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Sunday 8 June 2003
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Seán Mac Cárthaigh in today's Sunday Business Post poses the question no one in Europe dare ask: how can the commission cut down on its translation bill? The problem is that at the moment the Europe of the Fifteen has 11 official languages which means there are 110 different language combinations that have to be supported. When the union expand in 2004 a further ten languages will be added raising the number of combinations to 420. The commission translation budget is already €700m per year.
As Mac Cárthaigh points out, the answer would be to restrict the number of languages, but how do you choose which ones to keep and which ones to discard.
One suggestion is to simply pick one language. English, for instance, is the second language of choice for most of Europe. I can imagine how well that will go down in France. And why not german, after all it is the mother tongue of a majority of Europeans, while Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. And it goes on and on and on...
The solution is actually quite simple as any Trekkie will tell you. Let them speak Klingon!
11:59:49 PM  Google It!
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Mecon is a very pleasant science fiction convention held each March in Belfast under the aegis of the QUB Science Fiction Society. I make a point of going most years and I've always had a good time. Last year's guest of honour was Peter F Hamilton, author of the Nights Dawn Trilogy, among others.
In the past, the convention has used the mecon.org for its Website and e-mail. Unfortunately, the domain expired and even though the committee tried renewing it, the registrar wouldn't accept their credit card for some reason. (I am assured the credit card was valid and had sufficient credit). While the committee was negotiating with the registrar, some guy in the Cayman islands slipped in and registered it through another registrar and is now using it to host a site promoting low cost mortgages.
So be warned. Keep your domain registrations up to date. In the meantime, Mecon are looking for another solution. Registering mecon.org.uk or mecon7.org are being looked at. A previous committee registered mecon.co.uk and that registration is still valid so they may use that for the time being. Watch this space for details.
11:40:55 PM Google It!
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Bad weather has forced mission controllers to delay the launch of first of two US probes to Mars. Spirit was due to launch this evening at around 7pm Irish time. Instead, a further attempt will be made tomorrow, Monday, at 19:02:23 or 19:40:30 Irish time. However, forecasters are saying there is a 60 percent chance of heavy storms then as well. Controllers have until June 19 to launch spirit. [spacetoday.net]
8:50:43 PM Google It!
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NASA has announced that the Mars Exploration Rovers have been renamed Spirit and Opportunity. The names were suggested by Sofi Collis, a 9-year-old from Scottsdale, Arizona who entered a contest sponsored by LEGO and The Planetary Society. Sofi's entry was just one of 10,000 entries from school-aged children all over the US. The first rover, Spirit (formerly known as MER-A), is scheduled for launch Sunday at 18:05:55 or 18:44:07 GMT (add one hour for Irish Summer Time). However, there is a strong chance that afternoon thunderstorms, will lead to the launched being scrapped. Launch windows for Spirit continue through June 19; the second rover, Opportunity (formerly MER-B), is still scheduled for launch June 25. [spacetoday.net]
5:39:51 PM Google It!
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The first episode of the new Children of Dune miniseries was shown last night on Hallmark. I found it a bit of a let down, but then, the book was a bit disappointing as well. Which is only to be expected, I suppose. When Dune was first published it made such a stir, anthing that followed it would be a let down. And it seems the same thing is happening with the mini-series. There are some cast changes - out with Saskia Reeves and in with Alice Krige, for instance - and the music is different, but on the whole, the producers have recaptured the exotic feeling of Arrakis, the desert planet. But the plot has none of the zest of the original. They managed to get the contents of Children of Dune into the first episode and Dune Messiah, one assumes, will be told over the next two episodes. Maybe it will improve.
2:38:58 PM Google It!
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There's a report in today's Sunday Business Post from Steve McMahon about Domino's Pizza and new ways of delivering products. Apparently, the company is roadtesting a number of prototype hoverboards for city centre deliveries. Don't be expecting to seem them soon though. The company is talking about introducing them in about five to ten years' time. The retail price of the hoverboards is between €14,000 and €17,000. At least that's Domino's story. Here's a site where you can learn to build one for $20.
2:11:44 PM Google It!
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© Copyright 2003 David Stewart.
Last update: 01/07/2003; 17:49:54.
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