Isle of Wight electrical business, ETL Electrical Solutions Ltd, are one of many local firms returning to work but it is not business as usual after lockdown

This Island-based business of more than 15 years, with a further 20 years of experience on the mainland, are putting in extra guidelines and training for their staff before returning to their full service of commercial and domestic electrical installations.

ETL Electrical Solutions have been actively working to keep the Islands lights on, even throughout lockdown, as they provided emergency cover for frontline staff across the Isle of Wight.

In the run-up to returning to full service, the ETL Electrical team have been undergoing extra training, from online to in-person, socially distanced learning to prepare for working inside of peoples homes in the aftermath of COVID-19.

The team are used to working on sites, big or small, from fitting a light fixture in someones home, to fully wiring a marina However, working in personal protective equipment (PPE) such as full facial masks and even paper suits for the most vulnerable clients can be a tricky task. The training and guidelines being set out by Graeme and his team, outline the full process from picking up the booking to closing the job when completed safely!

ETL Electrical have already completed specific COVID-19 safe working training through an online learning platform so that they understand what is required. The team have also been working with local training business, Jigsaw Training and Development Service, learning about mental health in the workplace.

Graeme Preston, owner of ETL Electrical, says:

Keeping our staff and our customers safe as we move out of lockdown is our number one priority.

Mental health is something that we all have, we all deal with it in different ways and going back to work or coming into a socially distanced contact with people within their homes after weeks of being in lockdown can be challenging. Thats why we wanted to raise the topic before sending our team back to work.

Along with the training and the PPE that each team member is being provided with, steps such as arriving at jobs in separate vans, ensuring a safe working area, wiping down of surfaces after the work has been completed and rebooking of any jobs to a later date have been undertaken.

A full list of the ETL Electrical Solution COVID-19 Safe Working Guidelines can be found on the ETL website at https://www.etl-electrical-solutions.co.uk/.

The measures being taken by this independent Island business allow you to book work in full confidence But if that isnt enough With their 35+ years of trading, years of experience and wide skill base they really do know what they are doing!

Read more here:
ISLE OF WIGHT ELECTRICIANS RETURN TO BUSINESS - Island Echo

TOMORROW, A RANGE of free arts events and workshops for children and teenagers is kicking off to propel students into arts, crafts and music by asking them to give creativity a go.

Cruinnina ng which is usually a Dublin-focused initiative is hosting its events online this year, meaning that children from across Ireland can join in.

To add to that, organisers have decided to leave all but one of its 27 events, tutorials, videos and guides online for the entire summer a resource much-needed by parents.

Margarita Cappock, an Assistant Arts Officer at Dublin City Council, told TheJournal.ie that artists usually submit ideas for what activities they can do for children and teens this year they had to tweak these pitches in order to move them all online.

The amount of goodwill and can-do from all the artists and organisations has been absolutely brilliant, she said. Some of them have turned out just really so well.

It means children from outside Dublin may join in, and its a system they might keep on after the pandemic.

Source: Cruinni na ng

Among the events she highlights are:

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Source: Photograph Ivaylo Petrov

When asked what the aim of the festival is, Cappock says: We just want to really encourage people to make, and to create whether its writing or performing, or just enjoying the virtual visits to various places, or the workshops.

I think that it really is just to provide a wide range of events and activities for everybody, so there will be something for every child.

I think the great thing about it, in particular Tunes from Me Gaff, is to give teenagers the opportunity to actually perform and have their work streamed like that. Its very confidence inspiring, I think its a great opportunity also to make connections with like-minded teenagers.

You can view the full list of events on Fingal County Councilhere, or on the Cruinni na ng websitehere.

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Kids bored at home? This children's art festival has gone national and online - Brinkwire

WINDSOR, ONT. -- Windsor-Essex residents and city crews were dealing with the aftermath of severe storms that moved through the region Wednesday evening, causing downed trees, power lines and damage to some homes.

Here's a photo gallery of the storm and aftermath.

Windsor Fire and Rescue says it attended to over 30 calls, many of them in south Windsor, with many trees and branches down, pulling down power wires with them.

There were no documented injuries as a result of the storm, civilian or firefighter, says John Lee, chief fire prevention officer. There was one accident on Huron Church as a result of the storm.

Windsor fire activated their storm protocol.

Because theres so many calls in different areas at the same time we reduce our man power to each call so we will only send one vehicle and well upgrade if necessary, says Lee.

The line of severe storms came following several days of humidity and heat.East of Windsor the storms produced two tornados in the London region.

One near the community of Glencoe, southwest of London, and the other near Belmont to the southwest. A third possible tornado was being investigated near Bothwell.

Meanwhile thousands were without power Thursday morning across southwestern and southern Ontario.

Enwin Utilities says locally the storm resulted in 27 calls about tree limbs on wires, 22 calls for wires down, and three poles damaged.

