Credit: Williams F1
This is a hidden feature in F1 2011. Honest.
It’s Friday! Hurrah! Hello once again, hope you’ve all had a fine week. Today we go into what could be a Championship winning weekend so as always make sure you check out Christine’s fine work on the Race Information. Do you know who the Race Steward is, and what tyres Pirelli are bringing this weekend? Go and look right there for that and more! We’re just 99 days away from 2012 and already the Christmas word is starting to pop up in shops and commercials. Goodness me. I have birthdays to worry about first! I mean, did you know Nintendo was born back in 1889 on this day? Who’d have thunk Nintendo was 122 years old? Let’s focus on the short term, such as... well, today.
Paddock News
The Iceman is no match for the Oldman - All these crazy rumours about Williams’ 2012 drivers and poor Rubens having to put up with all this. Now it seems people are actually taking the Kimi rumours seriously and I fear that the worst is a possibility. Yes, that’s right, Pastor might not get a seat. Oh, that’s not what they mean? ....damn. Rubens says that his Twitter is going mad with people asking questions, what can I say, I just want to say hello to him! In all seriousness though Stuart Codling has written up a far, far more balanced view on the whole ordeal than any of the tabloid online sources have gone on about and it’s much better to read anyways.
Hail to the Chief - It pretty much seems that the championship war is all but deflated as Vettel’s nearest rivals are starting to come out and say how much he deserves it. To be fair, they have a point. He’s won 23 races this year and qualified on pole 35.6 times so he’s doing something right, and it ain’t just the car if you ask me. Could 2011 be the year Vettel gets taken seriously as a Champion?
Elsewhere...
Going Live with OnLive - In all honesty I’m a little shocked this day has finally come but OnLive has finally launched in the UK. What’s OnLive, you ask? Welcome to the start of a possible era of cloud gaming, with games available within the cloud for instant streaming. It’s something I never expected to make it’s way to the UK after being out in the US for a while but it’s a hell of a concept if it works. My only real concern is input lag as it’s all streaming and of course connection issues but it’s got good press so far so one to keep an eye on me thinks...
Speed of Light? That’s so 2010 - Now here’s something that should get people talking as CERN (you know, Large Hadron Collider people, with their giant underground donut) reckon they’ve found particles that travel faster than the speed of light. This is much more surprising than their previous announcement that they’ve found particles faster than Vintonio Liuzzi. Still, could it be possible that Einstein may have missed something? I once saw something faster than the speed of light. Well, I thought I did, it went so fast I don’t know if I saw it or not. Also, if CERN have broken the limit of the speed of light shouldn’t they get a fine for breaking the law...s of physics?
Live the Life. Meet the Stewards. Ignore the McKenzie. - It’s finally here! It’s finally here! Yay! Yes, with today’s release of F1 2011 that means the game is finally out across most of the world as the US release was earlier in the week but woohoo! Somehow I’ve pulled myself away from the game to write this daily as my copy turned up yesterday (Shopto are the bestest place ever) and I can tell you now, if you’re looking forward to this prepare because the handling changes and stuff like the Pirelli tyres really make a difference. I’ll be writing up more as I play more over the weekend but if you’re picking up the game today you definitely have to let us know what you make of it in the comments!
And Finally...
A few little things to wrap everything up, just for you.
- Have you seen this incredible video from the ISS of the Aurora Borealis? What a phenomenom but what an angle to see it at!
- I don’t have the time for Facebook but you may be delighted to know it’s completely changing again. Yawn.
- Good to see that the spelling tests in Sittingbourne were always up to scarcth! Wait...
- And finally, something I am STILL laughing at – the Cuddle Jumper segment of last week’s Would I Lie to You is a much watch, even if for David Mitchell’s laughter
Phew! Plenty to keep you busy today me thinks. Make sure you check in for Free Practise today if you can for the night time sessions – F1Wolf, Amy and Pamela are there, and are just so very lucky! – should be a fun weekend of F1 in Singapore. As for me, well I’ll see you in the comments. When I’m not busy spinning out on F1 2011 of course.
