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Contributed –
May 17, 2019 / 8:30 pm | Story
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Photo: UBCO
Forget the smart watch. Bring on the smart shirt.
Researchers at UBC's Okanagan School of Engineering have developed a low-cost sensor that can be interlaced into textiles and composite materials. While the research is still new, the sensor can be used to monitor human movement.
The embedded microscopic sensor is able to recognize motion through the stretching of the woven yarns that are treated with graphene nanoplatelets that can read the body's activity, explains Prof. Mina Hoorfar.
"Microscopic sensors are changing the way we monitor machines and humans," says Hoorfar, lead researcher at the Advanced Thermo-Fluidic Lab at UBC's Okanagan campus. "Combining the shrinking of technology with improved accuracy, the future is very bright in this area."
This 'shrinking technology' uses a phenomenon called piezo-resistivity, an electromechanical response of a material when it is under strain. These tiny sensors have been shown to be of great value in the body and can be used for heart rate monitoring or temperature control.
The idea of clothing that can tell the user when to hydrate or could change the athletics industry.
The low-cost, stretchable sensors can also detect deformations and inaccessible places within composite laminates, says Prof. Abbas Milani, director of the UBC Materials and Manufacturing Research Institute.
With some refinement, it could be used in the aircraft or automotive manufacturing industries.
"Integrating sensor technologies … is becoming a real game-changer in the emerging era of smart manufacturing and current automated industry trends," says Milani.
Photo: Zygmunt Janiewicz Facebook
The Kelowna RCMP have launched a full-scale search of the waters and shoreline of Okanagan Lake to locate a missing elderly man.
On May 17, 2019 at 3:35 pm, Kelowna received a report from an overdue kayaker last seen on the waters of Okanagan Lake.
71-year-old Zygmunt Janiewicz of Kelowna at 2:30 p.m., from the shoreline in the 3000-block of Abbott Street.
"An abandoned surfing personal watercraft craft and personal floatation device," "Similar to the Wake Road," states Cpl. Jesse O'Donaghey.
"Searchers have been scouring the shoreline, as they have been called by the Kelowna Fire Department's rescue vessel and the Central Okanagan Search and Rescue.
West Kelowna RCMP have also launched their vessel to help in the search.
Janiewicz was reportedly wearing a pair of black pants, a yellow jacket and a white hat.
Contact Kelowna RCMP at 250-762-3300.
Photo: Contributed
Now that Dropbike is no longer operating in Kelowna, users may be wondering about getting their money back from the bike-sharing company.
"Drop-in co-founder Afraj Gill said in an as mission-oriented organization with the well-being of our users and riders at the core of all E-mail. "We have left the market, Kelowna riders can request a refund of their remaining wallet scales."
All has to do with their deposit back is deactivate their account. Their deposit will be automatically refunded to the card on record. As for getting their wallet balance back, users will send an email to [email protected]
"We are keeping our eyes open for all of our users, and we are also proactively communicating to all of us in Kelowna," Gill said. "In fact, every rider in Kelowna, upon opening the Drop Mobility app, will see a clear banner stating that Drop Mobility is now closed in the City of Kelowna."
Photo: Liam Park
A muddy boot print was left on the door at the scene of an overnight break-in.
A new small business owner in Kelowna woke up to a terrible birthday surprise Friday.
Kitty Bent opened Holy Crow tattoo studio just over a week ago in the converted garage of her and his fiance's home on Lindahl Street.
Friday morning, Bent's 23rd birthday, the couple has been broken into.
Liam Park, Bent's fiance, first received a notification from their security camera. He ran to the studio to find a muddy boot where he had been kicked open. The studio had been ransacked.
"A whole lot of tattoo machines, her equipment, needles, ink, a batch of ink. Twenty bucks a bottle and 20 or 30 bottles taken, "Park said, listing what appears to have been stolen. "Some art, some that we made, like some cool, custom pieces."
He estimates the value of all items taken somewhere between $ 6,000 and $ 10,000.