The majority of the damage was in the west and south ends of the city, but there was some further activity in Walkerville.

Most power was restored by 7:30 a.m., but crews remained on site during the day, to finish the longer-term restorations.

As far as city cleanup, forestry says by the end of the Thursday or late Friday morning, all critical cleanup will be completed, such as trees off porches, driveways, road and walkways.

City officials say it could take a solid week or more to attend to the rest of the less critical issues. There were 70 calls for down tree branches, but no calls for flooded basements.

Many residents were also cleaning up on Thursday.

We have neighbours helping everybody get the branches off the street, says Mary Arbor, a downtown Windsor resident.

When Arbor saw the storm coming, she told her sister they have to go to the basement.

I looked out the window, the wind was coming straight down with branches, adds Arbor.

Jeff, another downtown Windsor resident, says a big tree hit a house.

This used to be a big beautiful tall tree he says. It just lifted right up and hit the corner of her house and fell.

Read more:
Windsor-Essex deals with aftermath of severe storms on trees, power lines - CTV News Windsor

Tom Savage, For the Dell Rapids Tribune Published 1:37 p.m. CT June 5, 2020 | Updated 1:47 p.m. CT June 5, 2020

Officials at St. Mary are hoping to turn the current practice facility on Garfield Avenue into its permanent football field in the future.(Photo: Tom Savage)

The St. Mary Cardinals havent played a home game at Rickeman Field since Aug. 30, 2019. After opening with back-to-back home games last season, the Cardinals hit the road for two straight.

Then the Big Sioux River broke through its banks, flooding Rickeman and displacing the Cardinals for the balance of the season. They played one home game in September against Avon at Dell Rapids public, and homecoming in October was against Centerville and played at Sioux Falls OGorman. St. Mary played its two home playoff games at Chester because of the damage to Rickeman.

Although 2020 has so far been a headache on sports schedules, Dell Rapids at least caught a break when the Big Sioux stayed inside its banks this spring and the predicted second round of flooding never transpired. But Rickeman was heavily damaged in last falls flooding and city officials didnt make repairs to the playing surface under the assumption that more flooding would occur in the spring.

With those waters never creeping onto the field, officials began repairs earlier this spring and Dell Rapids PBR played its first baseball game of the season at Rickeman on May 31 with all repairs completed.

Dell Rapids St. Mary prepares for the game against Colman-Egan on Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. (Photo: Abigail Dollins / Argus Leader)

There is now hope that St. Mary will be able to use the field this fall after seeding on the outfield, which doubles as St. Marys 80x40 football field in the fall, had come in nicely by PBRs opener.

The field was covered in sand following the fall flooding, and there was some doubt if baseball or football could be played on the surface in 2020. But city administrator Justin Weiland said he thinks the field will be fine for the Cardinals to compete this fall. St. Marys home opener isnt until Sept. 4 when they host De Smet.

But the long-term solution to St. Marys situation could be their 5.5-acre practice field east of Rickeman and across Garfield Avenue. That area is where the Cardinals practice during the week, and its also home to St. Marys portable bleachers and goal posts, which are moved over to Rickeman each August and taken back to the practice field each October.

Athletic director Casey Michel said the school is in preliminary stages of turning the practice field into the Cardinals permanent home. Its a financial hurdle that the school has to overcome in order to make that a reality, and theyve got a big chunk to go to make it so.

Michel said theyve raised approximately $6,000 towards the project that could easily creep into six figures when completed. Between lights, wiring, a crows nest for timing and scoring, and potentially crowning the field to help with drainage, Michel admitted the need for fundraising in order to make it all work.

But thats our goal, to make that area our permanent field, he said. If we do it right, it would probably be pushing six figures pretty quick, which we just dont have.

Michel said flooding about 10 years ago forced the Cardinals to play their homecoming game at Garretson. That situation started the conversations about developing the practice field, but those talks cooled before resurfacing again last year after the flood.

A bid process was started and Michel said they have received quotes for the project.

The practice field is further away from the river (than Rickeman) and last year we may have lost a couple of home games, but by playoff time, we could have been able to play on it, Michel said. We would still run the risk of having to move a home game, but typically on that field, when the water recedes, its in good enough shape that you could play on it after a couple of weeks.

Although the six-figure number is a bit daunting, Michel said the school could just chip away at the goal slowly to get the field playable sooner than later.

If we could just get lights, we could make everything else work because we really dont want to play afternoon games, he said. So if we just got the money to do the lights, maybe we dont have a crows nest for a couple of years. We can figure that out and maybe just put them on the top of the bleachers.

For this fall, all indications are that the Cardinals will be back at Rickeman. Weiland said St. Mary will have to supply proper liability insurance paperwork and a mitigation plan due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Its the same paperwork the city is requiring baseball andsoftball teams using city facilities this summer.

