BMW Oracle getting ready

BMW/Oracle getting ready for tomorrow's first America's Cup race. They are changing up their daggerboards. Go USA!

Location:Valencia

On my way

I am now on the plane waiting to fly to New York and then Valencia to watch the America's Cup. I am trying out my new iPhone so look for me on Twitter as well as this blog. My Twitter name is decouto.

Away we go!

Location:Bermuda

Bermuda and the Next Millennium: a view from the past!

Another addition to the Bermuda Library:

Bermuda and the Next Millenium, by Kit Astwood (1997)

A think piece by J. Christopher "Kit" Astwood, OBE, JP. He lays out questions about the future of Bermuda, using a few bits of data to provoke thought. It's interesting to see how many of today's issues were starting to take root in 1997. View the accompanying data in a spreadsheet. He also wrote a follow-up piece in 2000: The Mid-Atantic Economic Miracle: Bermuda. Both documents Copyright J. Christopher Astwood and posted with his permission.

Browse Bermuda Election Results On-line

I've just finished the first version of a simple website which lets you browse Bermuda election results on-line, by election, constituency, or candidate. Visit the website at http://webapp.decouto.bm/elections, and let me know what you think.

(This is a newer version of something I did year before last: old blog post)

From the 'about' page:

About this site

This site was created by Douglas De Couto to make available historical Bermuda election data. It uses data pulled from the Bermuda Parliamentary Registrar, which has then been cleaned up and cross-referenced (e.g. the same candidate sometimes appears in multiple elections but under slightly different names).

It was created using Django

How you can help

If you like this site and would like to contribute, I welcome collaboration in the following areas:

• Getting pictures for more candidates.
• Biographies for candidates.
• Catching any errors in names, dates, etc.
• Finding and entering election results from before 1989.
• Site design... as you can see I am not much of a designer.

If you'd like to help, or just make a comment, contact me by emailing decouto -at- alum.mit.edu. (substitute '@' for '-at-')

Thank you to the Registrar for making the original data available online.

Reporting problems

If you see a problem in the website or with the data such as a misspelling or incorrect election result, please email me.

From the "Bad Ideas" Category

In today's New York Times:

• Creams Offering Lighter Skin May Bring Risks: For years, Allison Ross rubbed in skin-lightening creams with names like Hyprogel and Fair & White. She said she wanted to even out and brighten the tone of her face, neck and hands. Mrs. Ross, 45, who lives in Brooklyn, also said that she used the lightening creams “to be more accepted in society.” After months of twice-a-day applications, her skin was not only fairer, it had become so thin that a touch would bruise her face. Her capillaries became visible, and she developed stubborn acne. A doctor told her that all three were side effects of prescription-strength steroids in some of the creams, which she had bought over the counter in beauty supply stores..... I'm sorry for her, but doesn't this seem like a bad idea just by thinking about it?

• A Gangland Bus Tour, With Lunch and a Waiver: LOS ANGELES — The tour organizer received assurances, he says, from four gangs that they would not harass the bus when it passed through their turf. Paying customers must sign releases warning of potential danger. And after careful consideration, it was decided not to have residents shoot water guns at the bus and sell “I Got Shot in South Central” T-shirts..... Sign me up!

Headline: "UK Has Trust Issues with Bermuda"

Just saw this headline: "UK Has Trust Issues With Bermuda", from Caribbean Life News. I am not sure what kind of outfit that site is: for example, they write that "half the citizenry is expatriate", which is wrong, as a simple web search for "Bermuda Statistics" shows the answer is 17,675 out of 62,059, or 28% according to the 2000 Census. Regardless, this is an example of how Ewart Brown's actions have tainted Bermuda's reputation internationally.

Lovely Moment

In the morning when the rising sun first reveals the turquoise and purple in the water on the south shore, but it is still slightly translucent.