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Entertainment

‘Lost a bright light’: Anne Heche declared ‘legally dead’ after car crash

'Lost a bright light': Anne Heche declared 'legally dead' after car crash

Actor Anne Heche is brain dead, her spokesperson said Friday, a week after she crashed her car into a home in Los Angeles.

“While Anne is legally dead according to California law, her heart is still beating, and she has not been taken off life support so that One Legacy can see if she is a match for organ donation,” Heche’s spokesperson said in a statement to NBC News.

“We have lost a bright light, a kind and most joyful soul, a loving mother, and a loyal friend,” a statement on behalf of Heche’s family and friends said Friday.

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“Anne will be deeply missed but she lives on through her beautiful sons, her iconic body of work, and her passionate advocacy. Her bravery of her for always standing in her truth of her, spreading her message of love and acceptance, will continue to have a lasting impact.

On Monday, Heche, 53, was in a coma and in “extreme” condition after suffering an anoxic brain injury, her representative said.

Anne Heche has been declared legally dead after the crash. Credit: AP

Anoxic injuries occur when the brain is cut off from oxygen, causing cell death. Heche was in the Grossman Burn Center at West Hills Hospital.

He careened into a home in the Mar Vista community of Los Angeles last Friday. The home sustained damage from the “heavy fire” sparked by the collision, said Brian Humphrey, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Footage of smoke rising from the house after Anne Heche’s car crashed into it. Credit: NBC Los Angeles

She had drugs in her system, and she was being investigated for possibly driving under the influence, police said Thursday.

“In preliminary testing, the blood draw revealed the presence of drugs,” Los Angeles police said in a statement.

Police could not “comment right now on the presence of cocaine, fentanyl or alcohol at this time,” they said Thursday. “That will be determined by the second test.”

“The case is being investigated as a felony DUI traffic collision,” the statement said.

Anne Heche’s car after the ‘horrific’ crash. Credit: NBC Los Angeles

She landed her first notable role on the soap opera “Another World,” portraying Vicky Hudson and Marley Love into the early 1990s.

Later that decade, films such as Donnie Brasco, Volcano and I Know What You Did Last Summer helped propel her fame inside Hollywood and beyond.

Her television credits included Chicago PD and Men in Trees.

She met talk show host Ellen DeGeneres in 1997, when Vince Vaughn, her co-star in Return to Paradise, introduced them at a Los Angeles-area restaurant.

Ellen DeGeneres and Anne Heche in 1997. Credit: Brian K Diggs/AP

Heche and DeGeneres became romantically involved in a relationship that Heche said was groundbreaking for the time because of the global attention they received as Hollywood stars in a same-sex romance.

“My story is a story that created change in the world, moved the needle for equal rights forward, when I fell in love with Ellen DeGeneres,” she said in a taped segment that year for the show Dancing With the Stars.

Actress Anne Heche is legally dead after a traffic accident in Los Angeles. Credit: AP

When their three-year relationship ended in 2000, Heche was hospitalized after she was found wandering in a rural area of ​​Fresno County, California, acting disoriented and confused, authorities said.

He described her struggles with her mental health in her 2001 memoir, Call Me Crazy.

“I wanted to beat everybody else to the punch,” she said about the book in an interview that year with Larry King. “I certainly know what’s been written about me in the press. I, although I was never diagnosed as being crazy, I went crazy.”

Heche also wrote about her relationship with DeGeneres. She said it was groundbreaking as a high-profile, same-sex romance but that it cost her career dearly.

Heche said she could not get hired for a role by a major studio for nearly a decade.

Later, she married Coley Laffoon, and the couple had a son before they divorced. She had another son in 2009 with actor James Tupper, her co-star in Men in Trees; they separated.

In a family statement earlier in the week, Heche was described as having a “huge heart” and as someone who “touched everyone she met with her generous spirit.”

“More than her extraordinary talent, she saw spreading kindness and joy as her life’s work ⁠— especially moving the needle for acceptance of who you love,” the statement said. “She will be remembered for her courageous honesty from her and dearly missed for her light from her.”

– With Tim Stelloh and Dennis Romero NBC

Watch: Vanessa Amorosi learns about the death of Olivia Newton-John

Watch: Vanessa Amorosi learns about the death of Olivia Newton-John

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Categories
Australia

Private schools to be forced to shed light on salaries for top staff

Private schools to be forced to shed light on salaries for top staff

Private schools will be forced to be more transparent about the salaries of their top staff and principals, some of whom earn triple their public school counterparts with pay packets exceeding $600,000.

Under a shake-up to Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) rules, all large charities – which include most private schools – will be forced to disclose the total sum paid annually to their biggest earners.

