September 18th 2014

256px-Scottish_and_British_flags
Scottish referendum takes place –
Scotland independence referendum takes place with the result looking very uncertain. Tennis player Andy Murray used Twitter to back the Yes vote along with actor Sean Connery. Those backing the No vote and wanting Scotland to remain part of the UK include Sir Paul McCartney, Sting, Mick Jagger, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, comedian Eddie Izzard, actresses Helena Bonham-Carter and Dame Judi Dench, Simon Cowell, and Stephen Hawking all of whom signed a letter urging Scotland to stay in the union. The result will be known tomorrow.
Andy-Murray-independence-tweetAndy Murray tweet.

Ig Nobel prizes announced –
The annual Ig Nobel prizes awarded by the Annals of Improbable Research have picked out some classic scientific investigations again. Researchers who measured the slipperiness of banana peels, why pork strips appear to stop nosebleeds, and how reindeer react to humans in polar bear suits were among the winners.
Banane-A-05_cropped
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July 2, 2015

Top News Stories –

Robot kills man at Volkswagen plant in Germany –
A robot has killed a man at a Volkswagen car factory in Germany. The 22-year-old worker died from injuries he sustained when he was trapped by a robotic arm and crushed against a metal plate. The man, who has not been named, was part of a team that was setting up the automated machinery at the factory in Kassel, north of Frankfurt, according to Volkswagen. The robot in question is a mechanical arm that moves car parts into place, said Heiko Hillwig, a spokesman for the company. [Daily Telegraph]

Wimbledon 2015: Rafael Nadal dumped out of tournament by inspired Dustin Brown –
Wimbledon has a new cult hero. Dustin Brown, in a blur of flying dreadlocks and pure inspiration, on Thursday night produced one of the most thrilling upsets ever witnessed on these lawns by defeating the great Rafael Nadal in four breathlessly brilliant sets. With a combination of Sampras-esque serving and improvised groundstrokes that would not have looked out of place on the local park courts, the Jamaican-born German, who enraptured Centre Court by his Rastafarian cool, found an abundance of raw adrenalin to close out his astonishing 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 triumph. [Daily Telegraph] See Top Twitter Trends
Dustin-BrownDustin Brown

Selfies to replace passwords in Mastercard online payments trial –
Mastercard is testing new app that could allow customers to make purchases online by taking a selfie rather than entering a password. Currently, Mastercard customers use a system called SecureCode to verify their identity while shopping online. This requires them to enter a password at the point of sale. Participants in Mastercard’s trial will be prompted to snap a photograph of their face using the Mastercard app on their smartphone at the online checkout point, rather than entering a password. This app then converts the photo into 1s and 0s using facial recognition technology, and transmits it over the internet to MasterCard, which compares it with a stored code representing the cardholder’s face. If the two codes match up, then the purchase will be approved. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Wingsuit Flight Through 2 Meter Cave – Uli Emanuele By GoPro Original Productions

Top Twitter Trends –

Worldwide USA UK
1 #SiYoFueraPresidente #ThingsIGetAlot #BBHMMVideo
2 #EstaComoPara #AyeMaOniTunes Alton Towers
3 Jacobo Zabludovsky #HowIShowMyAge #Lionesses
4 #BBHMMVideo #BuyDirtyWorkOniTunes #HowIShowMyAge
5 #محاكمه_العواج… #BBHMMVideo Val Doonican
6 #UnutMadımaklımda #LiesIveToldAGuy Dustin Brown
7 #TrocoGenteFalsaPor #ComicConAilments #AskZoella
8 #هل_تتزوج_فتاه_… #100DaysSinceZaynLeft #CILIPConf15
9 #CunhaGolpista Dustin Brown #LiesIveToldMyParents
10 #QuintaDoFavQSdv Cadet Kelly Laura Bassett

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July 10, 2016

Top News Stories –

Andy Murray wins Wimbledon by beating Milos Raonic –
Britain’s Andy Murray became Wimbledon champion for the second time with a superb performance against Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic in the final. The Scot, 29, dismantled the Raonic serve in a 6-4 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-2) victory to repeat his triumph of 2013 and claim a third Grand Slam title. Murray is the first British man to win multiple Wimbledon singles titles since Fred Perry in 1935. “I’m proud to have my hands on the trophy again,” said Murray. [BBC]
Andy_MurrayAndy Murray

Euro 2016: Portugal beats France 1-0 in extra-time through Eder wondergoal to claim first title –
A dramatic wondergoal from striker Eder has won Portugal its first European championship, breaking French hearts with a 1-0 win at the Stade de France. After a goalless 90 minutes, most notable for an early injury to Cristiano Ronaldo and the influx of moths that took over the stadium, Portugal began to take over the match in extra-time and substitute Eder proved the match-winner. After cutting inside past two French defenders, the Lille striker unleashed on his right boot past Hugo Lloris, stunning the vocal home crowd and sending the Portugal bench into euphoria.

Eder Eder (R)

Video of the Day –

NB Underground from New Balance Numeric on Vimeo.

