AWOL 2015 Issue 350 23rd October | Page 15

Advertise here for as little as 40 baht per week to hull and back Mags Meanderings: From Som Tam To Mushy Peas shining a light Just when you think you have finally found the ideal internet solution to meet your needs, be it wifi access, download speeds, or the cloud, something else new sneaks over the internet horizon. And that horizon has a bad habit of creeping up much more quickly than you would have believed possible. If in fact you would have believed it possible at all. Which to me is certainly the case with ‘LiFi’, possibly the next big thing in internet access. LiFi apparently is a way to use LED light sources to transmit data instead of WiFi zones. Although not perfected yet, time flies, and no doubt it could be available sooner than we think. In some places that is. If you already struggle to find wifi zones, decent speeds or even the home screen in rural areas of Thailand it could be a long wait there for LiFi. First the country would need to totally change its’ lighting habits, but can you really imagine Thailand without all those different coloured neon tubes dangling around singing bars, hanging from trees, and illuminating the markets? It just wouldn’t be the same. Still, even if you do wish for better internet provision, spare a thought for the people of Cuba, which is one of the worlds’ worst countries for internet access. So much so that their new wifi hotspots are reported to be causing a sensation, even though they aren’t free to use. Since July over 35 hotspots have been provided there, with more to follow in the country where, according to UN information, only 3.4 percent of homes have an internet connection. So few that Cubas’ one and only undersea fibre optic cable connection - from Venezuela - can cope with demand. But despite a tempting offer from the States in the form of an exemption to their trade embargo on sales Two 3 storey townhouses to let Next to The Dusit need repairs hence bargain rental price (offers invited) Contact David 092 927 7207 of US telecoms equipment to Cuba, its’ government is proceeding with caution as far as the internet is concerned. Afraid that the country would be infiltrated with undesirable American ideology in return for such freebies is a ‘big brother’ scenario which the government doesn’t much care for. Can you really blame them? There is no ‘on this day’ this week. Instead an ‘on two days ago’ in history. October 21st 1904 was the date on which an incident at sea almost led to war between Britain and Russia. A Hull fishing fleet of 45 trawlers had cast their nets off the Dogger Bank. It was a dark foggy night, and the crews were all busy when they encountered a fleet of what they thought were British warships. Suddenly the trawlers were flooded by lights from the warships, which immediately opened fire on them. With their nets down the trawlers were unable to escape, and endured a barrage of fire for 20 minutes from what were actually Russian ships. At that time Russia and Japan were at war with each other, and the Russian ships should never have attacked what was clearly a fishing fleet, its’ nets and vessel shapes clearly visible in the glare of lights from the warships. Just two of the 45 trawlers made it back to Hull, flags flying at half mast, and a major diplomatic incident ensued. Over 100 years later we can still imagine what that feels like. 15 ONE FREE WINE WITH THIS AD (one time only until 23/11/2015) Nichchapha 092 998 1910 (Thai & English) Open 11am to 10 pm Closed Tuesdays GARDEN RESTAURANT (opposite Borfai Temple) Free WiFi Thai & European Food Book your party at our restaurant by Chef Pon External catering also available Directions: Take either Phetkasem Road or Canal Road to Soi 6; at the traffic lights on the Canal Road at the junction with Soi 6 go across the bridge over the canal and turn immediately right. We are located about 300 metres further on the right Join the AWOL forum