"She's been tattooing for three years, and finally she's able to pull up a loan – and then this happens," Park said.
"We took a lot of money to get this place open, and we have a lot of money already, and now there is no gear to make money with."
They said they had not yet purchased insurance on the new equipment, so they'll have to pay for the losses out of pocket. They've set up a GoFundMe account for anyone who can get back to their feet.
The police are currently shooting the studio for fingerprints, and the couple's security cameras are in the action.
Photo: Contributed
Security cameras captured this image of the man who broke into a tattoo studio in Kelowna Thursday night
With the long weekend here, there's plenty to do across the Okanagan.
While it's still a little unclear if Mother Nature will be fully co-operating this weekend, many of the long-weekend events will hopefully be taking place under the spring sun.
Starting Friday, the three-day Rutland May Days kicks off, featuring carnival rides, games and plenty of treats. This is the 60th year the spring celebration will be taking over Rutland's Centennial Park.
Also in Kelowna, the Knox Mountain Hill Climb starts Saturday, featuring more than 60 race cars speeding up the mountain. The race, now in its 62nd year, is one-of-a-kind breed in Canada.
To the south, Peachland's World of Wheels will be closing the hand drag of Peachland, as more than 550 cars, trucks, motorcycles and antique boats will be on display.
The show runs from 11 am to 4 pm on Sunday, with vehicles featured on both sides of Beach Avenue.
In the North Okanagan, Falkland is celebrating its 101st Stampede, featuring the famous rodeo Saturday through Monday, along with music, dancing and drinks.
For something a little different, the B.C. Armwrestling Championship is held in Kelowna on Sunday. This is the 43rd year the contest has taken place in the province, and this year will be held at Kelowna's Royal Anne Hotel.
In Salmon Arm, the Okanagan Zone Drama Festival is being held at the Shuswap Theater, where community theater groups from Princeton to Salmon Arm will be showing off their stuff.
Farther south, Penticton 's Meadowlark Nature Festival runs until Monday, featuring 77 tours and activities around the city, including hiking, cycling, canoeing, bird watching, art walks, film screenings, writing sessions, photography workshops and more.
The forecast for the Okanagan is calling for high-teens to low-20s through the weekend, with a chance of showers Saturday through Monday.
Photo: Contributed
Same press release, different date.
That basically sums up what the Downtown Kelowna Association had to say Friday morning, sending out another press release expressing disappointment over a decision by the city to keep the Cornerstone Shelter open indefinitely.
It is the third extension the 80-bed homeless shelter has received in the last 14 months.
"The DKA is still disappointed with BC Housing's announcement that Cornerstone will remain operational on Leon Avenue," the press release read.
"The DKA continues to believe that a wide, low-barrier homeless shelter like Cornerstone should be located in the heart of Kelowna's downtown, in close proximity to other social services on Leon Avenue."
For more on this story, visit Okanagan Edge.
Photo: Wayne Moore
Downtown Kelowna's Cornerstone Shelter, which some businesses have said to be the bane of their existence these days, will not be closing at the end of June after all.
The province and the City of Kelowna announced Friday in a press release that the shelter will remain open until "
$ 2.4 million so the 80-bed shelter will remain open.
"We understand and share the frustration of the Cornerstone shelter, but it would be a greater risk of impact to the community and the residents of Cornerstone," city director of community safety Lance Kayfish said. "Not only are people provided with shelter, but the supports inside the shelter save lives."
The province has opened supportive housing on Highway 97 and on Commerce Avenue during the last six months, and two more in development on Agbadiz and McIntosh roads.
"At this time, however, Cornerstone needs to remain operational until it is able to survive," Kayfish said. "We recognize that this is not ideal, but we have a very vulnerable community. We have plans in place to mitigate impact as much as possible. "
Cornerstone, on Leon Avenue in the A & B Sound Building, opened in November 2017. This is the third extension of the facility, with the following in March and in March 2018.
Photo: Facebook
A photo of one of the thieves breaking into a condo unit at Big White.
