Reggie Love, who is President Barack Obama’s personal aide, basketball sparring partner and gatekeeper says he has one of the coolest jobs in the world, but it also has its downside – no air conditioning!
Love is a cross between a constant companion and personal valet, otherwise known as Obama’s ‘body man’, is due to leave his job later this year to attend business school.
Love said in an interview on ABC television, “The thing that used to kill me is that the guy loves to ride around with the AC off in the summertime.
“And I get hot. I start sweating. And I’m like, it’s 80 degrees in this car. I’m going to pass out.”
Obama was a senator when he first hired the 6’4 basketball star in 2006 and was known to keep his office the same temperature of his native country, Hawaii.
Love is always with the president when in the White House, at campaign events, on his Marine one helicopter or when travelling across the world in his Air Force One official aeroplane.
Since Obama’s run for the White House in 2008, the pair have flown 880,780 miles together.
US presidents are understood to carry very little in their pockets, if anything, so Love carries a bag with all the essentials in; dental products, collar stays and stain remover, that Obama uses without hesitation, in front of him.
Love says, “If he had it his way, I think he’d floss in private
“I think the fact that he was comfortable with me is probably a product of, you know, he’s beaten down. I’ve been around for so long.”
Before Obama got his iPad last year, a New York Times reporter asked him whether he had a popular Apple device, and his response was; “I have an iReggie, who has my books, my newspapers, my music all in one place.”
According to statistics kept by CBS News, since his January 2009 inauguration, Obama has been to 31 countries, a few more than once and 40 of the 50 US states, with Love by his side.
Love explained that he was grateful to be a “very long passenger on an amazing ride.”
He added that, “He’s [Obama] been like big brother to me, a mentor. I’ve learned so much about life from him.”
Britain has, this past week, been blanketed by fog. This has caused flights to be cancelled and delayed across the country which has left travellers, understandably, furious. However, there is simply nothing that can be done, except to wait for the fog to clear of course.
A spokesman for the BAA, Heathrow’s operators, has warned passengers to check with their airlines before travelling due to the fact that Northern Europe has been affected by the fog as well.
The spokesman was quoted saying: “Today 11 arrivals and 12 departure flights have been cancelled and we are advising all our passengers to check with their individual airlines before travelling.”
Meanwhile, Gatwick and Stansted have been able to operate as normal despite the poor weather.
It has also been reported that some areas of the country could witness some snow fall in coming days. Frost and gales are also in the pipeline.
Last weekend it was reported that visibility on some roads was less than 100 yards, due to the fog. I for one was driving south towards Basingstoke and could only see literally 10 metres in front. Dangerous stuff and not something I want to experience again anytime soon.
This cold weather has followed one of the warmest autumns on record, and has, to some extent surprised us all. However, we must remember it is late November and it’s not long now until Christmas rolls around for another year.
Furthermore, this winter weather is certainly sticking around. It is likely that we will see strong winds across England and Wales in coming days, and Met Office spokesman, Dan Williams, has said: “We will be seeing colder nights because of the clear skies.”
Jonathan Powell, of Positive Weather Solutions, has added: “There is a rain-bearing front that could bring a covering of snow on Thursday and Friday in the mountainous parts of the north. Roads will be pretty treacherous as any overnight rain will quickly freeze.”
With such weather now forecast, it is more likely that we will be switching our central heating on rather than turning to our air conditioning units!
If anyone is out on the roads in coming days, be sure to take care and keep your wits about you in icy conditions.
The capital city of Mongolia, Ulan Bator, is planning to stay cool in the hot and humid summer months by ignoring air conditioning in favour of creating an enormous artificial urban glacier. An interesting plan indeed, if somewhat a little strange!
It has been reported that the capital city of the country will try to capture some of the very cool winter temperatures in enormous ice blocks that will slowly melt over the summer, and then cool the city. The aim is to build artificial ice shields, known as “naleds”, that will occur naturally in climates in far northern areas of the globe. Naleds can also grow to be over seven metres thick. That sure is one giant block of ice!
Furthermore, they grow when the river water pushes through cracks in the surface of the ice during the day, and then freezes at night time, and thus creates an extra layer of ice.
ECOS & EMI, a Mongolian engineering consortium, is set to attempt to replicate this process by drilling several bore holes into the ice that is currently forming over the Tuul River. This process will be repeated again and again throughout the winter months in order to thicken the ice considerably.
