Asus (via Twitter user HXL) has inadvertently confirmed the memory specifications for Nvidia's forthcoming GeForce RTX 3060 and RTX 3080 Ti graphics cards. Although we've heard multiple rumors of the graphics cards, Asus is the first Nvidia partner to acknowledge their existence. Apparently, Asus has already added the ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3060 12GB and ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3080 Ti to its support database. The entries are at the bottom of the drop-down list, suggesting that Asus must have added the graphics card recently. The entries don't lead to anywhere, for now; however, the part numbers do lend credence to some of the rumored specifications that have made their rounds around town. The GeForce RTX 3060 rumors already pointed to the possibility of a 6GB and 12GB model. The ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3060 12GB seemingly confirms the existence of the 12GB variant. Nvidia's decision to slap introduce 12GB of GDDR6 memory on the GeForce RTX 3060 seems way overkill, considering that the higher-up models, such as the GeForce RTX 3070 and GeForce RTX 3080 perform admirably with their 8GB and 10GB configurations, respectively. It's always handy to have an abundant amount of memory on a graphics card since it allows you to push up into the higher resolutions and enable more eye-candy in games. In the GeForce RTX 3060's case, however, it seems like an unnecessary measure that would just add to the cost of the graphics card. Even the GeForce RTX 3060 Ti, the closest relative to the GeForce RTX 3060, does just fine with its 8GB of GDDR6. Fortunately, Nvidia will reportedly offer the GeForce RTX 3060 with a 6GB setup as well, which will likely be the favorite flavor for many mainstream gamers. However, it would have been better if Nvidia had upped it to 8GB since 8GB is pretty much the standard in the contemporary gaming world. The rumors paint the GeForce RTX 3080 Ti as a cut-down version of the GeForce RTX 3090 with less memory and bandwidth. The graphics card reportedly features the same 10,496 CUDA cores but lands with 20GB of GDDR6X memory instead of 24GB. The memory supposedly runs at the same 19.5 Gbps, albeit across a narrower memory interface. Looking like business as usual, Asus will give the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB and GeForce RTX 3080 Ti the ROG Strix treatment. The graphics card will come in both standard and overclocked flavors. However, the Ampere-powered offerings trickle down to Asus' other families of graphics cards, such as the TUF and Dual series.

You've already heard from the Destructoid staff regarding our favorite games that came out of the hellscape year 2020, but now it's time for your voice to be heard, Dtoid readers. That's right, it's time for the annual Community Game of the Year vote, and this year we're switching things up a bit. For 2020, we're implementing a preferential voting mechanic so that you can pick not just one but three nominees for the Game of the Year. The vote is simple: select your top three games in the form provided here, and then when all is said and done on January 4, I'll tally up the votes in a weighted vote. Your first pick will receive three points, second choice two points, and third choice one point. The game that receives the most cumulative points by the Destructoid community will then be declared the winner. Because of this, any vote that has a single game listed more than once will be invalidated. It's a long list of eligible games in the dropdown menu so I've provided a cumulative list here. Additionally, for fun, you can tell us what your favorite game from a previous year that you played for the first time in 2020. Voting will remain open until next Monday, January 4, 2021 at 18:00 Eastern time, with the results to follow sometime that week.

