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News briefs:May 8, 2006
The time is 17:30 (UTC) on May 8th, 2006, and this is Audio Wikinews News Briefs.
Contents
- 1 Headlines
- 1.1 U.S. President George W. Bush nominates Gen. Michael Hayden as director of CIA
- 1.2 Ahmadinejad sends open letter to Bush
- 1.3 Thailand election was invalid, rules court
- 1.4 Sex-for-aid spreads in war-torn Liberia
- 1.5 Anti-censorship developers targeting China’s “Great Firewall”
- 1.6 Rescue of Tasmanian miners delayed
- 1.7 Union criticizes East London Line ‘privatisation’
- 2 Closing statements
Slate Formation And Mining Practices
By Lawrence Reaves
Slate formation is estimated to have occurred up to 500 million years ago and is a metamorphic rock; that is to say it has transformed from one type of rock into another. In the case of slate, it was formed from shale.
Generally slate is found in mountainous regions as these are the areas where most rock movement has taken place. The tremendous pressure bearing down on the shale, together with intense heat causes the shale to transform. The shale gets compressed and forms layers which can easily be separated. This is why slate is ideal for roofing and flooring because to some extent it is already the correct thickness for tiling when it’s mined.
Over time, if slate isn’t mined it metamorphosis occurs again and it can transform into rocks known as phyllite, schist and then gneiss. Some slate is found near the earth surface and is often worn away due to erosion from wind and rain and collects in low lying areas. The slate particles and other rock particles gradually get forced or cemented together and form sandstone.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngcskwp-0a4[/youtube]
The color of slate varies significantly although it’s generally considered to be gray in color. It can be many shades of blue, yellow green brown and red, depending on where it was formed.
Slate can be extracted in three ways; open quarries, underground mining and pit mining. Slates forms into vein-like strips and the angle that the vein runs determines the type of mining required to extract it. Open quarries are the easiest method of extraction as the slate is near the surface and follows the line of the mountain. Underground mining is used to dig tunnels into the side of a mountain until the tunnel meets the vein of slate. The tunnel then follows the angle of the vein so it can be extracted. Pit mining occurs when the angle of the slate vein is practically vertical. A pit is drilled downwards until it meets the vein of slate then extraction begins.
Once the slate is mined it is processed to form the slate tiles you are familiar with. The machinery removes the rough edges and cuts the slate into fairly regular shapes ready for transportation. Further processing takes place, depending on what the slate tiles are going to be used for. For example roofing tiles are shaved and smoothed to form identical shapes as are slate tiles used for internal flooring. Slating used for patio areas in often less processed giving the tile a more natural look.
Despite many manmade materials having been developed to use for roofing and flooring, slate remains extremely popular. It is very durable and strong; slate roofing can last well in excess of 50 years and even then only a few tiles may need replacing. If you use slate for external flooring and it is professionally laid, it will last a lifetime and just gets better and more natural looking as it ages.
About the Author:
Virginia Slate
maintains a large inventory of all forms of slate for contractors and builders, including
structural slate
.
Source:
isnare.com
Permanent Link:
isnare.com/?aid=1144317&ca=Advice
News briefs:July 14, 2010
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Ten April Fool’s pranks of 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
April Fools’ Day pranks harmlessly pervaded worldwide again this year. Media outlets and internet sites have joined family, office workers, and friends to provide a wide variety of practical jokes. Ireland, France, and the United States celebrate April Fools all day, whereas a few countries celebrate jokes only until noon such as the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and South Africa.
Car and Driver claimed that GM and Chrysler were ordered out of NASCAR by the White House by the end of 2009 in order to receive any more government loans. There are press releases about this short-lived prank which received controversial feedback.
The Swiss Tourism Board has announced that volunteers were desperately needed, The Association of Mountain Cleaners “makes sure that our holiday guests can always enjoy perfect mountains. Using brooms, brushes, water and muscle power, they clean the rocks of any bird droppings.”