It is interesting to note that the North Korean military used naleds to build river crossings for tanks during the winter, and Russia has also previously used them as drilling platforms. However, engineers normally see them as a threat to railways and bridges. So it is not all positive news surrounding naleds.
The Anglo-Mongolian firm believes that their proposed use in Ulan Bator may set a positive example that will allow northern cities around the world to save on summer air conditioning costs, regulate drinking supplies, and create cool microclimates.
A Mongolian based geologist, Robin Grayson, has stated: “Everyone is panicking about melting glaciers and icecaps, but nobody has yet found a cheap, environmentally friendly alternative. If you know how to manipulate them, naled ice shields can repair permafrost and build cool parks in cities.”
A naled is thought to work in a climate where the winter months dip to as low as somewhere between -5˚C and -20˚C and where the summer months are unbearably hot. However, there is yet to be any proof that such a plan could work, and, evidently they will not be possible in a climate such as the one we have here in Great Britain, and it is therefore expected that sales of air conditioning units will likely remain the same, if not increase, in the UK next year.
Despite the fears over extreme heat, the stadium air conditioning is in doubt for 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The architect in charge of one of the venues, suggested that a more old-fashioned solution would be cheaper and better, despite after all the talk of using state of the art air conditioning to keep stadiums cool at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Qatari organisers are trying to be persuaded, by leading firm Populous, which is designing the Sports City stadium in Doha, to scrap the idea of having air conditioning in at the venue.
John Barrow, Populous director, said that the system is “notoriously unsustainable” for the environment when used on a large scale and far too expensive.
Barrow said, “I think you can be more clever. It is about air movement, moisture in the air and it is about temperature at the right time of day,
“If we get it right … that is the way ahead,” he added.
The defining theme of Qatar’s winning bid last year was air-conditioned stadiums to beat 50C desert heat in June.
Populous was hired by Qatar to help its campaign because of their experience in building signature projects such as London’s 2012 Olympic Stadium, Arsenal’s Emirates arena and the new Yankee Stadium.
The FIFA inspection team was persuaded that the firm’s prototype of their stadium could succeed.
Barrow now believes, however, that the planned stadium can be kept cool by using traditional Arabic methods for ventilation and shading the seas,
The proposal is, is to have wind towers that suck up hot air to create fan-like movement inside the stadium, which has a capacity of 47,000.
Barrow said, “It is part of the building tradition in the Gulf to create wind towers which naturally ventilate. If you have got an air movement which keeps you cool like a fan that makes all the difference.”
FIFA was promised that its 12 World Cup stadiums could be regulated at around 26C, but now spectators could be kept cool at 30C, with low humidity during the evening.
He said, “It doesn’t need to be 26 degrees. Fan expectation needs to be a little more relaxed.”
Until the scheduled kickoff in June 2022, Qatar is likely to be challenged on heat issues. The organising committees have suggested switching to midwinter dates, but officials have said that there are no plans to change.
Asamoah Gyan, Ghana forward, who since September has played for United Arab Emirates club Al Ain on loan from Sunderland, predicted that the “climate for the World Cup is going to be really, really difficult.
“They are putting air conditioning in the stadiums and I think maybe it can help the football there because without that I don’t think people can survive because it’s really, really hot.”
Barrow said that Populous is “actively engaged” in talks with the Qatari government about its World Cup plan.
“They are strongly of the opinion that they need to build now so that they can demonstrate their commitment, but in fact they have got loads of time,” he said, suggesting that waiting could allow new technology to develop.
How time flies, it’s already November and surprisingly, it hasn’t been too cold yet. Some of us still have our windows wide open or air conditioning units in London running!
However, forecasters have warned that Britain faces an end to this warm autumn, with temperatures falling towards Siberian levels.
Within a fortnight, we should expect our thermometers to dip below zero! According to experts, the country will be coping with -15C by December, which could be as brutal as last winter.
Some of us may remember the chaos that the snow brought to Britain last year, with blocked roads, causing accidents and burying houses. The forecasters suggest that snow could hit the country even earlier than it did last year!
Positive Weather Solutions spokesperson, Jonathan Powell, said “It will not be as sustained as last year, but these episodes are expected to be severe, with Siberian temperatures.”
The warnings came as the Government announced that the Met Office will send out extreme weather alerts this year to social services, the NHS and other agencies in a bid to cut the 25,000 extra deaths in the UK that are caused by winter.
Brian Gaze, the forecaster of The Weather Outlook, told the newspaper, “There are signs of a significant change in the mild weather in mid-November.
