It’s been a busy two weeks. Two shows have been transmitted. So, what happened during these two shows? Well I’ll tell you.

FRIDAY 13/11/2009

Friday the 13th. The day associated with everything crashing around you. Strangely, for the Friday Night Lounge, that wasn’t the case.

The show went well. Although, I did notice that the mp3 CD problem wasn’t to do with the CD decks. It was the CDs themselves. The discs were brand spanking new, so I’m assuming it was something to do with the burning settings.

Anyway, inbetween playing music from the Kaiser Chiefs, Happy Mondays, Abba and Donna Lewis, we talked about: Didier Drogba’s generous donation towards an Ivory Coast hospital; a robber sending his own mugshot to the police; why 30,000 people in UK still watch television in black and white; and a proposed 93 page guide for police officers telling them how to ride a bicycle.

Of course, along with that, we had the usual Trivia’s Cocktail. This week it was about Formula One, the connection between the FISA-FOCA war of the 1980s and the FIA-FOTA row, was they both threatened breakaway championships.

Plus, That’s From this week was an easy one. Goldfinger by Shirley Bassey from, you’ve guessed it, Goldfinger – the third Bond film staring Sean Connery.

That was last week’s edition. What I didn’t know was that the next week would be a bumpy ride.

FRIDAY 20/11/2009

Waking up to only 5 hours of sleep; being soaked while waiting for a bus; stuck in a jammed supermarket car park; along with a bad week in general, I wasn’t wanting anything else to go wrong.

Arrived at the studio around at 6:45pm. Began to set everything up. After that, and a few phone calls to friends about other affairs to kill the time later, I was all ready to go. The great thing about being in the studio with an hour or so to showtime, is that you get to relax and ponder on things. When you’ve done everything you needed to that is.

And with Children In Need being on BBC 1, I was expecting a lower listener reach. I mean, who would rather listen to some nutter playing music and then chatting inbetween like a madman, when one of the biggest broadcasts on the British TV calendar is on? So, less pressure on me then. Providing it goes to plan.

9:03, Smooth Radio completes it’s hourly news bulletin. Fade out. Cue a Slow Radio West Fife jingle. Fade up the mic. “It’s Friday 20th of November. And this is the show you only listen to because the Television is broken…” I said, introducing the show before starting the theme tune. Then I did the standard procedure of outlining what was coming up on the show. Then fade out to Genie In A Bottle by Christina Aguilera.

What happened next was another example of me having a bad day. As Genie In A Bottle was about to fade out, I was about to fade up my microphone to begin discussing Children In Need. When I realised something…

On the mixing desk, at the very top, are two rows of buttons. The first row were PGM buttons. When on, whatever gets said or played, is transmitted to the listener’s headsets across the hospital. The second row were AUD buttons. These mean “audition” and when they are on, whatever gets said or played can be heard in the studio.

The PGM button on the presenter’s mic was off. It was off since I went on air.

So what the listeners heard, instead of me self-deprecating and introducing the programme, was: 30 seconds of silence and a theme tune faded up and down slightly at various points.

I normally leave it off before I go on air, so then anything unbroadcastable (like a private conversation with friends or swearing at faulty equipment) doesn’t get transmitted if I accidentally nudge the mic’s fader up.

I thought I pressed it. But in my blind panic, I obviously didn’t press the PGM button hard enough. A schoolboy error, frankly. So after Genie In A Bottle, and pressing the PGM button, I had to make the quickest introduction ever.

Apart from that, the first hour was uneventful. For once, the show was running bang on time. Unlike three to four minutes fast it usually is. Throughout the show we talked about how you can get your name translated into other languages, and find out what they mean. Along with, Crocodile Fossils and where to get a tuxedo for only £30.

Plus, this week’s That’s From returned to the adverts with Search For The Hero by M People, this appeared in the Peugeot 406 advert during the mid-1990s. And as for Trivia’s Cocktail, it was quite a fizzy one. With a single share in the company from 1919 worth $92,500 by 1997 and it’s name came from it’s medicinal ingredients. The link is of course Coca-Cola. Which reminds me, their Christmas adverts should be on soon.

It brought a bad week to a close. Thank god!

Well, hopefully I should also be starting voice-over work again. Schedule permitting. I may even put them up here for you to hear. We’ll see.

By Steven Hansen

(Photo from IGN.com)

The folks – well, geniuses, really – over at Naughty Dog have done it again. Given that Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is easily one of my favorite games of this console generation, my expectations were unreasonably high for its sequel, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Then something unbelievable happened. Uncharted 2 was released and actually managed to surpass my unreasonable expectations, which doesn’t even make sense! That’s right; Naughty Dog got it right again, surpassing the stellar original title in every way.

Uncharted 2 sets the tone early with the opening cinematic; our loveable antihero Nathan Drake awakes in a pool of his own blood on a train in a snowy mountain range, immediately realizing that very train is treacherously hanging off of a cliff, as assorted pieces of train begin falling towards him, knocking him out the back – now the bottom of the vertically hanging train, as he begins his climb back up before the train drops into oblivion.

The game rivals summer blockbusters in terms of storytelling, yet has a level of immersion the film medium can’t ever hope to attain. In fact, Uncharted 2 is much better than a summer blockbuster, as it also does well to focus on character development and dynamic relationships amidst the compelling adventure tale rife with betrayal and jaw-dropping moments. The story is something best left unspoiled. All that needs to be said is that it’s one of the best I’ve ever experienced and I couldn’t help from asking myself the completely blasphemous question “Is this better than Indiana Jones?”

(Photo from IGN.com)

One of the reasons for the compelling narrative lies in the excellent performance by the voice actors, particularly a brilliantly nuanced, spot-on performance by Nolan North as Drake. But one of the most important things to selling the character’s performances lies in the technology. Naughty Dog still has the best animations around, bar none. Yet, somehow, they’ve managed to up the ante with Uncharted 2. Such subtleties like muscle twitches and facial expressions exemplify Naughty Dog’s attention to detail, but also add to the believability of the characters, furthering the narrative.

