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Monday, 17 December 2007 |
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As in previous years, I have not sent our any personalised Christmas cards to anyone. Instead of that, Emmi and I use the costs of the cards and postage to make a donation to a charity to help those that need it most. Last year, our donation to Seeds For Africa funded an oil press for a village in Malawi. This press helped many neighbouring villages press their excess seeds into oil that can be used as a means to getting basic nutrients during the frequent periods of drought. This year, our donation will be going to Sight Savers . This charity focuses on providing treatment to people in West and Central Africa suffering from illnesses that can lead to blindness if they are not treated with inexpensive procedures and medication. Happy holidays and all our best wishes for 2008! |
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The IPod Native American and the Firefox logo |
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Friday, 01 December 2006 |
  After a recent Google Maps update of the state of Oregon, it is now possible to see the the " firefox logo" crop circle completed during the summer 2006. Firefox flicks has a video of how it was made and I have to admit that the result is very good indeed. This follows hot on the heels of the "discovery" of a natural formation in a very remote area of Canada that is already known as the " IPod Native American". As it is easy to see, this appears top be a man looking to the left using the very distinctive white headphones associated with all the IPods. The coordinates of the "IPod man" are 50° 0´38.20"N 110° 6´48.32"W. As a completely off-topic thought....My birthday is coming in just a few days...I could do with a nice shiny IPod so that I can listen to the recordings of my Law degree lectures. |
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If you dig across the Earth... |
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Thursday, 30 November 2006 |
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When we were kids, the majority of us wondered what would happen if we dug a hole across the Earth. We had probably read "Journey to the Centre of the Earth" and let our imagination race ahead of us.  But did you ever wonder which one would be the exact location where you would appear? That point is what we call the "antipode"and refers to the point of the Earth that is directly opposite your coordinates. Where would that be?.....Although it may come as a surprise, your chances would be that you'd appear in the middle of the Ocean! You see, most of the Earth surface is covered by water and most of the land masses are on the North hemisphere. This means that your antipode is most probably going to be a very wet place. For example, the vast majority of Europe will be right in the middle of the Pacific Ocean....except for the "lucky ones" that would surface on one of the tiny islands in that Ocean. Funnily enough, the only part of Europe that matches a large and recognisable land mass is the North West of Spain that has its antipode in New Zealand. The blue shadow on the map of Spain shows the "antipodean overlap" of Spain and New Zealand (which is flipped upside down!) |
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Wednesday, 29 November 2006 |
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Today we woke up with the news that the first of what usually is a busy season of strikes has started. Whenever we are approaching a crucial time in the year for people wanting to travel across the Channel, one French trade union or another will always decide to go on strike and perform the ritual of blockading the Port of Calais. It's not that it matters a lot to me, but to be honest this way of striking periodically just for the sake of it is a bit ridiculous. Sometimes it can even be laughable as today when the ones striking were not a trade union, but the Calais Chamber of Commerce! Hold on! What the %£&# are the employers striking for? As a result, traffic in Dover was a real mess today and eventually Kent Police decided to activate Operation Stack . Essentially, this means that 17km of the M20, a very busy motorway in Kent, are closed off to all traffic and becomes a massive lorry park. A real delight. On a side note. I was googling for "operation stack" and got a link to this nice FOI response from the Highways Agency to an Operation Stack question. Quite interesting what Google gives you some times. |
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Friday, 27 October 2006 |
After almost 6 years and against my initial intentions I decided to change my lovely Ford Escort and get a new car. The Escort is 11 years old and it is at that stage where it needs quite a few mends (clutch, brakes, electrics, etc) and it is not worth the cost. It is still doing well for city driving, but with the new job I need to commute 40 miles a day and it was not wise nor safe to keep it. So I have been looking around and finally decided to buy an 8 month old Citroen Xsara Picasso. I love the feeling of space and safety that give the mini-MPV. ... |
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