Monday, March 17, 2014

Nico Rosberg won the opening race of this year’s Formula 1 season in Australia yesterday. TV commentators spoke of “fascination throughout the field” as big names retired and new names proved themselves.

Former champion Lewis Hamilton qualified on pole but problems were evident by the second lap when he received a team radio message telling him “we need to retire… save the engine, save the engine!” Another followed rapidly, however, telling him to “just stay out, stay out, just keep on rolling”. Hamilton left the race on the fourth lap.

Reigning champion Sebastian Vettel did not fare much better, having only qualified twelfth, with engine woes of his own. He too quit the race in the early stages, staying behind to watch the race and, according to commentator and retired Scottish F1 racer David Coulthard, learn what he could from the sidelines.

Vettel and Hamilton were not the only stars retiring early. Veteran racer Felipe Massa was rammed from behind by Kobiashi’s Caterham, sending both cars out and prompting deployment of yellow flags for several laps while the debris was recovered. The crash was triggered by Kobiashi clipping Kimi Raikkonen, damaging the front of Kobiashi’s car. Raikkonen stayed in the race and managed to finish eighth. The first ten cars over the finish line score points towards both the driver’s and constructor’s championships.

Coulthard and fellow commentators believe Kobiashi, who took responsibility for the accident, may receive points on his racer’s licence in a new system to deal with transgressions introduced this year. Kobiashi called the crash “My mistake[… I] should have braked earlier, and I apologise to Felipe”. Massa said Kobiashi “cannot do a start like that, every time” he does so will lead to an accident.

More drama followed shortly after when Valteri Bottas clipped a wall on lap 10, breaking the rim of his back-right wheel. The rim was left on the track, followed shortly thereafter by the tyre off the wheel. The safety car was deployed for several laps until the debris was recovered. Despite the setback Bottas climbed back up the standings and finished in sixth place.

Many drivers, including cars at the front of the pack, took advantage of the safety car period to do pit stops. Some are now considering using less fuel than the maximum allowance in a move the FIA never expected technologically possible when drafting the rules several years ago.

It was a day for débutantes at Albert Park, a street circuit where racing took place in close proximity to busy public roads. Newcomer Kevin Magnussen scored third place on his first F1 race, while fellow rookie Daniil Kvyat came in tenth and became the youngest-ever F1 points scorer. Kvyat takes the record from Vettel by several months while Magnussen becomes the first Dane on an F1 podium.

Not every débutante was so lucky; Caterham driver Marcus Eriksson dropped out of his first race after being radioed “Stop the car, stop the car, engine oil pressure”. Established racers Pastor Maldonado and Romain Grosjean, both Lotus drivers, also stopped with technical trouble. All three cars pulled up at the side of the track on different laps, each triggering yellow flags. Despite the retirements, fourteen cars finished which was more than some commentators were expecting.

Hamilton was upbeat about his retirement, saying “It’s tough for everyone but that’s the way it is” and adding “We’re not the only ones [to have difficulties]”. Vettel was more pessimistic, claiming this is “going to be a long season”. Asked about the cause of his engine troubles, Hamilton said “One of the cylinders, I think, was not firing”.

The race was unusual from start to finish, having been shortened by one lap after the first start was aborted by amber lights instead of just green. The end is more controversial; home driver Daniel Ricciardo scored his first-ever Australian Grand Prix podium finish in second place but was later disqualified for an alleged breach of fuel regulations. Ricciardo had been the first Australian driver to stand on the podium in his home country since Formula 1 brought the event into the championship format used today.

His disqualification is not final, however. His team, Red Bull, have vowed to appeal. If the appeal fails all the drivers below him move up one position, meaning first-time entrant Magnussen will have come in second place and Kvyat will be ninth. That would see Sergio Perez score a point for Force India by moving into tenth. Perez’s race was hampered early by a puncture picked up in the opening lap.

Ricciardo was reported to the stewards by technical delegate Jo Bauer who claimed his car “exceeded consistently the maximum allowed fuel flow of 100kg/h”. 100kg is also the maximum fuel allowed on board cars, a new limit set for this season. The fuel flow rule is also new this year; F1 cars averaged about 170kg/h last year.

Ricciardo was disqualified after five hours of steward deliberations. Red Bull have hit back with a statement saying many teams have found the FIA’s fuel flow meter to be faulty. They say they are “confident the fuel supplied to the engine is in full compliance with the regulations.” Today Andrew Westacott, chief executive of the Australian Grand Prix, said the appeal outcome may not be known for weeks.

Prior to Ricciardo’s disqualification, the remaining point-scorers were Jensen Button in fourth, Fernando Alonso in fifth, Nico Hulkenberg in seventh, and Jean-Eric Vergne in ninth.