Most private schools will be forced to disclose the remuneration packages of their biggest earners.

Most private schools will be forced to disclose the remuneration packages of their biggest earners.Credit:louis douvis

Private schools will need to report the aggregate amount paid to their most senior staff – likely to include principals, deputies, bursars and financial officers – in their 2022 annual information statements, but it will remain voluntary to disclose individual salaries.

“Given the scale of public funding provided to private schools this is definitely a step in the right direction,” said Paul Kidson, an education leadership academic at the Australian Catholic University and a former independent school principal.

“Transparency and confidence in expenditure is expected of public institutions. Other government and public companies reveal chief executive salaries, so it’s more than reasonable we expect more accountability from independent schools, particularly when teachers’ salaries are public, as are the salaries of principals, in government schools.”

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A national survey of 275 private school principals by the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA) provided to the herald shows the mean base salary for private school principals jumped by more than $10,000 in the past two years, rising from $326,166 in 2020 to $337,183 in 2022.

AHISA chief executive Beth Blackwood said there was a significant spread in principal salaries across independent schools – from just over $100,000 through to $600,000 – which takes in variables such as enrollments, boarding, whether schools are regional or metropolitan and the funding they receive.

NSW public school principals earn a maximum salary of $194,816 and the secretary of the state’s Department of Education, who runs 2,200 schools, has a salary of $600,000.

Categories
Business

Kmart budget dupe for $1900 vintage Italian Murano lamp

Kmart budget dupe for $1900 vintage Italian Murano lamp

Excited shoppers are racing to Kmart to get their hands on a table lamp that looks identical to its $1900 designer dupe.

TikTok was sent into a frenzy after a shopper posted a video of her buying the Amelie table lamp, which costs just $35.

People in the comments were quick to point out the lamp’s likeness to the highly sought-after vintage Murano lamp, which can be sold for upwards of $1900 on collector sites.

These original Italian made lamps were popular in the 1970s and are harder to come by in modern times, hence their hefty price tag.

The originals are made of glass in Venice with a soda-lime metal and are usually elaborately decorated, with various glass-forming techniques, as well as gilding, enamel, or engraving.

“The infamous Kmart light and it lives up to the hype,” TikTok user Shani Dayna captioned her video.

In the short clip, she excitedly unboxes the lamp and decides to put in a colour-changing light globe to create a unique ambience.

“I have one too! It’s such a vibe,” commented one. “It’s a replica of the vintage Murano ones.”

“Oh my god I’m running to Kmart to get this tomorrow,” another commented. “It’s so pretty! I need.”

This is not the first time Kmart has whipped up a frenzy by selling dupes for expensive items.

An influencer excited her followers earlier this year when she discovered a cheap puffer jacket that was a “perfect dupe” of a $400 version.

Melbourne woman Georgia Clay shared the stylish outerwear with her 40.2k followers on the platform, with many remarking the $40 piece was a perfect dupe for the likes of those from the North Face, at just 10 per cent of the cost.

The style – which launched as part of the retailer’s Autumn/Winter collection – “has quickly become a popular choice among customers”, a Kmart spokeswoman told news.com.au.

Cooks across the country were also excited after getting their hands on a budget version of the iconic Le Creuset cast iron pot.

The pot, which is available in different colours, sent Aussies into a frenzy online – as did the $30 price tag, considering similar Le Creuset casserole dishes can set you back up to $450.

Read related topics:KmartTikTok

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Categories
Technology

Now You Can Pop Into Stadia Directly from Google Search

Now You Can Pop Into Stadia Directly from Google Search

Google is working on making cloud games easier to find on its search page. The company hasn’t officially announced the feature publicly, but Ars Technica and The Verge have confirmed that the new Play Now ability showed up for them in separate instances.

Play Now essentially adds cloud gaming links to the landing page for the game you’re searching for so that you can instantly hop in from the Google Search page. Clicking the Stadia option should just boot the game up, while links for other services will take you to their own webpages. It seems the feature has just started rolling out, so don’t fret if you don’t see it pop up yet. It showed up for Gizmodo’s deputy editor of consumer tech, Michelle Ehrhardt, but only for destiny 2. Sorry to my editor, who now has an active Stadia account.

I reached out to Google for more information on the Play Now ability and to confirm whether it’s live. I will update when I hear back.

What you'll see if you have the Play Now ability available on Google Search. (Screenshot: Michelle Ehrhardt/Gizmodo)What you’ll see if you have the Play Now ability available on Google Search. (Screenshot: Michelle Ehrhardt/Gizmodo)

If you have the ability, the Play Now tab appears on desktop browser searches for certain video games. I tried the ability twice on two different Google accounts — both times logged into my main Stadia account — and nothing appeared. But Ars Technica has more screenshots that show what it looks like when the Play Now feature is available.