“The current mild weather is caused by a high-pressure block to our east, keeping us under a south-westerly flow of Atlantic air.
“But it looks as though high pressure could move further north west, allowing much colder air to filter across the UK from the north or east, with the risk of snow increasing.”
Exacta Weather, spokesperson, James Madden, warned that it would be “very cold and snowy across many parts of the UK” this winter.
He also added that there would be “frequent and widespread heavy snowfalls during November to January across many parts of the UK and Ireland, with below-average temperatures.”
I will definitely be buying grit for the drive and snow boots, in preparation for the winter!
A prisoner was left dismayed after he was captured just hours after staging an elaborate escape.
Inmate, Leviticus Uriah Taylor, 25, who was being held at India River Country Jail in south-east Florida at the maximum security block, launched his freedom bid with his cellmate Rondell H Reed, 52.
Both men, considered highly dangerous, started their escape on Sunday night by crawling through air conditioning ducts and over 12 ft fences covered in barbed wire.
Reed’s efforts at escaping were successful, however, Taylor was caught just hours after the escape and returned to custody.
Taylor, who was convicted of first degree murder last month and Reed, who is facing a second degree murder charge, both came up with the plan during the five days they were held together in the same cell.
Their escape is thought to have started by breaking into a prison maintenance area, where their overalls were later found.
Next, they both would have had to pass two locked doors before mounting through air con units.
The last part of their prison escape, saw the pair climb a 12 ft high fence protected with barbed wire that surrounds the prison. Blankets were found nearby, which investigators believe were used to protect against the sharp wire.
The prisoners were reported missing on Monday morning at 4.30am. Deryl Loar, Indian River County Sheriff, said Taylor was captured at 7pm that evening, about 15 hours after his escape, in Jensen Beach.
Two women, Sadie Welker, 19, and Angela Pike, 35, have been arrested on suspicion of helping with the escape, since Taylor was returned to jail.
According to Tampa Bay news site WTSO, Welker is Taylor’s girlfriend.
Reed and Taylor were among 19 inmates being held in the prisoner’s maximum security block, said Sheriff Loar.
It is not the first time that Reed has broken free of custody, he escaped from a prison in 1989 in North Carolina, which resulted in a shoot out with the Police.
We all know from our bills that prices have doubled in line with the increased cost of imported gas, which now makes up 40% of our demand. The chief executive of British Gas, Sam Laidlaw, said “The price we pay for our gas is determined by a global marketplace, not the marginal cost of North Sea production.”
In the 1990s, it was good for both cost and climate, to rely on a single source of fuel for almost all our heating and half our electricity, which is looking quite foolish now that prices are increasing.
In theory, we should be using less energy and cutting back on our gas, air conditioning units and electrical products like flat screen TVs, as the prices are rising, which should lead to less cost and less carbon in the atmosphere. But the price rises for consumers has also created a political demand for action to cut prices, which has fed demands on George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is responsible for all economic and financial matters, to cut “green levies” on our bills. But some argue that it will raise future bills, which would be counterproductive.
It is thought that it wouldn’t have much effect on our current bills as green levies only account for around 7% of the normal consumer’s bill. Lowering the UK’s 202 renewables target will take around £21 off domestic consumer bills by the next election in 2015, but recent price increases from the big six energy suppliers amount to a £134 rise on average bills and reflect higher gas costs. So we won’t necessarily have a big cut in bills if ditching our green ambitions.
Another thing to think about is in the latter half of this decade when the UK could be even more dependent on imported fuel. No one knows or understands which energy technologies will provide low carbon and low cost power in the future. The reason for green levies is to force the energy industry to diversify so we have a chance of discovering a low cost pathway to a decarbonised power sector by 2030. If we knew what will be cheap in the future, then diversification isn’t the cheapest strategy, but unfortunately we don’t.
As we don’t know what will give us cheap (or affordable) energy in the future, we know that saving energy makes good economic and environmental sense now.
The idea of Green Alliance’s proposal for an electricity efficiency feed-in tariff, is to pay people to use less energy, where consumers will have to pay to build new power stations to meet future demand. Then, if we can spend less to cut our demand and avoid the need to build, we can save money. If we do this, then we could save £35billion on the UK’s energy bill between now and 2025.
The aggressive effect of paying for energy saving is also outstanding. There is no competition to create less generation in today’s market; and none of the government’s electricity market reforms doubtful, thus far will create a market for energy saving.
