-up in their qualifying group, having lost only once to Croatia.

They then progressed to the final, where they were beaten by Spain.

If keepers at the Oberhausen Sea Life Aquarium are right, he correctly predicted the outcome of four of the six games in that competition.

National celebrity

"Paul's prediction was phenomenal," said aquarium spokesman Tanja Munzig.

"He swam straight over to the German glass, climbed in and even put a lid on top once he was sitting inside."

The octopus, which was born in the UK and was moved to the German aquarium, has become a national celebrity after correctly predicting Germany would beat Australia in their opening match, then lose to Serbia, and then beat Ghana.

His latest prediction was flashed all over the German media.

The container that Paul opens first is said to be his pick for who will win the impending match, keepers say.

Germany finished the initial stage of the World Cup top of Group D, and face England, the runners-up from group C, in Bloemfontein on Sunday.







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Friday, June 18, 2010

Balloon Goes Up in South Korea


Balloons released by schoolchildren sparked a major security alert in South Korea, reports say, amid heightened tensions with North Korea.

A resident of Ansan, near Seoul, reported seeing 40-50 objects resembling parachutes falling on a mountainside.

The military and police mobilised a special joint task force.

Upon investigation, the objects turned out to be helium balloons released by a local school.

Tensions between North and South Korea have been running high since the sinking of a South Korean warship earlier this year. Seoul said the ship was torpedoed by Northern forces.

In another incident earlier this month, an alert was raised after an explosion was heard on Yeonpyeong island, near the sea border with North Korea, and a diving suit was found on a shoreline, the JoongAng newspaper reported.

A joint military and police investigation found that the diving suit was abandoned by a fisherman and that the explosion had been caused by a South Korean mine, the paper said


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Thursday, June 10, 2010

Green Green Grass of Home

An English soccer fan has taken the starting of the World Cup perhaps just a little too far. Dan Taylor has transformed his living room into a mini football pitch for the World Cup.

England fan Dan, who's a legal secretary, thinks he used about 100 sq ft of turf but says it only took a couple of hours to lay. "I put some flags up and I put some bunting up but I looked around the room and I just thought something was lacking."

He admits he's not much of a gardener: "The reason I did it was obviously for the World Cup. It was simply a case of just going down the gardening centre and picking up the turf."


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Shoe Shops of the Ancient World

The oldest example of a leather shoe has been discovered by archaeologists in a cave in Armenia.

At 5,500 years old, the well preserved cow-hide shoe pre-dates Stonehenge by 400 years and the Pyramids of Giza by 1,000 years.

It was made of a single piece of leather and was shaped to fit the wearer's foot, the researchers say.

They have published details of the discovery from south-east Armenia in the journal Plos One.

The shoe contained grass, although the archaeologists are uncertain as to whether this was to keep the foot warm or to maintain the shape of the footwear.

The authors are unsure whether it was worn by a man or a woman. The shoe is relatively small, corresponding to a UK women's size 5 (European size 38; US size 7 women), but it could have been worn by a man of that period.

It was discovered at the Areni-1 cave in the Vayotz Dzor province of Armenia, which borders on Turkey and Iran.

The archaeologists put the shoe's remarkable preservation down to the stable, cool and dry conditions in the cave and the fact that the floor of the cave was covered by a thick layer of sheep dung.

This layer of excrement acted as a solid seal, preserving it over the millennia.

"We thought initially that the shoe and other objects were about 600-700 years old because they were in such good condition," said co-author Dr Ron Pinhasi from University College Cork in Ireland.

"It was only when the material was dated by the two radiocarbon laboratories in Oxford and in California that we realised that the shoe was older by a few hundred years than the shoes worn by Oetzi the Iceman."

Other well preserved objects were also found in the cave, including large containers, many of which held wheat and barley, apricots and other edible plants.

Sandals made from plant fibres found at the Arnold Research Cave in Missouri, US, pre-date the shoes from Areni by some 2,000-2,500 years.




Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Sunday, May 30, 2010

After the lava, Iceland now wants "The Best"


Just when you thought Iceland had been in the news enough, today their elections make the headlines. A party that calls itself "the Best" has won local elections in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik.

The Best Party, founded by comedian Jon Gnarr, secured 34.7% of the vote, ahead of the Independence Party's 33.6%.

Its campaign video featured candidates singing to the tune of Tina Turner's "Simply The Best".

Key pledges included "sustainable transparency", free towels at all swimming pools and a new polar bear for the city zoo.

The party also called for a Disneyland at the airport and a "drug-free parliament" by 2020.