The screenshots show the main Google page with a popular game typed into the search bar. Ars tried typing in games like destiny 2, Controland Fortnite. If it’s on streaming, the play now column will sprout up on the right-hand side, underneath the main title card. If the game is available to play on competing cloud platforms, like Amazon Luna or Nvidia GeForce Now, you’ll see a Play shortcut for those sites, too.

Even if you don’t have the Play Now tab in your search results, querying Google for a game will usually bring up a streaming link on the first page. Usually, a Stadia link shows up, often mixed in with links of where to buy the game outright.

The new Play Now capability might be the proof some users need that Stadia isn’t going away, despite what the blogs — including my blog — have foretold. I’m of the thought that Stadia is going to end up like Google’s other pet projects, which often get rolled up into something greater. It’s not hard to imagine that this plan to instantly launch games is an offshoot of Google’s other instant play ventures — remember the ability to stream Batman: Arkham Knight

for AT&T customers earlier this year? (Now it’s Control.) Who needs the Stadia branding when it’s the web browser helping to facilitate all that?

The idea of ​​being able to quickly jump into a game hosted up in the cloud has clearly taken off — there are so many more choices than there were a mere two years ago. But for Google, it seems the goal is to hone in on the technology so that it becomes a significant part of its most influential real estate on the web: its search engine.

Categories
Entertainment

Why Play School means so much to so many Australians

Why Play School means so much to so many Australians

If you walk into a playground and start to sing “There’s a bear in there”, chances are someone else at that playground will join you with “and a chair as well”.

For 56 years, Play School has taught Australian children and their families games, stories, songs and craft ideas.

To mark 90 years of broadcasting, the ABC has been asking Australians to share what the organization has meant to them over the years through Your ABC Story.

A common story has emerged of how Play School has made generations of Australians feel safe, happy and educated.

A black and white photo of Benita Collings and John Waters. John is playing a guitar and Benita is playing with a toy.
Benita Collings and John Waters appear in a Play School episode during the 1960s. (ABC: Archives)

“As a young child, my first television experience was being allowed to watch ABC, Play School being one of the shows I adored,” Jade said in her submission to Your ABC Story.

“When my younger brother was born in 2001, my love for Play School was reignited and I loved watching the show with him. This is when we would bond, watching hosts such as Jay, Rhys and Georgie.

“I now have had a daughter of my own and cannot wait to share with her this incredible show.”

Play School was first broadcast by the ABC on July 18, 1966, as a copy of the BBC’s Play School program, and it is the second-longest-running kids TV show in the world.

Play School stuffed toys Humpty, Big Ted, Little Ted and Jemima celebrate 50 years on TV with party hats, cakes and sandwiches.
The presenters change but the toys are like familiar friends for many children.(abc kids)

While the program has changed over the years to reflect Australian society, key aspects have remained the same.

Liz Giuffre, senior lecturer in communications at the University of Technology Sydney, says this is part of the program’s ongoing appeal.

“There’s something very familiar about Play School. Of course the presenters change… but you do have the old staples of Big Ted and Little Ted,” Dr Giuffre said.

A white arched window displayed on a black background.
The different shaped windows, an early introduction to the show, was an original element that the British version didn’t have.(ABC: Archives)

For many parents, watching Play School with their kids can make them feel more connected, as they are sharing something they loved from their childhood.

“I grew up with the ABC watching Play School and felt a sense of pride when my son was watching it when he was little,” Michael wrote for Your ABC Story.

“I just love that I watched Play School as a child and am reliving all the fun games, songs and characters again with my daughter. So many generations have gained so much from this fabulous show,” Rebecca wrote.

The familiarity of the program format brings “dual comfort”, says Dr Giuffre, as parents know the program is comforting for the kids with familiar faces and activities, and it can also bring back memories of happy times for the parents.

For Tara, Play School was her “safe place.”

“Watching Play School as a child helped me to escape, particularly during story time,” Tara wrote.

“For half an hour a day, I could see what kind and safe adults were like.

“It was an experience of comfort in an otherwise very chaotic childhood.”

Play School presenters George and Benita sit next to each other. They are smiling and both hold a child's doll.
George Spartels (holding Hamble) and Benita Collings (with Meeka) on the Play School set in the late 1980s. (ABC: Play School)

Dr Giuffre said this comfort factor was why Play School was so important during lockdowns, as a place to bring familiarity and reassurance to children and their parents.

