Latest news with #Pattison
Hans India
3 days ago
- Science
- Hans India
AI app helps visitors identify donkeys at Isle of Wight Sanctuary
Visitors to the Isle of Wight Donkey Sanctuary can now identify their favourite adopted donkeys using an AI-powered mobile app developed by researchers at the University of Southampton. The app, named Ask ELVIS (Equine Long-range Visual Identification System), allows users to point their phone camera at a donkey, and through facial recognition and machine learning, the app identifies the animal and displays its name and profile. Currently in development, the app has a 50% identification accuracy—akin to a coin toss—but project lead Dr Xiaohao Cai is confident it will be significantly improved and ready for public use by the end of the year. "We're working to bridge the gap between experimental and real-world accuracy," said Dr Cai. The project began after sanctuary staff noticed that name collars were causing discomfort and safety risks for the donkeys. In 2023, the collars were removed. "There had been accidents and near misses, so we got rid of them," explained Gordon Pattison, volunteer and trustee at the sanctuary. "But the public still needs a way to identify their adopted donkeys." Thousands of visitors have adopted donkeys through the sanctuary's fundraising initiative, and many want to reconnect with their chosen animals during visits. The app pays tribute to a beloved donkey named Elvis, who passed away in 2024. "When the app launches, it greets users with Elvis the donkey, as if you're asking him, 'Who's that donkey over there?'" said Mr Pattison. In the future, the team hopes to extend the technology to detect early signs of illness in donkeys—an area where AI could offer significant help. "Donkeys are stoic, and don't show obvious signs of illness. AI might help us pick up the subtle clues sooner," added Mr Pattison. He emphasized the broader lesson: 'AI isn't just for big corporations. With the right idea, anyone can harness it to solve meaningful problems.'
Evening Standard
12-06-2025
- Health
- Evening Standard
Vicky Pattison details ‘terrifying' PMDD episode: ‘Every month I lose myself – this was one of the worst'
Pattison, who rose to fame on Geordie Shore, has become an outspoken advocate for PMDD awareness. The condition, often misdiagnosed or dismissed, affects around one in 20 women according to NHS estimates — though many experts and campaigners believe the true figure could be much higher due to underreporting and lack of awareness.
The Herald Scotland
12-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Can former Rangers boss revive Scottish firm Sterling?
Around this time last year, the Tillicoultry-based company was looking forward to what it hoped would be a brighter future following a difficult spell. After implementing 50 redundancies and closing stores in 2023 in response to a 'historic lack of action taken to address the cost base', the company's then chief executive, John Pattison, spoke boldly of awakening a 'sleeping giant' in an interview with The Herald in May 2024. 'I think Sterling has phenomenal potential to realise,' Mr Pattison declared at the time. 'It has been a solid business across five decades now but, given the foundations we have, the next decade could be really exciting [with] very interesting opportunities coming to us. 'With a new strategy in place, [there is] an opportunity for us to really grow into something quite special, something that both the family who own the business, the team, and indeed Scotland can be proud of.' As far as one is able to detect in interview situations, it was clear Mr Pattison – a veteran of the furniture industry – held a good deal of confidence in the potential of Sterling. But in business there are always events that are beyond the control of company chiefs, and so it seems to have proved for Sterling. Despite the hopes expressed by Mr Pattison, 2024 proved to be a tumultuous year for both Sterling and the wider retail sector. As consumer confidence was laid low by high interest rates and painful inflation, putting pressure on retail sales across the board, the company itself faced rising operational costs. The latest accounts for Sterling, which The Herald covered exclusively this week, highlighted 'legacy decisions and over-investment in anticipation of growth that did not materialise', as the company slumped to a loss of nearly £4 million for the year ended August 31, 2024. Read more: Mr Pattison left the company in November, and a new leadership team has been installed, led by chief executive Stewart Robertson and chairman Bernard Dunn. The new team quickly took action to further address costs