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Bulk of wine consumed in Greece illegal – and excise tax not helpingAn excise tax on wine introduced a year ago has resulted in a burgeoning illegal market rather than revenues, which the government had anticipated at 65 million euros per annum in the budget it presented to foreign creditors.“The black market in wine has become highly organized since the excise tax was introduced in January. It existed before, but now the racket is run by big players,” said George Skouras, president of the Greek Wine Association (SEO) and a winemaker in Nemea, Greece’s biggest wine-producing region. “They have built tanks underground so they can’t be spotted by inspectors and have people scouring the countryside to buy grapes illegally, without invoices, off the books.”
Greece Honoring Sacrifice of 1,000 Cretans With 2 Euro Coin Featuring Arkadi MonasteryGreece is honoring the sacrifice of nearly 1,000 Cretans who took their own lives at the Arkadi Monastery during the Cretan Revolt of 1866 on a 2016 circulating €2 coin.Greece’s latest coin memorializes the 150th anniversary of the Arkadi Monastery destruction when locals blew themselves up rather than be taken as slaves of the Ottomans.The monastery provided refuge to 943 Greeks, mostly women and children, during the uprising. After three days of battle and under orders from the abbot of the monastery, the Cretans blew up barrels of gunpowder, choosing to sacrifice themselves rather than surrender.
Nine in 10 visiting Greece this autumn were satisfied with their stay, survey finds
Calf of Man: 'Independent souls' sought for Britain's most isolated jobsApplications for two of the most remote jobs in the British Isles are being sought by Manx National Heritage (MNH).The two successful candidates will be the entire population of the presently uninhabited Calf of Man - a tiny island off the Isle of Man - for nine months.In severe weather the island can be cut off from the Isle of Man for weeks with supplies delivered by boat once a week.Ian Lycett, who did the job last year, said the ornithology and estate warden positions suited "independent souls".Each warden will receive basic accommodation in a small farmhouse, where they are only allowed one shower a week.They will have to fetch their own water and use a generator to provide electricity.Applicants have until the 6 January to submit their interest.
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Electronic sheep are being used as data collectorsModel sheep fitted with electronics are being used on a farm in Wales to collect data which it is hoped will help farmers maximise their profits.
Winter solstice 2016: What time and when does the shortest day of the year occur?The December solstice happens at the same instant for all of us, everywhere on Earth. This year the solstice occurs on Wednesday December 21st at 10:44 GMT (Universal time).The winter solstice happens every year when the Sun reaches its most southerly declination of -23.5 degrees. In other words, when the North Pole is tilted furthest – 23.5 degrees – away from the Sun, delivering the fewest hours of sunlight of the year.
Security risk on in-flight entertainment systems, say researchers
BT tops UK broadband complaints listBT's broadband services received the most complaints during the third quarter of 2016, show figures from regulator Ofcom.It received 36 complaints for every 100,000 broadband customers - higher than the industry average of 20.BT-owned companies, Plusnet and EE, came second and third in the broadband complaints table.
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Sex-bots could ‘over-exert’ their human lovers, academic warnsOliver Bendel, of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Northwestern Switzerland, told the Love and Sex and Robots Conference at Goldsmith’s University, that the full range of machine ethics questions can - and should - be applied to sex robots.Human sexuality has certain “physical limits” he said, particularly in the male of the species. Robots, on the other hand, were potentially tireless. This could have a knock-on effect for a robot's human partner, and indeed the partner’s partner. “If the machine over-exerts the human, it reduces the possibility of human sex,” Bendel warned.Bendel revealed that his most recent project was a ladybird-friendly vacuum cleaner. The device will clean your floors, but if it detects ladybirds and other little critters, it will stop and shoo them away to safety. However, he added, the team had included a kill button for arachnophobes.
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Topic: 20/12/16 (Read 1680 times)
