The "And in other news..." thread

[PsychoMouse]

But the King does own all the swans in the UK.

Yes, I was going to mention this, about how writing to the King isn’t the most absurd thing ever.

Urban myth.

The King owns all unmarked mute swans in open water in the UK, but the only exercises ownership on certain stretches and tributaries of the River Thames around Windsor.

A pond in Gloucestershire is fair game should anybody fancy a swan sandwich, especially if its a Whooper swan.

Ridiculous that somebody can claim ownership of wild animals anyway.

 

[edwin_m]

These swan groups will have to cool it or they'll end up fowl of the beaks.

Why can't swans have an online meeting? Because they're all mute.

 

[AM9]

Pedant alert:

Actually 'mute swans' aren't mute, - according to Google, they make "an explosive snorting or hissing when threatened or disturbed". So they are well suited to online meetings, - especially on social media.

 

[GusB]

Pedant alert:

Actually 'mute swans' aren't mute, - according to Google, they make "an explosive snorting or hissing when threatened or disturbed". So they are well suited to online meetings, - especially on social media.

But do they have the authority?

 

[AM9]

But do they have the authority?

Only if Jackie Weaver says so.

 

[najaB]

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs brought to justice:

A man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs, causing a police panic about Easter, has been convicted in court.

Joby Pool was surrounded by a mountain of the foil-wrapped chocolate when police caught up with him at the weekend.

Recognising he was foiled too, he surrendered to officers with his hands up, prosecutors said.

He is due to be sentenced in Crown Court next month.

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs convicted

The 32-year-old surrenders to police with his hands up, a court hears.

www.bbc.com

 

[birchesgreen]

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs brought to justice:

They cracked the case eh?

 

[Purple Train]

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs brought to justice:

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs convicted

The 32-year-old surrenders to police with his hands up, a court hears.

www.bbc.com

Glad to see him getting his just desserts.

 

[Strat-tastic]

They cracked the case eh?

Hark at you with your corny yolks!

 

[Peter C]

I for one thought they were absolutely egg-scellent!

-Peter

 

[AlterEgo]

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs brought to justice:

Man who stole 200,000 Cadbury Creme Eggs convicted

The 32-year-old surrenders to police with his hands up, a court hears.

www.bbc.com

The police are celebrating sweet success.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

This particular thread has very rapidly taken an
eggs-straordinary turn for the worse!

 

[AlterEgo]

This particular thread has very rapidly taken an
eggs-straordinary turn for the worse!

Don’t be too quick to criticise - some of us are already walking on eggshells!

 

[MotCO]

Recognising he was foiled too, he surrendered to officers with his hands up, prosecutors said.

The joker got in before the forum posters.

 

[edwin_m]

That plan came to a sticky end.

 

[swt_passenger]

This particular thread has very rapidly taken an
eggs-straordinary turn for the worse!

In court I bet he says there were eggstenuating circumstances.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

It looks like my old school has hired Sir Humphrey Appleby to write their recruitment adverts:

The text in their tweet ( pictured below with the main building of the school ) reads: "We are seeking a Grounds Maintenance Operative with a Horticultural or/and Arboricultural specialisation to join our team and support the upkeep of our beautiful grounds."

Translation: "We are looking for a gardener."

 

[edwin_m]

Presumably they are expected to utilize the ground relocation implement.

 

[MotCO]

Presumably they are expected to utilize the ground relocation implement.

Why don't you call a spade, a spade?

 

[brad465]

Bolton's new stadium name is creating amusement:

Bolton Wanderers fans poke fun at stadium's new sponsorship name

The Toughsheet Community Stadium name has prompted amusement and disbelief in equal measure.

www.bbc.co.uk

Bolton Wanderers stadium's new "tongue in cheek" name has been a hard one for fans to ignore, prompting chuckles and disbelief in equal measure.
The club have announced they are delighted to have agreed a deal with local building manufacturer Toughsheet.
It means the League One side will be playing at the Toughsheet Community Stadium for the next five years.
The company's boss said the announcement had been taken in the spirit of "schoolboy humour".
Managing director Doug Mercer told the Bolton News: "We're happy to have a bit of fun with it. Obviously the brand name is a bit tongue-in-cheek, a bit schoolboy humour.
"I can't wait to see them try and make each other say it on Sky Sports. It'll be a great laugh."

'Seriously?'​

Bolton said the partnership with the company, based in Westhoughton, represents the largest sponsorship deal in the club's history.
But news of the ground's latest moniker has been a hard one to take for some supporters, after less remarkable spells as the Reebok and most recently the University of Bolton Stadium.
One said: "Is this true? Seriously is this true?" with another joking: "Is it April 1st?"
Another tweeted: "Oh Bolton. Bolton. Bolton. What have you done? You've certainly got people talking. However, it'll always be the Reebok."
However, many simply took the opportunity to embrace the joke, with one fan adding: "If people don't like it, it's toughsheet."