This year Gmail produced a new autopilot feature for April 1, 2009 which can read your email and automatically respond to every message.
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BMW released its new Magnetic Tow Technology which allows your BMW to magnetically attach to the vehicle ahead of you. This enhanced technology allows the driver to remove their foot from the gas pedal and turn off the motor.
The Guardian proposed its move to Twitter, which would allow the newspaper to fit its article content into 140 character messages or “tweets”. Included in this venture was the archiving of past events reported by The Guardian, such as, “1927 OMG first successful transatlantic air flight wow, pretty cool! Boring day otherwise *sigh*”
Google’s technological break through for April Fool’s Day was CADIE, (Cognitive Autoheuristic Distributed-Intelligence Entity). By extracting internet search patterns combined with Brain Search, a part of CADIE technology, Google can now search your thoughts and memories.
Wikipedia even fooled Fox News who claimed that “every item on the home page of the user-generated site Wikipedia is fake. The featured Wikipedia article regaled the “Museum of Bad Art” in Boston.” However, each item on the main page was based on reality — even news articles such as NASA reports a shower of diamonds over the Republic of Sudan, which was based on a meteorite which passed over Sudan whose fragments did reveal diamonds upon discovery.
The Conficker Internet worm had been in the news warning of a worst case scenario when computers worldwide would be affected by the virus. Even the chief security adviser for Microsoft, Ed Gibson, didn’t want to make any predictions about what would happen. Experts just knew that it was set to go off on April 1. Several anomalous happenings were attributed to Conficker including Leroy “Mac” MacElrie who claimed to be the programmer of the Conficker worm and turned himself in to police.
Hotels.com ran an advertisement offering hotel room bookings on the moon which would be offered on European websites starting at £800 a night.
Qualcomm ingeniously revealed a new wireless networking technology called wireless convergence. Making use of the flight patterns of pigeons. They then use innovative solutions to converge the birds with wolves to protect the internal improvements.
Media outlets were not the only ones pulling pranks. Gaming websites across the internet Blizzard, Joystiq, and affiliates posted reviews and announcements of games with tongue in cheek. YouTube offered viewers a unique April Fool’s experience as videos were offered upside down. In Ireland, U2 fans received a U2opia concert on a shopping centre roof top concert rather than the real thing.
Broadcaster Paul Harvey dies at age 90
Monday, March 2, 2009
American radio broadcaster Paul Harvey has died at the age of 90. Harvey died while at his home in Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday, February 28. According to reports, his family and friends were by his side at the time of his death. The cause of Harvey’s death has not yet been released.
Harvey was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His radio career started in 1933 at KVOO Tulsa, while he was in high school. His initial job was cleaning the station and later went to fill in on air for reading news and commercials. He was best known for his The Rest of the Story program.
Harvey was credited with coining several words on his broadcasts, including Reaganomics and Guesstimate. He was inducted in to the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1990 and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.
In a written statement ABC Radio Networks president Jim Robinson said “Paul Harvey was one of the most gifted and beloved broadcasters in our nation’s history. As he delivered the news each day with his own unique style and commentary, his voice became a trusted friend in American households.”
Former President George W. Bush in a statement condoled Harvey’s death by saying “Laura and I are saddened by the death of Paul Harvey. Paul was a friendly and familiar voice in the lives of millions of Americans. His commentary entertained, enlightened, and informed. Laura and I are pleased to have known this fine man, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”
New Zealand Commerce Commission investigating Australian company
Monday, January 15, 2007
The New Zealand Commerce Commission is investigating Australian-based lottery competition company, TMG Asia Pacific Pty Limited, under alleged breaches of the Fair Trading Act after quite a few text-based lottery competitions have been running on New Zealand television.
To enter the competitions, the entrants must answer a simple question and then text the answer to a special text number, 8555. The competitions are shown during advertisements on New Zealand television stations, and include possible prizes of televisions, game consoles, exercise equipment, and more.