Technology is definitely another of the many aspects Uncharted 2 prevails in. Graphically, this is arguably the best looking game ever made, and at least the best console game ever made. Lighting is just as beautiful in the sequel as in the original, but now it’s even more subtle, yet at the same time more realistic in regards to how it interacts with the environment and casts shadows. The game is so finely detailed, it’s almost impossible to say a negative thing about the graphics.

(Photo from IGN.com)

Clothing, individually moving hair, the swaying ring-necklace on Drake’s neck, snow, lush jungle life, water – it’s overwhelming how beautiful the game looks, and it’s even more impressive the beauty holds up in motion. Equally impressive is the slight blurring when aiming and looking, providing an excellent sense of depth. Not to mention the scope of the game when you arrive at a high vantage point and just stare out into the world – it’s just as beautiful and finely detailed way out of the realm of gameplay. To top it all off, I use the word “beautiful” to describe the game because it isn’t merely photorealistic, but vibrant and so full of life, with an excellent range of colors. There literally isn’t a moment in the game where whatever is on screen isn’t impressive.

Adding to that atmosphere and sense of life is the epic orchestral score, which is, once more, somehow even better than the first. One of the reasons for that is how seamlessly it’s blended into the game, while managing to stand out more than in the first. It accompanies the action and gameplay perfectly and even adds to it as the score amps up the tension perfectly during exciting moments, without getting drowned out in a hail of gunfire and explosions.

(Photo from IGN.com)

Yet, none of those perfectly executed aspects mean anything if the gameplay isn’t up to snuff. Thankfully for us, Naughty Dog didn’t miss a beat here either. The game plays similar to the first, with third-person/run-and-gun/cover-based gameplay, but it’s tightened up overall. Grenades are much easier to manage being mapped to the L2 button and not requiring the use of Sixaxis controls, and guns – including some great new ones – work better than ever. Hand-to-hand combat has also been overhauled, feeling much more visceral, much akin to common street fighting, and providing a wide variety of attack animations. Uncharted 2 also provides a stealth option this time around, though it can’t be used throughout the whole game. Still, while the one section that required complete stealth caught me a bit off-guard, the option works out well, just adding to variety in the gameplay, and it also proved a prudent tactic in eliminating several opponents before proceeding to open fire on the rest of them.

(Photo from IGN.com)

Platforming, of course, is still a key element to the game, and it’s well-paced throughout and very solid. It feels even more precise this time around, as traversing environments is loads of fun – and there are plenty of environments to traverse, as Naughty Dog takes you to a variety of distinct locales, from snowy mountains to ancient temples to lush jungles to a decaying urban city.

One of the reasons these two gameplay elements manage to surpass the first is simple, and it’s Naughty Dog’s uncanny ability to blend gameplay elements with a dynamic, cinematic experiences. The game is so active and full of life, it’s even enthralling to watch, because it really is like watching a movie. Events typically relegated to cutscenes in most games are put under your control in Uncharted 2, leading to a ridiculous amount of insanely invigorating experiences, as well as exciting set pieces.

Whether you’re controlling Drake and shooting foes while moving around – incredibly realistically, thanks to excellent physics – in a building that’s crumbling to the ground or running away from a speeding truck while blind firing, Uncharted 2 is nothing short of enthralling. In fact, there’s one segment that takes place as Drake heads to the front of a train from the back car that is by itself more impressive than most video games are in their entirety.

And if all of that wasn’t enough – and rest assured, it’s more than enough – Naughty Dog also took it upon themselves to add in a stellar multiplayer component. Not only that, but it’s one of the most fun multiplayer experiences out there, featuring both competitive and cooperative modes. The competitive modes feature your typical fare; modes such as team deathmatch, elimination, capture the treasure, and more. There is also a ranking system which allows you to purchase perks and upgrade your character with the money you get from games. For co-op, there is a survival mode that pits you and your friends against swarms and swarms of enemies that require dispatching, as well as cooperative modes, which lifts scenes from the main game, supplies you with a unique scenario or goal, and lets you have at it, while sending enemies at you from every angle. Both modes are loads of fun and require plenty of strategy.

(Photo from IGN.com)

The reason they’re so fun is that the multiplayer plays just as good as the main game – which in this case, of course, is amazing. The elements of verticality and platforming are just as prominent in multiplayer as singleplayer, which forms maps through excellent redesigns of singleplayer locales. Aside from leaving intact what makes the gameplay so fun, it provides a fresh, unique experience not common in online multiplayer today. You can play multiplayer just as you played singleplayer, which includes stealthily dropping down from above and snapping some necks, if you’d like. The multiplayer is so brilliantly entwined with the singleplayer elements that it feels like one cohesive package.

Uncharted 2 is an experience – and one that needs to be experienced not only by gamers, but by non-gamers as well. The game is closer to perfect than anything I’ve ever encountered in every single aspect of the game. Naughty Dog hit the ball out of the park with the first title, yet somehow managed to smash through the stadium lights and send the ball into orbit with this one. If you hear people proclaiming this game to literally be the greatest ever made, they’re not being hyperbolic. Unprecedented technological mastery, a terrific story and characters, an outstanding musical score, phenomenal gameplay, outstanding multiplayer – I’m running out of positively connotative adjectives.   The game is that good.

SSFUSD Under Construction

By Steven Hansen

"We have a number of students who are at the bottom levels not being served well. We need to do a better job at meeting their needs." District Superintendent Howard Cohen said.