We hope that Autocar has helped provide you with plenty of light relief and enjoyment in this year of all years. We’ve been producing the magazine from our various homes since the 25 March issue, a process that, without boring you with the technicalities, hasn’t been without its challenges. But neither, it must be said, has it been without reward. If you will allow the indulgence, this is the right space for me to highlight some of the unsung heroes of Autocar, those who combine the words and pictures we produce into a physical magazine. Without their contribution, there would simply be no Autocar each week; their efforts allow all the highlights you can read of here to be told to you. So take a bow Sami Shah, Kris Culmer and Darren Jones from the production desk, Sarah Özgul, Rebecca Stevens and Stephen Hopkins from the art desk, as well as picture editor Ben Summerell-Youde and regular freelance subs Peter ‘Chip’ McSean and Tim Dickson. I know every one of you will appreciate their efforts as much as I do. “Autocar? That’s nearly as old as I am, isn’t it?” From that moment on, 30 seconds into introducing myself out of the blue on his phone, I knew that Bernie Ecclestone, a mere 89 to our 125, was always going to be one step ahead. I’ve always loved Formula 1 and regarded Ecclestone with a mixture of awe and outright fear, such is his reputation for ball-breaking deal-making and old-school opinions. And while all those negatives may be true (his best answer was when I asked how he deals with enemies, to which he replied, “I take them flowers… Leave them by the grave”), he was engaging, open, funny and serious as required, candidly answering everything from his thoughts on modern F1 to whether he’s a hands-on granddad. Damn it, I liked him. I’d been invited for an hour and stayed for two. He said I’d be welcome back. I still can’t work out if I’ve called him right or if I’m a sucker – and that, I suspect, is exactly how Bernie likes it. It will be a long time before I forget the joy of Bicester Heritage’s Classic Drive In weekend, during which owners of interesting cars were invited to visit the ‘time warp’ 1920s RAF base in Oxfordshire, now a Mecca both for old cars and for the development of future projects. The offer was either to take part in a simple car-lover’s festival or to join multiple drive-in screenings of classic movies. Bicester Heritage has a uniquely relaxed way of doing things, based on the fact that there’s an enormous amount of space for parking and exhibitions, a compact sprint track and three separate drive-in screens. The result was an opportunity to forget the cares of the world and revel in the sights of some lovely cars while enjoying the distanced company of like-minded fellows. Touring a hangar full of soon-to-be auctioned Bonhams cars completed the variety. I had to be dragged away.

“Anything we see from May on would be a very positive surprise,” he said. Based on the latest official data from the Bank of Greece, tourism arrivals fell 76% in the January-to-October period. Greece has reported 135,931 infections since it documented its first case in February and 4,672 deaths. The country has been in a nationwide lockdown since early November and allowed only hair salons and bookstores to reopen for the Christmas season. Yannis Retsos, head of the country’s tourism confederation (SETE), said tourism revenues this year had reached 4 billion euros, down from 18 billion in 2019, due to global travel restrictions to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Greece expects its economy to shrink by about 10 percent this year and is pinning its hopes in the second half of 2021 for an economic recovery. “We need to wait for the second half of the year to see some sort of action in tourism,” Retsos told a Greek radio station. ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece’s tourism sector is expected to recover next summer following a dramatic fall in revenues due to the coronavirus pandemic this year, a senior industry official said on Tuesday. Tourism is the main driver of Greece’s economy, accounting for about 20% of its output and employing one in five workers. How the sector fares is crucial for the country which emerged from its third international bailout in 2018 after a decade-long debt crisis.

Argentina's Congress has legalised abortions up to the 14th week of pregnancy, a ground-breaking move for a region that has some of the world's most restrictive termination laws. Senators voted in favour of the bill after a marathon session with 38 in favour, 29 against and one abstention. Until now, abortions were only permitted in cases of rape or when the mother's health was at risk. The bill had been approved by the Chamber of Deputies earlier this month. The Catholic Church, which remains highly influential in Latin America, had opposed the move, calling on senators to reject the bill supported by centre-left President Alberto Fernández. Pro-choice activists hope the passing of the law in Argentina - one of the largest and most influential countries in the region - will inspire other countries to follow suit. Large crowds of campaigners both for and against abortion had gathered outside Congress in the capital Buenos Aires, following the debate on huge screens. When the vote finally happened in the early hours of Wednesday, there was jubilation in the pro-choice camp. While Argentina's powerful Catholic Church, and its growing evangelical community, put up strong opposition against this bill, it was Argentina's mighty "green wave" women's movement that has been at the forefront of this change. A grassroots feminist movement that has grown in influence in the past few years, its campaigning prevailed, overturning a law that had been in place since 1921. What has happened in Argentina has been closely watched across the region. With Argentina now legalising abortion up to 14 weeks, activists in major neighbours like Chile and Brazil will no doubt use this precedent to help their cause in rewriting the law in their countries and allow broader reproductive rights in a region known for tough restrictions on abortion. Activists have campaigned for a change in the law for years. The passing came two years after senators narrowly voted against legalising abortion. President Fernández had made reintroducing it one of his campaign promises. "I'm Catholic but I have to legislate for everyone," he argued. The president also said providing free and legal abortions up to the 14th week of pregnancy was a matter of public health as "every year around 38,000 women" are taken to hospital due to clandestine terminations and that "since the restoration of democracy [in 1983] more than 3,000 have died".