The Commerce Commission said that they have received around 180 complaints regarding the text competitions and the charges they incur on their mobile phones. The charges are when a person texts the correct answer to 8555 they are agreeing to sign up to their subscription based services which charges them NZ$3 for each text message received. A maximum of $15 is charged a month unless the special keyword to stop receiving text messages: STOP is texted. The Commerce Commission said that the complaints reflect that the entrants do not know about the subscription, even though the advertisements briefly state in fine print that the competition is a subscription competition, how much a received text costs, etc at the bottom of the ad.
An employee of TMG Asia Pacific Pty Limited questioned about the subscription charges claimed that the majority of the charge for each text message sent to competition entrants goes to Telecom New Zealand, and a fraction is paid to them.
The director of Fair Trading for the Commerce Commission, Deborah Battell, said: “[180 complaints] is an exceptionally high number of complaints for a single issue.”
“The Commerce Commission is investigating whether the disclosure of the terms and conditions of these promotions was adequate,” Ms Battell said.
In November of 2006 the Commerce Commission had contacted TMG Asia Pacific to discuss their concerns over their promotions. Ms Battell said: “The company has been made well aware of our concerns. The Commission has now asked the company to respond by 4pm, Thursday, 18 January 2007.”
Wikinews Shorts: June 8, 2007
A compilation of brief news reports for Friday, June 8, 2007.
Contents
- 1 Space shuttle Atlantis has launched
- 2 British police officer banned from driving
- 3 Turkish armed forces agitating to fight PKK
- 4 Bus bombing kills one, injures 10 in Philippines
After a three-month delay, space shuttle Atlantis has launched. The reports say that there were no major technical problems with the shuttle and forecasters predicted good weather for this evening. The shuttle launched this evening at 7:38:04 p.m. ET (22:38:04 UTC) to continue the construction of the International Space Station. The crew members plan to stay 11 days in orbit and their goal is to carry out the two missions that were left incomplete from the previous flight due to broken and jammed equipments. During the flight, the shuttle and its seven astronauts will deliver a new segment and will install energy-producing solar panels to the International Space Station. Sources
- “NASA: Atlantis is ready to launch” — CNN News, June 8, 2007
- Traci Watson. “Atlantis crew learns from previous mishaps” — USA Today, June 8, 2007
A British police officer has been banned from driving after drinking over the limit of alcohol. PC Andy Walker, 51, drank a glass of wine and two glasses of beer at a “family party”. When a police officer stopped his car to investigate, after Walker was having trouble parking his car Sunday morning, he found that his fellow officer’s blood alcohol level was 61 micrograms, while the limit is 35 micrograms. At a court hearing today, Walker admitted the charges and has been since banned from driving for 16 months.
“I made a monumental mistake in my judgement when I decided I was fit enough to drive,” Walker admitted.
Walker has been active in many anti-drinking-and-driving campaigns throughout the years.
Sources
- “Officer banned for drink-driving” — BBC News Online, June 8, 2007
- Simon Bristow. “Drink drive PC gets ban” — Yorkshire Post, June 8, 2007
The prime minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said that the parliament won’t block if the Turkish Armed Forces ask for authorization to attack. The armed forces had an exercise today at Cizre, Turkey, 10 kilometers away from the Turkish-Iraqi border. After a series of attack by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Turkey has commenced large scale exercises and operations within Turkey. Local news also reports that many troops and artilleries have been delivered from Diyarbakir, Turkey to the Turkish-Iraqi border regions.
Related news
- “Turkey secures Kurdish zone border with Iraq” — Wikinews, June 7, 2007
Sources
- “Turkish Military Agitating to Fight PKK” — IraqSlogger, June 8, 2007
- “S?n?ra sevkiyat sürüyor” — Haberturk, June 8, 2007
A bomb aboard a bus parked at a public market in Cotabato on Minandao in the southern Philippines exploded today, killing one person and injuring 10 people.
