Captain Jack Sparrow

Linguists speak up for Singlish

2008-12-09T11:25:00.001+08:00

Linguists speak up for Singlish
They say it reflects mix of languages here, and won't hurt standard English

SINGLISH may be the bane of teachers, but it is music to the ears of linguists.
More than 40 academics worldwide, drawn by the evolving nature of Singapore English, or Singlish, have published research papers or books on it.
It is immensely valuable as a living tongue that is evolving all the time, and reflects the multicultural linguistic background of the country, they said.
'Singapore is an exciting place for a linguist, with people moving from one language to another,' said sociolinguist Anthea Fraser Gupta.
'For a linguist, it's the equivalent of a really well-equipped laboratory for a chemist.'
Dr Gupta, 57, developed a strong research interest in Singlish during her 21 years as an academic in Singapore. She left in 1996 and is now a senior lecturer at the University of Leeds, but continues to track the use of Singlish in blogs.
Other than local academics at the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University, other researchers hail from countries as far away as Germany and Portugal.
Dr Edgar Schneider, 54, from the University of Regensburg in Germany, developed an interest in English in post-colonial countries when he became the editor of a journal called English World-Wide in 1997.
'Singapore is one of the more interesting ones. I don't think there's another post-colonial country where English is so embraced. English is used widely but not as thoroughly as in Singapore.'
Dr David Deterding, 51, originally from Britain and now teaching at the Universiti Brunei Darussalam, previously taught at the National Institute of Education here.
He said: 'One characteristic of Singapore that makes its English special is the fact that the four official languages are all completely unrelated.
'The emergent maturity of the English of Singapore in a society with such a rich mixture of languages makes it of special interest.'
Singlish and standard English can and do co-exist, said Dr Gupta. 'There is no evidence that the presence of Singlish causes damage to standard English.'
The organisers of the Speak Good English Movement (SGEM) say they are not anti-Singlish.
Their aim, they said, is to make sure that everyone can speak standard English first.
A spokesman said: 'The presence of Singlish causes damage to standard English only when people do not have a good grounding in standard English.
'That is why an environment in which good English is spoken is so important for young children.'
Added Dr Deterding: 'To the extent that organisers of the SGEM try to enhance awareness of standard forms of pronunciation and grammar, they do a worthwhile job.
'When they try instead to eliminate Singlish, they are probably fighting a losing cause.

Big Ben

2008-12-09T11:21:00.002+08:00

Chocolate version of the Big Ben

Clock watchers with a sweet tooth, here's something to tickle your taste buds.
A chocolate reproduction of Britain's famous Big Ben stands tall in the mediaeval town of Macerata Feltria in the province of Pesaro in Italy.
The chocolate version is 11m tall and is made from 8,000kg of chocolate. It is on display during the town's Wonderland festivities.
PHOTO: REUTERS

Hey, good looking

2008-11-12T19:41:00.002+08:00

Hey, good looking

It glides slowly, showing off its glorious shades of blue and yellow and grey. This beauty is a chambered nautilus, which belongs to the marine family of cephalopods. It is one of four new species on display at Sentosa's Underwater World Singapore. The others are the mimic octopus, the giant Pacific octopus and the pharaoh cuttlefish. All are equipped with different abilities to camouflage themselves for survival. According to Dr Jeffrey Mahon, the attraction's curatorial director, cephalopods are regarded as the smartest form of invertebrate life.

Andy Cole

2008-11-12T09:04:00.007+08:00

November 11, 2008
Andy Cole announces retirement from football Ex-Red Andy Cole has announced his retirement from football, bringing down the curtain on a 19-year career.Cole enjoyed spells with 13 clubs including Arsenal, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, Manchester City and Nottingham Forest, where sadly his career came to an end not befitting his impresssive contribution to the game."It's not the ideal ending," Cole told The Times. "It just wasn't working out. I told them from the outset that I didn't want to go there to sit on the bench because I didn't want to be perceived as sitting back and making easy money."Despite the slightly sour taste of his career's final act, Cole has plenty to look back on and feel proud about. "I wouldn't change a thing. I've lived the dream," he said.Undoubtedly his most successful spell came during his six trophy-laden years at Old Trafford, where he won five Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League winners medal as part of 1999's famous Treble.He served as United's no.9 with distinction, scoring 121 goals in 275 appearances. In his first season following a then-record £6.25million transfer from Newcastle, Cole scored five goals in the 9-0 rout of Ipswich Town at OT - still an individual and team best in the Premier League.Cole left United in December 2001, and understandably did not scale the heights he had with the Reds. However, he did score the winning goal for Blackburn in the 2002 Worthington Cup final at the Millennium Stadium.The 37-year-old has already been tipped to pursue a coaching career. Blackburn are reported to have expressed an interest in giving him his break behind the scenes.

Cole's achievements at Manchester United

Premier League
Winner (5):1995-96, 1996-97, 1998-99, 1999-2000, 2000-01
FA Cup
Winner (2): 1995-96, 1998-99
Runner-up (1): 1994-95
FA Community Shield
Winner (2): 1996, 1997
Runner-up (3): 1998, 1999, 2000
UEFA Champions League
Winner (1): 1998-99
UEFA Super Cup
Runner-up (1): 1999
Intercontinental Cup
Winner (1): 1999

Cole's Manchester United career

On January 10, 1995, Cole was suddenly sold in a shock deal to Manchester United for a deal worth £7 million - £6 million cash plus £1 million-rated Keith Gillespie going in the opposite direction, setting a new record for most expensive British transfer at the time. This record was broken five months later by Arsenal's £7.5million acquisition of Dennis Berkamp from Inter Milan.
He scored 12 goals in his first 18 Premiership games for United, including five in the 9-0 rout of Ipswich Town, a Premiership record, and two goals in United's 3-2 victory away at Coventry City. However, he missed two simples chances against West Ham United on the final day of the season as they could only manage a 1-1 draw and the league title went to Blackburn Rovers instead. Cole's first goal for United had come against Aston Villa on 4 February, the only goal in a 1-0 win at Old Trafford. Exactly one month later, he scored five goals as United hammered Ipswich Town 9-0 and pushed their opponents closer to eventual relegation.
He was cup-tied for the FA Cup final a week later. Without him, United lost to Everton 1-0. United were also without the banned Eric Cantona and the injured Andrei Kanchelskis, the club's next two highest scorers that season after Cole.
Despite a difficult first full season in Manchester, Cole scored in four successive games during the winter, including an important opening goal in United's 2-0 defeat of title rivals Newcastle United on December 27. Cole collected a Premiership title winners medal and scored the second goal in United's 3-0 defeat of Middlesbrough on the final day of the season which won United the Premiership title. He also played in their FA Cup final victory to become part of England's first ever side to win the double twice.
The arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjær - and being the victim of two broken legs suffered after a tackle by Neil Ruddock in a reserve game against Liverpool - restricted Cole's first-team chances in 1996-97, but he still played in 20 Premiership games (10 as a substitute). He ended the season with several goals to complete his comeback, and qualified for another Premiership title medal. Before the season began he had been offered to Blackburn Rovers as part-exchange in a £12 million deal which would have brought Alan Shearer to Old Trafford. But the offer was turned down and Shearer opted for Newcastle instead.
For the 1997-98 season Cole found his best form ever for the club, becoming the joint top goalscorer in the Premiership during the course of the season with 18 goals, including a slew of goals, including a chip against Everton that fans voted the Manchester United goal of the season. Cole also developed a strong partnership with Teddy Sheringham. However, United finished trophyless for only the second time in 9 seasons. Cole scored his first European hat-trick for the club in an away match at Feyenoord. Cole ended the season runner up in the PFA Players' Player of the Year award to Arsenal's Dennis Bergkamp. But despite this and being the leading goalscorer in all competitions that season with 25, Cole was omitted from England's 1998 World Cup squad by then-manager Glenn Hoddle.[3] When asked about his new found success, Cole claimed that he had found freedom in his life after the injuries of the previous season, saying he had great joy with his newborn son, and lived for him and in his faith as a Born again Christian. He also claimed the friendship of Ryan Giggs, his room-mate on away games, was a major motivating factor even though times were hard and fans doubted him at United.
Cole faced competition from Dwight Yorke, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjær during the 1998-99 season but developed a partnership with Yorke, which saw him play a key role in the side's unique treble of the Premiership title, FA Cup and UEFA Champions League. Cole scored the winning goal in United's final Premiership game of the season against Tottenham Hotspur, a result which meant United finished 1 point ahead of rivals Arsenal to win the Premiership title. He also scored United's third and winning goal in their Champions League semi-final second leg against Juventus, sealing their place in the final for the first time in over 30 years. The striking partnership with Yorke contributed 53 goals between them. Also in this season, Cole scored his 100th Premiership goal in a top of the table clash against Arsenal at Old Trafford on February 17. The match ended 1-1.
He was United's top scorer again in 1999-2000 with 19 goals in 28 Premiership games. He collected his fourth Premiership title medal in five seasons, and scored over 20 goals in all competitions for the third successive season. Cole scored many goals for United including the only goal of the game in their top of the table clash against their closest rivals Leeds United. He also joined an elite group during this season by scoring his 100th goal for the club in a 2-2 draw against Wimbledon. Injury just prior to Euro 2000 led to Cole missing out on another major competition for his country.
Another title followed in 2000-01 when, despite suffering from an injury that restricted his appearances, Cole scored 13 goals in all competitions, including four in the European Cup allowing him at the time to become Manchester United's record goal scorer in the competition.
He made one last appearance for Manchester United in the UEFA Celebration Match on 13 March 2007, coming on at half time for a friendly game between Manchester United and European XI in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the European Community and 50 years of Manchester United in the European Cup.

