Stanmore Tube Station To Convert Car Park Into Flats
The title of this post is the same as this article on Ian Visits.
STRABAG Commences Expanded € 1 bn Contract for UK Mine
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Tunnel Business Magazine.
The article gives a good description of the scope of Sirius Minerals’s York Potash project and their massive mine under the Yorkshire Moors.
- The tiunnel to bring the polyhalite to Wilton is nearly forty kilometres long.
- Three tunnel boring machines will be used.
- It is the largest polyhalite deposit in the world.
- The conveyor in the tunnel will handle twenty million tonnes of product a year.
The Wikipedia entry for Sirius Minerals, says this about the project.
This will deliver a £2.3 billion annual contribution to the UK’s GDP, £2.5 billion of annual exports which represents a 7% decrease in the UK’s trade deficit and 2,500 direct and indirect production jobs as well as over 2,000 jobs during construction.
I doubt, there will be few projects in the UK in the next twenty years, which wil contribute so much!
Super-Efficient Flats Don’t Need Heating Or Air-Con
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on Page 34 of today;s copy of The Times.
These are the first two paragraphs.
In a city of skyscrapers the 26-storey building on a small island next to Manhattan looks unremarkable. Hiding in plain sight, however, is an architectural revolution.
The House, a dormitory for graduate students at Cornell University, is so energy efficient it can eliminate the need for heating and air conditioning. It is the first “passive house” in the US and is providing a stream of data for engineers.
If someone built a passive skyscraper in London, I’d ceretainly go and look.
Oxford Splashes Out On £4bn Science Hub
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on page 8 of today’s copy of The Times.
Legal & General is investing the four billion in three related projects.
- Affordable homes for post-gradiates and staff.
- An innovation hub in Begbroke.
- An innovation quarter at Osney Mead.
Oxford is breaking out!
If I have one criticism, it is that Begbroke and Osney Mead appear badly placed for rail and bicycle access.
As some of the best innovators and researchers are short of money, this could be a mistake.
All our universities; large or small, ancient or modern, must come to the aid of the country!
Mountains, Moors And Heaths Offer £20bn In Green Benefits
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on page 2 of today’s copy of The Times.
This is the first paragraph.
Britain’s mountains, moorlands and heaths are worth £20.1 billion for their ability to absorb carbon, remove air pollution and provide recreational activities, according to the Office for National Statistics.
It certainly make you think.
If you think twenty billion pounds is a large number, then this is another two paragraphs.
Natural accounts are required by the European Union but Theresa May has also made them a feature of the 25 Year Environment Plan that she unveiled last year.
The plan is focused on “protecting and enhancing [natural landscapes and habitats] for the next generation”. It follows work by the World Bank, which has estimated the value of the world’s untouched ecosystems at $33.7 trillion (£27.2 trillion).
Surely, this means that if you burn the rain forest, you are literally burning money!
Schroders Unveils Global Energy Transition Fund
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Investment Europe.
This is the first paragraph.
Schroders has launched global energy transition fund in order to harness the global shift towards a low carbon energy system and meeting growing client demand for actively-managed exposure to this fast-evolving and ground-breaking sector.
Read the rest of the article about their new fund.
I pick out this paragraph, that defines the strategy.
The strategy will not invest in companies with exposure to nuclear or fossil fuels. It will harness three significant global trends; the decarbonisation of power generation, the electrification of energy use and increased energy efficiency for its investment process.
This is the first sentence in the Wikipedia entry for Shroders.
Schroders plc is a British multinational asset management company, founded in 1804. The company employs over 5,000 people worldwide in 32 different countries around Europe, America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Headquartered in the City of London, it is traded on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
I think that launch of this global energy transition fund by one of the City of London’s most respected institutions, will eventually be one of many similsr and related funds launched by companies and institutions and that these funds will play a big part in decarbonisation of the planet.
Investment from the big boys is going green.
Thoughts On eScooters!
Consider.
- This article on the BBC is entitled Emily Hartridge: TV Presenter And YouTube Star Dies In Crash. It is an extremely sad tale and it has led to the inevitable call to ban electric scooters.
- There is also this article on the BBC, which is entitled Iris Goldsmith: Teenage girl dies in ‘quad bike’ accident. This is another extremely sad tale and many are questioning, what a teenage girl was doing, riding a quadbike.
- And then there’s this article on the BBC, Which is entitled Govia Thameslink Fined £1m Over Gatwick Express Window Death.
Young people and some older ones too, often do stupid things.
Many also crave danger and go mountaineering, riding on the tops of trains or jumping into rivers from a great height.
Doing things out of the ordinary is a natural reaction and is one of the reason, why humans are the most successful species on this planet.
I think the problem is the way we bring up children.
- My parents let me do anything I wanted up to a point.
- They also taught me lots of skills.
- From about twelve, I used to cycle all over London.