Earlier in the week, the U.S. Embassy in Manila had issued a warning about such attacks in the region.
Sources
- Anthony Vargas. “Cotabato bomb blast hurts 10” — Manila Times, June 9, 2007
- Associated Press. “11 wounded in bus bomb in southern Philippines” — Sun.Star, June 9, 2007
- “Blast kills one, injures 10 in Philippine south” — Reuters, June 8, 2007
Athletes prepare for 2012 Summer Paralympics at the Paralympic Fitness Centre
Monday, August 27, 2012
London, England — As Paralympians ready for the Games which are set to open later this week, they have access to a world class fitness center inside the Paralympic Village which is designed to maximise their pre-Game preparations.
According to volunteers staffing the center, instead of being a single large room, as in Beijing, the building has numerous rooms. It, along with the adjacent Village Services Centre, is designed to be converted into a school after the games conclude. Rooms have been structured as a gym, an auditorium, and science laboratories.
Gym equipment is supplied by Technogym, an Italian firm that has supplied gym equipment for the Olympics since 2000. Equipment has been provided not just for for the Fitness Centre, but for gyms at all the Olympic venues. The newest equipment is oriented toward maximum flexibility, allowing athletes to exercise the particular muscles that they most require for their sport.
In addition to the equipment, the Fitness Centre also provides instructors trained in the use of the equipment, the likes of which athletes from many countries have never seen before. There are also a number of instructors available to provide motivational training.
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The Attraction Of The Single Speed Bicycle
Click Here For More Specific Information On:
The Attraction of the Single Speed Bicycle
by
Thord Hall
A single speed bicycle is exactly what the name implies, a bike with only one speed. When I was a kid, the only option we had was a single speed bicycle. However it soon became very cool to have a multi speed bike, and the most popular was the “ten speed”. Times changed and bike technology changed too. It is amazing how many different types of bicycles have become available through the years.
Anyone unfamiliar with the world of bicycles would probably be a bit amazed at how many different types of bicycles are out there today. As the times changed bike technology changed with it, and bikes are now much more high tech and quite specialized. However, it seems as if things have come full circle, at least as far as single speed bicycles are concerned. The single speed bicycle, the ancestor of today s bikes, seems to be gaining popularity.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glTL6VqwJPA[/youtube]
The single speed bicycle is in a word, simple. There is only one sprocket or cog on the rear wheel and one also on the pedal crank, which means there are no gears to shift. No gears to shift also means that there are no shifters or cables, which appeals to the enthusiast looking for a sleek, bare bones and simple bike that will get them from point A to point B.
One of the appealing features of the single speed bicycle is its simplicity. The fact that there are no gears to shift, leaves the rider with only one responsibility: pedaling. You do not have to worry about being the right gear, because you only have one gear. The trimmed down design also allows for great maintenance advantages. Less things to break, means less things to fix. There are no shifters or cables to worry about. A single speed bicycle has no need of derailleurs or chain rings, which are expensive items to replace when they break. Another plus is that you never have to adjust something that isn’t even there. Fewer parts mean less weight, making single speeds popular with racers. No shifters or cables mean less clutter which is another appealing feature. Many enthusiasts appreciate the aesthetics of a sleek, smooth looking and uncluttered single speed bicycle.
Riding the single speed bicycle couldn’t be easier. You pedal to go forward and you stop pedaling to stop. One drawback to a single speed bicycle is riding on different terrains. You might find that the gear ratio for riding on pavement doesn’t work as well for trails. However, most riders tend to use their single speeds for a specific purpose and this issue is easily overcome.
Face it, the advantages are all there; less weight, less maintenance, low cost and a bit of sentimental value too. Visit the
Single Speed Bicycle
website to read more and take a look at some single speed bikes.
Article Source:
The Attraction of the Single Speed Bicycle