at the retailer, with an unspecified number of redundancies – largely in operational roles – announced in February. This move came ahead of significant cost rises in April, when the increases in employer national insurance contributions and national living wage, announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in the Autumn Budget, took effect. In an interview with The Herald this week, Mr Robertson, a former managing director of Rangers Football Club, gave a sober assessment of the difficult trading environment Sterling and the wider retail industry faced during the period covered by the accounts, and continue to encounter, as the outlook for the UK economy remains bleak. Mr Robertson, also a former secretary of Motherwell Football Club, signalled that the changes made since his arrival – his appointment as chief executive is now permanent after he initially joined on an interim basis – have solidified Sterling's foundations and put the company in a position to return to growth. Further investment is planned, including an overhaul of the company's flagship store where the launch of a new leather gallery later this summer will form part of plans to bring the 'magic dust' back to its Tillicoultry home. Mr Robertson also suggested that Sterling, which was founded by George Knowles in 1975 when he converted an old mill in Tillicoultry into a furniture showroom, could open further stores, and perhaps return to cities such as Inverness that it had previously exited. But he emphasised that the strategy would be anchored on 'careful growth'. Reflecting on the actions that he and Mr Dunn, a former head of insurance broker TL Dallas in Scotland, have taken since joining the company, Mr Robertson said: 'It has been a case of really looking at what the business has needed, and we have re-set the cost base [to] make sure we have got really strong foundations to take the business forward in a sustainable way, but also in a way that is going to grow the business as well. There are still opportunities there for us [but] it needs to be considered growth, it needs to be careful growth.' He added: 'There are areas where we are not located but maybe were in the past. Take Inverness, as an example, that is an area we would certainly look at going back into if a good site became available at the right cost. A number of the economics would need to stack up, but certainly there is a desire to do that and to look at continuing to grow the organisation, but doing it at the right time in the right places with the right level of investment.' That Mr Robertson sees an opportunity to grow one of Scotland's most venerable retailers is surely to be welcomed by those with the interests of the Scottish economy at heart, and not least because of the 440 people the company employs across its 10 stores and other operations. Read more: There are likely to be generations of Scots who wish Sterling well. Some of a certain vintage will fondly recall the long-running television adverts for the retailer voiced by sports presenter Dougie Donnelly in the 1980s (featuring the famous catchline 'Sterling, Tillicoultry, near Stirling'). Others will recall the days, as Mr Robertson noted, when people would go to visit the Tillicoultry store for a 'day out'. But powerful though nostalgia is, fond memories will not be enough to ensure success, as Mr Robertson will know only too well. At a time of subdued economic growth and continuing concern over the cost of living, and with competition tough on the high street, plotting Sterling's return to growth will not be easy. But at least Mr Robertson can go about his business without the glare and constant scrutiny that characterised his time at Rangers.
Irish Examiner
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Podcast Corner: Angela Scanlon's new show aims for the 'Therapist Ghosted Me' market
Angela Scanlon is one of those multi-hyphenated stars we've become used to in the 2020s - she's in ads, she's acting, she's presenting on TV and radio, she's co-founder of a buildable, customisable jewellery company, and yes, she's a podcast host. Angela Scanlon's Thanks A Million came to an end in 2022, but she's back this month with Get a Grip, co-hosting with Vicky Pattison, a fellow multi-hyphen. The bio: 'From navigating motherhood and newlywed life, to dissecting culture, internet drama, and the ridiculous expectations placed on women, this is an unapologetic podcast where no topic is off-limits." So basically, a bantercast, so beloved of the podcast ecosystem in 2025 - and yes, it is available in video form. 