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THE CONTACT WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ISSUE - 645, 15 DEC. - 21 DEC. 2015 PH: (905) 671 - 4761

Hundreds of migrants arriving in Norway had mobile phones containing images of executions, severed heads and dead children, police reveal mobile phones. The revelation comes amid heightened fears that ISIS is exploiting the migrant crisis to smuggle fighters into Europe, following last month’s attacks in Paris.

Police admitted that the ‘explosion’ of refugees crossing into the country over the summer and in recent months

Reporter Nick Fagge bought an identical false Syrian passport as part of an investigation into the illegal printing of Syrian identity documents

Norway Hundreds of asylumseekers entering Norway

were discovered to have images of ‘executions’ and ‘severed heads’ on their

Terrorists jailed for life after police found beheading videos on computer memory sticks Sweden A Swedish court has jailed two men to life in jail on terror charges after police found footage linking them to two beheadings in Syria in

2013. The Goteborg District Court ruled that not only were Hassan Mostafa alMandlawi, 32, and 30-yearold Sultan al-Amin, involved in the killings but that the Continued on Page 2

Fears are growing that ISIS is using the migrant crisis to sneak jihadists into Europe, a mounted policeman leads a group of refugees and migrants near Dobova, Slovenia

Hassan Mostafa al-Mandlawi

meant that security checks were less thorough than required, and weren’t checking the background of those entering the country.

The Police Immigration Service (PU) in Norway has been forced to work

overtime and under severe pressure due to the massive numbers of asylum-seekers hoping to take refuge in the country.

But after searching belongings and mobile phones belonging to

refugees and migrants crossing the border, police discovered ‘hundreds’ of examples of ‘photos and videos of executions and brutal punishments, such as images of people Continued on Page 2

Obama on ISIS: We will ‘squeeze its heart’ Washington President Barack Obama somberly delivered the United States’ progress report in the fight against ISIS today in a year-end update on the war with brutal terrorist group, which he said continues

to be a ‘difficult fight. We are hitting ISIL harder than ever,’ he said. The U.S. and its coalition partners

are ‘increasing the pace of their strikes’ and dropped more bombs on the group in November than any other month since the airstrikes began. The U.S. is targeting ISIS at its core in Iraq and Syria, Obama said, ‘Because as we

squeeze its heart, it will make it harder for ISIL to pump its terror propaganda to the rest of the world.’

Reading from prepared text, Obama ticked off the names of ISIS leaders who had been eliminated this year - Mohammed Emwazi, better known as Jihadi John, Abu Sayya, a top leader of the group, Hajji Mutazz, ISIS’ second-incommand. ‘We’re going after ISIL from their stronghold right in downtown Raqqa to Libya,’ he said. ‘The point is ISIL leaders cannot hide, and our next message to them is simple: you are next.’

The coalition has also launched ‘new attacks on their life line,’ Obama said, referring to the group’s oil supply, and has reduced the amount of territory it controls in Iraq by 40 percent. ‘And it will lose more,’ he said. The terror

network has also ‘lost thousands of square miles of territory it once controlled in Syria,’ he said, ‘and it will lose more.’

In total, the United States and its partners have

dropped 9,000 bombs on ISIS. ‘Meanwhile, more people are seeing ISIL for the thugs and the thieves and the killers that they are,’ he declared. Obama acknowledged that

successes have been buttressed with challenges.

‘This continues to be a difficult fight. As I said before, ISIL has dug in including Continued on Page 2

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Americans want U.S. ground troops in Iraq & Syria

Washington More Americans than ever support sending U.S. ground troops to fight ISIS, according to a new poll. The percentage of Americans who favor deploying U.S. troops to fight ISIS militants has risen from 31 per cent to 42 per cent over the past year, according to research

by AP and GfK. President Barack Obama recently dispatched about 50 special operations forces to coordinate the fight in Syria, adding to the more than 3,000 troops already in Iraq.

But he and most other politicians oppose sending a large American contingent to add to the bombing campaign already underway.

Most Republicans running for president have not called for that either, although Donald Trump recently said he would support 10,000 troops, a figure originally

floated by senator Lindsey Graham. Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton has pledged to keep American troops out of Syria, saying she would resist sending forces to fight Islamic militants even if there iss another terrorist attack within the U.S. In the poll, 56 per cent of Americans said the U.S. military response to ISIS has not gone far enough, up from 46 per cent since October 2014.

Six in 10 Republicans, but only about three in 10 Democrats or independents, support sending ground troops, the poll showed. Analysts say the public desire for more action reflects growing anxiety over ISIS after its attack in Paris, and the shootings in San Bernardino, California, carried out by a couple apparently inspired by the group.

Hundreds of migrants arriving in Norway had mobile phones ...

Continued from Page 1 holding up severed heads or hands’. They also reportedly found photographs of dead children and other victims of war, crimes and terrorism.

Numerous images of ISIS flags and symbols belonging to other terrorist organisations were also found, according to Norwegian newspaper Nettavisen. Erik Haugland, head of Norway’s asylum programme pointed out

Europe. This includes Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who masterminded the plot and was later killed in a police raid on his hide-out in the Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis.

The forged documents were found at the scene of one of the suicide bomb attacks at the Stade de France, fuelling further speculation that ISIS may have a ready source of blank passports.