3-letter word body parts

2008-11-10T18:50:00.004+08:00

Just wondering why the human anatomy contains many 3-letter words for the parts.

Rather strange but amazing nevertheless!

1. Eye

2. Ear

3. Lip

4. Jaw

5. Gum

6. Arm

7. Leg

8. Toe

9. Rib

10. Hip

Lost in translation

2008-11-05T12:00:00.006+08:00

Lost in translation

LONDON: Officials in Wales mistakenly erected a road sign that read 'I am not in the office at the moment' in Welsh after a translation mix-up.
The sign originally said in English: 'No entry for heavy goods vehicles. Residential site only.'
But when Swansea Council officials sent it to be translated, they received an automated e-mail written in Welsh that read: 'I am not in the office at the moment. Please send any work to be translated.'
Unaware of the actual meaning of the e-mail, officials had the sign printed and put up near a supermarket, only realising their mistake when Welsh speakers pointed it out.
'We took it down as soon as we were made aware of it and a correct sign will be installed as soon as possible,' said a Swansea Council spokesman.
All road signs in Wales have to be in English and Welsh.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

cjs: It's astonishing & hilarious!

Sky's no limit for long-legged Dutch?

2008-11-05T11:52:00.003+08:00

Sky's no limit for long-legged Dutch?

THE HAGUE: Changes to the cockpit of a new fighter jet could offer hope to would-be pilots who are turned down by the Dutch Air Force because their legs are too long.
'We had a list of operational requirements, and one of these was that Dutch pilots should fit in the cockpits,' air force spokesman Sascha Louwhoff said, referring to the new aircraft currently under development.
'It may be funny, but it's true...Our pilots are obviously taller than Italian or Turkish pilots. Over the years, the Dutch people have grown taller, and we've had to keep up with that.'
To this end, producer Lockheed Martin has agreed to make changes to the cockpit of the Joint Strike Fighter, which is being jointly developed by nine nations, including the Netherlands, said Ms Louwhoff.
The fighter is one of three shortlisted to replace the Netherlands' ageing fleet of 85 F-16s. Currently, the Dutch Air Force is compelled to turn down aspiring pilots who are too tall in spite of their other qualifications, she added.
'There is a limit if you simply don't fit into the cockpit. Obviously this is not something we want to do, and we want to be able to choose from a bigger group,' she said.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Debunking the megapixel myth

2008-11-05T11:23:00.002+08:00

Debunking the megapixel myth
It's not the number of megapixels but the size of your camera's sensor that counts

Hidden within a camera is its sensor and it is more important to picture quality than having more megapixels. -- PHOTO: CANON

MEGAPIXELS do not really matter anymore.
That might sound strange at first as most people regard megapixel-count as the main indicator of their camera's picture-taking quality. Let me explain.
Megapixels are a measure of how many pixels you can stuff into a camera's sensor - the digital equivalent of the film. One megapixel means one million pixels.
You need just a 3-megapixel camera to print a standard 4R picture and 8 megapixels are more than enough for an 8R - 8 x 10-inch - print.
If you do not have enough megapixels and are trying to print a large picture, the print will not turn out sharp. All diagonals will become jagged instead of being smooth.
However, as all new compacts now have at least 8 megapixels and some, like the Canon Ixus 980IS has hit 14, you do not have to worry about having insufficient megapixels anymore.
So when you are deciding which compact to buy, the number of megapixels does not really matter now.
What is more important, for good picture quality in a compact camera, is the size of the sensor. The bigger the sensor, the better the photo. Bigger sensors capture more light. More light captured means better colours and contrast.
With bigger sensors, photos taken indoors without flash or when the light is failing, have less picture noise - that is the fuzziness and strange bits of colours that weren't there when you took the photo.
Sadly, compact cameras cannot have huge sensors because they need to stay, well, compact.
The sensor in a compact can be smaller than the nail of your pinky.
That is why compacts are bad in shooting in low light conditions without a flash.
Here is a tip - check the sensor size. It could be under CCD, CMOS, imaging element or image sensor but the dimensions would always read something like 1/2.3 inch, which is the size of the sensor.
The smaller the denominator, the bigger the sensor. For instance, a 1/1.6 inch sensor is larger than one which is 1/2.3 inch.
In comparison, the sensor of a professional DSLR is 30 times that of a compact, which explains why DSLRs are so much bigger.
Ironically, the solution to improving photo quality in a compact is to reduce the megapixel- count.
All things being equal, having less megapixels means that each pixel in the sensor can now have more light, which in turn improves picture quality.
So now that we know that we do not need anything more than 8 megapixels for a compact, will camera makers give up the megapixel race?
Not a chance.
Just as most consumers judge the performance of a PC by its GHz, megapixels in a camera is the easiest way for salesmen to compare the performance of their cameras with other makes.
To educate the consumer would take too much effort, too much time and too much marketing dollars.
And that is the mega-truth behind the megapixel myth.

The big switch

2008-11-03T08:43:00.006+08:00

The big switch
Karen Carlotta studied economics and worked in finance before following her heart into the kitchen.

As a young girl, Indonesian pastry chef Karen Carlotta loved creating make-believe dishes with flowers and leaves taken from her garden at home in Jakarta.

Now 26, she gets to do it for real as the pastry chef of The Pastry Bar in One Rochester, a wine bar in Rochester Road.

But her road to pastry-making was not always smooth. To please her parents, she studied economics at Tarumanagara University in Jakarta and worked as a finance executive.

But after only five months on the job, she quit to follow her true calling.
She moved to Singapore in 2003, as she has relatives here, and took a diploma in pastry and baking at Shatec Institute.

After graduating, she trained as a junior cook at Laurent Bernard Chocolatier at The Pier in Robertson Quay last year. She left at the end of the year to join One Rochester.
Now, as pastry chef there, she prepares all the desserts on the menu, and she has no regrets about her career switch.

Now, as pastry chef there, she prepares all the desserts on the menu, and she has no regrets about her career switch. She says: 'I just had to follow my heart as pastry-making is my passion. I can't stand a day not making pastry.'

Why did you decide to become a pastry chef?
Simply because I love desserts. I learn a lot from creating them - the ingredients, the method, the aroma, the taste, the balance, the texture, the appearance. Also, desserts make a sweet ending to a meal.

What is it like working at the Pastry Bar?
It's fun as I get to be creative. The space in our small kitchen is quite tight, but I have an assistant to help me out, so it's not so bad.

