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How to make a pinhole camera with everyday items for safe solar eclipse viewing – CP24

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Sonja Puzic, The Canadian Press


Published Friday, April 5, 2024 6:20PM EDT


Last Updated Friday, April 5, 2024 6:20PM EDT

TORONTO – If you haven’t been able to secure solar eclipse glasses ahead of the biggest celestial event in years, do not fret.

There are other ways to safely observe the eclipse on Monday, albeit in an indirect way.

Millions of people across a swath of North America, including parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada, will experience a few minutes of darkness in the middle of the day as the moon passes in front of the sun.

One of the simple ways to observe the phenomenon is with a pinhole camera – more accurately described as a projector – that can be created with items most of us already have at home.

If you’re really pressed for time, even a single sheet of paper and a push pin will do the trick, says Elaina Hyde, director of the Allan I. Carswell Observatory at Toronto’s York University.

“A pinhole camera (is) one of the oldest camera techniques,” she said.

A basic pinhole projector can be made by pushing a pin through a piece of paper or cardboard to create a tiny hole. When you take that paper outside and cast a shadow with it on the ground, the bit of light that passes through the hole projects “a little tiny image of the sun” and allows safe tracking of the eclipse, Hyde said.

“And this will work with nearly anything that you have in your house. You can use a sturdy construction board. You can use paper.”

Another option, she said, is to use a common kitchen utensil.

“If you have a pasta strainer that has circular holes in it, you can take it outside and cast the pasta strainer shadow on the ground,” Hyde said. “As you look at the shadow of a pasta strainer, all of those holes … are actually going be little tiny images of the sun.”

If you’re willing to put in a little bit more effort – and want to engage kids in a fun activity – you can create a pinhole camera out of a cereal box, shoe box or other cardboard box easily held to the eye.

For this project, you will need a piece of white paper, scissors, aluminum foil, a pin and some tape.

According to instructions from NASA and the Canadian Space Agency, cover one of the inner sides of the box with white paper, cut to size – this is what will display a projection of the eclipse.

Cut two square or rectangular holes on the opposite side of the box, one on the left and one on the right. The holes should be at least 10 centimetres apart – one is to view the interior, and the other will be modified to project the eclipse onto the paper inside.

Next, cover one of the holes with aluminum foil, taped into place, and then poke a tiny hole in the foil with a pin. Ensure the box is tightly sealed.

Turning your back to the sun during the eclipse, look through the uncovered hole in the box and position yourself so that light enters the pinhole and the shape of the sun is projected onto the white paper inside the box as the eclipse progresses.

Hyde stressed the importance of never looking at the sun directly during the eclipse without proper eye protection, which must have an ISO-rated solar filter.

“Do not try to use welders’ goggles. Do not use regular sunglasses. Do not stack pairs of regular sunglasses,” she said.

“Anything you’re thinking of doing DIY (to watch the eclipse), it needs to be indirect. There is no way to DIY safely a pair of safe solar glasses.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 5, 2024.

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The body of a Ugandan Olympic athlete who was set on fire by her partner is received by family

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NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The body of Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei — who died after being set on fire by her partner in Kenya — was received Friday by family and anti-femicide crusaders, ahead of her burial a day later.

Cheptegei’s family met with dozens of activists Friday who had marched to the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital’s morgue in the western city of Eldoret while chanting anti-femicide slogans.

She is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in yet another case of gender-based violence in recent years.

Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels – an organization that was formed in honor of athlete Agnes Tirop, who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.

“We are here to say that enough is enough, we are tired of burying our sisters due to GBV,” she said.

It was a somber mood at the morgue as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei’s body which sustained 80% of burns after she was doused with gasoline by her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed.

Ndiema and Cheptegei were said to have quarreled over a piece of land that the athlete bought in Kenya, according to a report filed by the local chief.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.

Cheptegei’s father, Joseph, said that the body will make a brief stop at their home in the Endebess area before proceeding to Bukwo in eastern Uganda for a night vigil and burial on Saturday.