As well as specific pledges, its video promised change, a "bright future" and suggested that it was time for a "clean out".

The Best Party was only established six months ago. Its victory means it will hold six seats on the 15-member city council.

Commentators suggest it has benefited from voters' loss of trust in government and the establishment in the wake of the country's banking collapse in 2008.

According to Iceland Review Online, several local races saw parties that were in power ousted in the polls.


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Thursday, May 6, 2010

Drunk in charge of a Barbie car


A forty year old Essex (thats in England) man was pulled over by police as he drove an electric Barbie car. Though originally a bright pink Barbie Car, Paul Hatton had added larger wheels on the vehicle for his son, so that it actaully reached a top speed of 4mph.

Speaking after the hearing at Colchester magistrates court, he said: "You have to be a contortionist to get in, and then you can't get out.

"I was very surprised to get done for drink-driving but I was a twit to say the least."

Mr Hutton, was found to be twice the drink-drive limit, he said.

Appearing before magistrates last week, he admitted driving the toy car while drunk.

He was given a mandatory three-year ban because he had received another drink-drive ban within the past ten years.

Magistrates also gave him a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered him to pay £85 court costs.

Chairman of the bench Neil Munson said: "This is most unusual.

"I have never seen the like of it in 15 years on the bench.

"The vehicle is not even capable of doing the speed of a mobility scooter and could be outrun by a pedestrian.

"Taking this into account, we feel we can impose a sentence of a conditional discharge for a period of 12 months."

The car was confiscated by police until the hearing but Mr Hutton now hopes to get it back.

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Wednesday, May 5, 2010

The Truth about “Cinco de Mayo”

The Truth about “Cinco de Mayo”

A lot of people will be out celebrating today, drinking beer with limes in the top, shots that include lemon and salt or even supping from a bottle which holds a dead worm. However not many people know the truth about today.

When the Titanic set out on that fateful day in April 1912 amongst the large amount of cargo being carried was the first sample jars from Hellman’s to spread news of the product across into Europe, where Heinz had just launched their “salad cream”. The large create of the new product was dully stored deep in the cargo hold on board the Titanic.

When the boat sank all the samples were thought to have been lost delaying the spread of Hellmans new product into europe. This delay extended by the fact that the scienteist who created the recipee for the new product also went down with the Ttianic.

All was thought to have been lost , then on May 5th 1912 a crate was washed up on a small island just off the coast of Nova Scotia. This caused a huge surge of interest for not only was the create stamped with the fact it had been on the Titanic, but also inside quite unharmed was found many jars of Hellman’s new and thought lost product.

A celebration was held that day which has carried on ever since.
It was called “Sinka de Mayo” in memory of the jars of Hellman’s Mayonase that were thought lost but were returned by the sea.

Well that’s my version anyway

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Monday, May 3, 2010

"Pussy Galore" as German 'marries' his dying cat


A German man has unofficially married his cat after the animal fell ill and vets told him it might not live much longer, Bild newspaper reports.

It says Uwe Mitzscherlich, 39, paid an actress 300 euros (£260,$395) to officiate at the ceremony, as marrying an animal is illegal in Germany.

Mr Mitzscherlich said he had wanted to tie the knot before his asthmatic cat Cecilia died.

The cat and groom have lived together for 10 years.

"Cecilia is such a trusting creature. We cuddle all the time and she has always slept in my bed," Mr Mitzscherlich, a postman from the eastern town of Possendorf, told Bild.

Actress Christin-Maria Lohri, who officiated the ceremony, was quoted as saying: "At first I thought it was a joke. But for Mr Mitzscherlich it's a dream come true".

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Friday, April 30, 2010

Bear comes to a sticky end


It seems it's not only the American Police force that has a taste for sticky cakes and buns.

A hunter in the American state of Pennsylvania has been fined nearly $7,000 for luring a bear to a sticky end with a trail of donuts.

Charles Olsen enticed the large black bear into his gun sights with pastries and illegally shot it, police said.

Mr Olsen attracted the attention of the Game Commission when his truck, laden with sugary treats, was spotted on a road a week before bear season.
The "pastry poacher" was found guilty of violating several game laws.

Mr Olsen was arrested last November when he attempted to register the bear, which weighed 707 lbs (a third of a ton), the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.
It would have been the biggest trophy claimed during the state's three-day bear hunting season had it been killed legally, the newspaper said.

The 39-year-old, of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, was rumbled when a Game Commission wildlife conservation officer spotted his truck loaded with pastries from a local shop and traced the license number.

