NEW POUND COIN

The new 12-sided £1 coin will enter circulation on 28 March, the government has said.

The round £1 will be legal tender alongside the new, more-secure coin until 15 October.

The public are being urged to use their current £1 coins or bank them before they lose their legal tender status.

The government estimates around a third of the £1.3 billion worth of coins stored in piggy banks or saving jars around the UK are the current £1 style.

Some of those returned by the public will be melted down and used to make the 12-sided version.

The new style was announced in the 2014 budget and has been billed by the Royal Mint as "the most secure coin in the world".

---

Why the new coin is harder to counterfeit

• 12-sided - its distinctive shape means it stands out by sight and by touch
• Bimetallic - The outer ring is gold coloured (nickel-brass) and the inner ring is silver coloured (nickel-plated alloy)
• Latent image - it has an image like a hologram that changes from a '£' symbol to the number '1' when the coin is seen from different angles
• Micro-lettering - around the rim on the heads side of the coin tiny lettering reads: ONE POUND. On the tails side you can find the year the coin was produced
• Milled edges - it has grooves on alternate sides
• Hidden high security feature - an additional security feature is built into the coin to protect it from counterfeiting but details have not been revealed

Image copyrightPA

Image captionThe public can expect to see the new designs in their pockets in spring 2017

---

Its introduction will come as a new set of coin designs are also brought into circulation, celebrating the achievements of Jane Austen and Sir Isaac Newton.

The Royal Mint said the new designs have a "strong pioneering theme" and will start appearing this spring.

A Jane Austen £2 coin will celebrate the author 200 years after her death, while another £2 version will remember the Royal Flying Corps.

A 50p coin will mark the achievements of mathematician Sir Isaac Newton, a one-time Master of the Royal Mint.

Dr Kevin Clancy, director of the Royal Mint Museum, said: "This is a particularly significant year in Royal Mint history as we welcome in the new 12-sided £1 coin, with its innovative security features.

"This year we also mark the achievements of Jane Austen, Sir Isaac Newton and the Royal Flying Corps - all pioneers in their own field.

ITV launch new 'soap-style' reality show featuring glamorous… dogs

The show is said to follow the format made famous by the Real Housewives franchise, which first followed a group of Orange County women.

The format has done incredibly well spawning nine American versions and nine international, including The Real Housewives of Cheshire in the UK.

Filming will apparently begin in the new year and will focus on Britain's glamorous dogs and their breeders.read more

The New Saints break Ajax's 44-year world record after Welsh club win 27th straight game

Welsh Premier League champions The New Saints have broken Ajax's 44-year world record for the most consecutive wins.

The great Ajax team of Johan Cruyff, Johan Neeskens and Arie Haan won 26 consecutive games in 1972 at a time when the Dutch club were dominating European football.

But TNS - who are currently 21 points clear at the top of the Welsh Premier League - eclipsed that by winning 2-0 at Cefn Druids on Friday night.

The Guinness Book of Records have already verified that TNS will remove Ajax from the record books.read more

Motorway speed limits near roadworks could be raised

The Government has announced new plans to raise speed limits near roadworks on motorways to cut congestion

Motorways and trunk roads could see faster speed limits introduced near roadworks under new plans to cut down on congestion.

The Department for Transport wants to raise speed limits near roadworks from the current maximum of 50mph, and has tasked Highways England to determine whether this can be done "safely." 

The agency is currently running a trial on a four-mile stretch of roadworks on the M1 with a 60mph limit. If the trial is declared a success faster limits could appear throughout the country. 

• Delivery vans to blame for record traffic levels

Transport minister John Haynes has also asked Highways England to limit roadside works to no longer than 10 miles, as well as increasing the number of lanes open during roadworks.   

The reforms are much needed as the latest traffic predictions by the DfT estimate a potential 55 per cent rise in traffic numbers by 2040. The next few years will also see a rising number of roadworks as Highways England is currently busy converting over 4,000 miles of the motorway network into new ‘smart’ motorways. Smart motorways will use the hard shoulder as an added lane during busy periods as well as variable speed limits to cut congestion. -read more

You now need ID to vote

From next year you will need to bring identification to the polling station in order to cast your vote, following the adoption of recommendations to crack down on electoral fraud.

Traditionally, voters bring a polling card posted to their address, but a pilot scheme will be introduced next year in which a driving licence, passport or utility bill will also be required.

Earlier this year, former cabinet minister Sir Eric Pickles produced a report into electoral fraud, following widespread corruption in Tower Hamlets, and concluded abuse of Britain’s electoral system was widespread.read more

Massive jellyfish found washed up on North Devon beach

image: http://www.northdevonjournal.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276410/Article/images/29982522/15741991-large.jpg

The Barrel jellyfish washed up near Fremington Quay

 Comments (0)

This giant jellyfish was discovered this week on a North Devon beach.

The marine animal - thought to be a Barrel jellyfish - measured around 40cm across.

Read more at http://www.northdevonjournal.co.uk/massive-jellyfish-found-washed-up-on-north-devon-beach/story-29982522-detail/story.html#q2RuxMly3ed5dEVv.99

Worlds Smallest Radio Receiver.

Built by a team of Harvard scientists with parts size of 2 atoms.It   could work in space or a heart pacemaker.The radio uses diamond imperfections or nitrogen -vacancy centers to convert radio waves and a magnetic field can be used to change channels.