Hi all from Montreal. I walked part of the f1 circuit today. Weird being on track that is open to the public - cars on one side and bikes on the other. I didn't see any marmot but I did see a fox. From about a feet away. Made for some nice pictures. Hope you're all well!
Is that circuit open to the public ever? I'd love to drive that track, one of my favorites that I have not driven.
yep it's open. I gather. I'm hoping to get a car on to the track maybe in the next day or two. They threaten radars are in use though and I think 30 mph is the limit.
Clarification: I meant "I gather" because there were cars on the track but I found my way on as a pedestrian. I assume they were just tourist cars although one car had lights on top - briefly thought it was a pace car before my rational brain kicked in.
Friday is here,Singapore awaits. I may even catch my plane without the usual stress :-)
Sounds lie Heikki doesn't like photographers either. Well,ones who snap him in the hotel bar at least.
Anyone else having trouble with the links today?
Links aren't set up properly.
Is this like Matter and AntiMatter colliding? http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/launching-mclarens-in-singapore/
Man, First practice is on late today :)
Bah ,sorry. fail much.
At work till 5 too and my phone won't let me go in and amend, boooo
You know what that means...
double links tomorrow! ;)
Morning all
How well do you know your Formula 1 history?
The book That'll be the Day: 365 F1 Stories takes a look at significant moments or quirky happenings on this day in Grand Prix history. Can you guess what event the following describes?
Good news for Amy & Pamela:
Thoughts on Motegi:
http://theformulaoneandmotorsportsarchive.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/2011-indycar-japan-the-final-rd-16-sept-18th-tv-notes/
:/
Hmmm...
This may be the best story of the year so far:
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/94743
oooh no kerbs could mean a lot of overtaking!
Now now Gavin, you know overtaking is a naughty word.
;)
Confirmation that Jean Alesi is entering the Indy 500 with Lotus. Gotta say I think he'll struggle but I love that he's doing it.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/94735
Like with Herbert, he has to qualify first
I just can't see this is a good idea and I don't see him being remotely competitive
Is Johnny doing it too? His style is much more suited to it but considering the mess his feet are in already that is brave
That'll be a hard part especially if Lotus is the 3rd fastest of the 3 suppliers
I hadn't heard anything at all about Herbert
he tried it in 2002 and ...... failed (badly)
I have absolutely no memory of that and I have been a huge fan of his since he won the FFord Festival in a Quest. A chassis no-one ever heard of before or since.
It was a bit embarrassing when Herbert was interviewed on pole day by Jack Arute in the pits. Arute asked "what's your strategy for the month" and Herbert starting talking about his plans for the race, before Arute interrupted by saying "wait, you haven't qualified yet".
Herbert said something along the lines of "it shouldn't be an issue", but in the end, he never made it to the race at all. He placed 35th on Bump Day...
F1 drivers have always underestimated Indy.
His style should suit ovals. He has always been very smooth unlike Alesi. Had he been in a top car at that time he should have been competitive. I can't believe I have no memory whatever of it
I'm a little bit annoyed at the current episode of Trackside. They're going on about the IndyCar drivers, mechanics and media being exhausted from the trip to Japan and back and how a number of the paddock like to see the back of it because of that reason.
Oh boys, you'd be roasted alive in F1.... or for that matter the WEC, or the WRC, or the GT1 Championship, or Auto GP, etc...
That is a very American attitude. Anything that involves leaving the country is a major drama. And the idea that they have to deal with another timezone.
Can you imagine what they would have been like if they had to follow USGP for a season?
It would be a bit more understandable... if they weren't going to China instead.
Hello world!
Today 523kg of the UARS will fall into earth
I have my tinfoil hat ready just in case
Jake just walked out of the paddock and no one talked to him or took a picture. Guess it's just 13 places they prefer you, Jake
Poor Jake. 13???
wait, was F1 2011 released today?
Enjoy a little something from the Sidepodcast back catalogue.
- Daily: 12th May 2010
Originally published 12 May 2010.
D'oh! 3 days ago in the states, it looks like.
