Is Your Flight Running on Empty?
One Missed Call? No Replying ‘Til the Flight’s Over
Scientists Say Earthquake to Hit California Within 30 Years
Planet’s Highest Tower To Be Two Miles High
Fans of Disney’s Small World Ride Sound Off Over Changes
IS YOUR FLIGHT RUNNING ON EMPTY? - MSNBC
Some airlines have taken cost-cutting measures to the extremes, and pilots are filing internal complaints as a result. Pilots are warning that airlines are encouraging them to operate aircraft with too little fuel. As the cost of jet fuel has doubled in the past year, airlines are scrambling to reduce fuel costs. According to FAA regulations, a plane must depart with enough primary fuel to reach its destination and then its most distant alternative, should an emergency arise. A reserve of 45 minutes’ worth of fuel must also be carried. Carrying less fuel, though, means a lighter plane; a lighter plane means better gas mileage, which saves the airline money.
Link: MSNBC
ONE MISSED CALL? NO REPLYING ’TIL THE FLIGHT’S OVER - The Hill
Passengers currently cannot jabber on cell phones on flights, and Representative Peter DeFazio vows he will do everything in his power to ensure it never happens. He announced on Tuesday that he’s creating a bill that would ban phone conversations on aircraft. The Federal Aviation Administration does not plan on lifting its ban on cell phone conversations. DeFazio, who advocated for the banning of smoking on airplanes, foresees an incessant prattling of one-sided conversations polluting one of society’s last cell phone-free zones. To illustrate his point, he had a team of six staffers carry cell phones in the audience of the House Radio-TV Gallery, and they began chatting away as DeFazio began his press conference. “Um, I’m trying to have a press conference here,” bemused DeFazio said, smirking.
Link: The Hill
VIOLENT QUAKE TO HIT CALIFORNIA WITHIN 30 YEARS – San Jose Mercury News
Odds indicate that a forceful earth is bound to hit California in the next 30 years. A statewide forecast released this week stated that there is a 99.7-percent probability for a quake with a magnitude of at least 6.7—the size of the 1994 Northridge quake that killed 72 people—before 2037. “It’s near certainty that we’re going to have a potentially damaging earthquake somewhere in the region in the next 30 years,” said geophysicist Ned Field of the U.S. Geological Survey. The faults generating the greatest concern are the southern San Andreas and the Hayward-Rogers Creek. The average time between the past five quakes on the Hayward fault is around 140 years, and the last major one occurred in 1868.
Link: San Jose Mercury News
PLANET’S HIGHEST TOWER WITH ARTIFICIAL RIVERS INSIDE TO BE TWO MILES HIGH - Pravda (Russia)
As the race to build the world’s highest skyscrapers continues in the United Arab Emirates, the world’s most ambitious project to beat world records isn’t occurring in the Middle East—it’s in the backyard of the good ol’ U.S. of A. Five times exceeding Burj Dubai, the world’s current highest building, the Ultima Tower will reach two miles high. Designed by the U.S.-based company Tsui Design & Research, the project premiered in 1991. The building will boast 500 floors, and an elevator ride to the top will take 9 minutes and 45 seconds. The expansive halls of the Ultima Tower will house parks, gardens, artificial rivers, hills, apartment houses, schools, kindergartens, and myriad stores.
Link: Pravda (Russia)
FANS OF DISNEY’S SMALL WORLD SOUND OFF OVER CHANGES – Los Angeles Times
Chief Disney Archivist Dave Smith reminds Disney fans “complaining” about the “current controversy” that “Walt Disney never intended Disneyland to be static.” Just as Walt Disney constantly changed his park, Smith plans on doing the same, much to the disappointment of those who adore Disneyland’s Small World ride. Current plans include incorporating Disney characters, like Alice in Wonderland, into Small World, but the plans will keep with the original designs and color palate of creator Mary Blair. “Disney has now, in essence, gotten into a flame war with its fans,” wrote The Disney Blog’s John Frost. Due to the large number of audio-animatronics children in Small World, Smith believes a few archivist characters won’t compromise the theme.
Link: Los Angeles Times
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