“We are in the final part of giving my daughter the last respect,” a visibly distraught Joseph said.

He told reporters last week that Ndiema was stalking and threatening Cheptegei and the family had informed police.

Kenya’s high rates of violence against women have prompted marches by ordinary citizens in towns and cities this year.

Four in 10 women or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022.

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The ancient jar smashed by a 4-year-old is back on display at an Israeli museum after repair

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TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A rare Bronze-Era jar accidentally smashed by a 4-year-old visiting a museum was back on display Wednesday after restoration experts were able to carefully piece the artifact back together.

Last month, a family from northern Israel was visiting the museum when their youngest son tipped over the jar, which smashed into pieces.

Alex Geller, the boy’s father, said his son — the youngest of three — is exceptionally curious, and that the moment he heard the crash, “please let that not be my child” was the first thought that raced through his head.

The jar has been on display at the Hecht Museum in Haifa for 35 years. It was one of the only containers of its size and from that period still complete when it was discovered.

The Bronze Age jar is one of many artifacts exhibited out in the open, part of the Hecht Museum’s vision of letting visitors explore history without glass barriers, said Inbal Rivlin, the director of the museum, which is associated with Haifa University in northern Israel.

It was likely used to hold wine or oil, and dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C.

Rivlin and the museum decided to turn the moment, which captured international attention, into a teaching moment, inviting the Geller family back for a special visit and hands-on activity to illustrate the restoration process.

Rivlin added that the incident provided a welcome distraction from the ongoing war in Gaza. “Well, he’s just a kid. So I think that somehow it touches the heart of the people in Israel and around the world,“ said Rivlin.

Roee Shafir, a restoration expert at the museum, said the repairs would be fairly simple, as the pieces were from a single, complete jar. Archaeologists often face the more daunting task of sifting through piles of shards from multiple objects and trying to piece them together.

Experts used 3D technology, hi-resolution videos, and special glue to painstakingly reconstruct the large jar.

Less than two weeks after it broke, the jar went back on display at the museum. The gluing process left small hairline cracks, and a few pieces are missing, but the jar’s impressive size remains.

The only noticeable difference in the exhibit was a new sign reading “please don’t touch.”

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B.C. sets up a panel on bear deaths, will review conservation officer training

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VICTORIA – The British Columbia government is partnering with a bear welfare group to reduce the number of bears being euthanized in the province.

Nicholas Scapillati, executive director of Grizzly Bear Foundation, said Monday that it comes after months-long discussions with the province on how to protect bears, with the goal to give the animals a “better and second chance at life in the wild.”

Scapillati said what’s exciting about the project is that the government is open to working with outside experts and the public.

“So, they’ll be working through Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding, bringing in the latest techniques and training expertise from leading experts,” he said in an interview.

B.C. government data show conservation officers destroyed 603 black bears and 23 grizzly bears in 2023, while 154 black bears were killed by officers in the first six months of this year.

Scapillati said the group will publish a report with recommendations by next spring, while an independent oversight committee will be set up to review all bear encounters with conservation officers to provide advice to the government.

Environment Minister George Heyman said in a statement that they are looking for new ways to ensure conservation officers “have the trust of the communities they serve,” and the panel will make recommendations to enhance officer training and improve policies.

Lesley Fox, with the wildlife protection group The Fur-Bearers, said they’ve been calling for such a committee for decades.

“This move demonstrates the government is listening,” said Fox. “I suspect, because of the impending election, their listening skills are potentially a little sharper than they normally are.”

Fox said the partnership came from “a place of long frustration” as provincial conservation officers kill more than 500 black bears every year on average, and the public is “no longer tolerating this kind of approach.”

“I think that the conservation officer service and the B.C. government are aware they need to change, and certainly the public has been asking for it,” said Fox.

Fox said there’s a lot of optimism about the new partnership, but, as with any government, there will likely be a lot of red tape to get through.

“I think speed is going to be important, whether or not the committee has the ability to make change and make change relatively quickly without having to study an issue to death, ” said Fox.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2024.

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