Earlier than that in the USA according to the daily
Yeps, although I don't know when will I buy it
Dangit. I'm still obsessed with GT5 and haven't even installed Dirt 3 yet, even though it's sitting right next to the PS3. #firstworldvideogamerproblems
Updates @UARS_Reentry
Doomsday is about 10hrs away apparently
Good evening all
Time to make a double layer tinfoil hat
Plenty of time, it's at an altitude of 167Km
Way too high to see it yet
If it falls in Barcelona I will let you know
Thanks
Hello all
Late in the day I know but the daily links are fixed now
Nice idea tempting us with them all day
Hi Lukeh!
I like to think this photo sums it all up :D
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bassanoclapper/4957996404/
Testing Instagram... http://instagr.am/p/N7Xdr/
It's unfathomable how Instagram still has no website of it's own
Aside from just pointing you towards the app, that is
What do you mean?
Can you view yours or your friends 'pics with ease away from the app?
I Amy made it on to the Singapore Flyer
http://twitpic.com/6pdc7e
hellooo everyone!
Hi Lou
Hey Lou
hello stranger :)
Welcome back to the internet!
sadly it's just on the pc. mac is rubbish and stupid.
Still having WiFi issues? 10.7.2 will be out any day now
only at home it seems. been bringing mac into uni so i can actually do some work (swear to god i'm going to kill my landlord) and i've had no issue. I turn on my mac for the first time in 2 days and try connect it to the internet and it just says 'connection timeout'! baaaahhh
I hope 10.7.2 is out today/tomorrow.. or i'm gonna have to wait another week to get it! :(
Well thats just annoying. :(
Brian Cox on turbocharged neutrinos.They may not be going faster than light. They may be taking a short cut
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15034852
Probably a little longer than that. Is closely linked to the next iOS update with all the iCloud stuff. Could be 2 weeks though, sorry
*cries* i miss internet on my lovely mac :( it's gonna think i'm miss treating it.
As he talks to BBC 6 Music... WTF!
it's more than annoying but i can't phrase how i really feel about it in a family friendly way
Have you tried the Mac forums for a workaround?
ohh i heard about this earlier in the car! soooo cool!
Never mind. You can still do offline stuff with it, Do computers work offline?
Didn't even notice that
Or made a Genius Bar appointment?
i've tried a few last time it happened. but it fixed itself.. haven't had chance yet but am doing so now.
Apparently the world is full of time travel jokes today now that light speed may not be the limit. Mind you the neutrinos were only going about 2% above light speed by my calculation
Or speak to Andy or Jeremy
i suppose the good thing about having no internet at uni is that i have no distractions and any research i do is on my phone. thank god my phone can download pdfs and transfer them to my mac and printer, or i'd be doomed.
Thank god you had your HTC problems fixed before uni!
You have no internet at uni? Really?
I assumed the problem was only at the new house
no, i can't get to my closest apple store as i don't have a day free this weekend. and i can't really afford to get to my closest apple store while at uni. gonna have to wait i suppose. may have chance next weekend, although probably not.
I think had that exact look on my face today wheni saw him
oh yeah i mean at the house. although the house is a good half hour walk from uni and the library only opens at 9 and closes at 7. Most of my days at uni start at 9:30/10am and finish at 4pm.. it's annoying because i need to work in the evening too.
I thought everyone liked Jake
I find it fascinating that they could even find anything to go past light speed even if it is taking a short cut. Maybe that's the shortcut the Doctor uses.
CERN, you fools, that's just wibbly wobbly timey wimey
I haven't since he started ramming down my throat how wonderful he is and how much everyone loves him
I believe he's referring to the BBC coverage but I see your point, it's a bit irritating. Especially since the coverage announcement
So obvious
I have never found him like that and I have seen everything he has done in F1
yeah he is but since the announcement it's just been constant tweets about how much everyone loves their coverage. I also really really disliked when he added a #BBCF1 hashtag to a tweet about the anniversary of Henry Surtees death.
Agreed
it's twitter what did it to me.
