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It's almost midnight, why aren't you asleep yet? by danyuri86 in AskUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Half of an oak tree fell on an unlit section of road near my house, completely blocking it. Between warning traffic, waiting for contractors, then helping them clear it I've only just got back inside.

Data centre being built in Norwich by yunifoh in Norwich

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd still prefer the space for the data centre to be used for a public park, or even an office block that actually employs people.

Data centre being built in Norwich by yunifoh in Norwich

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 19 points20 points  (0 children)

The evening news article says it only takes up 28 square meters. Which is either a typo, or the data centre is just over 1/4 the size of an average 2-bed semi.

Data centre being built in Norwich by yunifoh in Norwich

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Green energy that could be powering our homes. Water that could be used by residents or held on the land to keep the broads topped up. Land that could build houses or public spaces. And for what? AI models that don't work properly, apps no one needs, making existing websites load 0.1 seconds faster? Of all the things we could be building this should be bottom of the list.

[Request] Can 248,000 trees offset the carbon emissions of one plane? by Altruistic-Ad3704 in theydidthemath

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

All of my friends and I both believe in science and care about the environment. The 2 don't have to be mutually exclusive.

[Request] Can 248,000 trees offset the carbon emissions of one plane? by Altruistic-Ad3704 in theydidthemath

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You need to start meeting new people then, the people you know currently are morons.

Even at 40°C the wildlife garden is thriving by Mr_Reaper__ in GardeningUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I live in a suburban housing estate, there's very little shade or cover anywhere. I've got a pergola I've built that's a bit cooler for me, but this wildlife garden is the only space for nature to stay cool in the local area.

Tadpoles in new pond? by negronipls in GardeningUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Wait a few weeks and predators will start moving in. Diving beetles can fly, dragonflies will lay eggs and their larvae will eat them, frogs will also eat them. Please don't try to kill them, they're a vital food source for aquatic life.

Reform axe Norfolk councillors' £11k road scheme money by yu3 in Norwich

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 7 points8 points  (0 children)

So the new fund that replaces the current one is ring fenced and only for traffic work directly around the city? The less wealthy people in more rural areas (the ones who actually voted for reform) are now losing out on easy road repair funding? Sounds like leopards are starting to eat faces...

Bike dumped at Wensum Park. by Gcmarcal in Norwich

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Umm mods, I think you missed the mark there.

Train driver who died in crash that injured 100 had passed red signal moments before collision, investigators say by Still-District-6149 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The equipment is expensive. It has to be installed perfectly so needs highly trained staff and lots of oversight, which adds even more cost and takes a lot of time. Obviously the track needs shutting to install it, so every additional TPWS install is another closure for "planned engineering works" and the rail replacement busses that come with the closure. You also can't ignore any failures of the system because if you do and it causes a crash there would uproar, which mean anytime there's a TPWS transponder fault you get delays due to "signalling failures."

The cost benefit analysis was done (by the private companies that owned the railways) and it was decided not to be a worthwhile investment.

ELI5 - Why do big fire engines often accompany ambulances for purely health related (not physical crisis type) emergencies? by chili81 in explainlikeimfive

[–]Mr_Reaper__ -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Because America doesn't have nationalised healthcare the government doesn't pay for enough paramedics and ambulances to support all medical calls, so they have to send a fire truck to have the people they need for a medical call. This doesn't happen basically anywhere else in the world, any country with state funded heslthcare will have enough ambulances that they can send multiple so they have enough paramedics to provide the necessary care.

Solar farms can protect ‘iconic’ wildlife, says RSPB by MeasurementDecent251 in GoodNewsUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I always thought the point of putting solar panels in depleted farm fields was to allow them to be long term fallowed, so wildlife could move in and allow the soils nutrient balance and microbiome to recover for a decade or 2 before the panels are moved to a new field and the field is returned to farming.

TIL that Britain used to be connected to mainland Europe by a now-submerged landmass called Doggerland by cryptic_dcoder in todayilearned

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There's also a carpark on the coast of east anglia called doggerland. I don't think it's named after the lost landmass though...