What's the best dessert you've ever had?
The Reif Lava, at our sister restaurant 1TwentySix in East Coast Parkway, created by executive chef Ahmad Refaie Othman, who is also known as chef Reif. It's a warm chocolate cake and banana rum souffle with home-made verbena ice cream and glazed truffle butternut squash donut. I like the mix of chocolate, banana rum souffle and ice cream, which creates a sweet and

surprising sensation on the palate.

What's the biggest disaster you've had in experimenting with new desserts?
Once I was busy and sought the help of a colleague to glaze the top layer of the creme brulee I was preparing. But instead of sugar, he used salt. Thankfully, it was not for a customer but for our management's lunch meeting, although I did get questioned by chef Reif afterwards.
If you had to eat only one dessert for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Simple fruit desserts, as I can play with the fruits to create different tastes. For example, fruit salad, fruit with whipped cream, or fruit gratin.

How do you keep healthy with all these delicious desserts around you?
Although we're surrounded by food, the fast pace in the kitchen sometimes means we don't have time to sit down for a proper meal. Also, the constant smell of food sometimes fills my stomach, so that's how I keep my figure lean. Then, of course, there's the constant physical workout we get in our line of work.

What do you like to eat apart from desserts?
Japanese cuisine. I can never get bored with its simplicity and extensive variety.
What advice do you have for aspiring pastry chefs?
I would tell them to always believe in themselves and to follow their hearts.
If you could make dessert for just about anyone, who would it be?
My mother. She does not fancy Western desserts, preferring Asian varieties instead. I love her so much and I want to make her happy with my desserts. Maybe I will create some fusion desserts.

What is your signature dish?

Chocolate souffle with poached peach in Rioja sangria, served with peach sorbet and sangria foam (above). The fruity flavours and acidity are put together to create a real unique taste.

Plant lets its blog do the talking

2008-10-23T17:46:00.005+08:00

Plant Lets Its Blog Do The Talking
A plant called Midori-san blogs everyday with the help of a computer algorithm that translates data from its sensors into words. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

IT HAS long been accepted that talking to plants can help them flourish, but have you ever wondered what they would say in response? Well, a plant in Japan has its own blog that may help you understand.
Midori-san is a 40cm potted 'sweetheart plant' sitting on a cafe counter in Kamakura, near Tokyo. Midori means green in Japanese.
It blogs every day with the help of a sensor that measures the electric signals on the surface of its heart-shaped leaves. The signals are sent to a computer, which uses an algorithm to translate the data and other factors such as weather and temperature into Japanese.
The words are automatically posted on Midori-san's blog (http://plant.bowls-cafe.jp/index.php)
A posting on Oct 16 read: 'Today was a sunny day and I was able to sunbathe a lot... I had quite a bit of fun today.'
Said Mr Satoshi Kuribayashi, a researcher involved in the project at Japan's Keio University: 'We were initially interested in what plants are feeling and what they are reacting to that we can't see.'
He said he hopes that in the future, the blog will reflect even more accurately Midori-san's feelings.
REUTERS

F1 Singapore Grand Prix, 26 - 28 September 2008

2008-09-28T06:15:00.003+08:00

F1 Singapore Grand Prix, 26 - 28 September 2008 @Marina Bay Street Circuit

Alonso springs a Singapore surprise
Renault’s Fernando Alonso scored a surprise success just when he most needed it, in one of the most eagerly anticipated Grand Prix in Formula One history, under the lights of Singapore on Sunday.

And he owed much of it to team mate Nelson Piquet, whose crash on the 14th lap changed the face of the race.Ferrari’s Felipe Massa led from pole position from McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari, and Alonso dropped way back when he was the first to stop as the result of an aggressive opening stint. Then Piquet had his shunt and out came the safety car. Fourth-placed Robert Kubica for BMW Sauber and Williams’ Nico Rosberg both pitted before the pit lane was officially opened, and when it was on the 17th lap, Massa’s race fell apart as he led Hamilton, Raikkonen, Toro Rosso’s Sebastian Vettel and Toyota’s Timo Glock.

The green light within his cockpit told Massa he could restart, but the refuelling hose was still attached to his car. He knocked over a mechanic as the hose tore away, and fuel spewed everywhere. Subsequently he was given a drive-through penalty for another unsafe exit in front of the Force India of Adrian Sutil.Kubica and Rosberg were given 10-second stop-and-go penalties. The Pole’s ruined his race, but Rosberg was able to keep in play even after serving his. In the pit stop shuffle Hamilton got delayed running behind Alonso, Rosberg, Toyota’s Jarno Trulli, Giancarlo Fisichella (who had started from the pit lane after set-up changes on his Force India), and Mark Webber and David Coulthard in the Red Bulls.

Eventually the British driver moved up to fourth behind Alonso, Rosberg and Coulthard, but he was losing a second a lap behind the Scot, and that was where his chance of winning evaporated.Not even a second safety-car period, on the 51st lap after Massa spun and an unsighted Sutil crashed, could throw him a lifeline, but with Raikkonen crashing while fighting Glock for fourth place on the 58th lap, he could afford to settle for the six points that took his championship tally to 84 points, with Massa still on 77, Kubica 64 and Raikkonen 57. Equally, McLaren were able to move a point ahead of Ferrari in the constructors’ chase.Thus Alonso scored his first win since Monza 2007 and Renault’s first since Japan 2006, and Rosberg scored his best-ever finish after a fine drive. Behind Glock, Vettel fended off Nick Heidfeld for fifth, and Coulthard and Kazuki Nakajima completed the points scorers.Jenson Button was ninth for Honda ahead of an unhappy Heikki Kovalainen, who lost out badly in a first-lap brush with Kubica as they fought over fourth place; the Pole was 11th from Sebastien Bourdais, the deeply unhappy Massa and Fisichella.

Raikkonen was classified 15th.Trulli failed to finish with a mechanical problem, as did Webber; Barrichello ran out of fuel in his Honda, and Sutil and Piquet both crashed.With far more overtaking than the drivers had predicted, Formula One’s first-ever night race packed in plenty of excitement, and was adjudged a great success.

FIA post-qualifying press conference - Singapore

Reproduced with kind permission of the FIA
Drivers: 1st Felipe Massa (Ferrari), 1m44.801s; 2nd Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), 1m45.465s; 3. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari), 1m45.617s.

Q: Felipe, Monaco, Valencia and now here the inaugural night race at Singapore. What an achievement for you.

Felipe Massa: I think first of all the car was just perfect, you know, so nice to drive smoothly and then I managed to do a perfect lap and that always helps when you have a good car and you don’t make any single mistakes in whatever corner you go. That is always a great achievement.

Q: What does it feel like to put in a perfect lap at a venue like this, the first ever night race in the history of Formula One?

FM: It was just a great feeling. When you come into the last corner you say I cannot make any mistake. You are not trying to go on the limit at the last corner as you know everything could be worse than it actually is, so I just made it corner by corner, perfect, not making any single mistake and then when I came to the last corner I said ‘maybe I will take it a little bit easier’ but I couldn’t. I did the last corner quickly anyway but the feeling is so fantastic. When you get the best from the car it is one of the most incredible feelings you can have as a racing driver, so when you achieve what you want it is always a great achievement.

Q: Your thoughts on driving on this track at night?

FM: It is pretty tough. It is a very difficult track. To get every corner right is really difficult. The lights, I mean the visibility, I don’t think is a big problem to be honest. We have visibility, so you don’t care, you just want to take the best out of the car, so you don’t really think whether you are during the night or during the day, you just think about what you have to do. It will be a very difficult race for sure. Concentration will be 10 times more important than a normal circuit, even maybe a little bit more difficult than Monaco as there are more corners, so it won’t be easy.

Q: And how has the rhythm of the weekend worked out for you and the team?