UPDATE: 10:45 am
Two people thought to be responsible for several days before the break. Highway 33 towards Kelowna.
At least five vacant units at Big White 's Raven' s Crest condo have been broken down.
Thursday afternoon, the owner of one of the ransacked units drove up to Big White to badess the damage, when she noticed one of her stolen mirrors in the back of a truck pickup truck, just down the road from where the goods occurred. She called the police, and several residents worked together in the truck.
While driving the day, they were spotted early Friday morning, walking along Highway 33 near Mission Creek.
Photos of the couple were posted to a Big White community Facebook The couple appeared to be soaking wet, and members of the group speculated the couple walked from Big White through the night.
Cpl. Jesse O'Donaghey of the Kelowna RCMP confirmed a 32-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman were walking along Highway 33 Friday morning, and they were arrested without incident. The man was already wanted by police on unrelated warrants.
The couple now face potential charges and Cpl. O'Donaghey says anyone with information on the thefts can call the RCMP at 250-762-3300.
As one Big White resident put it: "Bottom line, do not mess with the Big White community."
ORIGINAL: 5 a.m.
A rash of break-ins at Big White this weekend.
Earlier this week, several vacant units at the Raven's Crest condo have been broken down and replaced.
Lee Keenan and his girlfriend live in one of the burglarized units during the winter months.
On Thursday, Keenan's girlfriend and their landlord went to the hill to badess the damage. Upon arrival, the landlord noticed that it had been stolen in the back of a pickup truck outside of a nearby home.
"She called 911 and called Paladin (Security) and got the whole community involved," Keenan said. "They blocked the street, but (the suspects) knew how to be so upset, so one guy was arrested and the other two, the two main ones, high-tailed it."
He says he knows it, but he does not believe it was caught. While an RCMP file has been opened on the thefts, the police did not provide the publication.
Several TVs, dishwashers, washers and dryers and other electronics were stolen, and thieves even appeared to try to steal an oven.
Keenan and his girlfriend had a bunch of their valuable ski equipment stolen, but the worst loss was a sentimental value.
"One of the goggles belongs to my stepkids' dad, who pbaded away a couple years ago," Keenan said.
He said he's only heard about the Raven's Crest condo building, but there could be more.
A Big White Facebook page.
Organized through the online group, Big White residents are working together to keep an eye out for the thieves.
Madison Erhardt
Every 60 minutes, somebody dies from skin cancer in Canada.
Kelowna's Dr. Ben Wiese is hoping he can change that statistic.
Wiese owns and practices at a specialized clinic dedicated to skin health and sun safety.
With the first long weekend of the day, and many directions, Wiese has some simple tips and tricks to keep you safe.
"The emphasis is really making sure you get your skin, especially with more sun exposure," he says.
'' The easiest way of protecting your skin, like hats, sunglbades, and then cover up. Whatever is not covered up, this is where one would use some form of protection like sunscreen. "
Melanoma is 90 percent preventable. However, if you have had cancer exposure before the age of 30, your risk of contracting skin cancer goes up to a whopping 75 percent.
'' The scary thing about skin cancer is most patients would say 'it's just skin cancer.' Well, first of all it's disfiguring and it can kill you, '' Wiese added.
For more information on skin cancer, click here.
Photo: Nicholas Johansen
The completed water park in City Park.
After two years of inactivity due to damage from floods, the children's park in Kelowna City Park will reopen this weekend.
The scheduled opening is Saturday at 8 am
The water park last operated during the summer of 2016. Severe flooding in the spring of 2017 damaged both infrastructure and the water delivery system.
Damage kept the water park closed during both 2017 and 2018.
Work to repair and renovate the park began in March of this year, including a new water delivery and disposal system.
New aquatic play features were also installed. The new design features a nature theme, including large misting fat, towering ladybug soaker, spraying woodland critters and spray cannons disguised as wildflowers.
Renovations cost $ 410,000, which was covered through insurance.
The water park will be open from 8 to 8 until 8 p.m. through the summer.
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