Aggregator

Our thoughts are with those who have lost a loved one

Another 240 migrants arrived in Kent after illegally crossing the Channel over the weekend, meaning at least 881 arrived during Mr Burnham's first seven days as PM.

270,000 people have been displaced by wildfires in France and Spain, reports the Guardian. A wildfire even forced evacuations in Scotland. And wildfires "have now scorched four million acres of land in the U.S.," reports NPR, as tens of millions of people in North America "are continuing to endure hazardous smoke from out of control wildfires burning across Canada and the Western U.S." At America's National Interagency Fire Center, NPR's wildfire correspondent says all of America's firefighting resources have now been deployed across the country. "So if we get another big fire, we're in trouble... International aid could be harder to come by if the situation in Southern Europe gets worse and firefighters are going to be needed there." Meanwhile Toronto was blanketed this week "with eye-watering, cough-inducing soot," writes a climate-change reporter for the Toronto Star newspaper, "briefly giving us the worst air quality in the world." But looking to the future after a wildfire that's 50% larger than any in Ontario's history (315,000 hectares or 778,331 acres), he had this to say about the eye-watering smoke. "It will be back." The article's headline warned of "Our smoke-filled future" and how Canada "must prepare for bigger wildfires, every summer — forever." Even if global carbon emissions were cut dramatically, so long as any greenhouse gases are being put into the atmosphere, climate scientists say the world will continue to get hotter. And as the temperature rises, the forests dry out and the wildfires will get bigger, stronger and more frequent. "It's not going to get better. It's going to get worse," said Edward Struzik, a fellow with the Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy at Queen's University and the author of Dark Days at Noon: the Future of Fire . "These fires aren't going away. Toronto is going to get smoke every summer...." The best solution would have been to dramatically cut emissions years ago. The harsh scientific reality is there's nothing we can do to stop wildfire smoke from blanketing cities for a few days every summer — and it's going to continue for decades to come. We're all going to need to buy air purifiers and masks and get used to it.... "The idea that we can thin our way through the boreal forest boggles the mind," [says Zeke Hausfather, a climate scientist at Berkeley Earth, an independent non-profit research organization]. "There aren't enough people in Canada to do that." The boreal forest in Canada is an enormous and largely roadless expanse bigger than the entire European Union. In comparison, America's much smaller forests are criss-crossed by roads, making firefighter access much quicker and easier. And the nature of the forests is fundamentally different as well, said Hausfather, who wrote an article summarizing research on the subject. "Western U.S. forests have evolved for frequent low-level fires that burn out the undergrowth — usually every five to 30 years," he said. "Historically, before fire suppression, fires would burn through, and they wouldn't actually kill the trees. They'd just kill smaller trees and clear out the brush." "The boreal forest is a fundamentally different beast," he said. "It's an ecosystem designed to burn." With smaller, more densely packed trees, the boreal is wetter and colder and doesn't burn anywhere near as often — every 100 to 200 years on average, Hausfather said. But when fire does erupt, it's often much more intense, burning up into the canopy and levelling everything in its path... Clearing out the dead wood on the ground wouldn't prevent, or even slow, the canopy fires that sweep the boreal, said Hausfather.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

JONATHAN McEVOY: Lucky, lucky, Lando. Not that world champion Norris was other than the fastest man in the Hungarian Grand Prix and should have won it on his own.

The Atomic Kitten star, 45, began dating Paolo last year after they met while filming the E4 series Celebs Go Dating.

JONATHAN McEVOY IN BUDAPEST: Hamilton fell 50 points behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli by finishing fifth following a curious late strategy call that cost him a possible second place.

The 31-year-old was pushing for a dramatic solo stage win on the descent from the Col de Sarenne toward Alpe d'Huez when he misjudged a fast right-hand bend.

He said that Wethersfield is the "wrong" location for the facility

The couple set the internet ablaze when Pete hard-launched his relationship in a string of loved-up snaps following months of speculation.

The celebrity chef, 59, is well known for his no-nonsense attitude and use of explicit language, which are regularly shown in his shows.

Katie Price is continuing to stick by her conman husband Lee Andrews as she was seen with her wedding rings firmly on during an outing on Saturday.

America's garbage trucks can do more than just collect trash, reports Newsweek. They may also help identify code violations using AI. Officials in Cape Coral, Florida, recently considered equipping sanitation trucks with AI-powered cameras that would photograph properties as crews complete their normal collection routes. The system would have been designed to identify potential issues such as overgrown lawns, peeling paint, and illegal dumping, and to flag violations so the city staff can review them later before taking enforcement action... However, in a statement on July 13, Cape Coral officials said it would not be moving forward with the camera technology, citing cost issues and insufficient benefits. "Claims suggesting that this technology would automatically identify, cite or fine residents are inaccurate," the statement also noted... Cape Coral officials say that a camera system in the future would assist — not replace — human code enforcement officers, and employees will review any AI-generated alerts before violations are issued. "Even if such a system were to be considered in the future, any potential code violations would require review and verification by a Code Compliance Officer before any enforcement action could be taken," the organization wrote. But Cape Coral, Florida "is not the first city to explore the technology," the article notes. AI imaging systems developed by City Detect have already been deployed in several municipalities. According to the company's published case studies, Stockton, California, used the platform to analyze nearly 40,000 parcels, capturing almost 200,000 images while identifying thousands of potential code issues. Cathedral City, California, has also used the technology to assist code enforcement, while Dallas approved funding for a similar program pending final implementation. Thanks to Slashdot reader fjo3 for sharing the article.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The Royal Family's future relies on the William and Charles having a 'joint approach' when it comes to Harry's visits, a royal expert has claimed.

Home is the hero. He returns in spectral form but the welcome is substantial, loud in cheers and heartfelt in word and tone.

The 47-year-old Dawson's Creek alum and artist, 37, attended a Ferragamo pop-up event in Bridgehampton, New York on Friday in coordinating navy blue outfits.

The former UTV and BBC Radio Ulster presenter conducted many high-profile interviews, including with an eight-year-old Rory McIlroy as the young golfer chipped balls into a washing machine.

The woman who used a plastic doll to fake being a new mother has insisted she only resorted to the deception because she could not reveal she suffered a miscarriage.

The pub features in the Domesday book - which could make it almost 1000 years old!

Police have launched a manhunt for 21-year-old suspect Abdul B, after a van was rammed into a crowd. One person has been killed, and 16 others are injured.

You've worked hard and made sacrifices in your life. Now it's time to enjoy your time and put yourself before your children or other dependants. So says Caroline Tapken who is semi-retired.