Surfer Almost Gets Crushed By Giant Wave

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While 2020 has not been a good year, the tragedy of a global pandemic has shown us the best of humanity – through the selfless efforts of countless individuals and groups to help others in the most difficult circumstances. Phrases such as ‘hero’ and ‘star’ are too often thrown around liberally, but 2020 has shown who they truly are: the front-line NHS and medical workers who have put themselves at risk to treat others, the healthcare professionals who have looked after the most vulnerable, the essential workers who have kept the country running and those who have put the needs of others above their own. Support for those heroes often came from unlikely areas. As lockdowns ground the car industry to a halt, many of those involved in it turned to help tackle Covid-19. Car companies and their staff made and donated PPE, helped develop and build vital medical equipment, delivered care packages and more. Here is a selection of stories showing how the car industry helped in the face of adversity. Mercedes-AMG - Ben Hodgkinson, head of mechanical engineering, Mercedes High Performance Powertrains As head of mechanical engineering for Mercedes High Performance Powertrains, Ben Hodgkinson is used to pressure: he helps make the engines that have powered the Mercedes-AMG F1 team to seven straight drivers’ and constructors’ championships. But working on Lewis Hamilton’s engines pales to the challenge of reverse-engineering a small medical device. “I’ve been in motorsport a long time, so I’ve never known any other pace,” he says. “It can be stressful, but I’ve managed it by saying ‘it’s not life or death’. But this actually was life or death. There was an intensity beyond anything I’ve experienced in F1.” The WhisperFlow continuous positive airways pressure (CPAP) unit is a mechanical device that enables consistent and effective oxygen delivery to a patient. Hodgkinson became involved in reworking it through his role as a guest lecturer at University College London, a position he was recruited to by Professor Tim Baker. The two had worked together at motorsport firms Mountune and AER. “When Covid-19 was accelerating in March, Tim called to ask if I could help UCL Engineering work on some respiratory units,” says Hodgkinson. The government focus was on ventilators, but Professor Mervyn Singer and others at UCL Hospital weren’t convinced: their research, and the experience of colleagues in Italy, suggested less invasive CPAP devices could be a better solution. But most modern CPAPs required the same facilities as ventilators, so availability was limited. “Mervyn found an old WhisperFlow in the UCL museum,” says Hodgkinson. “Tim asked if I could help reverse-engineer it.” With permission from Andy Cowell, the then boss of Brixworth-based Mercedes HPP, Hodgkinson set off for UCL. “I was imagining a CPAP would be some massive old contraption with bellows and the like, and wondered ‘how can I invent one of those?’ But when I saw a little plastic block with valves in, I went: ‘Wow, that’s easy. We can do that. We can do that fast.’” Hodgkinson sent photos of the WhisperFlow to Cowell, with a request to rope in some more engineers. “He agreed,” says Hodgkinson. “So three friends drove down to UCL with a lot of measurement kit from our lab. “We worked through the night, stopped at 4am for three hours, then worked through until 4am again. By that time, we’d got all the modelling down and sent the first block back to Mercedes HPP. A team at the factory had already been looking at materials. Andy had found another WhisperFlow on eBay and the factory had started analysing it with the machines there. We did a full-on reverse-engineering job on it.”

