Article Tags: Met Office, UK Winter Forecast 2009/10
The Met Office has said it was wrong to tell people to expect a barbecue summer and a warm winter and it looking at including more information on forecasts.
Julia Slingo, Chief Scientist at the Met Office, said the national weather service had let the public get the wrong message when it predicted a “barbecue” summer earlier this year and then revised the forecast when July and August turned out to be wet.
Source: telegraph.co.uk
Last month, M division boss Kay Segler said that he is all game for an M version of the 1-Series; however, he said that BMW has yet to make a business case for it. Segler said that if BMW does go ahead with an M version of the 1-Series, it wouldn’t be called the M1.
Today, the rumor world has released a new unofficial teaser what is claimed to be an M version of the 1-Series. New details suggest that the M version of the 1-Series will have a more muscular stance than the standard 1-Series with a new trapezoid grille and two intakes to allow air to cool the six piston brakes.
Other modifications to the M version of the 1-Series will include:
– High performance intercooler
– Sportier looking headlights than standard 1-series
– Small lip spoilers above brake duct inlets to provide extra air flow and downforce
– The front wings of the car are massaged slightly to accomodate the wider track. Rear end is also wider.
– Standard 18″ 5-spoke wheels with optional 18″ Competition wheels (18″ will be the optimium wheel size for the M1)
– Signature M side vent
– Broader wheel arches to accomodate larger track
– “Ducktail” CSL style rear trunk (integrated spoiler)
– Rear valance/diffuser area takes its direction from the standard 135i but with open ducts for aerodynamic purpose
– Signature M quad exhaust pipes
– Reinforced carbon fiber roof
– By: Kap Shah
Source: BimmerFile
“I just find it stupid, you know? I think it also surmises that the older woman is always the pursuer. That’s not necessarily true. I always say that maybe the older woman is the prey and someone else is the predator. It’s just silly,” Katie Couric on The Cougar Label, Harper’s Bazaar, March 2010…..
Katie Couric, host of the CBS Evening News, gets glam and shows off her glorious gams for the March 2010 issue of Harper’s Bazaar. A bustling Katie chatted at length about the joys and perils of being a working mom and her long-term romance with Brooks Perlin — who is 17 years her junior.
Article Tags: BBC, Public Polls
The number of British people who are sceptical about climate change is rising, a poll for BBC News suggests.
The Populus poll of 1,001 adults found 25% did not think global warming was happening, a rise of 8% since a similar poll was conducted in November.
The percentage of respondents who said climate change was a reality had fallen from 83% in November to 75% this month.
And only 26% of those asked believed climate change was happening and “now established as largely man-made”.
The findings are based on interviews carried out on 3-4 February.
In November 2009, a similar poll by Populus – commissioned by the Times newspaper – showed that 41% agreed that climate change was happening and it was largely the result of human activities.
Click source to read more
Source: news.bbc.co.uk
The FBI has released photos of the helmeted "sports bike bandit" believed responsible for robbing seven banks, mostly in southern L.A. County, and making his getaway on a red motorcycle.
The latest in the string of robberies that started in 2008 occurred Jan. 26 at the Cal National Bank on Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach, said FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller. The robber has hit five other banks in Long Beach, Los Alamitos and Rancho Palos Verdes and made an attempt at a bank in Pasadena.
"This is an unusual series because in most cases the majority of bank robbers are feeding a drug or gambling habit and will continue to rob banks until they’re caught … and they generally do get caught," Eimiller said. "This person started robbing in late 2008 and continued throughout early 2009, stopped in February, and we had not seen him in 10 months."
He appeared again in December at a Citibank in Long Beach. The suspect is described as a white or Latino with a deep voice, 30 to 40 years old, 150 to 160 pounds and 5 feet, 5 inches to 5 feet, 8 inches tall.
He has brandished a semiautomatic handgun or a revolver during holdups, telling victims to put their hands on the counter or to lie on the floor, Eimiller said. She said he cursed at victims and was violent. During one of his earlier robberies, he took an employee hostage when a teller took too long to comply with his demand for money.
FBI agents believe a single man is responsible for all the crimes and said his distinctive gear may help identify him.
The man has been seen wearing black motorcycle clothing, colored bandannas and either a black or orange-tone helmet. There may be black tape on the orange helmet, as well, and the man may have been wearing body armor.
Anyone with information is encouraged to call 888-CANT-HIDE. A monetary reward is being offered for information leading to his capture, Eimiller said.
— Amina Khan
Photo: Surveillance video of the "sports bike bandit." Credit: FBI.
