Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

Covering The Multicultural Asian American Community in Georgia

www.gasiantimes.com August 15-31, 2016

Republican Asia experts say Trump presidency would be ‘ruinous’

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

COLUMBIA RESIDENTIAL SITE-BASED WAITING LIST OPENING for Mechanicsville Cityside August 29 – 31, 2016 Columbia Residential is accepting pre-applications for our brand new 2, 3, & 4-bedroom single family homes whose income does not exceed 60% of the area median income. The location and contact information is listed below: 565 McDaniel Street SW, Atlanta, GA 30312, Tel (404) 577-0577 Pre-application period: Open Date: August 29, 2016 at 10:00 AM Close Date: August 31, 2016 at 7:00 PM Pre-application forms will be distributed: Monday August 29, 2016 (10am-7pm), Tuesday August 30, 2016 (10am-7pm), and Wednesday August 31, 2016 (10am-7pm). Distribution and acceptance of completed pre-application forms will close at 7:00 PM on August 31, 2016. All pre-applications must be completed on site.

Annual Household Income: In order to be eligible, the applicant household’s Annual Household Income cannot exceed the area median income determined by HUD for Fulton County. Details regarding the area median income limits are available at the leasing office.

Priority Categories: All wait list applicants will be assigned a lottery number for selection when there are available homes.

Offering 2 bedrooms starting at $651 Offering 3 bedrooms starting at $705 Offering 4 bedrooms starting at $740 Housing Choice Voucher Accepted

No Rental Assistance Available

Request for Reasonable Accommodations during the pre-application process will be taken by telephone from August 29 - 31, 2016 by contacting the properties the numbers above or TTY/Relay 711. Future re-opening of the site-based waiting list will be publicly advertised.

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

Publisher: Li Wong Account Manager: Adrian West Contributors: Andrian Putra, May Lee, Mark Ho Photographer: Ben Hioe

Tel: 678-971-9388 Advertising: gat@gasiantimes.com Editorial: info@gasiantimes.com URL: www.gasiantimes.com Mailing Address: P.O. Box 4502 Suwanee GA 30024 Copyright Georgia Asian Times 2004-2016

All Rights Reserved: including those to reproduce this printing or parts thereof in any form without permission in writing from Georgia Asian Times. Established in 2004, the Georgia Asian Times is published by Asiamax Inc. All facts, opinions, and statements appearing within this publication are those of writers and editors themseleves, and are in no way to be construed as statements, positions, endorsements by Georgia Asian Times or its officers.

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GAT Calendar of Events GAT welcome submission of announcement pertaining to community related events.

Please email event, date, venue, and time to gat@gasiantimes.com.

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Machine learning implementation in digital experience

by Dr. Srinivas Kilambi Organized by Indian Professional Network Date: Thursday, August 18, 2016 Time: 6:30 pm Venue: Ashiana Indian Restaurant-Global Mall Dinner cost: $10.00 per person For more info: Suresh Mahadevan, smahadevan@sriyamixi.com, 404.547.9677 21st Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival Date: Saturday, Sept 10, 2016 Time: 7:00 am-6:00 pm Venue: Lake Laneir Olympic Kayak Facility, Gainesville For more info: dragonboatatlanta.com

Mid Autumn Moon Festival Organized by Community Based Participatory Partnership Date: Sept 17, 2016 Time: 5:00 pm - 10 pm Venue: 1568 Indian Trail Lilburn Road, Norcross, GA 30093 For more info: moonfest2016@gmail. com JapanFest “Cooler Japan�

Date: Sat-Sun, Sept 17-18 Time: 10 am - 6 pm Venue: Infinite Energy Center, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth Admission: $10, children under 6 free For more info: www.japanfest.org 12th Atlanta Asian Film Festival Date: Oct 7-22, 2016 Venues: KSU, GPC Dunwoody, UWG, LeFont Sandy Springs For more info: www.atlaff.org

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

METRO ASIAN NEWS Gwinnett Chamber promoted Nick Masimo to Chief Economic Development Officer

Duluth, August 8, 2016 – The Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce announced today the promotion of Nick Masino to Chief Economic Development Officer for Gwinnett Chamber Economic Development and Partnership Gwinnett.

In this role Masino will continue to oversee the business recruitment and retention efforts for Gwinnett, as well as the implementation of the award winning Partnership Gwinnett Strategy.

“It has been an honor to serve Gwinnett County for the past nine and half years,” said Nick Masino, Senior Vice President & Chief Economic Development Officer for Partnership Gwinnett. Every day I get to work with a great team, and our dedicated public and private sector partners, to promote and advance the County where I live, work and play.”

Nick Masino 2016Masino began his career with the Gwinnett Chamber in 2007 as the Vice President of Gwinnett Economic Development (GCED) and Partnership Gwinnett (PG). During his tenure the organization has assisted 213 companies in their relocation and expansion efforts.

These projects have resulted in 17,958 new jobs and $1,292,941,672 in capital investment.

“Nick Masino and the Partnership Gwinnett Team are huge assets for Gwinnett County’s economic development and vitality,” said Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners Chair Charlotte Nash. “The County looks forward to the launch of PG 3.0 and our continued partnership with Nick and his team.”

