Recently in Linkage Category

While I wasn't alive to see him race, I've read about and seen enough of his career to know how fabulous Gilles Villeneuve was.

Today, 25 years ago, Formula One lost one of its greatest ever exponents, a man whose modest record belied an impact on the sport so profound that his memory lives on today. He combined the best qualities of Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna and Juan Pablo Montoya - a dazzling talent, an unquenchable spirit and desire, and a magnetic charisma that attracted millions of fans. He also possessed an honesty and honour from a bygone age - traits which were to be contributing factors in his death.

That man was Gilles Villeneuve, whose brief but glorious career was ended on 8 May 1982, in a horrific accident during qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder.

This review of his life sums up just what made him a great driver. (BBC Sport)

This is brilliant: enter anything and it will sing it to you.

Those that know me well, know I love a good bit of maths.

The New York Times has been publishing columns by the wonderful Steven Strogatz for a good while now. They are thoughtful, clever and very well written - as you'd expect:

Steven Strogatz is a professor of applied mathematics at Cornell University. In 2007 he received the Communications Award, a lifetime achievement award for the communication of mathematics to the general public. He previously taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received the E.M. Baker Award, an institute-wide teaching prize selected solely by students. "Chaos," his series of 24 lectures on chaos theory, was filmed and produced in 2008 by The Teaching Company. He is the author, most recently, of "The Calculus of Friendship," the story of his 30-year correspondence with his high school calculus teacher.

Unfortunately, I can't really see any of the newspapers in this country doing anything like this in the near future - but while Steven's articles are available online, I won't be worrying too much about this country's lack of numerical knowledge.

Link: New York Times - All Of Steven Strogatz' posts

NASA's latest space telescope, the Solar Dynamics Observatory, is delivering unprecedented images of our local star. The telescope was launched Feb. 11. NASA released the first tremendously exciting data from the mission today.

"These initial images show a dynamic sun that I had never seen in more than 40 years of solar research," said Richard Fisher, director of the Heliophysics Division at NASA, in a release. "SDO will change our understanding of the sun and its processes, which affect our lives and society. This mission will have a huge impact on science, similar to the impact of the Hubble Space Telescope on modern astrophysics."

The sun's internal dynamics were the subject of intense interest over the last few years as the normal waxing and waning of solar activity did not follow past cycles as closely as anticipated. The solar minimum of 2008 stretched deep into 2009, raising questions about how well we understand the complex internal dynamics that drive sun spots, solar flares and coronal-mass ejections.

If the video link isn't working, use the original link below.

Link: Wired Science

Never one to miss a trick, IKEA have designed kitchens to suit our potential leader's personalities.

Link: IKEA's Political Kitchens

As you'd expect, the parties are gunning hard for your vote. Or so you'd think. I haven't had a single candidate visit me or talk to me - barely anything. I've had a couple of 'personal' letters written to me and a couple of thousand other people from both David Cameron and Gordon Brown, and there have been some leaflets, but nothing much.

So, it's quite interesting to see that not that far from me in LS27 (the newly created Morley & Outwood constituency), some people have been inundated! The map shows a whopping 5 nearby.

Inspired by the #uksnow Twitter map we would like you to help us build up a picture of the level of electioneering across the UK. On a scale of 1 to 5 (see the key below right for suggestions) give each party that is campaigning near you a score for the intensity of its efforts.

Link: The Guardian's Election Coverage Map

Later this month, my favourite group of all time, The Divine Comedy - well, Neil Hannon - releases a new album, Bang Goes The Knighthood.

The first single will be The Indie Disco. And it's a cracker!

You can watch the video here (and here, in HD)

I actually cannot wait for the album...

St Mary's in the Isles of Scilly has just nine miles of road, no roundabouts or traffic lights. However, the island noew has it's first-ever speed gun in a bid to crack down on hasty drivers - even though most of its 823 vehicles would be hard-pressed to truly exceed even half of the island's speed limit.

Introduced on Wednesday in a bid to bring the island up to date with UK driving laws, the speed gun has been greeted with a mixture of scepticism and shoulder-shrugging acceptance.