FM: Yeah, for sure I think the work of the team in a way is exactly similar to other races but in completely different times. I got here on Tuesday and tried to go to bed very late but already Wednesday, at three o’clock in the morning, I was walking the track with my family, with Rubens Barrichello and his wife and everybody. We were having fun but also learning the track. Every day I was trying to do similar things, I think everybody in the team as well, trying to use more the European time than the time from here. It is a little bit strange but fun in a way.

Q: Lewis, after what happened in Monza we were all a bit worried but you just made it into Q3.

LH: You were not the only ones who were worried. It was a little bit nerve-wracking for sure but fortunately we got through. I managed to secure a good spot on the front row but obviously not as smooth sailing as some other people. But nevertheless we’ve been very competitive all weekend, so I think I am in a good position for the race tomorrow.

Q: We heard on the radio transmission the team saying great sector three, but sectors one and two were where you had to try and find the speed on that last run.

LH: Yes, I remember that the first lap I did wasn’t particularly fantastic. The last sector was good but in the first two I was a little bit cautious. The next time I came through I think I improved the first couple of corners but then I lost a bit of time I think through turn five and then the rest of the lap was pretty much the same pace as my best time. I think I may have improved it slightly but it wasn’t enough.

Q: We saw the hard Bridgestone tyre looking good in Q3. What was the thinking going into qualifying from a tyre point of view?

LH: It was actually quite a tricky decision to make simply because normally there is a relatively big difference between the two compounds, or noticeable difference, but today generally both tyres were very similar but the option tyre doesn’t seem to be lasting the whole lap. Fortunately, I think everyone pretty much went for the harder and it seemed to do the job.

Q: And your thoughts on night racing? How have you liked it so far?

LH: Yeah, tonight it is kind of crazy. It is 11.15 hrs at night right now and I’ve never been driving at this time before but for us it’s the afternoon. As Felipe said we have been walking the track at 3 a.m. in the morning, going to bed at five or six, and waking up late in the day, so it quite unique but driving the circuit is fantastic. I think they have done an amazing job in building the circuit and the facilities. It is really a great place to be.

Q: Kimi, a troublesome morning for you which would not have helped going into qualifying.

KR: Yeah, it was a bit unfortunate. We had some issue with the steering wheel and then I ran wide and tried to turn round but we could not find any gears anymore. That is unfortunate but the car has been pretty good. We have been losing a bit of time here and there but it was not too bad.

Q: A good Q1 for you, but how did you feel in Q2 and Q3?

KR: I thought it was better with the softer tyres but we were not so sure, so we stayed with the harder ones and it was a bit trickier than the first qualifying. Maybe we should have gone the other way but I don’t know, it would probably not have a made a lot of difference but anyhow I am reasonably happy. It could have been better but it is not too bad.

Q: The drivers have been talking in general about how physical the circuit is. Talk a little bit about it being an anti-clockwise circuit. It seems quite bumpy, very hot.

KR: I think it is just hot and humid and that is the only difference. It is not very physical, there are quite slow corners and not any quick corners but it is quite bumpy in some places. That is probably the only negative thing here and hopefully for next year they can fix it. Apart from that it is a very nice place and a nice circuit to drive, so it is a nice feeling.

Q: Felipe, on pole for this historic race. Your thoughts again going into the race in front of a huge crowd and a massive television audience.

FM: I am sure it will be a very important race for Formula One. I think the people at home knowing it is the first Formula One night race are already very interested wherever they are. If they are in Brazil to wake up to the race, if they are in Europe to make sure after lunch to go home to see the race, if they are here to go to the track. I think it is a very interesting thing and it will be a very important race in the calendar, so I am looking forward to doing a good job tomorrow. If we can win the race it will be an even more fantastic feeling than winning the qualifying.

Q: Felipe, an extraordinary margin of 0.6s over the rest. How do you explain that?

FM: That’s impressive. For sure that was one of the best qualifying for us this season. It was a huge margin. Always when you see the margin, you want to have slightly more fuel in the car. I think we already have a good strategy but when you see the margin you just think about that. Anyway, I think it was a great lap, a perfect lap. It always puts you in a good position when you can do everything perfectly, especially when you have a good car. The car was so good here during these two days and I think we went into qualifying at the right moment to take the maximum out of the car. I think I did a good job. The team did a great job as well preparing the weekend, so that’s it. I think everything went perfectly tonight.

Q: How was the difference on the different types of tyre?

FM: Already yesterday I was happy on the hard tyres. I was pretty keen to do Q3 on the hard tyres because I had exactly the same feeling in Monaco. I had the same feeling in Hungary on the track as well. The tyres are not very different in terms of grip from the soft to the hard but the hard is more consistent through the whole lap to the end of the lap, so that’s why I was already quite comfortable and happy with the hard yesterday and this morning and didn’t even think about trying the prime.

Q: You talked about concentration during the race itself. How do you feel about it physically as well, the bumps, the heat, etc?

FM: It’s part of the concentration, it’s part of the way you drive a race. We have a lot of bumps here from turn five to turn seven which is always difficult. I think to do 61 laps at a consistent pace is very tough, so let’s try to make sure that tomorrow we can have a great pace, a good start and try to have similar pace to that which we had in qualifying.

Q: Lewis, you nearly missed Q3. How aware were you of that, what was the problem in fact?

LH: I just missed my first lap. The car didn’t stop into turn one, so I missed out on that lap and then I had to come in. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough fuel to do an extra lap, so I had to come in and then I went into the weighing scales. Then I had to come back in, get everything cooled down and everything changed and back out. And then when I went back out I got stuck in traffic. It was just one of those things. It was very, very fortunate that I got through and I’m happy with the result as a result of that.

Q: What about overtaking on this circuit. How easy is that going to be?

LH: No, you won’t be able to overtake here. I don’t think so, not if you’re as quick as the guy in front. For the quicker cars, if there’s not really much time difference… I was behind David Coulthard, DC’s car. I was quite a bit quicker but I couldn’t get close enough.

Q: Are you going to be relying on the mistakes of other drivers or can you not rely on that?

LH: No, you’ve just got to play it by ear and just do the best job that we can tomorrow. Q: Kimi, very good times in Q1 and Q2, so are you a bit disappointed with Q3? KR: The result is OK if I look at what happened in the last few races. For sure in the first qualifying the car felt best and then it was a bit more difficult with the harder tyres. It was difficult to really chose which tyres to take in the end. I think the hard ones were the safer option. We missed the morning, so we couldn’t really test them against each other, so that was a little bit difficult for us. It was OK. Third place is fine.

Q: Does the car feel good? You mentioned a modification that you tested at Mugello.

KR: No, we went back yesterday for today and it feels OK. There are small things that we can still improve for sure, but I’m pretty happy with it, and I think once everything is fine as we had in the first qualifying, then it seems to be quite good but if it goes a little bit off that, then it’s not as quick anymore and for sure you need to have a good car if you’re going to be in this kind of place, exactly where you want. I’m still happy and for sure I think we are usually a little bit stronger in the race, so I’m not too worried about it.

Q: Which is the most crucial part of the circuit as far as you’re concerned?

KR: I think it’s everywhere. There are a lot of slow corners and you can easily lose a lot of time in those, so you need to get everything right to be fast here. There are many areas which are tricky, so it’s not easy.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Fréderic Ferret – L’Equipe) Lewis, with Felipe on pole and you on the dusty side, do you think it could be a remake of Valencia?

LH: Most likely. It’s the dirtier side, so it’s always the slower side.

Q: Fréderic Ferret – L’Equipe) So after the start do you think it will be Felipe in front and then you?

LH: It depends who gets to the first corner first. As I said, it’s unlikely to be able to overtake, so we might see another Valencia.

Q: (Sudhir Chandran – Chequered Flag) Question to you all, does it matter at all to have a background of dark sky against the lights? What kind of emotion does this cause: depressing, demotivating? What difference is it compared to a nicely lit background?

FM: I think I just answered this question. I think when you’re driving and you have the visibility, you don’t really care if it is during the day or during the night, you just want to get the maximum out of the car. I don’t know about these guys but that’s the way I think.