By paying for energy saving, we can pressure power generators to compete with companies which can display real energy savings, and use private-sector innovation to slice the cost of consumer bills.
With a little change to the government’s flagship electricity market reforms, the policy incentive could be formed, and won’t hold up investment in new low-carbon power stations.
An electricity efficiency feed-in tariff is a economically, politically and environmentally sound answer to business and consumer concerns about price rises. It could also provide relief to those struggling with their energy bills as it could be put into place quickly
Forecasters have predicted that Britain is just weeks away from temperatures as low as -20C, which will be a shock to our system after the nice weather we’ve been spoiled with.
Cairngorms in Scotland has already had two inches of snow this week and the rest of Britain is being warned to prepare themselves for snow and wintery conditions at the end of October or beginning of November.
Some of us may have already noticed a chill in the air, especially in the mornings on the way to work! Aberdeenshire has already dropped to 8C, which is 21.5C below the temperature we had during our ‘Indian summer’.
Council leaders have revealed that local authorities are stockpiling thousands of tonnes of extra road grit, in belief of another snowy winter. In total, it has been estimated that 1.4 million tonnes of salt is expected to be stock piled this year.
Shops are also planning ahead, Halfords has ordered in 10,000 plastic sledges in preparation of snow!
Long range forecaster for Exacta Weather, James Madden, said “I expect the most frequent and heavy snowfalls to occur across many parts of the UK during November, December and January at present.” He says that he expects that snowfall records will be broken in this time frame.
Many authorities faced criticism last winter as many motorists battled snowy, dangerous roads and many people became stranded. Even though it sounds like local councils are well prepared this year, it sounds like many of us will want to be snuggled up in front of the fire place in front of the TV, enjoying a mug of hot chocolate with the air conditioning units in London definitely being switched off!
Consumers in the UK need to be weaned off their addiction to TVs, PCs, laptops and fridges if emission targets are to be met, say the Energy Saving Trust.
We may already be conscious about turning off the lights in unused rooms, switching off appliances at the plug socket and having quick showers, but according to a report on UK home energy use, our obsession with gadgets means energy bills and emissions are still rising.
The Energy Saving trust, an independent organisation that advises on saving energy and lowering carbon emissions, say that the UK’s target to cut domestic electricity emissions by 34% by 2020 will not be achieved if we carry on with our love for gadgets and appliances such as cheap air conditioning units, tumble dryers, smartphones and electric toothbrushes.
Dr Paula Owen, the author of the report The Elephant and the Living Room, says “If we look over the last five years a lot has changed and a lot of progress has been made making the most energy-sapping appliances more efficient, “But where we still have a long way to go is with our gadgets and home entertainment appliances, which are using more and more electricity.”
Owen says that our desire for having new gadgets like fuel guzzling extra large fridge freezers and the latest laptop or flatscreen TV is pushing up already costly bills at home and making carbon targets increasingly unachievable.
She said, “What amazes me is that you wouldn’t buy a car without taking into consideration how fuel-efficient it was but people will buy electrical products without thinking about how much it is going to cost to run them”.
Owen explains that, “As energy prices continue to rise they are eating up more of our money. People need to be more educated about what these gadgets cost.”
According to the report, the number of domestic appliances and gadgets in the average UK household increased by three and a half times between 1990 and 2009 and the overall energy consumption from household electronic devices increased by over 600% between 1970 and 2009.
However, Owen states that progress has been made as the traditionally known energy guzzling appliances are becoming more efficient, like fridges and lighting.
The report suggests that more needs to be done to help consumers make the right choices so emission targets can be met. Owen says, “To achieve our targets for 2020 we are going to have to try harder… if we continue like this we are not going to make it.”
In one of our previous blog posts that we wrote a couple of weeks ago, we mentioned how much of a disappointing summer we’ve had and how it was now officially over. However, reports and predictions reveal that we now face one of the hottest autumns for 25 years.
The best weather has been predicted to grace us at the end of this week and around the beginning of October. However, the UK Met Office Chief Forecaster, Chris Tubbs, said “It’s too early to give precise detail, but the dominant signal is for much of the UK to get some fine weather from Tuesday onwards. Temperatures could be unseasonably warm in places, certainly well above the average for this time of year.”
He carries on to say that “The settled weather is set to last for several days and could carry on into the start of October, giving us a welcome respite from the windy and wet conditions which have dominated for the past few weeks”.
According to predictions by the UK Met Office, the south and east of England will see the best of the weather, where temperatures could reach 27C, hotter than Hawaii!