The entire South San Francisco School District is currently under its second year of Program Improvement, a label given by the federal government to districts and schools that need to raise academic performance across various population groups. New district superintendent Howard Cohen, among others, are making the effort to move SSFUSD out of Program Improvement status.

Program Improvement status is decided by the federal government, through evaluation of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) data, mainly derived from STAR testing results, evaluated on a five-point scale, with four being “Adequate”. The federal government, through their evaluation of the AYP, is concerned with how many students are in the four and five levels. Further, they evaluate the progress – or lack thereof – across specific population groups.

The government has a 14-year plan, which started six years ago, where they expect every school district across the country to be at 100 percent level four and five test scores. An expectation which Cohen finds a bit too lofty. “That’s statistically impossible. Every year, the target moves up. We have a number of students who’re at the bottom [three, two, and one] levels not being served well. We need to do a better job at meeting their needs.”

The district is in PI due to Parkway, Spruce, Martin, and Los Cerritos’ AYP and the rest of the schools in the district needing to raise scores for at-risk subgroups. Throughout the district, African Americans, Latinos, English learners, special education, and low socioeconomic groups are struggling, though certain subgroups, such as Asians, Caucasians, and Filipinos, are scoring at acceptable levels (Advanced and Proficient).

“There’s a serious achievement gap,” Cohen said, “Each subgroup that fails to meet the government’s AYP standards, which are always moving up, gets a “No” from the government, and one “No” in any subgroup means program improvement.”

While the district’s schools performed well overall in the state Academic Performance Index by moving students from the bottom two levels to at least the third, they are not doing well by the federal government’s standards.

The at-risk populations are spread out in various numbers throughout the district. All of the schools not previously mentioned for being in PI specifically have subgroups not meeting AYP standards. The district will likely be in its third year of PI next year, where the moving target scores make it more difficult to get out of. In order to do so, one practice that must be adopted is the use of nine essential program components, which are methods of teaching and training.

“We have to use this proven research that works well with both these particular [at-risk] groups as well as all students,” Cohen said.

As for how these changes affect students, teachers are being trained to implement these instructional methods in the classroom to improve students’ ability to grasp concepts.

“It’s good for teachers to reflect on what they’re doing in the classroom, and how they can improve it,” chemistry teacher Jolene Jordan said.

“I’m proud to say we have 100 percent participation by teachers across the district. We have an intelligent teaching staff that wants to help students improve,” Cohen said.

Data will be accumulated quarterly, so the district does not need to wait until the end of the year STAR tests to gauge how the students are progressing.

save

Four hours ago – and after waiting over three years for such an opportunity – I presented and produced my first ever live radio show to patients at the Queen Margaret Hospital.

Yes, The Friday Night Lounge opened its doors for the first time on Radio West Fife. It was an interesting, yet, valuable experience for me.

The night started at around 8pm when I arrived at the hospital. For 25-30 minutes, I reviewed all my notes and prep that I made during the last 24 hours. After shedding blood, sweat and tears of compling the running order, the talk items, and the tracks I wanted to play, now was the time to start thinking about what I was intending to say.

At around 8:25, 8:30, I arrived at the studio and met up with Barclay McIntosh – my programme controller and fellow Radio West Fife presenter – to go through the various studio and security procedures.

By the time that was done, it was 8:50. Ten minutes to go. Time to set everything up. Around this time, the adrenaline begins to pump through my veins. My heart beats faster and faster. It’s almost like waiting for the five lights to go out in a Formula One race.

I check everything is ready. Songs – check. Notes – check. Water – check. Headphones – check. The backup CDs with the songs in the CD decks – check. Everything was ready. All I had to do was wait.

9:04 – the Smooth Radio news finishes. I pressed “Play 1″ hotkey on the keypad. A jingle singing “Radio-West-Fife!” blared through my headphones. Then: “It’s 4 minutes past nine. I’m Matthew Hansen. This is Radio West Fife and this is The Friday Night Lounge.” I hit “Play 2″ and our theme tune – Sunshine At Night – began playing. The Friday Night Lounge had begun.

Now, they always say that the first show is always terrible. Was it? Well, if I said it was terrible – I would be accused of being hypercritical. If I said I did great then I can be accused of arrogance.

It was neither. Neither radio gold nor radio horror. In other words, not a bad attempt at a first show.

Of course, there are areas that need improvement – both on a personal and programme level – but I can safely say that I didn’t die on my arse.

Unfortunately, you can’t hear that yourself as the automation software did not allow standard users (such as myself) to record the live show. So tonight’s Friday Night Lounge has disappeared into the radio abyss for good.

Despite this, it was great to do. Playing music from all genres and eras – from Feeling Good by Nina Simone to Maria Maria by Santana and Wyclef Jean. Then discussing Pigeon post; pupil less schools; and how brilliant the Advanced Higher drama guys at my old high school – were on Wednesday, performing their play Happy Days.

With that, “That’s From” and “Trivia’s Cocktail” in the mix, tonight’s Friday Night Lounge was an interesting programme to host and produce.

10:59 – The show ends, and I fade out back to Smooth Radio. So Young by The Corrs is finishing before the 11pm news starts. Time to pack up.

A few minutes later, I left the studio and the hospital for home. It is raining outside. The weather may be miserable but I’m not.

Despite, a somewhat, uneasy start, one thing is for sure. The Friday Night Lounge is here to stay!

watch until the end because it gets more amazing/crazier!

cdurable.info, David Naulin, le 25 octobre 2009

Contre le réchauffement climatique, la mobilisation citoyenne s’organise

350.org : quand Internet mobilise 200 000 citoyens dans le monde contre le réchauffement climatique

Le changement climatique pourrait-il susciter le premier mouvement de mobilisation citoyenne mondiale ? A quelques semaines du sommet de Copenhague, certains voient monter une vague de contestation, notamment à travers Internet, pour exiger une véritable action contre le réchauffement de la planète.