Masino and the PG initiative have been an integral piece of the economic development framework in Gwinnett County. The team has worked with state and regional partners on major relocation and expansion projects, including:

The GCED team has also been involved in the recruitment and expansion of three Fortune 500 companies. Asbury Automotive moved to Gwinnett in 2008 adding 70 new jobs to the County. NCR Corporation relocated their corporate headquarters to Gwinnett in 2009 and brought 1,550 new jobs, and in 2011 RockTenn acquired Smurfit Stone and retained their corporate headquarters in Gwinnett. The RockTenn merger led to over 500 news jobs and over $5M in capital investment.

“The Partnership Gwinnett initiative is a best practice in the field of economic development,” said Dr. Daniel Kaufman, President & CEO of the Gwinnett Chamber. “Nick is dedicated to this County and to advancing our economy’s competitive advantage; I congratulate him on this well-deserved promotion.”

In addition to being known as a leading authority on local and state economic development, Masino is also recognized for his numerous global business initiatives. He has traveled abroad at least fifteen times with GCED, visiting over 100 existing businesses and prospects, and has led delegations including, the Georgia Department of Economic Development, Gwinnett County, Gwinnett Cities and Community Improvement Districts (CID) and a host of private sector companies.

Prior to coming on board with the Gwinnett Chamber, Masino spent twelve years in Division, Regional and Territory Management within the recruiting and staffing industry.

Before departing the industry, Masino held the position of Professional Services Division Manager for a national staffing agency. He also served as one of Georgia’s youngest Mayors for the City of Suwanee for eight years, from 2000 through 2007. During this time Suwanee transformed from a small sleepy town to a national leader in

NACA forum on U.S. election system to educate Asian American voters Atlanta, July 22, 2016 — A wreath laying ceremony honoring Georgia’s Korean war veterans was held at the Georgia State Capitol. Over 740 Georgian died defending the freedom and peace during the Korean War. Ambassador Seong-jin Kim, Consul General of Republic of Korea, Hon. Sam Olens, Georgia Attorney General, Frank Blake, Chairman, American Korean Friendship Society, BG Jesse Simmons, Georgia Asst. Adjutant General-Air, Ki-Sung Bae, President, Korean American Association of Atlanta, and Jae Eun, Board member, American Korean Friendship Society were among the guest of honor in attendance.

freedom and the country. Our surviving members deserves to be recognized and honored,” said Robert McCubbins, President, Korean War Veterans Association.

Wreaths were presented by the Korean Government, Korean War Veterans, American Korean Friendship Society, Atlanta Rotary Club, and Korean American Association of Greater Atlanta.

The ceremony was organized by American Korean Friendship Society. A musical prelude honoring the veterans was presented by members of Hope Johns Creek Korean American Youth Orchestra.

“Although the Korean war is widely recognized as the ‘Forgotten War’ – we will never forget the heroes and soldiers who gave their life fighting for

mixed use design and development, as well as greenspace and park acquisition development.

“Nick Masino is a dedicated professional and a valuable asset to economic development in our state and our region, “said Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner, Chris Carr. “I want to congratulate him on behalf of the Georgia Department of Economic Development on this well-deserved accomplishment.”

Since 2007 the PG strategy has served as the community and economic development plan for all of

Gwinnett County. The strategy is made up of three main goals: comprehensive economic development, world-class talent and community and leadership development. Masino oversees a team of nine dedicated professionals who wake up every day to recruit and retain jobs through the implementation of this strategy.

PG is currently working with wellknown community and economic development consulting firm, Market Street Services, on its third five-year strategy and will launch PG 3.0 in January of 2017 with Masino at its helm.

August 15-31, 2016

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

NATION

Republican Asia experts say Trump presidency would be ‘ruinous’ U.S. Asia experts who served in past Republican administrations said on Monday they would back Hillary Clinton in the presidential race as a Donald Trump presidency would lead to “ruinous marginalization” for the United States in the region.

In an open letter, the eight former senior officials said that with global strategic competition growing, including from China, it was “absolutely the wrong time to elect an unstable, ill-prepared amateur with no vision or foresight to meet the manifold challenges of the 21st century.”

They said the Republican nominee offered “only bluster or preposterous panaceas” for Asia that would “wreck our country’s credibility, economy, and leadership in very short order.”

The signatories to the letter included Michael Green, who served as President George W. Bush’s top Asia adviser at the White House, James Clad, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense, and Patrick Cronin, a former senior official at the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Should Trump get the chance to put his “nostrums” into practice, Asian countries would be forced to shift towards states challenging the United States, most notably China, and some might seek security through nuclear weapons, the former officials said.

“In short, if the Trump brand … becomes America’s brand, we can expect ruinous marginalization in Asia and unwanted compliance with rules which the Chinese and other challengers set,” they said.

Their letter was the latest repudiation of Trump’s candidacy by Republican national security specialists.

Last week, 50 former Republican national security officials, including a former CIA director, called Trump unqualified to lead and said he would be “the most reckless president in American history.”

Trump responded to that statement by deriding the signatories as members of “the failed Washington elite” who “deserve the blame for making the world such a dangerous place.”

While making U.S. allies anxious, Trump has also irritated Beijing with his comments, such as by comparing the U.S. trade deficit with China to rape. One Chinese state newspaper equated him to Hitler.

