Armageddon could be hitting the Earth in 2036, and it’s not because of global warming. British space scientists and engineers have submitted a proposal for a mission to help divert an asteroid that could potentially collide with Earth in 2036. Apparently the chances of this happening are one in 45,000, but if it passes through a small area called the “gravitational keyhole,” in 2029, which is effected by Earth’s gravity, there is a greater chance of it heading onto a collision course and hitting Earth on April 13, 2036. It would collide with a force 100,000 times greater than the nuclear bomb dropped by the United States on Hiroshima in 1945. The result of this would be a mammoth crater, which could potentially plunge the planet into darkness for a year or more, the destruction of crops and an onslaught of tsunamis that would obliterate coastal settlements. The planned mission would aim to shift it off course to change its orbit.
PETA has revealed the finalists in their, “I’m too sexy for leather,” competition. Vinyl vixens the world over have sent in their images, which have been placed on PETA’s Cows Are Cool website and now’s your chance to vote for your favourite pleather wearer. The winners of the competition, one man and one woman, will have their pictures posted on PETA’s website and each individual will receive a $100 gift certificate from Forplay, Inc. For other pleather lovers, Forplay are offering a 10 per cent discount off any item, just enter PETA in the promotional box at checkout to get your discount. The global leather industry results in the slaughter of over a billion animals every year, before which, many of them are kept in severely inhumane conditions. Switching to synthetic materials is easier than ever especially with such a great choice available, so get cruelty-free shopping!
On 11th October, the RSPCA will be holding an award ceremony to recognise businesses that take a positive stance on animal welfare at every level. And today, it announced the shortlist of companies nominated for the black tie gala which will take place at the Natural History Museum.
The RSPCA's judges received double the number of entries this year, indicating that businesses are taking animal welfare far more seriously as a consideration in wooing customers. The nominees include Urban Decay in the cosmetics category, since it tests its products on human volunteers. Also making the cut is Lush, in recognition of its commitment to a 'strict animal welfare policy that includes not testing products and ingredients on animals.’
A pint of real ale at the end of (or even half way through) a country walk is a Great British institution, so it's only right someone should create a festival to celebrate this marriage made in heaven. The Black Sheep Brewery are holding a 'Boots & Beer Festival' from Friday 7th September to Sunday 9th September, centred on Hawes in the heart of Wensleydale. There are other walks starting in Askrigg and Aysgarth, all with a wide choice of easy, moderate and difficult walks to suit every ability. Providing you don't tire yourself out on the hills you can enjoy some excellent evening entertainment courtesy of Black Sheep. Tickets for the festival cost £17.50 for the weekend, and this includes free shuttle bus between locations and a goodies bag containing a Boots & Beer t-shirt. The event is sponsored by Country Walking Magazine.
What a laugh! Chocolate Mud Masque from Montagne Jeunesse is a tempting new face masque offering a feast of creamy natural ingredients for your face, helps unblock pores, moisturises and heals. As a bloke, it’s quite a funky funny present I might buy for my misses, but for women I think it’s damn right cruel. It’s chocolate flavoured, smells of chocolate, but you can’t eat it. It is, however, kind to animals and the environment, using only natural ingredients, no chemicals and many of the companies products are suitable for vegans.
Containing Mediterranean clay, Cocoa Butter and Shea Butter, the masque also benefits from the amazing skin healing properties of Dead Sea Salt. The chocolate masque and other very interesting flavours are conveniently packaged in single use sachets available from Boots, Asda and Wilkinson’s priced at 99p.
Related stories: Behind the masque | Organic and Vegan beauty products from Raw Gaia
Supermarket giant Sainsburys are working with their organic apple suppliers - Orchardworld to come up with a more cost-effective way to grow organic apples, which could effectively double the existing crop yield. The 'Organic Concept Orchard' hopes that in just two years it will produce a minimum of 25 tonnes of fruit per hectare, compared to a maximum of 10 tonnes in regular orchards. If successful the initiative could mean that a whopping 70% of organic apples sold in the UK could also be grown in Britain, the figure at the moment is only 3%. New varieties of apples will be tested in the orchard, and the Soil Association are planning on creating a good practice guide for organic fruit growing in the UK from the scheme.
Further to reports that the Yangtze River dolphin had most likely become extinct one has been spotted and filmed by a local man in Anhui Province. A team of scientist spent six weeks looking for the mammal but failed to see any, then Zeng Yujiang saw one jumping around in water about 1000 metres away from him. He didn't realise what it was, but the unusual creature caught his attention so he filmed it. Chinese scientists have said that as far as they can tell from the movement and behaviour of the animal it is a Yangtze River dolphin (or baijie), although the long distance from the camera makes it impossible to say 100%. the area is now being monitored and if the creature is seen again they will attempt to capture it and move it to a reserve where they would attempt a captive breeding programme.
