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Solo racing! 4Nov-17Dec2017 French sailor around Earth covered 27859mi, 6 days faster than record
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French sailor smashes world record for solo journey around the world after cutting six days off the current mark
Francois Gabart, 34, managed to circumnavigate the planet in 42 days and 16 hours, with a start and finish on the west coast of France. He was six days faster than the previous record holder, set by fellow Frenchman Thomas Coville last year. He departed on November 4 and covered the 27,860-mile journey in 42 days, 16 hours, 40 minutes and 35 seconds.
From November 4 to December 17, Gabart and his 30m MACIF trimaran covered 27,859.7 miles at an average speed of 27.2 knots. His top speed was 39.2 knots, and his top speed over a 24 hour period was 31.8 knots.
Gabart also broke several others records for solo racing, including the fastest navigation of the Pacific and the longest distance covered in 24 hours - 1,575km (851 miles). His 30m (98ft) boat was custom-designed for the purpose.
François Gabart is a French professional offshore yacht racer who won the 2012-13 Vendée Globe in 78 days 2 hours 16 minutes, setting a new race record.
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1 in 9 Bridges (70k or 11% of total) in need of repair - US infrastructure once best in world now decaying
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1 Out of Every 9 Bridges in the US Is Structurally Deficient
There are about 630,000 bridges in the United States, ranging from impressive new structural creations like Margaret Hunt Hill bridge in Dallas to deteriorating slabs of concrete in desperate need repair. It's that last growing group of bridges, ports, and highways that represent the slowing decaying infrastructure that was once the best in the world.
In a new 60 Minutes report, host Steve Kroft lays down some knowledge that, for all of us bridge-traveling, highway-driving citizens, would be pretty alarming: 1 out of every 9 bridges are in various degrees of disrepair. That's around 70,000 bridges total if you're keeping track. This isn't exactly startlingly new information, an AP report last year reported similar numbers. That doesn't mean all of these structures are on the verge of collapse with every passing car, train, or pedestrian, but it does mean they are in desperate need of TLC in the form of billions and billions of dollars—money that just doesn't exist. read more »
Scotland: world 1st floating wind farm, built by offshore oil company, begun in 2016 now delivers electricity powering 20k homes
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18 Oct 2017 - First floating wind farm, built by offshore oil company, delivers electricity - Anchored, floating turbines allow offshore wind installations in deep waters.
The world’s first floating offshore wind farm began delivering electricity to the Scottish grid today.
The 30MW installation, situated 25km (15.5mi) from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, will demonstrate that offshore wind energy can be harvested in deep waters, miles away from land, where installing giant turbines was once impractical or impossible. At peak capacity, the wind farm will produce enough electricity to power 20,000 Scottish homes.
The installation, called Hywind Scotland, is also interesting because it was built by Statoil, a Norwegian mega-corporation known for offshore oil drilling. Statoil has pursued offshore wind projects in recent years, using the company's experience building and managing infrastructure in difficult open sea conditions to its advantage.
Hywind Scotland began producing power in September, and today it starts delivering electricity to the Scottish grid.
The five 6MW turbines are the first commercial turbines to lack a firm attachment to the seafloor. The towers extend 176m (577ft) above the water and 78m (256ft) below it. Each tower is capable of pitching its blades to reduce unwanted motion and optimize power output depending on the wind direction and strength. read more »
Solar vs Coal: same power output from simplest equation: 1 square mile = 4 million barrels of oil
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Last Pacific Coast Coal Terminal Nixed - Industry’s dream to export U.S. coal to Asia is dead
The state of Washington's Department of Ecology has rejected a necessary water-quality permit sought by Millennium Bulk Logistics for its proposed coal-export terminal at Longview, Washington. Barring a successful appeal of the decision, this means the end of the line not only for Millennium's dream of building the largest coal-export facility in North America, but also for the coal industry's larger scheme to ship vast amounts of U.S. coal to Asian markets.
"This is the end," says Bruce Nilles, senior campaign director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign. "Almost exactly seven years ago, Peabody Coal proposed its first project to move huge amounts of coal around the globe. This is a testament to the tens of thousands of people who raised their voices and said, 'Hell no.'"
Shipping coal abroad was supposed to be a lifeline for the U.S. coal industry, given plummeting domestic demand as renewables became cost-competitive with fossil fuels. With vast coal reserves readily available in the Powder River Basin in Montana and Wyoming, coal companies pinned their hopes on exporting it to Asia via seven proposed terminals on the West Coast. With Longview blocked, coal opponents are now seven for seven in stopping those terminals. (The others were to be at Cherry Point and Grays Harbor in Washington; Port Westward, Coos Bay, and Port of Morrow in Oregon; and Oakland, California.)
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Ideas and Photos: make smaller beautiful, life simpler, money saved, and time spared for fun
Domino Loft system, designed by Charles Irby of ICOSA and Peter Suen
Zoku Hybrid Live-Work Hotel
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8 clever modern micro-apartments that live big
Micro-apartments are becoming more popular in cities where the demand for housing is growing, and the supply of affordable real estate is shrinking. From New York, to San Francisco and London, micro-living spaces that measure 500 square feet or less are becoming a trend, offering renters and buyers something smaller but less expensive. Nevertheless, these tiny spaces often packed with built-in amenities like transformer furniture, or if they are part of a multi-unit development, generous communal spaces to compensate for the tinier private quarters.
Domino Loft System
Our first look is at the Domino Loft system, designed by Charles Irby of ICOSA and Peter Suen for a young couple. The system consists of prefabricated concrete panels, wood slats and custom-made cabinetry, and is configured as an all-in-one unit that can transform into a dining room, workspace and guest room on the bottom level. On top, one can find the sleeping loft, which also doubles as a perch to watch films projected onto a wall on the other side of the space. Multifunctional designs such as this help to give more privacy to each occupant and augment what would be an other tiny space.
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Almost "sentenced" as cancer. Lucky 47yo Britain whose lungs have unluckily carried a plastic toy cone for 40 years!
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Medical Error: This Lung Cancer Tumor Was Actually a Tiny Toy Cone Inhaled 40 Years Ago
In what may be among the strangest medical diagnoses of the year, a British man was told that he did not have lung cancer tumor, but instead had swallowed a plastic toy cone 40 years earlier. Experts say this case isn’t as isolated as we may think; inhaling toys is actually a pretty big problem for small children.
Kids inhaling and swallowing foreign objects is a serious problem. According to Medline Plus, children aged one to three are at greatest risk for this. An object can become trapped in the throat and cause choking, and once inhaled, it can lead to infection or inflammation. The objects most commonly swallowed or inhaled are coins, buttons and beads, but as shown in this case study really anything is fair game.
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Photo courtesy @HotpageNews