And while Play School does not usually mention what’s going on in the world at the time, because wars and politics are “problems for the adults”, Dr Giuffre said she was pleased to see them make the Handwashing Song special segment at the start on the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Something like COVID, it did affect those children… it did change what they were able to do, and [Play School presenters] had roles to play,” she said.

“We’ve never had something that has hit us all so immediately and for so long. There was nobody who wasn’t affected.

“I was so grateful that [Play School and the Wiggles] they were there because it felt like we could work together with them.”

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.

Play Video. Duration: 3 minutes 24 seconds

Play School’s Wash Your Hands song

Teaching little kids and their parents

Play School is an educational program at its core and many Australians have been helped to learn their numbers, colours, and days of the week by watching Play School.

“Play School gave me hours of entertainment and the clock segment taught me how to tell time on an analogue clock!” Tayla wrote to Your ABC Story.

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The program has also helped many, both young and old, with learning English.

“I was eight years old and didn’t know a word of English,” Steph wrote about moving to Australia as a child.

“I watched Play School for one year to learn the days of the week and much more.

“I came home crying most days because of the language barrier, but Play School was always there to cheer me up.”

“My French husband arrived in Australia in 1990 with barely a word of English,” Meredith wrote.

“He would hurry home from his language classes in time to watch Play School. The simple and repetitive language helped him learn not only English, but Australian.”

While Play School is written by people with expertise in early childhood education, the presenters are actors, musicians and comedians who usually do not have an educator background.

Alanna wrote that she grew up watching Play School when it was in black and white.

When she was studying to become a teacher, Alanna worked on an assignment comparing early childhood TV programs.

“One of the differences being that Play School was shot in one take. Minimal room for error,” she wrote.

“All the presenters brought their own style and personality to the table.”

The joys of being a presenter

Black and white photos of John Hamblin and Noni Hazelhurst. They are both holding soft toys on the Play School set.
John Hamblin and Noni Hazelhurst with some old favorite toys on Play School.(ABC: Archives)

Many of the Play School presenters have gone on to have successful careers outside of the program, but there are a few favorites from over the years that are mostly known for their Play School roles.

Benita Collings was the longest-running presenter, appearing in 401 episodes over 30 years, with John Hamblin in second place with 357 episodes and 29 years.

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Categories
Sports

David Nofoaluma says he ‘fell in love with the game’ again after arriving at Storm, Wests Tigers news

The Wests Tigers face a tough time getting David Nofoaluma to remain at the club, with the winger admitting his loan stint with the Storm has helped him rediscover his love for the game.

After spending the entirety of his career at the Tigers, Nofoaluma joined the Storm on a loan until the end of the 2022 season after season-ending injuries to a host of Melbourne outside backs.

Having scored his first try for the club in a win over the Panthers, Nofoaluma says he’s been left fighting tears at the prospect of his first trip to the post-season.

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“You have to be a part of it to actually know what it feels like. It’s just something I’ve never experienced before and I can see why they’re such a successful team,” he told 9News Sydney of his experience with the Storm so far

“I think I’d actually cry (at the prospect of playing finals). We play this game to be successful and to play finals.

“I’ve waited such a long time, 10 years, and to not be able to play finals, let alone a grand final it can wear you down as a player.”

Nofoaluma has been a mainstay in Tigers line-ups over the last decade, but saw himself fall out of favor this season, even having to endure a stint of reserve grade football.

Stream the NRL premiership 2022 live and free on 9Now

It was an experience that resulted in the 28-year-old losing his love for the game, something he says the Storm has helped him rediscover.

“I wasn’t feeling too well,” he said.

“When the opportunity to go down to Melbourne came around, it sparked something and I fell in love with the game as soon as I started playing with Melbourne.”

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Categories
Australia

This outback family traded cows for trees and pulled off a Christmas cracker in Queensland

Brad Fraser puts a Christmas tree into a carrying mesh on his Queensland farm.

A young couple who met on an outback cattle station have turned their desire to make their own life on the land into an unexpected business—farming Christmas trees.

Brad and Katrina Fraser hand-planted their first crop of 2,000 Christmas trees on Queensland’s Granite Belt seven years ago.

Today, they’re growing 15,000.

“It all really came about when I was pregnant with my our first child Evelyn and I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom,” Katrina says.

“Brad was just like, ‘Well if you’re going to be a stay-at-home mom, we’re going to need to get creative with what we’re going to do on 20 acres.’

“We just thought really hard about what was missing from the region, and came up with Christmas, and that’s how it was born really.”