'I like an overshare,' says Scanlon early on in the first episode. Soon, Pattison is talking about wearing spanx, sharing some, ahem, toilet humour, about people who wear such to the Met Gala, and gossiping about Rihanna's third pregnancy ('When did the second one come?'). Come the second episode, Scanlon says she knows when her eggs are dropping; Pattison replies: 'Like a chicken!?' It's funny, a little TMI, and very much focused on the market cornered by My Therapist Ghosted Me. The co-host of that show, Joanne McNally, is the first guest on Katherine Ryan's new show What's My Age Again?, wherein she asks her celebrity guests how they feel about ageing and then has them take a biological age test to find out how their bodies' age compares to their chronological age. It's science… we think. Like Scanlon and Pattison, Ryan is also many different things to different people, perhaps most notably a standup and panellist on various UK shows. 'Why aren't you in the cryochamber,' she jokingly asks McNally - though it's something she returns to with her fifth guest Olivia Attwood, who came to fame on Love Island season three and hosts her own podcast, So Wrong, It's Right. Indeed, Ryan admits to an interest in cryotherapy, Attwood telling her: 'I was doing that HBOT (hyperbaric oxygen therapy) over Christmas. So I had a couple of little procedures. And it's great for healing. And I was recommended into it. So I went down a hole of reading about the benefits of HBOT. And unfortunately, it's not available on the NHS, apart from very, very specific diseases. But the healing and your brain, your cells, that is incredible. The science is there. It's just not widely backed.' You may want to do your own research first. As for the age test (there is a disclaimer that it's not a medical-grade device and the biological age is not a predictor of life expectancy), McNally is told she's an outlier, in the top 1%, while Attwood gets the lowest age possible. Perhaps What's My Age Again? Is best taken with a pinch of salt.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Douglas County Past: Superior, Gordon men die in war; actress launches ship
May 12—May 9, 1925 Students wage close battle Deadlocked for first place, Hazel Nelson of the Black River school and Irene Lemponen, Bryant school representative, fought out the Douglas county student spelling championship honors yesterday afternoon in the Blaine school building. Miss Lemponen finally emerging the victor only after Rotary club contest officials went outside of the state fair spelling list to find words for them to spell. Other contestants were: Anthony Mizinski, St. Stanislaus school; John Smith, Franklin school; Mavell Taylor, East High school; Walter Frank, Pattison school; Elaine Scott, Blaine school; Leo Vogl, Cedar Grove school; Catherine Bonner, Sacred Heart school; Veronica Shears, St. Francis school; Helen Bock, Brule; Ester Etele, Maple school; Flora Hedblad, Cooper school and Evelyn Melster, Itasca school. May 9, 1945 Christmas spirit busy at Cathedral Christmas may seem far away, but for the newly-organized Junior Red Cross chapter at Cathedral high school, it's just around the corner. The members are making 500 folding Christmas cards with envelopes, 500 nut and candy cups, 500 card and envelope folder combinations, 500 postcards decorated on one side, 500 tray favors to be used as place cards and 500 napkin and ring combinations. These will be used as Christmas decoration units for overseas hospitals and bases. Declared dead Sgt. Harold J. Patterson, son of Mr. and Mrs. F.J. Patterson, 2027 Banks avenue, has been declared dead by the war department. He has been missing in action since May 1, 1944, while a ball turret gunner on a B-24 Liberator bomber. On that day he left for Iceland and failed to reach there. Sergeant Pattison was born July 1, 1921 in Superior and was graduated from Central high school. Surviving besides his parents are three brothers, Earl, in the South Pacific, Roy and Robert, Superior, four sisters, Mrs. Dorothy Rygg, Beverly, Donna and Margie, Superior. Victim of Reich War GORDON — Pfc. Marvin Jensen, 29, of Gordon was killed in action in Germany on April 14 according to information received by his father, Christian Jensen, of Gordon. Private Jensen was born in Crawford, Neb. Feb. 4, 1916 and lived in Omaha prior to coming to Gordon in 1927. He entered the army two and a half years ago. He is survived by his father and a twin brother, Melving, of Gordon; three other brothers, Hans and Soren of Omaha and Carl Raymond, who is with the merchant marine; two sisters, Mrs. George Hoyt of Iron River and Mrs. Rosie Fletcher of Omaha. May 10, 1945 Capt. William Fritz completes 50th mission Capt. William R. Fritz, son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward