Winner of CIWEM environmental photographer of the year 2017: Quoc Nguyen Linh Vinh for ‘The hopeful eyes of the girl making a living by rubbish’ 😳😱 Vinh’s winning photo is a poignant image of a child and her mother collecting waste. Vinh said “The child was happy, looking at the dark clouds and chatting to her mother. This was so touching. She should have been enjoying her childhood and playing with friends rather than being there.” Photograph: Quoc Nguyen Linh Vinh/2017 Ciwem environmental photographer of the year

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Formula One launches eSports world championship

LONDON (Reuters) – Formula One will crown its first virtual world champion at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after announcing on Monday the launch of an eSports series to run from September to November.

The new eSports Series is a partnership with Formula One, game developer Codemasters and events and competitions specialists Gfinity.

The series will be in three stages, starting with qualification events through September to determine the 40 quickest virtual drivers, and run on PlayStation4, Xbox One and Windows PC platforms.

Live semi-finals will be held at London’s Gfinity Arena on Oct. 10-11 with the top 20 going on to the three-race finals at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit on Nov. 24-25.

The first eSports Series world champion will automatically qualify for the following year’s semi-finals.

Formula One managing director Sean Bratches said in a statement that the new series represented “an amazing opportunity for our business: strategically and in the way we engage fans.”

U.S.-based Liberty Media, who took over Formula One in January, have targeted gaming as a growth area to drive revenues and connect with younger audiences.

Some of Formula One’s participants are already embracing the world of eSports, with McLaren executive director Zak Brown saying all teams could eventually have their own virtual counterpart.

Source: Formula One launches eSports world championship

#F1 Racing- Honda now at its pre-season performance target

Honda has to be proud of the progress it has made with its power unit during 2017 but should not have started so far behind its rivals, according to program chief Yusuke Hasegawa.

While McLaren was expecting a big step forward in performance from Honda during the off-season, the new power unit proved to be both unreliable and uncompetitive when pre-season testing got underway at the end of February. Since then, a number of upgrades has allowed McLaren to regularly challenge for a place in Q3 and it scored points with both cars in Hungary (pictured).

While the Hungaroring places far less emphasis on power unit performance, a strong showing in Silverstone highlighted Honda’s progress, but Hasegawa told RACER it should have been at the current level from the start of the season…

 

Source: F1 Racing News – Honda now at its pre-season performance target

‘Brain Dead’ little Perth girl Kawa Sweeney who was found in a Bali pool

There's been a devastating development for the family of little Perth girl Kawa Sweeney who was found unconscious in a Bali pool. http://pic.twitter.com/xl8cOIkPKS

— 7 News Perth (@7NewsPerth) July 26, 2017

Gunman pulls pistol on Domino s worker in Queensland

Video footage has emerged of the moment a man pulled a gun on a Domino’s store manager because he wasn’t given a discount.

It started out as a customer complaint but turned quickly into something more violent and terrifying.

Philip Willich will spend a year in jail after pointing a gun at the Cairns Domino’s worker’s head.

He went to the store to ask for a discount, but didn’t have a voucher.

When his request is denied he circles the 25-year-old worker for four minutes, waving his gun around.

Then with a pizza in one hand and a pistol in the other he forces the man onto his knees and aims at him execution-style.

 

Source: Gunman pulls pistol on Domino s worker in Cairns – Yahoo7

Girl dies after Audi ploughs into group of teenagers in Croydon

A 16-year-old girl has died after an Audi sports car ploughed into a group of teenagers “at speed” in south London.

Six other teens were injured in the hit-and-run on Pixton Way, Croydon, at about 1.30am on Sunday.

Officers believe the red Audi A3 convertible accidentally veered off the road at a corner.

The motorist fled the residential area on foot.

The six injured teenagers, both male and female, are being treated at a number of London hospitals. None of their injuries are life-threatening.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “At this early stage it is believed the car was travelling at speed before it lost control at a corner and collided with the pedestrians.

“At this time there is nothing to suggest the car was driven deliberately at the group.