Pamela has disliked him since we met him at Spa, her dislike goes much deeper
Not everyone is convinced the light speed limit has been broken. Although the Bart Simpson response is childish
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/9598802.stm
The hashtag is in poor taste. That is more like Autosport tactics
I am stunned
Twitter is a dangerous place. I agree about Jake, and similarly with my dislike about several other F1 personalities who use twitter prominently I feel I just can't like them anymore.
ohh ohh why? i can't remember :(
Interesting Indycar story
Andretti Autosport has announced that it will use Chevrolet power when the IndyCar Series' new technical package comes in for 2012.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/94765
No highlights for FP2 or is the BBC F1 page just being crap again and I can't find it?
At least there's the unfollow option for most folk. Hard to avoid the anchorman of the F1 show
Actually he isn't too bad in that respect, I see few retweets of him at least.
Hellooooo moving out pushed back 12 hours. Unforeseen delays.... I'm curently packing like a maniac.
Hi Alison
she felt he was very smarmy and liked the attention too much. I still don't understand as I didn't feel like that at all :)
Have you been having PC problems? I keep seeing your skype thing pop up
Now? It's probably my phone tbh. 3G signal is really bad at work and I turn the wifi off because it eats the battery.
Past couple of hours
Kamikaze Kobayashi seems to be taking the "Kamikaze" part quite literally:
http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/saub_koba_sing_20111.jpg
I have seen your name popup 6 times
While I've been at Tesco then. Definitely my phone!
Sorry :( That annoys me a lot. I'll sign it out!
Doesn't bother me at all. I just thought you were having problems
Android skype app is a bit rrrrrubbish. When someone phones me, it makes no noise, you answer then a couple of minutes later it starts making the ringing noise and won't stop for ages.... Really buggy.
Having just taken all my plastic bottles to the recycling centre, I'm horrified by how much diet coke I drink. Oops.
A real pain
Diet Coke is good for you
Kinda like when I finally recycle all the (different) beer bottles.
Don't lie to me!!
The jury is still out on Phenylalanine though
It's true. You would not believe how much of it I have drunk and I am way healthier than all the people who told me how much harm it was doing me
:lol:
:D I think I would believe how much you've drunk though.... I get it free at work!
Are you going to believe a bunch of scientists who thought nothing could go faster than the speed of light? Today they sound as knowledgeable as those who said you would die if you went over 30mph in a train because all the air would be sucked out
Free diet Coke. It's like a dream
They make me work for it!!
They make you work for the money. The drink is free
If particle physicists are studying diet coke, I might know where they've been going wrong
They would have found out this light speed thing a lot faster
You have no idea....
in my old office (in Virginia), drinks weren't free, so once every couple of weeks I carried a 32 pack of coke from the parking garage to my cube.
But my office in Denver has free coke (and other soft drinks). Which is good, 'cause it's kind of a pain in the butt to carry that much coke on a bike.
that and my coke habit is expensive.
32 cans on a bike is a good trick
Mine's about to become very expensive. I'm cutting down to a day a week. I'm not sure I can stockpile enough to last :P That's probably theft....
luckily I've never had to try it.
Going away gift
:D
I did that earlier, four carrier bags full of milk cartons and stuff..
I'm taking holiday, does that mean I can go in and get some while I'm on holiday....??
Definitely
I still go get food from my old job when I'm in town and I left there 3.5 years ago. I say go for it :)
Hahahahaha ♥
Do they still pay you for the time you spend there?
awesome :)
I wish!
In other news, I appear to be on Europe time. Pamela is asleep. I'm wide awake
Euro time, often confused with Amy time? :)
perhaps that's the secret. But recently I've been trying to be good!
On masterchef, do you reckon they could get away with making a plate of mash as long as it tasted reeeealllly goood?
That is never going to work
Your bodyclock remembers amy time and it wants more :)
Unlikely
I don't think that's fair. what if you haven't got time to make something really fancy and exquisite and stuff?
Least you can rely on good old mash.
Same time as everyone else. All the judging is relative to others. If they thought your mash was better than someone elses meal you could go through.... It's unlikely though!