Reese Witherspoon has something to say about the finance comment which was made by her (now) ex-husband, Ryan Phillippe, at the 2002 Oscars. The actor was recently reminded of the moment, which she had forgotten had ever happened, during a podcast. During the award ceremony that year, when Phillippe and Witherspoon had taken the stage to present, the actor had told her that she should speak before him, because “you make more money than I do”. In November 2006, the couple split after seven years of marriage, and finalised their divorce in 2008. They have two kids together — daughter Ava (21) and son Deacon (17). During a recent podcast with journalist Margaret Gardiner on The HFPA in Conversation, Witherspoon said: “You’re reminding me of that! I forgot that ever happened. But you’re right, he did say that, and no, it wasn’t scripted. He didn’t tell me he was going to say that before it happened on air. So I was a little bit flummoxed in the moment, too.” “There’s so few women that make a lot of money that sometimes they’re shamed for it, and sometimes they are expected to give more and do more and be more to others in the same position that may be a male movie star may not be expected,” she said, adding: “But I do think gender norms have changed quite a bit since that moment in 2000 or something.” Around the world, conversations on equal and better pay for women keep happening. And while it is encouraging to see women get paid whatever is their due, there are moments when they are belittled for it. In the podcast, the actor recalled that her daughter once came home from school “in tears” over a comment made about money. She said Ava “felt so embarrassed” when her classmates brought up the fact that her mother was one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood. “I said, ‘Don’t ever feel ashamed of a woman making money.’ There are women all over this world who don’t have an opportunity or education or the ability to make money.” “And the more women who make more money, will give more money away, will take care of their societies, will take care of their communities, will do more with that money. So don’t ever feel bad about your mom making money, and don’t ever feel bad if you make money, and don’t feel embarrassed or ashamed if it’s more than your partner,” Witherspoon, who is also mom to eight-year-old son Tennessee with husband Jim Toth, said.

Russia's deputy prime minister has revealed more than 80% of excess deaths this year are linked to Covid-19, which would mean its death toll is three times higher than previously reported. Excess deaths are the difference between the total number of deaths registered and the average over the previous years for the same period. Official figures say 55,827 people have died with Covid-19 in Russia. The deputy prime minister said excess deaths would take that to 186,000. Countries use different methods when reporting deaths related to the virus, which makes international comparisons difficult. Russia has been criticised for calculating its official deaths from Covid-19 based on the number of post-mortem examinations that list coronavirus as the main cause of death. However, this means that other deaths linked to Covid-19, which did not list it as the main cause of death, will not have been included. The new numbers mean Russia's coronavirus death toll could be the world's third-highest, after the US with 335,000 deaths and Brazil, which has had 192,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. More than 3.1 million infections have been reported in the country. Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said mortality in the first 11 months of 2020 had been 13.8% higher than the previous year. Based on her announcement, that would mean that more than 186,057 deaths were linked directly or indirectly to coronavirus. According to Rosstat, the Russian statistics agency, 229,700 more people had died this year from all causes. But Ms Golikova was adamant the Russian government had never hidden mortality data. "I would like to draw attention to the fact that over 81% of that rise in mortality which took place in that period can be attributed to Covid-19 and the effects of the virus," she said. Sputnik V vaccine rushed out to wary Russians EU starts mass vaccination in 'moment of unity' Coronavirus variants: The science explained Coronavirus-linked deaths in Russia were higher in November than at any time this year. She said December as well as November were worse than previous months because Covid infections were increasing in conjunction with other diseases during the autumn and winter period. President Vladimir Putin has hailed the country's healthcare system as more effective than the rest of the world in tackling the virus, however hospitals in many areas of the country have struggled to cope with the rise in patients. Russia has pinned its hopes on the Sputnik V vaccine, which has now been exported to Belarus, Argentina and Hungary, although it has not been approved by the European Union's Medicines Agency (EMA).