350.org : 200 000 membres dans 180 pays sur le terrain

Même si les scientifiques mettent en garde contre les raccourcis entre le réchauffement global en cours et des événements climatiques extrêmes précis ici ou là, ces derniers contribuent à une évolution de mentalités. “Il y a une prise de conscience croissante dans les pays en développement que ce problème à un impact aujourd’hui et qu’ils doivent faire quelque chose. Cette prise de conscience est particulièrement forte en Asie“, explique à l’AFP Yvo de Boer, le responsable climat de l’ONU.

Samedi (24 octobre), une “Journée d’action mondiale” préparée de longue date par le mouvement 350.org, avec quelques 5.000 événements organisés à travers la planète, a démontré que la mobilisation s’amplifie. Conçu par Bill McKibben, un militant écologiste américain, le mouvement 350.org tire son nom d’une mise en garde lancée par l’expert climatique James Hansen qui estime que la concentration de CO2 dans l’atmosphère doit être inférieure à 350 partie par million (ppm) pour éviter des catastrophes en série. La concentration actuelle est d’environ 385 ppm, et les négociations en cours visent à limiter le niveau à 450 ppm.

Lancé en mars 2008, ce réseau structuré sur Internet revendique 200.000 membres répartis dans une myriade de réseaux de mobilisation citoyenne, dans 180 pays. “Cela a dépassé nos espoirs les plus fous“, explique McKibben à l’AFP, soulignant que deux catégories de “militants” se dégagent : les jeunes ayant fait des études et les personnes appartenant à des groupes religieux. “J’étais informé du réchauffement climatique mais je ne savais pas quoi faire”, explique Gan Pei Ling, 22 ans, étudiante à l’université de Tunku Abdul Rahman, en Malaisie, qui a rejoint ce réseau et participait en début de mois aux négociations climat à Bangkok. Comme elle, les centaines de militants de la région qui se sont donné rendez-vous dans la capitale thaïlandaise voient souvent le réchauffement climatique comme une injustice envers les pauvres, et les jeunes. “Les personnes plus âgées ont l’air de ne pas s’y intéresser”, souligne Lokendra Shrestha, étudiante en sociologie au Népal, où le retrait des glaciers menace l’approvisionnement en eau d’une très large partie de l’Asie. Sur l’un des nombreux T-shirts que portent les militants lors des séances de négociations climat, on peut lire : “Quel âge auras-tu en 2050 ?”

Aux quatre coins du globe le 24 octobre… 5000 actions organisées

Voir en ligne : Consulter le site de 350.org

This blog is generally focussed on me and the brewery. That’s a conscious choice, because there are a lot of other blogs and sites that focus on other things. So yes, startingabrewery.wordpress.com is self-centered. Deal with it.

Today, however, the support goes over to Rock Art Brewery in Vermont. If you haven’t heard about this story yet, allow me to fill you in.

Rock Art Brewery is a nice little microbrewery in Morrisville, Vermont. Never heard of the brewery or the town? Or Vermont? Weird. Obviously they’re a threat to the energy drink empire that starts with M and ends with onster. (Monster, if you missed that)

Rock Art has been in operation for 10 years. Matt started the company by himself in his basement, and now they have a whopping 7 employees. For the 10 year anniversary, Matt decided to make a super hoppy, 10%, 100IBU monster of a beer, aptly named the Vermonster. And he got slapped with a Cease and Desist from Hansen, the publicly traded parent of Monster Energy.

Here’s a video with more information, starring Matt of Rock Art:

Katie over at Gonzo Gastronomy posted a great write up on this battle: “All the dishes rattle in the cupboard when the elephants arrive…”

Chris at snowboarding.about.com wrote Monster Energy Is Messing With The Little Guy.

Ashley – aka The Beer Wench – just posted her writeup as well.

While Rock Art has close to zero chance of losing this legal battle, Hansen is worth around a billion dollars. $1,000,000,000. They can sit there and appeal the verdict of each and every appearance in court until Rock Art either doesn’t have the money to go on, or changes the name. This means that while the law states Rock Art is in the right, isn’t endangering the Monster trademark, and shouldn’t have ever garnered the attention of Hansen, Hansen will win because they have more money.

Matt and the rest of Rock Art have decided to stand up to this. They could just change the name and go on. But they’re not. They stand up for what they believe in.

Matt’s got this awesome cliche thing going on, first by rocking the American Dream (basement brewer makes it 10 years? That’s awesome!) and now stepping into David’s shoes to try and sling a 12 oz rock at Goliath.

I’m hoping to be a microbrewery owner soon. It makes me smile to see someone standing up for his ideals and for the industry.

Help Matt stand up. Support Rock Art. Boycott Monster. Spread the word. Make sure the world knows how pissed off we are.

If you’re on the Twitter machine, let @MonsterEnergy know how you feel. And give @RockArtBrewery a follow too. Let me know other ways you’re letting Monster know that this. is. bullshit.

[Update] There is now a petition to show support. Sign it.

And smash cans with bigger cans.

More people writing about this. I’ll keep updating this list as I find more:

• Save Vermonster, Save Rock Art Brewery (w/12 things you can do to help)
• Why You should Boycott Monster Energy Drink

På trods af det meget dansk klingende navn, så var de to brødre Wally og Harry Hansen fra Inglewood i Californien. Først i halvtredserne fik de en del tid til at gå med at designe og bygge deres egen prototype til en glasfiber sportsvogn.

1953 Hansen Cobra

 Baseret på deres eget design, kreerede de en håndbygget form, og skabte to næsten identiske versioner af det der senere er blevet benævnt Hansen Cobra.

