Where's your Spirit?

NASA has all but given up trying to contact the Spirit rover on Mars after being unable to communicate with it since 22 March 2010.

Engineers are now almost certain it's curtains for the plucky little rover that has helped shed light on the red planet.

It's been a staggering success though... it was one of two rovers that landed on the surface of Mars in January 2004 and it was thought their mission would last all but 3 months! Incredibly, the other rover, Opportunity is still scuttling across the planet and returning valuable information. Spirit got stuck in some soft sand in 2009. Here's the first colour picture sent back by Spirit:

'Spirit's 1st Colour Picture on the Red Planet' - NASA/JPL

NASA is now focusing on Curiosity - a Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, which is due to launch at the end of the year, though will occasionally listen-out for any sign that Spirit has come back to life.

'Curiosity' - NASA/JPL-Caltech

5 Great Apple iPhone Apps for May

Get your Apple iPhone kitted out with the latest apps and you'll be dancing all the way through May!

1. Genuis Scan
(Free - Business)
Turn your iPhone into a document scanner that fits in your pocket.

2. Everyday
(£1.19 - Photography)
Snap an image of your face everyday and then watch the changes over the weeks and months.

3. Groupon
(Free - Lifestyle)
Daily deals in a city near you delivered to your handset in an instant.

4. Zapd
(Free - Lifestyle)
Create beautiful mini-websites in 60 seconds from your iPhone.

5. Angry Birds
(£0.59 - Games)
Get the game everyone is talking about.

AV - Apathy for UK referendum

Voting-a-plenty for citizens around the UK on May 5th!

There's the Scottish Parliament election; Welsh Assembly election; some local elections in England; Northern Ireland Assembly election as well as elections to local councils; and throughout the UK a vote in the referendum on the Alternative Voting system (or, AV).

AV would replace the 'first past the post' system that's currently used to elect MPs to the House of Commons. This is our chance to decide whether we want to change from 'first past the post' to 'AV'. However, it seems many people around the UK are either unaware of what it means or give half a toss as to whether it'd benefit us or not.

So, in the 'first past the post' system the candidate with most votes wins, regardless of their share of the total votes cast.

In AV, the idea is that a winning candidate should secure at least 50% of the total votes cast. That's achieved by allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference. If after an initial count any candidate has more than 50% of the vote they are duly elected. However, should this not be the case, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated and their votes re-assigned using the second preference indicated on those ballot papers. This goes on until a candidate gets 50% or more of the total share of the votes. Believe it or not it's still possible that any one candidate may not recieve 50% of the total share of the votes (if for example, many people haven't indicated 2nd preferences), in which case the candidate with the highest total share would be elected.

Three other countries around the world use AV: Australia, Fiji and Papua New Guinea. And, it was recently used to select Ed Milliband as Labour Party Leader.

Here's what The Guardian Newspaper says is "everything you need to know about the AV Referendum".

Unlikely bed-fellows David Cameron (he's the UK Prime Minister and Conservative leader) and John Reid (Labour) have shared the stage to campaign for a 'No' vote in the AV referendum.

Siding up beside each other for the 'Yes' to AV are Nick Clegg (Deputy Prime Minister and Lib Dem leader), Vince Cable (Business Secretary and Lib Dem) and Ed Milliband (Labour leader).



For more info, visit The Electoral Commission website

Wonders of the Universe

Wonders of the Universe is the new BBC-produced TV programme that will be presented by Brian Cox.

The first shows airs on BBC Two on Sunday 6th March at 21:00 is titled 'Destiny'. Brian Cox will be getting to grips with time.

Throughout the series, he'll be exploring fundamental concepts of science that govern the universe and help to explain why we're here.

I can't wait to see it  - should compliment the brilliant series Wonders of the Solar System - to whet your appetite, here's the trail for it :

Saturday ramble on making money online

Recovering, as I am, from a few drinks with friends last night and an £11 taxi ride home (!) from the other side of the city, my attention is wandering today.