At the same time, Beijing also sees Trump as a businessmen with whom it could probably negotiate and may also hope he would be less tough on human rights than Clinton. – Reuters

Obama warns Democrats against overconfidence about Clinton victory Washington DC, August 15, 2016 — Declaring he was tired of talking about Donald Trump, President Barack Obama urged Democrats on Monday not to grow too confident about their prospects in the 2016 election despite Hillary Clinton’s strong position in the race for the White House.

Obama, who is on a two-week vacation in Martha’s Vineyard, an island off the coast of Massachusetts, took a short break from his relaxation time to raise money for Clinton, the Democratic presidential nominee he hopes will succeed him when he leaves office in January.

Clinton leads Trump in opinion polls, and the Republican nominee’s campaign has suffered following remarks he made denigrating the parents of a fallen Muslim American soldier and charging that Obama was the founder of the Islamic State militant group.

The president warned his party, however, to maintain a sense of urgency until the Nov. 8 election.

“If we are not running scared until the day after the election, we are going to be making a grave mistake,” Obama told some 60 donors who contributed $10,000 each to attend the fundraiser at a private home on the island.

“If we do our job, then Hillary will be elected president of the United States.

But if we do not do our jobs, then it’s still possible for her to lose.”

The remarks could foreshadow the president’s role this fall in encouraging get-out-the-vote efforts for Clinton, his former secretary of state.

“I don’t have to make the case against her opponent, because every time he talks he makes the case against his own candidacy,” Obama said.

The president is expected to campaign heavily for Clinton in October.

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

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AUgust 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

BUSINESS

China approves trading link for Shenzhen, HK stocks Shanghai, Aug 16, 2016 — China’s central government has approved plans to link trading between the Shenzhen stock exchange and the Hong Kong market, it said today, paving the way for the long-awaited reform.

The Hong Kong stock exchange said it expected preparations for the launch of the mechanism to be finished in four months’ time, but that a start date would be subject to regulatory approval.

The powerful State Council — or cabinet — has given its high-level blessing to the scheme, it said in a statement on its website today.

“The State Council has approved the implementation proposal for the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Connect,” Premier Li Keqiang was quoted as telling a meeting of the body.

He added preparation work was “basically completed” but gave no date for the launch.

China launched a landmark “stock connect” between the bourses of Shanghai and its special administrative region of Hong Kong in late 2014, opening up its closeted share market to the outside world and giving foreign investors access to Chinese companies not quoted elsewhere.

Hong Kong exchange chairman C.K. Chow said the link-up would “open up another mainland market for international investors and strengthen the mainland’s links with Hong Kong” in a statement late Tuesday.

Mainland China’s second stock exchange, in the southern city of Shenzhen, was due to follow last year, but the launch was delayed by a market rout.

The exchange’s chief executive Charles Li said one of the aims was to build Hong Kong into an offshore wealth management centre for mainland investors.

The move demonstrates the “continuous commitment” of the Chinese government towards financial reforms, said economist Aidan Yao of Axa Investment Managers.

Yao said it was “an efficient way of liberalizing the onshore financial market”.

A report from Macquarie Securities said the launch would provide international investors access to China’s “most dynamic equity market”.

Chinese stocks surged yesterday in anticipation of movement on the proposal, though the benchmark Shanghai index fell back on Tuesday as investors took profits.

Still, the news could offer support for Chinese shares tomorrow, said Zhang Qun, Beijing-based analyst at Citic Securities.

“It will not affect the market significantly. Some shares related to Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect will probably open higher tomorrow morning,” he said.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the stock market watchdog, said on Friday that the program will be launched this year, repeating comments a spokesman made in June.

The existing Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect enables international investors to trade selected stocks on Shanghai’s tightly restricted exchange, and lets mainland investors buy shares in Hong Kong.

Premier Li said the Shenzhen link would represent a “firm step ahead” as he pledged closer cooperation between mainland China and Hong Kong.

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

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BUSINESS

Adidas to open shoe factory in Atlanta in 2017 Knock, knock! Google Duo video call is here Mountain View, August 15, 2016 — Now, all you need is a phone number to start a video call with any contact who uses an Android- or iOS-based smartphone.

Google launched Google Duo, pitting it directly against Apple Inc’s FaceTime, which allows video calls only between Apple devices.

Duo will also compete with Microsoft Corp’s video-calling app Skype, Facebook Inc’s Messenger and even its own Hangout app.

Duo comes with a unique feature called “knock knock”, which lets a person to see live video of a caller before answering.

Google said video calls would work even on slower networks by “gracefully” reducing the resolution to keep the call going smoothly.

“For video calls on the go, Duo will switch between Wi-Fi and cellular data automatically without dropping your call,” Justin Uberti, principal software engineer, wrote in a blog post.

Google, owned by Alphabet Inc, said the app would be live worldwide in the next few days.

London, August 10, 2016 — Adidas will open a new factory near Atlanta in 2017 largely operated by robots, part of a drive to shift production closer to customers and counter rising wages in Asia and lengthy shipping times.

The sportswear company has already started work at a similar factory in the southern German town of Ansbach.

The two factories are each expected to produce half a million shoes for running and other categories in the medium term.