 

[Pete_uk]

All kicking off in Plymouth.

'Man hit by car'
'The man is not happy'

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Bolton's new stadium name is creating amusement:

Bolton Wanderers fans poke fun at stadium's new sponsorship name

The Toughsheet Community Stadium name has prompted amusement and disbelief in equal measure.

www.bbc.co.uk

When i first saw this, I wondered it the new sponsor was the manufacturer of Izal toilet tissue.

 

[Lost property]

Well let's face it....what could possibly go wrong !....everybody knows a Silva compass, and paper, for goodness sake ! OS maps are just so retro and passe...

Smartphone warning after Lake District walker's 'lucky escape'

Mountain rescue chiefs say the man got lost in the Lake District after relying on Google Maps.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[A Challenge]

Well let's face it....what could possibly go wrong !....everybody knows a Silva compass, and paper, for goodness sake ! OS maps are just so retro and passe...

Smartphone warning after Lake District walker's 'lucky escape'

Mountain rescue chiefs say the man got lost in the Lake District after relying on Google Maps.

www.bbc.co.uk

While I have no problems personally with using my phone for a map, I wouldn't want to try walking away from roads anywhere just on Google maps - my normal map source doesn't really have terrain data properly so is not really suitable for very long hikes or planning routes, but works perfectly well most of the time with much better detail that Google (though I'm not going to say it replaces a back-up paper map if it's not somewhere I know)

 

[Lost property]

While I have no problems personally with using my phone for a map, I wouldn't want to try walking away from roads anywhere just on Google maps - my normal map source doesn't really have terrain data properly so is not really suitable for very long hikes or planning routes, but works perfectly well most of the time with much better detail that Google (though I'm not going to say it replaces a back-up paper map if it's not somewhere I know)

Which is the whole point really. Google is fine for suburbia, but, it's not for the wilderness. True, there is Gov't kit available which does the job very well, but, Joe Bloggs isn't likely to have access to it. And besides which, a map and compass are basic essentials. What the report doesn't say, but alludes to, is, he doesn't appear to have been carrying another basic requirement... overnight survival kit and supplies either.

 

[ABB125]

For me, an OS map or equivalent (whether in physical or electronic form) is essential for almost all outdoor exploration outside of suburbia. How anyone could think otherwise I'd beyond me (though I shouldn't really be surprised should I... )

Exceptions are my local area, where even if I don't know exactly where I am it doesn't take too long to follow a path until I get to somewhere I recognise, or short walks where due to the terrain you can pretty much always see the way you've come and where you're going.

 

[Ediswan]

Which is the whole point really. Google is fine for suburbia, but, it's not for the wilderness. True, there is Gov't kit available which does the job very well, but, Joe Bloggs isn't likely to have access to it. And besides which, a map and compass are basic essentials.

For those who do prefer an electronic map, Ordnance Survey is available. That has the same information as a paper map. But of course, also carry the paper map plus compass, and know how to use them.

Edit: On the bright side, magentic variation in the UK is currently negligible. I can recall it being 12 degrees.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Which is the whole point really. Google is fine for suburbia, but, it's not for the wilderness. True, there is Gov't kit available which does the job very well, but, Joe Bloggs isn't likely to have access to it. And besides which, a map and compass are basic essentials. What the report doesn't say, but alludes to, is, he doesn't appear to have been carrying another basic requirement... overnight survival kit and supplies either.

Even in built up areas the phone mapping cannot be completely relied on; I have had cases where the little red dot showing where the map thinks we are to be in a nearby place where we were not - and even moving along a different path from the one we were actually on.

 

[D6130]

I use mapy.cz....an excellent on-line map resource from the Czech Republic which covers virtually the whole world in far more detail than Google Maps and shows many - but not all - footpaths in detail. If you enlarge the maps with your fingers, they will show contour lines and if you tap any two points with outstretched fingers they will show you the straight line distance in kilometres between those points. Not quite as detailed as the Ordnance Survey app of course but, unlike the latter, it's free.

 

[Ediswan]

I use mapy.cz....an excellent on-line map resource from the Czech Republic which covers virtually the whole world in far more detail than Google Maps and shows many - but not all - footpaths in detail. If you enlarge the maps with your fingers, they will show contour lines and if you tap any two points with outstretched fingers they will show you the straight line distance in kilometres between those points. Not quite as detailed as the Ordnance Survey app of course but, unlike the latter, it's free.

That is using OpenStreetMap data. And probably SRTM for contours.



https://www.usgs.gov/centers/eros/s...ation-shuttle-radar-topography-mission-srtm-1

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) was flown aboard the space shuttle Endeavour February 11-22, 2000. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) participated in an international project to acquire radar data which were used to create the first near-global set of land elevations.