Hansen Brødrene var forbi den lokale reesevedelspusher hvor de hentede friske stumper som en 331 Cadillac motor, og en 48 Lincoln gearkasse. Lincoln bremser røg også med indkøbsvognen, sammen med et sæt 53 Studebaker kofangere, en 53 Chevrolet kølergril, og for og baglygter fra samme Chevrolet.

Deres produkt fik senere national opmærksomhed ved at være centerfoldmateriale i Motortrend i 1955, og i 1959 var den ene af de to biler med i filmen Roadracers.

Hansen Cobra på Petersen Automotive Museum

Den ene har i flere år været udstillet på Petersens Automotive Museum i Los Angeles (Det er også et navn med dansker aner, den del må vi vende tilbage til en anden gang!), og nu er den anden så dukket op i en annonce i Hemmings.

Like many aspiring brewers, Matt Nadeau started brewing beer at home – in his basement in fact – honing his craft before eventually growing that hobby into an exciting microbrewery venture in Vermont, New England.

Rock Art Brewery now employs himself, his wife and seven others, all busy mashing and marketing innovative heavy-hopped beers for American microbrew lovers. But now Matt is subject to a cease and desist nuisance order from a billion dollar corporation and overnight his business aswell as the livelihoods of his employees are suddenly at stake.

– Hansen blends the MONSTER brand energy soft drink in California, is worth over a billion and has global distribution agreements
– Matt brews a 10% ABV anniversary barley wine called Rock Art Vermonster for a small loyal customer base

There is clearly no brand infringement case here, but in US law a cash-rich company like Hansen can appeal court verdicts repeatedly until the smaller company that is often in the right, can no longer pay up the $65k a time it takes to fund those court appearances.

We realise that UK pubs and breweries are having the rugs pulled out from under them every day, and quite rightly these issues feel closer to home because they affect us more directly. Like many of you, we do what we can to support local breweries and our community pub. We even remember to pay our fees to CAMRA and force ourselves to drink more than we probably ought to at its festivals. But we couldn’t help feeling frustrated by Hansens’ treatment of this New England microbrewer and thought we’d share. It’s, well, its just not an obstacle the guy would have thought about while brewing in his basement – like us, he was probably more concerned that he’d remembered to switch all his taps off.

If we were American, we’d say the situation sucked big time. As Brits, we still think it’s a poor show, and hope you’ll join us in supporting Rock Art brewers – they need your clicks and emails, even if we can’t place beer orders from outside the US. Shame.

****UPDATE : 22nd October 2009****
We’re delighted to say that for once sense prevailed and Rock Art won this round of the battle against corporate America. It’s all official, The Vermonster is free, and everyone can stop writing to Hansen and get back to their beers. Good stuff.

Though listed as a “1953 Unspecified” on Hemmings.com, I was able to turn up a little bit more about this fiberglass-bodied roadster built by brothers Wally and Harry Hansen of Inglewood, California. Commonly called the Hansen Cobra, they only built two such examples: this one, for sale out of Hermitage, Pennsylvania, for $75,000; and another in the Petersen Automotive Museum that Geoff Hacker spotted on a recent trip to Southern California. One of the two also appeared in the 1959 movie Roadracers, which featured the tagline “Screeching Hell on Wheels … is it Sport or Murder?!” Continue reading at Hemmings

Let me preface this by saying that I absolutely hate working out first thing in the morning. I am typically a very nocturnal sort of person, so I work out around 4 in the afternoon. But being on the road, I got up super-early and did Hansen in the hotel fitness center: five rounds for time of:

-10 Burpees (Rx’d is 30)
-30 swings (I would use a one-pood kettle bell at home, but I used a 35-pound dumbbell here)
-30 sit-ups

My time last time I did this, about a month ago, was 17:32, today it was 17:41. I don’t like getting slower at stuff. Boo.

rue89.com, Hélène Crié-Wiesner,  Ecrivain, spécialisée en environnement, le 7 octobre 2009

Les douloureux états d’âme des Verts américains

Cela devait finir par arriver : le mouvement écolo américain est en train d’exploser. Alors qu’un nouveau projet de loi sur l’énergie et le climat vient d’être déposé au Sénat, les « verts extrémistes » accusent de trahison les « environnementalistes mous », adeptes du compromis politique.

Après les bagarres et insultes autour du système de santé qui ont trusté les médias durant des mois, on devine que la prochaine guerre législative ne va pas laisser les citoyens indifférents. Car le prix que devront payer les Etats-Unis pour réduire leurs émissions de gaz à effet de serre sera politiquement lourd.

Une partie des environnementalistes, des écolos comme on dit en France, refusent en bloc ce qu’ils qualifient de « compromissions honteuses » avec les industriels. Ils affirment qu’ils préfèrent pas de loi du tout à une loi rabougrie. Et ces contestataires de leur propre camp savent se faire entendre.

Un happening « vert extrémiste » à Manhattan

En septembre à New York, à la fin du raout de l’ONU avec les chefs d’Etat du monde, juste avant qu’Obama ne parte à Pittsburgh pour le G20, les « green extremists » ont envahi Manhattan pour clamer leur position.

Faux billets de banque à l’effigie de Gore, bannières analogues déployées devant le siège du Natural Ressource Defense Council, intervention inopinée d’un pirate personnifiant le « Cap-and-trade » lors du discours du Premier ministre danois, le happening de la « faction anti-compromis » du mouvement vert a été spectaculaire.

Les organisateurs étaient Climate SOS, Rising Tide North America, et Greenwash Guerillas. Une animatrice explique au web-magazine Grist :

« Ça peut paraître bizarre que nous, des écologistes, choisissions de nous opposer à une loi sur le climat. Surtout quand on voudrait pouvoir soutenir le nouveau gouvernement. Mais on a envie d’adopter une position vraiment dure, parce ce projet de loi est complètement à côté de la plaque. »

Les Américains n’auront pas de loi avant le sommet de Copenhague

Les Etats-Unis ne nient plus la responsabilité de l’homme sur les changements climatiques. Mieux : Obama a maintes fois répété que les Etats-Unis portaient une lourde responsabilité, et que son pays allait changer d’attitude. Qu’il allait même changer d’ici au sommet du Climat de Copenhague en décembre.