There go my masterchef dreans
They all have the same time.
I have seen a few people on that show make lousy mash
You need to learn to cut carrots artistically to go on top of the mash
I have Antiques Roadtrip running in a corner of my screen just for the sake of the noise. I look up and one of them is in an antiques shop and hanging from the ceiling in the background is an SS uniform with a swastika on the sleeve. Nazis in Bolton?
going backwards doesn't help, my brain/watch are like 'yay, 3.48am' then I get on my iPad and it's saying 'nope, 5.48am'
Free F1 and supercar photo exhibition in London
http://www.stuartcodling.com/2011/09/free-f1-and-supercar-photo-exhibition-in-london/
LOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow, i literally just got home from a little night time drive, good timing!
Lukeh mentioned this to me earlier, just having a look at the details it's next weekend and i'm mostly busy next weekend. May be able to pop up to london on saturday afternoon. Gonna be another busy weekend i think.
Headpings never go out of fashion around these parts :)
You only just passed your test and you can drive in the dark already :)
Never
i haven't driven for ages.. well 10 days. i missed my little felipe :) i've had lessons in the dark tho, it's not that scary :)
Ron Dennis is planning on taking over the world and making billions
http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/mclarens-multi-billion-plans/
Only so he can tidy it up
Driving in the dark can be easier when you have only just started driving. Hard not to spot a car coming round a corner with its headlights on
Ron's commandment
The world shall be shiny
I wonder if he is related to Steve
this is true. strangely, i think the 10 days off has been a nice rest from driving. i feel much more confident in the car.. like driving is just normal :)
You have changed. I remember when uni was scary and driving was impossible
hehe!! unfortunately, uni is scary for different reasons this year. mainly the epic amount of work. But i think going to uni and things forces you to be a better person :)
I am sure you will cope with the work
I wish I was more organised :( Why do I still have a lot of stuff to do :(
He he
@neweyfacts: During the summer break, Adrian Newey went to work at the LHC and slowed down the speed of light.
Hehehe :)
You are not Amy
:D
I have been offered an olympics volunteer job. I'm not totally sure I want it anymore....
Why not? Once in a lifetime thing to be a volunteer for the Olympics surely?
May look good on your CV
It's at the shooting.... Not totally my cup of tea!
I'm a bit concerned about needing to use next summer to do actual paid work.... I'll think about it. It's a team leader's job. It is hard for me to turn down an opportunity to boss people around ;)
:D
What are you laughing at? Get back to work!
See, perfect for volunteering. You're hired.
#apprenticeolympics
:)
Exactly the sort of welcome you expect in London too :)
Hah!
It's hard because it's a lot of work to take on. I do kind of believe it's harsh not even to pay basic travel expenses
http://twitter.com/#!/UARS_Reentry/status/117339341130432512
MAY??? I thought they knew when and where it was going to land
a) sometime this week b) planet Earth
6 hours ish
plausible deniability for when it happens to take out Gadafi's hideout/Castro/North Korea/Standard & Poor's credit rating agency
you're talking about people who thought skylab would hit south africa - they don't have a good record for getting these things right
Really?
http://twitter.com/#!/afrispace/status/117338982781693952
AfSSOC UARS update: If you live in Africa and come across UARS debris, please alert us on +27 72 195 5752. We will alert the right channels.
watch out Australia!
They have graphs. How can it go wrong?
http://twitpic.com/6pfprw
Put a giant net over the indian ocean just in case
i'd be happier if there was only one graph - looks like they've been having an office sweepstake
That looks like turn 1 at Turkey.
But if it is anywhere in there they will claim they predicted it
Tilke is doing the predictions? we're in big trouble
"as we exclusively predicted, it hit earth"
Apparently, it's rotation is reducing it's speed and descent. It's very woolly, I saw a map of possible impact points and it covered about a third of the globe
Guaranteed to disappoint
That is very rash of them to narrow it down that much
but not north america, so that's alright... :)
Suspiciously the location of Tilke's next track...
it's bound to hit Lewis isn't it?