Filed under: Etc., Earnings/Financials
Would you believe that there’s a connection between owning a car and having to foreclose on your home? A study by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that yes, indeed, there is. At least, a relationship was found in the three areas that the study looked at: San Francisco, CA, Chicago, IL and Jacksonville, FL. While the correlation wasn’t giant, it does seem that there’s something to the idea of “location-efficient neighborhood design” being good for housing stability (read the PDF).
Location-efficiency is “a measure of the transportation costs in a given area,” and it includes not just car ownership, but also if the area has reasonable public transportation. Basically, if an area is a “compact” neighborhood with good bus or rail service – and so having a car is not required – then the corresponding foreclosure rate was probably lower. One possibility is that the money saved by not owning your own car (more details here) can mean more money to spend on housing. As Autopia points out, there could be a lot of other reasons for this connection as well, but for the car-sharing crowd, this is another reason to think about staying away from owning a vehicle when other transportation options are available.
[Source: Autopia | Image: taberandrew – C.C. License 2.0]
Study: Access to good public transportation can make foreclosures less likely originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
The cast of Jersey Shore will bring the fist-pumping to The View later this month, ABC announced Friday. The entire cast of the MTV reality show about a group of Italian-American twentysomethings partying the summer away – including Snooki, Pauly D, The Situation, JWoww, Sammi, Ronnie, and Vinnie – will sit down for an interview with the ladies of The View on Feb. 23.
In addition, Snooki, Pauly D, and The Situation also appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show this Monday, Feb. 8. MTV recently announced that Jersey Shore will return for a second season to air this summer. The original cast returns but will film at a different location.
The San Diego Police Department is auctioning off the horses and equipment of its mounted enforcement unit in an effort to avoid laying off police officers.
The department hosted an open house Thursday for the 10-day online auction that began Feb. 1, said Assistant Chief Bob Kanaski.
Seven horses — Wam, Trigger, Major, Junior, Bret, Bandit and Austin — were fetching bids from $3,900 to $10,200 as of Friday morning.
The horses, who range from 5 to 16 years old, were used to patrol Balboa Park and participate in ceremonial events, Kanaski said.
"They give the officers a high-up advantage," he said. "Crowds seem to settle down when a horse is around, because no one wants to go up against a horse."
Twelve-year-old Bret stood out for his dark, nearly black coat, and 5-year-old Junior drew 78 bids, with the highest at $10,200, Kanaski said. Police officials will check to make sure the highest bidders have the resources to properly care for the horses, he said.
The city expects to save about $243,000 by selling the horses. The move is part of a larger $16-million budget reduction the department undertook to avoid laying off officers. It has already laid off 87 civilians, Kanaski said.
The department’s other four-legged section, the K-9 unit, lost 12 dogs, a cut expected to save the city from $500,000 to $600,000. It still has 27 dogs left.
Officers who worked in the mounted unit will miss working with the horses, he said.
"They were sad, but I also think they realized what needed to be done," he said.
— Amina Khan
An anti-gun group has launched an effort to urge Starbucks to prohibit customers from openly carrying guns in its California coffee shops.
The move comes in response to what officials with the Washington-based Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence said are recent brazen displays of handguns by gun enthusiasts at several California stores, which have frightened some customers and alarmed law enforcement officials.
“We think Starbucks should adopt a national policy not to allow guns to be openly carried at its stores,” said Peter Hamm, a spokesman for the Brady Campaign. “There have been a number of meetings of ‘open carry’ advocates at Starbucks.”
He said gun enthusiasts were intentionally targeting Starbucks coffee shops for their meetings and openly carrying their weapons strapped to their hips.
"People tend to be unnerved by it,” Hamm said. “It makes them uncomfortable to see a group of men come into stores carrying firearms.”
In response to the gatherings, companies such as Peet’s Coffee & Tea and California Pizza Kitchen have prohibited customers from openly carrying guns in their stores, Hamm said.
The Brady Campaign is encouraging Starbucks to follow suit and sent a letter Friday to the coffee giant’s chairman and CEO, Howard Schultz, “asking him to change their policy,” Hamm said.
Representatives from Starbucks could not immediately be reached for comment.
— Ann M. Simmons
Filed under: Classics, Government/Legal
When buying a classic car from an auto dealer, there is a lot to worry about. Is the vehicle going to be a money pit? Do all the numbers match? Am I getting a fair deal with regards to financing? All fair questions to be sure, but if you dealt with Daniel Lussier of Auto Image Motor Cars you also have to worry about whether or not the car was his to sell in the first place.
