Interesting Links for 18-03-2018

[andrewducker]

UK sets new wind power record as turbines deliver 14 gigawatts for first time – 37 per cent of nation's electricity

(tags: electricity windpower UK renewables )

Transgender people are born that way, have different brains

(tags: brain transgender lgbt )

Soft drink manufacturers have been removing sugar. Some people aren't happy about it

(tags: sugar tax health uk )

Russian spy poisoning: Novichok expert says non-state actor couldn't carry out attack

(tags: Russia poison )

This Is What The Northern Lights Look Like From Inside a U-2 “Dragon Lady” Spyplane

(tags: auroraborealis space )

Acas conciliators vote for industrial action. WHO WILL MEDIATE?

(tags: unions funny )

New smoke alarm rules to apply to all homes in Scotland

(tags: scotland fire safety )

Comments

smoke alarm rules

[alithea]

I better buy some new alarms then, I guess - I've got one smoke alarm and a carbon monoxide alarm but they are both more than 10 years old. I wonder if I need a separate one in my living room given it's off the hall and the furthest point of it is less than 10 metres from the hall one... Also, how many times the Boy can manage to set off a heat alarm in the kitchen!

Re: smoke alarm rules

[andrewducker]

Yeah, I'm going to see if I can get a fitter to outfit the flat in some way.

[cmcmck]

The fact that we are born that way and have different brains is hardly news to me! :o)

[cyprinella]

I hate when soft drink companies do that and don't clearly label it on the front of the package. Yeah, it may be in the ingredients but I don't expect them to have changed from the last 20 years. A ginger ale I used to buy did that. I opened a can and found it undrinkable. Looked at the ingredients and realized it was all undrinkable because I hate the taste of sugar substitutes. I guess it did the sugar tax purpose because I stopped buying it altogether. (now I make my own)

[lilysea]

There is a need for sugary soft drinks in first aid kits for people who are having life-threatening low blood sugar (Diabetics). Fanta is the drink my first aid instructor told us to have in our kit as it has the most sugar per mouthful, and when someone is about to go into a coma from low blood sugar, you may only get one or two mouthfuls into them.

I don't drink sugary soft drinks (gives me headaches/migraines and also I don't like the taste), but I hope they don't get rid of all of them as they are good in a first aid emergency.

[andrewducker]

Oh yes, hopefully not. If nothing else I'd expect the "sports drinks" to want to continue to be sugary, and therefore pay the extra tax.

[redbird]

Based on the linked article, some drink manufacturers have reformulated with less sugar, rather than none, plus artificial sweeteners. It's definitely worth checking what's in the first aid kit, given this.

The linked article says that the company wouldn't put "now with worse flavour" on the label, but I've seen plenty of packages that say things like "now with less sugar" or "reduced calories" (does "fewer kJ have the same marketing appeal?).

[danieldwilliam]

I expect we'll see a high of 40% of UK electricity coming from wind next winter.

After that a bit of a slowdown in proportionate load. I think wind will see a little bit of a deployment slowdown in the UK following changes in the support mechanism and the availability of grid connections followed by a gradual increase in the use of electricity for transport.