We dont have a final answer, but I dont anticipate there being a problem,Weiland said of St. Mary playing football games at Rickeman this fall. Hopefully we dont see a second wave of this thing (COVID-19). Like everything, its really hard to plan that far out on anything right now.

Read or Share this story: https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/dell-rapids/2020/06/05/where-st-mary-play-football-season/5311086002/

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Where will St. Mary play football this season? - Argus Leader

A bed-bound great-grandmother died in a house fire while her family were attending a Christmas nativity play, an inquest has heard.

Alma Parsons, 75, of Cardiff, was killed in the fire at her daughter Lisa Scourfield's home in Aberporth Road, Gabalfa, on December 18 last year.

Emergency services were called to the property at around 3pm by a neighbour who saw dark smoke pouring from a letterbox and Mrs Parsons was removed from her bedroom by members of the fire brigade.

Despite the best efforts of firefighters and paramedics, who performed CPR on Mrs Parsons, she was declared dead at the scene.

Mrs Scourfield and her sister Catherine Parsons returned from Highfields Church in Monthermer Road, after being notified by a neighbour, to discover the house covered in smoke and the fire brigade outside the property.

They were taken to the University Hospital of Wales to await the arrival of their mother but were later told she had died.

An inquest hearing at Pontypridd Coroners' Court on Thursday heard Mrs Parsons moved in with Mrs Scourfield and her family following the death of her husband Terrance.

In a statement read out by coroner Rachel Knight, Catherine Parsons said her mother had "given up the will to live" and spent most of her time in bed sleeping.

In the days before her death Mrs Parsons had attended her GP and was diagnosed with a chest infection.

Catherine Parsons said Mrs Scourfield, her brother-in-law Marc Scourfield, and their family were watching her daughter perform in a nativity play on December 18 and last saw her mother sleeping before leaving the house.

In another statement Mrs Scourfield described her mother as "well-educated" and "prim and proper".

She said Mrs Parsons had come to live with her after struggling to manage living on her own following the death of her husband and said her mother would often fall over which made her reluctant to leave her bed.

After attending the nativity play Mrs Scourfield said she was called by a neighbour who said smoke was coming from her home. She said she rushed back to the house and the fire service were already at the scene.

The fire was first discovered by neighbour Colin Russell who saw smoke coming from the house as he walked with his mother and son.

In his statement Mr Russell said: "I saw smoke coming from an upper-storey window and there was dark smoke coming from the letterbox.

"I dialled 999 and saw flames so I told my mother to get away from the house. My father emerged from his house and said he saw the fire brigade bringing a body out the back of the house."

In his statement Mr Scourfield said he had also attended the nativity play and arrived back to Aberporth Road after dropping a family friend home.

He said he saw fire engines outside his home as he pulled up and he approached a fire officer to find out what was going on.

Mr Scourfield said: "I could see a number of firefighters giving CPR to my mother-in-law. I thought the worst and thought she wouldn't make it.

"My wife and sister-in-law arrived and they were standing in the street, hysterical, and asking about their mother. Neighbours were attempting to console them.

"Not long after my wife and sister-in-law left to attend hospital an officer at the scene told me after a valiant effort they were unable to save Alma. The whole family were left in shock."

Footage from the scene of the incident:

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A post-mortem examination revealed Mrs Parsons' cause of death was ischemic heart disease due to coronary artery atherosclerosis in a woman with an elevated concentration of carboxyhemoglobin.

A fire investigation report written by Stuart Townsend from the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service concluded the fire was caused accidentally after electrical wiring behind the cooker overheated causing the cupboard it was housed in to heat up and smoulder before bursting into flames.

Before delivering her conclusion coroner Ms Knight said: "I express my condolences to Mrs Parsons' family and friends. Her death must have come as a great shock and I am sure she is greatly missed."

A narrative conclusion was made by the coroner, stating: "Alma Parsons died as a result of ischemic heart disease in conjunction with coronary artery atherosclerosis, caused by an accidental fire at her home."

Following the inquest a family spokeswoman said: "The family are still devastated after Alma's death but they were helped so much by the love and support of the local community who came out to help them in the days after the tragedy. They just wanted to let people know how grateful they are for that support at such a difficult time."

See the article here:
Great-gran died in house fire when wiring behind cooker overheated - Wales Online

A fresh coat of white paint is a relatively inexpensive improvement that can substantially enhance the look of a home, and one that many homeowners can do on their own.

Refinishing wood floors can be a pain, but if the home is empty, it may be worthwhile. Or maybe not: The 2019 Remodeling Impact Report prepared by the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry estimated the average floor-refinishing job was a financial wash a $2,600 job could potentially boost the sale price by the same amount.