LH: I barely notice it to be honest. For sure it’s a unique feeling but it doesn’t make a difference in terms of driving your lap because you’re looking at the ground in front of you, you don’t particularly look up. But sometimes, after turn 13, you look at the straight, you open your eyes and you see everything and it’s dark but you can’t see anything there apart from a building maybe. It’s cool but it doesn’t do anything to your emotions or anything.

KR: You don’t look at the sky, so it doesn’t make any difference.

FM: I hope we don’t look at the sky.

KR: The lights are almost as good as daytime, so it’s really normal.

Q: (James Allen – ITV) Lewis, you only did one lap in Q1 whereas everyone else did two. Looking back, did that have any part to play in the problems that you had at the start of Q2? Had the others got their eye in more than you?

LH: No. I did my first lap at the same time as everyone else and it was half a second faster, so there was no need to do any more laps.

Q: (Juha Päätalo – Financial Times Deutschland) Lewis, are you worried about the gap to Felipe and what do you think that it shows about the performance of the cars here?

LH: No, I can’t be worried but for sure I don’t think that my lap was anywhere near perfect by any means. As Felipe said, he did a perfect lap and his car was great. We know that they are very competitive, plus we don’t know what their strategy is. We’re not worried, we’re in a very strong position tomorrow with the strategy we’re on. I’m quite happy with where I am. I think it’s going to be a tough race tomorrow, but as I said, in the position we’re in, we’re looking quite good.

Q: (Juha Päätalo – Financial Times Deutschland) Kimi, how happy are you with your last lap and what do you think is possible for you in the race?

KR: We will try the best that we can tomorrow. I think the car should be pretty good in the race. The lap was OK but for sure you could go faster but third place is not too bad.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Kimi, could you describe what happened in practice three? You were quite nervous with the marshals, and did the engine suffer in that situation?

KR: I don’t know. It got a little bit hot but it looks like it’s fine. I just tried to show them to push me backwards because I couldn’t select reverse but then once they pushed me, they helped me because I couldn’t get a gear. We had an electronic problem with the steering wheel. That was the only issue.

Fancy A Formula 1 Car?

2008-09-20T14:00:00.004+08:00

Weird and wonderful finds on Aussie reefs

2008-09-20T12:56:00.009+08:00

Weird and wonderful finds on Aussie reefs

Among the species found are a ctenophore or comb jellyfish (above), a white-topped coral crab, a green-banded snapping shrimp, Pohls sea urchins, and sabellids or fan worms, all from the Lizard and Heron islands off the Great Barrier Reef. -- PHOTOS: ASSOCIATED PRESS, REUTERS

SYDNEY: Marine scientists said they have discovered hundreds of new animal species on reefs in Australian waters, including brilliant soft corals and tiny crustaceans.

The creatures were found during expeditions run by the Australian chapter of CReefs, a global census of coral reefs that is one of several projects of the Census of Marine Life, an international effort to catalogue all life in the oceans.

Among the creatures discovered were about 130 soft corals - also known as octocorals, for the eight tentacles that fringe each polyp - that have never been described in scientific literature, and scores of other crustaceans that have never been catalogued, including tiny shrimp-like animals with claws longer than their bodies.

'People have been working at these places for a long time and still there are literally hundreds and hundreds of new species that no one has ever collected or described,' said Mr Julian Caley, a scientist from the Australian Institute of Marine Science who is helping to lead the research.
The Australian researchers conducted three expeditions, one each in the waters off the Great Barrier Reef's Lizard and Heron islands, and one in the Ningaloo Reef, on Australia's north-west coast.

The project marks the first time any group has made a concerted effort to understand the biodiversity of the Great Barrier Reef, said Professor Ron Johnstone, a marine science professor at the University of Queensland.
ASSOCIATED PRESS

TDS

2008-08-30T05:58:00.002+08:00

Strange feeling
Not being there
After all these years
Never forget
Friends forever

Sharing Phelps' Dream Of A Perfect Score

2008-08-18T20:06:00.003+08:00

Sharing Phelps' Dream Of A Perfect Score

BEIJING: The Water Cube is silent. The waters still. The scoreboard blank. The dream done. Michael has gone.

A champion has departed but he has left us fulfilled. Almost every morning, through nine days, I have arrived at this pool, collected the race schedule, climbed to the top stands of the Water Cube and watched a man chase his dream.

Always when he won, and always he won, I was on my feet. Michael does that to people, he moves them. He is an American, with a sad haircut, I do not know him, but it seemed impossible not to get involved with his dream.

To chase eight golds was not arrogance, it was simply desperately brave. If he failed, so be it, but he was willing to try. History anyway is never made by the faint-hearted.

What happens when we watch sport? We are thrilled, inspired, impressed, entertained. But with Phelps, unusual emotions came into play: We were grateful, we were humbled. Mainly because he let us be witness to something we have never seen before. Or possibly again.

Phelps fascinated us, he forced us to look at him, with those boy's hips, a stevedore's shoulders, arms like cables, stumpy legs, flipper feet, no hair, a physique so strange it's almost like a human jigsaw puzzle gone wrong.

We liked him because he seemed unaffected, never shirking a press conference, sitting there, face long, mouth open, tiredness collecting at the corners of his lips, never complaining, never boasting, never sounding bored.

Once a Chinese journalist asked him the world's longest question, Phelps couldn't hear the translation, chaos ensued, other journalists wanted to move on, but he waited, another translation was made, he answered.

Champions are not judged on decency, but it is just pleasing when they are unaffected by their own heroics. Throughout the nine days, Phelps explained his goal as raising swimming's profile, of altering its status as a four-yearly sport.

Yesterday, he revealed, friends had told him 'it's crazy' in the US, that on television the swimming is always on. Actually it is he who is always on, he who America watches, but he didn't say it. It was a nice touch.

We liked him, this revolutionary, because there is something pure to him, even noble, an athlete blanking out everything for nine days, just simply and singularly fixated on his dream.

How did he get up so early, find energy, push himself, not go out (movies and sleep is all he did), see his mother for only 30 seconds, manage his emotions, and then summon his best every time?

Maybe, we will never know. I don't want to know. Because something so extraordinary, so beautiful, should just be enjoyed not completely understood.

If genius could be explained, it would take some of the mystery out of it. It would make it seem common. It seems fitting that forever we will look back at Michael Phelps and ask: How?

These Games are not over, but these Games belong to Phelps. Even if a swimmer, under two caps, behind goggles, obscured in the water, seems an unlikely athletic god.

Some believe he should say farewell. Eight gold is his measuring tape and eight gold is unbeatable. Of course, that's what we said about seven.

But Phelps will swim on, and should swim on. He has to compete in next year's World Championships because his mum has never seen Rome, he grinned, and she wants to. And he's an obedient boy.

He has to keep swimming because he wants more people to go swimming, watch swimming and he's not close to his goal yet.

He has to keep swimming because he still hasn't discovered how far his talent extends, he wants to try new events, perhaps the sprints. And anyone who has seen him this week, do they want to say stop to this man?

Towards the end of his final press conference yesterday, a journalist mentioned that we had heard everyone's view on him, but what did Michael Phelps think of Michael Phelps.

He grinned. He paused. He said: 'I'm lucky to have everything I have. I am lucky to have the talent, the drive, the want, the excitement about sport. I am fortunate for every quality I have.'

He got up. People clapped. He slid his lanky body through the throng, adjusted his cap and strolled away. Just a man searching for a new dream. - The Straits Times

Phelps' Eighth Wonder

2008-08-18T19:42:00.008+08:00

Phelps' Eighth Wonder

AUG 9, 6.50PM
Race 1: 400m individual medley, heat 4
Time: 4min 7.82sec, 1st

15HR 9MIN LATER
AUG 10, 10.04AM
Race 2: 400m IM final
Time: 4:03.84 (WR)
It was effortless. Phelps trailed at the first 100m, but then kicked into overdrive to win easily.

