bbc--2020-06-30--Trump 'most informed person on planet earth' on US threats

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany has said President Trump is the `` most informed person on planet earth '' @ @ @ @ @ .
She made the comments after a journalist asked if the president does not read @ @ @ @ @ Mr Trump is under pressure over reports that he was briefed on intelligence that Russia @ @ @ @ @ kill US troops in Afghanistan but did not act in response .
Mr Trump said @ @ @ @ @ briefing .
However the New York Times , Washington Post and Wall Street Journal reported @ @ @ @ @ written briefing earlier this year , quoting unnamed US officials .
Russia denied the initial @ @ @ @ @ said it had not made any deal with government intelligence .
Read more : Trump @ @ @ @ @ bounties '

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany has said President Trump is the "most informed person on planet earth" about threats facing the US.
She made the comments after a journalist asked if the president does not read his daily intelligence briefings.
Mr Trump is under pressure over reports that he was briefed on intelligence that Russia had paid Islamist militants to kill US troops in Afghanistan but did not act in response.
Mr Trump said he had not seen the briefing. However the New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal reported that he had received a written briefing earlier this year, quoting unnamed US officials.
Russia denied the initial reports, while the Taliban said it had not made any deal with government intelligence.
Read more: Trump got 'written briefing on Russia bounties'


bbc--2020-07-01--Coronavirus: Colombian mayor shops son to police for breaking lockdown

The mayor of a town in Colombia has been praised after he turned his own son in to the police for breaking a curfew imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus .
Carlos Higgins Villanueva said he had to set an example .
`` My family are the first who have to respect the rules , '' he tweeted .
There have been more than 95,000 confirmed cases of the virus in Colombia and more than 3,300 people have died .
Atlántico , the northern state where Mr Higgins is mayor of the small town of Juan de Acosta @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infections .
Mayor Higgins posted pictures of himself driving his son , his nephew and a man he described as `` a great friend '' to the police station , where he asked officers `` to deal with the rule-breakers as they see fit '' .
You may also be interested in : The three had been caught on video celebrating Father 's Day .
The party they attended was not only held during the hours of a strict curfew but there was also alcohol on sale , in contravention of a temporary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mayor Higgins wrote on Twitter : `` My relatives are the first who have to respect these measures .
I will not allow them to put the lives of our villagers at risk just because they wanted to have some drinks . ''
`` I have other younger sons and he could bring the virus home if he caught it , '' he said about why he felt his eldest had to learn his lesson .
`` I wanted to set an example so that the rest of the community respects the rules @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been ordered to do community service .
The municipal authorities have adopted the mayor 's approach and launched a campaign with the motto : `` If I see you at a party , drinking , outside your home , visiting or receiving visits or playing football , I will grass on you and you will go to the police . ''
The mayor 's actions were widely praised , with residents saying that he had put in practice the saying `` the law starts at home '' .

"I have other younger sons and he could bring the virus home if he caught it," he said about why he felt his eldest had to learn his lesson. "I wanted to set an example so that the rest of the community respects the rules," he added.


bbc--2020-06-30--Golden State Killer survivor: 'We don't own that shame'

Joseph DeAngelo has pleaded guilty to 13 murders and numerous sexual assaults that took place in the 1970s and 1980s @ @ @ @ @ Wardlow were both young teenagers when they were assaulted by DeAngelo , who was known @ @ @ @ @ .
They were present while he was charged .
The 74-year-old is expected to be @ @ @ @

Joseph DeAngelo has pleaded guilty to 13 murders and numerous sexual assaults that took place in the 1970s and 1980s.
Kris Pedretti and Meredith Wardlow were both young teenagers when they were assaulted by DeAngelo, who was known as the Golden State Killer. They were present while he was charged.
The 74-year-old is expected to be sentenced in August.


bbc--2020-07-01--Photos of Portland's 'Avenue of Roses' win award

A series showing the `` rampant urban growth '' of Portland , in the US state of Oregon , has won the LensCulture Street Photography Awards 2020 .
Kevin Fletcher 's photos were taken along a single street known as the Avenue of Roses , less than a mile from where he lives .
`` I am drawn to the sublime beauty and stories that exist in places like this , places so normal , so daily , and so banal that we tend to overlook them , '' Fletcher said .
`` The Avenue of Roses used to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` However , consistent urban growth has tsunamied right up to and over it , creating a taught rope of pavement compressed on both sides by gentrification and increased housing prices .
`` It has also become a socio-political line that divides the inner portions of the city , epitomised by 'green ' modernisation and increasing wealth , from the perimeter neighbourhoods that do n't benefit in the same way . ''
Other winning images show the liveliness of society before lockdowns began in many parts of the world .
Jim Casper @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publication dedicated to contemporary photography , said : `` Great photographs and series from 'normal life ' , just a few months ago now , seem charged with new poignancy as they reflect the liveliness and excitement of human interactions before street life stopped for a while . ''
Here is a selection of pictures from the 39 other winning photographers , chosen from hundreds of entries from 19 countries .
Second-place series : Wee Muckers - Youth of Belfast , by Toby Rinder , from Germany Toby Binder has been documenting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ communities for more than a decade .
After the Brexit referendum , he focused his work on Belfast .
Third-place series : Subordinate , by Michael McIlvaney from the UK '' These images aim to demonstrate , whether actually or conceptually , the daily collisions between one 's inner private self and the everyday reality of urban city living , '' photographer Michael McIlvaney said .
`` They form part of a project intended to explore the metaphors associated with this tension : vulnerability , alienation , subordination , fear , threat , @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Jim Casper, editor-in-chief of LensCulture, an online publication dedicated to contemporary photography, said: "Great photographs and series from 'normal life', just a few months ago now, seem charged with new poignancy as they reflect the liveliness and excitement of human interactions before street life stopped for a while."


bbc--2020-06-30--Hong Kong security law: Residents react to controversial new powers

China has passed a controversial security law giving it new powers over Hong Kong , including criminalising sedition and effectively @ @ @ @ @ the BBC , pro-democracy supporters say they are concerned the new law takes away the @ @ @ @ @ ' form of government .
However those supporting the new law hope it brings greater @ @ @ @ @ which has seen widespread unrest and instability from the pro-democracy movement .
• China 's @ @ @ @ @ Hong Kong worried ?
• The city of two masks faces a new crisis

China has passed a controversial security law giving it new powers over Hong Kong, including criminalising sedition and effectively curtailing protests.
Speaking to the BBC, pro-democracy supporters say they are concerned the new law takes away the 'one country, two systems' form of government.
However those supporting the new law hope it brings greater security to Hong Kong, which has seen widespread unrest and instability from the pro-democracy movement.
Produced by BBC News Chinese
Read more:


bbc--2020-06-30--Covid-19: How to be a travel vlogger in lockdown

Travel vlogger Bogdan Alexe has been coming up with different ways to make films after borders were closed during lockdown @ @ @ @ @ Canterbury , Kent , has turned to producing videos using green screen and archive footage @ @ @ @ @ I do n't think travel vlogging will see the end of days after this .
@ @ @ @ @ still advising against all non-essential travel , but that is going to be lifted on @ @ @ @ @ the public health risk is no longer `` unacceptably high '' .
But this official @ @ @ @ @ Office is separate from so called `` international travel corridors '' .
These would be @ @ @ @ @ starting as early as 4 July - where anyone returning from those nations would not @ @ @ @ @ UK for a fortnight upon their return .

Travel vlogger Bogdan Alexe has been coming up with different ways to make films after borders were closed during lockdown.
The YouTuber, from Canterbury, Kent, has turned to producing videos using green screen and archive footage.
He said: "I don't think travel vlogging will see the end of days after this."
The Foreign Office is still advising against all non-essential travel, but that is going to be lifted on 6 July for countries where the public health risk is no longer "unacceptably high".
But this official travel advice from the Foreign Office is separate from so called "international travel corridors".
These would be agreements with other countries - starting as early as 4 July - where anyone returning from those nations would not need to self-isolate in the UK for a fortnight upon their return.
Video producer: Stuart Maisner


bbc--2020-06-30--The orphaned baby squirrel eating video that went viral

Wildlife photographer and zoologist Dani Connor discovered four baby squirrel siblings , after finding out their mum had died .
@ @ @ @ @ British but lives in northern Sweden , used to take photos of the squirrels ’ @ @ @ @ @ Remy .
But when she found Remy had died , she started feeding the baby @ @ @ @ @ young to fend for themselves .
She now says she ’ s spent over 100 @ @ @ @ @ ’ re totally used to her being around and filming them .
Listen to Newsbeat @ @ @ @ @ weekdays - or listen back here .