- I spent endless hours in my father’s print works doing things that would be frowned upon now, because they are too dangerous.
A couple of months ago, I was interviewed by a sixth-form girl student, in the volunteering I do at Barts Hospital in giving experience to prospective doctors.
She had lived in an over-protective environment and hardly left home on her own.
It was almost child abuse. She didn’t say, but I suspect she’d even been driven to and from school.
When it came to our own children, C and myself were fairly liberal and it was strange how, two became very street-wise and had the occasional scrapes, whereas the other was generally well-behaved.
Perhaps, we didn’t get everything right, but I like to think, we gave them a good appreciation of risk!
And that is one of the mot important things to learn in life, as often, those that ca’t assess risk, come to unfortunate ends.
I do feel my youngest son’s unhealthy lifestyle was a factor in his getting pancreatic cancer, especially if he was coeliac like me! But then he wouldn’t get tested!
His daughter though, seems to have a good appreciation of risk, but then if your father dies, you probably do!
To return to the eScooter, which is where this post started.
They Look Fun!
They certainly look fun and I constantly want to have a go on one.
Remember, I have crashed a twin-engined aeroplae and ridden horses in the Masai Mara.
At seventeen, I also sat on the back of a motorcycle, the wrong way round and went through the Mersey Tunnel.
Was I wearing a helmet? Of course not!
Are They Dangerous?
The risk depends on where they are used and how competent the rider is!
Ask any A & E doctor, what sport causes the most injuries and they’ll say something like rugby or horse-riding!
When A & E doctors start complaining about eScooters that will be the time for action.
Would Training Help?
Training isn’t the important thing.
However experience, especially that gained in a safe environment is important.
But to legislate that training should be mandatory will only have the reverse affect.
Conclusion
It’s a difficult problem, but we must teach everybody to appreciate risk.
When I joined ICI in 1969, I went on a formal Health and Safety course.
It has proven to be invaluable all my life an I haven’t worked on a chemical plant since 1970.
Will Sky Ever Broadcast A Freeview Sports Channel?
Yesterday, Sky held the rights to both the Cricket World Cup Final and The British Grand Prix.
But in the end Sky shared the coverage of both events with Channel 4!
Now that both events have successfully concluded, Sky will have the details of the following.
- Number of viewers.
- Advertising revenue on both Sky and Channel 4.
- Reaction from politicians, some of whom are not very pleased with Sky.
This will enable the company to decide, whether it is in the company’s interest to do it again.
- I can also see a scenario, where if a Sky Freeview channel exists, that sports would want to do promotional deals to get their sport in front of viewers, by perhaps having the top level on satellite and lower levels on Freeview.
- Sky uses a lot of repeats on its Sports Channels at Off Peak times.
- Freeview technology will also be allowing more channels.
- Sky must be a bit worried about competition from other broadcasters woth bottomless pockets.
I don’t think we can rule anything out, as Sky are an innovative and ambitious broadcaster.
Battersea Power Station To Outshine Typical Tourist Attraction Sites In The UK
The title of this post is the same as this article in the New Straits Times.
This is the first paragraph.
Malaysia-owned Battersea Power Station project is expected to outshine many prime property developments in London after seeing a 36 per cent capital appreciation for units offered under its first phase.
The article goes on to give an interesting view on how Malaysian investors and tourists see London.
On Tourism
This is a paragraph.
It is expected that when it opens, 40 million people will visit Battersea Power Station annually.
That is around 109,000 visitors for every day of the year.
Will the Northern Line Extension and the roads cope?
On Investment
This is two paragraphs.
“London is never going to be cheap. Those who wanted to invest, better do it now. A lot of people from overseas have already started investing in London,” he added.
Mason said London would still remain attractive place for investors globally due to its higher capital returns for the property sector.
Londoners like me, don’t look on their City as an investment, but as an exciting and fulfilling place to live.
Carbon Capture From Cement Manufacturing Nears Market Readiness
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Fifth Estate.
In Climate Change: The Massive CO2 Emitter You May Not Know About, I talked about the carbon dioxide that is released, by the manufacture of cement, mainly referring to this article on the BBC.
This is the first three paragraphs of the BBC article.
Concrete is the most widely used man-made material in existence. It is second only to water as the most-consumed resource on the planet.
But, while cement – the key ingredient in concrete – has shaped much of our built environment, it also has a massive carbon footprint.
Cement is the source of about 8% of the world’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, according to think tank Chatham House.
However, the article on The Fifth Estate, raises hopes that new processes for making cement may reduce the carbon footprint of this important material.
This is the first paragraph of tThe Fifth Estate article.
A consortium led by Australian firm Calix is now well on the way to completing a pilot plant for its breakthrough technology that will capture carbon emissions from the manufacture of lime cement. Other projects with similar aims to reduce the global warming impact of construction with concrete are also racing to the marketplace.
It certainly looks like the Australians are doing something concrete about climate change!
The Anonymous Widower 