I’m sure that most people will be planning some daytrips or weekends away to the seaside or park, but it’s definitely not time to put the barbeque or air conditioning in south east London away just yet.
If you are planning on enjoying the sunshine, remember to protect yourself from the strong UV rays by avoiding the midday heat and covering up your skin with a high factor sun cream.
Love is a cross between a constant companion and personal valet, otherwise known as Obama’s ‘body man’, is due to leave his job later this year to attend business school.
Love said in an interview on ABC television, “The thing that used to kill me is that the guy loves to ride around with the AC off in the summertime.
“And I get hot. I start sweating. And I’m like, it’s 80 degrees in this car. I’m going to pass out.”
Obama was a senator when he first hired the 6’4 basketball star in 2006 and was known to keep his office the same temperature of his native country, Hawaii.
Love is always with the president when in the White House, at campaign events, on his Marine one helicopter or when travelling across the world in his Air Force One official aeroplane.
Since Obama’s run for the White House in 2008, the pair have flown 880,780 miles together.
US presidents are understood to carry very little in their pockets, if anything, so Love carries a bag with all the essentials in; dental products, collar stays and stain remover, that Obama uses without hesitation, in front of him.
Love says, “If he had it his way, I think he’d floss in private
“I think the fact that he was comfortable with me is probably a product of, you know, he’s beaten down. I’ve been around for so long.”
Before Obama got his iPad last year, a New York Times reporter asked him whether he had a popular Apple device, and his response was; “I have an iReggie, who has my books, my newspapers, my music all in one place.”
According to statistics kept by CBS News, since his January 2009 inauguration, Obama has been to 31 countries, a few more than once and 40 of the 50 US states, with Love by his side.
Love explained that he was grateful to be a “very long passenger on an amazing ride.”
He added that, “He’s [Obama] been like big brother to me, a mentor. I’ve learned so much about life from him.”
Winter Weather Wonders the Land
Britain has, this past week, been blanketed by fog. This has caused flights to be cancelled and delayed across the country which has left travellers, understandably, furious. However, there is simply nothing that can be done, except to wait for the fog to clear of course.
A spokesman for the BAA, Heathrow’s operators, has warned passengers to check with their airlines before travelling due to the fact that Northern Europe has been affected by the fog as well.
The spokesman was quoted saying: “Today 11 arrivals and 12 departure flights have been cancelled and we are advising all our passengers to check with their individual airlines before travelling.”
Meanwhile, Gatwick and Stansted have been able to operate as normal despite the poor weather.
It has also been reported that some areas of the country could witness some snow fall in coming days. Frost and gales are also in the pipeline.
Last weekend it was reported that visibility on some roads was less than 100 yards, due to the fog. I for one was driving south towards Basingstoke and could only see literally 10 metres in front. Dangerous stuff and not something I want to experience again anytime soon.
This cold weather has followed one of the warmest autumns on record, and has, to some extent surprised us all. However, we must remember it is late November and it’s not long now until Christmas rolls around for another year.
Furthermore, this winter weather is certainly sticking around. It is likely that we will see strong winds across England and Wales in coming days, and Met Office spokesman, Dan Williams, has said: “We will be seeing colder nights because of the clear skies.”
Jonathan Powell, of Positive Weather Solutions, has added: “There is a rain-bearing front that could bring a covering of snow on Thursday and Friday in the mountainous parts of the north. Roads will be pretty treacherous as any overnight rain will quickly freeze.”
With such weather now forecast, it is more likely that we will be switching our central heating on rather than turning to our air conditioning units!
If anyone is out on the roads in coming days, be sure to take care and keep your wits about you in icy conditions.
Mongolia to Trial Natural Air Con
The capital city of Mongolia, Ulan Bator, is planning to stay cool in the hot and humid summer months by ignoring air conditioning in favour of creating an enormous artificial urban glacier. An interesting plan indeed, if somewhat a little strange!
It has been reported that the capital city of the country will try to capture some of the very cool winter temperatures in enormous ice blocks that will slowly melt over the summer, and then cool the city. The aim is to build artificial ice shields, known as “naleds”, that will occur naturally in climates in far northern areas of the globe. Naleds can also grow to be over seven metres thick. That sure is one giant block of ice!
Furthermore, they grow when the river water pushes through cracks in the surface of the ice during the day, and then freezes at night time, and thus creates an extra layer of ice.