Wildlife photographer and zoologist Dani Connor discovered four baby squirrel siblings, after finding out their mum had died.
Dani, who’s British but lives in northern Sweden, used to take photos of the squirrels’ mum, who she named Remy.
But when she found Remy had died, she started feeding the baby squirrels as they were too young to fend for themselves.
She now says she’s spent over 100 hours with them and they’re totally used to her being around and filming them.
Video edited by Imran Rahman-Jones.
Follow Newsbeat on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.


bbc--2020-06-30--Mystery over monster star's vanishing act

Astronomers have been baffled by the disappearance of a massive star they had been observing .
They now wonder whether the distant object collapsed to form a black hole without exploding in a supernova .
If correct , it would be the first example of such a huge stellar object coming to the end of its life in this manner .
But there is another possibility , the study in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society reports .
The object 's brightness might have dipped because it is partially obscured by dust .
It is located some 75 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in the constellation of Aquarius .
The giant star belongs - or belonged - to a type known as a luminous blue variable ; it is some 2.5 million times brighter than the Sun .
Stars of this kind are unstable , showing occasional dramatic shifts in their spectra - the amount of light emitted at different wavelengths - and brightness .
Between 2001 and 2011 , various teams of astronomers studied the massive star , concluding that it was in a late stage of evolution .
The Kinman Dwarf galaxy is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its individual stars , but they can detect the signatures of some of them .
In 2019 , a team led by PhD student Andrew Allan of Trinity College Dublin , Ireland , targeted the galaxy , with the aim of finding out more about how very massive stars end their lives .
But when they pointed the European Southern Observatory 's ( Eso ) Very Large Telescope ( VLT ) at it , they could no longer find the tell-tale signatures of the star .
Mr Allan commented : `` We were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had disappeared ! ''
He added : `` It would be highly unusual for such a massive star to disappear without producing a bright supernova explosion . ''
The older observations seem to indicate that the star was experiencing giant eruptions , in which material is lost from the star .
These are thought to have stopped sometime after 2011 .
Luminous blue variable stars such as this one are prone to such outbursts over the course of their life .
They cause the star to lose mass and lead to a dramatic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ observations and models , the astronomers suggest two explanations for the star 's disappearance and lack of a supernova .
The outbursts may have resulted in the luminous blue variable being transformed into a less luminous star , which could also be partly hidden by dust .
Alternatively , the team says the star may have collapsed into a black hole , without producing a supernova explosion .
This would be a rare event : our current understanding of how massive stars die suggests most of them meet their end in a violent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is correct , says Mr Allan , `` this would be the first direct detection of such a monster star ending its life in this manner '' .
Co-author Jose Groh , also of Trinity College Dublin , commented : `` We may have detected one of the most massive stars of the local Universe going gently into the night . ''
Future studies are needed to confirm what happened to the star .
Eso 's Extremely Large Telescope ( ELT ) - expected to begin operations in 2025 - will be capable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the Kinman Dwarf , helping to shed more light on cosmic mysteries such as this one .

Between 2001 and 2011, various teams of astronomers studied the massive star, concluding that it was in a late stage of evolution. The Kinman Dwarf galaxy is too far away for astronomers to see its individual stars, but they can detect the signatures of some of them.


bbc--2020-06-29--Family rescue bear cub swimming with a jar stuck on its head

A bear cub in Wisconsin found itself in trouble when it managed to get a plastic jar stuck on its @ @ @ @ @ her family were fishing when they spotted the animal swimming in the lake and decided @ @ @ @ @ .

A bear cub in Wisconsin found itself in trouble when it managed to get a plastic jar stuck on its head.
Tricia Hurt and her family were fishing when they spotted the animal swimming in the lake and decided to lend a helping hand.


bbc--2020-06-30--The Cameroonian waging war against a French war hero’s statue

Cameroonian activist Andre Blaise Essama has been on a decades-long mission to purge his country of colonial-era symbols , long before the issue came to international prominence in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests .
His main target has been French World War Two hero Gen Philippe Leclerc in the country 's biggest city , Douala .
`` I have decapitated Leclerc 's head seven times and toppled the statue at least 20 times , '' Mr Essama told the BBC .
`` I use my bare hands ... but I make an incantation to the ancestors first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is to replace them with Cameroonian and other African heroes , but he will make an exception for those who campaigned for `` the good of humanity '' .
He is especially keen on erecting a statue of Diana , the late Princess of Wales .
`` Diana was against racism and she stood for humanity .
We loved her here in Cameroon , '' Mr Essama said .
Mr Essama has also targeted a statue of Gustav Nachtigal , who arrived in Cameroon in 1884 to establish a German empire .
During @ @ @ @ @ @ @ troops forced the Germans out , later splitting the German-occupied territory between them .
The authorities see his activities as vandalism , arguing that African heroes can be celebrated without removing colonial symbols .
Mr Essama has been imprisoned several times for cutting the head off Gen Leclerc 's statue - serving up to six months at a time .
Sometimes he has avoided a jail term by paying fines , with the money mostly raised by his supporters in Cameroon and in the diaspora .
Each time he has damaged Gen Leclerc @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Douala , the authorities have restored it .
With one hand on hip , the other holding a walking stick , the French hero stands on a plinth in front of a curved stone relief depicting the French World War Two military arsenal , including tanks and planes .
It was erected by the French colonisers in 1948 , long before Cameroon became independent in 1960 .
'Seen as a god in France' In France , Gen Leclerc is celebrated for his role in rallying troops in the 1940s in France 's then-colonies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Leclerc is the great hero who helped liberate France ... so the French regard him as a god , '' a history professor at the UK 's Oxford University , Robert Gildea , told the BBC .
But he was unpopular in Cameroon , retired Cameroonian academic Prof Valere Epee said .
`` Cameroonians did n't like him because he seemed not to care for the people .
`` He was not like French President Charles de Gaulle , who visited Cameroon twice , and whom people seem to have an affection for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plane crash in Algeria in 1947 , three years after the liberation of Paris .
Thousands of people lined the streets in the French capital to pay tribute to him .
Several memorial plaques have been installed in his honour in France , two streets in Paris have been named after him and a military tank , still in service , bears his name .
His venerated status does not impress Mr Essama .
`` He is not our hero , '' says the 44-year-old activist , who is a computer science graduate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ represent the erasure of Cameroonian colonial memory and replacing it with a French one . ''
Mr Essama has collected seven heads of Gen Leclerc over the years , and has occasionally taken them on to the streets to `` sensitise Cameroonians about the country 's history '' .
He says he was inspired by Cameroonian nationalist Mboua Massock , who once graffitied the general 's statue with the words : `` Our own heroes and martyrs first . ''
`` We sing in our anthem , 'Oh Cameroon land of our ancestors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ancestors are not represented in public spaces ? ''
In 1991 , Cameroon 's President Paul Biya signed a declaration to rehabilitate the memory of the country 's heroes who had been denigrated because of their role during the fight for independence .
`` Not much has been done since the law was signed , '' Mr Essama said .
A history professor at the University of South Africa , Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni , says that statues and monuments `` have become soft targets in the struggle against decolonisation '' .
`` The Europeans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on earth and , therefore , there was emptiness outside Europe , which was waiting to be discovered , '' he told the BBC , quoting the late American anthropologist James Blaut 's views on Eurocentrism .
`` If you follow that logic : you discover a place , you name it , eliminate what you find there , then you conquer , then you own it , and statues are symbols of ownership , '' he said .
`` In the former colonies , the statues mean that the colonisers have not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the local people but their presence in the home country means that this is the conqueror of the world , this is our hero . ''
He dismisses the argument that statues should be protected because of their historical significance .
`` If your statue is history , the indigenous people are saying : 'But you wrote your history on top of my history .
It is overshadowing our own histories . '
'' You may also be interested in : • Belgium 'wakes up ' to its bloody colonial past Prof Ndlovu-Gatsheni @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of a multifaceted campaign by Africans .
`` There are those who topple statues , others want to stop the use of West Africa 's CFA currency [ which is pegged to the euro ] , others are pushing for reparations , all these are part of the struggle against the empire . ''
As for Mr Essama , he is now less focussed on decapitating statues , turning his attention to fundraising to build statues of Cameroonian heroes and calling for reparations for colonial-era crimes .
So far his advocacy group , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two statues .
One is of Samuel Mbappé Léppé , considered Cameroon 's best ever footballer , `` better than Roger Milla and Samuel Eto ' o '' , Mr Essama says .
The other is of John Ngu Foncha , a former prime minister who championed the cause of greater autonomy for Cameroon 's mainly English-speaking regions .
Gen Leclerc 's statue does still occupy Mr Essama 's mind , though it has become more difficult to target because it is now sealed off and has guards protecting it .
`` He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said with a wry chuckle .

"In the former colonies, the statues mean that the colonisers have not repented for the sins they committed against the local people but their presence in the home country means that this is the conqueror of the world, this is our hero."