:D
He will get a penalty anyway
McLaren always wanted a satellite team. :lol:
Evening. Are we live commenting the satellite re-entry?
Yes. It's going to hit somewhere on the planet earth. Sometime.
It'll be like live commenting half the races next year - we know they're happening but can't see them
:)
We are trying not to be hit by it
Still not watching [the] Sky ;)
http://instantrimshot.com/
:D
not so much live commenting as confirming we haven't been hit and are still alive
Latest news seems to be that the satellite is refusing to come down.
so it's like my 7 year old daughter in the morning before school.
We're all gonna die, if that's the case.
http://twitter.com/#!/UARS_Reentry
Looks like 5 and a half hours
:-)
a bit of an antisocial hour of the night to be killed
can't we get bernie on the case?
They are getting very specific
http://twitter.com/#!/UARS_Reentry/status/117353201589682176
come to think of it, the trajectory will be nearly horizontal - lying down is the best way to avoid being hit
Depends where it hits. Although going by the latest tweet there is a margin of error in that estimate
Another excellent case for bunkers
if he can't make money on it, he won't be interested.
What are the chances of it hitting a golf course?
:D
it would make one heck of a hole in one
Difficult recovery though.
it would have to play on the satellite tour
But a great story. I hit the drive so hard it hit a satellite
:D
Pilots told to watch out for a satellite. Slight chance it will hit North America.
It weighs 6 tons so that will make a big dent
http://www.space.com/13070-falling-nasa-satellite-faa-pilot-warning.html
I'm very much enjoying these satellite puns as I prepare for work.
After reading that Renault are moving from a 50% sized one, to the maximum of 60%, I have a question about wind tunnels (maybe someone with more time than me could write a post?):
If the teams are only allowed to use a 60% scale wind tunnel, what is the cost differential between building specialized parts to suit and running a full size wind tunnel?
I'm guessing running a full size tunnel is more expensive, but it could possibly make money by charging other companies to use it, and surely parts could go straight from wind tunnel to car?
Parts for the wind tunnel generally only have to be the right shape so can be milled from a solid lump of cheap plastic for example. Parts on the car need to do a lot more. Some parts for the model will be made like the genuine part but not all. If it is faster to just cut a lump of plastic that is better in a lot of cases.
They cannot possibly have so little idea
http://twitter.com/#!/UARS_Reentry/status/117367322192265216
Looks like Asia and South America are safe but everything else is a target
So that explains Bernie's decision to have more races in Asia.
I mistakenly assumed carbon fibre. Thanks for that.
The worrying thing is that there loads of satellites up there and we have to go through this with all of them. We need someone with a spacevan to collect them at end of life
Most either burn up safely or are guided down. This one is different because it has no steering.
Depends what the part is. You can imagine the delay between making something from a block of plastic and going through all the lay up and cure for the proper part.
Lots of parts like suspension and the like are proper carbon fibre.
I just find it odd that they can't map its path. They were saying earlier that it had 4 plus/minus 2 orbits left and now it could hit 75% of the area of the planet. They should be able to do better than that
Now predicting 5.3 hours to go. 50 minutes ago they were predicting 5.3 hours to go
That's what made me question the 60% percent size in the first place.
I'm sure the teams have all done the math and would shout about it if full size made more sense, but I wanted to check with the real experts here :P
I imagine a full size tunnel would cost 3 times as much to run. The power consumption is so huge for wind tunnels that teams are not allowed to switch them on or off without permission from the power companies
Do the computer modeling and then build it. If it works in the wind tunnel, it goes on the car ASAP. Obviously plastic parts are faster to build, and cheaper, but if a significant amount of the 60% model is carbon fibre anyway, just go straight to full size!
Maybe the world needs to limit the number of wind tunnels and make them all a certain (massive) size so that we save the environment? Then it becomes a time share arrangement?
Teams rent out wind tunnel time to other teams at the moment don't they?
There is one in America they can get 6 full size NASCARs in
Today's google doodle is very odd. It looks like it should play a tune or do voices but it is silent
students! they're great at that kind of thing