A jackaroo rounds up cows on a motorbike
Brad Fraser previously worked as a jackaroo near Boulia.(Supplied: Katrina Fraser)

Farming Christmas trees in the coldest part of the Sunshine State was a big leap for Brad and Katrina, who met while working on a remote station in western Queensland.

“I was just a ringer out there at Boulia, and Katrina was our station cook. I thought, ‘Oh gee, she cooks good meals — I could end up in a good paddock here,” Brad says.

They both loved outback life, but drought forced them to make a change.

“It was a really hard time, seven days a week on the property for Brad, and I would drive into Longreach,” Katrina recalls.

Katrina Fraser stands beside a ute in her days as a cook at an outback cattle station.
Katrina Fraser says life at the remote cattle station was tough.(Supplied: Katrina Fraser)

“So it was that decision that we’re like, ‘OK, we need to, for mental health reasons, get away and do something for us.'”

The pair admits that taking the plunge in 2015 was a huge gamble.

Katrina says they ordered the seedlings and decided to plant them in their back paddock.

“I think Brad hand-pushed the rotary hoe, so no machines.”

Once the trees were in the ground, it would still be four to five years before they’d be big enough to harvest.

View of the Frasers' Christmas tree farm
You have to wait four or five years for a Christmas tree crop.(ABC: Courtney Wilson)

With nothing to do but wait, Brad and Katrina set about turning what was once accommodation quarters on their former apple farm into a beautiful Christmas gift shop.

Their farm shop opened in 2017, six weeks after the arrival of their second child.

“In the beginning I had the little cot in the back room and I thought, I’m just going to play shops and be a mum,” Katrina says.

“And that lasted I think, two weeks.”

The reality of running the farm, a shop, a cafe and looking after a toddler and a newborn meant the pair quickly had to come up with “Plan B”.

Brad and Katrina Fraser and their children stand in front of rows of Christmas trees
The Frasers balance running the farm with raising their two children.(ABC: Courtney Wilson)

“Mr Stockman had to turn into a retailer,” Brad says.

“I’ve never done retail or hospitality. And yeah, I was the face of the business for the first two years. People would walk in to the Granite Belt Christmas Farm and see me.”

Perfecting the Christmas tree shape also keeps Brad busy. Each tree requires careful pruning six to seven times a year.

“I just self-learned,” he says.

“You get your eye in with what is straight. So that’s what I reckon has really helped me to get the edges right — although I still stuff it up.”

Brad Fraser pruning his Christmas trees
The trees require careful pruning to give them their distinctive shape(ABC: Courtney Wilson)

As well as honing his pruning skills, caring for the trees in general has been a big learning curve for the former jackaroo.

“Oh yeah, cows are so much easier,” he says.

“I thought, ‘I’ll just check a tree in the ground and flick a bit of water on it and give it a little bit of a prune and away I go.’

“I can do something today and I won’t find out for weeks if it’s even done anything.”

The harvest starts the last weekend in November, and runs right through until December 23 — unless they sell out earlier.

During that Christmas rush, the Frasers employ 25 people across their farm, shop and cafe.

Brad Fraser feeds goats and donkeys on his farm
Every farm needs some animals.(Kate Newsom)

Visitors come from all over — mostly Queensland and New South Wales — looking to make a tradition out of getting a living Christmas tree.

Besides the Christmas harvest, July is their next busiest time of year.

As well as their usual farm experiences, they also host special Christmas in July lunches every Saturday.

“We’ve probably been working maybe 60 days straight now, if not more,” Katrina says.

“So it gets very tiring! But in saying that, in the Christmas world there’s so much to be thankful for, and such good customers.”

Not everyone is sure about living Christmas trees though.

Wooden sign at the Frasers farm
Christmas comes but twice a year for the Frasers, as July celebrations also keep them busy(ABC: Courtney Wilson)

Brad and Katrina say often the reluctance stems from a past experience where people have perhaps not treated their cut trees properly.

“Some people have put them in the wrong,” Brad says.

“They put them in sand and water [and] sand it just turns them off real quick. They need to be just in water.”

Becoming Christmas tree farmers was by no means a lifelong ambition for Brad, nor Katrina, but now that they’ve put down some serious roots in Stanthorpe they both agree they’re fully committed.

“We are growing and expanding too, and having another shop put on site in November,” Katrina says.

“We love seeing that joy, and that really adds to the community,” Brad adds.

“Coming from out west, you know, people mean a lot to you out there, so having this shop and having the feelings it gives to people — that’s paying too, and that’s pretty cool.”

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Categories
Business

Tesla’s big battery started with an Elon Musk Twitter exchange – but behind the scenes, it wasn’t that simple

A shot of the tesla powerpack with the company logo visible.

It began with a bet between billionaires.

