Bridie Willmette, Brodie Lucciannio, Maddi Abbott and Jess Maiden have customised skateboard decks for an exhibition.

Claudia Baxter

SKATEBOARD decks feature as improvised canvases in an exhibition by Rosewood State High School senior art students.

The talented group of students designed and painted 20 artworks on decks, which now hang in the Ipswich Art Gallery.

Titled Deck the Walls, the exhibition will remain on show until next Wednesday.

Councillor David Pahlke said students had dedicated the past two months to designing their artworks.

Arts, Community and Cultural Services chairman Charlie Pisasale said the show sampled youth and pop cultures.

"You don't have to look too far to see how popular skateboards are with young people; it's wonderful to see students using them to creatively engage with the arts," Cr Pisasale said.

Rosewood State High principal Lyn Culverhouse said she was proud the students were representing the school in the wider arts community.

The gallery opens daily from 10am to 5pm in d'Arcy Doyle Pl.

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Clever senior skateboard art

An Atlantic City casino is suing 14 gamblers who raked in more than $1.5 million in winnings after realizing that eight decks of cards had not been preshuffled and kept producing the same sequence of cards, over and over.

The gamblers kept raising their bets -- from $10 a hand to $5,000 -- and scored 41 consecutive winning hands of baccarat in April, the Associated Press reports.

As the payouts mounted, Golden Nugget Atlantic City flooded the area with security teams, convinced that someone was cheating, but were unable to figure out how.

In the end, the casino let nine of the gamblers cash out $558,900. The rest still have $977,800 in chips.

In its lawsuit, the casino cites state gambling regulations requiring all casino games to offer fair odds to both sides.

The casino's lawsuit argues that the gamblers and the casino both began the game believing it was legal and proper until the players kept winning repeatedly.

Benjamin Dash, a lawyer for the gamblers, counters that his clients did nothing wrong and deserve to be paid.

"The Golden Nugget appealed to gamblers to come in and play games licensed and sanctioned by the state of New Jersey," he says. "My clients did exactly that, and then were denied their winnings. There is absolutely no law in New Jersey that would permit the Golden Nugget to declare the game illegal because it failed to provide shuffled cards."

The casino also asserts in its lawsuit that Gemaco Inc., a Missouri playing card manufacturer, acknowledged it had provided a defective shipment of cards that were not preshuffled.

A message left at the company's administrative offices was not immediately returned Monday, the AP says.

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Unshuffled decks are big loser for N.J. casino

A below-decks engine fire is believed to be under control after a Sanford fishing boat caught fire while docked in Auckland's Viaduct Basin. 21 August 2012

Firefighters are battling a below-decks engine fire on a fishing boat docked at Auckland's Viaduct Basin.

The fire broke out in the bow of the 80m-long, 1800-tonne San Nikunau, about 10.45am on Tuesday, the Fire Service said.

The San Nikunau is the Sanford-owned vessel that has been at the centre of a US federal court case for dumping oily bilge waste into waters off American Samoa.

There were 40 crew on board at the time who were evacuated and there were no reports of injuries, northern communications spokesman Jaron Philips told NZ Newswire.

The fire was under control, he said.

Forty firefighters were at the scene and using thermal cameras and breathing apparatus to fight the blaze.

It was believed the fire started in the engine area, Mr Philips said.

Sanford was found guilty of six charges last week relating to the waste dumping and former chief engineer James Pogue was found guilty of failing to keep accurate records of how the vessel was managing bilge waste and falsely stating that pollution prevention equipment had been used when it hadn't.

Sentencing is set down for November 16.

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Fire aboard fishing boat in US court case

ATTLEBORO - A rash of deck collapses locally and nationally has prompted Building Inspector Doug Semple to warn homeowners that older decks should be checked for safety - now.

"After looking at these things, I'm scared," he said of local decks and national news reports. "There are potentially a lot of deck collapses out there."

Semple said older decks, those at least 15 years old, were usually attached to homes with nails alone and are especially at risk.

"Our concern is that we know we have a lot of these open decks out there that are 15 or 20 years old," he said. "We really want people to take a close look underneath these decks and see if they are held to the house with nails or bolts."

The use of nails to attach decks was a standard practice years ago and met the code of the time. However, nails have proven unreliable, especially on decks without roofs.

Ordinary wear and tear and exposure to the elements weakens the wood and can rust the nails, leading to collapses, Semple said.

In addition, nails are smooth and pull out easily, he said.

Semple said he and other local inspectors are encountering more and more wobbly and dangerous decks.

"It's probably one of the most common things we're seeing out there right now," he said.

Semple pointed to a deck collapse in South Attleboro about two weeks ago in which an elderly woman was injured.