Lussier plead guilty to stealing cars and selling them as if they were his, netting Lussier 18 months in prison, 10 years probation and restitution for his victims. That restitution check could be huge, too, as authorities claim Lussier bilked his clients and investors out of $800,000. Felix Yukhtman was one of over a dozen victims who trusted Lussier to sell a vehicle for them. Yukhtman handed over the keys to his 1964 Corvette but after the sale was finalized he said, “We didn’t have the money, we didn’t have the car, we had no idea we would ever see any money out of this car.”
In one particularly inflammatory claim, a classic car owner reportedly said that he brought in his vehicle for a detailing and Lussier sold the vehicle. NBC says that Lussier called those claims untrue. Under the terms of the plea deal, Lessier has to pay tens of thousands of dollars in restitution or risk going back to jail for up to 15 years.
[Source: NBC | Image: Lee County Sheriff’s Office]
Report: FL classic car dealer cops 18 month plea for selling cars that weren’t his originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The City of Brotherly Love has nothing but contempt for Snooks! Jersey Shore’s Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi may be the toast of Poughkeepsie – but the polarizing reality starlet was the subject of thousands of boos at Philadelphia’s Wing Bowl, an annual chicken wing eating contest hosted Friday morning. When she took the floor at the Wachovia Center, Snooki was greeted by a barrage of hecklers and ripped to shreds by the rowdy crowd of 20,000.
The pouffed-up guidette flipped the fans the bird — which aired live on FOX News Philadelphia!
Wolfgang Bernhard will come back to Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz Cars, the company said today in a statement.
“Daimler AG intends to appoint Dr. Wolfgang Bernhard as a full member of the Board of Management of Daimler,” Daimler said in a statement.
Bernhard, 49, will be responsible for Mercedes-Benz Cars’ production procurement and the Mercedes-Benz van division.
Bernhard was due to become the head of Mercedes-Benz Cars in 2004 before union opposition to his appointment and disagreements with the CEO at the time, Juergen Schrempp. That led to his demotion and eventual departure from Daimler. He also took a short stay as CEO of the Volkswagen brand between 2005 and 2007.
– By: Omar Rana
Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)
Are you angry and resentful at someone? Are in the midst of a quarrel or conflict? Send the other person love. Close your eyes, envision the person, and send them a wave of warm, positive emotion. And if you feel they’re sending you negative emotions – simply choose not to accept this negative energy. Envision a rubber bouncy field around you, which bounces their negative energy away from you.
Sound hard to do? Remind yourself that we are all flawed human beings, doing the best we can – and some of us are operating at lower consciousness. Next up, remind yourself you don’t want to be one of those lower consciousness people, right? Right!
Also keep in mind a funny and oh so true quote from Carrie Fisher, who says: “Resentment is the poison you swallow hoping the other person will die.”
I recognize one the hardest thing in the world to do is to send love in response to hate – but it’s also one of the most liberating. Pray for the person who’s upset you to gain clarity. You will be sending a wave of positive, peaceful energy into the world – always a wonderful thing to do!
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A Mercedes-Benz belonging to Two & A Half Men actor Charlie Sheen was crashed upside down in a steep ravine near his home in Sherman Oaks, California
Police and firefighters found the car about 400 feet down a cliff off of Mulholland Drive, upside-down in a brushy ravine around 4:00 AM, just hours after Charlie reported the vehicle stolen. The area was searched on foot and with an infrared-equipped helicopter, but no victim was found.
“They’ve looked all around the hillside. There’s nobody in the car, nobody around (and no) evidence of anybody being around at the moment of impact,” Los Angeles Police Officer Bruce Borihanh told The Associated Press Friday.
The LAPD is treating the case as an auto theft investigation.
Want to have better radar to differentiate between a Prince Charming and a Prince Harming? Check out my new book PRINCE HARMING SYNDROME — which offers a new kind of philosophy on love – based on ancient Greek philosophies from Aristotle – merged with modern cognitive therapy — delivered with feisty humor. (Jon Stewart from THE DAILY SHOW says: “Salmansohn has the soul of a stand up comic. The battle of the sexes has a brave new gladiator!” )
If right now you feel like ALL dating should be renamed “blind dating” — and instead of saying “I’m seeing someone!” you should be more honest and say “I’m dimly viewing someone!” — click on this line here to learn more about PRINCE HARMING SYNDROME!
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One of the many sites on which this column is posted is/was Political Cortex. In the beginning we were on half a dozen or so sites and Political Cortex was one of them. It really sort of surprised me given the decidedly left-leaning bent of most of the articles and comments on their site. Wonderful I thought. A leftie site that is fair enough to accept other points of view and said as much to Dee, who at that time was my helper, as Im absolutely thick when it comes to IT stuff. The IT staff at work see me coming and they run shrieking from the building.
