A bolt of lightning contains about ¼ of a kilowatt-hour of power. Even with recent energy price rises, it’s only worth about 9 pence (17 c in NZ money). Photo / NZME
A bolt of lightning contains about ¼ of a kilowatt-hour of power. Even with recent energy price rises, it’s only worth about 9 pence (17 c in NZ money). Photo / NZME
Tom Whitwell’s annual list is always a treat. This very well-read chap shares the interesting stuff he’s learned in the last 12 months. Here are a few amusing/fascinating ones:
1. In August, the world’s largest “hog hotel” opened in Hubei, China. Up to 600,000pigs live in the 26-storey tower block, eventually producing 54,000 tons of pork per year. The site has twice as much floor space as The Shard in London.
2. A bolt of lightning contains about ¼ of a kilowatt-hour of power. Even with recent energy price rises, it’s only worth about 9 pence (17 c in NZ money)
3. Forty per cent of global shipping involves moving fossil and other fuels (oil, gas, wood pellets) around. More renewables (solar, wind, nuclear, geo) means fewer ships.
4. A “zhènlóuqì” is an electrical floor shaker sold on Taobao, used to get revenge on noisy neighbours.
5. Older travellers use airport toilets to hear flight announcements, because acoustics are much clearer.
6. China is building 450 gigawatts of solar and wind power generation in the Gobi Desert. That’s six times the total power generation capacity of the UK.
7. In the 1920s, new car sales were falling, so the industry promoted the term “jaywalking” to blame accidents on pedestrians, rather than aggressive drivers.
A man fell from a cruise ship and survived. The 28-year-old, whose family described him as an exceptional swimmer, had treaded in the freezing cold water for hours, “withstanding rain, 20-knot winds and three- to five-foot waves in the Gulf of Mexico, where bull sharks and blacktip sharks are common”. While the chances of going overboard are exceedingly remote, the outcome is usually tragic. The New York Times reports that in 2019, 25 people fell overboard, and only nine of them were rescued. Alcohol is a factor in at least 11 per cent of falls from cruise ships, which often offer all-inclusive drink packages that encourage drinking onboard. Most falls are either because of recklessness or intention - you don’t just fall off a ship.
Confessions
“After my mum died six years ago, I subscribed to a random agricultural newsletter run by someone with the same name as her. Now every day I get a message from my mum with treatment suggestions for sarcoptic mange mites and gastrointestinal nematodes. Makes me happy.” From @fesshole on Twitter.