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It’s been a good year for 8K TV sales in 2020. Sales numbers have doubled compared to 2019 and are set to have a similar rate of growth in 2021 – while a recent report by Deloitte predicts sales of about a million 8K TV units in 2021. That success seems to be mirrored by an expansion of 8K TV ranges from the likes of Samsung and LG, with both TV brands doubling down on 8K sets, ensuring their highest-spec and highest-price models feature an 8K panel. All signs point to 8K being the TV technology of tomorrow then – but the full picture may not be as clear as these manufacturers would like. Analyst Paul Gray, who leads Omdia’s TV research — a global firm that provides analysis across the technology ecosystem — says the Deloitte forecast is “highly optimistic”. Omdia’s own prediction is not nearly as upbeat as Deloitte’s: “We expect 250-300 thousand 8K TVs to ship this year [2020], with around 600 thousand next year,” says Gray in an interview. “If we get to the million mark, it would need the Chinese market to take off, yet in China there is barely any 4K TV channels.” Even the optimistic figure is a far cry from TVs porting the lower 4K resolution standard. In 2019 alone, a staggering 100 million units of 4K TVs were sold, making it the most po[CENSORED]r resolution in the market, many times over – and leaving a lot of ground for 8K TVs to make up. According to Omdia’s figures, about 19,000 sets of 8K TVs were sold in 2018. The figure increased by 100,000 in 2019 and reached more than 250,000 in 2020. In itself, it is staggering growth, but in comparison to 4K, the technology has a long way to go to catch up. There are various reasons for this slower pace of adoption for 8K units. The cost, like any other new technology in its early days, is very high. That holds true even though costs have vastly reduced in the past few years. It has dropped swiftly, hence helping ramp up interest in 8K units. According to Deloitte, the average selling price (ASP) of 8K TVs in 2017 was more than $8,000 (around £5,900 / AU$10,600), going down to $5,500 (around £4,070 / AU$7,300) in the following year. It predicts a further reduction in 2021 to $3,300 (around £2,450 / AU$4,350), with entry-level units being offered for as low as $1,500 (around £1,100 / AU$2,000). However, when 4K TVs are available for less than $300 / £300 / AU$500, the disparity is still pretty large.

Previously, we reviewed the least-expensive B550 MicroATX motherboards we could find using the Ryzen 9 3900X CPU. Though some couldn’t handle overclocking, we found that most of these boards had no issues dealing with the then-flagship Ryzen 9 3900X. So what if you want to use the newer Ryzen 9 5950X? For the most part, these boards can handle the new CPU at stock settings, but not PBO or overclocking. For that, you will need to step up a tier. To that end, we’re looking over the Gigabyte B550M Aorus Pro, which has better power delivery, more features, and a slightly higher price tag than entry-level B550 boards. Will it make our best B550 motherboards list? The B550M Aorus Pro includes four SATA ports, a gigabit LAN port, two M.2 sockets (one with a heatsink), a solid audio section, and of course, a VRM said to be able to handle the 5950X. Compared to its little brother, the Gigabyte B550M DS3H, the Aorus Po has better audio, more USB ports and more robust power delivery, making this a well-rounded board for the latest AMD processors, especially if you plan on overclocking. As far as appearance goes, the Aorus Pro is the first board in the company’s lineup that brings some premium aesthetics. It comes with a brushed-aluminum finish on the VRMs and a black PCB. The only integrated lighting on the board is a strip by the audio section. Any RGB lighting will have to be purchased separately and get plugged into the onboard headers. Still, it’s a step up compared to the bargain- basement B550 MicroATX boards we’ve looked at previously. On the performance front, the Aorus Pro blended in well with the other results from our test pool. Our only anomalies come from the PCMark10 suite, where some of the benchmarks are a bit lower than expected. The board ran our processor up to 5 GHz, so we know boost was working correctly with this configuration. Overclocking was successful and happened without Issue. The N-channel MOSFETs ran extremely hot, but were within their operating parameters and did not throttle. Read on for details on the features and performance of the B550M Aorus Pro. All motherboards include an accessory stack and our B550M Aorus Pro is no different. In this case, the low-priced board doesn’t offer much, but enough parts to cover the basics. Below is a complete list of the included accessories. ● (2) SATA cables ● User’s Manual ● Aorus sticker On the top portionof the board, we’ll cover the heatsink/shrouds, socket and the DRAM slot area. The large VRM heatsinks look like they do a good job, but as we see later on, these things get hot, especially when overclocking more power-hungry chips like our Ryzen 9 5950X. Outside of that, we find a single 8-pin EPS plug for CPU power on the top edge. Next to it (also below this heatsink and above the top M.2 socket) are the first two (of five) fan headers. The manual doesn’t specify these headers’ output, so it is best to assume 1A/12W. Regardless of what class the motherboard is, we would like to see at least one with more output. To the right of the socket are the four DRAM slots. Gigabyte lists capacity up to 128GB with supported speeds up to DDR4 4266. This value is a bit lower than most other boards but is still over AMD’s ‘sweet spot’ of DDR4 3600/3733 with the Infinity Fabric 1:1. Just above these slots are two more fan headers and two (of four) RGB headers. In total, we find two 3-pin ARGB headers and two 4-pin RGB headers. Last here is another 4-pin fan header and the 24-pin ATX power connector on the right edge.

