Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers blog

Hey everyone,

The UK & Ireland Answers Team is happy to announce that that the site is back after undergoing the second part of essential maintenance.  We can see from your hundreds of passionate comments on our blogs worldwide that you are all fond of the site and there are even a few Answerholics amongst you, so we’re sorry we had to deprive you of your favorite site for a few hours. But please trust us when we say the work was essential and will make Answers stronger and healthier from now on. This will conclude the planned maintenance for the immediate future.

Rest assured after this maintenance, the site will look just the same as it did before and should help it avoid future downtime.

Many thanks!

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers team

Celebrity role models, style icons, actors and singers: in the modern era they dominate our way of dressing, acting and even our thinking. Or are we just biased by the media’s emphasis on their influence?

So as we unveil a contest to win a luxury spa break that will slip you into the celebrity lifestyle, we look to Answers to ask how much do celebrities rule our world and just what do people mean by “style icon?”

Well, according to Christine Irice Cake Queen:

“People get style confused with fashion; they are not the same thing. Indeed, someone can be a style icon without going anywhere near haute couture. What about all the avant-garde, eccentric, wacky dressers who eventually set trends? One thing’s for sure: we can’t set out with the intention of becoming a style icon, it’s for others to judge if we are or not”. Read more>

So yes “others” have to judge, and its here that the media have a sway, otherwise who would be there to decide who’s trendy, sexy or the opposite?

Yet style icon or not, it appears we tend to be influenced by celebrities – so which is most dominant? In fact, for Marc G, celebrities and media are part of societal changes that can’t be decoupled or viewed in isolation:

“In the 1970s, academics began analyzing the phenomenon of celebrity and stardom. Sofia Johansson notes that “more recent analyses within media and cultural studies have instead dealt with the idea of a pervasive, contemporary, ‘celebrity culture’.” In the analysis of the ‘celebrity culture,’ fame and its constituencies are conceived of as a broader social process, connected to widespread economic, political, technological and cultural developments.” Read more>

The celebrity phenomenon masquerading as ‘culture:’ now there’s scary thought! Laurence Olivier would turn in his grave. But hell, whether the media focus on them too much, it’s not up to us to judge, because they are undeniably everywhere, even on Answers.

So whether you want to feel like Laurence Olivier, Jordan or even spend time contemplating their differences, we have a special contest to help you feel like a star for a weekend.

If you like being pampered, why not indulge yourself with a luxury spa break on the shores of the eastern Adriatic Sea in Croatia?

For a chance to win, share your thoughts here.

Good luck to all!

Competition Terms & Conditions

Hey everyone,

Answers is undergoing some planned maintenance on Friday November 21st, from 8:30am GMT. We anticipate the work will take a number of hours, and Answers will be unavailable during that time. If there is any change to the schedule, we will inform you here with updates.

If you’re looking for something to do during the downtime, why not try some of these:

• Behold the wonder of the parrot on Flickr.
• Find out just how good the new Bond film Quantum of Solace is.
• Watch Rihanna’s edgy video for chart smash “Disturbia”.
• Plan your next holiday with Yahoo! Travel Guides
• Get up to date with Premiership news.
• See what’s on TV tonight.
• Plan a journey on the 698.5 mile trip from Land’s End to John O’Groats.

See you all on the other side!

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers Team

Picture from The Prodigal Son

A month ago, we asked you how you intended to keep warm this winter without wasting too much energy. Saving this expensive resource highly topical recently due to both its serious concequences for the planet and the onset of winter.

We wanted you to share your tips, ideas and ambitious green projects with our community to demonstrate how enthusiastic and determined you all are to act now!

We’ve been amazed by all the brilliant answers we received and are glad to announce that Archipet has won the double Sunday bed and a grand mattress from Warren Evans: congratulations to you, Archipet! We very much liked your inventive and inspiring ideas to insulate your loft and make your Heathrow flat an eco-friendly one.

Although he mentioned some equipments were expensive, like his system for a more  efficient heat recovery through his ventilation system, we’re glad to know he’s saved 800kg of CO2 emissions per year and his gas usage has dropped by 23%!

Picture from Archipet

With your great answers, we’ve compiled a list of simple, efficient and even sometimes inexpensive ways to get through winter without the cold in your house and keep our planet a clean one. Enjoy!

1. Wear more jumpers (jillionsing)
2. Keep boiled water in thermos for your next hot drink (Hayley 67)
3. Keep the heating restricted only to times we need it and keep the radiators turned on only in the rooms regularly used (Martin)
4. Use a bottle of hot water under the blanket to keep warm all night (T or Antonia)
5. Cook more than one meal at a time and put batches in the freezer to help save energy and costs (treacle)
6. Wear hats as a lot of heat is lost in that department (dignifiedcollapse)
7. Use the radiators to put damp washing on, not the tumble dryer (Sharon M)
8. Drink plenty of warm fluids and make sure you move about (Lisa C)
9. Use an extra blanket on the bed, and if possible put a fleece blanket under the sheet you normally sleep on and wear socks (Lisa C)
10. Draw your curtains t0 trap the heat (Lisa C)

    
    Picture from phil.woodshed

11. Close internal doors so rooms stay warm (Number 6)
12. Move about often and do a little bit of exercise to stimulate your body (The Prodigal Son)
13. Take advantage of late night opening hours in galleries and museums: get culture and cosy (peetyintheloft)
14. Invite friends around to share your heating and stay warm together from peetyintheloft)
15. Get the family pet to sit on your lap, a cat can keep you warm for hours (Dave)
16. Invest in a good dressing gown and a good pair of slippers (breadybooboo)
17. Install double glazing (Martin)
18. Caulk your windows (T or Antonia)
19. Insulate your house/flat properly (Crazy Jarvis)
20. Use low energy light bulbs and invest in table lights to only light the are you are sitting in (Lisa C)
21. Use rugs on laminate flooring (Lisa C)
22. Use thick wall paper and thick carpets (Number 6)
23. Use passive solar heaters using recycled aluminium soda cans and wooden skids thrown out by local factories (Trinity)
24. Invest in a wood stove like our grandmas used to have (KDHaroundtown)
25. Get a small wind turbine on the top of your house since winter is the windiest part of the year in most places, it is a green way to get electricity and due to the fact that they are expensive councils will give a grant to cover the costs (tvfootitt)
    

Picture from Crazy Jarvis

Lisa C told us the Government offers schemes to insulate your roofs or cavity walls, and since every little helps we reckon it’s worth checking with your local council.

Last but not least, why not follow nc-wall’s advice and stay in bed, a double Sunday bed maybe, with your partner, what better way to keep warm in these cold winter nights?

We hope you all enjoyed thinking about green issues and energy saving in the house and thanks again for your great tips and advice!

Hey everyone,

Answers is undergoing some planned maintenance on Tuesday November 18th, from 8:30am GMT. We anticipate the work will take approximately four hours, and Answers will be unavailable during that time. If there is any change to the schedule, we will inform you here with updates.

If you’re looking for something to do during the downtime, why not try some of these:

• Behold the wonder of the parrot on Flickr.
• Find out just how good the new Bond film Quantum of Solace is.
• Watch Rihanna’s edgy video for chart smash “Disturbia”.
• Plan your next holiday with Yahoo! Travel Guides
• Get up to date with Premiership news.
• See what’s on TV tonight.
• Plan a journey on the 698.5 mile trip from Land’s End to John O’Groats.

See you all on the other side!

– Yahoo! UK & Ireland Answers Team