We are being urged to cut our carbon footprint by just a little (10% was the target of choice in 2010), and many have taken the challenge, concluding that such a teensy-weensy reduction can’t be so hard. But what if you’re asked to slash your carbon use by 85% — that’s the reduction in consumption… Continue reading
Look, no hands. Safe and automatic road driving within sight
Imagine sitting in your car on the motorway at 70 miles an hour. You’re in the driver’s seat, but your hands are off the wheel, you are drinking a cup of coffee and studying those important notes for the meeting you’re heading to 100 miles away. Do you want to reread that? Your hands are… Continue reading →
France's estuary city rises again – with new elephant and an old castle
Good old Google. They don’t need, like everyone else, the occasion of the big round number anniversary to celebrate somebody’s life. How long did it take you to work out what the antique portholes meant in Google’s ornate and rather clever (well, aren’t they all?) doodle on Tuesday February 7? It is, of course, the… Continue reading →
Could mackerel displace cod as a fish and chip shop favourite?
“Mackerel and chips, twice please, with salt and vinegar.” Does that sound right? (On reflection, go easy on the salt – we don’t want to negate the benefit of the mackerel, as an oily fish rich in omega-3, credited with a role in healthy brain and nerve development and possibly in heart health.) So there… Continue reading →
Should late airline passengers pay a penalty? Some think so,
Should airline passengers who are late to board be fined? Rather a lot of people in a recent survey seem to think so. Men seem to be more intolerant than women, on the issue of late comers. (They are likely to have been tarrying in the duty free, rather than arriving late at the airport… Continue reading →
Kings of the castles – the glory of Wales
“Know, Sir, that Llewelyn ap Gruffydd is dead, his army broken and all the flower of his men killed.” This despatch from his winning troops at the front was all the planning permission Edward the First required to begin one of the most intimidating programmes of military construction of the Middle Ages. Within three months,… Continue reading →