"We don't even own a car and usually travel around the island on bicycle," said Bryony Lishman, co-proprietor of the island's Mincarlo Guest House. "It's quite hard to break the 60mph speed limit here. In fact on most of the islands here you'd be hard pressed to move beyond second gear."

Official figures showed that fastest vehicle clocked since its introduction was a lonely moped whizzing by at a paltry 34mph. Even the Devon and Cornwall Constabulary appeared somewhat perplexed when The Independent broke the news to its residing press officer yesterday. "Speed gun in St Mary's? Really? Where did you hear that?" the spokesman enquired. "It's usually such a sedate island where everyone behaves themselves and there's hardly ever any traffic. Apart from during the summer, there's rarely ever the need for more than two police officers on the island at all."

Yet police remain adamant of the speed gun's necessity. Sergeant Charlie Craig said it would be used to enforce the laws of the land which, he said, still applied to an outpost 28 miles off Land's End. "There is an element that thinks Scilly isn't in the UK and the laws of the UK don't apply on Scilly," he argued. "Sometimes people need reminding that the laws of the land do apply here."

The gun, he added, was imported on to the island in the wake of concerns over the increasing numbers of speeding cars as well as feedback from the island's visitors. "We have a very friendly, very relaxed way of dealing with things, but there are still things that are unacceptable and we will enforce them," he said. "Driving too fast in certain areas, such as around the school, will be dealt with."

Conceding that it was unlikely that motorists could build a head of steam to break the speed limit, Sgt Craig added that the gun would be used for gathering evidence of anti-social driving in certain areas, particularly the island's main centre in Hugh Town.

"It is very unlikely that the radar gun would be used to prosecute. It is an evidence-gathering thing. If someone was driving at 40mph through Hugh Town we would clock it and say it might not be illegal but it is not a considerate way to drive."

Police Community Support Officer Shirley Graham added that the speed gun will be used for monitoring drivers, collecting data and educating motorists. "There is a perception of speeding on Scilly but we have got the national speed limit here and to go 60mph or over is impossible.

"We do get a lot of complaints - it is one of our priorities. We try to educate the drivers to the conditions of the roads - 25mph would be ideal."

But the reception among islanders remained mild. "I suppose you do get the odd person driving like a muppet," said Rhiannon Manning, 34, who works at the island's local taxi office. "Most of the lanes here are built for horse and carriages. There's no traffic and the only things that really blocks roads are the bin men. There's a road in the centre of the island, but it winds so heavily if you did try to creep beyond 60mph you'd probably crash.

"That said, it's probably a good deterrent for dangerous driving in the long-run, wouldn't you agree?" she said, seeking the thoughts of her 56-year-old mother. The response? "Don't ask me, dear. I never go beyond 20."

Link: The Independent (No roundabouts, just nine miles of road - and now one speed gun)

oporopolist (n.): fruit-seller. "Brian found the oporopolist's genetically modified produce very tasty, but he contemplated the wisdom of the triangular grapefruit."

I have adopted this word.

Link: Save The Words

Been meaning to post this for ages...

The Guardian's Jonathan Glancey wrote:

In some areas of Britain, you'll see mobile phone masts in plain view in all their stark, skeletal nakedness. In others, well, you won't see them at all. Why? Because they've been hidden in the clockfaces of town halls (Hungerford, Berkshire), or in street signs (Northumberland Avenue, Westminster), while out of town they are commonly disguised as trees. In talking to and txt msging one another we . . . talk to the trees. For seven years Robert Voit has photographed these bizarre artificial trees - including faux cypress, pine, palm and, in Arizona, cactus. Many, as you can see, are simply funny. Cartoonish. Awkward. Outlandish. Kitsch. They are meant to blend in with their natural surroundings, yet, as Voit's eyecatching photos prove, they rarely do. On the other hand, would you want the world's landscapes pockmarked with mobile phone masts?

It's a tough choice - take a look at some of the solutions. There are a few really good ideas but many clunky ones due to the sheer size of the things compared to their surroundings.