bbc--2020-06-30--Persuading China to switch to 'fake' pork

`` Ma po tofu has to be a favourite , '' says David Yeung , a smile evident in his voice .
`` It 's very spicy , a little bit numbing , and usually sprinkled with minced pork . ''
Hong Kong-based Mr Yeung is the founder of OmniPork , part of the environmentally focused venture Green Monday .
OmniPork is a plant-based meat alternative that is now on the menu in many of Hong Kong 's trendiest restaurants , hotels and bars .
A vegetarian of two decades , he 's explaining how substitute meat is not just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like Impossible Foods , and Beyond Meat , which have become well known for their burgers .
He says the Asian market is hungry for home grown meat alternatives .
`` Almost everywhere in Asia - Japan , Korea , Vietnam , Thailand , Singapore , especially mainland China - the number one meat is pork .
The only exceptions are Muslim countries . ''
Indeed , China loves pork .
The country of almost 1.4 billion consumes more pork per capita than any other nation .
Half of the world 's pork @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acceleration has been rapid .
In the 1960s China annually consumed less than 5kg per capita .
By the late 1980s this was 20kg and has since tripled to over 60kg , according to UN figures .
But the mass-market meat industry has brought with it some very pressing problems , not least , disease .
In 2019 African swine fever led to the mass slaughter of pigs in China , and prices rose 25-30 % .
And this week , a new strain of flu with `` pandemic potential '' has also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This has thrown a sharp focus on meat supply chains and production , something the coronavirus pandemic has intensified .
Localised outbreaks of coronavirus have been appearing across the globe in meat-processing companies , even where infection rates in the general population are low .
It 's not entirely clear as to why .
• Why are there outbreaks in meat processing plants ?
Covid-19 , environmental issues and growing health concerns in a nation with increasingly high rates of obesity , have all encouraged a new wave of plant protein firms to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Beijing-based Zhenmeat is looking at 3D printing elements of its products to mimic bone or muscle .
`` We eat a lot of different parts of the pig .
The Chinese consumer loves different parts for different dishes but we are focusing in on Szechuan hot pot , '' says chief executive Vincent Lu .
Zhenmeat is throwing its marketing behind one product in particular , created with the Institute of Alternative Protein in Beijing , a meat-free alternative to pork tenderloin , which is popular in hot pot .
It is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of cooking .
But Mr Lu says it 's all part of the firm 's strategy .
`` If you look at the US market , consumers love burgers .
So what kind of product do consumers love in the Chinese market ?
Hot pot is the most loved dish . ''
But none of this innovation comes cheaply .
Matilda Ho is the founder of Bits x Bites , China 's first food technology venture capital group .
She has backed four different protein companies , from plant-based to cell-based .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' she says .
`` But will the one-off purchase for the novelty value translate into repeat purchase and product loyalty ?
That 's the big question .
In cities like Shanghai , Beijing and Chengdu , consumers are known to be eager experimenters when it comes to new food trends .
But only a few will turn into behaviour change . ''
Ms Ho also says it is easy to overstate climate worries as a reason for Chinese consumers to switch from animal protein .
`` Taste will always be the driver @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It wo n't be environmental concerns . ''
Shaun Rein , managing director of the China Market Research Group in Shanghai , says the market is still small but there is potential , given the open-minded nature of Chinese cookery and a willingness of shoppers to experiment .
`` Chinese consumers are indeed always looking for alternative sources of protein .
We think the market for plant-based meat is about $ 910m ( £730m ) and will grow about 20-25 % annually .
There 's a lot of excitement about these 'fake ' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ small . ''
But price is a big driver when it comes to long-term change , he adds .
`` When we interviewed blue-collar workers one of their main concerns was the price .
The big winner could be 'fake ' meat , or it could be seafood . ''
Bruce Friedrich is the co-founder of the Good Food Institute , which researches and promotes meat alternatives .
He is convinced the price issue will be solved .
`` While the plant-based meat costs a little bit more than regular meat it will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ looking at the way industrial animal meat is produced .
`` But if you can make crops which mimic the way meat tastes and smells and looks , and scale that up , it will become cheaper than animal meat .
Then it becomes not just for vegetarians and 'flexitarians ' ( those who cut meat consumption by going meat-free on certain days ) but for everybody . ''
Maria Lettini is executive director of FAIRR , a global network of investors concerned with issues surrounding intensive animal agriculture .
She says with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pay more for our meat in the future .
`` How are we going to make this system [ of meat production ] safe , how are we going to make it more resilient - without that coming at some kind of cost or investment ?
`` I do n't think meat at our grocery stores is being correctly valued .
We probably need to be spending more to be able to consume it as much as we are . ''
David Yeung of OmniPork says that his product is comparable on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ brand Pizza Express 's products in Hong Kong , and Taco Bell branches in Asia .
These are big names , but will this new breed of protein pretenders become mainstream any time soon ?
Mr Yeung does n't expect everyone to become vegan , but insists `` we are on a ramp-up for the whole industry '' and that Asia is leading this change .
`` This is n't just about consumer trends , it 's about climate change , the pandemic , swine fever .
Governments will have to look at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or a trend - but about sustainability of the planet . ''

"We are just at the beginning," she says. "But will the one-off purchase for the novelty value translate into repeat purchase and product loyalty? That's the big question. In cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu, consumers are known to be eager experimenters when it comes to new food trends. But only a few will turn into behaviour change."


bbc--2020-06-30--Coronavirus: The human cost of fake news in India

Fake or misleading news can have a real impact on those who find themselves the targets .
This has been a particular problem in India during the coronavirus pandemic , where reliable sources of news are frequently drowned out by unverified information online .
False information has had serious consequences for minority communities as well as some business sectors such as the meat industry .
The Reality Check team has looked at the extent of this misinformation and some of those directly affected .
India 's religious fault lines are an important theme across false stories spreading online , something @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus outbreak .
We 've looked back at claims debunked by five Indian fact-checking websites between January and June this year .
They fall under four broad headings : Of the 1,447 fact-checks on five Indian websites , claims around coronavirus dominated , making up 58 % of them .
This was largely related to false cures , lockdown rumours and conspiracy theories about the origins of the virus .
In the period between January and early March ( before the coronavirus outbreak took hold ) , fake news was dominated by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that offers citizenship to people from three neighbouring countries , but only if they are not Muslim .
The law led to protests across the country by those who said it would marginalise Muslims .
Riots in mainly Muslim neighbourhoods in north-east Delhi in February also fuelled a lot of misleading claims around that time .
This included doctored videos , fake images , the reusing of old videos and images in a different context , fake messages , and messages with fake attributions .
Our analysis found that misinformation targeting Muslims spiked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This was after several members of an Islamic group called the Tablighi Jamaat , who had attended a religious gathering in Delhi , tested positive .
As more members of the group tested positive , false claims about Muslims deliberately spreading the virus became viral .
In several parts of the country , there were calls for an economic boycott of Muslim businesses .
Vegetable seller Imran - who did n't want to use his real name - told the BBC that when a fake video on WhatsApp said to show a Muslim @ @ @ @ @ @ @ calls for a boycott of Muslims grew .
`` We were scared to enter villages where we would usually go to sell vegetables , '' said Imran , who lives in Uttar Pradesh state .
Imran and other vegetable vendors from his community now only sell their produce at a city market .
In the capital Delhi , the Minorities Commission , which works to safeguard the rights of minority communities , formally notified the police of the need to act against people stopping Muslims from entering residential areas or carrying on with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who were associated with the Tablighi Jamaat [ were attacked ] , there were attacks on Muslims in all parts of India , '' Zafarul Islam , the chairman of the commission , told the BBC .
False claims were also widely spread in India that eating vegetarian food and eliminating meat from your diet could prevent you getting coronavirus .
The government launched campaigns to stop the spread of such misinformation .
These false WhatsApp messages and social media posts had an impact on both Muslim and non-Muslim groups alike who were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Indian authorities made an assessment that by April , misinformation about meat-eating generally had contributed to losses of up to 130bn rupees ( £1.43bn ) in the poultry industry .
Poultry is one of the main forms of meat consumed in India .
`` We were giving away chicken for free because we did n't know what to do with the stock , '' said Sujit Prabhavle , a meat trader in the western state of Maharashtra .
`` Our sales fell by 80 % , '' he said .
`` I saw @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chicken would spread coronavirus , so people stopped buying meat , '' said Touhid Baraskar , another meat seller from Maharashtra .
• EASY STEPS : How to keep safe • A SIMPLE GUIDE : What are the symptoms ?
• CONTAINMENT : What it means to self-isolate • MAPS AND CHARTS : Visual guide to the outbreak Some of the most viral false information has included fake claims that former top Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar had asked for meat shops to be shut .
`` When misinformation comes from sources they trust @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way without fact-checking it , '' said Pratik Sinha , founder of Alt-News , a fact-checking website .
The meat industry was not the only victim of fake news .
The fall in sales in the poultry industry had a major knock-on effect on the sale of eggs and of maize - which goes into much of the feed for chickens .
The sale of eggs fell by 30 % in Delhi , 21 % in Mumbai and by 52 % in Hyderabad in Telangana state between January and June , according to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ selling their produce up to 35 % lower than the minimum support price offered by the Indian government as a result of the fall in demand .

In the period between January and early March (before the coronavirus outbreak took hold), fake news was dominated by the Citizenship Amendment Act, a new law that offers citizenship to people from three neighbouring countries, but only if they are not Muslim.


