Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles on July 12 signs an autograph for Nicholas McClelland. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

STATELINE – Steph Curry wields a golf club better than the average player, but what he excels at over most is performing at a high caliber in the raucous atmosphere known at the American Century Championship.

He said playing professional basketball in boisterous arenas, especially on the road where there are thousands of people booing him has helped train him to stay focused on the job at hand. The Golden State Warriors’ star said he thrives in an electric setting like the Tahoe celebrity golf tournament.

Things are much different for Curry compared to when he first showed up at this tournament in 2010. Then the Warriors weren’t much to brag about and Curry was far from a household name. Now the Warriors hold claim to being the NBA champions three out of the last four years and Curry is easily the most heralded athlete in the Bay Area, with a following that extends to Tahoe and beyond.

Dell and Steph Curry talk golf and basketball. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Curry is in town this week on a quest to do better than his fourth-place finish in 2017. The three-day tournament, now in its 29th year, starts today. For the past few days there were practice rounds and a pro-am at Edgewood Tahoe in Stateline.

For the McClelland family of Fresno they have been coming here for a handful of years just for this tournament.

Nicholas, 10, was doing his best to gather as many signatures as possible. Curry, though, is his favorite.

Three years ago the youngster called out to “Mr. Curry,” and was then called onto the course by his idol and given an autographed dollar bill.

For dad Jeff he was pretty excited that year to have Curry pose with all three of his sons. “That was pretty special,” the elder McClelland told Lake Tahoe News.

Former NFL star Charles Woodson practices his long game; with his golf club cover seeming to watch the action. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Autograph seeking is a big part of what enthralls fans.

Chris Webber, who had two short stints with the Warriors but who is better known for his playing days with the Sacramento Kings, was darting from the driving range area to the putting green on July 12 when fans tried to sidetrack him. He signed a few autographs before saying he’d be back and get to everyone.

Most of the 80-plus athletes, Hollywood stars, and other celebrities at the tournament are good about accommodating their fans as much as possible.

Charles Barkley has a unique swing. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Only a few are serious golfers, like former quarterback Tony Romo, who with former pitcher Mark Mulder are favored to win the event. Mulder has won the ACC the last three years.

At the driving range on Thursday Romo was one of the more serious athletes. Not far from him though was the antithesis — Charles Barkley. Oddsmakers give this former basketball great 6,000-to-1 odds to win this year.

Barkley was telling his caddy he needed 18 balls for Thursday’s round. He didn’t appear to be joking.

—–

Notes:

·      For details about the tournament, go online.

By Andrew D. Hwang, The Conversation

Humans are the most populous large mammal on Earth today, and probably in all of geological history. This World Population Day, humans number in the vicinity of 7.5 to 7.6 billion individuals.

Can the Earth support this many people indefinitely? What will happen if we do nothing to manage future population growth and total resource use? These complex questions are ecological, political, ethical – and urgent. Simple mathematics shows why, shedding light on our species’ ecological footprint.

The mathematics of population growth

In an environment with unlimited natural resources, population size grows exponentially. One characteristic feature of exponential growth is the time a population takes to double in size.

Exponential growth tends to start slowly, sneaking up before ballooning in just a few doublings.

To illustrate, suppose Jeff Bezos agreed to give you one penny on Jan. 1, 2019, two pennies on Feb. 1, four on March 1, and so forth, with the payment doubling each month. How long would his $100 billion fortune uphold the contract? Take a moment to ponder and guess.

After one year, or 12 payments, your total contract receipts come to $40.95, equivalent to a night at the movies. After two years, $167,772.15 – substantial, but paltry to a billionaire. After three years, $687,194,767.35, or about one week of Bezos’ 2017 income.

The 43rd payment, on July 1, 2022, just short of $88 billion and equal to all the preceding payments together (plus one penny), breaks the bank.

Real population growth

For real populations, doubling time is not constant. Humans reached 1 billion around 1800, a doubling time of about 300 years; 2 billion in 1927, a doubling time of 127 years; and 4 billion in 1974, a doubling time of 47 years.

On the other hand, world numbers are projected to reach 8 billion around 2023, a doubling time of 49 years, and barring the unforeseen, expected to level off around 10 to 12 billion by 2100.

This anticipated leveling off signals a harsh biological reality: Human population is being curtailed by the Earth’s carrying capacity, the population at which premature death by starvation and disease balances the birth rate.