In March 2017, Atlassian chief Mike Cannon-Brookes challenged Tesla boss Elon Musk to make good on a thought bubble about using batteries to solve South Australia’s energy problems.

“Tesla will get the system installed and working 100 days from contract signature or it is free,” Mr Musk replied.

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Not to be outdone, Mr Cannon-Brookes upped the ante.

“Legend! You’re on mate,” he responded, before promising to pull strings to secure “mates rates.”

The Twitter exchange has been much mythologised — in the eyes of some, it is an almost Damascene moment in which Australia relinquished its fear of renewables and embraced battery storage.

It is certainly true that it catalyzed the creation of Neoen’s 150-megawatt Hornsdale Power Reserve (aka the big battery), which was first switched on almost five years ago.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.

Play Video. Duration: 1 minute 36 seconds

Elon Musk talks about Tesla’s battery plan in July 2017.(ABCNews)

But then-SA premier Jay Weatherill recalls the billionaires’ Twitter banter as a double-edged sword.

“It was certainly not choreographed — it was a shock to see this,” he said.

“We were about to launch our [energy] plan … and it included a renewable technology fund of about $150 million, and one of the first cabs off the rank was likely to be a grid-level battery.

“thisexchange [then] occurred which created a massive problem for me, because everyone was telling me to accept what appeared to be the offer of the century.”

Damaged power transmission towers near Melrose in South Australia.
Damaged power transmission towers near Melrose from the time of the September 2016 blackout.(ABC News: Dean Faulkner)

Context is important here — three major blackouts in SA in less than six months, including the statewide outage of September 2016, had poured petrol on an already heated energy debate.

The Twitter exchange occurred a week before the equally notorious, but much more acrimonious, confrontation involving Mr Weatherill and then-federal energy minister Josh Frydenberg over renewables.

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While Mr Musk later joked that all he’d been doing was “talking smack”, Mr Cannon-Brookes has said his own initial tweet had equally humble origins.

It was late at night and Mr Cannon-Brookes was looking after his young child when he spontaneously responded to an Australian Financial Review article about Tesla’s battery plans.

“I just tweeted to Elon, was he serious?” I have told the 100 Climate Conversations podcast.

“I went to bed and then he came back and… we went back and forth negotiating and then sort of all hell broke loose.

“Suddenly [then prime minister] Malcolm Turnbull was on the phone and it went a bit nuts for a couple of weeks.”

A man with a beard and his graying hair in a ponytail gesticulates with his hands, he is wearing a white t-shirt.
Mike Cannon-Brookes was taken back by the response to his off-the-cuff tweet.(ABC)

‘It was a turning point’

During 2017, when Mr Musk enjoyed near-rockstar status among renewables supporters, there were obvious political upsides to Tesla’s proposal.

But Tesla wasn’t the only interested party — indeed, it was a Zen Energy push that had put batteries on SA’s agenda.

Despite the momentum behind the Tesla pitch, the SA government had committed to a procurement process to assess individual submissions on their merits.

Elon Musk stands in front of a giant screen, talking to the audience
Elon Musk was treated to a rockstar’s welcome during construction of the battery in September 2017.(ABC News: Andrew Burch)

“The way I chose to do it was to ring Elon Musk directly and say, ‘Great idea, we’re about to open up a tender process, we’d love you to bid’,” Mr Weatherill recalled.

“He then helpfully tweeted out, ‘Had a great conversation with the premier of South Australia’. That took the immediate pressure off me.

“Fortunately they won the tend on a proper basis, but obviously I was hoping they would win because the reputational benefit and the pulling power and the publicity that Elon Musk was able to generate were obviously powerful.”

On the other hand, “it would have been embarrassing for me — or not so much embarrassing but a lost opportunity — if he didn’t win”, Mr Weatherill said.

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For energy expert Marija Petkovic, part of the battery’s power was the way it provided proof of concept.

“Those of us in the energy industry have known for a very long time that battery storage would be one of the key pieces of technology that’s going to take us to a highly renewable grid,” she said.

“But it’s always hard to be the first off the mark.

“Having that first project be built and operational was a huge deal — it really allowed all the others to follow suit afterwards.”

Marija Petkovic
Marija Petkovic is the founder and managing director of Energy Synapse.(Supplied)

The battery itself hasn’t been entirely free of controversy. In June, the Hornsdale Power Reserve was fined $900,000 for failing to provide grid stabilization services as required in 2019.

But it also recently secured approval from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) to deliver grid-scale inertia services to the National Electricity Market.

“Batteries provide quite negligible energy in the [wholesale] market, but where they provide value is those ancillary services,” Ms Petkovic said.