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Warning on decks in Attleboro

He started off practising on the decks at his parents two-storey semi-detached home, but now DJ Fricktion aka Naveen Pabbi is brushing shoulders with A-list celebrities and playing at exclusive venues across the globe.

The former student at Britannia High School in Blackheath has already played at private parties for the likes of Rihanna and Amir Khan and supported top acts like Timbaland and Ludacris.

He has played at every major venue in the UK plus venues in New York, Dubai, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, where he goes at least twice a year.

And earlier this year he trumped competition from across the UK to be named Best Mixtape DJ at the Official Mixtape Awards in London.

The best thing about being a DJ is I get to make people happy and make them dance through my choice of music and mixing, said Naveen, who is currently resident DJ at Rococo in Broad Street, Birmingham, and also plays at other venues in the city including Gatecrasher and Bambu.

I get to affect people in a positive way.

Its amazing when people come up to me and ask me for my mixes.

Sometimes I forget Im being paid at the end of the night.

Naveeni, of Dudley Road, Rowley Regis, who is also a music producer, has being DJing for the past 15 years.

He plays a range of styles from hip hop to garage, R&B and bashment.

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DJ clears the decks to play for top stars

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Fitch Ratings has revised its price decks for both U.S. oil and natural gas, reflecting various market factors and underlying conditions.

Fitch has lowered its long-term (mid-cycle) Henry Hub natural gas price to $4.50/thousand cubic feet (mcf) from $5.00/mcf. This drop reflects limited catalysts for higher U.S. natural gas usage and the ongoing strength of shale-based liquids projects in North America, which has resulted in the treatment of associated gas as a by-product in a number of plays, allowing producers to tolerate lower all-in natural gas prices.

Fitch lowered 2012 HH base case prices to $2.75/mcf to reflect weak pricing seen YTD. While recent heat wave conditions have pushed electric generation usage up sharply this summer, this has been balanced against a very mild winter, which has led to average pricing of just $2.43/mcf as of the end of July.

Fitch has raised its 2012 base case West Texas Intermediate (WTI) to $92.50/barrel to reflect near-term market factors, and maintained its long-term base case price at $65/barrel.

Fitch's price deck intends to reflect a more conservative view of future price levels for modeling and rating purposes and for evaluating future commodity price expectations from a bondholder perspective. Fitch's price deck will often remain below current spot and future markets as a result. The price deck also reflects just supply/demand fundamentals, particularly the long-term price deck, with the recognition that near-term events can result in significant deviations from fundamental levels.

The full report 'Updating Fitch's Oil & Gas Price Deck' is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.

Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'.

Applicable Criteria and Related Research: Updating Fitch's Oil and Gas Price Deck

http://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=686362

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Fitch Updates Oil and Gas Price Decks

Sailors lining the decks of a Royal Navy warship as it returned to base have left a gap where a colleague who went missing during the deployment would normally have stood.

Leading Seaman Timothy MacColl failed to return to HMS Westminster while the Type 23 frigate was alongside in Dubai in May.

The family of the missing rating released 100 yellow balloons as the warship arrived at Portsmouth Naval Base on Monday morning.

A Royal Navy spokesman said: "In keeping with tradition, the ship's company line the upper decks for the homecoming.

"A gap was left as a mark of respect for the family of missing crew member Leading Seaman Timothy MacColl.

"LS MacColl went missing while on shore leave in Dubai in May. The Royal Navy remains concerned for his safety and continues to provide support for his family. The matter is being treated as a missing person case.

"The Dubai Police have primacy for the investigation into LS MacColl's disappearance and search. The MoD and RN continue to liaise with and provide assistance to the Dubai authorities. The FCO also remains in contact with the Emirati police about their ongoing investigation."

Westminster's commanding officer, Captain Nick Hine, said: "Clearly we are all desperately disappointed that LS MacColl remains missing and our thoughts and prayers remain with his family at this particularly difficult time."

During the warship's seven-month deployment to the Middle East, Westminster disrupted three groups of suspected pirates which were targeting merchant shipping, conducted security patrols in the Gulf and Indian Ocean and also carried out a 14 million drugs bust.

Capt Hine said: "I am tremendously proud of all that we have achieved. My fantastic ship's company has risen to every challenge that has been laid before them and we have had a tangible effect in making the UK's interests more secure as a result."

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UK & World News: Sailors honour missing colleague

Usain Bolt broke a record then spun some records.

The Jamaican sprint great hotfooted it from Olympic Stadium on Saturday night to a party nearby in East London and turned DJ to entertain the packed crowd.

"He came on stage and grabbed the mike," DJ Manny Norte told The Associated Press on Sunday. "The energy went up tenfold. It was electric. Everyone was very excited to see him."