Ecological implications

Humans are consuming and polluting resources – aquifers and ice caps, fertile soil, forests, fisheries and oceans – accumulated over geological time, tens of thousands of years or longer.

Wealthy countries consume out of proportion to their populations. As a fiscal analogy, we live as if our savings account balance were steady income.

According to the Worldwatch Institute, an environmental think tank, the Earth has 1.9 hectares of land per person for growing food and textiles for clothing, supplying wood and absorbing waste. The average American uses about 9.7 hectares.

These data alone suggest the Earth can support at most one-fifth of the present population, 1.5 billion people, at an American standard of living.

Water is vital. Biologically, an adult human needs less than 1 gallon of water daily. In 2010, the U.S. used 355 billion gallons of freshwater, over 1,000 gallons per person per day. Half was used to generate electricity, one-third for irrigation, and roughly one-tenth for household use: flushing toilets, washing clothes and dishes, and watering lawns.

If 7.5 billion people consumed water at American levels, world usage would top 10,000 cubic kilometers per year. Total world supply – freshwater lakes and rivers – is about 91,000 cubic kilometers.

World Health Organization figures show 2.1 billion people lack ready access to safe drinking water, and 4.5 billion lack managed sanitation. Even in industrialized countries, water sources can be contaminated with pathogens, fertilizer and insecticide runoff, heavy metals and fracking effluent.

Freedom to choose

Though the detailed future of the human species is impossible to predict, basic facts are certain. Water and food are immediate human necessities. Doubling food production would defer the problems of present-day birth rates by at most a few decades. The Earth supports industrialized standards of living only because we are drawing down the “savings account” of non-renewable resources, including fertile topsoil, drinkable water, forests, fisheries and petroleum.

The drive to reproduce is among the strongest desires, both for couples and for societies. How will humans reshape one of our most cherished expectations – “Be fruitful and multiply” – in the span of one generation? What will happen if present-day birth rates continue?

Population stays constant when couples have about two children who survive to reproductive age. In some parts of the developing world today, couples average three to six children.

We cannot wish natural resources into existence. Couples, however, have the freedom to choose how many children to have. Improvements in women’s rights, education and self-determination generally lead to lower birth rates.

As a mathematician, I believe reducing birth rates substantially is our best prospect for raising global standards of living. As a citizen, I believe nudging human behavior, by encouraging smaller families, is our most humane hope.

Andrew D. Hwang is an associate professor of mathematics, College of the Holy Cross.

A Gardnerville man who was involved in a motorcycle accident July 8 on Kingsbury Grade has died from his injuries.

Dana Edward Orgill, 69, was headed toward the Carson Valley at about 2:45pm that day when he “failed to negotiate a left curve and drove off the highway onto the gravel shoulder area,” according to the Nevada Highway Patrol. This occurred near Tramway Drive

Orgill was airlifted to Renown Medical Center in Reno. He died there two days later.

Witnesses to the crash are asked to call NHP at 775.687.9649.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

A Bay Area man was stabbed Thursday in a South Lake Tahoe parking lot all over a dispute about a parking space, according to police officers.

The incident occurred in front of CVS in the Bijou Center at about 10:30am July 12.

Officers said they found Scott Nevin, 51, of San Jose bleeding from the stab wound.

Witnesses identified Paul Ivanovsky, 71, of Sparks at the suspect. Nevin’s 13-year-old son was one of the witnesses.

Both were transported to Barton Memorial Hospital. No arrests had been made as of Thursday evening.

“It was determined that this incident started over a road rage incident over a parking spot,” officers said in a press release.

From words it went to the use of pepper spray then fists and finally the knife, according to police.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Construction is under way to improve a section of Fountain Place Road at Saxon Creek off Pioneer Trail near South Lake Tahoe. 

Federal contractors supported by U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit construction crews are working to replace the existing 6-foot culvert with a 30-foot bridge and improve access by removing trees, patching asphalt, constructing infiltration basins and installing an 18-inch culvert. 

A detour around the construction area will be maintained for bicycle and pedestrian traffic, but the section of road under construction is closed to vehicles until the project is finished.  The upper section may be accessed from Powerline Road to Saxon Tie Road.

Work is expected to be completed by mid-October.