Founded by German cobbler Adi Dassler in 1949, Adidas had closed all but one of its 10 shoe factories in Germany by 1993 as it shifted most production from Europe to lower-cost Asia, particularly China and Vietnam.

But advances in robotics and automation means that Adidas can now bring production back closer to customers to meet demands for faster delivery of new styles.

“This allows us to make product for the consumer, with the consum-

er, where the consumer lives, in real time,” brand director Eric Liedtke said, adding the factory would allow Adidas to customize more products for individuals.

Rival Nike, which has faced criticism for using Asian sweat shops to produce its footwear, promised last year to create 10,000 jobs in the United States in the next decade by producing more in its home market. Nike has also worked to improve conditions overseas.

Adidas has said the new plants would supplement rather than replace production in Asia, noting that Adidas currently makes about 300 million pairs of shoes a year and already needs to add two factories a year to keep up with current rates of growth.

The new U.S. factory will create around 160 jobs and is being operated

by Oechsler Motion GmbH. Adidas is also working with German engineering group Manz to develop new automated production technology.

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

LIFESTYLE

“Pokémon Go” company explains changes are for greater good Since Android and iOS app “Pokémon Go” launched early in July, it has attracted worldwide attention.

Its developer, Niantic, spun-off from Google late in 2015, had succeeded in creating a far fluffier version of its augmented reality game “Ingress” which, in part, could explain how pedestrians used mapping software and local knowledge to get from one place to another.

“Pokémon Go” takes a mobile phone’s camera, internet data connection, and global positioning gadgetry, and combines them for a global game of hide-and-seek involving small, collectible creatures at the heart of a 20-year-old video game, cartoon, and merchandising franchise.

Pokémon are graded according

to rarity, and their appearances are centrally co-ordinated, which is why phones need a data connection to know when and where to show them, while an on-board location service means the phone knows how near or far they are.

But such was the demand for “Pokémon Go” that fan communities immediately started looking for ways to help them find and file these virtual creatures.

One of those ways involved unofficial, online maps that showed where all Pokémon were.

That way, enthusiastic players could head straight for a specific location, rather than meander about according to vaguer hints provided by the app.

But those fan-made maps, as well as

other, less desirable encroachments, had a significant impact on how well Niantic was able to support the game as a whole.

“We wanted to shed some more light on […] why these seemingly innocuous sites and apps actually hurt our ability to deliver the game to new and existing players,” company founder John Hanke explained in an August 4 blog post.

An accompanying graph appeared to show that strain on the game’s data servers fell by two-thirds after Niantic blocked unauthorized access on August 1.

That made it possible to provide official support for “Pokémon Go” in Latin America, including in Brazil, Hanke said.

The block also meant Niantic could prevent cheaters and even those looking to “break into systems, hijack social media accounts, and even bring down the service.”

“We don’t expect these attempts to stop. But we do want you to understand why we have taken the steps we have and why we will continue to take steps to maintain the stability and integrity of the game.”

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

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ENTERTAINMENT

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan detained at US airport yet again Japan pop group SMAP to split Tokyo, Aug 14, 2016 — Hugely popular Japanese boy band SMAP will break up at the end of the year, their management said today, saddening their army of fans across Asia and marking the end of an era.

The five members of the group, now in their late 30s and early 40s, are regularly referred to as “national idols” and have dominated Japan’s show business industry for the past quarter of a century.

The news came after months of speculation about deep divisions within the band and only seven months after the group pledged to stay together.

“SMAP, which has worked as an artist group for 25 years since their debut, will disband as of December 31, 2016,” said management agency Johnny & Associates Inc. The members — Masahiro Nakai, Takuya Kimura, Goro Inagaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi and Shingo Katori — will remain with the agency and will focus on their solo acts, the statement added.

SMAP, which cryptically stands for “Sports Music Assemble People”, started out as a fresh-faced boy band in 1988.

They are still the top J-pop boy group — even though its members now range in age from 39 to 43.

Aside from singing mega-hit tunes, SMAP members, as a group or individually, have hosted a number of popular comedy, variety and sports television programmes, including ongoing broadcasting of the Rio Olympics, while also acting in serious dramas and movies.

“Twenty-five years since their debut, the most powerful idol group in the Japanese entertainment history will bring the curtain down,” said the Sports Nippon.

“I never read long sentences but read this many times. I refuse to believe SMAP is disbanding,” said one tweet, referring to the statement announcing the group’s break up.

Los Angeles, Aug 12, 2016 — Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan took to Twitter today to express his annoyance at being detained by US airport immigration authorities for the third time, saying the experience “really, really sucks”.

The last time Shah Rukh, 50, was detained by immigration officials in New York in 2012, it sparked uproar among his Indian fans who accused the US of racial profiling, and led Washington to apologise.

“I fully understand and respect security with the way the world is, but to be detained at US immigration every damn time really, really sucks,” Shah Rukh tweeted after he was pulled aside at Los Angeles airport.

“The brighter side is while waiting caught some really nice Pokemons”.

As news of Shah Rukh’s detention broke on Indian television channels, US Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Biswal quickly expressed regret.

“Sorry for the hassle at the airport, @iamsrk — even American diplomats get pulled for extra screening!” Nisha tweeted.