9HR 12MIN LATER
AUG 10, 7.21PM
Race 3: 200m freestyle, heat 8
Time: 1:46.48, 2nd

14HR 56MIN LATER
AUG 11, 10.19AM
Race 4: 200m freestyle semi-final
Time: 1:46.28, 3rd

1HR 6MIN LATER
AUG 11, 11.27AM
Race 5: 4x100m freestyle relay final
Time: 3:08.24 (WR)
Phelps was not the story here. It was his compatriot, Jason Lezak, who caught then-world record holder Alain Bernard on the anchor leg to keep Phelps' dream alive.

8HR 1MIN LATER
AUG 11, 7.32PM
Race 6: 200m butterfly, heat 6
Time: 1:53.70, 1st

14HR 42MIN LATER
AUG 12, 10.16AM
Race 7: 200m freestyle final
Time: 1:42.96 (WR)
Phelps was ahead at every turn, doing the first 50m in 25.98. A walk in the park.

52MIN LATER
AUG 12, 11.10AM
Race 8: 200m butterfly, semi-final
Time: 1:53.70, 1st

23HR 9MIN LATER
AUG 13, 10.21AM
Race 9: 200m butterfly final
Time: 1:52.03 (WR)
It was closer than most imagined. Phelps had trouble seeing because his goggles leaked. He did not have the vision, but he had the instinct to win by 0.67sec.
...Phelps completes his eight-gold journey

59MIN LATER
AUG 13, 11.22AM
Race 10: 4x200m relay final
Time: 6:58.56 (WR)
The US team obliterated the world record. No surprise there.

8HR 38MIN LATER
AUG 13, 8.07PM
Race 11: 200m IM, heat 6
Time: 1:58.65, 1st

15HR LATER
AUG 14, 11.09AM
Race 12: 200m IM semi-final
Time: 1:57.70, 1st

9HR 8MIN LATER
AUG 14, 8.19PM
Race 13: 100m butterfly, heat 9
Time: 50.87sec, 2nd

14HR 30MIN LATER
AUG 15, 10.50AM
Race 14: 200m IM final
Time: 1:54.23 (WR)
It was not so much that this race slowed him down for the next event. But it was that he had very little time between the medal ceremony and the 100m butterfly semi-finals - about seven minutes.

34MIN LATER
AUG 15, 11.26AM
Race 15: 100m butterfly semi-final
Time: 50.97sec, 1st

22HR 43MIN LATER
AUG 16, 10.10AM
Race 16: 100m butterfly final
Time: 50.58sec (OR)
Phelps out-touched Milorad Cavic at the finish. It was so close the result was protested by the Serbian delegation. Phelps was lucky to win this one.

24HR 47MIN LATER
AUG 17, 10.58AM
Race 17: 4x100m medley relay final
Time: 3:29.34 (WR)
Aaron Peirsol led off in the backstroke, giving the US a 0.2sec lead. Brendan Hansen lost the lead and Phelps took over in the fly, giving the US the lead again. Once again, Lezak is stellar and Michael Phelps makes history.

CJS: Such a gruelling schedule... heats, semis, finals... not forgetting press conferences... Simply magnificent!

US swim relay triumph lifts Phelps to historic eighth gold

2008-08-17T21:53:00.006+08:00

US Swim Relay Triumph Lifts Phelps To Historic Eighth Gold

Michael Phelps won an unprecedented eighth gold medal at the Beijing Games Sunday, surging past yet another Olympic milestone as the United States won the men's 4x100m medley relay in world record time.
With the victory, Phelps overtook compatriot Mark Spitz, whose seven swimming golds at Munich in 1972 were the most at a single Games.
At 23, and competing in his third Olympics, Phelps took his total of Olympic titles to a record 14, including six from Athens, where he also claimed two bronze.
The US squad of Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen, Phelps and Jason Lezak won a tight race in 3:29.34, Lezak holding off Australian individual world record-holder Eamon Sullivan on the closing freestyle leg.
The United States were lying third when Phelps hit the water for the penultimate butterfly leg. He had given the United States a narrow lead by the time he handed over to Lezak.
"I don't know what to feel right now, there are so many emotions going through my head and so much excitement, I guess I just want to see my mom," Phelps said.
The Americans improved on the previous world record of 3:30.68. Australia were also under the previous record, taking silver in 3:30.04 and Japan took the bronze in 3:31.18.
"It's a beautiful thing, I am so proud to be a part of this relay team," Peirsol said.
"It wasn't like we were doing this for Michael, but it's an honor to be part of it. It would have been something if we hadn't done it.
"Sullivan came back at the end, but I think at the end of a long competition we are all a little tired right now," Peirsol added.
Indeed when the much anticipated moment came, there was no scream of triumph, no fist-pounding gesture of victory from Phelps, who was hugged by his teammates and shook hands with his rivals before calmly raising his arms toward the crowd and drawing a roar from the Water Cube fans.
"I have been fairly speechless since the relay," Phelps said. "This is all a dream come true, just to be able to imagine anything, to go through the ups and downs and accomplish everything you ever dreamed of."
"I was really nervous going into this, because anything can happen in one race," admitted Lezak, who had saved Phelps's bid for history with his unlikely surge past France's Alain Bernard on the final leg of the 4x100m free relay on Monday.
"I wanted to take it out hard and hold on as long as I could. I never thought I'd catch Bernard, so I knew the same thing could happen to me." - AFP

Phelps matches Spitz seven with 100m butterfly thriller

2008-08-16T21:27:00.009+08:00

Phelps Matches Spitz's Record of 7 Olympic Golds

BEIJING (AFP) - - Michael Phelps stared down history Saturday, matching Mark Spitz's magical seven gold medals at one Olympics with a defiant victory in the men's 100m butterfly.

Phelps, seventh at the turn, snatched victory by one-hundredth of a second over Serbia's Milorad Cavic, pounding the water in triumph and screaming with delight when he realized the enormity of his achievement.
"I feel a little bit of everything - relief, excitement, everything," Phelps said. "I had to take my goggles off to make sure the '1' was next to my name."
The 23-year-old American phenomenon, who had appeared invincible as he set six world records in winning his first six golds at the Water Cube, displayed the sheer force of his will as he made up a deficit of more than half a second in the final lap to win in 50.58sec with Cavic second in 50.59.
"One-hundredth is the smallest margin of victory in our sport and it's pretty cool, that's all I can say," Phelps said.
Serbian officials thought it was too close.
They protested that Cavic should have shared the gold, but swimming's ruling body FINA reviewed the race and decreed that the one-two finish stood.
"Under our rules, we listened to the protest," said race referee Ben Ekumbo. "I looked at the video footage from Omega and it was very clear the Serbian swimmer had second behind Michael Phelps, one was stroking (Phelps) the other was gliding (Cavic)."
"I guess the timing system says it all," said Phelps, whose own gold was not jeopardized by the protest.
Cavic had challenged Phelps even before the race began.
As the American took up his familiar pre-race stance alongside his block, facing the side of the pool, Cavic stood by his own block and faced him.
The two stood stock still and staring until the starter called them onto the blocks, but at the finish it was Cavic who blinked, missing out on gold in 50.59.
"When I saw the 50.58 and the 50.59 and I saw the '1' next to my name, that's when I sort of let my roar out," Phelps said.
As Cavic reached for the wall, Phelps gambled with one more short stroke.
"I actually thought when I did take that half stroke, I thought I had lost the race right there, but I guess that was the difference in the end," he said.
Australian Andrew Lauterstein was third in 51.12.
It was the only one of Phelps's five individual events in Beijing in which he both started and finished without the world record, which still belongs to fourth-placed compatriot Ian Crocker.
With his seventh gold medal, Phelps matched the record that US swimmer Spitz established with seven victories at the Munich Olympics in 1972, and will have a chance to break the mark when he swims the 4x100m medley relay on Sunday.
"I think the biggest thing is when someone says you can't do something," Phelps said of his determination in pursuing a record once thought unassailable.
"It shows that anything is possible when you put your mind to it."
Phelps has won gold here in the 100m and 200m butterfly, 200m and 400m individual medley, 200m freestyle, 4x100m freestyle relay and 4x200m freestyle relay.
Phelps, who won six gold medals in Athens, had already moved ahead of Spitz on one score here. He surpassed the US swimming icon, along with Games greats Carl Lewis, Paavo Nurmi and Larysa Latynina, who were tied for the Olympic record of nine career gold medals.
With his seventh Beijing triumph Phelps took his career total of Games gold to 13.