The 2018 Toyota Camry V-6 is not your daddy’s Camry. Photos/Larry Weitzman

By Larry Weitzman

Camry’s have been offered for decades with a V-6 option and all of them have been high performance automobiles in their time, even the original 2.5L V-6 going back to the late 1980s with about 160 hp. With the advent of this eighth generation Camry comes the most powerful Camry ever now sporting 301 hp. Imagine a Camry with over 300 hp.

Camry’s new design has received noteworthy praise from the entire automotive spectrum. It is the best-looking Camry yet with smooth muscular flanks, clever lines and perfect proportions giving it the look and feel of a much more expensive ride. It is bigger with a 111-inch wheelbase supporting a 193-inch body. Width is a tidy 72 inches and while it stands 57 inches tall it looks sleeker.

My only other test of the newest Camry iteration was the hybrid and I couldn’t stop saying superlatives about its drive qualities. Performance was outstanding and its fuel economy was spectacular pulling down mpg numbers approaching a Prius. It road and handled better than any predecessor, more like a luxo ride. Now add 300 plus hp and more buttoned-down handling to the equation.

Under the hood is a massaged Toyota 3.5L V-6 with all the bells and whistles now cranking out 301 hp at a lofty 6,600 rpm and a strong 267 pounds of twist at 4,700 rpm. Direct injection allows for a super high compression ratio of 11.8:1 on regular fuel. This monster motor drives the front wheels through a slick shifting eight speed cog-swapper. Performance is world class with 0-60 mph arriving in just over five ticks stopping the Chrondex is a miniscule 5.42 seconds. That’s some very serious motivation.

Specifications
Price $34,950 to about $38,000
Engine
3.5L DOHC, 246 valve V-6 301 hp @ 6,600 rpm
267 lb.-ft. of torque @ 4,700 rpm
Transmission
Eight-speed torque converter automatic
Configuration
Transverse mounted front engine/front wheel drive
Dimensions
Wheelbase 111.2 inches
Length 192.7 inches
Width 72.4 inches
Height 56.9 inches
Ground clearance 5.7 inches
Track (f/r) 62.2/62.6 inches
Fuel capacity 13.0 gallons
Trunk capacity 15.1 cubic feet
Weight (SE) 3,549 pounds
Interior passenger volume 100.4 cubic feet
Steering lock to lock 2.6 turns
Turning circle 38.0 feet
Wheels 19X8 inch alloys
Tires 235/40X19
Performance
0-60 mph 5.42 seconds
50-70 mph 2.73 seconds
50-70 (up 6-7 percent grade 4.06 seconds
Top speed anyone care?
Fuel economy EPA rated 22/32/26 city/highway/combined. Expect 25-26 mpg in rural country/suburban driving; 37 mpg on a level highway at legal speeds.

Passing times are also lightning quick with a 50-70 mph pass taking just 2.73 seconds and the same run up a steep (6-7 percent) grade slowing that time to 4.06 seconds. And it achieves this gravity defying performance while improving its fuel economy.

In a two-way 20-mile run on a level highway with the cruise control set at 70 mph, the Camry V-6 averaged a solid 37.2 mpg. EPA cycle tests said you should expect 22/32/26 mpg city/highway/combined. Overall in rural, suburban driving the Camry did average about 26 mpg but in my 200-mile aggressive run over the Sierras to Carson City the Camry averaged a solid 30.5 mpg. Those are numbers that ten years ago would be good for a 170 hp four banger that would struggle to make it to 60 mph in 8 seconds.

In XSE V-6 trim, the state of the art four-wheel independent suspension (MacPherson struts up front and a sophisticated double wishbone system in the rear) gets sports tuning with tightened up shock valving and springs. Otherwise the trick layout remains uniform with other Camrys. Steering is already a nicely weighted power rack of just 2.6 turns lock to lock but the wheels are 19 x 8 inch alloys shod with some very serious 235/40X19 series radial rubber. It all adds up to one fine handling automobile. Its turn in is very crisp, it bits beautifully with tenacious grip. It makes short work of the most difficult twisties. Camry can now change directions with the best of them and it makes accelerating out of apexes downright fun.

But don’t think the Camry has lost any of its comfort quotient. It hasn’t. It is still the quietest of midsize rides and it ride quality is second to none. In that respect, it remains the most comfortable of midsize sedans. There is no wind, engine or tire noise and with the V-6, the engine spins an incredibly low 1,600 rpm at 70 mph. It’s one of the reasons for its new-found highway fuel economy.