Greenhelpline.com is an independent green energy tariff comparison service. I had a go on it this morning - it’s fast and easy to work out the best green energy deal based on CO2 footprint and price. There are plenty of comparison websites for conventional tariffs, but greenhelpline have a resident green energy expert who checks the environmental credentials of every tariff and every supplier before allowing them on the site. So there is less doubt that the tariff is truly green.
Related stories: Renewable energy verses the environment | Wind taken out of wind farms
Now you’ve decided to make your children healthy and nutritious lunches to take to school with them, you’ll want to eliminate the junk form their lunch-boxes too. As you throw out the crisps and chocolates and sweets and cakes, you’ll need to replace them with a healthier snack. Nairn’s have a range of wholegrain oat based snacks that are incredibly good for you. Oats are considered a superfood because they help to keep blood sugar level, which is good for maintaining high energy and concentration levels throughout the day. If you haven’t tried Nairn’s Oat Cakes, you really should. They come in a variety of flavours and some of the range is organic and vegan too.
It’s that time of year again…the summer is nearly over and the new school year is about to start. One of the concerns many parents have is the quality of food their children are getting during the school day. One way to ensure your children have a healthy and nutritious lunch is to make an exciting packed-lunch that they will want to eat. Speaking as a fussy eater, as many children are, the way to get us to eat our lunch is to make it look and taste interesting and new. Quorn™ foods have a range of vegetarian products that are easy and quick to cook and are versatile enough to use for any recipe.
You’ve got to be a chocoholic for this one! Luxury chocolate has reached a new level with Green & Black’s releasing their limited edition chocolate box priced at £70. It’s carved from ethically-sourced British luxury brown oak, and will be exclusively on sale at Selfridges and online from September 10th.
Green & Black’s has commissioned the box to celebrate the planting of one million cocoa trees through its Maya Gold project in Belize, which provides advice, support and training for over one thousand local organic cocoa farmers. The cocoa trees produce fruit all year round and can stay productive for generations. Green & Black’s have also promised to plant an additional 100 cocoa trees for every chocolate box made. Well, they should do for that price. I wonder if the bars of chocolate come with it?
Related stories: Green & Black’s Valentine hamper | Green & Black’s goes purple
Smoking has been banned in public places, but the die-hard (excuse the pun) smoking fans are not put off and due to the diminishing impact of the old warnings on cigarette packets, stark images of the health effects of smoking are set to take their place. Yesterday ministers unveiled 15 new images that will appear on packets from late next year. These warnings depict images such as: cancerous lungs, a corpse – featuring the words, “smokers die younger,” a man with a gruesome throat tumour – featuring the words, “smoking can cause a slow and painful death,” a patient who has suffered from a heart attack being operated on and an image of a young child breathing in smoke. Cigarettes with written warnings only will not be allowed on sale after September 30th 2008. I think it’s a good idea for people to be confronted with the extent of their actions and hopefully it will help some individuals to quit. Having seen the images myself, if I did smoke, I am pretty sure that it would encourage me to stop!
If you want to take a look at all the images that will be used, check out the BBC news website.
If you are looking for a health and energy boost just in time for the dreary autumn weather, super-foods, with health giving properties could be the answer to a new sense of vitality. The Natural Store sell a selection of raw foods, that you can easily integrate into your everyday life, providing extra nutrients and helping to...well, perk you up a bit.
How would you like to enjoy a healthy organic start to the day, completely free, for many days to come? All this goodness could be yours if you enter our competition, brought to you by Ethical Superstore, which has recently added many delicious new organic items to its food and drink section. Its breakfast kit, shown above, contains Biona Apple Juice, Alpro Soya Milk,
Whole Earth Maple Frosted Flakes, Cherries and Berries spread, Fruit and seed muesli, Café Direct medium roast coffee, Whole earth baked beans and Clipper English breakfast tea. Ethical Superstore is also offering free shipping to all hippyshopper readers on organic food: simply enter the promotion code FSHPS.
To enter, simply answer the following question: how much does a packet of Pertwood Organic Muesli usually cost at Ethical Superstore? Please send answers to hippycomps@gmail.com
If you ever wanted to know what TRAID was all about but didn't have the time to find out, this video tells you all you need to know in less than 30 seconds! Laura Street talked to TRAID's Madeline to get the lowdown.
From: Green graffiti - It's all in the mossage