Since then, Dees roll has expanded to encompass everything that makes this site successful. Its a lot of hard work and she does it very well and with unfailing good cheer and humor. I used to bookmark the sites we are on until they filled the page and obscured the screen. Im not sure even now exactly how many we are on because were being picked up by news outlets and blog sites around the globe.
I have YOU, the reader and lovers of freedom everywhere, to thank for that and am grateful and humbled by it every day. The United States has always represented a beacon of freedom for all peoples and I believe there is a yearning for freedom that exists in the heart of every human being no matter how severely repressed or oppressed they may be.
Today I got a note from Dee that our column for Wednesday 2/3/10 had disappeared from Political Cortex along with every single archived article of ours on the site going back to September 25, 2009. Inquiries to Political Cortex administration by Dee were met by silence sort of like calling your Democrat member of Congress. A little tongue in cheek there, but I couldnt resist. read more »
Jimmy Kimmel has offered up his response to to Tim Tebow’s pro-life Focus on the Family ad, set to air during the Super Bowl this Sunday night.
Pat yourselves on the back, everyone – we have officially surpassed another stressful week! And if you are a hopeless romantic like me, Channing Tatum is closing out the week with a bang (or a box full of tissues) in Dear John. And I. Am. Looking forward to it. Besides drooling excessively over Mr. Tatum’s abs, we have a lot more to look forward to this weekend: dance parties, our last football Sunday for the season, and busting our minds for that perfect (reasonably cheap) gift for a special someone.
And, yes, it still counts if the gift is for you.
So, my lovely College Candies, let us reflect on the busy week that was:
As I found myself tearing up over the finale of Teen Mom, we closed the (drama-filled) season with one final question.
For some, something about blowing out candles post-graduation feels…a little disappointing.
Taylor Swift is getting really good at those acceptance speeches. Don’t you think she could stop acting so surprised? It is getting a little old.
As Valentine’s Day gets closer and closer, we are left wondering why Average Joe didn’t let me breeze into the classroom first as he held the door open. Um, hello Romeo? Where art thou?
The Grammys did not seize to completely blow us away with some serious red carpet “uh whats?” and “oh wows.”
We learned the snow, cold temperatures, and dry skin may not be the only thing triggering those winter blues. Ok, so what gives?
Speaking of dry skin, my hair is starting to resemble a hay stack; these tips could help.
Superbowl Sunday is a hop, skip and gaining-ten-pounds-in-one-day away. No thanks, nacho plate. But this? Yes, please.
Now that we are talking about football, food, and some quality new commercials, we have a little something else to keep things interesting during the big game.
Whew, that is a lot of good stuff. I believe a ‘Bachelor’ marathon is in the cards for my afternoon. Before the party anyway.
Bill Gates is no longer a day-to-day force at Microsoft Corp., but you have to wonder what he makes of the smackdown delivered by a former Microsoft vice president in the New York Times.
Dick Brass, who spearheaded Microsoft’s tablet PC effort, says the company has become clumsy, dysfunctional and uncreative. His tirade should give pause to any value investor who looks no further than Microsoft’s record earnings.
As Brass points out, most of the software giant’s profits are the results of Windows and Office programs developed decades ago. He tells tales of how efforts to develop innovative products such as e-books were regularly sabotaged by internal feuds and territorial wrangling among brand managers and vice-presidents.
The repeated failures ceded huge amounts of territory to Apple Inc. They also raise the question of how long Microsoft can continue to live off its past.
What should Microsoft do? One suggestion would be for it to transform itself into an investment holding company. Another would be to replace top management. But perhaps the most tantalizing idea of all would be for the company to take a page from Apple’s book and invite its founder back to the throne. Gates may be the only person who has the clout to shake up the company’s entrenched bureaucracies.
Freelance business journalist Ian McGugan blogs for the Financial Post.
Just before the end of last year, Nissan unveiled the stateside version of the 2010 Nissan 370Z 40th Anniversary Edition. At the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, Nissan will once again celebrate 40 years of the Datsun 240Z with the Euro version, known as the 370Z Black Edition.
The 2010 Nissan 370Z Black Edition, available only as a coupe and gets two metallic shades including black and quartz, dark grey 19″ aluminum forged RAYS wheels, red brake calipers and 40th Anniversary emblem on the back door. Inside, the 370Z Black Edition gets red leather & suede trim on the seats and doors with 40th Anniversary logo seats. It also gets a leather wrapped steering wheel with red stitching and red stitching on the centre cluster, centre console and knee pads.