The value of kitchen and bathroom renovations is far less certain. Sellers might recoup only $20,000 of an average $38,300 kitchen upgrade, the associations estimated, and $20,000 of a $35,000 bathroom renovation.

Of course, some kitchen and bathroom renovations are more appealing than others. Renovations completed by Curbio, Mr. Rudman said, regularly earn more than they cost. Thats because his contractors focus on using simple, inexpensive materials that will appeal to the broadest group of buyers possible, he said like white subway tile and white Shaker-style cabinets.

Its stuff that may not be somebodys dream kitchen or dream bathroom, he said. But what they do say is, Hey, I can live here for three, four or five years, and I dont have to do anything.

Homes with extremely outdated, unappealing kitchens and bathrooms stand to benefit the most from such renovations. So if your kitchen and bathrooms are generally acceptable, focus on cleaning and decluttering instead.

If you want to get the best price and attract the most buyers, Mr. Rudman said, you want it to look fresh, modern and move-in ready.

For weekly email updates on residential real estate news, sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @nytrealestate.

Originally posted here:
Ready to Sell? Heres How to Refresh Your Home During Lockdown - The New York Times

New York, June 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Market Size USD 53.06 Billion in 2019, Market Growth - CAGR of 3.3%, Market Trends High demand from developing nations.

New York, June 04, 2020-The globalAluminum Wire marketis forecasted to reach USD 69.06 Billion by 2027, according to a new report by Reports and Data. The market is witnessing a surge in demand from the home electrical appliances, as well as the growth of the commercial, residential, and industrial sectors. However, copper wires act as a substitute in replacing the aluminum wires, owing to properties including high elasticity and high electrical conductivity, making them desirable for a variety of applications, thereby hampering the demand of the market.

Rapid urbanization has changed the lifestyle of the people and, in turn, has increased the prevalence of commercial and residential sectors over a broad aspect, thus, augmenting the demand for the market product. Moreover, the limitation of aluminum wire, which comprises the oxidation of aluminum, creating a surface coating which leads to excess heating resulting in fire hazard conditions, represents a significant challenge in the market.

Request free sample of this research report at: https://www.reportsanddata.com/sample-enquiry-form/3072

Supportive government policies are likely to drive the growth of the market in the forecast period. The Indian domestic aluminum industry has petitioned the Government to have a re-look at the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China. The new norm will partially stop scrap aluminium import and impose a complete ban by 2020. Moreover, other nations such as China, Japan, and the United States are also supported by their respective Government, which help them to withhold their position in the market and raise the potential to increase expenditure in the aluminum wire sector. According to studies, The Asia Pacific region forecasted to grow with the highest growth rate owing to the increase in the use of Aluminum Wire.

The COVID-19 impact:

As the COVID-19 crisis grows, manufacturers are quickly changing their practice and purchasing priorities to meet the required demand of a pandemic, which has cut the need for aluminum wire in the market. Over a couple of months, there will be a series of both positive and negative shocks, as manufacturers and their suppliers respond to providers changing needs. With an unfortunate global situation, the export-dependent economies of many regions look vulnerable. Global aluminum wire markets are reshaped by the effects of this pandemic, as some suppliers are either shutting down or reducing their output due to a lack of demand in the downstream market. In certain regions, markets are focusing on becoming more localized, by looking at the severity of the outbreak, and the consequent actions by the individual national authorities. Under these circumstances, market conditions in Asia Pacific regions have been very fluid, declining weekly, making it challenging to stabilize itself.

To identify the key trends in the industry, click on the link below:https://www.reportsanddata.com/report-detail/aluminum-wire-market

Further key findings from the report suggest

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For the purpose of this report, Reports and Data have segmented into the global Aluminum Wire market on the basis of grade, product, application, and region:

Grade Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; 2017-2027, Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027)

Product Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; 2017-2027, Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027)

Application Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; 2017-2027, Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027)

Regional Outlook (Volume, Kilo Tons; 2017-2027, Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027)

Browse more similar reports on Materials and Chemicals industry by Reports And Data

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Aluminum Wire Market To Reach USD 69.06 Billion By 2027 | CAGR of 3.3% | Reports And Data - GlobeNewswire

Taking your Zoom calls in your pajamas? So am I. Opening the fridge 10 times a day to see if anything has changed? Me too.

You know who doesnt care, and will love you no matter what you look, dress and smell like? Your pets.

While I might be sick and tired of being surrounded by family all day, my new co-worker (an 80-pound yellow labrador retriever named Bvlgari) is thriving. I have spent more time with him in the past two months than I have since we got him eight years ago. My new co-worker also ate my Apple pencil, a block of cheese and a bag of tortillas all in one week ... but thats beside the point.