Spitz hails Phelps' `epic' 7 gold medals

BEIJING - Mark Spitz had one word for the performance that gave Michael Phelps his seventh gold medal of the Beijing Games and equaled his own Olympic record that had stood for 36 years.

"Epic," Spitz said Saturday morning when reached by The Associated Press in Detroit, where his youngest son was playing in a basketball tournament.
Moments earlier, Phelps came from behind to win the 100-meter butterfly, edging Croatia's Milorad Cavic by a hundredth of a second.
"It goes to show you that not only is this guy the greatest swimmer of all time and the greatest Olympian of all time, he's maybe the greatest athlete of all time," Spitz said. "He's the greatest racer who ever walked the planet."
With the victory, the 23-year-old from Baltimore pulled even with Spitz's seven-gold haul at the 1972 Munich Games. Phelps can break the record in his final race on Sunday, the 400 medley relay.
Spitz sounded almost giddy on the other end of the phone line.
"I'm ecstatic," he said. "I always wondered what my feelings would be. I feel a tremendous load off my back. Somebody told me years ago you judge one's character by the company you keep, and I'm just happy to be in the company of Michael Phelps. That's the bottom line."
"I'm so proud of what he's been able to do," Spitz added. "I did what I did and it was in my day in those set of circumstances. For 36 years it stood as a benchmark. I'm just pleased that somebody was inspired by what I had done. He's entitled to every second of what's occurring to him now."
Spitz said he had considered it a "foregone conclusion" that Phelps would equal his record, especially since he won six golds at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
And now he fully expects Phelps to make it 8-for-8 on Sunday with a win in the relay.
"The Americans have never lost that race since it's been an event in the Olympic Games," Spitz said. "You have to be very cautious on the relay exchanges and make sure nobody gets disqualified, but it should be just a matter of what the time is going to be and who's going to put the gold medal around their neck first."

Gold No. 6

2008-08-15T20:59:00.005+08:00

Gold No. 6

BEIJING, (AFP) - - Unstoppable Michael Phelps won his sixth gold medal with his sixth world record of the Beijing Games Friday, his triumph in the 200m medley moving him closer to an historic eight titles.
Phelps led throughout and pulled away on the final freestyle leg to win by more than two seconds in a world record of 1min 54.23sec.
Hungarian Laszlo Cseh was second in a European record of 1:56.52, with American Ryan Lochte edged into third place in 1:56.53 - a repeat of the medal finish in the 400m medley on Sunday.
Half an hour earlier, Lochte threw down the gauntlet as he posted a world record to beat defending champion Aaron Peirsol convincingly in the 200m backstroke.
But he was unable to derail his superstar teammate's bid for a record eight golds at one Games, which would surpass the seven-gold standard set by US swimmer Mark Spitz at Munich in 1972.
"Of course, I wanted to beat Michael Phelps," Lochte said. "No matter what the event is, I want to win. But it didn't happen."
It was a hectic day, too, for Phelps, who was back on the blocks half an hour after his triumph, and just minutes after the medal ceremony, to post the second-fastest time in the semi-finals of the 100m butterfly.
"I didn't know I had as little time as I did, I didn't even have time to go into the ready room," he said.
"I went from the ceremony straight into putting my parka on and goggles, cap, and go. It was about two minutes, I knew it was tight, but not that tight."
Phelps has also won gold and claimed world records in the 400m medley, 200m freestyle, 200m butterfly, 4x100m free relay and 4x200m free relay.
Now with 12 for his career, including six from the Athens Games, Phelps owns the most gold medals of any competitor in history in any Olympic sport.
In addition to the 100m fly, he has the 4x100m medley relay remaining.

Phelps Watch

2008-08-14T10:48:00.010+08:00

Phelps Watch

Sunday
400m IM: GOLD Time: 4:03.84 (WR)
Monday
4x100m free relay: GOLD Time: 3:08:24 (WR)
Tuesday
200m free: GOLD Time: 1:42.96 (WR)
Yesterday
200m butterfly GOLD Time: 1:52.03 (WR)
4x200m free relay GOLD Time: 6:58.56 (WR)
Tomorrow
200m IM
Saturday
100m butterfly
Sunday
4x100m medley relay

BEIJING: Michael Phelps was blind when he became the Olympics' greatest athlete yesterday - a story that will only add to his growing legend.
He came out of the water after winning the 200m butterfly yelling like a kid: 'I couldn't see anything, I couldn't see a thing.'
He later explained: 'For the last 100m, my goggles pretty much filled up with water. It just kept getting worse and worse through the race and I was having trouble seeing the walls.'
When he finished two-thirds of a second ahead of Hungary's Laszlo Cseh, the 23-year-old American tore off his swim cap and the leaky goggles and slammed them to the pool deck in disgust.
It was a measure of a man bent on perfection.
'I wanted to go 1:51 or better,' he said of his world-record 1min 52:03sec - his seventh mark in his signature event. 'But, in the circumstances, I guess it's not too bad.'
Not too bad? With that win, he could start looking down at swim legend Mark Spitz, US track star Carl Lewis, Soviet gymnast Laryssa Latynina and Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi. They each have nine Olympic golds.
Phelps had 10. That was at 10.21 am.
At 11.19am, he won another gold as part of the 4x200m freestyle relay, so make it 11.
'To be the most decorated Olympian of all time, it just sounds weird saying it,' Phelps said. 'I just keep thinking, 'Wow. The greatest Olympian of all time.' That's a pretty cool title. I'm definitely honoured.'
But the only number that matters, it seems, is eight.
With five gold medals already around his neck at the Beijing Games, can he survive the whiplash required to win three more, breaking Spitz's single-Olympics record of seven?
Everyone around here with wet hair believes the deal is done.
'I think he'll win eight medals,' said Pawel Korzeniowski, who was sixth in the 200m butterfly. 'Everyone says, 'How does he do this?' But still, he does this.'
Andrew Hunter, part of Britain's sixth-place relay team, said: 'Everybody does his best against him and still, you don't have a chance.'
To complete his mission, he has to win a 200m individual medley race in which he is the world record-holder, a 100m butterfly race in which he has been faster than Ian Crocker all year, and a 4x100m medley relay that the Americans have never lost in a non-boycotted Olympics.
He needs none of it, however, to win over the world. That has been done already, Phelps capturing attention this week by being not only great, but goofy.
With his buzz haircut and oversized ears and crooked grin, he looks refreshingly like any other 23-year-old. Once on the pool deck, he acts like one.
He gave the relay team a lead of more than 21/2 seconds and then he really got serious, climbing out of the water to pound the starting block and scream 'Come on! Come on!'.
His buddy Ryan Lochte extended that. Olympic rookie Ricky Berens opened it up to more than 4sec. Anchor Peter Vanderkaay, third in the 200m free, made sure the quartet became the first to go under seven minutes.
Their 6:58.56 was 4.68sec faster than the previous mark, also set by the US men at the 2007 World Championships. Russia were second, five seconds behind.
'It's the funnest thing, being part of a team,' Phelps said.
How can you not love a guy who uses the word 'funnest?'
How can you not love a guy who, at the end of yesterday's press conference, pulled out his Blackberry and read reporters what he considered an important text message from a high school friend.
'Dude, it's ridiculous how many times I have to see your ugly face.'
Phelps smiled and read another text message from the same friend: 'It's time to be the best ever.'
Looking forward to his remaining three events, Phelps noted: 'From now on, it's just a downward slope.
'The end is close, I love it.'
ASSOCIATED PRESS

History Made

2008-08-13T20:56:00.014+08:00

History Made - 13 August 2008
Phelps Carves Name As Games' Greatest

BEIJING - Michael Phelps became the greatest Olympian of all time on Wednesday by winning two gold medals in the space of an hour to lift his career total to an unequalled 11 on his charge to Olympic immortality.