bbc--2020-06-29--The black American pioneer who could not change Nascar

Warning : This article contains some offensive language Scott was a pioneering Nascar driver who remains the only African-American to win at the sport 's highest level , but he died in 1990 without ever receiving his official trophy , and at the time they said he finished third .
It was a lie .
Jacksonville , Florida , 1 December 1963 .
Wendell 's grandson Warrick reels off the date and location in double time .
A sharpened intensity flickers hot behind kind eyes as he does .
Much of his 43 years have been spent campaigning for correction @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when the only way you can stop somebody making an attempt on your life is to make them afraid of losing theirs , '' Warrick says of Scott 's pistol strategy .
`` But that 's how it was .
The way people treated my grandfather was messed up . ''
Nascar is a motorsport series born in the USA 's southern states .
Some teams , races and fans have for a long time associated themselves with the Confederate flag - considered by many a symbol of slavery and racism .
Over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ radically changing its image .
The Confederate flag has been banned .
It has embraced the Black Lives Matter movement .
It has added its voice to those condemning police brutality and systemic racism .
The process has not been straightforward .
At a race in Talladega , Alabama , Nascar 's only current black driver was thought to have been the target of a hate crime .
A noose was found in the garage area assigned to Darrell 'Bubba ' Wallace Jr. Nascar gave his team extra time before the race to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tampered with .
Outside , some people were flying the Confederate flag .
On the track , drivers and teams rallied around Wallace in a powerful gesture of solidarity .
An FBI investigation found the noose , apparently in use as a handle on a roller door , had been in that particular garage - randomly assigned to Wallace on the day - since October 2019 .
The FBI closed its investigation .
Amid claims of over-reaction , Nascar pointed out that at their 29 tracks and 1,684 garage stalls , only 11 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knot .
And only one was fashioned in a noose .
But the racism that was believed to have happened to Wallace did happen to Scott .
And in confronting the present , there is power in listening to the past .
That is the message the Scott family has - and this is their story .
If you did n't know how to outpace the law , you would n't last long running moonshine .
Wendell Scott was a quick learner and nobody could catch him in a car .
Born in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with many of Nascar 's early icons .
He rejected the idea of regular work in the town where he grew up - Danville , Virginia .
He dropped out of school and became his own boss , working as a taxi driver .
And like many Nascar legends , such as Junior Johnson , he made money from selling black-market whisky .
He built , maintained and skilfully drove the modified rides that kept him one step ahead of the police .
Scott was a risk-taker determined to make his mark on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him sucked in for life by the time he was 30 .
He had everything you 'd need to flourish in Nascar 's high-octane world and help raise it higher .
It 's just that unlike men like Johnson - known as 'The Last American Hero ' - his skin was the wrong colour .
Scott grew up with the Jim Crow laws that in America 's southern states denied black people equal rights with whites .
His first taste of stock car racing came from the corner of a segregated stand in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ segregated education , having served as a soldier mechanic in America 's segregated army in World War Two .
Looking out onto the track , Scott would recognise some of the other local moonshine runners on the starting grid .
He knew he could handle a car just as well as them .
But what were the chances of him being allowed to actually compete ?
Danville was not a rich town .
Nor was it a particularly progressive one .
It had been the final capital of the Confederacy , the coalition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's civil war and advocated for the right to uphold slavery .
Cotton and tobacco were its employers .
At the Danville racetrack , there was a problem .
Crowds were always lower than elsewhere on the 'Dixie Circuit ' - the regional stock car racing competition of that time .
So promoters settled on a strategy to increase the crowds - they would employ a black driver .
Scott 's moonshining exploits meant he had a reputation .
`` The police told them they ought to talk to that 'darkie ' they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hauling liquor , '' Scott would later explain to Associated Press .
`` That 's how I became a race car driver . ''
Come May 1952 , the scene was set for Scott to run his first race .
It took place in his home town .
Some members of the majority white crowd shouted insults , some threw objects .
But Scott never thought about looking back .
Soon he was competing in as many as five races a week across Virginia and beyond , and the wins began to come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lot of money .
Scott was still running moonshine to make ends meet , even selling it sometimes to other drivers .
But days away from the track were as often as possible all about racing .
Fine tuning equipment , fashioning his own tools , building his own garage .
Scott was a skilled mechanic and engineer who stretched every material resource beyond its limit and back into use again .
It was becoming clear that he was cut out for a grander scene than the local racetracks .
Nascar was emerging @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Its elite level - the Grand National series - offered more money , bigger venues , bigger crowds and faster tracks .
Again , though , Scott needed a way in .
He tried presenting himself to Nascar promoters at courses he could reach , towing his race car and asking to compete .
In those times local officers had the power to issue the licences required .
Several turned Scott down because they did n't want black drivers in the sport , but all he needed was one to give him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Maurice Poston , a part-time postman in Richmond , Virginia .
Scott got his licence in 1953 .
The moment was hugely significant .
But in contrast with Jackie Robinson 's entry into baseball as the first black player in 1949 , or Charlie Sifford 's arrival on the PGA Tour in 1961 , Scott 's landmark passed unannounced and has remained remarkably uncelebrated even to this day .
Poston would tell his local paper years later : `` I told him we 've never had any black drivers and you 're going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : ' I can take it . '
'' Still , to really progress Scott needed a car that matched his abilities and ambition .
He spent $ 2,000 and remortgaged his house to fund it .
Money was always tight .
After some races he would even send his kids out collecting glass bottles to cash in for their deposit .
He would remortgage the family home seven times before the end of his career .
The gamble should have paid off .
Scott topped the points standings for debutants in his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That was enough to win the Rookie of the Year trophy and cash prize , but instead it went to a driver who 'd finished several places behind him and who - like everybody apart from Scott - was white .
Hard Driving , a biography of Scott written by Brian Donovan that features testimony from drivers , manufacturers and racing officials , leaves little doubt that the decision was based on race .
Just like what would happen in Florida two years later .
In 1963 , the Jacksonville race Scott won @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the 'error ' later explained as having been caused by inaccurate scoring .
According to Scott 's grandson Warrick , officials were worried about what would happen when Scott was presented to the white local beauty queen as the victor .
He instead later received a wooden replica trophy with no markings , and paid his winnings when everyone had left .
At another race Scott 's tyres were slashed before getting to the starting grid .
At another a firecracker was thrown at his son Wendell Jr , who was injured @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Birmingham , Alabama , he was discreetly advised to make a quick getaway because a violent mob was set to arrive .
One track , in Darlington , South Carolina , would refuse to let him compete , every year .
At Darlington , races were started not with the traditional green flag but one celebrating the Confederacy .
The track was eventually compelled by federal law to let Scott in after the 1964 Civil Rights Act , but officials still found ways to prevent him from actually racing by inventing impossible last-minute @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mid-1960s Scott had carved out a position of respect and admiration among fans and the majority of his fellow drivers .
His name was often met with cheers from the stands .
His courage and continued determination to compete against the odds were plain for all to see .
But some refused to see it .
Some refused to even look .
For Scott 's grandson Warrick , there was one major obstruction that held him back , and the reason behind that was clear .
`` It was decided , in some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will not allow you a sponsor , '' Warrick says .
`` We will not allow you to be a spokesperson for Shell , Ford , Kellogg 's , Pepsi or Chevrolet .
And I wo n't say those corporations did n't want to do it .
You can imagine someone there thinking : 'Hey , it 's 1965 !
In a business sense this could work…' '' For Nascar , it was : 'We will not supply you with the resources that will even remotely allow you to be competitive . '
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ kill your opportunity with just a gesture .
They do n't even have to open their mouth . '
'' Frank Scott , Warrick 's father , was one of three Scott children who formed a key part of the racing team along with his brother Wendell Jr and sister Deborah .
She was just as skilled a mechanic but only allowed to watch races from the stands .
The boys were trackside for the high points , and for the low points too .
There was perhaps none lower than at Talladega @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The guest of honour was George Wallace , governor of Alabama .
Ten years previously , in June 1963 , Wallace physically blocked the path of black students enrolling at the University of Alabama in one of the flashpoints of the Civil Rights struggle .
Wallace was a long-time ally of Nascar 's founder , Bill France .
The relationship helped build Talladega 's racetrack .
Scott had struggled over the years building up to this point .
While rivals were able to take advantage of increased revenues coming into the sport , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He could only dream of the technological sophistication and resources the big teams could draw on .
So he decided to go all in - just like when he stepped up to Grand National level .
Win or wreck .
The car he bought was a Mercury .
Again , the family home was remortgaged .
Scott was in debt like never before but finally had the car he needed to compete .
He flew off the start line at Talladega , hitting speeds of more than 180mph , previously out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shot me out of a slingshot , '' Scott told a documentary team from The Nashville Network ( TNN ) years later .
`` Yeah , I was rolling , heading toward the front . ''
Everything changed in an instant .
In Scott 's version of events he was clipped from behind by another driver and it spun him out .
His brand new Mercury veered out of control and into the infield .
There was oil on the track and another racer then came sliding off and slammed into the side @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Scott was badly crushed , and he was covered in blood .
Driver Larry Smith was one of the first to come over .
`` Larry came to me , he thought I was dead , '' said Scott .
`` It was a tough roll .
I did n't know I was knocked out .
When they tried to get me out I was hurting so bad .
Broke my leg in seven places , tore my arm to pieces .
I spent 32 days in hospital .
It took me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
Scott was back at Talladega again three months later in August on crutches , watching from the stands .
From there he witnessed another crash in which Smith - the driver who had sought to help him - was killed .
It was the 11th fatality during the years of Scott 's Nascar career .
Once he was fit enough to do so , Scott did race again in that 1973 season .
In October , in Charlotte , North Carolina , he started 38th , made it into the top @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
At the time nobody knew it was the end , perhaps not even Scott .
There was no retirement announcement , no final bow .
He was not quite 52 .
When Scott was visited by the TNN film crew , his old Mercury was out back , half-covered in the dry long grass beside the shell of an old yellow school bus .
It was n't the only car he was keeping hold of .
Each had a story lovingly detailed across several old scrapbooks .
Showing his visitors around , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Scott went over , pointing out the paint marks from where he 'd been hit from behind .
Stepping back to look again , he said : `` That was the best car I ever drove .
But I did n't really get the chance to do my best with it . ''
Warrick was 13 when his grandfather died at the age of 69 .
He had been diagnosed with spinal cancer .
After Scott 's death , the street where he built his home was renamed in his honour .
Keens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Warrick spent a considerable part of his childhood in that house .
`` In a lot of ways Wendell Scott 's story kept getting sadder , '' he says .
`` He raced with guys who ended up being multimillionaires , many of which could n't hold a candle to him on the racetrack , while we struggled mightily in his final years .
All his cars were sold to pay hospital bills .
`` After he retired he returned home and it was regular life .
He was a mechanic up until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when cancer made him sit all the way down . ''
Warrick believes Nascar should go further in recognising what Scott achieved `` not just as a driver but in terms of his overall impact to the sport '' .
In 2010 he founded the Wendell Scott Foundation to further that cause , while also contributing to educational outreach work that seeks to inspire future employment around mechanical engineering .
Basketball was his sport .
He played at college level with Johnson C Smith University and Shaw University .
`` So much of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ omission of critical aspects of history , '' he says .
`` When you 're watching Nascar on TV , when they show clips from the past , you 'll hear about people like Junior Johnson but you never see Wendell Scott .
You never hear commentators referencing his driving style or achievements in their description of live action on the track .
These are the things that create fandom with the new generations .
`` I grew frustrated with the huge gap in representation of who he was .
We were left @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were only just beginning to work it out . ''
In 2004 , Nascar began its Drive for Diversity programme .
Wendell Scott Jr contributed as a mentor .
In 2013 , 40 years after Scott ended his career , Bubba Wallace , from Mobile , Alabama , became the second African-American driver to win a Nascar race , with victory in a third-tier competition .
He is the sport 's fifth black driver since Scott , but the previous four did not regularly compete at the highest level .
In 2015 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Fame .
`` I applaud the steps Nascar has taken , but having one African-American driver in Bubba Wallace is not progression , '' Warrick says .
`` If a white guy tied a noose in that garage , he did it because he learned it from somebody else .
`` What I say to them now is let 's make these changes all the way official .
Let 's make it as real as it can be .
And a big part of that is telling the history .
`` My @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that acts as a bridge across misunderstandings and the desire to hurt .
`` Because that same dude who tried to wreck him off the course , by the end of his career they were standing side by side . ''