Euh, non : ça, c’est que le président espérait, avant le tumulte de la réforme médicale qui a fait prendre un gros retard à l’examen d’une loi énergie-climat par le Sénat. Il est évident que celle-ci ne sera pas votée d’ici décembre.

Ce n’est pas la faute d’Obama. Comme pour la réforme médicale, une partie des élus de son camp ne veut pas entendre parler de réformes si radicales qu’elles heurteraient leurs électeurs. Je ne reviens pas sur la santé, on a tout dit.

Quant à l’environnement, il est aisé de comprendre pourquoi des élus (de gauche) d’Etats dont l’économie dépend de l’extraction du charbon ou du pétrole refusent par avance de scier la branche qui soutient leur économie. Et ce n’est pas à des Français, majoritairement contre la taxe carbone, que je dois expliquer pourquoi des élus américains ne veulent pas envisager de ce genre d’impôt.

Limiter les émissions autorisées et permettre l’échange des quotas

Ceci explique pourquoi le texte énergie-climat, déjà adopté en juin par la Chambre des représentants, ne prévoit aucune taxe sur l’usage des combustibles fossiles. En revanche, il est prévu que les industriels émetteurs de CO2 -et seulement les industriels- se voient accorder des quotas d’émissions, qu’ils pourront s’échanger. On appelle cela le cap-and-trade, système déjà en vigueur en Europe.

Rien que cette obligation, il faut l’admettre, devrait renchérir le coût des marchandises américaines. Quand les producteurs ont des limites d’émission à ne pas dépasser, ils doivent investir dans des nouvelles technologies. Ou acheter des droits à polluer, ce qui est une charge financière. Les républicains s’opposaient donc au texte, ils n’étaient pas les seuls.

L’autre moitié du Congrès doit maintenant examiner sa propre proposition. Un texte a donc été introduit au Sénat la semaine dernière par deux sénateurs, dont John Kerry, ancien candidat démocrate à la présidentielle. Ce texte reste dans les rails de celui adopté par la Chambre.

Kerry est sur la même longueur d’onde qu’Al Gore, champion des écologistes réalistes. Gore et la majorité des organisations environnementalistes du pays travaillent main dans la main avec des syndicats ouvriers, des industriels, des églises, des associations civiques, pour faire pression sur le Congrès et obtenir enfin une loi permettant de réduire les émissions américaines.

Des attaques parties de là où on ne les attendait pas

Et patatras ! Voilà que surgissent de leur boîte des diables encore plus verts que personne n’attendait. Cette campagne d’opposition surprend les environnementalistes plus conventionnels. Ceux-ci s’étaient préparés à combattre les industriels du charbon et du pétrole lors de la bataille qui s’annonce au Sénat, voilà qu’ils doivent à présent répondre à des attaque lancées par ceux qu’ils pensaient être des alliés.

Daniel Weiss, directeur de la stratégie climatique au Center for American Progress, explique sa gêne à Grist :

« Personne n’a jamais prétendu que la loi résoudra le problème du changement climatique d’un seul coup. Mais on doit bien commencer par un bout. Les vrais ennemis sont Big Oil et Big Coal, ainsi que la droite. Mais eux, ces verts extrémistes, ils préfèrent se moquer d’Al Gore ! Ils n’ont vraiment rien compris. »

Les attaques des « extrémistes » sont d’autant plus embarrassantes que ceux-ci ont le soutien d’un scientifique superstar, James Hansen, de la Nasa. L’administration Bush avait tenté de le museler, et Hansen, qui avait rué dans les brancards, est devenu un vrai héros.

James Hansen a été l’un des premiers Américains à connecter science et politique : en 1988, il était intervenu devant le Congrès pour expliquer le problème posé par les gaz à effet de serre.

Seule solution : taxer très fort industriels et usagers

Selon Hansen, le texte déjà adopté par la Chambre en juin prône des mesures qui conduiront à une situation « pire que si on ne faisait rien ». Ce texte accorde d’immenses concessions aux pollueurs et il garantit même les centrales à charbon contre des réglementations futures.

Hansen est pour une taxe carbone, une taxe très élevée qui découragerait l’usage des combustibles fossiles et accélérerait le recours à d’autres énergies.

« Toute politique qui n’augmenterait pas considérablement le prix de l’énergie serait inutile pour le climat. Mieux vaut ne voter rien du tout qu’un texte qui empêcherait toute évolution pendant des décennies. »

Cette controverse sur le compromis -sacrifier ce qui est écologiquement nécessaire à ce qui semble politiquement faisable- est aussi ancienne que le mouvement environnementaliste américain, qui remonte aux débuts du XXe siècle. Les acteurs de la mouvance verte la connaissent par cœur, mais les plus pragmatiques redoutent l’image négative qu’elle renvoie à la population. Daniel Weiss, du Center for American Progress, explique :

« Si les gens entendent un scientifique aussi respecté que Hansen expliquer que, quoi que fasse le Congrès, ça ne servira à rien, pourquoi alors prendraient-ils la peine de téléphoner à leurs élus pour leur enjoindre d’agir ? Pourquoi essaieraient-ils de modifier leurs propres comportements ? »

Les compromis pour obtenir une taxe seraient encore pires

La plupart des groupes environnementalistes américains seraient bien heureux de voir le Congrès s’entendre sur une loi énergie et climat, toute imparfaite soit-elle. A ceux qui rêvent d’une taxe carbone, comme Hansen, Weiss répond ceci :

« Ceux qui reprochent au projet de loi d’offrir des deals aux industriels devraient réaliser une chose : aucune taxe n’émergera au Congrès sans que des deals analogues, voire pires, ne leur soient proposés. »

L’Amérique est coincée dans ses propres contradictions. Protéger le climat, restaurer son image sur la scène mondiale, oui, mais à quel prix pour son économie (déjà mal en point) et pour le coût de la vie ?