ECOS & EMI, a Mongolian engineering consortium, is set to attempt to replicate this process by drilling several bore holes into the ice that is currently forming over the Tuul River. This process will be repeated again and again throughout the winter months in order to thicken the ice considerably.
It is interesting to note that the North Korean military used naleds to build river crossings for tanks during the winter, and Russia has also previously used them as drilling platforms. However, engineers normally see them as a threat to railways and bridges. So it is not all positive news surrounding naleds.
The Anglo-Mongolian firm believes that their proposed use in Ulan Bator may set a positive example that will allow northern cities around the world to save on summer air conditioning costs, regulate drinking supplies, and create cool microclimates.
A Mongolian based geologist, Robin Grayson, has stated: “Everyone is panicking about melting glaciers and icecaps, but nobody has yet found a cheap, environmentally friendly alternative. If you know how to manipulate them, naled ice shields can repair permafrost and build cool parks in cities.”
A naled is thought to work in a climate where the winter months dip to as low as somewhere between -5˚C and -20˚C and where the summer months are unbearably hot. However, there is yet to be any proof that such a plan could work, and, evidently they will not be possible in a climate such as the one we have here in Great Britain, and it is therefore expected that sales of air conditioning units will likely remain the same, if not increase, in the UK next year.
No Air Conditioning for 2022 World Cup in Qatar
The architect in charge of one of the venues, suggested that a more old-fashioned solution would be cheaper and better, despite after all the talk of using state of the art air conditioning to keep stadiums cool at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Qatari organisers are trying to be persuaded, by leading firm Populous, which is designing the Sports City stadium in Doha, to scrap the idea of having air conditioning in at the venue.
John Barrow, Populous director, said that the system is “notoriously unsustainable” for the environment when used on a large scale and far too expensive.
Barrow said, “I think you can be more clever. It is about air movement, moisture in the air and it is about temperature at the right time of day,
“If we get it right … that is the way ahead,” he added.
The defining theme of Qatar’s winning bid last year was air-conditioned stadiums to beat 50C desert heat in June.
Populous was hired by Qatar to help its campaign because of their experience in building signature projects such as London’s 2012 Olympic Stadium, Arsenal’s Emirates arena and the new Yankee Stadium.
The FIFA inspection team was persuaded that the firm’s prototype of their stadium could succeed.
Barrow now believes, however, that the planned stadium can be kept cool by using traditional Arabic methods for ventilation and shading the seas,
The proposal is, is to have wind towers that suck up hot air to create fan-like movement inside the stadium, which has a capacity of 47,000.
Barrow said, “It is part of the building tradition in the Gulf to create wind towers which naturally ventilate. If you have got an air movement which keeps you cool like a fan that makes all the difference.”
FIFA was promised that its 12 World Cup stadiums could be regulated at around 26C, but now spectators could be kept cool at 30C, with low humidity during the evening.
He said, “It doesn’t need to be 26 degrees. Fan expectation needs to be a little more relaxed.”
Until the scheduled kickoff in June 2022, Qatar is likely to be challenged on heat issues. The organising committees have suggested switching to midwinter dates, but officials have said that there are no plans to change.
Asamoah Gyan, Ghana forward, who since September has played for United Arab Emirates club Al Ain on loan from Sunderland, predicted that the “climate for the World Cup is going to be really, really difficult.
“They are putting air conditioning in the stadiums and I think maybe it can help the football there because without that I don’t think people can survive because it’s really, really hot.”
Barrow said that Populous is “actively engaged” in talks with the Qatari government about its World Cup plan.
“They are strongly of the opinion that they need to build now so that they can demonstrate their commitment, but in fact they have got loads of time,” he said, suggesting that waiting could allow new technology to develop.
“There is still a long way until 2022.”
A Nice Warm Autumn? Not for Long!
However, forecasters have warned that Britain faces an end to this warm autumn, with temperatures falling towards Siberian levels.
Within a fortnight, we should expect our thermometers to dip below zero! According to experts, the country will be coping with -15C by December, which could be as brutal as last winter.
Some of us may remember the chaos that the snow brought to Britain last year, with blocked roads, causing accidents and burying houses. The forecasters suggest that snow could hit the country even earlier than it did last year!
Positive Weather Solutions spokesperson, Jonathan Powell, said “It will not be as sustained as last year, but these episodes are expected to be severe, with Siberian temperatures.”
The warnings came as the Government announced that the Met Office will send out extreme weather alerts this year to social services, the NHS and other agencies in a bid to cut the 25,000 extra deaths in the UK that are caused by winter.