He proved a match for the professionals at a packed club that's been Jamaica's Olympic party base.

"It was a historic event," said Norte, who performed alongside Bolt. "It's not every day you get to play to a crowd with the fastest man on planet. ... You can tell he loves his music his pop and reggae. We mixed up the tracks at bit."

AP

That's after Bolt proved himself again, matching his Beijing gold medals in the 100 and 200 meters and the 4x100 relay.

"I am happy and I did what I did and I came here to be a legend," Bolt said at the party. "I am now, so I am very happy with myself."

He is the only athlete to win gold in the sprints in consecutive games.

"It is a wonderful feat," he said, between posing for pictures and feasting on Jamaican food with his teammates. "We always come out here and give it our best.

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Usain Bolt Turns DJ to Celebrate Olympic Treble

Below decks at the Battleship Massachusetts are other voices from World War II.

The bayonet was a mans weapon in those days. But 70 years ago, at the urging of then-first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Congress instituted the Womens Auxiliary Army Corps. Other armed services followed suit, forming their own female branches, and thousands of women took to factory work welding, running lathes and doing the kind of production work only men did before the war.

During a Thursday reception on the battleship to mark the 70-year anniversary, people were reintroduced to the women of World War II as the battleships permanent exhibit of women's uniforms and artifacts was spotlighted.

We really have quite a variety of uniforms from the various branches of the service, said Elizabeth Isherwood, president of Moore and Isherwood Communications, a public relations firm working with the battleship. We have some Rosie the Riveter items, too.

What both Isherwood and Battleship Cove Executive Director Brad King said is the exhibits centerpiece is the lining of an Army field coat once worn by U.S. Army Nurse Capt. Margaret Christ, who wore it during her time at the 155th General Hospital in Great Malvern, England.

The coats, King explained, came with a detachable lining that could be worn as a bathrobe. Regulations forbade the ornamentation of the coat itself, but the lining was fair game.

Soldiers recovering from injuries gave embroidered patches to nurses as gifts of appreciation and remembrance, King said.

Christ was from Fall River, and the lining of her coat is covered with the unit badges of soldiers, some no more than boys, who were in her care.

It is the key piece of the exhibit, Isherwood said.

With the 70-year anniversary, its a great time to promote this exhibit," King said. Its a good time to remind ourselves of the contributions of women, then and now.

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Battleship reception highlights women who served in World War II

EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Spectrum Health, one of Michigans largest not-for-profit health systems located in Grand Rapids, has an aggressive customer-centered sustainability program. When focusing on revamping parking decks used by patients, visitors, and employees, the staff had three goals in mind: improve security, reduce maintenance costs and save energy. After retrofitting 1.25 million square feet of parking garage space and more than 3,500 parking spaces with 1,500 GE Evolve LED Garage fixtures, Spectrum accomplished those goals.

Our patients and employees are our first priority, said Tom Theoret, director of facilities, Spectrum Health. Its important that everyone feels welcome and secure while at our facilities. Our new fixtures not only met this requirement but also reduced our energy consumption and reduced burdensome maintenance.

The GE Evolve LED Garage Fixture used in the parking lots employ cutting-edge technology and feature an advance LED low-glare optical system coupled with a unique thermal management system to ensure long life.

The upgrade has saved the facility nearly $170,000 annually in combined energy and maintenance expenses, helping to further fulfill Spectrums environmental efforts. By replacing older 175-watt high-pressure sodium (HPS) fixtures, with GEs 60-watt Evolve LED lights, the hospital will see a 67 percent energy reduction, yielding 1.6 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy savings annually.

Spectrum also installed 50-watt GE Lumination LED Recessed Troffers in ceilings in entrance/exit corridors, replacing 150-watt high-intensity discharge (HID) fixtures. The 2'x2' troffers are as thin as the width of a finger and emit a crisp, uniform light to brightly illuminate spaces inside the garage.

Combining overall savings from maintenance costs, energy costs, a Novation rebate, and a Consumers Energy utility rebate, Spectrum will realize project payback in just three years.

View the full-text press release in the GE Lighting pressroom.

About GE Lighting

GE Lighting invents with the vigor of its founder Thomas Edison to develop energy-efficient solutions that change the way people light their world in commercial, industrial, municipal and residential settings. The business employs over 17,000 people in more than 100 countries, and sells products under the Reveal and Energy Smart consumer brands, and Evolve, GTx, Immersion , Infusion , Lumination and Tetra commercial brands, all trademarks of GE. General Electric (GE) works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information, visit http://www.gelighting.com.

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Michigan Hospital Lights Parking Deck for $170,000 Less with GE LED Fixtures