Racers and fuel rules were not the only things fresh for this race. Williams are on the back of their worst-ever season and have changed their livery to brighter, whiter cars. Another new innovation is the introduction of red lights on the rear of cars that blink when the vehicle is not using electricity, warning the car behind of possible deceleration. F1 cars also now sport hybrid turbo engines.

Rosberg, speaking after what is his first Australian victory, said it is “Such a pleasure to have such a fast car.” He came a full 24 seconds ahead of Ricciardo. It is also the hundredth victory by an F1 car powered by a Mercedes engine.

“Whatever the outcome I’m really proud of what I did today”, Ricciardo said as he awaited the stewards’ disqualification decision. “There are more positives than negatives”.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Over 1,600 volunteers registered to help build approximately 65,000 of the 500,000 sandbags to create dikes 20.5 feet (6.2 meters) high to protect the City of Winnipeg, Manitoba in the war against the Red River of the North flood.

700 volunteers answered at the rural municipality of St. Andrews alone. Once sandbags are filled for West St. Paul, St. Andrews, and Selkirk, then frozen culverts must be cleared.

The height of the river is expected to be Thursday, and predictions are that it will be less than Flood of the Century of 1997. There is no precipitation in the forecast, and snow in the province should be melted by the end of the week.

“The fear right now is we have to get that ice out of the river. The Amphibex [Excavators] are still working and breaking the ice apart, and everyday we buy with the warm weather and the current, it is thinning the ice down a bit, so when it does start to move, the better chance it’ll move right out into the lake,” said Paul Guyder, the emergency coordinator for the RMs of St. Andrews and St. Clements.

“I feel that we’ve done everything humanly possible to get ready,” said Gary Doer, Premier of Manitoba, “But … there are fallibilities with human behaviour. We can take every preventative measure as human beings possible and we can still get Mother Nature proving again she is superior.”

Communities with ring diking will partially or fully close their dikes at the beginning of the week. Provincial officials are considering opening the Red River Floodway gates around mid-week before ice is fully melted.

Ice jams could cause flooding within the city, however opening the gates could spare neighbourhood flooding when the river rises to the estimated 6.3 meters (20.7 feet) height. The province does have back up plans for dealing with ice jams within the city if they do occur. The unpredictability of ice jams and the ensuing water level rise may cause neighbourhood flooding. The city is raising dikes where the river has jammed with ice in the past such as on tight curves and past bridges. Likewise there are excavators and backhoes positioned at these points.

Vulnerable neighbourhoods on the river banks have been reinforced with sandbag dikes at vulnerable areas from the massive volunteer effort over the weekend. Guyader feels no more extra volunteers are needed, however volunteers are still being asked to leave their names and number in case of unpredicted need. Existing personnel will assess roads, and help with clean up.

Approximately 400 of the 800 people who evacuated the Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation have returned to their homes.

Former Premier, Dufferin Roblin, brought forward the floodway as a protection for Winnipeg residents and economy following the 1950 Red River Flood. The Red River floodway, “Duff’s Ditch” was finally finished in 1968, and its floodway gates have been opened 20 times saving Winnipeg from an estimated CA$10 billion in damages. The floodway expansion began in 2005 at a price of $665 million.

Polish and Chinese experts have come to survey the Red River Floodway, and Dennis Walaker, mayor of Fargo, North Dakota recognises the need for Red River flood defences down river. “Every town that you drive by from the Canadian line up to Winnipeg is either elevated or ring-diked,” said Walaker.

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

On Saturday, William Luckey, also known as Bud Luckey, US animator who designed Pixar Animation Studios’ Toy Story character Sheriff Woody, died in a hospital in Newton, Connecticut; his son Andy Luckey announced the death via a Facebook post. Bud Luckey was 83 years old.

Luckey was born in Billings, Montana on July 28, 1934. He was known for animating counting songs for Sesame Street in collaboration with music of Turk Murphy and lyrics by Donald Hadley. In 1992, Luckey joined Pixar. “He was the fifth animator hired here at Pixar”, Pixar’s animating chief John Lasseter once noted.

He designed Sheriff Woody for Pixar’s first feature film Toy Story which was released in 1995. He also voiced Rick Dicker in Pixar’s 2004 movie The Incredibles and Chuckles the Clown in 2010’s Toy Story 3. Luckey had also designed characters for other Pixar movies including A Bug’s Life, Monsters, Inc. and Cars. He also voiced Eeyore, the donkey, in 2011’s Disney movie Winnie the Pooh.

In 2004, Bud Luckey was nominated for an Academy Award for Boundin’, a short film he wrote, directed, narrated, and sang. He received the Annie Award for that five-minute short. Luckey retired as an animator in 2008, but kept working as a voice artist until 2014.