Scott honed his racing skills evading capture by police as a moonshine runner
Warning: This article contains some offensive language
Wendell Scott kept a loaded pistol underneath his front seat. He took it out mid-race just the one time - and never again did that guy threaten to wreck him off a track.
Scott was a pioneering Nascar driver who remains the only African-American to win at the sport's highest level, but he died in 1990 without ever receiving his official trophy, and at the time they said he finished third. It was a lie.
Jacksonville, Florida, 1 December 1963. Wendell's grandson Warrick reels off the date and location in double time. A sharpened intensity flickers hot behind kind eyes as he does. Much of his 43 years have been spent campaigning for correction.
"It's a weird dynamic when the only way you can stop somebody making an attempt on your life is to make them afraid of losing theirs," Warrick says of Scott's pistol strategy.
"But that's how it was. The way people treated my grandfather was messed up."
Nascar is a motorsport series born in the USA's southern states. Some teams, races and fans have for a long time associated themselves with the Confederate flag - considered by many a symbol of slavery and racism.
Over the past month, Nascar has been radically changing its image. The Confederate flag has been banned. It has embraced the Black Lives Matter movement. It has added its voice to those condemning police brutality and systemic racism.
The process has not been straightforward. At a race in Talladega, Alabama, Nascar's only current black driver was thought to have been the target of a hate crime. A noose was found in the garage area assigned to Darrell 'Bubba' Wallace Jr.
Nascar gave his team extra time before the race to make sure his car had not been tampered with. Outside, some people were flying the Confederate flag. On the track, drivers and teams rallied around Wallace in a powerful gesture of solidarity.
The noose found in Bubba Wallace's garage stall in Talladega
An FBI investigation found the noose, apparently in use as a handle on a roller door, had been in that particular garage - randomly assigned to Wallace on the day - since October 2019. The FBI closed its investigation. Amid claims of over-reaction, Nascar pointed out that at their 29 tracks and 1,684 garage stalls, only 11 featured a pull-down rope tied in a knot. And only one was fashioned in a noose.
But the racism that was believed to have happened to Wallace did happen to Scott. And in confronting the present, there is power in listening to the past. That is the message the Scott family has - and this is their story.
If you didn't know how to outpace the law, you wouldn't last long running moonshine. Wendell Scott was a quick learner and nobody could catch him in a car.
Born in 1921, Scott's background shares much with many of Nascar's early icons. He rejected the idea of regular work in the town where he grew up - Danville, Virginia. He dropped out of school and became his own boss, working as a taxi driver. And like many Nascar legends, such as Junior Johnson, he made money from selling black-market whisky. He built, maintained and skilfully drove the modified rides that kept him one step ahead of the police.
Scott was a risk-taker determined to make his mark on the world of high thrills that had him sucked in for life by the time he was 30. He had everything you'd need to flourish in Nascar's high-octane world and help raise it higher. It's just that unlike men like Johnson - known as 'The Last American Hero' - his skin was the wrong colour.
Scott grew up with the Jim Crow laws that in America's southern states denied black people equal rights with whites. His first taste of stock car racing came from the corner of a segregated stand in the late 1940s, having been through segregated education, having served as a soldier mechanic in America's segregated army in World War Two.
Looking out onto the track, Scott would recognise some of the other local moonshine runners on the starting grid. He knew he could handle a car just as well as them. But what were the chances of him being allowed to actually compete?
Scott, pictured at home in Danville with sons Wendell Jr (centre) and Frank (left) in 1963
Danville was not a rich town. Nor was it a particularly progressive one. It had been the final capital of the Confederacy, the coalition that fought against the Union in America's civil war and advocated for the right to uphold slavery. Cotton and tobacco were its employers.
At the Danville racetrack, there was a problem. Crowds were always lower than elsewhere on the 'Dixie Circuit' - the regional stock car racing competition of that time. So promoters settled on a strategy to increase the crowds - they would employ a black driver. Scott's moonshining exploits meant he had a reputation.
"The police told them they ought to talk to that 'darkie' they'd been chasing over the back roads hauling liquor," Scott would later explain to Associated Press. "That's how I became a race car driver."
Come May 1952, the scene was set for Scott to run his first race. It took place in his home town. Some members of the majority white crowd shouted insults, some threw objects. But Scott never thought about looking back. Soon he was competing in as many as five races a week across Virginia and beyond, and the wins began to come.
Scott, pictured here in Atlanta during the 1973 season - his final year of competition
It did not earn him a lot of money. Scott was still running moonshine to make ends meet, even selling it sometimes to other drivers. But days away from the track were as often as possible all about racing. Fine tuning equipment, fashioning his own tools, building his own garage. Scott was a skilled mechanic and engineer who stretched every material resource beyond its limit and back into use again.
It was becoming clear that he was cut out for a grander scene than the local racetracks. Nascar was emerging as the larger, more ambitious player. Its elite level - the Grand National series - offered more money, bigger venues, bigger crowds and faster tracks. Again, though, Scott needed a way in.
He tried presenting himself to Nascar promoters at courses he could reach, towing his race car and asking to compete. In those times local officers had the power to issue the licences required. Several turned Scott down because they didn't want black drivers in the sport, but all he needed was one to give him the go-ahead. He found him in Maurice Poston, a part-time postman in Richmond, Virginia. Scott got his licence in 1953.
The moment was hugely significant. But in contrast with Jackie Robinson's entry into baseball as the first black player in 1949, or Charlie Sifford's arrival on the PGA Tour in 1961, Scott's landmark passed unannounced and has remained remarkably uncelebrated even to this day. Poston would tell his local paper years later: "I told him we've never had any black drivers and you're going to be knocked around. He said: 'I can take it.'"
Still, to really progress Scott needed a car that matched his abilities and ambition. He spent $2,000 and remortgaged his house to fund it. Money was always tight. After some races he would even send his kids out collecting glass bottles to cash in for their deposit. He would remortgage the family home seven times before the end of his career.
The gamble should have paid off. Scott topped the points standings for debutants in his first elite Nascar season, 1961. That was enough to win the Rookie of the Year trophy and cash prize, but instead it went to a driver who'd finished several places behind him and who - like everybody apart from Scott - was white.
Scott walks away from a crash in July 1970 at Trenton Speedway. His car had hit the rail and flipped over
Hard Driving, a biography of Scott written by Brian Donovan that features testimony from drivers, manufacturers and racing officials, leaves little doubt that the decision was based on race. Just like what would happen in Florida two years later.
In 1963, the Jacksonville race Scott won was initially awarded to a rival, with the 'error' later explained as having been caused by inaccurate scoring. According to Scott's grandson Warrick, officials were worried about what would happen when Scott was presented to the white local beauty queen as the victor. He instead later received a wooden replica trophy with no markings, and paid his winnings when everyone had left.
At another race Scott's tyres were slashed before getting to the starting grid. At another a firecracker was thrown at his son Wendell Jr, who was injured. He received death threats. In Birmingham, Alabama, he was discreetly advised to make a quick getaway because a violent mob was set to arrive. One track, in Darlington, South Carolina, would refuse to let him compete, every year.
At Darlington, races were started not with the traditional green flag but one celebrating the Confederacy. The track was eventually compelled by federal law to let Scott in after the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but officials still found ways to prevent him from actually racing by inventing impossible last-minute technical inspections.
And yet by the mid-1960s Scott had carved out a position of respect and admiration among fans and the majority of his fellow drivers. His name was often met with cheers from the stands. His courage and continued determination to compete against the odds were plain for all to see. But some refused to see it. Some refused to even look. For Scott's grandson Warrick, there was one major obstruction that held him back, and the reason behind that was clear.
"It was decided, in some behind-closed-doors discussion, that no - we will not allow you a sponsor," Warrick says.
"We will not allow you to be a spokesperson for Shell, Ford, Kellogg's, Pepsi or Chevrolet. And I won't say those corporations didn't want to do it. You can imagine someone there thinking: 'Hey, it's 1965! In a business sense this could work…'
"For Nascar, it was: 'We will not supply you with the resources that will even remotely allow you to be competitive.' My father always said: 'Someone can kill your opportunity with just a gesture. They don't even have to open their mouth.'"
Frank Scott, Warrick's father, was one of three Scott children who formed a key part of the racing team along with his brother Wendell Jr and sister Deborah. She was just as skilled a mechanic but only allowed to watch races from the stands. The boys were trackside for the high points, and for the low points too. There was perhaps none lower than at Talladega, Alabama, in May 1973.
According to Nascar, Scott had 20 top-five finishes and 147 top-10 finishes over his career - placing in the top 10 in more than 25% of the races he entered
The guest of honour was George Wallace, governor of Alabama. Ten years previously, in June 1963, Wallace physically blocked the path of black students enrolling at the University of Alabama in one of the flashpoints of the Civil Rights struggle. Wallace was a long-time ally of Nascar's founder, Bill France. The relationship helped build Talladega's racetrack.
Scott had struggled over the years building up to this point. While rivals were able to take advantage of increased revenues coming into the sport, he didn't have any backing whatsoever. He could only dream of the technological sophistication and resources the big teams could draw on. So he decided to go all in - just like when he stepped up to Grand National level. Win or wreck.
The car he bought was a Mercury. Again, the family home was remortgaged. Scott was in debt like never before but finally had the car he needed to compete. He flew off the start line at Talladega, hitting speeds of more than 180mph, previously out of reach.
"It felt like someone shot me out of a slingshot," Scott told a documentary team from The Nashville Network (TNN) years later.
"Yeah, I was rolling, heading toward the front."
Everything changed in an instant. In Scott's version of events he was clipped from behind by another driver and it spun him out. His brand new Mercury veered out of control and into the infield. There was oil on the track and another racer then came sliding off and slammed into the side of Scott. The car was ruined. Scott was badly crushed, and he was covered in blood. Driver Larry Smith was one of the first to come over.
"Larry came to me, he thought I was dead," said Scott.
"It was a tough roll. I didn't know I was knocked out. When they tried to get me out I was hurting so bad. Broke my leg in seven places, tore my arm to pieces. I spent 32 days in hospital. It took me nine years to pay for that car."
Scott was back at Talladega again three months later in August on crutches, watching from the stands. From there he witnessed another crash in which Smith - the driver who had sought to help him - was killed. It was the 11th fatality during the years of Scott's Nascar career.
Once he was fit enough to do so, Scott did race again in that 1973 season. In October, in Charlotte, North Carolina, he started 38th, made it into the top 10 and fell back to finish 12th. At the time nobody knew it was the end, perhaps not even Scott. There was no retirement announcement, no final bow. He was not quite 52.
When Scott was visited by the TNN film crew, his old Mercury was out back, half-covered in the dry long grass beside the shell of an old yellow school bus.
It wasn't the only car he was keeping hold of. Each had a story lovingly detailed across several old scrapbooks.
Showing his visitors around, they came to the old Mercury. Scott went over, pointing out the paint marks from where he'd been hit from behind. Stepping back to look again, he said: "That was the best car I ever drove. But I didn't really get the chance to do my best with it."
Warrick was 13 when his grandfather died at the age of 69. He had been diagnosed with spinal cancer.
After Scott's death, the street where he built his home was renamed in his honour. Keens Mill Road became Wendell Scott Drive. Warrick spent a considerable part of his childhood in that house.
"In a lot of ways Wendell Scott's story kept getting sadder," he says.
"He raced with guys who ended up being multimillionaires, many of which couldn't hold a candle to him on the racetrack, while we struggled mightily in his final years. All his cars were sold to pay hospital bills.
"After he retired he returned home and it was regular life. He was a mechanic up until the last year of his life, when cancer made him sit all the way down."
Warrick believes Nascar should go further in recognising what Scott achieved "not just as a driver but in terms of his overall impact to the sport".
In 2010 he founded the Wendell Scott Foundation external-link to further that cause, while also contributing to educational outreach work that seeks to inspire future employment around mechanical engineering. Basketball was his sport. He played at college level with Johnson C Smith University and Shaw University.
"So much of what ails America is down to the omission of critical aspects of history," he says.
"When you're watching Nascar on TV, when they show clips from the past, you'll hear about people like Junior Johnson but you never see Wendell Scott. You never hear commentators referencing his driving style or achievements in their description of live action on the track. These are the things that create fandom with the new generations.
"I grew frustrated with the huge gap in representation of who he was. We were left with Nascar telling that story and they were only just beginning to work it out."
Wendell Scott Jr congratulates Bubba Wallace on a 2013 victory - Warrick is on the far right
In 2004, Nascar began its Drive for Diversity programme. Wendell Scott Jr contributed as a mentor. In 2013, 40 years after Scott ended his career, Bubba Wallace, from Mobile, Alabama, became the second African-American driver to win a Nascar race, with victory in a third-tier competition. He is the sport's fifth black driver since Scott, but the previous four did not regularly compete at the highest level.
In 2015, Scott was inducted into the Nascar Hall of Fame. external-link
"I applaud the steps Nascar has taken, but having one African-American driver in Bubba Wallace is not progression," Warrick says. "If a white guy tied a noose in that garage, he did it because he learned it from somebody else.
"What I say to them now is let's make these changes all the way official. Let's make it as real as it can be. And a big part of that is telling the history.
"My grandpa's story is the one legacy that acts as a bridge across misunderstandings and the desire to hurt.
"Because that same dude who tried to wreck him off the course, by the end of his career they were standing side by side."