H. Fritz, 1119 1/2 Seventeenth street, recently flew his 50th combat mission with the 485th Bomb group of the 15th air force. Captain Fritz, a pilot flight commander, went to Italy last summer and took part in the fall and winter campaigns that destroyed a large part of German industry. In October, Fritz's group was attacking a rail yard in Germany when flak knocked out an engine and destroyed the hydraulic lines. He feathered the engine and continued down the bomb run only to have more flak cut the elevator controls and damage the power controls. The entire bomber was filled with flak holes as he came off the target. Fritz stayed with the formation after leaving the target but his power settings were frozen and he was unable to alter the speed of the propellers. This forced him to leave the group after a few minutes and proceed home alone with his damaged aircraft over enemy fighter territory. Arriving at the home field, Fritz gave his crew a choice of bailing out as there would be no brake power for landing and the power settings were still frozen. The crew elected to stay with Fritz and he displayed great flying skill in putting the bomber on the ground without injury to crew or airplane. Capt. Fritz was graduated from Central high school and was attending Superior State when he entered the air force in 1943. Three juvenile girls admit extensive shoplifting tours A pile of coats, sweaters, purses, shoes, slacks, trousers and assorted items ranging from adhesive tape to needles and thread were which covered Assistant Police Chief George Davis' desk earlier this week was gradually being reduced to order and retired to the owners Thursday. Davis and Detective William Lund continued to check on the stories of one 12 year old and two 15 year old Superior girls who have admitted the theft of clothing valued at more than $150 from Superior stores and garments worth $67.83 from Duluth firms. Articles the three girls admit taking from S and L department store, Millers, the Eastern shop, the Fashion shop, Gately's and Stack's have already been valued by the stores at a total of $150.52, Davis said. In addition, the girls confessed the theft of several items, some valuable, from Kinney's shoe store, Ford Hopkins drug store, the Coop store, Newberry's, Roth's, Tradehome shoe store and Kresge's. May 11, 1925 Cigaret dropped on floor causes blaze A cigaret, dropped carelessly beneath a card table at 723 Tower avenue store, owned by A.E. Hillgrove, while two men, whose names were not learned were engaging in a game of cards, originated a minor fire there Saturday afternoon. The fire was discovered when the trousers of one of the men became uncomfortably warm. A hole was burned in the floor. The alarm came to headquarters at 3:42 p.m. and it was the work of but a few moments to put the blaze out. Damage to the floor was not above $5. Resume work at dock today Work of clearing away the debris caused by the toppling of the superstructure of a Barnett and Record concrete mixer scow at work at Great Northern ore dock No. 1 Saturday afternoon, resulting in the drowning of Oscar Berg, 26-year-old laborer residing at 1216 Sixth street, had been virtually completed today and officials of the company plan to resume the laying of concrete mattresses at the dock within a day or so. Berg was brushed into the water from the deck of the scow when the tower fell over the side into the water, it was stated. The tower fell toward the west. The cause is unknown, it was said. It did not strike the ore dock and no damage was done to the dock, according to J.E. McKenna, district engineer of the Great Northern. Berg came to the United States from Norbooten, Sweden two years ago and made his home in Superior. May 12, 1945 Actress Anne Baxter visits Head of Lakes, sponsors ship Vowing that Roddy MacDowell and Monty Woolley are her favorite leading men, Anne Baxter, charming young Twentieth Century-Fox actress who visited the Head of the Lakes Saturday, skillfully avoided linking her name with John Hodiak, who played opposite her in "Sunday Dinner for a Soldier." "I'm not married and I'm not going to be — not that I know of," Miss Baxter smiled. Here to sponsor the USS Lever's Bend, launched Saturday noon at the Walter Butler Shipbuilders, Inc. Riverside yards, Miss Baxter took time out from a vigorous round of activities to talk with an Evening Telegram reporter. She began studying to be an actress at the age of 11. Music is Miss Baxter's greatest interest aside from acting, she said. Her record collection ranges from "Bach to boogie-woogie." Articles and pictures courtesy of retired librarian Judy Aunet with Superior Public Library.
