Botanic gardens offer free family tours
The National Botanic Gardens is offering free tours, specially designed to engage children as well as grown-ups.
While the glasshouses remain closed to the public, the gardens in the 19.5 hectare estate are open to visit.
The tour promises visitors will “discover some rare and fascinating plants and hear surprising stories about some that you may already know. There’s so much to experience in the Gardens in summer – including colourful borders buzzing with bees, pond life, and majestic trees”.
In order to ensure the safety of all visitors, group numbers will be limited to six plus a guide, including children. Guides will wear a mask and all adults in attendance are asked to wear masks and observe proper social distancing.
For more information, or to book a place on one of the tours, visit www.eventbrite.ie.
Chronic health issues for a third in late 40s – study
About one in three middle-aged people has multiple chronic health issues, a long-running British study suggests.
The 1970 British Cohort Study has been periodically tracking the lives of about 17,000 people born in England, Scotland and Wales in a single week, the BBC reported.
Nearly 8,000 of them were surveyed for the University College London work, published in journal BMC Public Health.
And 34% had two or more chronic health problems, such as high blood pressure and mental ill-health, at age 46-48.
The most commonly recorded health problems were: high-risk drinking, 26%; recurrent back problems, 21%; mental-health problems, 19%; and high blood pressure, 16%.
Arthritis, type 2 diabetes and asthma or bronchitis also featured.
Lead researcher Dr Dawid Gondek said he was surprised and worried to see how many had health issues while “still relatively young”.
Tidal turbine starts generating electricity off Orkney
A tidal-powered turbine, which its makers say is the most powerful in the world, has started to generate electricity via the grid in Orkney.
The Orbital O2 has the capacity to meet the annual electricity demand of 2,000 homes for the next 15 years.
In May, it was sailed out of Dundee, where it was assembled over 18 months.
The 680-tonne turbine is now anchored in the Fall of Warness where a subsea cable connects the 2MW offshore unit to the local onshore electricity network.
Orbital Marine Power said its first commercial turbine, which will be powered by the fast-flowing waters, is a “major milestone”.
It is also providing power to an onshore electrolyser to generate green hydrogen.
Orbital chief executive Andrew Scott praised his team and the supply chain for delivering the “pioneering renewable energy project” safely and successfully.
He added: “Our vision is that this project is the trigger to the harnessing of tidal stream resources around the world to play a role in tackling climate change whilst creating a new, low-carbon industrial sector.”