Crossing my mind are ideas of how to make money online - writing blogs more frequently in the hope someone reads it and maybe clicks on one of the ads. Or, selling books, DVDs and other unused items from the depths of deep storage. Or, making my services available to design web pages, edit or administer content. I guess there's no easy solution to turning in a profit whether it be online or offline.

What other things could be done to make some legitimate cash online? What are the make money fast scams out there that are best avoided? Are there ways to do some kind of service work from home on the computer for companies or businesses in order to earn a second wage? I'd be delighted to cut back the number of hours spent on Farmville or Mafia Wars in order to use my time online more productively!

Top 6 Valentine's Gifts

Valentine's Day swings round again on 14th February and love in the free world often means lining someone else's pockets with your hard earned cash in order to please your nearest and dearest. So, if you're going to splash out, it's a good idea to make it worth the wedge and get things that will light-up the eyes and warm the heart of your loved one. May I present to you, the top 6 Valentine's gifts...

1. Chocolates are tasty and have the ability to improve your mood and make you happy.

2. Flowers smell nice, look pretty and represent all that's good about life.

3. At £111, the Kindle from Amazon might seem pricey, but it's one of the hottest gifts, able to store around 3,500 books in something that almost fits the palm of your hand. Just check it out...



4. A romantic weekend break in some country retreat could be the ticket to keep the romance alive.

5. Shiny things like jewellery are always a winner.

6. Kinky stuff - handcuffs, pampering sets or toys and games get the pulses racing and the passion soaring.

Freddie Wong - Rockin' on YouTube

Hey, have you seen Freddiew on Youtube?

He's the guy who has well over 10 million hits on his video spoofing a first person-shooter game:




His Youtube channel has got lots more great vids on it along with tips and inside scoops showing you how to make your own incredible videos with dazzling effects!




All I need to get is a new digital video camera and some editing software - there'll be no stopping me in following in his footsteps!

Slim Fit Trousers

It seems, in my experience, that shopping for trousers has never been more difficult. I'm probably the kind of guy that fits somewhere on spectrum as being of 'average' human size... ok, maybe carrying a few more pounds than I'd like to at the moment, but I'm an outdoors type person and it comes and goes.

My difficulty lies in the fact that in the past year alone, I seem to have gone through at least a dozen pairs of trousers of varying styles and types; and from various retail outlets; from the low-end of the market through to the high-end designers. One regular occurance in 'finishing-off' the trousers and consigning them to the recycling bin is that the seam on the crotch and the material on the inner-thigh wear, tear, rip and split after just a few wears. I don't think that's acceptable.

Manufacturers seem to think that all men; regardless of their size; have uniformly, pencil-thin legs - well, I do have thighs and the part of the trouser that covers them needs more material! I do not want to wear 'slim-fit' trousers - they simply do no fit! Why do every pair of trousers I see in shops have to be 'slim-fit'? It's simply ridiculous that clothing manufacturers seem to think that all men have no waist, bottom and thighs!

Trouser length is another problem. Why do so few trousers have an inside leg length of less than 30inches? I'm about 5foot 6inches. I'm not the tallest... but, there are lot's of other men I see every day the same size or smaller. We don't need 30inches of inside leg! It drags along the pavement, ripping itself in dirt and grit - tripping us up; or ruffling up to look like we're wearing 80's-style leg warmers!

And, I think another issue that has to be addressed is the amount and strength of material that's used around the hips, backside and crotch. I'd say I'm packing fairly average-sized bits of tackle, but it seems all trouser-makers nowadays think I'm androgynous, and, if I'm not, have the desire to make me so! Bend over and as well as your trousers splitting, you do some serious damage to your chances of fathering children.

So men of the land - join with me in starting a trouser revolution! I want trousers that fit and last - is that to much to ask for? If anyone has any recommendations of where I can get such premium purchases that actually fit and last longer than a couple of wears, please let me know!

In the meantime, I'm off to look at how to patch and mend trousers - but I'm not convinced it's the solution to this problem.