Brian Gaze, the forecaster of The Weather Outlook, told the newspaper, “There are signs of a significant change in the mild weather in mid-November.
“The current mild weather is caused by a high-pressure block to our east, keeping us under a south-westerly flow of Atlantic air.
“But it looks as though high pressure could move further north west, allowing much colder air to filter across the UK from the north or east, with the risk of snow increasing.”
Exacta Weather, spokesperson, James Madden, warned that it would be “very cold and snowy across many parts of the UK” this winter.
He also added that there would be “frequent and widespread heavy snowfalls during November to January across many parts of the UK and Ireland, with below-average temperatures.”
I will definitely be buying grit for the drive and snow boots, in preparation for the winter!
Prisoner Caught trying to Escape through Air Conditioning System
Inmate, Leviticus Uriah Taylor, 25, who was being held at India River Country Jail in south-east Florida at the maximum security block, launched his freedom bid with his cellmate Rondell H Reed, 52.
Both men, considered highly dangerous, started their escape on Sunday night by crawling through air conditioning ducts and over 12 ft fences covered in barbed wire.
Reed’s efforts at escaping were successful, however, Taylor was caught just hours after the escape and returned to custody.
Taylor, who was convicted of first degree murder last month and Reed, who is facing a second degree murder charge, both came up with the plan during the five days they were held together in the same cell.
Their escape is thought to have started by breaking into a prison maintenance area, where their overalls were later found.
Next, they both would have had to pass two locked doors before mounting through air con units.
The last part of their prison escape, saw the pair climb a 12 ft high fence protected with barbed wire that surrounds the prison. Blankets were found nearby, which investigators believe were used to protect against the sharp wire.
The prisoners were reported missing on Monday morning at 4.30am. Deryl Loar, Indian River County Sheriff, said Taylor was captured at 7pm that evening, about 15 hours after his escape, in Jensen Beach.
Two women, Sadie Welker, 19, and Angela Pike, 35, have been arrested on suspicion of helping with the escape, since Taylor was returned to jail.
According to Tampa Bay news site WTSO, Welker is Taylor’s girlfriend.
Reed and Taylor were among 19 inmates being held in the prisoner’s maximum security block, said Sheriff Loar.
It is not the first time that Reed has broken free of custody, he escaped from a prison in 1989 in North Carolina, which resulted in a shoot out with the Police.
Could getting Paid to use Less Energy be a Possibility?
In the 1990s, it was good for both cost and climate, to rely on a single source of fuel for almost all our heating and half our electricity, which is looking quite foolish now that prices are increasing.
In theory, we should be using less energy and cutting back on our gas, air conditioning units and electrical products like flat screen TVs, as the prices are rising, which should lead to less cost and less carbon in the atmosphere. But the price rises for consumers has also created a political demand for action to cut prices, which has fed demands on George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is responsible for all economic and financial matters, to cut “green levies” on our bills. But some argue that it will raise future bills, which would be counterproductive.
It is thought that it wouldn’t have much effect on our current bills as green levies only account for around 7% of the normal consumer’s bill. Lowering the UK’s 202 renewables target will take around £21 off domestic consumer bills by the next election in 2015, but recent price increases from the big six energy suppliers amount to a £134 rise on average bills and reflect higher gas costs. So we won’t necessarily have a big cut in bills if ditching our green ambitions.
Another thing to think about is in the latter half of this decade when the UK could be even more dependent on imported fuel. No one knows or understands which energy technologies will provide low carbon and low cost power in the future. The reason for green levies is to force the energy industry to diversify so we have a chance of discovering a low cost pathway to a decarbonised power sector by 2030. If we knew what will be cheap in the future, then diversification isn’t the cheapest strategy, but unfortunately we don’t.
As we don’t know what will give us cheap (or affordable) energy in the future, we know that saving energy makes good economic and environmental sense now.
The idea of Green Alliance’s proposal for an electricity efficiency feed-in tariff, is to pay people to use less energy, where consumers will have to pay to build new power stations to meet future demand. Then, if we can spend less to cut our demand and avoid the need to build, we can save money. If we do this, then we could save £35billion on the UK’s energy bill between now and 2025.
The aggressive effect of paying for energy saving is also outstanding. There is no competition to create less generation in today’s market; and none of the government’s electricity market reforms doubtful, thus far will create a market for energy saving.