As world records continued to tumble in the pool, Phelps passed the halfway point in his drive to be the first person to win eight golds at one Games when he blitzed the 200m butterfly final and led the US 4x200 freestyle relay team.
The champion American has now won five gold medals in Beijing, all of them in world record time, to go with the six gold he won in Athens.
In a stunning performance in the butterfly final, Phelps was barely able to see as his goggles filled with water.
"It just kept getting worse and worse through the race and I was having trouble seeing the walls to be honest. I wanted to go 1:51 or better but for the circumstances I guess it's not too bad."
Phelps had to settle for 1min 52.03sec, just 0.06sec faster than the previous record he set last year, while his relay team slashed 4.48sec off their record setting a new time of 6:58.56.
No other athlete has won more than nine career gold medals in the history of the Olympics, and Phelps's is confident of meeting his next target of beating Mark Spitz's record of seven golds in one Games.
"From now on it's just a downward slope. The end is close, I love it," he said with the 200m individual medley, 100m butterfly and 4x100m medley relay to come. - AFP

BEIJING - In some ways, Michael Phelps is just your typical 23-year-old.

He hates getting up early. He wolfs down enormous amounts of pizza. He loves texting with friends, listening to hip-hop on his iPod, or just cruising around in a pimped-out ride.
Then he dives in the water.
Nothing typical there.
In capturing the 200-meter butterfly and 800 freestyle relay with his fourth and fifth world records in as many races in the Beijing Games, Phelps eclipsed a group including Mark Spitz and Carl Lewis to become the winningest Olympian of all time with 11 gold medals.
That leaves only one other thing for Phelps to do before he leaves China: win all eight of his events to take down Spitz's record of seven golds at the 1972 Munich Games. He's already avenged his only two losses at Athens four years ago, when he won six golds.
"It might be once in a century you see something like this," teammate Aaron Peirsol said. "He's not just winning, he's absolutely destroying everything. It's awesome to watch."
To hear Phelps talk, you wouldn't know it. He's turned a gathering of the world's best swimmers into his own personal meet, just him against the clock, easily lugging along the weight of history.
When Phelps climbed out of the pool Tuesday after matching Spitz, Lewis & Co. with gold in the 200 freestyle, he unzipped his skintight suit and ambled over to chat with his coach.
"Well, you're tied," Bob Bowman reminded him.
"That's pretty cool," Phelps replied.
Ho-hum.
Phelps races to win, then moves on. He doesn't pause to appreciate the moment. There'll be plenty of time for that later.
"It's his physical ability, it's his ability to race, it's his ability to keep focused, to get excited when he needs to and to come down when he needs to come down," said Mark Schubert, head coach of the U.S. team.
Phelps didn't even know until earlier this year that he could become the winningest Olympian ever coming off of his six-gold performance in 2004. It took him just four days in Beijing to pull into a tie with Spitz, Lewis, Soviet gymnast Larysa Latynina and Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi.
"To be tied for the most Olympic golds of all time, with those names, in Olympic history ...," Phelps said, before pausing and letting out a slight chuckle.
"The Olympics have been around for so many years, that's a pretty amazing accomplishment."
He's sure not going to get all worked up about it, though. He'll leave that to others.
"If you're not involved in the sport, I'm not sure you can fully appreciate it," said Jack Bauerle, who coaches the U.S. women's team. "He is way past anything you have seen. He is incredible."
Away from the pool, Phelps is a creature of habit. He struggles to wake up in the morning, and loves to take naps in the middle of the afternoon. He usually gets two massages a day and takes ice baths to help his body recover from the grueling schedule. He feasts on gargantuan amounts of pasta and pizza between races.
"Lots of carbs," he said.
When it's time to race, there's no one better. Which is why it's hard to imagine anyone beating him in Beijing.
"I don't think Michael will let his guard down until the last relay race," said his mom, Debbie Phelps. "I don't think he has a comfort zone at all until the whole meet is over, the whole Olympic Games. He will not let his guard down because there's always someone out there."
Or not.
Phelps dominated the 400 individual medley and cleared his toughest hurdle when the 400 free relay team, anchored by Jason Lezak, pulled off an astonishing comeback over the last 25 meters to beat the French by a fingertip.
No one was close to him in the 200 free, either. Phelps made a perfect dive off the blocks and already had a clear lead by the time his body — perfectly suited for swimming with its long torso, large wingspan and big, flexible feet — re-emerged from the water.
Shortly after the first flip turn, he already was a full body length ahead. Phelps steadily pulled away and touched the wall in 1 minute, 42.96 seconds, breaking the mark he set at last year's world championships by nearly a full second.
By the time silver medalist Park Tae-hwan lunged for the end of the pool, Phelps was already looking at the scoreboard.
"I can copy him, but I don't think I could be as good as Phelps," said Park, a gold medalist himself in the 400 free. "It is my honor to compete with him."
His performance is even more remarkable when one considers the workload he takes on at a meet such as this: 17 races covering more than two miles, often against swimmers who specialize in one or two events.
"They've been resting all week and just gearing themselves up for one race, where every time Michael gets up on the block, he has to gear himself up for his performance that night or that morning," Debbie Phelps said.
Nothing spurs Phelps on more than defeat. The fear of failure defines all the great ones, from Michael Jordan to Tiger Woods, and there's nothing different about this guy.
In the 200 free, he avenged his only individual loss at the last Olympics. Phelps, only 19 then, finished third on that warm Greek evening behind Ian Thorpe and Pieter van den Hoogenband in what was quickly dubbed the "Race of the Century." Four years later, he has no equal.
"I hate to lose," he said. "When I lose a race like that, it motivates me even more to try to swim faster." - AFP

CJS: Simply awesome! Incredible! The best swimmer ever. The accolades will start to pour in for him. 5 gold medals so far in Beijing, all of them in world record time! Magnificent! Go for the 8th, Phelps!

Manchester United 3 - 1 Portsmouth

2008-08-11T13:27:00.006+08:00

Charity Shield 2008/09 Season

Manchester United 3 - 1 Portsmouth
Tevez
Giggs
Carrick

(After Penalty Kicks. Full time 0 - 0)

It represented the first of what could turn out to be seven trophies for the Red Devils this season.
But more important for Sir Alex Ferguson, who has now completed a lucky seven victories in the curtain-raiser, it emphasised the class United proved last season still remains as they prepare for the defence of their Premier League and Champions League crowns.

Pop Goes The Munchies

2008-08-11T13:07:00.013+08:00

Pop Goes The Munchies

LONDON: The time-honoured tradition of munching popcorn at the films may soon be just another bit of theatre lore in Britain. Increasing numbers of cinemas are banning it.
A combination of health-conscious cinema- goers rejecting sugar-coated popcorn and disgust at its distinctive smell is steadily spelling 'The End' for the snack in some arthouse cinema chains, the Sunday Observer reported.

It quoted Mr Daniel Broch, owner of the Everyman cinema in London's Hampstead district, who recently bought 17 more venues, as saying: 'I will de-popcorn every new venue I acquire.'
He added: 'It has a disproportionate influence on the space in terms of its overwhelming smell, the cultural idea of it and the operational problems created by the mess it produces.'
The Picturehouse Cinema, a chain of 19 cinemas across Britain, will experiment with popcorn-free screenings next month.

'Popcorn is a contentious issue. Lots of people absolutely hate it and have asked us to ban it, so we're going to do exactly that,' said the group's head of media, Mr Gabriel Swartland.
But other cinemas which tried to go popcorn-free found customers demanded it.
'Audiences in three venues...began asking for popcorn, so we provided it,' said Mr Richard Napper, marketing director of the Curzon chain. - AFP

CJS: Excellent move to oust the popcorn from the cinemas! Sunny Singapore should implement it too. Keep the booze flowing though! Aye!

Back For Good

2008-08-08T21:49:00.009+08:00

Previous blog was a blast
Simply awesome
Sadly
Dec 07 it ended
Everything changes
Life goes on
Back for good
Auspicious day to relaunch
080808