bbc--2020-07-01--Is the hydrogen tech 'revolution' hope or hype?

In his speech on the planned economic recovery , the prime minister said hydrogen technology is an area where the UK leads the world .
He hopes it ’ ll create clean jobs in the future .
But is the hydrogen revolution hope or hype ?
The digger with the long-toothed bucket bites into a pile of stones , tilts up and flexes its sturdy mechanical arm .
It swivels , extends the arm and dumps its load on the harsh ground of a Staffordshire quarry .
It ’ s a beast of a machine and from the front it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the back you can see its tank full of dirty diesel has been replaced with a hydrogen fuel cell .
The excavator is the latest in a generation of vehicles powered by the lightest element on Earth .
The compendium of vehicles powered by hydrogen now stretches from diggers to micro-taxis , trucks , boats , vans , single-deck and now double-decker buses – and even small planes .
It works by reacting hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell to generate electricity .
The only direct emission is water .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is here .
Or is it ?
Back in the early 2000s , backers of hydrogen thought it would dominate the clean automobile market .
But the promised “ hydrogen highway ” never materialised , for a couple of crucial reasons .
Firstly , hydrogen power needed a new infrastructure , whereas rival battery cars could be charged off the near-ubiquitous electricity grid .
Secondly , high-powered batteries at that time were already well-advanced for other uses such as computers , but hydrogen was not .
So hydrogen lost the head-on battle for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s back in the frame for the sort of transport , industry and heating tasks that batteries are struggling to fulfil .
Take our large mechanical digger , a prototype from JCB .
It has a little battery-powered cousin – small enough to squeeze through a doorway and work in a building .
But JCB say the big digger would need a battery weighing five tonnes , and take hours to refuel .
Hydrogen on the other hand , is lighter than air and takes minutes to fill a tank .
Lorries @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – sometimes the battery would be as heavy as the payload .
The same applies to buses , and the Bamford family , which owns JCB , says it has orders for 80 double-deck buses from its Wrightbus factory at Ballymena in Northern Ireland .
That still leaves the issue of charging infrastructure – but that can be solved by providing hydrogen pumps on motorways for long-distance truckers .
The same network could fuel hybrid battery and hydrogen cars of the future and dispense with the need for ever-heavier batteries in plug-in cars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ depots in Kevlar-lined tanks for safety .
Past fears of hydrogen tanks exploding have been addressed by the advent of tanks lined with Kevlar and hydrogen release mechanisms in case the tank is struck .
Airports could also store hydrogen , and the first test flight of an electric plane in the UK at Cranfield University recently was powered by a hydrogen fuel cell .
There is – forgive the pun – a head of steam building over hydrogen .
Germany is racing ahead with a network of filling stations and a hydrogen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a bid to dominate the hydrogen market .
The EU Commission wants a slice of the action , too .
The website Euractiv reported that it plans to publish a hydrogen strategy soon .
A leaked draft floated the idea of making the Euro the currency for international hydrogen trades , as the US Dollar is for oil .
The UK government also intends to announce a hydrogen strategy before the Parliament closes for the summer , as part of its economic recovery package .
It ’ s being spurred on by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for battery technology to China – so it must n't let the hydrogen bandwagon escape .
The government is advised by its Committee on Climate Change to start large-scale trials in the early 2020s .
Indeed , within weeks from now , Britain ’ s first hydrogen train – developed by Birmingham University - will be tested on regular tracks .
So it looks as though hydrogen has finally made it .
But not so fast… because it ’ s by no means trouble-free .
Currently almost all the hydrogen sold in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ natural gas .
But that ’ s costly and emits lots of planet-heating carbon dioxide .
The problem can be tackled by capturing the CO2 at a hydrogen production hub , then burying it with carbon capture and storage .
But that will drive the cost up further .
The alternative is inherently clean – but very expensive .
It entails using surplus renewable electricity , like when the wind blows at night , to split hydrogen from water using a fuel cell .
The process is wasteful because it involves turning electricity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ electricity – a two-step shuffle dismissed by Tesla car chief Elon Musk as “ staggeringly dumb ” .
“ Fool cells ” , he calls them .
But hydrogen-lovers believe the future electricity grid will produce so much cheap off-peak power that we ’ ll need to find other uses for it .
And they hope to see the cost of fuel cells plummet following the example of offshore wind .
Certainly , recent events have favoured the advance of hydrogen .
When the UK had a target of 80 % carbon cuts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ polluting forms of fuel to take up the remaining 20 % of the carbon “ budget ” .
Now it ’ s widely accepted that homes with low-carbon heating systems such as heat exchangers will need a boost in a cold snap from another source – and that ’ s looking increasingly like hydrogen .
Trials are already underway using hydrogen blended into natural gas at Keele University .
And , depending on how much support it gets from the government - it looks as though a technology that lost its key battle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still find a place in the zero-carbon economy of tomorrow .