Washington had previously denied allegations that Shah Rukh was singled out because his name denotes him as a Muslim.

Someone with the same name is reportedly on a US no-fly list of 80,000.

After the 2012 incident, Shah Rukh joked in a speech to Yale University that he was accustomed to such hassles.

“Yes, it always happens... Whenever I start feeling arrogant about myself, I always take a trip to America,” he told students. “The immigration guys kick the star out of stardom.”

Shah Rukh was also detained for more than two hours in 2009 at Newark airport outside New York, prompting a similar Indian outcry and a US apology.

In February, a Sikh Indian-American actor and designer, Waris Ahluwalia, was barred from boarding an Aeromexico flight from Mexico City to New York because he refused to remove his turban.

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

FASHION

Louis Vuitton gives more of a sniff on its first fragrance since the 1920s Paris, Aug 16, 2016 — Louis Vuitton has revealed further details about its soon-to-be released set of seven fragrances, titled Les Parfums, which will hit stores from September 1.

The collection of seven women’s scents, which will be distributed via approximately 200 Louis Vuitton stores, puts an end to the brand’s 90year hiatus on perfume manufacture, marking its first fragrance release since the 1920s.

The seven frangrances — created by in-house master perfumer Jacques Cavallier-Belletrud, and titled Rose des Vents, Turbulences, Dans La Peau, Apogée, Contre Moi, Matière Noire, and Mille Feux — will be sold in in 200- and 100-ml sizes, priced at US$240 and US$350.

A travel box with four 7.5-ml cartridges for US$240 and a box of seven 10-ml miniatures for US$240 will also be available, in addition to a special-edition mini trunk created by Louis Vuitton to hold three fragrances, which will retail at US$4,900.

The advertising campaign for the perfumes will star French actress Léa Seydoux (via WWD).

Guess teams up with Cotton Inc for denim recycling drive Los Angeles, Aug 16, 2016 — American clothing brand and retailer Guess Inc. has joined forces with not-forprofit research and marketing company Cotton Incorporated to launch a Denim Recycling Campaign in autumn.

The initiative, part of Cotton Incorporated’s Blue Jeans Go Green programme, will kick into gear today in over 160 Guess stores in the US and Canada, and will run through October 1.

The programme aims to encourage denim recycling across the board, with Guess offering a keychain and 30 per cent off a new regular-priced Guess denim item bought in-store or online in exchange for donating used denim at any local Guess store.

Denim collected through the Blue Jeans Go Green programme will then be recycled into UltraTouch Denim Insulation by Bonded Logic Inc and given a “new life”, with a portion of this denim insulation to be distributed to organisations such as Habitat for Humanity to help communities in need (via WWD).

The tie-up with Cotton Incorporated follows the recent launch of #GuessEco, the brand’s eco-friendly, sustainable denim capsule collection made using a more efficient production process.

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

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SPORTS Biles’s five gold bid ends as Wevers takes beam title Rio de Janeiro, Aug 16 — Simone Biles’s bid for a record five women’s gymnastics gold medals in Rio ended yesterday when the US star was beaten into third place on the beam by Sanne Wevers of the Netherlands.

Germany waves goodbye to golden football generation Berlin, Aug 16, 2016 — Joachim Loew has had to part company with key players that helped build Germany’s success over the last decade after multiple retirement announcements in the last couple of weeks.

Philipp Lahm, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Miroslav Klose and now Lukas Podolski have all put an end to their glittering international careers in an era where Germany dominated world football.

The current crop of Germany players and those on the rise are products of the academy launched in 1998 after Germany’s disastrous 3-0 quarter-final loss to Croatia at that year’s World Cup. The German FA realized that they needed to act to ward off stagnation and renew the quality of their youth prospects, who were becoming overshadowed by their European neighbors.

Since 2006 Germany have reached the semi-finals of each major tournament, and after the heartache of falling to Spain in the Euro 2008 final they went on to lift the 2014 World Cup.

That prompted the country’s football authorities to ultimately invest €700 million into youth development over the next 10 years.

With a core group of players, destined to take their place alongside Germany’s greats, bidding farewell to the international stage, one would think their departure would leave a gap in the German team.

With the arrival of Jurgen Klinsmann in 2004 came a new playing philosophy at the head of German football, the former Bayern Munich star bringing with him a different style and prioritizing finesse over brute force.

However, a new generation of players is destined to emulate the accomplishments of their predecessors as Loew looks to keep Germany among international football’s elite.

And while the trademark values of German football such as strength and power remained embedded, the addition of tactical nous, speed and a possession-based approach to those fundamental traits propelled the Germans back to the elite of world football.

His young squad showed their worth at the European Championship in France with the likes of Julian Draxler, Mario Goetze and Thomas Mueller all under 27 years of age; even Manuel Neuer is only 30.

Biles — a gold medallist in the team, all-around and vault — fought to stay on the apparatus during her routine, scoring just 14.733 points. biles.bronzeIt was the first time the 19-year-old has been beaten in a final since 2013.

Wevers, 24, surged to gold with 15.466 points ahead of American Lauren Hernandez, who won silver with 15.333.

Despite getting off to a strong start the 1.45m (4ft 9ins) Biles put her hands down on the beam after landing a front somersault.

