OCAD Toronto Bike Rack Competition

7 more with details here:

http://www.ocad.ca/about_ocad/articles/headlines/20090306_bike_stand_competition.htm

The pollution problem was never about clean cars...

"Just 15 of the world's biggest ships may now emit as much pollution as all the world's 760m cars"

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/04/cargo-ship-emissions-more-than-760-million-cars.php

It's always been about large scale transportation and package movement. Even in city, large transport trucks burn massive amounts of fuel as compared to even a Hummer. I'm sure there's a good chart for this somewhere... I'll look around and post when available...

London Velodrome

http://www.forestcityvelodrome.ca/index.php

Look at the slopes at this place!



So, I've never been, but really want to try at some point... Not sure how much I'd like it, but certainly would like to give it a go. And apparently they have electronic timers now too for lap counts... a lesson on how to do it would be good too.. I'm sure there are some general rules that can be applied.




Can I use my own bike on the track?

A bike acceptable for use on the track cannot have brakes and must have a fixed gear. There has to be enough clearance for a 2x4 wooden stud set on its end to fit between the bottom of the pedal and the ground when the bike is upright and the pedal is in its lowest position. The bike must have dropped handlebars. And if it has quick release hubs the levers must be taped to the frame. Track bikes of various sizes are available for rental.

This track is banked more steeply than most other tracks in North America. When riding, you will need to maintain a speed of at least 30 km/h to avoid slipping and falling in the corners.

I love the topic of this article...

Too bad it's poorly researched and written; just a throwaway piece that I feel shouldn't be...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/14/health/14klas.html?nl=8hlth&emc=hltha1

I like what it addresses.. old-fashion elevator etiquette... I remember walking with an ex-girlfriend a long time ago down the street and asking her to switch hands; asking her to take the inside of the sidewalk while I walk on the outside... "I'm a bit traditional, in that sense".. I then remember trying to cover up the word traditional, which, with my knowledge of this girl so far, would conjures up barefoot in front of the stove type images in her... After successfully (I thought) retreating from something like that, it brought into question the entire feminist movement, at least for me... I've read a lot about it since then, but never really from the perspective of how it affects children, specifically young boys today. How should they be taught? Does not teaching this etiquette really spill over into sex? potentially aggressive behaviours? am I blowing it out of proportion? So, anyway, that's something I'd like to read up on... just not from this article, which seems to miss-mash it's way from uninformed opinion to uninformed opinion.

Taser use needs to be equivalent to using a gun

It's gonna be a long day today (straight to class after work until 10), so I'll try to get a few posts outta the way from here at work! There's some cool stuff out there that I wouldn't mind chatting about!..


... a little dated posting this, but might as well... it's something that I feel relatively strongly about, not sure how to change, but shouldn't go away.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2009/04/08/taser-2008.html

The most extreme example is an incident in southern B.C., where three officers from the Ridge Meadows RCMP detachment fired a Taser nine times on an unarmed person.

I know police safety in these situations is always a careful balance, and obviously erring on the side of caution is most likely the right move. I'm not really blaming the cops here.. I think it's the way Tasers have been introduced to the force, and how they are currently handled, managed, and written up after an incident. The perception of pulling out your Taser gun needs to change.. its use needs to feel equivalent to that of using a gun; if you use it, you may kill the person. As such, everytime the Taser is used it should be written up in the officers' report including all witnesses, etc... It is clear that these can not be taken lightly anymore.