Regrow Qld 6 April Issue 13 Vol 3
Cool weather at last, insurance, Good news, Arthur's Dream car Blog, and Plant Profile: Cluster Limeberry.
Editorial
Anna Hitchcock
My friends,
Today is cool and clear, and I feel like we are at last moving into Autumn. As I write, Easter is only 10 days away and there is the promise of the best weather Queensland has to offer in the wind.
After the massive rains, floods and double cleanups, it will be nice to be into a stretch of dry weather for a change. Of course, I may be cursing the dry come November as I hand water selected plants and watch my water meter tick upwards because of the fruit trees.
Still, for now the cooler dry weather is a welcome change, and I look forward to making some headway with the weeds. Let’s be honest, I was fighting a losing battle there for a while!
If you are planning to travel this Easter, I wish you a safe arrival and a joyous time with family.
Anna
GCC Project Update
It’s not very exciting, but we have received our insurance certificates for the coming year. If you are running a community not for profit group of any sort then you will know how important appropriate insurance cover is for your activities.
It’s worth asking other similar groups who they get their insurance through, because often there’s a group insurer who helps smaller groups get insurance at a much reduced rate - subject to some fairly basic rules of conduct.
There are many bigger events that won’t let you participate without at least some sort of public liability insurance.
We get ours through Queensland Water and Land Carers who specialise in insuring groups like ourselves - https://qwalc.org.au/
GOOD NEWS
Our selection of Good News comes from futurecrunch.com
In the past decade, a global network of organisations called the Clean Cooking Alliance has helped over 400 million people access clean cooking fuels and technology, saving an estimated 4.6 million lives from premature deaths linked to household air pollution.
One of China’s biggest coal-producing regions, the Shaanxi Province, achieved national air quality standards for the first time in 2021, with a 14.3% reduction of PM2.5 from 2020. The region logged a total of 295.4 ‘good air quality’ days, 10.3 days more than the goal set by China after making a targeted effort to reduce coal consumption and penalise environmental offences. Xinhua
The Nigerian state of Zamfara is close to eliminating lead poisoning cases among children linked to hazardous gold mining in the region. In 2010, over 600 children died and hundreds were left with brain damage and physical disabilities. Thanks to screening programs, chelation therapy and safer mining practices however, there have been no child deaths from lead poisoning since October 2021. Guardian
Tesla Dream Car blog #27
Arthur Hunt
Editor’s note: this article was written in 2021
The connectivity between a Tesla car and the driver’s mobile phone provides a significant enhancement to the operation of the car. When taking delivery of a Tesla, one of the first steps is to match the phone to the car, using the unique RFID card that is supplied with the car. Once that is done and the Tesla app is installed in the phone, many features become available. Some are enabled via a short-range Bluetooth connection, while others use mobile data for long-distance interaction. The first useful application is that the car is automatically unlocked as the driver, with the phone in a pocket or handbag, approaches the car and it is automatically locked again as the driver walks away with the phone. There is no longer any need to carry or use a car key or fob. The car is turned on by pressing on the brake pedal.
The next advantage is that the car applies the pre-set driver profile which includes settings for steering wheel, seat and mirrors. The car then displays any calendar entries in the driver’s phone for the day. Any incoming calls on the phone are diverted to the car audio to enable hands-free operation. Outgoing calls can be made by using a voice command (“Call Bill Smith”) to instruct the car to find the number in the contact list in the driver’s phone and make the call, again hands-free. The driver can also read and respond to text messages. There will be a chime when a new message is received. If the right scroll wheel button on the steering wheel is pressed, the incoming text message is read out loud. The driver can respond by pressing again and speaking the reply out loud. The text of incoming messages can also be viewed on the touchscreen.
The phone app shows the current odometer reading and battery level as a percentage or range in kilometres. The desired charging limit (commonly 80%) can also be set using the phone app. When leaving the car unattended while using a public charger, the app can be used to monitor the process so the car can be unplugged as soon as charging is complete. The app also shows the current location and speed of the car at any time. This saves a lot of “When will you be home?” calls. It could also provide reassurance to parents of teenage drivers (although the acceleration from 0 - 100 km/h in 5.6 seconds may be a worry).
Various controls can be operated remotely using the phone app. The doors, boot and frunk (Front trunk) can be unlocked, the windows can be opened and closed and the car can be started. To make it easy to find in a car park, the horn can be sounded and the lights flashed. A speed limit can also be imposed on the car. These controls were used by an owner in Canberra when her car was stolen. She was able to chase the car and inform the police about its location. She also spooked the thieves by activating the horn, lights and windows and slowing the car down. They quickly abandoned the car and ran way. Video from the car’s eight cameras can be recorded in sentry mode and viewed remotely on a phone.
https://www.news.com.au/technology/motoring/hitech/tesla-model-3-thief-left-licence-in-mix-presenter-annabelle-bretts-allegedly-stolen-car/news-story/17b099ae6b8af41ecea30979a47f486a
The car automatically alerts the driver by an SMS message, after 10 minutes, if a window is accidentally left open. The window can then be closed remotely using the phone app. The current temperature inside the car is also shown on the phone app. The air conditioning can be turned on via the phone to cool the car down so you are not getting into a hot car. So far, we have not needed to warm up the interior of our car, but owners in cold climates do that too.
The Summon feature on the mobile phone app can be useful and amusing. By selecting Summon on the app when the car is in Bluetooth range, it can be moved forward or reversed without any driver on board. If another car parks too close, then the car can be moved to allow entry. Similarly, if the car becomes surrounded by water due to rain, it may be possible to summon the car to a dry place to avoid wet feet.