“The driver of the car, a man, fled from the scene on foot following the collision. Inquiries are under way to trace and arrest him.”

Detective Sergeant Jose Qureshi said: “While our inquiries continue to trace the driver, I would appeal directly to him and request that he comes forward to speak to police.

“There is evidence to suggest he suffered a head injury during the collision so he may need medical assistance.”

Source: Girl dies after Audi ploughs into group of teenagers in Croydon

London Fire Death Toll Rises to 17; Government Is Criticized

LONDON — Rescue workers were continuing to search for the missing on Thursday after a lethal fire in a West London apartment tower, as Prime Minister Theresa May came under pressure over whether the tragedy could have been prevented.

The fire at the 24-story Grenfell Tower killed at least 17 people and injured dozens more, and fire officials warned that the number of dead was likely to grow: Many residents of the building were still unaccounted for. As of Thursday morning, 37 people were in hospitals, including 17 in critical care.

Firefighters said on Wednesday afternoon that there was no hope of finding additional survivors, but a number of people remained unaccounted for, among them a young Italian couple who had moved to the building several months ago, the Italian media reported. The building housed people from many countries including from Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan and the Philippines…

 

How to watch the James Comey testimony and hearing 3hrs Time [10pm WA]

All eyes will be on former FBI Director James Comey as he testifies before the Senate intelligence committee on Thursday. This is his first time testifying before the committee since he was fired by President Donald Trump. Here’s how to stay up to date and watch it on CNN.

Comey is scheduled to testify in an open session of the Senate intelligence committee starting at 10 a.m. ET, followed by a non-televised closed session around 1 p.m.

Comey is expected to talk about his conversations with Trump, who allegedly asked Comey to end the investigation into Trump campaign ties to Russia. He is not expected to talk directly about the ongoing Russia investigations.

Beginning at 9:45 a.m. ET, live coverage of the testimony will be on CNN and streaming on CNN.com, the CNN app on phone and tablet, and on mobile devices.

You can also watch it on your Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV with the CNNgo app, CNN’s Facebook Page and via Apple News.

More: How to watch the James Comey testimony and hearing on CNN – CNNPolitics.com

Syria Warplanes strike again: Trump bombing HASN’T stopped Assad

Syrian government planes have again bombed the town where Bashar al-Assad killed 87 people including children in a savage chemical attack on Tuesday. One woman was killed in the bombing.

The dictator has heeded no warning from Trump’s airstrikes on a military base on Thursday in retaliation for his gas attack on Tuesday.

The bombing which killed one woman comes just a day after the US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said Assad can ‘no longer get away’ with killing civilians.

Syrian opposition activists say the warplanes have struck the eastern side of Khan Sheikhoun, killing a woman and wounding another person.

The Local Coordination Committees, another monitoring group, said the airstrike was carried out by Russian warplane. It said the woman killed had fled to the town from her hometown of Latameh in central Syria.

The chemical attack on Khan Sheikhoun on Tuesday triggered a US missile attack two days later that struck an air base in central Syria killing nine people.

The Kremlin has warned the US it is ‘one step from war’ over Syria – but the Trump administration hit back by saying it would be prepared to carry out airstrikes again…

Source: Syria airstrikes: Trump bombing HASN’T stopped Assad | Daily Mail Online

Stewardess helps land German plane after pilot passes out

A brave air stewardess helped to land a German aircraft after the co-pilot passed out in the middle of a flight.

A TUIfly plane traveling from Hannover to Mallorca was in French airspace when it got into trouble on October 11 last year, investigators say.

The co-pilot of the Boeing 747-800 passed out due to extremely low blood pressure around 5.30am, forcing an air stewardess to take his place during landing.

The plane, which was carrying 195 passengers and crew, landed safely in Spain.

Investigators from the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation published details of the emergency on Tuesday.

The report says the co-pilot had just used the bathroom when he suddenly felt unwell and had to lie down in the forward galley.

Source: Stewardess helps land German plane after pilot passes out | Daily Mail Online