Everyone in my household eats dinner together, but for lunch and breakfast, we are all on our own schedule. For Bvlgari, that means he gets to vacuum food scraps off the kitchen floor five times a day. Lucky for him, all the quarantine weight that he gains from eating, he loses each time someone in my house decides they need alone time and takes him on a walk. Cant say the same for myself.

As we adapt to a new strange and rather stagnant lifestyle, our pets are changing their routines as well. So we asked our online readers what their pets have been up to during this pandemic because the only thing better than writing about pets is reading about them. We received scores of entertaining anecdotes. From a camping cat to a cooing crow, here are some of our favorite responses (edited for length and clarity). Youre welcome!

One of our cats, Luna Puff, has gotten sick of us and has learned how to make a tent out of a towel draped over our patio furniture. I swear she was camping for two weeks straight. We barely saw her.

Danielle Farinacci, Lower Haight, San Francisco

We bought my golden retriever, Clara, an expensive collar that tracks her location and counts her steps. We just wanted to keep her safe, but it turned into something else. The app associated with the collar allows you to compete with other dog owners for daily steps and miles. Because Im unemployed (thanks, COVID-19), she made it to No. 1 of all golden retrievers in the world for daily steps. She averages about 10 miles a day of needless walking with her jobless mother. But really, this is not the New Years resolution I had in mind. Ironically, she gained 10 pounds, along with us, and we arent sure why.

Rena Silverman, Russian Hill, San Franciscio

My partner and I are watching more TV than ever before and often leave it on all day, albeit muted, as we work from home. Our dog, Otto, a 12-pound Maltese-poodle mix, has memorized all the commercials with animal characters. At the first glimpse of a familiar opening scene or initial notes of a jingle, he immediately lunges at the TV and barks at the intruders. It was funny at first but now it has become maddening.

James Pincow, Kite Hill, San Francisco

Ive been learning a lot about my 12-year-old indoor cat, Iggy Obama Pop Dailey. Her hopes, dreams and fears. Shes the only other animal Im quarantining with here in San Francisco (suffice it to say, her litter work proves every day that I have not lost my sense of smell and might be virus-free). Shes always hated guests and would scratch or bite their outstretched hands. Over the years, she got chubby and I was embarrassed about how that reflected upon me. Cue the pandemic. Ive learned that Iggy prefers a dollop of wet food at noon. Shes thrilled that visitors arent allowed to bring their germy hands near her. Wherever I am in the apartment, she follows, clambering into my lap for Zoom calls, newspaper reads, TV viewing. Shes slimmed down and become vibrant in that middle-aged California kind of way. And when I put my ear to her tummy, I can hear this reassuring, low-frequency thrumming. She still startles at any strange sound, fearing that the world has gone back to normal and my guests have arrived. Its OK Iggy, I say, and bring my face close to hers until our noses touch.

Keli Dailey, Fillmore, San Francisco

When Im working from home, my 10-year-old rescue dog, Bailey, will sleep pretty much all day. At 5 oclock, however, he goes into a tizzy! Hell toss his toy towards me wanting to play fetch and will playfully bark, growl, run in circles and go into his play stance until I give him attention. It would bother me if he did it all day, but the fact that he waits until 5 p.m. when Im off work is quite cute, I think.

Allison Maxie, San Bruno

Ive always had great respect for crows. Researchers have documented how they remember faces, hold grudges and leave shiny objects for a few well-chosen friends. I have had a dog since 2000, and I always walk with cookies in my pocket. The local crows always caw and cackle when they see us walking. Theyve gathered on utility poles and wires over my driveway, teaching me to throw them a few cookies at the end of our walk. Until the pandemic. ... First, we began to notice a really big crow swoop in over my shoulder and land on a tree limb as we rounded the corner. She did this until we reached the driveway and I tossed her some cookies. I have an office in the backyard. I leave the door open to hear all the bird songs. We have fruit trees right outside. One day, I heard this really weird electronic sound. A couple notes. Is my wife in the patio experimenting with AutoTune? A few days later, I heard it again. I go out this time and I see the big sleek crow on a branch. She doesnt even open her beak. She makes the sound deep in her throat. It sounds like shes saying maw eee maw. Its a soft and shockingly sweet sound. And shes using it to literally call me out of my writing studio. And, of course, I come right out and put some dog cookies on a lower branch for her. We have gotten into a routine. She sees me walk my dog and accompanies us home. She gets hungry in the afternoon and alights on the peach tree and calls: Maw eee maw. Quiet. Like a cooing sound. I love her. Her name, obviously, is Maw E. Maw. And shes my crow.

Barbara Tannenbaum, San Rafael

Excerpt from:
Chronicle readers weigh in on how pets are adapting with their humans at home - San Francisco Chronicle

This is it, this is my Hotel California moment. Turns out the cramped little terrace I'm currently set up in is now my forever home, because thanks to the Lian Li DK-04F gaming desk I'm never going to be able to move anywhere else. At least not without some serious dismantling, a probable hernia, and potentially one of those mechanic's cranes they use to lift engine blocks out of cars.

