Words About Things

I don’t know a great deal about Formula 1 but I know its doesn’t seem as exciting as it used to be. Maybe it is one of those things that become more interesting the more you know about it (I’m assured that American Football is actually interesting if you know what is going on). I’m hesitant to say this because I don’t want to seem morbid or heartless but… I used to enjoy it more back when they crashed more often. I don’t want to see anyone injured or worse but I also don’t want to see a race where the final order is settled upon just after the first corner.

This is why I was excited to read that David Coulthard has predicted that next weeks Abu Dhabi grand prix is going to be a spectacular one:

“The Yas Marina Circuit will really sort out the men from the boys. It will really surprise a lot of the guys, just how tight it is in places, drivers have got used to having tracks with lots of run-off and then they go to Suzuka, which is a track with not a lot of run-off, and kids are throwing it in the wall – we need an element of that in Formula One to maintain respect for the people watching, that if you drop it you are going to have a big shunt.”

Perhaps then we will see some exciting action like back in the good old days. Check out the video below from 1995, it shows Coulthard being squeezed two cars near the beginning of the Monaco track. Whilst Coulthard is catapulted into the air Damon Hill (from who’s car the footage is filmed) takes the lead.

Three students at the prestigious Cambridge University have been criticized for featuring photos of scantily clad girls on the site of their student newspaper. ‘The Tab’ has been criticized for its ‘Tab Totty’ page which features female university students in their underwear. Even the Daily Mail had the cheek to criticize the site which is currently down presumably due to excessive demand.

Taymoor Atighetchi, Jack Rivlin and George Marangos Gilks set up The Tab for students at the university and accept submissions from other students. The site aims to entertain and the editors claim that their aim was not to be sexist. They say that The Tab is provided as an antidote to the formal tone of the other University papers available.

“We are all just a bunch of student enjoying a bit of harmless fun. The girls who posed up are people we know from Cambridge we all had fun doing the shots. Most of the objections come from elitists who think that think that tabloid entertainment is beneath them.”

George Marangos Gilks

Photographer Katy King who took the controversial photos stands by the feature:  “These girls have the freedom to do and say what they want, and they exercised that freedom by doing Tab Totty. It is a shame that girls have to get their kit off to generate feminist debate”.

Members of the student union have called for the paper to be axed as they believe it plays into the idea of women as sexual objects. Members of staff at the University are said to be carefully studying the photos in order to see if any action needs to be taken.

Running a car can be quite a drain on your finances. As well as road tax, petrol and a yearly m.o.t there are always the unexpected costs that appear at inopportune moments. I drove off from the petrol station last month wondering what was making a noise on the roof of the car, it turned out to be the petrol cap which was surprisingly expensive to replace.

A recent survey has shown that 61% of car owners in Britain have changed their driving habits in order to save money. Whilst we love having our own cars many are deciding to cut down on journeys and a third of those asked had started car sharing. 95% said that they would walk more if they gave up their cars although that seems like a strange question to me, who are the 5% who wouldn’t walk any more without a car?

The rise in car hire by the hour schemes has meant that some have chosen to not own a car but to lease one when needed. This option is best suited to those in cities who can rely on public transport day-to-day, in rural areas not having a car can leave people reliant on sparse bus services. Car sharing is also a good way of keeping down costs as well as reducing pollution.

The average driver in Britain spends around £106 per month keeping their car running, this is a little less than the European average of £126. This figure is sure to rise as petrol prices increase and local governments try to dissuade people from using their cars by increasing tolls and parking costs.

When Ricky Gervais invented Flanimals he had no idea that one day they would be doing their bit to save the world. Gervais invented the characters 25 years ago to make his nephew laugh. Since then Blimble Sprent, Plumboid Doppler, Sprot Guzzlor and the rest have become the stars of bestselling books and a forthcoming movie. Now they are doing their bit to help the victims of HIV/AIDS by appearing on a series of charity Christmas cards.

The cards are part of a series of charity gifts being sold this Christmas by Oxfam as part of their Oxfam Unwrapped campaign. The money raised will go towards helping to prevent the spread of AIDS in developing countries.

“Everyone thought Flanimals were useless – I did. But this year they’re helping Oxfam change the world. There are five Flanimal gifts to choose from and the money goes to different things. It might improve sanitation – give someone clean water. It might give people a voice if they’re oppressed. It might help general humanitarian work work or it might go towards the prevention of HIV and Aids.”

Oxfam also sell less traditional gifts such as clean drinking water or a goat to help families in developing countries. More info can be found on their site here.