Popolo: a haven for gastronomists

I am a gastronome. Not the posh kind, I just love good food. On Saturday night I was treated to dinner by my lovely girlfriend, she chose Popolo restaurant, Sheffield. By happy coincidence, it was an Italian (my favourite).


I feel compelled to share my experience so that others can enjoy Popolos food, environment, and staff. I love places that make good food for the "normal" food-lovers, not food for snobs; Popolo is like that. My order exemplifies that: mozzarella and Parma ham Bruschetta to start, and a pasta/pizza combo (for indecisive folk). The combo main course is exactly what I love about this type of place, you get the best of both worlds (pasta and pizza). It's not just humdrum of each though, you get a half pizza (12") and a half-size portion of a pasta dish on the menu. To adopt a wise saying by a great man: it's food for the eater, not food for the chef.


The staff were excellent also, managing to balance on that fine line between harassment and obliviousness. The cherry on top was that downstairs in the same establishment was a cocktail bar, so no beverage was too much hassle (a great selection of Italian and German beers were also available).


(Written while listening to no music, but the fridge was humming its usual tune in the background)


P.S. I went for Helvetica instead of my usual Verdana today, I am interested to hear your comments. An post in typography may follow...

Toyota Prius

As part of the New Job, I do quite a lot of travelling. The majority of which is abroad, but some is domestic. The nature of the job requires a car, so we hire them. It's great as I get to sample a nice range of cars (as a passenger or a driver), but these are rather far removed from anything that could be branded as exotic - in fact, they are mostly in the cheapest/smallest group.


Last Wednesday, I was booked into a training course in Newcastle (St. James' Park, got a tour too - it was great!). The hire car? A gen 3 Toyota Prius. At 4:30 am before a three-hour drive it was not what I wanted to be greeted with.


As an avid reader/watcher of automotive media, I had my preconceptions of what it was going to be like (read "I already disliked it"). Was I surprised? Yes. In a good way? Nope.


I accepted that it was awful compared to what a car should be, but I never thought it could be as bad as the hacks made it out to be. I was wrong. So very wrong.


Let's leave the hybrid aspect aside for now and concentrate solely on the experience for the occupant. Every single tactile surface felt like it was made of material that was on it's third life via the wonders of recycling. The dashboard surface was particularly appalling, it's nastiness will not be forgotten for some time.


PST. Power Sharing Transmission. It's effectively a Continually Variable Transmission (CVT), but with two inputs (in this case an electric motor and IC engine). I won't get into the details (for more see here), but suffice to say that it eerie. To cut a long story short, it allows a continuous range of gear ratios (unlike traditional ones which offer discrete rations: 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc). This is of interest to the boys and girls who developed the Prius because it allows the engine to operate at a RPM which is of optimal fuel efficiency, or where peak power is produced. This means that when you go to overtake on the motorway, you mash the accelerator pedal into the footwell carpet and the engine zips to it's peak power zone straight away (which is alarmingly high, and doesn't sound pleasant at all).... and stays their for the duration of the accelerator pedals stay in the carpet. All the while the car is speeding up!


A few other things that are worth a mention:

1. Steering. It's like those old steering wheels for Playstations from 7 or 8 years ago: total feeling of disconnection; in terms of steering feel, and that it simply feels like there is no mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels you are supposed to be controlling. Deeply unnerving.
2. Cabin noise. It's loud, even by my standards (I own a 20-year-old Golf GTI, and have owned a straight-piped Corolla). For a new car (with such a hefty price tag) it's just not good enough
3. Ride comfort. There is no need for it to be that harsh. The excuse of the extra battery weight is invalid, F10 BMW 5-series is minimum 1700kg and rides much better (price differential doesn't excuse the Prius either, it has a mass of just over 1300 kg)
4. Drive train couldn't make up it's mind. It was constantly switching between combinations of electric and petrol power: surely that's inefficient (not to mention jerky and irritating)

On a good note, it masked the sensation of speed remarkably well: a motorway cruise, although noisy, didn't seem to stress it out overly. Also, the dashboard, nasty as it may be, was a great companion for KFC-feasting.


It has been widely commentated in the media that the Prius has become a fashion statement. I disagree whole-heartily: it has become a lifestyle statement, and said lifestyle has become fashionable. I fear that the shortcomings that upset me will be glossed over as quirks that arise from its goodness to the environment, but they are not. The Prius (now in it's third generation, remember) has put "greenness" above fundamental vehicle development. For example, earlier today I had another hire car, a 2012 Nissan Micra 1.2. That was a surprisingly pleasant place to be and an involving drive. But best of all, it's three-pot power-plant sounded genuinely terrific! 


My point is that the majority of buyers purchase a Prius as a lifestyle vehicle, to be trendy and keep with the times. That is OK, but I fear they are being ripped of; it has so many flaws for what it's supposed to be that it is just a bad car, not a car that is not-as-bad for the environment as others. It's a shame, because I really want to see a good alternative fuel car. The best so far is the Honda FCX Clarity, that's the way forward (imho).


