Too many chiefs

 There is a ridicu

Negative Swindon Advertiser

Here is weeks worth of front pages from the Swindon Advertiser these are so negative and seemingly at odds with their backing of Switch On To Swindon campaign

A campaign in the SA own words "is to change perceptions of the town and raise its profile as a great place to live, work, invest in and visit."

The headlines could have been focussed on other issues affecting the wellbeing of the whole town,

Such as The opening of the Swindon Carriage Works business units, the Old Town festival,  plus a host of other good news articles in the Adver.

Or some thought provoking discussion, following the announcement to close the House of Fraser, of  what is needed in our town centre,  is there a vision? Is Swindon's vision joined up? We have the council, Switch on to Swindon, Forward Swindon, In Swindon (BID UK Commercial Property Trust), Standard Life Trust (Regents Circus & The Parade) Fi UK (the Brunel Centre). All doing their own bit to move us forward for a town with a population just outside the, towns & cities, top 30 in the UK. 

Does this apply to anyone you know?

 A viral email I thought I'd share 

While stitching a cut on the hand of a 75 year old farmer, whose hand was caught in
the squeeze gate while working cattle, the doctor struck up a conversation with
the old man.

Eventually the topic got around to politicians and their
role as our leaders.

The old farmer said, "Well, as I see it, most
politicians are 'Post Tortoises'.''

Not being familiar with the term,
the doctor asked him what a 'post tortoise' was.
>
The old farmer said,
"When you're driving down a country road and you come across a fence post with
a tortoise balanced on top, that's a post tortoise."

The old farmer saw the puzzled look on the doctor's face so he continued to explain.
 "You know he didn't get up there by himself, 
he doesn't belong up there, 
he doesn't know what to do while he's up there, 
he's elevated beyond his ability to function,
and you just wonder what kind of dumb arse put him up there to begin with."

Best explanation of a politician I've ever heard.

I find it hard to visualise large numbers does this help?

n the short scale, billion means a thousand millions (1,000,000,000 which is 10⁹), trillionmeans one thousand billions (10¹²)

New Hampshire Grade Level/Span Expectations: Number and Operations; Geometry and Measurement; Problem Solving, Reasoning and Proof; and Communication, Connections and Representations.

Directions: Have students estimate the following...after each, give them the answer, and ask any of the follow up questions, if they are appropriate:

Question: How long ago was one thousand seconds?

Answer: One thousand seconds was 16 minutes, forty seconds ago.

What were you doing one thousand seconds ago? Two thousand seconds ago? How many thousands of seconds has it been since school began today?

Question: How long ago was one million seconds?

Answer: One million seconds would take up 11 days, 13 hours 46 minutes and 40 seconds.

How many million seconds have passed since the beginning of the month? Of the year? Since school began?

Question: How long ago was one billion seconds?

Answer: One billion seconds is a bit over 31 and one-half years.

Are you a billion seconds old? Do you know someone who is?

Do you know someone who is two billion seconds or three billion seconds old?

Question: How long ago was one trillion seconds?

Answer: One trillion seconds is slightly over 31,688 years. That would have been around 29,679 B.C., which is

roughly 24,000 years before the earliest civilizations began to take shape.

Were you surprised by the size of the difference between one million seconds and one billion seconds? Between one billion seconds and one trillion seconds?

Question: if one million seconds takes up 

The USA national debt is $17 trillion 

Whereas the Uk national debt is £1,377 billion

1000 =  thousand 
10,000 = ten thousand
100,000 = hundred thousand
1,000,000  = one thousand, thousand or a million
10,000,000 = ten thousand, thousand
100,000,000 =100 thousand thousand dinosaurs 
1,000,000,000 =1,000 thousand thousand  or billion
10,000,000,000 = ten billion the earth is 5 million years old 
100,000,000,000 = 100/200 billion number galaxies in the universe
1,000,000,000,000 = a thousand billion known as a trillion

What does one TRILLION dollarslook like?

 

 

All this talk about "stimulus packages" and "bailouts"...

A billion dollars...

A hundred billion dollars...

Eight hundred billion dollars...

One TRILLION dollars...

What does that look like? I mean, these various numbers are tossed around l

We'll start with a $100 dollar bill. 

A packet of one hundred $100 bills is less than 1/2" thick and contains $10,000. 

Believe it or not, this next little pile is $1 million dollars (100 packets of $10,000). You could stuff that into a grocery bag and walk around with it.

While a measly $1 million looked a little unimpressive, $100 million is a little more respectable. It fits neatly on a standard pallet...

And $1 BILLION dollars... now we're really getting somewhere...

Next we'll look at ONE TRILLION dollars. This is that number we've been hearing so much about. What is a trillion dollars? Well, it's a million million. It's a thousand billion. It's a one followed by 12 zeros.

You ready for this?

Ladies and gentlemen... I give you $1 trillion dollars...

(And notice those pallets are double stacked.)

So the next time you hear someone toss around the phrase "trillion dollars"... that's what they're talking about.

 

Sorry I can't find the author of above but it is a great view of a very large number

Wanborough May Fayre

Some snaps from the Fayre

 Megan at the traditional Coconut shy

 Jordan selecting his ammo

 What a great way to let off any anger

 Just look at my nut

 Waiting to wang a welly

#wheresderek November 2011

I have learned why Twitter is so successful, clarity and speed. I will improve the competition next time making it easier and snappier.

Thanks to those who did enter, the prize is to be shared between, Matt & Jon.

Here are the answers
Place 1 Liberty in Regent Street
Place 2 Wolverhampton
Place 3 Manchester (their tram system is called Metrolink)
Place 4 Banbury (this is the Banbury Cross sorry could find the white horse)
Place 5 Middleton Cheney
Place 6 Anagram of "popcorn night in" is Chipping Norton
Place 7 Birmingham (the sign points to the The Mailbox (the premier Shopping centre.)
Place 8 Folkestone (people Googled images of seaside lifts)
Place 9 Hythe the terminal for the famous Romney Hythe & Dymchurch 15 inch railway http://www.rhdr.org.uk/


Place 1 the photo of Christmas lights and Tudor building



Place 2, A few years ago I witnessed my soccer team win here 6 - 0

Place 3 a day spent near here the picture of the transport lift





Place 4 in the #wheresderek week on the road, the top of this monument is a big clue.



Place 5 of #wheresderek is a village to the east of place 4 & two of its pubs include The Dolphin Inn & The New Inn

Place 6 of this little competition is a great place to have a, Popcorn Night In (Anagram)
Place 7 more Christmas lights but the sign will give it away the blue lights and the direction signs.



Place 8 I was just going to photograph the sea, but felt you needed a lift. Picture of sea



Place 9 A little town to terminate the #wheresderek competition, the picture taken through the fence.



Please send me a Twitter DM @saintyman, e-mail or Facebook msg.

Please send your entry by Sunday 20th to be in with a chance to win the prize.
Please have a go even if you don't have all the answers

Good luck

Legalised Stealing

So it is okay for bankers in some banks to lose the company mega £'s plunge the world into crisis yet no one has gone to jail.
Daily businesses go bankrupt and steal from people they owe money to and set up a new company straight away.
Worse are businesses like Portsmouth football club who owed so much they have said we will pay you 20p in every £1 owed. Effectively stealing 80% of their debt. No penalty for company bosses, share holders etc. and they are just able to carry on trading!

When is a government going to stop these acts of theft.