But it is arguably the best gaming desk, and one that has given my home office environment the ultimate upgrade having used it over the last few weeks exclusively as both my place of work and point of play. The Lian Li DK-04F is a delicious bit of engineering, at once a gaming desk but also an industrially beautiful chassis that can either show off your glorious PC components, or else hide the mess you've made of cable tidying beneath a frosted RGB glow.

The Lian Li chassis/desk has become more than that to me too. It's now part of my component photo studio, it's responsible for making my valuable PC parts ultra-secure, and has actually performed the miracle of healing on me too. It's like the messiah desk or something. But, I mean, for $1,500 (1,300) you'd kinda hope it would give you something more than just a place to rest your keyboard, mouse, and monitors.

But at first all it gave me was a little panic.

"Can I just check what the access is like to your business address," says the nice lady from the distribution company. "We need to make sure there's enough space for the lorry to park up so we can unload the pallet."

Business address? Pallet?!

I live in suburban Bath, a quaint rolling vista of Victorian terraces, sub-alcoholic students, and narrow, winding streets. It's a UNESCO world heritage site and not the sort of place that offers easy access for large scale articulated vehicles. And we've all played enough Euro Truck Sim 2 to know how that goes.

"Okay, we'll make sure to send an 18 Tonne truck with the pallet instead," she says finally, noting the rising panic in my responses.

Desktop size - 1000 x 740mmHeight - 1175 - 689mmDrive bays - 6x 3.5-inch, 3x 2.5-inchFans - 7x 120mmDesktop - switchable 8mm tempered glassExterior - aluminiumInterior and legs - ironMotherboard compatibility - Mini-ITX, mATX, ATX, E-ATXExpansion slots - 8I/O - 1x USB 3.1 Type-C, 4x USB 3.0, AudioLED strips - 3Price - $1,500 | 1,300

Jacob suggests maybe it's like those people who mistakenly get sent a box of RTX 2080s instead of just the one and that I'm actually getting a pallet full of massive gaming desks. That doesn't help the fraying nerves. Thankfully while it does arrive on a pallet, and with a nightmarish mass of cardboard packaging, it's just a single unit. And doubly thankfully Lian Li has shipped me the DK-04F and not the frankly unwieldy DK-05F which can house two liquid-cooled PCs inside its capacious innards.

Essentially there are only four parts to assemble with this gaming desk. The main chassis itself, the two telescopic legs, and the tempered glass desktop. Telescopic? Oh yes, this is a motorised sitting/standing desk, but I'll come back to that li'l nugget of joy in a minute. On the whole the DK-04F is relatively easy to assemble, the only issue being how you suspend the very heavy aluminium body while you struggle to get the ultra-heavy iron legs into place.

From there it's classic Lian Li. I've built systems into enough Lian Li chassis in my time to know what I'm getting myself into. That's sliced fingers, scraped knuckles, and machined screw holes that don't quite match up. Luckily the few screw holes that don't aren't a huge issue because there are a vast number of screws holding the thing together. It's nothing if not robust.

Pro-tip: get yourself an electric screwdriver. You might strip a couple screws here and there, but it'll take at least half the time.

But once the legs are in place, connected to the desk's own power supply, and the desktop lid is in place, you're good to go. And by that I mean you're good to build your PC inside it and that way lies more pleasure and pain. More cut digits, more screwdriving, but at the end of it all a gaming PC that will always have you smiling beatifically as you follow its whirrs up and down.

Sure, I had issues getting my rig inside. Mostly because the old Corsair H100i liquid chip-chiller I have attached to the 7900X CPU has tubing that's just a little too short to be screwed into place over the chassis' air vents. That means it's essentially just free-roaming inside.

It still works but is rather unsightly, though is going to soon be replaced by something a little more fitted. But that's not the only thing that looks a little less than ideal. I'm no pro-builder, I just want to get things inside, get them running, and not spend an age making it super tidy. But because of all the myriad chassis fans and RGB LED strips that come as part of the DK-04F package, and the extensive front panel controls, there is a lot of cabling inside the case.

And it doesn't look great in there right now.

Which is why the switchable tempered glass desktop is such a wonderful thing. At the touch of a button it can go from crystal clear to perfectly opaque. It means I can shut out the disgusting mess of wiring I've let loose inside until I get around to sorting out the cooler, and am just left with a soothing RGB underglow slowly fluttering around beneath my keyboard and mouse.

And if I shift my peripherals to the side it becomes the perfect background for a little product shoot, to which my Core i9 10900K review can attest. Lovely stuff.