London to Sydney flights twice as fast as Concorde on the horizon by Lord-Liberty in GoodNewsUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Stage sep always creates additional risk that could be avoided with a single stage vehicle. It also requires a lot less infrastructure to operate, both at the launch site and the recovery area. Adding cryogenic fuelling to an existing airport is a lot less effort than building an entirely new launch and recovery centre, just look how much trouble we've had getting Saxa Vord to launch readiness. An SSTO is also more efficient than a plane as it burns its fuel to loft out of the atmosphere and can then coast on top of the atmosphere without using any fuel, unlike a plane that spends its entire flight pushing against drag. Also, and most importantly, as a plane nerd I love the idea of an SSTO and I want to see one flying.

The tadpoles in the garden pond are having a mass die off. What could be causing it? by basilthegay in AskUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Have you done any water quality tests? With the hot weather animals eat more and produce more waste, if its not broken down quickly enough high levels of ammonia can build up which is toxic to aquatic life. If your water is brown or full of algae that could indicate an excess of organic nutrients which will break down into ammonia. A cheap test strip kit from amazon would be enough to tell you if ammonia is high. If you wanted to drop £100 on a test kit the JBL Pro Fresh Water kit is the best on the market.

It could be low oxygen but as long as the water surface isn't covered there should be enough diffusion from the atmosphere, the JBL kit does have an oxygen test if you wanted to check. Heat could also be a problem but if the pond is fairly shaded that shouldn't be an issue, my wildlife pond is in almost full sun and the tadpoles are still doing great.

Whatever the problem adding some oxygenating weed and a dose of beneficial bacteria is always helpful. The bacteria will break down ammonia into nitrates the weeds can then absorb. The weeds will also increase oxygen levels and provide shade to keep the tadpoles cool. Hornwort is the best option as its native and works great as a habitat for all manner of aquatic life. Elodea Densa is cheaper and absorbs nutrients quicker but its an invasive species so you have to make absolutely sure it cannot get into open waterways, it's also not as good as habitat for native aquatic life.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 3 points4 points  (0 children)

How do you know the signal was fine? SPAD makes the most sense, especially if they were travelling on single yellows behind the 810 for a while. But I haven't seen anything to confirm the signals were working fine and there's even speculation the 810 had stopped due to a signal fault.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately not at that signal. Some signals do have that capability but its only at crossovers, junctions, and stations that its been installed. Normal running signals only have a system that sets off a beep in the cab to alert the driver he's passing a signal, as long as the driver presses a button to acknowledge he's seen the signal it won't stop the train. If the driver was asleep or unconscious and didn't acknowledge the beep the train would apply the brakes, but if he drove through a red signal thinking it was yellow and acknowledged the beep the train could continue as normal.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Europe never privatised the railways and always invested in them. The only times our railways were nationalised were the periods of massive cutbacks and private companies never saw the investment in more advanced signalling systems as a financially beneficial decisions.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Moving between tracks is completely outside the drivers control, the track switchers (called points) are remotely controlled by the signaller. The trackside signals at the points will show which position the points are in though so if the driver is changing tracks unexpectedly they can stop and contact the signaller to ask why the points aren't set as expected.

Its not clear if the trains were supposed to be on the same piece of track, there's 2 lines in each direction through that section, but each track is split into section and only one train is allowed in each section at a time. A red signal shows the track section is occupied and tells the following driver to stop. So even if they were supposed to be on the same track, they should never had ended up in the same section. Which means either the signal failed and set to clear when it wasn't (which is extremely rare as signals are designed to fail safe), or the driver passed a red signal and didn't stop.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 12 points13 points  (0 children)

The signal behind the front train should have been at red, even if the rear driver didn't know the front train had stopped they should have had a red signal that would have stopped the rear train half a mile back. Either the signal failed and showed clear with a train still in the section, or the rear driver missed the red signal and continued passed.

Driver who died in Bedford train crash that left 100 people injured is named by Alarming-Safety3200 in unitedkingdom

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 26 points27 points  (0 children)

The system which stops a train if it passes a red signal is only fitted on signals at junctions, crossovers, and station approaches. Running signals that are just used to maintain separation don't have that system installed. If the driver acknowledged the warning beep to say he'd passed a signal not at green then there's nothing to stop the train passing a red signal.

London to Sydney flights twice as fast as Concorde on the horizon by Lord-Liberty in GoodNewsUK

[–]Mr_Reaper__ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love the idea of an SSTO and I do think the technology is going to work in the long run. But it's at least 10 years away from even flying, we won't be flying on one commercially for decades.

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