J’entends déjà les objections : « ils » n’ont qu’à pas utiliser autant leurs voitures, « ils » n’ont qu’à couper leur air conditionné… Tel est bien l’objectif d’une taxe carbone : inciter les citoyens à changer de comportement. Si les Français la refusent, pourquoi les Américains en voudraient-ils ?

A lire aussi sur Rue89 et sur Eco89

► Taxe carbone : l’Amérique peureuse, la France audacieuse ?

► Une gentille « novlangue » pour parler du climat aux Américains

► La croisade anti-écolo ressuscite Sarah Palin

Ailleurs sur le Web

► Senate Bill to Cut Heat-Trapping Emissions

► Interview de James Hansen (en anglais)

► No compromise’ faction attacks climate bill

► Le site de la Conférence sur le changement climatique de Copenhague 2009

Dream 11

Shinya Aoki walked away from Dream 11 today, with the Dream lightweight championship after submitting Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen.

Full DREAM 11 Results

Dream 11 Results:

-Bibiano Fernandes def. Hiroyuki Takaya by Split Decision (2-1), R2

-Shinya Aoki def. Joachim Hansen by Submission (Armbar), R2

-Kazushi Sakuraba def. Rubin Williams by Submission (Kimura) at 2:53, R1

-Tatsuya Kawajiri def. Melchor Manibusan by TKO (Strikes) at 3:47, R1

-Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou def. Bob Sapp by TKO (Strikes) at 1:31, R1

-Ikuhisa Minowa def. Hong Man Choi by Submission (Heel Hook) at 1:28, R2

-Bibiano Fernandes def. Joe Warren by Submission (Armbar) at 0:43, R1

-Hiroyuki Takaya def. Hideo Tokoro by TKO (Strikes) at 0:31, R2

-Kazuyuki Miyata def. Daiki “DJ.taiki” Hata by Unanimous Decision, R2

Dream 11 Fight Results – Find out who is the 2009 Featherweight Grand Prix winner, and the winner of the DREAM Lightweight title match between Hansen vs Aoki

It’s been a week since The Friday Night Lounge first travelled through the patient headsets at Queen Margaret Hospital. Now came the next most daunting task of my time at Radio West Fife…presenting the second show.

Before I entered the studio, my day wasn’t exactly smooth. The daunting task of getting up early for college and minor things not going my way didn’t exactly make me a happy Larry.

7:45pm, I arrived at the studio. Unpacked everything. Switched on the on-air computer, logged into Myriad – the playout software we use – and configured the mixing desk for the broadcast. Before you ask, no, the recording function is still not available to the standard users. So, unfortunately, you’ll have to take my word for what happened.

Now, being the daft bloke that I am, I forgot to give Barclay the tracks I was intending to use tonight. Since Myriad does not allow standard users to rip music. Boooo!

So, thinking on my feet, I compiled them onto two mp3 CDs. Thinking I would only need to use the CD decks to play the music [used only for when Myriad doesn't want to play ball]. How wrong I was.

As I prepared the CD decks, I decided to check out the sound first. I press play on one of the decks. Sunshine At Night (The Friday Night Lounge theme tune) started to stutter and jump. I opened the tray, cleaned the disc and put it back in again. Played it again. No improvement. Panic started to creep in. I checked the second CD – same result.

Now I had an incredible crisis on my hands.

After frantic phone calls with the boss, it became clear I had to do some quick thinking. When I mean quick thinking – I mean redrawing the entire playlist.

For the next twenty-five minutes, I raided the audio wall on Myriad to get tracks for the show. Luckily quite a few of them were already in the database. The ones that weren’t however, I had to do some searching.

By 8:40. I was ready to go. The playlist changed from beginning with Oh My God by Kaiser Chiefs and ending with Pablito’s Way by Paolo Pavan, to beginning with 2 Become 1 by Spice Girls and ending with I Need Something by Newton Faulkner. In other words, The Friday Night Lounge took a style detour for a week.

9:05. Fade out Smooth Radio. Cue a Radio West Fife jingle. Then cue the theme tune. The Friday Night Lounge had reopened its doors.

In the first hour I discussed: West Fife children ignorant of wars and battles; Russians ignorant of the Berlin Wall; and my thoughts of plasticine gardens. The clever idea, suggested by the excellent James May’s Toy Stories. To round off, we had another That’s From. This time, Addicted To Love by Robert Palmer – featuring in the 1993 Halls Soothers advert [from 01:02].

The second hour was better. Besides playing tunes such as Come Fly With Me by Frank Sinatra and Candyman by Christina Aguilera, I looked at Space Hotels and had a real Trivia’s Cocktail. Three connections between Jupiter and Mars: Both featuring in the lyrics of Fly To The Moon by Frank Sinatra; both being planets in the solar system; and both being Roman gods. Jupiter, the god of sky and thunder. And Mars being the god of war.

10:59. I Need Something finishes playing. I quickly close the show. Cutting back to Smooth Radio, 20 seconds before their news bulletin. Just as well I finished quickly.

11:02 – I left the studios and the hospital. This is time, it was chilly. No rain about. I’m glad a bumpy day is over. However, I could go home and safely say – “it could have been a lot worse”.