The app also shows the current software version loaded in the car. When a software update is available, a message is displayed on the phone and the app can be used to download and install the software in the car.
More in a fortnight,
Arthur
What we’re watching
I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole with self driving cars - here’s a selection of videos of Tesla’s ‘summon’ feature, designed to bring your car out of its parking space and to you at the door of the grocery store.
Now if it could only wrangle three kids under 5, we’d marry it!
Plant Profile - Butterfly Plant
Cluster Limeberry - Micromelum minutum
Contact us at gladconscouncil@gmail.com to buy this butterfly plant
Micromelum minutum, commonly known as limeberry, dilminyin (east Arnhem Land). kimiar margibur (Murray Island),[2] tulibas tilos (Philippines), sesi (Indonesia) and samui (Thailand),[3] is a species of small tree or shrub in the citrus plant family Rutaceae. It occurs from India and Indochina to Australia. It has pinnate leaves with egg-shaped to lance-shaped leaflets, hairy, pale green or creamish, scented flowers arranged in large groups and yellow to orange or red, oval to spherical berries in dense clusters.
Micromelum minutum is a tree that typically grows to a height of 10–20 m (33–66 ft) but also flowers and forms fruit as a dense shrub. The flowers are borne in large, hairy, scented groups 130–200 mm (5.1–7.9 in) long. The petals are pale green or creamish, 5–8 mm (0.20–0.31 in) long. Flowering occurs all year and the fruit is a yellow to orange or red, oval to spherical berry about 10 mm (0.39 in) long.
Micromelum minutum grows as an understorey plant in rainforest, including dry rainforest and monsoon forest and from sea level to an altitude of 600 m (2,000 ft). It also occurs in sandstone gorges and on karst formations far inland. The species occurs in Malesia, New Caledonia, Fiji and northern Australia. In Australia it is found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, in the northern part of the Northern Territory, and south from the Cape York Peninsula in Queensland. It was recorded in New South Wales prior to 1911.
The larvae of some species of butterfly, including the orchard butterfly (Papilio aegeus) and canopus butterfly (Papilio fuscus) use this species as a food source.
In Malesia and Indonesia, limeberry is used as medicine and the timber is used for construction.
Opinion
Greg Bray
Sign of the Old Times
Folks, whenever I pass one of Pauline Hanson’s billboards I channel my inner redneck and blurt out, “Ploise exploin?!”
Yes. I am one of ‘those’ people who are a ‘delight’ to go on long road trips with…
Actually, are we still allowed to say ‘redneck’?
Anyway, here’s a clearer example of a billboard which has been fading by the side of the road near the bustling metropolis of Tiaro since 2019:
Note, the photo shows a surprisingly youthful Pauline, not the actual, current, nearly seventy-year-old Pauline, whose face has turned so hard with bitterness you could just about strike matches on it.
And how about that slogan?
“I’ve got the guts to say what you’re thinking!”
Well, here’s a small selection of the many thoughts, passing like distant comets in the vast inner space between my ears, which I would never utter out loud:
I’m the best driver in Queensland. My farts smell like fresh strawberries. I’m a better singer than Bob Dylan. Could toenail clippings be used to pick out the gunk from between my teeth? If Brad Pitt ever met me, he’d be my best friend, etc. etc.
Now, you don’t have to be a genius to know that not one of those thoughts are true… except for the Bob Dylan one, because EVERYONE is a better singer than Bob Dylan.
But, even the dimmest voter realises Pauline isn’t referring to random thoughts. She’s sending out a clear message to her followers, that she is the lone voice of reason against the Politically Correct, Woke, Do-Gooders stopping (far) right thinking citizens from saying any of the following words, loudly, in public:
Ch#nk, sp#stic, w#g, p##f, d#go, b##ng, m#r#n, m#ng#l, dw#rf, cr#pple, j#ngle b#nny, d#ke, c#rry m#ncher, p#mmy b#st#rd… etc. etc.
Happily, these terms are no longer casually thrown around in public places like monkey faeces anymore because we’re a little more considerate of each other now.
But, our Pauline wants to drag Australia back to a distant time (the 1950’s, but will grudgingly settle for the early 1980’s) when white people could make fun of, disparage and be downright cruel to any nationality they wanted to…. outside of a refugee detention centre.
As does PM Scott Morrison, never one to miss out on hitching a ride on any passing populist wagon (even if it’s heading in the wrong direction and towards a cliff).
Because they know Australia’s ugly racist sentiment lies simmering beneath a very thin cover of civility, and every now and then erupts like a popped zit.
Race-baiting and dog whistling is an effective, but very lazy way, to win votes, especially if you have no positive policies, or idea of how to actually, you know, lead.
That’s why it got trotted out by Little Johnny, then P#mmy Tony with a big helping hand from the Murdoch press and radio shock jocks.
But, like Golliwog biscuits and wooden, black boy ashtray holders, their time is coming to an end. Because, in spite of their efforts, the majority of Australians have become a lot more tolerant… seriously!
Granted, there’s a long way to go, but this election (whenever Dear Dress Up Leader decides to call it) we’ll have a chance to send a big, loud and clear message to the redneck dinosaurs who love punching down on people they should be helping up.
And if Pauline wants to know what most of us non-redn#cks are really thinking, then I reckon this champion said it best:
Greg
gladconscouncil@gmail.com - 0466 396 388