“There’s about 100 more in the pipeline — not all of those projects will proceed to construction, some are very early stages … but it is quite promising.”

The Hornsdale Power Reserve near Jamestown in South Australia's mid north.
Ms Petkovic says there are dozens more giant batteries in the pipeline.(Supplied: Tesla)

While Mr Weatherill lost the subsequent election, he remembers those months in 2017 with fondness.

“There are lots of downsides but this is one of the upsides of making big decisions that set new trajectories,” he said.

“It was a turning point, and quite an exciting one.”

SA Premier Jay Weatherill alongside tech entrepreneur and Tesla boss Elon Musk.
Jay Weatherill and Elon Musk struck up what was widely reported as a “bromance.”(Facebook)

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Technology

Is the Galaxy Watch 5 waterproof? What you should know

Is the Galaxy Watch 5 waterproof? What you should know

For the last few years, wearables like the Galaxy Watch series have been designed to deal with water exposure at varying levels. The Galaxy Watch 5 can certainly take a splash or two, but at what level? This guide will help you determine just how waterproof your Galaxy Watch 5 is and what you can do with it using Samsung’s Water Lock.

The Galaxy Watch 5 is most definitely water resistant. Not only can it take running water pouring over it, but the watch can also be completely submerged without being damaged at all. In fact, Samsung has workouts in the Samsung Health app specifically designed for swimming exercises. So what can the Galaxy Watch 5 take?

Galaxy Watch 5’s waterproof IP rating and meaning

The Galaxy Watch 5 and 5 Pro both have an IP68 rating, which is broken down into two variables.

The first number indicates the level at which it can resist solid particulates like dust and debris. The second number represents the resistance level of liquids. So, in the Galaxy Watch 5’s case, the dust resistance rating is a 6 and water is an 8, both very high on the spectrum.

IP68 is generally accepted as a very good rating and will allow you to take a swim with the watch and have no issues if you only do it for a certain amount of time. At a rating of IP68, you can submerge your watch for up to 30 minutes at a depth of 1.5 meters. Samsung doesn’t specifically say you can swim with the watch – nor do we advise it – but the company does offer multiple swimming exercises specifically for the Galaxy Watch 5 and 5 Pro.

A different rating the Galaxy Watch 5 has for water use is 5ATM, which refers to the amount of water pressure it can undergo before water starts rushing into the openings, causing damage to the watch. A rating of 5ATM will get you 50 meters deep before your Galaxy Watch 5 will start experiencing issues.

Both of these ratings refer to water resistance, though they can give you insight into different aspects of it. For instance, an IP68 rating lets you know that the watch can withstand a depth of 1.5 meters for a certain amount of time, while the 5ATM rating lets you know what the maximum depth you can reach is before causing damage to the device. One has to do with time, while the other shows you the extremes you can go to.

Can I go swimming with the Galaxy Watch 5?

With all the technical information out of the way, deciding whether to swim with your device comes down to judgment. Are you doing laps with the Galaxy Watch 5, or are you relaxing in the pool for hours on end?

If it’s the latter, we don’t recommend taking your watch in with you. However, above 1.5 meters for under 30 minutes – according to Samsung and the rating stated – is perfectly fine.

Anything less than that is also fine. You can wash your hands with the Galaxy Watch 5 or even reach into an ocean pool to grab a seashell – as long as you run the watch under fresh water afterward. Just don’t go deep-diving or free-diving with the Galaxy Watch 5, since that would most definitely end in a damaged watch.

Water Lock and cleaning your Galaxy Watch 5 after use

If you decide to take a few laps in the pool or even in the ocean, there are a few measures you should take before and after the dip. First, you need to know how to use the Galaxy Watch 5’s Water Lock to ensure it remains waterproof. Water Lock is a feature that turns off your watch’s touch recognition, which prevents water from activating phantom touches on your device. When this is active, you won’t be able to interact with your Galaxy Watch 5 display.

The added benefit of this feature is when Water Lock is turned off, the Watch 5 undergoes a process that pushes all of the water out of the speakers built into the device by means of low-frequency sounds. The bass pushes out air and water from the Watch 5’s speaker grills, ridding the device of liquid.

Galaxy Watch 5 water lock

Here’s how to activate Water Lock on the Galaxy Watch 5:

  1. On the Galaxy Watch 5, swipe down from the watch face.
  2. Swipe to the left until you see a water droplet icon. Tap it.
  3. You’ll see a faint water droplet icon appear on your main watch face. This means Water Lock is active.
  4. After your swim, deactivate it by holding the Home key for 2 seconds.
  5. You should hear and feel a few loud vibrations.