Name of the game : Sea of Thieves Price : 19,99$ Link Store : https://store.steampowered.com/app/1172620/Sea_of_Thieves/ Offer ends up after X hours : 5 January Requirements : Minimum: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel Q9450 @ 2.6GHz or AMD Phenom II X6 @ 3.3 GHz Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 650 or AMD Radeon 7750 DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 50 GB available space Recommended : Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel i5 4690 @ 3.5GHz or AMD FX-8150 @ 3.6 GHz Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 770 or AMD Radeon R9 380x DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 50 GB available space

I always enjoy winding down the year with a look at Steam's list of best-selling games. Besides high-profile new releases like Cyberpunk 2077 and surprise indie hits like Phasmophobia, 2020 was another year of gaming dominated by old flames that we just can't seem to break away from. These were the "top 100 games as measured by gross revenue" on Steam in 2020: Platinum Among Us Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Cyberpunk 2077 Destiny 2 Doom Eternal Dota 2 Fall Guy: Ultimate Knockout Grand Theft Auto V Monster Hunter: World PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds Rainbow Six Siege Red Dead Redemption II Gold Ark: Survival Evolved Baldur's Gate 3 Borderlands 3 Crusader Kings III Dead by Daylight Halo: The Master Chief Collection Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord Phasmophobia Sea of Thieves Sid Meier's Civilization VI The Elder Scrolls Online Warframe Silver Assassin's Creed Odyssey Black Desert Online Cities: Skylines Euro Truck Simulator 2 Final Fantasy XIV Online Hades Microsoft Flight Simulator Path of Exile Planet Zoo Raft Rust Stellaris Team Fortress 2 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Total War: Warhammer II War Thunder Bronze Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition American Truck Simulator Apex Legends Arma 3 Call of Duty: Black Ops III Command & Conquer Remastered Collection Conan Exiles Dark Souls III DayZ Death Stranding Deep Rock Galactic Divinity: Original Sin 2 Don't Starve Together Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot Dying Light Europa Universalis IV Fallout 4 Fallout 76 Far Cry 5 Farming Simulator 19 FIFA 21 Football Manager 2021 Grounded GTFO Half-Life: Alyx Hearts of Iron IV Horizon Zero Dawn Human: Fall Flat Hunt: Showdown Lords Mobile Marvel's Avengers Metro Exodus NBA 2K20 NBA 2K21 No Man's Sky Ori and the Will of the Wisps Persona 4 Golden Pummel Party Remnant: From the Ashes Resident Evil 3 RimWorld Risk of Rain 2 Satisfactory Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Smite Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Star Wars: Squadrons Stardew Valley Tabletop Simulator Temtem Terraria The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim The Forest The Hunter: Call of the Wild The Sims 4 Total War: Three Kingdoms Wallpaper Engine Wolcen: Lords of Mayhem World of Warships Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links I'm also fascinated by Steam's most-played section – the games with the highest peak concurrent players in 2020. Cyberpunk and Among Us are represented on the over-200,000-players-at-once list as you might expect, but so is Life is Strange 2. I'm genuinely surprised to see that name show up. Another interesting tidbit via Daniel Ahmad: a ton of us set aside time during the holidays for some (okay more than "some") PC gaming. This year, Steam had 23 million peak concurrent users on Christmas day – a notable step up from 2019 (15.8 million users), 2018 (15.3M), and 2017 (16.2M). If you're curious, Steam also has a spotlight on new releases, Early Access grads, the best of VR, and controller games – "the year's top controller games as measured by daily active controller players."