Toyota Safety Sense is standard meaning Camry is loaded with all the acronyms including lane departure warning and steering assist and my favorite feature of automatic high beam control. Camry headlights are very good on low and high beam. Camrys come with ten airbags. Did I mention the very strong all wheel discs?

In my XSE is soft, standard perforated leather seating that is sublime.  Rear seating is also spacious and comfortable. The rest of the appointments are top quality and mostly soft touch.

Instrumentation is also first rate with a large tach and speedo flanking left and right of a digital info center which includes a trip computer. The center stack is topped by a large display screen which also has a detailed fuel computer in it as well. I am surprised no one has installed a digitized version of the Encyclopedia Britannica in the info system as it has almost everything else.

Cargo capacity is over 15 cubic feet and well-shaped.

Camry’s price of admission is 50 bucks shy of $35 large, plus $895 for the train and truck from its Georgetown, Ky., assembly plant. My tester had three options, the Driver’s assist package which includes the Bird’s Eye Camera which gives you a 360-degree view of what surrounds the vehicle ($1,050). A NAV package for $940 and special Ruby Flare Pearl paint which is $395 bringing to total price of admission to $38,230. But this is no ordinary mid-size sedan, it is effectively a near luxury sports sedan that becomes an excellent alternative to some German offerings. Who needs a propeller when you can drive a jet?

Larry Weitzman has been into cars since he was 5 years old. At 8 he could recite from memory the hp of every car made in the U.S. He has put in thousands of laps on racetracks all over the Western United States.

·      The Douglas County Public Library is having an outdoor storytime at Mormon Station State Historic Park in Genoa on July 20 at 11am. Children of all ages are invited. 

·      Grover Hot Springs State Park in Markleeville plans to make ADA improvements to trails.

·      Lake Tahoe Community College Foundation’s annual Taste of Gold fundraiser is July 21, 6-9pm at the demonstration garden on campus. Tickets are $75 and are available online.

·      Tahoe Mountain Realty in partnership with Tahoe Mountain Club will open the Tahoe Mountain Hub at Old Greenwood in Truckee, a shared public workspace, on July 19.

·      Dustin Clifford is the newest deputy at Douglas County Sheriff’s Department.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and Heavenly Mountain Resort are offering ranger led hikes every day at 11am and 1pm.

While the hike is free, it does require paying for the gondola ride. The hikes start from the top of the gondola.

They last about 90 minutes and are moderately difficult.

Wear closed toed shoes and bring water. No reservations are required and attendance is on a first-come, first-served basis. 

For more information, contact Jaclyn Tain at 530.543.2730 or email jtain@fs.fed.us.

The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Citizen Corps is offering an emergency preparedness and response training academy beginning July 19.

The training is free and trainees are not required to become a Citizen Corps volunteer to participate.

The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Academy provides residents with the information they need to help save lives and reduce trauma in the event of an emergency. CERT Academy training includes disaster preparedness, emergency medical techniques, fire safety, light search and rescue, disaster psychology, and terrorism awareness education.

CERT is more than emergency response; CERT is about community outreach, education and the building up and protecting of our community. This happens in all kinds of ways: providing traffic control, staffing first aid booths, or helping at special events.

The CERT Academy offers six training sessions over two consecutive weekends. Training is conducted by Citizen Corps staff and volunteers along with appropriate subject matter experts.

Academy dates are July 19 from 6-9pm, July 20 from 6-9pm, July 21 from 9am-4pm, and July 26 from 6-9pm, July 27 from 6-9pm, and July 28 from 9am-4pm.

All sessions are required to complete the training and receive a certificate. Training takes place at the Regional Public Safety Training Center located at 5190 Spectrum Blvd., Reno.

No special skills are required. Children 12-15 may participate with parent’s supervision, teens 16-17 with parent’s permission. To sign up for training, contact CERT Program Manager Michael Perry at 775.325.6928 or email mperry@washoecounty.us

By Merrit Kennedy, NPR

Convicted murderer Scott Dozier has clearly and repeatedly stated that he wants to be executed.

Scott Dozier

The planned execution, using a three-drug cocktail, had been set for Wednesday evening at Ely State Prison in Nevada. Experts say it would be the first time the opioid fentanyl was used in a U.S. execution.

However, a pharmaceutical company filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Nevada State Department of Corrections over plans to use one of its drugs, midazolam, in the execution. And on Wednesday, Clark County District Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez “disallowed the use of the drug,” effectively putting the execution on hold, The Associated Press reported.

Read the whole story