You might want to run your device under warm water before turning off Water Lock, which will get any contaminates off the screen and from around the body of the watch. After that, disable Water Lock, and you’re good to go.

Note: You don’t have to turn Water Lock on to protect your device. The feature mainly protects against false touches. If you forget, don’t worry. You can turn the feature on and off again to activate the water ejection sounds.

In the end, it all comes down to good judgement. Before swimming, make sure you know how deep you’re going and how long you’ll be under. Make sure you activate Water Lock and clean your Galaxy Watch 5 afterward. Following those guidelines will ensure your Watch 5 and 5 Pro last a good while.

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Entertainment

Brazilian woman ‘cons mother out of £48m painting by using psychic to convince her it was “cursed”‘

Police officers pose with Sol Poente by Tarsila do Amaral, which is worth £48million alone. Its owner, Genevieve Boghici, 82, was 'swindled out of the painting' by her daughter de ella and psychics

Brazilian daughter ‘cons her mother out of £48million painting by using a fake psychic to convince her that it was “cursed”‘

  • Sabine Coll Boghici allegedly swindled mother, 82, out of art worth £116million
  • Celebrated painting Sol Poente (1949) by Tarsila do Amaral is worth nearly £50m
  • Two-year scam saw psychic tell Genevieve Boghici that her daughter would die
  • Psychics used personal information provided by daughter to spook mother: cops

By Adam Solomons For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

A woman has been arrested on suspicion of swindling a painting worth nearly £50million from her 82-year-old mother by hiring a psychic to claim it was ‘cursed’.

Sabine Coll Boghici, 48, allegedly tricked Genevieve Boghici, whose late husband was an art collector, into handing over Sol Poente (1949) by Tarsila do Amaral.

The celebrated artwork worth £48million was previously exhibited at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

It is part of a haul of cash, art and jewelery worth 724million reais (£116.3 million) allegedly defrauded by Sabine.

Her arrest has exposed a disturbing web of fraud that police say lasted years.

It even involved alleged psychics to swindle artwork by some of Brazil’s most emblematic painters, cops claim.

Police officers pose with Sol Poente by Tarsila do Amaral, which is worth £48million alone. Its owner, Genevieve Boghici, 82, was 'swindled out of the painting' by her daughter de ella and psychics

Police officers pose with Sol Poente by Tarsila do Amaral, which is worth £48million alone. Its owner, Genevieve Boghici, 82, was ‘swindled out of the painting’ by her daughter de ella and psychics

Four people were arrested when officers in Brazil raided the home of a psychic

They were allegedly hired by the owner's daughter to say the paintings were 'cursed'

Four people were arrested when officers in Brazil raided the home of a psychic. They were allegedly hired by the owner’s daughter to say the paintings were ‘cursed’

Four other people were also arrested and two others, Diana Rosa Aparecida Stanesco Vuletic and Slavko Vuletic, are on the run.

The scam began in 2020 when Genevieve was approached by a supposed psychic with prophecies of her daughter’s imminent death.

The victim was then taken to several more psychics, who police say used personal information provided by her daughter to scam her distraught mother into transferring money to pay for ‘spiritual treatment.’

In the months that followed, police allege the suspects physically threatened Genevieve and that she was kept at home for months by her daughter.

Sabine Coll Boghici was filmed being led out of her home during her arrest earlier this week

Sabine Coll Boghici was filmed being led out of her home during her arrest earlier this week

The iconic Brazilian artwork was exhibited at New York's Museum of Modern Art in 2018

The iconic Brazilian artwork was exhibited at New York’s Museum of Modern Art in 2018

Sabine and an accomplice posing as a psychic ‘began to take the artwork from the (mother’s) house, claiming that the painting was cursed with something negative, with negative energy that needed to be prayed over,’ said Rio de Janeiro police officer Gilberto Ribeiro .

After almost a year of being mistreated by Sabine and her accomplices, the victim decided to go to the police.

Police say 16 paintings were stolen, including works by renowned Brazilian artists like Cicero Dias, Rubens Gerchman and Alberto Guignard.

Three pieces from iconic modernist painter Tarsila do Amaral – O Sono, Sol Poente and Pont Neuf – were also stolen, which together police appraised at a value of 700 million reais (£111.4million).

Amaral’s Sol Poente was among 11 paintings recovered Wednesday in a Rio de Janeiro police raid on one of the psychic’s homes.

Authorities have also recovered three paintings in São Paulo. Two were sold to a museum in Buenos Aires but have not yet been recovered.

Police say seven people are suspected of involvement in the years-long crime, facing charges of embezzlement, robbery, extortion, false imprisonment and criminal association.

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