Epic Moments in Football 2021...

When you’ve spent the past 125 years recording other people’s attempts to create car history, it feels pretty remarkable to be offered the chance to make some yourself. But that’s where we find ourselves, after being approached by a not-at-all-hypothetical car-mad billionaire, a long-time Autocar reader who fancies setting up his own car firm. Said billionaire – who, it must be stressed, we definitely didn’t make up for the sake of justifying a feature – has a theory: since the Autocar team knows so much about the car industry, we’d be the perfect people to set up and run their nascent car firm. We were intrigued and, once promised full creative freedom and the necessary funds, agreed. We divvied up key jobs within the team, with roles assigned based on expertise, authority and the occasional coin toss. All we have to do now is actually invent our new car brand. So can a car magazine actually come up with a brilliant concept for a car company? The big boss - Steve Cropley The brief: Identify a market gap and opportunity for a new car firm, and set a general direction Never waste a good crisis, Winston Churchill is alleged to have said at the start of World War II, implying that great challenges encourage greater solutions. Whether or not he uttered these precise words, we believe the sentiment applies very well to the current situations of Jaguar Land Rover and its Indian parent, Tata Motors. We have formed a small management team of Autocar ‘experts’ tasked (at least, for the sake of this Christmas issue) with finding a plan for a plausible, profitable and all-new car company, based in the UK but capable of big-scale earnings from exports. Our notional launch backer is a major investment fund ready to invest billions with partners in this enterprise, provided there is great confidence it can work well financially. After much deliberation, we believe the answer is to launch a brand-new company, Freelander EV Ltd, created initially to be a satellite of Land Rover (as Volvo supports Polestar) so that it can make selective use of JLR’s talents, resources and suppliers, but heading eventually for public flotation to provide its biggest backers (who, we are confident, would include JLR) with a major financial return once the products and company direction are well established. Others will reveal more about the positioning of our products, but our plan is based on three precepts: ■ Electrically powered compact SUVs show every likelihood of being some of the highest-demand vehicles of both the near and far future. ■ JLR will have a strong interest in supporting an SUV enterprise that helps it move away from diesel power. ■ Freelander is a ‘vacant’ name that already exerts a great deal of appeal, especially since it has ideal size and age group implications for the compact, youth-oriented products that we want to build. Our CEO, Mark Tisshaw, has already begun to formulate plans that would allow the new Freelander range to be created, engineered, launched and sold… The manager - Mark Tisshaw The brief: Develop a business case, as well as key technologies and production capabilities The successful launch of Freelander EV Ltd lies within careful curation and adaptation of things – from components to factories – already within the Jaguar Land Rover world. We’ll identify them and invest in them.

Just like the skin, the hair, too, reacts differently to changing weather conditions — especially for those who experience extreme heat and cold. In winter, the sharp drop in humidity makes the scalp dry and flaky, leading to dandruff and hair damage, unless adequate conditioning is done. If you are someone who is struggling to tame your tresses and protect them from damage, consider linseed as your go-to hair product. Linseed oil — also known as flaxseed oil or flax oil (in edible form) — is believed to be a good conditioner for the hair. It keeps it moisturized and protected, just what you need this winter. In fact, here is a simple DIY with which you can nourish your hair at home, without worrying about stepping out and spending big bucks at the salon. Read on. Things you will need: Linseed – 4 cups Water – 1 cup Any essential oil A bowl Method: * Before you begin the process, put linseed in a bowl of water and soak overnight. * In the morning, heat it in a saucepan until it thickens, then sieve the liquid into another bowl. * Add a few drops of any essential oil of your choice, for fragrance. * Store the gel inside the refrigerator, or in a cool place. * Apply this as a conditioner, after you have washed your hair. Leave it on for some time and then wash thoroughly once again to rinse it off. * If you have frizzy hair, this concoction will give it strength and texture. Would you like to try it?