(Written while listening to Damnation by Opeth)

Golden Age

This is just a quick one to share my happiness at the current crop of automotive super- and hyper-cars. 


Pagani are on the cusp of unleashing their Huayra, but some are unwilling to forget the Zonda. The 760 RS is the very latest in an even more limited series of run-out Zondas. This one came from a series of requests from Zonda R owners who wanted one for the road. 


Pagani cannot seem to put the Zonda to rest, with demand for more and more limited-run specials - it's not so bad seeing at the cars are delicious! 


Here is a video by my favourite road-tester-for-things-I-cannot-afford, EVO's Harry Metcalfe - a road test for real enthusiasts.


(Written while listening to Mainstream Media podcast by DJ Brian Greene)

The significance of J

Amazing. Astonishing. Epic. Gob-smacking. Magnificent. Shocking. Stunning. Wonderful. These are some of the words used by motoring journalists to describe the one-of-a-kind Lamborghini Aventador J. None such words were uttered in my head. When presented with something so pure and special, something that is the epitome of "hypercar", my mind whispered "wow" accompanied by a longing to see it in the carbon fibre. The only thing which eclipsed this was my desire to drive it, heightened by the imaginary journey conjured up in my head.I had seen rumours online, but didn't dare hope that something so wild would be actually built! But, if anyone would do such a thing, the boys and girls in Sant'Agata would.

So, what is the significance of the letter J? That single-letter appendage means rather a lot. From every angle the J oozes an aggression that is orders of magnitude above any other car. This is the new top dog in hypercar royalty.

The "normal" Aventador is not a subtle car, but alongside the J it looks positively Amish. Anyone would recognise they are related, but every aspect of the J is more aggressive, more intimidating, more beautiful. I love it!


Based on the Aventador chassis, it has the same mechanical bits, which means the J is the perfect compliment to the Lamborghinis wild new V12. No roof, no windscreen, lots of noise.


The letter J (or "Jota" when pronounced in Spanish) is a appendage borne by only a single other Lamborghini in history, the Miura P400 Jota - a reference to Appendix J of the FIA handbook with which it aimed to comply.


The J is like an object created purely to thrill and turn-on. From the rear-view mirror that rakishly rises from where the windscreen would start, to the divided cockpit (the aero reference more at home here than anywhere else I think) split by a continuity from front-to-rear, forged composite details (seats, and show number plate for the eagle-eyed among you), to the exposed carbon fibre lattice over the engine.


I could rattle on for some time, but to fully feel the longing I harbour, you need to indulge in the pictures. I am an avid fan of EVO magazine, so here is their picture gallery. I strongly urge that you make a tea/coffee, have a beer/glass of wine and soak in the details.


(Written while listening to Mainstream Media podcast by DJ Brian Greene)

In Our Time: Conductivity and Superconductivity

In Our Time is a podcast series with Melvyn Bragg on BBC Radio 4. It is a series which is aimed at the inquisitive individual, and features topics ranging from physics to philosophy, literature to the living world. I highly recommend it, especially those on the subject of maths/physics.

Today, I was catching up on my podcasts and came across this gem: Conductivity and Superconductivity. This is a very nice walk-through of the topic from the early discoveries of the property right up to today's cutting edge devices. This is absolutely perfect for students studying the topic, especially how it follows the technology's progression in terms of time.

(Written while listening to IOT Podcast, Conductivity and Superconductivity)

Making a Bit of Noise

It's been too long since I sat on the business side of a drum kit. But I am glad to report that last Saturday, I went to a friends practice room to see if I could still cut the mustard.

Before my move to Sheffield, I played drums quite often. I even taught a cool little dude how to play! Final year in college conspired against my drumming, and the move to Sheffield put a stop to it altogether. One call to accept a previous offer from a colleague, and we were away!

I am gonna keep it short: you don't forget, you just lose the edge. Looking forward to sharpening up though...

(Written while listening to Incubus - Make Yourself)

A Mothers Gift

Inheritance is a curious thing. According to most folk who know my family, I am a younger version of my father. I have been fighting this all my life, disagreeing with the masses. I have recently realised, however, that there might be some element of truth in it. 


People say we have the same mannerisms, the same need to think everything through, to fix things, and our desire to prevent rather than cure. To expand on the latter, I find myself prone to this now that I am king of the castle. It pains me to say this by the way. 


My mother often semi-joked that she had little influence on my traits. I beg to differ, mother. You see, my mother has worn glasses all her life. On her last eye exam, she was declared worse off than before. So much so that the optometrist said there was no point forking out for fancy lenses for both eyes. Why? Because she was too blind in one eye for two to be of any use. True story.


I recently had an eye exam. I was overdue by about 6 months, noticed an increased dependence on my existing glasses, and had been getting dull headaches for about 3 weeks. My mother will be glad to know that I did get something from my her. My new glasses are stronger than before, so much stronger that the first few days saw me stumbling around the city.


So, thanks Mam, I did get something: your eyesight.


(Written while listening to Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - The Heritage EP)