“Everyone would love to have a bronze at an Olympics. I’m just disappointed with my routine. I don’t really know what happened,” said the Texan.

In Rio, Biles had become the first American woman to win three gold at the same Games, and admitted that the reaction to her successes back home had been overwhelming.

“It’s scary and exciting and a little bit overwhelming,” she said.

Wevers took to the beam immediately after Biles and knew what she had to do after finishing runner-up to the American at the worlds last year.

“I knew that I needed to go all out, to do my highest difficulty. But after I saw her I said ‘maybe play it safe’.

“To do the performance of my life and to do it at an the Olympics is unbelievable.”

Biles still has a chance for a record-equalling fourth gold in Tuesday’s floor final.

Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina (1956), Czech Vera Caslavska (1968) and Romanian Ecaterina Szabo (1984), have all also won four gold medals at the same Olympics.

“I still have the floor to come. I’m a little tired. The floor always pumps me up,” said the 10-time world champion.

Earlier North Korea’s Ri Se-Gwang won Olympic gold on the men’s vault with Greece’s Eleftherios Petrounias taking the rings title.

The 21-year-old Ri, who had been poker-faced during the execution of his two vaults, had tears in his eyes as he stood to attention on top of the podium giving a military-style salute as the national anthem played.

Russia’s Denis Abliazin won silver for his second consecutive Games medal on vault after London 2012.

It was his third medal in Rio after silver in the team with Russia and rings bronze.

Japan’s Kenzo Shirai snatched bronze ahead of Romanian veteran Marian Dragulescu. Both scored 15.499 points on vault with Shirai achieving a higher execution score.

“Lord of the rings” Petrounias added Olympic gold to his world title.

The 25-year-old gave a powerful display of control and strength to earn an unbeatable 16.000 points.

Reigning Olympic champion Arthur Zanetti of Brazil had to settle for silver with 15.766.

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

SPORTS

“Somebody said I can become immortal. Two more medals to go and I can sign off. Immortal.”

Imperious Bolt completes amazing 100m treble Rio de Janeiro, August 15, 2016 — For 9.81 glorious seconds on Sunday, all the ills that have dogged athletics recently were forgotten as Usain Bolt stormed to victory in the 100 meters final to become the first man to win three successive Olympic titles on the track.

The Jamaican superstar trailed arch-rival Justin Gatlin, roundly booed by the Rio crowd for his doping past, until the 70 meter mark but then swept past the American, finding time to pat his chest as he crossed the line a meter clear.

Gatlin, the 2004 champion who came into the race with the season’s fastest time of 9.80, took second in 9.89. Canada’s Andre de Grasse claimed bronze in 9.91 seconds – the same finishing order as in last year’s world championships.

Victory took Bolt a step closer to his goal of winning a historic “triple-triple” combination of gold in the 100m, 200m and the 4x100m relay in three consecutive Olympics.

Other than the 2011 world championships, when he was disqualified for a false start, Bolt has won every other global championship individual sprint race since 2008.

That equates to five Olympic golds and seven in the world championships. Throw in two more Olympic and four world championship 4x100m relay golds and the world record in all three events and that is total and utter domination “This is what we train for. I told you guys I was going to do it,” Bolt, 29, told reporters. “Stay tuned, two more to go.

Already assured of his legend status, Bolt also added to his reputation as sport’s number-one crowd pleaser as he took a leisurely circuit of the stadium, posing for pictures and shaking a thousand hands.

OFFICIAL RELIEF If the fans were pleased, it is hard to imagine the relief felt by officials of the IAAF and IOC, who must have been dreading a Gatlin victory.

The American has served two drugs bans, though he denies any deliberate wrongdoing for either, and at 34 was bidding to become the oldest 100m champion.

The Rio fans certainly showed what they thought of him as he was loudly booed as he entered the arena, and Gatlin returned the compliment by being the only finalist not to acknowledge the crowd.

Bolt, in contrast, brought the spectators to a fever pitch of excitement as he strolled in,

smiling and waving, to chants of “Bolt, Bolt, Bolt.”

“I was surprised,” Bolt said. “It is the first time I have come into a stadium and they booed someone. It was shocking.”

It was no surprise to see Gatlin, the fastest man in the semi-finals, get his usual explosive start but Bolt, who had looked much smoother out of the blocks in his semi than in Saturday’s heats, was where he needed to be.

The race followed the pattern of so many before as he eventually unraveled his long legs to gain maximum pace and though he did not hit the front until later than he might have liked, when he did he shot past Gatlin like a track cyclist coming out of a slipstream in the velodrome.

The time was a long way off his 2009 world record of 9.58 but that was never the issue at stake.

Heats for the 200 start on Tuesday with the final on Thursday.

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

Page 15

HEALTH

Cycling may help prevent type 2 diabetes finds new study Copenhagen, July 14, 2016 — Carried out by the University of Southern Denmark, the study looked at 24,623 men and 27,890 women from Denmark age 50 to 65.

Participants were asked to self-report their cycling habits, including how much they cycled to and from work and how much they cycled just for fun.

Cycling1The data was then compared with the incidence of type 2 diabetes measured in the Danish National Diabetes Registry.

The results showed that those who cycled regularly were less likely to develop type 2 diabetes, and the more they cycled each week, the lower the risk was.