A prominent Saudi female activist, who campaigned for women's right to drive, has been sentenced to more than five years in prison. Loujain al-Hathloul, 31, has already been in a maximum security prison for two and a half years. She and other activists were detained in 2018 on charges including contacts with organisations hostile to Saudi Arabia. International human rights groups have repeatedly called for her release. But on Monday, the country's Specialised Criminal Court, which was set up to try terrorism cases, convicted her of various charges including trying to harm national security and advance a foreign agenda. It sentenced her to five years and eight months in prison. Two years and ten months of the sentence are said to have been suspended. She and her family have denied all charges. They have also said that she has been tortured in jail - accusations the court dismissed. Saudi Arabia's human rights problems that won't go away Activist 'offered freedom if she denies torture' How Saudi’s ‘new direction’ is changing life for women like me Hathloul was detained just weeks before Saudi women were finally allowed to drive in 2018 - the cause she championed. Saudi officials insist her detention has nothing to do with that issue. Hathloul's family says she was held incommunicado for three months following her arrest, and that she was subjected to electric shocks, whippings, and sexual harassment. They also allege that she was offered freedom if she agreed to say she was not tortured. Human rights experts have said her trial did not meet international standards. In November, Amnesty International condemned her transfer to the Specialised Criminal Court, saying it exposed "the brutality and hypocrisy" of Saudi authorities. The case is seen as further damaging the reputation of Saudi Arabia's controversial de facto leader Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, known as MBS. He has led a programme of reforms, including lifting the ban on women driving, in a bid to open up the conservative kingdom to investment. But he has also been condemned for the continued crackdown on rights activists, as well as the Saudi authorities' role in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Loujain Al-Hathloul is now even more famous for her incarceration than she was for her bold activism in the campaign for the right to drive. She has come to symbolise the human rights abuses that stubbornly cast a long shadow over Saudi Arabia's drive for economic and social reform - while it keeps an increasingly tight rein on political dissent. When Joe Biden takes over as US president, he is expected to take a tougher stance on human rights violations. But Saudi officials insist they will continue to chart their own course. The Kingdom believes its role as the world's top oil exporter and regional power player matter to the international community above all else. Al-Hathloul's sentence, including years of suspended and already-served time, mean she and other activists could be freed in the new year. That may help ease pressure on a Kingdom, which also does not want to be seen as bending to the dictates of others.

Few have as detailed a knowledge about car-related arcana as Frankel, or are as generous in sharing it every Christmas. Here's this year's nuggets of wisdom. 1 Carroll Shelby didn’t catch fire at Le Mans in 1959. 2 Enzo Ferrari didn’t attend Le Mans in 1966. 3 There was no meaningful battle between Ford and Ferrari in the closing stage of the race. 4 There’s no evidence that Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles ever had a physical fight. 5 Fiat didn’t buy Ferrari in 1965. 6 Lee Iacocca had nothing to do with Ford’s attempted purchase of Ferrari. 7 Carroll Shelby wasn’t the first American to win Le Mans. Phil Hill won in 1958 and Luigi Chinetti had already applied for US citizenship when he won in 1949; it was granted the following year. 8 Ken Miles wasn’t left behind at Le Mans in 1965. Cars that have also been planes Ambassador (Austin and Airspeed) Aztek (Pontiac and Piper) Caravan (Dodge and Cessna) Caravelle (Volkswagen and Sud Aviation) Comet (Mercury and De Havilland) Concorde (Chrysler and Aerospatiale/BAC) Cutlass (Oldsmobile and Vought) Electra (Buick and Lockheed) Metro (Austin and Swearingen) Mustang (Ford and North American) Spitfiire (Triumph and Supermarine) Valiant (Chrysler and Vickers) Victor (Vauxhall and Handley Page) Viggen (Saab and Saab) Every manufacturer to have supplied tyres in Formula 1 Pirelli

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