But hydrogen-lovers believe the future electricity grid will produce so much cheap off-peak power that we’ll need to find other uses for it. And they hope to see the cost of fuel cells plummet following the example of offshore wind.


bbc--2020-06-30--Coco Gauff: The 16-year-old tennis star on secrets behind her special potential

One of the least surprising things Coco Gauff can tell you is that she started to learn to drive at 13 .
By the time she turned 16 in March this year , Gauff had won her first tour-level singles title , knocked defending champion Naomi Osaka out of the Australian Open , broken into the top 50 and become a powerful voice speaking against racial inequality .
Her poise , eloquence and maturity beyond her years have won many admirers .
And you really do n't need to look too far to see where she has got it from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 15-year-old American stepped out on Court One to face her idol Venus Williams at Wimbledon .
Those who follow the stats might have noticed Gauff had become the youngest player to qualify for the main Wimbledon draw since the Open era began in 1968 .
Others were asking the press office whether to pronounce her name 'Gawf ' or 'Goff ' - it 's the latter - and no matter how they were pronouncing her surname , they were still calling the teenager by her given name , Cori .
But a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had won four Grand Slam titles before she was even born changed everything - Coco had arrived .
She became the hot ticket as she progressed through the rounds , saving two match points against Polona Hercog to reach the last 16 .
There she lost to eventual champion Simona Halep , leaving to a standing ovation from a crowd who had been well and truly charmed .
Gauff made a lasting impression , not only with the pundits who predicted a trophy-laden future , but also with the public who saw a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the experience '' and planned to merely buy a new hoodie with her £176,000 prize money .
`` I went from probably 30,000 followers [ on social media ] to 500,000 overnight , and definitely got a lot of recognition from really famous people all around the world , '' she tells BBC Sport .
`` It 's something I 'm still not used to but definitely was n't used to then . ''
Yet she handled the media spotlight like an old hand , unfazed by her 'promotion ' to the biggest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the top names , and not intimidated by her billing on the show courts or the players she faced .
At least that 's what it looked like from outside .
She tells it slightly differently .
`` I was really nervous - do n't get me wrong - I did n't look nervous but I was nervous inside , '' she says of the victory over Williams .
`` My parents always taught me to be calm in those moments and remember that pressure is a privilege .
That 's what I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's parents Corey and Candi were seen cheering wildly from their seats as they watched their daughter 's big moments .
Her mum 's celebrations even went viral .
They had given up a lot , in a family gamble along the lines of the Richard Williams model , whose daughters Venus and Serena 's training was kept in-house amid his certainty they were destined for huge success .
Gauff 's dad - a former college basketball player - quit his job as a healthcare executive to become his daughter 's head coach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ college athlete - has overseen her home schooling .
It is her family that is keeping her grounded and motivated .
`` My determination to win is one thing that always drives me , and also my brothers - to inspire them to get up and work hard .
I know they look up to me so I try to be a good example , '' she says .
It seems her younger siblings are as switched on as she is .
`` Every time I go to a tournament I ask them @ @ @ @ @ @ @ youngest brother Cameron said he wanted a shark tooth necklace and my other brother Cody , he 's 12 , asked for 1 % - or it may have been 10 % - of my prize money .
He is so money-orientated , which is not a good thing !
`` He would probably start at 50 % and bargain his way down to 10 % !
But he still has n't got any yet . ''
That 10 % would amount to 30,000 Australian dollars ( £17,000 ) after Gauff reached the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out defending champion Osaka in straight sets in the third round having again beaten Venus Williams in round one .
She then lost to eventual champion Sofia Kenin in three sets having taken the opener but had once more proved she could stand toe-to-toe with players she had looked up to for years .
She has a photo of herself as a youngster going to the US Open as a fan , where Venus Williams is playing in the background on Arthur Ashe Stadium , while she also has a signed tennis ball @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one being mobbed for autographs and interviews .
`` I just be myself , I do n't really focus on the cameras .
I just be myself and hope that works out , '' she says .
It is not just on the court where Gauff is coming face to face with her heroes .
One of her favourite people to meet was Michelle Obama .
`` She gave me really good advice , '' she says .
`` She 's a big inspiration to everyone across the world , not just because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continues to push boundaries for women of colour . ''
A lot of those words could apply to Gauff herself .
Earlier this month she made headlines with an emotional speech at a Black Lives Matter protest in her home town of Delray Beach , Florida , saying `` we need to take action '' and that it is `` sad '' she was protesting against the `` same thing '' her grandmother did `` 50-plus years ago '' .
She even appeared to challenge Roger Federer to do more when , in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ champion 's 'Blackout Tuesday ' black square social media post marking George Floyd 's death in police custody in the United States , she shared a link with him on 'Ways to Help ' .
A powerful video she posted about the killings of African-Americans asks `` Am I next ? ''
and on her Twitter feed she says : `` I promise to always use my platform to help make the world a better place . ''
She is not even old enough to vote yet .
None of this has come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Serena Williams ' coach Patrick Mouratoglou , who first met Gauff when she was 10 and who believes she is `` different '' to other players .
`` At 14 she was more mature than women on tour who are 25 , '' he told the Guardian earlier this month .
`` That 's incredible .
She has an inner strength that is completely unusual . ''
There is still a reassuring reminder from Gauff that she does nevertheless still know how to be a teenager .
She has been enjoying making TikTok @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to join in with the dances .
She has also been learning French and reading a lot of books .
And while she has enjoyed the extra time at home she is now ready for the WTA Tour to resume in August after it was suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic .
`` I 'm ready to get back on court and travel again - I like travelling more than I like staying home , '' she says .
The first Grand Slam after the restart will be the US Open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rescheduled French Open .
Many people will be wondering just how far she will go this time .
`` She has the ability to be the greatest player ever , even better than Serena and I never thought I 'd say that , '' BBC presenter and former French Open champion Sue Barker says .
`` Serena is without question the best so far .
Coco has all the attributes , physically , mentally , she has the game , she 's going to be superstar , with the press she is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ absolutely everything .
`` If she can start winning Grand Slams by 18 then who knows how many she could win .
We 're seeing Serena desperately trying to equal Margaret Court 's record [ of 24 Grand Slam singles titles ] - Coco could outdo that and I never thought that would happen . ''
Venus Williams declared `` the sky is the limit '' for the young American , while former Wimbledon champion John McEnroe said last year he would be `` absolutely shocked '' if she was not number one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is 20 .
Gauff , who won her maiden WTA title in Linz in October , does not talk in those terms though .
`` I definitely feel pressure but not so much because of my past results , just because I always put pressure on myself on the court .
Lately it 's not been pressure to win but just pressure to have fun and make sure I play the right way , '' she says .
That is because she knows how damaging the wrong kind of pressure can be , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` depressed '' because of the `` pressure that she needed to do well '' .
`` I was experiencing this maybe just before Wimbledon happened because that 's when I first transitioned onto the pro tour , '' she says now .
`` I did n't really know what to expect or what to do , juniors and pros to me was a completely different experience , because you go from being number one junior to being not even ranked in the pros .
And it takes a lot to build your @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all of that go and did n't focus too much on numbers that was when Wimbledon happened and my results really went up .
I think that time and that moment in my life definitely prepared me to have that breakout at Wimbledon . ''
It could also be that she finds herself more prepared than many players to deal with what will be a very different-looking tennis tour when it resumes - but for different reasons .
The US Open will be taking place behind closed doors , meaning no raucous home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be easier for me to address , '' she says .
`` I 've only been on tour a year so I will just go back to my junior years when we did n't have much of a crowd - when there 's only your parents at the tournament , I 'll just go back to my - I guess - my home . ''
She 's also got an added incentive to do well in these events as she will finally get her driving licence in November .
She may want @ @ @ @ @ @ @ car with any prize money .
Apart from chasing Grand Slam titles , she has just one more little thing to sort out : `` Once I learn how to park , everything will be perfect . ''