The Black Edition 370Z comes standard with Nissan’s next generation audio and navigation system and a 9.3 gig hard disk drive (HDD).
2010 Nissan 370Z 40th Anniversary Edition:
Press Release:
370Z: BACK TO BLACK
Just over 40 years ago a motoring icon was born. As the sixties moved into the 1970s, the Datsun 240Z was launched on the US market. American drivers instantly fell in love with the car and sales in that one market alone regularly topped 50,000 units annually. The Z legend had begun.
Now four decades, six generations and well over a million cars later, Nissan is introducing a special celebratory version of the newest two-seater to wear the famous Z badge – the 370Z.
The 370Z Black Edition marks the 40th anniversary in style. Available from April as a coupé only, and in a limited edition run of just 370 units in Europe, it comes in two distinctive metallic shades: black and quartz. Both paints use Nissan’s pioneering Scratch Shield technology, ‘healing’ the finish in the case of stone chip damage.
Inside the 370Z Black edition there are:
* Unique red leather & suede appointed interior (seats & door trim) with embossed 40th Anniversary logo seats
* Smooth leather wrapped steering wheel with red stitching
* Red stitching on the centre cluster, centre console and knee pads
* Nissan’s Connect Premium state-of-the-art combined touch-screen satellite navigation and audio system with USB connectivity
The exterior of the 370Z Black can be identified thanks to:
* Dark grey 19″ aluminium forged RAYS wheels
* Eye-catching red brake callipers
* 40th Anniversary emblem on the back door
Standard specification means it already has a bespoke BOSE premium audio system, 19-inch forged alloy wheels, Stop/Start button with Nissan’s Intelligent Key and a sporting six speed manual transmission with unique Synchro Rev Control technology. The electronically controlled rev matching system ensures perfect ‘heel and toe’ gear changes every time. A seven-speed automatic version with column-mounted paddle shifts is available as an option.
The Black Edition comes as standard with Nissan’s next generation combined audio and navigation system, offering improved ease-of-operation, new and updated features.
At its heart is a high performance Hard Disk Drive (HDD) navigation system that offers customer audio storage capacity of 9.3GB.
Among the many benefits are vastly extended mapping which now includes Turkey, Eastern Europe and Russia, as well as a new easy to follow 3D navigation guidance with improved graphics and a more realistic depiction of the road and landmarks ahead for many of Europe’s principle cities. The resolution of the new 7 inch screen is up to four times better than the previous generation system.
Real time traffic information is supplied via RDS-TMC, but quicker operation allows the system to offer re-routing in a fraction of the time.
The new generation system uses a touch-screen interface, maximising both ease of use and safety not only for the navigation, but also for other functions such as Bluetooth phone connectivity and entertainment. It is also possible to operate the system using voice recognition.
On-screen instructions can be displayed in eight different languages including English, French, German, Spanish and Italian – while voice recognition is supported in seven – English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Dutch.
The new generation navigation system also allows USB connectivity for portable audio devices. Furthermore, DVDs can be played on the centrally mounted navigation screen (when the car is stationary), while external audio and video devices can be connected via the VTR connections that are found in the central storage box.
In terms of its mechanical specification, the Black Edition matches the standard 370Z. That means a 3.7-litre 24-valve twin cam V6 developing 328PS and a limited top speed of 155mph and a 0-62 mph time of 5.3 seconds (5.6 seconds for the automatic version). The 2010 model year update means the 370Z is now fully compliant with forthcoming Euro 5 emission legislation.
Exemplary levels of handling and grip are assured by the focused rear-wheel drive chassis which features fully independent suspension, powerful upgraded brakes and precise speed sensitive power steering.
Since its launch in June 2009, more than 1,050 examples of the 370Z have been sold across Europe, an exceptional achievement for a niche product in extremely challenging market conditions. The car’s largest market to date has been the UK, followed by France and Germany.
“The ‘story of Z’ is full of positives, with success not just in the sales charts all over the world but on racetracks and at award ceremonies, too. The 370Z Black Edition is a fitting tribute to a great car,” said Vincent Wijnen, Nissan’s European Vice President for Marketing.
Customers can order the 370Z Black Edition from all Nissan High Performance Centres and throughout the dealer network with deliveries starting in April.
Prices start from – £33,645 for the manual and £35,045 for the automatic transmission (prices include £750 showroom tax which comes into effect on 1 April 2010).
– By: Kap Shah