Pixar’s official Twitter handle tweeted: “Thank you, Bud Luckey, to infinity and beyond. (July 28, 1934 – February 24, 2018)”. Lee Unkrich, director of Toy Story 3 and Coco, tweeted, “So sad to hear that Bud Luckey passed away today. He voiced Chuckles in Toy Story 3, but that was the least of his many amazing accomplishments. A tweet is not sufficient to sing his praises.”

Friday, April 18, 2008

The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation yesterday released 600 pages of the 2,000 page final report into the Jokela school shooting. 18-year-old Pekka-Eric Auvinen opened fire at Jokela High School, killing eight before turning his gun on himself, receiving fatal wounds.

The remaining 1,400 pages of the report are to remain confidential. The public section reveals a number of problems that may have impacted on Auvinen’s decision to conduct the attack, but says that police failed to find any conclusive motive. Also released was an animation depicting events at the school.

The report says Auvinen had been bullied since the age of ten and concludes the extent of this problem was greater than previously thought. Auvinen suffered from anxiety and blushing, especially in lessons, and had been diagnosed with a panic disorder, for which he had been prescribed medication. Auvinen also suffered from sleep disorders and loneliness, and had few friends, although one former bully did go on to become a good friend of Auvinen’s. His mother said inability to settle on a suitable ideology contributed to Auvinen’s depression.

His parents had noticed and reacted to the bullying problem, but their intervention only served to worsen the situation. According to entries in Auvinen’s diary, he first began planning the shooting – which he gave the English name “Operation Main Strike” – about eight months prior to actually conducting the shooting.

Auvinen had told his mother that under certain circumstances he could approve of violence. He had often viewed web sites promoting violence and had a number of online contacts whom he discussed his ideas with. One of these was a United States teen arrested for planning a similar attack, and two others discussed the Columbine High School Massacre with him and traded videos they found online. However, there is no evidence he informed anyone of his plans until immediately prior to the attack.

The report called Auvinen a moderately good student, but noted his mental problems had impacted his performance at school. He had been interested in politics from an early age, being involved with the Centre Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Left Alliance, and the Finnish Communist Party.

“In the best case, this (attack) would create massive destruction and chaos, or even a revolution,” read one diary entry. “In any case, I want this to be remembered forever. Maybe I’ll even have a follower; after all, I am a super-person, almost God.” Another revealed he intended to “kill as many of you bastards as possible”. His diary also reveals he was aware he would be dead by the end of the attack.

He obtained a .22 calliber handgun which he named Catherine, having been denied a license for a 9mm gun, and submitted his plans online – including to YouTube – just 14 minutes prior to firing his first shots, having cycled to school. It was determined that, given the time-frame, there was little that could have been done by anyone who saw the material to prevent the attack. He fired 75 shots, 50 of which struck his eight fatally wounded victims, who were apparently chosen at random. Thirteen others were injured in the event.

The deceased were six students, the school headmistress and the school nurse. Auvinen shot at each several times in the region of the head and upper torso. He ultimately shot himself in the school toilet, and died in hospital from head wounds ten hours later, having never regained consciousness.

Police could not determine why he chose the date he did, although it was noted his online relationship with a foreign girl had ended just days before. It was also determined little could be done to predict and prevent future incidents, although one measure being sought is to require medical checks for gun licences and parental consent for prospective owners under 18.

The confidential section of the report discusses causes of death and police operations.

Friday, March 20, 2009

New Jersey is considering a state-wide ban on Brazilian waxes, the removal of hair from the bikini area.

Although genital waxing has never really been allowed in the state, the New Jersey Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling plans to propose a ban with more specific legal wording, in response to two women who reported being injured during a wax. The board will consider the proposal at their next meeting on April 14.

If the measure passes, New Jersey may become the only US state to ban the practice outright.

Although millions of Americans engage in bikini waxes, which generally cost between $50 and $60 per session, the practice comes with risks. Skin care experts say the hot wax can irritate delicate skin in the bikini area, and result in infections, ingrown hairs and rashes.

Waxing on the face, neck, abdomen, legs and arms would continue to be permitted in the state under the proposed ban. Although New Jersey statutes have always banned bikini waxing, the laws were unclear and seldom enforced.

As a result, many salons from around the state have offered bikini waxing for years. Many salon owners spoke out against the proposed ban, which they said would severely damage their business.

“I really don’t know if the state can stop it at this point,” said Valentia Chistova, owner of the Monmouth County salon Brazil. “I know a lot of women who are really hooked.”

Thursday, April 3, 2008

A reporter from Wikinews recently interviewed Jim Babka, chair of Libertarian organization Downsize DC. The organization claims to have arranged for 22,158 people to send a message regarding the “American Freedom Agenda Act” proposed by Ron Paul, in addition to supporting many other laws. The full text of the interview can be found below.