“X-Ray Hotel 558, Rolling”

 

Vulcan Taking Off

 

Ok, so imagine 100,000 people all gathered for one thing and one thing only to witness the long return of a triangular piece of metal to the air. Not just any triangular piece but the mighty Avro Vulcan retired from service in 1993.

What drives these people to put up with torrential rain that pours not just vertically but horizontally, accompanied by strong winds that challenge even the strongest man made fibres to a duel of wits.

Fortunately the sun as if encouraged by the occasion played ball and shone its rays to accompany the majestic Leviathan. Imagine everybody chatting, children running around with excitement, the beer tent brigade enjoying their daily inebriation, every age, every walk of life. Then total silence, you could hear a pin drop, quite a wait as four Rolls Royce engines slowly wind up in harmony.

A loud roar leads to increased purposeful acceleration, moving further down the runway parting the surface water with steady precision, arching her back as the front wheel lifts and finally defeating gravity with pure grace. Climbing steeply unmistakably that familiar delta wing reflecting in pure white cumulus nimbus, turning on a sixpence and finally joining a 60 year old stablemate to perform in unison.

So why should these people come and watch, is it more than just an aeroplane? The British people love to champion the underdog, the team despite impossible odds and no funding have fought with bureaucracy, donations of thousands of pounds to pocket money, giving sweets a miss pennies, together they triumphed.

As if in the true style of a Hollywood film, flight permits were granted at the literal eleventh hour. Faith can now be restored in a world gone mad, people power can and does win!

XH558

Vulcan

Should Golf Players be Random Drug Tested?

Tee to the Moon

 

South African player Gary Player announced that performance enhancing substances are a fact of life in professional golf. He asserts that at present at least ten players in the game are using human growth hormone, creatine or steroids.

He urged the Royal and Ancient (R&A) to introduce random testing at the earliest opportunity, ” The greatest thing that the R&A, United States Golf Association (USGA) and the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) can do is to have tests at random. It’s absolutely essential that we do that, we are dreaming if we think it’s not going to come to golf.”

Taken from the Guardian

 

Golf sees no need for drug testing policy

Major League Baseball players began facing sanctions last year if they tested positive for illegal steroids. The National Footbal League (NFL) bans steroids and randomly tests its players. National Basketball Association (NBA) rookies are tested up to four times a year, while veterans are subject to one random test during training camp.

The PGA Tour has no policy on steroids. Nothing is in the works, because no one has found anything that would help a golfer’s performance.

In fact, the only substance abuse policy on the PGA Tour books is a two-page statement from former commissioner Deane Beman in January 1992 that deals with recreational drugs, and alcohol as it relates to players’ conduct.

“There is a lot of power involved in golf, but more so feel and touch,” U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen said. “I don’t know if somebody took steroids how that would affect the game. I don’t think golf is that much a power sport as it is in other sports, like athletics or things like that, where there is such a small margin between the athletes.”  The only thing golf has tested lately is hot drivers, and that lasted about a month.

From Golf Today

 

Ball

 

NORTON, Mass. (AP) — The PGA Tour is nearing completion on a comprehensive drug policy, and commissioner Tim Finchem said Thursday that testing could start as early as next year. Finchem spoke to the 16-man Player Advisory Council on Monday and updated them on the tour’s progress. We believe now that we’ll complete work on a policy this year, and the elements of the policy could very well be executed during ’08,” Finchem said at the Deutsche Bank Championship. He said drug testing would be only one part of the policy.

From Golf.com

I think that where sport is concerned you can’t have one rule for some and another rule for others. Olympic sports have randon drug testing. If the sport competitor can take a substance that increases his performance or stamia that in itself will give him an edge of the other competitors. This extra edge increases his chance of winning by false means and undermans the whole ‘Fair Play’ system.

The most difficult thing is to decide when a player is allowed certain substances for medical reasons that help him compete but do not enhance his performance. Take a wider view and consider where to draw the line, what sports are eligible, is every sport by its nature of competition eligible? Are there similar problems with mental contests such as Chess if they are judged on a world performance level?

References:

Drug taking is rife in golf says Player – Guardian July 19th 2007

Golf sees no need for drug testing – Golf Today

Call for Ban on Dolphin Assisted Therapy

 

There appears to be be no firm repeatable evidence that Dolphin Assisted Therapy has a long term benefit to children with special needs, though short term effect may be more beneficial.