Having the DK-04F being height adjustable from the off, thanks to those motorised legs, means you can get it to a comfortable height to work in. No more building PCs cross legged on the floor for me, which is good because this portly frame, descending disgracefully into middle age, is not dealing brilliantly with such limb contortions right now.

It's precisely that adjustability of the Lian Li DK-04F which has made it become some sort of miracle cure. Since the birth of my son the home office has been designated for a completely antithetical use, and I've been relegated to a dark corner of the dining room. Until now my PC was encased in the wonderful Corsair Crystal 280Xone of the best mini-ITX chassis aroundand jammed under a jury-rigged desktop where I couldn't squeeze my legs beneath.

With the perpetual working from home situation now foisted upon us that means I've spent most of my recent life pushed up against a set of draws, bending my legs, neck, spine out of place to bash at a keyboard for many hours a day. As a result I've been waking up in agony (generally between 5am and 6am, thanks Charlie) with little respite throughout the day.

Now, I love codeine as much as the next inveterate pill-popper, but the mix of being able to stand at my desk comfortably, as well as get my legs directly under the desktop when I want to sit down, has rendered its regular use unnecessary. My posture has infinitely improved, and so has my sleep. Ten month-old baby notwithstanding.

There are up and down buttons to adjust the height of the desk on the fly, but also quickly and easily stored and activated presets too. The four buttons allow you to save different working heights at will and mean you can go from standing to sitting, and back, at just the press of a button. And the action is sublime too. Sometimes I'll just press the button to watch it go up and down, with an all-too satisfying whirrrrrrr.

Apparently it's eminently distracting during video meetings, but I'm cool with that.

As well as correcting my spine, the DK-04F has also ensured my pricey PC components are ultra-secure. As much as I love that micro-ATX Corsair 280X chassis, its compact design makes it easily portable. Anyone jimmying the front door could have wandered off with my expensive gaming rig in a second. As referenced earlier, now they're going to need a crane to get the damned thing out of my home.

Seriously the security aspects of this gaming desk have been completely ignored in Lian Li's marketing material about it. I'd definitely have it as at least a bullet point on the product page - "Secure your gaming rig against would-be thieves with the DK-04F." You can have that one for free, guys.

Well, so long as you don't make me extricate my components from the chassis and try and figure out how to package this bad boy back up again. Though maybe you'd be doing me a favour one day I will want to move house.

Read the original post:
I made the ultimate gaming desk upgrade... and can never move home again - PC Gamer

Mathematician, inventor, and friend of Marie Curie, Hertha Ayrton was an outspoken advocate for women's rights in science and in the voting booth. Her Ayrton fan dispelled toxic fumes from WWI trenches, and her research on London's lamp functioning landed her the first Hughes Medal awarded to a woman. Although her inventions impressed her peers and saved the lives of soldiers, few of her colleagues supported her efforts for women's equality during her lifetime.

The daughter of a Polish watchmaker, Hertha was born in 1854 as Phoebe Sarah Marks. She had a natural gift for tinkering, which won her the family nickname Beautiful Genius. When she was just seven, her father died and left her mother in poverty with eight young children. Still, her mother recognized Herthas intellectual talents and so, when an opportunity arose for Hertha to go to London and live with her aunt who ran a school, her mother allowed her to go. She studied mathematics, Latin, French and music until, when she was 16, she was obliged to start working as a live-in governess to send money home to her family in Portsea.

A sphygmograph

It was during this time at a womens suffrage meeting that Hertha met Madame Barbara Bodichon, a prominent educationalist, artist and the founder of the Girton College for women at Cambridge.Bodichon helped Hertha enter Girton to study mathematics. It was alsoaround this time that she acquired the nickname "Hertha" from an Algernon Swinburne poem.While a student at the college, and with Bodichons help, Hertha filed patents for several inventions, including a line divider that could be used by artists and designers to divide lines in equal parts or scale up drawings, and a sphygmograph that could record a person'spulse. Hertha would file 26 different patents in her life, striving to carve out a record of womens accomplishments that others could follow.

More lives than a cat

After finishing college,Hertha took a job teaching mathematics. Shealsoenrolled in night classes at Finsbury Technical College and, the following year, married her electrical engineering professor, William Ayrton. Hewould become her collaborator and a champion of her scientific pursuits.

Portrait of Hertha Ayrton by her cousin Hlna Arsne Darmesteter

Via Wikimedia

William admired his wifes talents, remarking to a friend that you and I are able people, but Hertha is a genius. In defiance of the conventions of the time and to some of his colleagues disapproval, William supported his wifes scientific pursuits, even setting up a laboratory for her in the top floor of their house. Though the couple shared many intellectual interests, William was careful not to collaborate with Hertha on some of her projects to ensure that she was not robbed of the credit for her work.

