All posts by Carl

Atomic Humanism

Natasha Thoday presents the case for maintaining a nuclear power element of world electricity supply as the only viable means of meeting demand whilst at the same time eliminating fossil fuel use and mitigating the variability of renewable energy supplies. The stark conclusion is that we will require more electricity from nuclear power than even the nuclear industry itself is suggesting, based on the Harmony Report which is remarkably vague about exactly what the non-nuclear element will comprise.

This paper is an urgent call for political actors, parties and their networks in the UK to establish a robust long-term statutory framework to create the “Ultimate Power Couple” a Pro-Nuclear electricity generation partnership with Wind Water & Solar renewable energy in recognition that it is the physical world, of science, maths and engineering that determines what is politically possible, not the other way round. All the evidence presented and analysed here below, very strongly suggests there is an urgent need for such a new state supported industrial partnership to be formed: a) to create tens of thousands of new jobs building domestic infrastructure; b) to expand UK technology exports; and c) ensure immediate and ongoing action to realise and sustain these outcomes.

Click here to download the full report.

About the author

Natasha graduated in 1982 specialising in 3D design, and worked in industry designing spiral staircases, and high end audio (vacuum tube, horn speaker & vinyl turntables).
She has written & filed 2 patents, rebuilt a 5 storey terraced house, is a secondary, further & higher education teacher, special educational needs (EBD & ASD), was diving officer at University of Brighton Sub Aqua club for a decade, and worked as a whale shark spotter at Ningaloo reef during 1 year tour of SE Asia’s wrecks & reefs.
In 2001 she completed a Post Graduate Diploma, Business Research, (first of two year MA Change Management), University of Brighton, throughout the early 2000’s active in Brighton’s multi agency Home Office funded Anti Victimisation Initiative (AVI), participated in University of Brighton ‘Count Me In’ research, wrote and won several high profile employment tribunal cases supported by (former) statutory body (EOC), in 2007 helped set up Transition Town Brighton, in 2011 helped Occupy Brighton.
Since 2013 Natasha’s been running a local electronic musicians collective that regularly puts on synthesiser jams and DJ gigs.
Since 2014 she’s been advocating for local people the ASD spectrum, helped secure local authority housing and written and won disability (PIPs & ESA) appeals.
In 2015 Natasha completed the University of Cumbria MA equivalent online (MOOC) course Money & Society.

Diamonds are forever

Diamonds are forever but ozone is a girl’s best friend

Inventor and entrepreneur Carl Nicholson has revealed details of a new technology which promises to revolutionise the way we combat both global warming and ozone layer depletion in one device. Called RAM for “Reverse Armageddon Machine”, the device extracts carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and converts it into diamonds and ozone using solar energy alone. The massively negative carbon footprint of the prototype is mooted to be forty kilograms of carbon removed per megawatt-hour of solar energy, producing four million dollars worth of industrial quality diamonds and over a hundred kilogrammes of eighty percent pure ozone (the other twenty percent being oxygen) every day.


This highly guarded secret will be made public when trials finish next year and he applies for worldwide patents. In the meantime Nicholson says he is working on refinements which will allow the percentage of ozone to be varied from zero to one hundred percent. Sources close to him also suggest that he is on the verge of using the device to produce gem quality diamonds. He won’t comment on this, but it is understood at the moment that this is a much slower and less cost-effective process. He says he is more interested in a deal with the airlines to deliver ozone to depleted areas of the planet and is prepared to use some of the profits from the diamonds to achieve this. He is already in talks with Richard Branston of Maiden Atlantic and Michael O’Flaherty of Bryan Air.


So, is this the philosopher’s stone or the cold fusion of global warming? We asked a few top people in the field what they knew and thought about Nicholson’s claims for RAM. Scientists at MIT, Oregon were sceptical. They say they’ve been working on a similar device, but the ozone yield is much lower and they haven’t been able to produce diamonds at all. They doubt it is possible to create the pressures needed to produce diamonds using the kind of technology the RAM team describes. They are also doubtful about the performance of the catalysts used to convert oxygen to ozone and vice versa. Professor Alan Bentall, of the Cambridge School of Mines said “This is a load of hype to raise the share price before selling out to some diamond mining company.” and went on to add “On the other hand, if there is anything in it [RAM] then it is a serious threat to the diamond industry and worth a great deal of money. I don’t think he [Carl Nicholson] knows the kind of people he is dealing with.” The jury is still out on what Nicholson will do if the technology actually works, but now the Pandora’s box is well and truly open it is only a matter of time before something serious happens.

Brighton i360 Crews parity plea

British Airways crews at the Brighton i360 are demanding parity with their short-haul flight colleagues. “Not only do they get paid more than us, they get more perks, such as foreign travel and discount flights.” said a spokesperson at an emergency meeting convened by the conciliation service ACAS.
Crews are threatening to stop operations with a full complement of “passengers” aloft and leave them there till management agrees to further talks. One senior BA executive was overheard saying “If they think they’ve got us over a barrel by stranding fifty people in an oversize cock ring 160m off the ground they can f*ck right off.” The CEO was unavailable for comment.

New gallery “Blackpool” added

Pictures from my visit to Blackpool in September 2018 now included as a new gallery.

I stayed at the Royal Carlton Hotel on the seafront and was so shocked I had to write this review on TripAdvisor:

Las Vegas it isn’t and the only nuggets you’ll find on the Golden Mile will be McNuggets. But when you ascend your own Blackpool Tower and rise above the ubiquitous tat, rampant obesity and obligatory sportswear you will see a fairytale city full of people having fun. The glitter and sparkly lights are just skin deep, but underneath all that is a city that is reinventing itself and presenting a new model for British coastal holiday towns everywhere.
The renovated seafront, the beautiful trams and the city centre are a welcome sign that somebody, somewhere, is doing something right. Blackpool is big enough for everybody and will always have a special place in my heart as the birthplace of the first commercial Crystal Maze.
The Royal Carlton hotel was disappointing; despite its marvellous location and pretentious name it provided only a basic level of comfort and quality. The bedroom walls were paper thin and the window catch broken and dirty. However, breakfast was good, the staff were friendly and helpful and, at the end of the day, it was actually quite good value. Maybe it should be spelled “The Royle Carlton Hotel”.

The hotel responded:

Dear Carl,
Thank you for your review,
I can only comment on your feedback on the hotel itself although your statement on the resort in general may be more suited to another site – we are sorry the Royal Carlton wasn’t to you expectations on this occasion.
We do urge our guests to please make reception aware immediately of any issues whatsoever so they can be resolved whilst at the hotel, once notified of your dissatisfaction with your room
Another more suitable room may have been offered as a kind resolution – subject to availability at the time. With regards to the window catch, this has since been rectified by our onsite maintenance team
So we do thank you for bringing matters to our attention – and apologise for any inconvenience caused.
Thank you very much for the kind words on our breakfast and service – the Royal Carlton prides itself on delivering superb customer care with excellent food so it really is great to hear you enjoyed the food on offer
And that you found our staff to be extremely helpful and friendly.
It is also great to learn you found your holiday to be very good value for money.
Overall we are pleased you enjoyed your time at the Royal Carlton and hope you will choose us again for a future holiday to the resort.
All the very best,
GUEST RELATIONS