Tr-HANSEN-dental Musings

With Steven Hansen

Students as a whole love to complain – give them any topic, they can drum up a complaint. This is evident in the constant whining that goes on, stating that something regarding school “sucks” or is “stupid”. The thing is, if there’s something you don’t like about the school, there’s a good chance that you’re indirectly at fault. Shocking concept, no? The thing is, whenever you complain about the music in rallies lacking diversity or boring lunchtime activities, without doing anything to change it, you’re not being productive, you’re venting mindlessly. Simply, you’re being annoying.

I’m not saying it is every student’s responsibility to run for student government and enact change, as I know that’s not everyone’s scene. Be that as it may, you have to at least exercise your right to vote in the different student body elections. General student apathy has devolved our student elections, more or less, into absolute popularity contests. So often does the most recognizable name win, or the name you’re told to vote for by your peers, or names are arbitrarily chosen. That type of attitude doesn’t foster a strong student government that’s representative of the student body as a whole. Take some time to actually inquire about students’ qualifications for positions or how they intend to make a difference and aid you in making your voice heard. Maybe even track every candidate down and talk to them; similarly, students running for office, how about something more than signs that get your name and name only recognized? If you’re truly passionate, your campaigning shouldn’t stop at the craft’s store. Go around campus, introduce yourself to the students you’re supposed to be representing, and make a name for yourself.

Not only is there the issue of campaigners getting themselves out there, but, frankly, some shouldn’t be jumping into the election game in the first place. They run for motives other than what is best for their school and fellow students. Truth be told, certain people in our student government aren’t the best people to be running the school, which is another issue in and of itself. Students who have trouble managing their own school work and lives shouldn’t be depended upon to run the entire school while people who are much more qualified with a good head on their shoulders seemingly get ignored in favor of the same old, same old. In fact, given the supposed liberalism the school puts forth as a whole, it completely contradicts itself through our student government, where it’s consistently more of the same, and any candidate advocating change or new ideas isn’t even kept in consideration. How exactly does that one work out?

Politics, a subject that teenagers feel they have an extensive knowledge of, are a little more complex than they think. Too many peoples’ supposed knowledge of politics is a parlor trick, similar to how parrots learn to “talk”. To truly understand politics to the best of your ability requires actual research into policies, and plenty of other tasks so much more dry and difficult than regurgitating what you heard your favorite news anchor spout off. This is entirely true at school, where national elections bring an uproar of political activity, which is so immediately forgotten and tossed aside – due in great part to our “active” student body not actually knowing anything about politics, but merely parroting what their parents, friends, and television tell them and getting caught up in the hype.

Thing is, being a sheep and mindlessly following what others tell you is, contrary to popular belief, not being politically savvy. Let’s take the recent Barrack Obama election, for example, due to the impact the younger audience had on the campaign. There are plenty of legitimate reasons to like Obama; his history, demeanor, intelligence, beliefs, and so on. However, the hordes of people – like the majority of suddenly-politically-active students at our school- is part of the reason why his term is, so early on, being declared a disappointment. Uninformed people supported difference for the sake of difference and change for the sake of change, the politically ignorant hyping up his image and expecting the world to be fixed with some sort of magic wand.

So next time you want to complain about something you don’t like about school, if you haven’t even provided the most minimal effort to educate yourself on the subject or make an impact, do everyone a favor and keep your whining to yourself.

SSFUSD Under Construction

By Steven Hansen

"We have a number of students who are at the bottom levels not being served well. We need to do a better job at meeting their needs." District Superintendent Howard Cohen said.

The entire South San Francisco School District is currently under its second year of Program Improvement, a label given by the federal government to districts and schools that need to raise academic performance across various population groups. New district superintendent Howard Cohen, among others, are making the effort to move SSFUSD out of Program Improvement status.

Program Improvement status is decided by the federal government, through evaluation of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) data, mainly derived from STAR testing results, evaluated on a five-point scale, with four being “Adequate”. The federal government, through their evaluation of the AYP, is concerned with how many students are in the four and five levels. Further, they evaluate the progress – or lack thereof – across specific population groups.

The government has a 14-year plan, which started six years ago, where they expect every school district across the country to be at 100 percent level four and five test scores. An expectation which Cohen finds a bit too lofty. “That’s statistically impossible. Every year, the target moves up. We have a number of students who’re at the bottom [three, two, and one] levels not being served well. We need to do a better job at meeting their needs.”

The district is in PI due to Parkway, Spruce, Martin, and Los Cerritos’ AYP and the rest of the schools in the district needing to raise scores for at-risk subgroups. Throughout the district, African Americans, Latinos, English learners, special education, and low socioeconomic groups are struggling, though certain subgroups, such as Asians, Caucasians, and Filipinos, are scoring at acceptable levels (Advanced and Proficient).

“There’s a serious achievement gap,” Cohen said, “Each subgroup that fails to meet the government’s AYP standards, which are always moving up, gets a “No” from the government, and one “No” in any subgroup means program improvement.”

While the district’s schools performed well overall in the state Academic Performance Index by moving students from the bottom two levels to at least the third, they are not doing well by the federal government’s standards.

The at-risk populations are spread out in various numbers throughout the district. All of the schools not previously mentioned for being in PI specifically have subgroups not meeting AYP standards. The district will likely be in its third year of PI next year, where the moving target scores make it more difficult to get out of. In order to do so, one practice that must be adopted is the use of nine essential program components, which are methods of teaching and training.

“We have to use this proven research that works well with both these particular [at-risk] groups as well as all students,” Cohen said.

As for how these changes affect students, teachers are being trained to implement these instructional methods in the classroom to improve students’ ability to grasp concepts.

“It’s good for teachers to reflect on what they’re doing in the classroom, and how they can improve it,” chemistry teacher Jolene Jordan said.

“I’m proud to say we have 100 percent participation by teachers across the district. We have an intelligent teaching staff that wants to help students improve,” Cohen said.

Data will be accumulated quarterly, so the district does not need to wait until the end of the year STAR tests to gauge how the students are progressing.

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