WDCS the whale and dolphin conversation society has called for a total ban on Dolphin Assisted Therapy (DAT), stating that the therapy provided is ineffective and potentially harmful to both people and animals.

Richard Mills of Research Autism agrees with the findings of the report, he said: “Research Autism endorses the WDCS report which highlights the fact that there is no evidence that dolphin therapy aids people with autism.”

Cathy Williamson one of the authors of the report said ” There is no scientific evidence that DAT is effective in the long term for participants.”

 

References:

Published research on DAT by Nathanson DE.

DAT Controversial Subject.

Dolphin Care.

Wild Dolphin Therapy.

Freakonomics, quantitative

“A thing worth having is a thing worth cheating for” W.C. Fields

 

I think a thing worth having is not worth cheating for as this process devalues the thing worth having in the first place and once you have it, becomes not worth having anymore.

Students from a range of Universities are claiming they are being pressed to make falsely enthusiastic responses to an official satisfaction survey. Staff at Kingston University were recorded telling students to falsify their ratings in the government backed annual National Student Survey.

An audio recording made at Kingston University revealed that staff were instructing students how to respond to the survey and using it as a way of promoting a positive image rather than an honest assessment.

“The message was practically shoved down our throats. Give us good reviews or your degree won’t be worth much and you will look like you’re coming from a rubbish place in your interviews.”

BBC News – Education – Students claim survey dishonesty

Falsifying a few satisfaction survey forms on the face of it does not sound such a heinous crime. But lets look at what is really happening here. Why is the University telling its students to do this? so the University could get more government funding relative to its higher position in the league satisfaction tables – possibly. How does this effect the confidence of the students, surely it devalues the whole process, why have a student satisfaction survey or for that matter any survey if the results you get are not a true indication set out for the purpose of the survey.

Rob from Nottingham says ” I am in my final year at Nottingham Trent University. All the 3rd years were sent letters, a number of emails, even phone calls asking/telling us to do the survey. This did not work so we were told in big red letters £5 free printing credit for completing your Student Satisfaction Survey, no doubt we all did it, this is how desperate my Uni is to get a better review.”

You could argue even if bribery was involved that the University only has the best interests of its students at heart. However, if that has to be achieved by presenting false information for assessment, a process which itself questions the reliability of fair and impartial judgment, which will not increase but decrease your future interview standing!

 

Dyslexia Board Members Resign

Why did some members of the editorial board of the publication Dyslexia resign?

 

Five members of the board resigned because of the publication of a favourable article on the benefits of the Dore programme. It appears they were very concerned about the accuracy and validity of the research, basis to the claimed success of the programme.

Further they were not happy that the author of the study was paid £30,000 by Dore for his research and also sponsored PHD students who were taught by the co-author. Uta Frith professor of cognitive development at University College London was one of those that resigned said “People stand to make a lot of money on the basis of research that appears in journals so it is important the studies are scientific in their approach, I do not feel this was the case.”

John Stein professor of physiology at Cambridge University was also concerned by the lack of control group and the small scale of the study. He said “I have serious concerns about the study. Without a control group you don’t know how the children would have done, or how they would have progressed without the exercises.”

Taken from: I speak of dreams, British Dyslexia Association Troubles

The resignations which may not have been that significant if the numbers were low seemed to have occurred in protest to Dore programme publication. It is understandable that this happened and particularly significant that respected members who are authorities on the subject felt it necessary to take this somewhat drastic step.

 

Dore – Christopher Chope MP Statement

The MP Christopher Chope believes “the Government are suppressing information about the Dore programme, which is of proven benefit to a large number of sufferers”

 

 

Discuss

I think it is necessary to break this statement down and take a look at the component parts. I would break it down as follows:

• MP Christopher Chope
• Government Suppressing Information
• Dore Programme Benefits

If the Dore programme was successful then any information about it would not have to be suppressed as the long term benefits would stand out on their own. Clearly any programme of positive health development is something we should all embrace however, how many programmes require an up front fee to gain the knowledge from within? Even if after paying the fee, the system was successful why did the company go into administration?

“The problem is not a lack of information, but the fact that parents are being starved of the information that is available and are therefore not in a position to put pressure on education authorities to fund schemes such as Dore”  – taken from the debate in House of Commons 16 June

It would be more logical to assume that education authorities would be in favour to support such schemes, the relative benefit and cost saving of future NHS dependency! One can only assume that may be, all the facts were not totally at hand when the speech was conducted, these days especially with the wide and plentyful information avenues open to everyone.

References:

The Dore Project

Holford Watch

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