The officer, Cory Bentzoni said: "Being that we were so close to bear season, seeing that person drive by with an unusual amount of pastries was like watching an individual go down a row of parked vehicles testing each handle to see if it would open.

"Something just didn't seem right," he was quoted as saying.
Mr Olsen could also lose his hunting and trapping privileges for at least three years after Thursday's hearing, it is reported.

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Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Sony Get Stroppy Over Floppy


Sony has said it will stop making floppy disks, after nearly three decades of manufacture. Yet millions of them are still being bought every year.

The floppy disk is the original symbol of storage; when you want to save a file, you go looking for that little icon that looks like a floppy.

Every year another computer manufacturer stops putting floppy drives in its machines, or a retailer stops selling the disks. Each time the cry goes up that the death knell has been sounded for the floppy disk.

However, Verbatim, a UK manufacturer which makes more than a quarter of the floppies sold in the UK, says it sells hundreds of thousands of them a month. It sells millions more in Europe.

"We've been discussing the death of the floppy for 14 years, ever since CD technology first started coming on strong," says Verbatim spokesman Kevin Jefcoate.

Yet what was Sony's best-selling peripheral for its computers in recent years? The 3.5-inch floppy disk drive that connects via a USB cable.

Somewhere out there, the floppy disk is alive and well. But where?

Disk-credited

The truth is the 3½-inch, 1.44 megabyte floppy - the disk that made it big - has always defied logic. It's not floppy for a start. The term was a hangover from its precursor, the 5¼-inch floppy, which had a definite lack of rigidness about it. However, its smaller successor held 15 times as much data.

But then along came the CD-ROM, and then the USB flash drive shamed them both; the most voluminous USB stick - which could pass for a keyring - can now hold nearly 90,000 floppies' worth of data.

One might be tempted to think that, like the vinyl enthusiasts who insist music sounds "warmer" on a record, the floppy has its own fan club. But unlike the case of vinyl, a digital format of a floppy is no different than that found on your hard drive or USB stick.

Given their limited size and speed of data transfer, along with their increasing obsolescence, it's harder to find a floppy fan club than it is to find a laptop with a floppy drive built in.

But what about all the second-hand computers that are donated to the developing world? Could they be even partly responsible for the thousands of disks still sold?

Anja Ffrench of Computer Aid International - the largest charity working to distribute recycled IT to Africa and South America - says that they only deal in computers from 2002 and later, meaning that they'll have the USB connection that obviates the need for floppies.

There are a few instances for which floppies remain the norm, like the specialist, high-value technology that may rely on floppy drives for data.

The vast desks that control the light shows and sounds settings in theatres or music venues have until recently come with floppy drives as standard; the English National Opera is just one example of an organisation that uses them.

A volunteer at the National Museum of Computing says that many scientific instruments - so-called dataloggers, oscilloscopes and the like - record their data onto floppies.

This kind of expensive equipment is made to last, to be bought infrequently - and these gadgets may call for at least a few floppies in their lifetimes.

But these relatively niche uses couldn't possibly account for the number of floppies - something like a million a month - that are being consumed in the UK alone.

The answer may simply be that there are a great many old computers that read only floppies, and a great many computer users that have no need for the storage media that have supplanted them in other quarters.

Rather than there being one industry propped up on the values of a floppy, or a horde of enthusiasts buying up the world's supply, they may simply be as much as many computer users need.

"Old habits die hard, I guess," said John Delaney, research director for IT analysts IDC.

"If you've been using PCs for a long time and you don't do much in the way of photography or music with them, then why would you change?

"There are people who ride technology for as long as it can be ridden without falling over."



Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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Friday, April 23, 2010

Disney hint for future happy meal gifts


Disney has announced some of its plans for films over the next few years, or should we say, what your children will be demanding you buy clothes and toys, while you just know burger stores will have items in their children’s happy meals.
Coming out in 2012 will be an animated follow up to Pixar’s 2001 hit “Monsters Inc” which featuring the voices of Billy Crystal and John Goodman made more than $525m wordwide.

Another Pixar film The Bear and the Bow, is to be renamed Brave and have its release put back to the end of 2011.

For those who can remember the world of Kermit, Miss Piggy etc, Disney is also going to make a new Muppets movie, to be directed by Flight of the Conchords creator James Bobin, will introduce a new puppet character called Walter.

Other future projects from Disney-Pixar include a retelling of the Winnie the Pooh story using hand-drawn animation and Frankenweenie, a stop-motion cartoon based on a story by Tim Burton.

Before that Pixar will release Toy Story 3 this summer, with a Cars sequel due in cinemas next year.

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