List of the Day –

Wimbledon Mens Champions in Open Era

Year Country Champion Country Runner-up Score in the final
1968  AUS Rod Laver  AUS Tony Roche 6–3, 6-4, 6–2
1969  AUS Rod Laver  AUS John Newcombe 6–4, 5–7, 6–4, 6–4
1970  AUS John Newcombe  AUS Ken Rosewall 5–7, 6–3, 6–2, 3–6, 6–1
1971  AUS John Newcombe  USA Stan Smith 6–3, 5–7, 2–6, 6–4, 6–4
1972  USA Stan Smith  ROU Ilie Năstase 4–6, 6–3, 6–3, 4–6, 7–5
1973  TCH Jan Kodeš  URS Alex Metreveli 6–1, 9–8(7–5), 6–3
1974  USA Jimmy Connors  AUS Ken Rosewall 6–1, 6–1, 6–4
1975  USA Arthur Ashe  USA Jimmy Connors 6–1, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4
1976  SWE Björn Borg  ROU Ilie Năstase 6–4, 6–2, 9–7
1977  SWE Björn Borg  USA Jimmy Connors 3–6, 6–2, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4
1978  SWE Björn Borg  USA Jimmy Connors 6–2, 6–2, 6–3
1979  SWE Björn Borg  USA Roscoe Tanner 6–7(4–7), 6–1, 3–6, 6–3, 6–4
1980  SWE Björn Borg  USA John McEnroe 1–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–7(16–18), 8–6
1981  USA John McEnroe  SWE Björn Borg 4–6, 7–6(7–1), 7–6(7–4), 6–4
1982  USA Jimmy Connors  USA John McEnroe 3–6, 6–3, 6–7(2–7), 7–6(7–5), 6–4
1983  USA John McEnroe  NZL Chris Lewis 6–2, 6–2, 6–2
1984  USA John McEnroe  USA Jimmy Connors 6–1, 6–1, 6–2
1985  FRG Boris Becker  ZAF Kevin Curren 6–3, 6–7(4–7), 7–6(7–3), 6–4
1986  FRG Boris Becker  TCH Ivan Lendl 6–4, 6–3, 7–5
1987  AUS Pat Cash  TCH Ivan Lendl 7–6(7–5), 6–2, 7–5
1988  SWE Stefan Edberg  FRG Boris Becker 4–6, 7–6(7–2), 6–4, 6–2
1989  FRG Boris Becker  SWE Stefan Edberg 6–0, 7–6(7–1), 6–4
1990  SWE Stefan Edberg  FRG Boris Becker 6–2, 6–2, 3–6, 3–6, 6–4
1991  GER Michael Stich  GER Boris Becker 6–4, 7–6(7–4), 6–4
1992  USA Andre Agassi  CRO Goran Ivanišević 6–7(8–10), 6–4, 6–4, 1–6, 6–4
1993  USA Pete Sampras  USA Jim Courier 7–6(7–3), 7–6(8–6), 3–6, 6–3
1994  USA Pete Sampras  CRO Goran Ivanišević 7–6(7–2), 7–6(7–5), 6–0
1995  USA Pete Sampras  GER Boris Becker 6–7(5–7), 6–2, 6–4, 6–2
1996  NED Richard Krajicek  USA MaliVai Washington 6–3, 6–4, 6–3
1997  USA Pete Sampras  FRA Cédric Pioline 6–4, 6–2, 6–4
1998  USA Pete Sampras  CRO Goran Ivanišević 6–7(2–7), 7–6(11–9), 6–4, 3–6, 6–2
1999  USA Pete Sampras  USA Andre Agassi 6–3, 6–4, 7–5
2000  USA Pete Sampras  AUS Patrick Rafter 6–7(10–12), 7–6(7–5), 6–4, 6–2
2001  CRO Goran Ivanišević  AUS Patrick Rafter 6–3, 3–6, 6–3, 2–6, 9–7
2002  AUS Lleyton Hewitt  ARG David Nalbandian 6–1, 6–3, 6–2
2003   SUI Roger Federer  AUS Mark Philippoussis 7–6(7–5), 6–2, 7–6(7–3)
2004   SUI Roger Federer  USA Andy Roddick 4–6, 7–5, 7–6(7–3), 6–4
2005   SUI Roger Federer  USA Andy Roddick 6–2, 7–6(7–2), 6–4
2006   SUI Roger Federer  ESP Rafael Nadal 6–0, 7–6(7–5), 6–7(2–7), 6–3
2007   SUI Roger Federer  ESP Rafael Nadal 7–6(9–7), 4–6, 7–6(7–3), 2–6, 6–2
2008  ESP Rafael Nadal   SUI Roger Federer 6–4, 6–4, 6–7(5–7), 6–7(8–10), 9–7
2009   SUI Roger Federer  USA Andy Roddick 5–7, 7–6(8–6), 7–6(7–5), 3–6, 16–14
2010  ESP Rafael Nadal  CZE Tomáš Berdych 6–3, 7–5, 6–4
2011  SRB Novak Djokovic  ESP Rafael Nadal 6–4, 6–1, 1–6, 6–3
2012   SUI Roger Federer  GBR Andy Murray 4–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–4
2013  GBR Andy Murray  SRB Novak Djokovic 6–4, 7–5, 6–4
2014  SRB Novak Djokovic   SUI Roger Federer 6–7(7–9), 6–4, 7–6(7–4), 5–7, 6–4
2015  SRB Novak Djokovic   SUI Roger Federer 7–6(7–1), 6–7(10–12), 6–4, 6–3
2016  GBR Andy Murray  CAN Milos Raonic 6–4, 7–6(7–3), 7–6(7–2)

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