The team also found that after re-assessing participants’ cycling habits during the five-year follow-up, those who took up habitual cycling during this period, and therefore at a later age, still benefited from a 20% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than non-cyclists, with lead author of the study Dr. Martin Rasmussen commenting that, “We find it especially interesting that those who started cycling had a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, given that the study population were men and women of middle and old age.

This emphasizes that even when entering elderly age, it is not too late to take up cycling to lower one’s risk of chronic disease.”

Although the authors took into account various other lifestyle factors such as diet, alcohol and smoking

habits, and physical activity outside of cycling, self-reporting can lead to inaccuracies or missing data, and additional factors not taken into account may also affect the results.

people who due to lack of time, would not otherwise have the resources to engage in physical activity.”

The study can be found published online in PLOS Medicine.

However cycling is already known for its many health benefits, including improved cardiovascular fitness, a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, a lower risk of obesity, and even better sleep, with the findings only adding to the list of health benefits that cycling offers, even later in life.

The results also provide further evidence and support for the development of programs to encourage cycling, with Dr. Rasmussen also adding, “Because cycling can be included in everyday activities, it may be appealing to a large part of the population. This includes

How regular exercise keeps your heart healthy London, Aug 10, 2016 — Individuals who work out for just a few hours a week could benefit from an enlarged heart, a phenomenon previously only recognized in athletes, according to a new UK study.

The research also provides important information for doctors who could be mistaking an enlarged heart resulting from exercise, known as “athlete’s heart”, for a heart condition. runningFor the study, one of the largest of its kind, a team of researchers based at Imperial College London recruited 1096 adults age 18-97 with a median age of 39, and asked participants to report on their physical activity levels over the past year.

Participants fell into one of four activity groups, level I, almost entirely

sedentary; level II, light physical activity or exercise for one to three hours per week; level III, moderate physical activity or exercise between three and five hours per week; and level IV, more than five hours exercise per week or regular competitive sports.

The researchers also analyzed the genes of the participants to rule out any predisposition to heart disease which could possible cause heart changes; hearts were also measured using cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR).

The results showed that above a threshold of three hours, the more exercise you do, the more your heart is likely to adapt, with around one-third of participants taking part in three to five hours of exercise per week, and one in five of these individuals show-

ing an increase in the thickness of the heart muscle and the volume of the heart chambers.

Of those who reported doing more than five hours of exercise a week, over half developed similar changes, with the team finding that the more the exercise these participants did, the more significant the changes.

The changes, which occur in tandem as the heart adapts to exercise, enable the heart to pump more blood and therefore supply the exercising muscles with more oxygen and nutrients. One of the study’s lead researchers, Declan O’Regan, cautioned that these changes shouldn’t be misdiagnosed as heart disease, when heart changes happen in isolation from each other.

The researchers now believe that an

individual’s activity level should be taken into account before diagnosing common heart conditions, and used along with a heart scan and other measures such as an ECG, to identify those with a heart problem.

The findings were published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging.

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

Misc Asia

Yellow River yields clues to Chinese legend of ancient ‘Great Flood’ Oslo, August 4, 2016 — The crushed skeletons of children point to an earthquake and catastrophic flood on China’s Yellow River 4,000 years ago that could be the source of a legendary “Great Flood” at the dawn of Chinese civilization, scientists say.

A Chinese-led team found remnants of a vast landslide, caused by an earthquake, big enough to block the Yellow River in what is now Qinghai province near Tibet.

Ancient sediments indicated that the pent-up river formed a vast lake over several months that eventually breached the dam, unleashing a cataclysm powerful enough to flood land 2,000 km (1,200 miles) downstream, the scientists wrote in the journal Science.

The authors put the Yellow River flood at around 1920 BC by carbon-dating the skeletons of children in a group of 14 victims found crushed downstream, apparently when their home collapsed in the earthquake.

Deep cracks in the ground opened by the quake were filled by mud typical of a flood and indicated that it struck less than a year after the quake.

The flood on Asia’s third-longest river would have been among the worst anywhere in the world in the last 10,000 years and matches tales of a “Great Flood” that marks the start of Chinese civilization with the Xia dynasty.

“No scientific evidence has been discovered before” for the legendary flood,

lead author Wu Qinglong of Nanjing Normal University told a telephone news conference.

In traditional histories, a hero called Yu eventually tamed the waters by dredging, “earning him the divine mandate to establish the Xia dynasty, the first in Chinese history,” the scientists wrote.

Their finds around the Jishi Gorge from about 1900 B.C. would place the start of the Xia dynasty several centuries later than traditionally thought, around the time of a shift to the Bronze Age from the Stone Age along the Yellow River.

Some historians doubt the Xia dynasty existed, reckoning it part of myth-making centuries later to prop

up imperial rule. Written records date only from 450 BC. The evidence of a massive flood in line with the legend “provides us with a tantalizing hint that the Xia dynasty might really have existed,” said David Cohen of National Taiwan University, one of the authors.