By paying for energy saving, we can pressure power generators to compete with companies which can display real energy savings, and use private-sector innovation to slice the cost of consumer bills.
With a little change to the government’s flagship electricity market reforms, the policy incentive could be formed, and won’t hold up investment in new low-carbon power stations.
An electricity efficiency feed-in tariff is a economically, politically and environmentally sound answer to business and consumer concerns about price rises. It could also provide relief to those struggling with their energy bills as it could be put into place quickly
Brace Yourself for a Cold Autumn and Winter
Cairngorms in Scotland has already had two inches of snow this week and the rest of Britain is being warned to prepare themselves for snow and wintery conditions at the end of October or beginning of November.
Some of us may have already noticed a chill in the air, especially in the mornings on the way to work! Aberdeenshire has already dropped to 8C, which is 21.5C below the temperature we had during our ‘Indian summer’.
Council leaders have revealed that local authorities are stockpiling thousands of tonnes of extra road grit, in belief of another snowy winter. In total, it has been estimated that 1.4 million tonnes of salt is expected to be stock piled this year.
Shops are also planning ahead, Halfords has ordered in 10,000 plastic sledges in preparation of snow!
Long range forecaster for Exacta Weather, James Madden, said “I expect the most frequent and heavy snowfalls to occur across many parts of the UK during November, December and January at present.” He says that he expects that snowfall records will be broken in this time frame.
Many authorities faced criticism last winter as many motorists battled snowy, dangerous roads and many people became stranded. Even though it sounds like local councils are well prepared this year, it sounds like many of us will want to be snuggled up in front of the fire place in front of the TV, enjoying a mug of hot chocolate with the air conditioning units in London definitely being switched off!
The UK’s Addiction to Gadgets are Causing our Energy Bills and Emissions to Rise
We may already be conscious about turning off the lights in unused rooms, switching off appliances at the plug socket and having quick showers, but according to a report on UK home energy use, our obsession with gadgets means energy bills and emissions are still rising.
The Energy Saving trust, an independent organisation that advises on saving energy and lowering carbon emissions, say that the UK’s target to cut domestic electricity emissions by 34% by 2020 will not be achieved if we carry on with our love for gadgets and appliances such as cheap air conditioning units, tumble dryers, smartphones and electric toothbrushes.
Dr Paula Owen, the author of the report The Elephant and the Living Room, says “If we look over the last five years a lot has changed and a lot of progress has been made making the most energy-sapping appliances more efficient, “But where we still have a long way to go is with our gadgets and home entertainment appliances, which are using more and more electricity.”
Owen says that our desire for having new gadgets like fuel guzzling extra large fridge freezers and the latest laptop or flatscreen TV is pushing up already costly bills at home and making carbon targets increasingly unachievable.
She said, “What amazes me is that you wouldn’t buy a car without taking into consideration how fuel-efficient it was but people will buy electrical products without thinking about how much it is going to cost to run them”.
Owen explains that, “As energy prices continue to rise they are eating up more of our money. People need to be more educated about what these gadgets cost.”
According to the report, the number of domestic appliances and gadgets in the average UK household increased by three and a half times between 1990 and 2009 and the overall energy consumption from household electronic devices increased by over 600% between 1970 and 2009.
However, Owen states that progress has been made as the traditionally known energy guzzling appliances are becoming more efficient, like fridges and lighting.
The report suggests that more needs to be done to help consumers make the right choices so emission targets can be met. Owen says, “To achieve our targets for 2020 we are going to have to try harder… if we continue like this we are not going to make it.”
Prepare Yourselves for the Hottest Autumn
The best weather has been predicted to grace us at the end of this week and around the beginning of October. However, the UK Met Office Chief Forecaster, Chris Tubbs, said “It’s too early to give precise detail, but the dominant signal is for much of the UK to get some fine weather from Tuesday onwards. Temperatures could be unseasonably warm in places, certainly well above the average for this time of year.”
He carries on to say that “The settled weather is set to last for several days and could carry on into the start of October, giving us a welcome respite from the windy and wet conditions which have dominated for the past few weeks”.
According to predictions by the UK Met Office, the south and east of England will see the best of the weather, where temperatures could reach 27C, hotter than Hawaii!
I’m sure that most people will be planning some daytrips or weekends away to the seaside or park, but it’s definitely not time to put the barbeque or air conditioning in south east London away just yet.
If you are planning on enjoying the sunshine, remember to protect yourself from the strong UV rays by avoiding the midday heat and covering up your skin with a high factor sun cream.