Gauff, currently ranked 52 in the world, was born in March 2004
One of the least surprising things Coco Gauff can tell you is that she started to learn to drive at 13.
Of course she did. After all, this is the American teenager who last year stunned five-time champion Venus Williams in the first round of Wimbledon - and then astounded the public by taking all the hype in her stride.
By the time she turned 16 in March this year, Gauff had won her first tour-level singles title, knocked defending champion Naomi Osaka out of the Australian Open, broken into the top 50 and become a powerful voice speaking against racial inequality.
Her poise, eloquence and maturity beyond her years have won many admirers. And you really don't need to look too far to see where she has got it from.
On 1 July, 2019, a 15-year-old American stepped out on Court One to face her idol Venus Williams at Wimbledon.
Those who follow the stats might have noticed Gauff had become the youngest player to qualify for the main Wimbledon draw since the Open era began in 1968. Others were asking the press office whether to pronounce her name 'Gawf' or 'Goff' - it's the latter - and no matter how they were pronouncing her surname, they were still calling the teenager by her given name, Cori.
But a 6-4 6-4 win over a player who had won four Grand Slam titles before she was even born changed everything - Coco had arrived.
She became the hot ticket as she progressed through the rounds, saving two match points against Polona Hercog to reach the last 16. There she lost to eventual champion Simona Halep, leaving to a standing ovation from a crowd who had been well and truly charmed.
Gauff made a lasting impression, not only with the pundits who predicted a trophy-laden future, but also with the public who saw a humble teenager who was "thankful for the experience" and planned to merely buy a new hoodie with her £176,000 prize money.
Her profile rocketed.
Gauff was ranked 313 in the world when she beat Williams - 24 years her senior - at Wimbledon
"I went from probably 30,000 followers [on social media] to 500,000 overnight, and definitely got a lot of recognition from really famous people all around the world," she tells BBC Sport.
"It's something I'm still not used to but definitely wasn't used to then."
Yet she handled the media spotlight like an old hand, unfazed by her 'promotion' to the biggest news conference room, usually reserved for the top names, and not intimidated by her billing on the show courts or the players she faced.
At least that's what it looked like from outside. She tells it slightly differently.
"I was really nervous - don't get me wrong - I didn't look nervous but I was nervous inside," she says of the victory over Williams.
"My parents always taught me to be calm in those moments and remember that pressure is a privilege. That's what I remembered during those moments."
Gauff's parents Corey and Candi were seen cheering wildly from their seats as they watched their daughter's big moments. Her mum's celebrations even went viral.
They had given up a lot, in a family gamble along the lines of the Richard Williams model, whose daughters Venus and Serena's training was kept in-house amid his certainty they were destined for huge success.
Gauff's dad - a former college basketball player - quit his job as a healthcare executive to become his daughter's head coach, while her mum - a former college athlete - has overseen her home schooling.
It is her family that is keeping her grounded and motivated.
"My determination to win is one thing that always drives me, and also my brothers - to inspire them to get up and work hard. I know they look up to me so I try to be a good example," she says.
It seems her younger siblings are as switched on as she is.
Gauff, pictured with her mum and dad after winning her maiden WTA title in October
"Every time I go to a tournament I ask them what they want. From Australia my youngest brother Cameron said he wanted a shark tooth necklace and my other brother Cody, he's 12, asked for 1% - or it may have been 10% - of my prize money. He is so money-orientated, which is not a good thing!
"He would probably start at 50% and bargain his way down to 10%! But he still hasn't got any yet."
That 10% would amount to 30,000 Australian dollars (£17,000) after Gauff reached the fourth round in Melbourne. She knocked out defending champion Osaka in straight sets in the third round having again beaten Venus Williams in round one.
She then lost to eventual champion Sofia Kenin in three sets having taken the opener but had once more proved she could stand toe-to-toe with players she had looked up to for years.
She has a photo of herself as a youngster going to the US Open as a fan, where Venus Williams is playing in the background on Arthur Ashe Stadium, while she also has a signed tennis ball from Serena.
Now she's the one being mobbed for autographs and interviews.
"I just be myself, I don't really focus on the cameras. I just be myself and hope that works out," she says.
It is not just on the court where Gauff is coming face to face with her heroes. One of her favourite people to meet was Michelle Obama.
"She gave me really good advice," she says. "She's a big inspiration to everyone across the world, not just because she was the First Lady. She continues to push boundaries for women of colour."
A lot of those words could apply to Gauff herself.
"No matter how big or small your platform is, you need to use your voice," Gauff says
Earlier this month she made headlines with an emotional speech at a Black Lives Matter protest in her home town of Delray Beach, Florida, saying "we need to take action" and that it is "sad" she was protesting against the "same thing" her grandmother did "50-plus years ago".
She even appeared to challenge Roger Federer to do more when, in a response to the 20-time Grand Slam champion's 'Blackout Tuesday' black square social media post marking George Floyd's death in police custody in the United States, she shared a link with him on 'Ways to Help'.
A powerful video she posted about the killings of African-Americans asks "Am I next?" and on her Twitter feed she says: "I promise to always use my platform to help make the world a better place."
She is not even old enough to vote yet.
None of this has come as any surprise to her mentor, Serena Williams' coach Patrick Mouratoglou, who first met Gauff when she was 10 and who believes she is "different" to other players.
"At 14 she was more mature than women on tour who are 25," he told the Guardian external-link earlier this month. "That's incredible. She has an inner strength that is completely unusual."
Gauff, celebrating women's doubles victory in the Australian Open's third round with Catherine McNally in January
There is still a reassuring reminder from Gauff that she does nevertheless still know how to be a teenager. She has been enjoying making TikTok videos during lockdown and getting her parents to join in with the dances. She has also been learning French and reading a lot of books.
And while she has enjoyed the extra time at home she is now ready for the WTA Tour to resume in August after it was suspended in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"I'm ready to get back on court and travel again - I like travelling more than I like staying home," she says.
The first Grand Slam after the restart will be the US Open, followed just a fortnight later by the rescheduled French Open. Many people will be wondering just how far she will go this time.
"She has the ability to be the greatest player ever, even better than Serena and I never thought I'd say that," BBC presenter and former French Open champion Sue Barker says.
"Serena is without question the best so far. Coco has all the attributes, physically, mentally, she has the game, she's going to be superstar, with the press she is so engaging, she has just got absolutely everything.
"If she can start winning Grand Slams by 18 then who knows how many she could win. We're seeing Serena desperately trying to equal Margaret Court's record [of 24 Grand Slam singles titles] - Coco could outdo that and I never thought that would happen."
Venus Williams declared "the sky is the limit" for the young American, while former Wimbledon champion John McEnroe said last year he would be "absolutely shocked" if she was not number one in the world by the time she is 20.
Gauff, who won her maiden WTA title in Linz in October, does not talk in those terms though.
"I definitely feel pressure but not so much because of my past results, just because I always put pressure on myself on the court. Lately it's not been pressure to win but just pressure to have fun and make sure I play the right way," she says.
That is because she knows how damaging the wrong kind of pressure can be, having admitted earlier this year to feeling "depressed" because of the "pressure that she needed to do well".
"I was experiencing this maybe just before Wimbledon happened because that's when I first transitioned onto the pro tour," she says now. "I didn't really know what to expect or what to do, juniors and pros to me was a completely different experience, because you go from being number one junior to being not even ranked in the pros. And it takes a lot to build your ranking up.
"When I let all of that go and didn't focus too much on numbers that was when Wimbledon happened and my results really went up. I think that time and that moment in my life definitely prepared me to have that breakout at Wimbledon."
It could also be that she finds herself more prepared than many players to deal with what will be a very different-looking tennis tour when it resumes - but for different reasons.
Coco Gauff on overnight fame, Michelle Obama & learning to drive
The US Open will be taking place behind closed doors, meaning no raucous home crowds cheering her on.
"It will be easier for me to address," she says. "I've only been on tour a year so I will just go back to my junior years when we didn't have much of a crowd - when there's only your parents at the tournament, I'll just go back to my - I guess - my home."
She's also got an added incentive to do well in these events as she will finally get her driving licence in November. She may want to upgrade from a hoodie to a car with any prize money.
Apart from chasing Grand Slam titles, she has just one more little thing to sort out: "Once I learn how to park, everything will be perfect."


bbc--2020-06-29--Could a boycott kill Facebook?

Could a boycott kill Facebook?

Boycotts can be extremely effective - as Facebook is finding out .
In the late 18th century , the abolitionist movement encouraged British people to stay away from goods produced by slaves .
It worked .
Around 300,000 stopped buying sugar - increasing the pressure to abolish slavery .
The Stop Hate for Profit campaign is the latest movement to use boycott as a political tool .
It claims that Facebook does n't do enough to remove racist and hateful content from its platform .
It 's convinced a series of major companies to pull advertising from Facebook and some @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest to do so are Ford , Adidas and HP .
They join earlier participants including Coca-Cola , Unilever and Starbucks .
News site Axios has also reported that Microsoft suspended advertising on Facebook and Instagram in May because of concerns about unspecified `` inappropriate content '' - a development the BBC can confirm .
Meanwhile , other online platforms , including Reddit and Twitch , have piled on more pressure by taking anti-hate steps of their own .
Can that boycott hurt Facebook ?
The short answer is yes - the vast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ads .
David Cumming from Aviva Investors told the BBC 's Today programme that the loss of trust , and a perceived absence of a moral code , could `` destroy the business '' .
On Friday , Facebook 's share price dropped by 8 % - making chief executive Mark Zuckerberg , theoretically at least , £6bn poorer .
But whether this could be bigger - an existential threat to Facebook 's long-term future - is far less clear .
First of all , this is n't the first boycott of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ major brand after major brand announced they would stop advertising on YouTube - after ads were placed next to racist and homophobic videos .
That particular boycott is now almost totally forgotten .
YouTube tweaked its ad policies , and three years on YouTube 's parent company Google is doing just fine .
And there are more reasons to believe this boycott is n't as damaging to Facebook as you might think .
Firstly , many companies have only committed to a one-month boycott in July .
Secondly , and perhaps more significantly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comes from thousands and thousands of small- to medium-sized businesses .
CNN reports that the highest-spending 100 brands accounted for $ 4.2bn in Facebook advertising last year - or about 6 % of the platform 's ad revenue .
So far , the vast majority of medium-sized companies have not signed up .
Mat Morrison , head of strategy at advertising agency Digital Whiskey , told me there 's a huge number of smaller businesses that `` ca n't afford not to advertise '' .
He says that for smaller businesses - which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ - cheaper and more focussed ads on platforms like Facebook are essential .
`` The only way our business works is having access to these highly targeted audiences , that are n't mass media audiences , so we 'll continue to advertise '' Morrison says .
In some ways Facebook looks like a good choice of company to lobby .
The structure of Facebook gives Mark Zuckerberg a huge amount of power to effect change .
If he wants something , he 'll get it .
You only need to change the mind @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is also true .
Shareholders are n't able to put pressure on Mr Zuckerberg in the same way as other companies .
If he does n't want to act , he wo n't .
So far though , he has shown signs he 's prepared to move .
On Friday , Facebook announced it would begin to tag hateful content - and look out for further announcements this week .
These changes wo n't be enough to make Stop Hate for Profit go away though .
And elsewhere , others are taking action @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Reddit has banned The_Donald forum as part of a wider crackdown on `` subreddits '' whose members have engaged in harassment and threatening behaviour .
The community was not officially linked to the President , but had helped widely spread memes that supported him , before Reddit took earlier steps to limit the posts ' reach .
In addition , Twitch has temporarily banned an account run by the Trump campaign .
The Amazon-owned video-streaming site said two videos of Mr Trump 's rallies that were shown on its platform had broken its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from 2015 , before he was elected , at which he had said Mexico was sending rapists to the US .
The other was from earlier this month , in which the President had described a fictional `` tough hombre '' breaking into the home of an American woman .
`` We do not make exceptions for political or newsworthy content , '' Twitch said in a statement .
This year is going to be a rocky year for all social media companies .
Facebook is by no means the exception .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ balance sheets .
If the boycott drags on into the autumn - and if more and more companies sign up - this could be a defining year for the social network .

One dated from 2015, before he was elected, at which he had said Mexico was sending rapists to the US. The other was from earlier this month, in which the President had described a fictional "tough hombre" breaking into the home of an American woman.