Deluges feature in many traditions, from Hindu texts to the Biblical story of Noah. In pre-history, floods were probably frequent as ice sheets melted after the last Ice Age ended about 10,000 years ago, raising world sea levels. – Reuters

Georgia Asian Times August 15-31, 2016

Page 17

Misc Asia

Japan’s emperor speaks to public in remarks suggesting he wants to abdicate Tokyo, August 8, 2016 — Japanese Emperor Akihito, 82, in a rare video address to the public on Monday, said he worried that age may make it difficult for him to fully carry out his duties, remarks widely seen as suggesting he wants to abdicate.

Public broadcaster NHK reported last month that Akihito, who has had heart surgery and been treated for prostate cancer, wanted to step down in a few years – which would be unprecedented in modern Japan.

Once considered divine, the emperor is defined in the constitution as a symbol of the state and the unity of the people. He has no political power.

Akihito stopped short of saying outright that he wanted to abdicate, which could be interpreted as interfering in politics.

“When I consider that my fitness level is gradually declining, I am worried that it may become difficult for me to carry out my duties as the symbol of the state with my whole being, as I have done until now,” he said.

Akihito took the throne after the death in 1989 of his father, Hirohito, in whose name Japan fought World War Two. He has sought to soothe the wounds of the war in Asia during trips overseas and tried to bring the monarchy closer to the people.

Akihito feels strongly that an emperor’s full performance of his duties is integral to his constitutional role, experts say.

Opinion polls show the vast majority of ordinary Japanese sympathize with the emperor’s desire to retire, but such a step would need changes to the law.

Akihito has been cutting back on official duties, with his heir, 56-yearold Crown Prince Naruhito, taking his place. There were limits to how far that could go, he said on Monday.

LEGAL CHANGES The emperor also seemed to cast doubt on whether it was appropriate to use an existing system that would allow Naruhito to take over as regent if his father were incapacitated.

“Even in such cases (of a regency), however, it does not change the fact that the emperor continues to be emperor until the end of his life, even though he is unable to fully carry out his duties as the emperor,” Akihito said.

base, which worries debate of the imperial family’s future could widen to the topic of letting women inherit and pass on the throne, anathema to traditionalists.

to be revising the Imperial Household Law or enacting a special law allowing him to abdicate, said Naotaka Kimizuka, an expert in monarchies at Kanto Gakuin University.

Naruhito’s only child is a daughter.

Only males can inherit the Chrysanthemum Throne, which after Naruhito would pass to his brother, Prince Akishino and then to nine-year-old nephew Hisahito.

“They will either revise the law without touching on (female) succession, or pass a special law,” he said, adding steps could be taken next year.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters that, in view of the emperor’s age and the burden of his official duties, it was necessary to consider what steps could be taken.

Other conservatives worry devoting political energy to discussing abdication could sidetrack Abe’s push to revise the U.S.-drafted pacifist constitution, which many conservatives see as a symbol of Japan’s humiliating defeat in World War Two.

The idea of abdication has sparked opposition from Abe’s conservative

With Akihito apparently rejecting a regency, the only options would appear

“It felt as if the emperor were saying ‘Please hurry’.”

It was the second time Akihito had addressed the public in a video message. The first was after a massive earthquake, deadly tsunami and nuclear crisis hit northeast Japan in March 2011. – Reuters

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August 15-31, 2016 Georgia Asian Times

TRAVEL

Brussels ‘flower carpet’ has Japanese theme Brussels, August 15, 2016 — Hundreds of thousands of begonias and dahlias will emblazon the Grand Place in Brussels this weekend for its 20th “Flower Carpet” display, which this year has a Japanese theme.

A Japanese crane, a bird that symbolizes good fortune and longevity in Asian culture, flies across a wild landscape and Koi carp seem to swim among the blossoms delicately laid out on the picturesque 15th-century square.

carpet, a biennial event. Some picked blooms from fields in the north of Belgium as fast as 600 an hour each.

Others gathered at the Grand Place in the early hours of Friday to lay out the blossoms according to a template.

“It takes us two years to create and assemble a carpet like this,” explained Johan Aelterman, whose family’s flower-growing business has been involved in making the carpet since the first such event in 1971.

“The patterns and symbols of the flower carpet express happiness and peace,” said Fujie Suzuki, one of the lead designers.

After the display was completed on Friday morning, tourists from all over the world arrived to marvel at the display.

Some 600,000 flowers have been assembled in the 75 metre-long and 24 metre-wide display, and will remain in place until Monday.

“We are from Hiroshima which is famous for its peace park but is very different. We do not have such colourful flowers there, so I am really surprised,” said Japanese tourist Misa Kitatani, visiting Brussels with her family.

Around 100 workers and volunteers contributed to creating the flower

The most tweeted cities in the world for travel London has emerged the most popular travel destination on Twitter, according to a new report that looked at the number of times the world’s most popular cities were tweeted along with the hashtag “travel.”

According to data from London and Partners, the words “London” and “travel” were tweeted together more than 630,000 times in 2015, with a healthy 200,000-lead over its nearest rival, Paris.

Here are the most tweeted travel destination on Twitter for the period between February 2015 and January 2016 1. London 630,222 2. Paris 431,662 3. New York 291,894 4. Rome 175,514 5. Tokyo 136,272

London and Partners is the Mayor of London’s promotional company.

Their data crunching reveals that “London” alone was tweeted 81 million times in 2015. Some of the most commonly tweeted word associations include art, travel and fashion.