Nevertheless, Hertha struggled throughout her life to receive recognition for her own achievements, once stating that errors are notoriously hard to kill, but an error that ascribes to a man what was actually the work of a woman has more lives than a cat.

The electric arc

In 1893, Hertha took over a project from William investigating the cause of an irritating hissing noise coming from the electric arc, which powered lamps in London at the time. The lamps consisted of two carbon rods with a charge running between them that produced an arc of light in the space between the rods. Hertha was the first to figure out that this loud hissing was due to the oxidation of the carbon electrodes. If you simply enclosed the whole contraption in a bulb so that it was not exposed to open air, the hissing stopped.

An electric arc forms between these two wires when a current jumps between them, creating light that used to be used in lamps in London during Hertha Ayrton's time. She figured out how to reduce the hissing noise caused by oxidation of the carbon rods

Khimich Alex via Wikimedia

Herthas remarkable work on the electric arc won the attention and admiration of contemporary scientists. She was thefirst woman invited to give a paper at the Institution of Electrical Engineers in 1899 and became the first woman elected to membership of that Institution. She spoke about her findings at the International Congress of Women in London and at the Electrical Congress in Paris. Her appearances convinced the British Association for the Advancement of Science to include women on scientific committees.

But even with all this success, she still faced barriers. In 1901, her paper on the electric arc was presented to the Royal Society by a man standing in for her, since women were not allowed admission. In 1902, her name was put forth for admission to the RoyalSociety but was rejected by a majority of votes because, simply, they were of the opinion that married women are not eligible as fellows of the Royal Society.

This decision held even after, in 1906, Hertha became the first woman and only the second woman to date to be awarded the Hughes Medal for outstanding research in the field of energy.

A friendship forged in rejection

Being refused admission to a prestigiousscientific societyput Hertha in good company. During the same time period, Marie Curie was refused admission to the Academie des Sciences, even though she had already won a Nobel Prize in Physics and was about to win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry. When Curie was nominated for membership in the Academie in Nature, Hertha wrote a letter to the members on Marie Curies behalf requesting equality of treatment of intellectual work without regard to the sex of the workers.

Bonded byrejection and by being physicists who were also widows of physicists (William Ayrton died in 1908), the two women formed a fast friendship and spent summers together with their children on the Hampshire coast. Hertha reportedly even got Marie Curie to join the womens suffrage movement and sign the international petition to free British suffragists imprisoned and on hunger strike in 1912.

Making waves

These trips to the Hampshire coast inspired Herthas next major project, on ripple movements in sand and water. She became interested in the dynamics ofthe rippled appearances of sand on the beach. Her 1910 paper on the subject, The Origin and Growth of Ripple-Mark, was published by the Royal Society, though they still did not accept her as a member. The paper, while credited to her, is listed as having been Communicated by the late Prof. W. E. Ayrton. Even after death, men were given credit for womens work.

A figure from Hertha Ayrton's published paper "The Origin and Growth of Ripple-Mark" shows how waves create ripples in the sand. She later used this research to design a handheld fan that would expel poisonous gas from war trenches

Via Wikimedia

Hertha later developed this line of work into her invention of the Ayrton fan, which used the principles of wave motion to expel poisonous gas from war trenches. The use of chlorine, phosgene, and mustard gas as weapons was becoming common in warfare during the early days of WWI. Herthas fan was dismissed at first but, after proving useful, the war effort finally manufactured 104,000 Ayrton fans and distributed them to the men fighting in the trenches. Hertha spent the rest of her days building upon this wave theory to devise strategies of clearing noxious gasses out of mines and sewers.

The fight for women

At the same time that Herthas house served as an active laboratory, it was also a centre for suffragist endeavor. She joined the Womens Social and Political Union in 1906 and participated in marches and demonstrations with her daughter, Barbara. She was attacked by a police officer while marching to Downing Street with suffragist Emmeline Pankhurst. In 1913, Hertha took in women who had been on hunger strike in prison and nursed them back to health.

In 1914, Hertha doubled down on her support of the suffrage movement. She donated part of an inheritance from mentor Barbara Bodichon, 100 pounds,the equivalent of 11,625 in 2019, to form the United Suffragists, which included both men and women. Hertha became the vice president and her daughter, Barbara, the secretary of the organization.

Herthas support of women was not limited to the suffrage movement. In addition to supporting the scientific endeavors of her friend, Marie Curie, Hertha was also an outspoken voice for the rights of women in science. According to her 1923 obituary, It was her opinion that women were naturally inventive and original, and that these qualities, joined to the capacity for patient work that is universally allowed to be theirs, especially fitted them for scientific work. She fought for this principle every day of her life.

And as her obituary writer also noted, she was a good woman, despite of her being tinged with the scientific afflatus.

More:
Meet Hertha Ayrton, the mathematician who cleared WW1 trenches of poisonous gas - Massive Science