American authorities At least two men involved in the deadly Paris attacks announced this week may have used false Syrian passports to enter Europe, that they have concerns disguised as refugees that ISIS may have that it was possible the has already emerged that obtained a passport printing images were on the phones at least three of the group machine in an attempt to for innocent reasons. He that carried out the Paris infiltrate the West using explained that asylum- attacks in November had false documents. seekers might have the disguised themselves as The claim is based on a photographs in order to refugees in order to enter source of ‘moderate

Terrorists jailed for life after police found beheading ...

Chief Prosecutor Agnetha reported that the two men murders were intended to Hilding Qvarnstrom said the had lived in Sweden for intimidate and frighten pair, who were arrested in years and held Swedish people in Syria and July in Sweden, had both citizenship. The two men abroad. ‘The murder films ‘expressed joy over the traveled to Syria in the have obviously been deeds.’

Spring of 2013 and were crucial, and the The men have denied involved in the killing of two prosecutor has managed involvement and said they men who worked for a to show that it is those would appeal. Mr al- Syrian regime owned oil two guys who are in company. the videos,’ the Al-Amin, who has court’s chairman, been jailed since Ralf G Larsson, told July, will begin the TT news serving his life agency after sentence immpronouncing the ediately. The court guilty verdict on also ordered the Monday. imprisonment of alThe court said Mandlawi, who had police found been released after photographic and questioning because video evidence on he used a computer memory wheelchair following sticks seized a gunshot wound to during a search at the head. Althe Goteborg home Mandlawi’s lawyer, of one of the men.

Lars Salkola, said It showed two Sultan al-Amin, 30 have been jailed he was not satisfied killings, including a for life for terror crimes in Sweden with the verdict beheading, at an industrial Mandlawi’s lawyer Lars especially as he can only area north of Aleppo Salkola previously argued discuss it with his client’s between April 12 and May that his client should not relatives because al2, 2013. While neither have been prosecuted Mandlawi is unable to man is shown with a knife because a gunshot wound communicate with him in his hand, the to the head left him because of the brain injury. prosecution argued, and wheelchair-bound and In line with international the court agreed, that unable to communicate. A practice, Swedish courts footage was evidence that life sentence in Sweden may try certain crimes the men were present generally means a committed abroad if the during the murders and minimum of 20-25 years in suspects live or are had an intention to kill. prison. Swedish press apprehended in Sweden.

Continued from Page 1

bear witness to the war and horrors they were fleeing in their home country, or they may have been a tactic to sneak through jihadicontrolled areas unharmed.

He added that although the images may seem alarming, there are possible innocent explanations. Meanwhile, an ISIS manifesto released earlier this month boasted of plans to exploit the migrant crisis to sneak jihadists into Europe. It

confidence’, suggesting that ISIS’s printing of passports has not been confirmed.

But an MailOnline reporter Nick Fagge revealed the ease with which someone can get a Syrian passport, by buying a false Syrian passport as part of an investigation into the illegal printing of identity documents.

At the time, MailOnline was warned by a forger that ISIS jihadis were already using fake passports to travel outside of Syria and Iraq.

A German police analysis of the Syrian passport bought by MailOnline confirmed that the book was genuine, allowing the forger to easily fill in the details on the blank pages.

Obama on ISIS: We will...

Continued from Page 1 in urban areas, and they hide behind civilians,’ he said. ‘So even as were relentless we have to be smart, targeting ISIL surgically with precision.’

The U.S. has more than 3,000 soldiers on the ground serving in advisory roles, and it has deployed 200 special forces to assist with rescue missions, raids and intelligence gathering.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said at a briefing following the president’s marks that that Obama would not be‘satisfied’ until ISIS had been degraded and destroyed.

‘That’s our goal, and the president is not going to be satisfied until that is achieved,’ he said. Earnest said, ‘we need to do more to shut down their financing,’ their ability to spread their message online, and do more diplomatically to resolve the political conflict in Syria that’s playing out alongside ISIS’ invasion of the country. The president has provided a progress report on the war with the terrorist group three times in three weeks.

Before the Thanksgiving holiday, Obama assured Americans that it was safe to travel in light of ISIS attacks on Paris

and other areas abroad.

Then came the ISISinspired shooting in San Bernardino, California, a week later.

In a nationally broadcast address the Sunday afterward, Obama proclaimed that ISIS and its affiliates are ‘thugs and killers, part of a cult of death.’ He used similar language today but stayed on the topic of the foreign fight and did not address concerns about additional attacks at home. ‘I think the American people got a sense of that urgency when the President of the United States spoke directly to them on live national television during prime time from the Oval Office eight days ago,’ Earnest said in response to a question about anxiety at home today. He said, ‘It’s also

important that people under the progress that’s been made thus far.’

The president delivered the statement after meeting this morning at the Pentagon with Defense Secretary Ash Carter, Secretary of State John Kerry, via video, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford and other members of the National Security Council. Carter left this afternoon for a trip to the Middle East. Kerry is currently abroad and has meetings tomorrow in Russia. On Friday the president will leave for his annual vacation to Hawaii and will not return until the New Year. The White House has not ruled out a stop in San Bernardino along the way.

Saudi Prince Alwaleed calls Donald Trump a disgrace

Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has called Donald Trump a disgrace to the United States following his call for a ban on Muslims entering the country, and demanded the Republican front-runner withdraw from the US presidential race.

Trump triggered an international uproar when he made his comments in response to last week’s deadly shootings in California by two Muslims who authorities said were radicalized.

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Trump the builder can learn from Trudeau the rebuilder!

Pictures and videos of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau personally welcoming Syrian refugees as they stepped off a plane have gone viral. These were the defining images of the day, and prove that compassion travels across borders if there is political will. The new PM of Canada stepped out of his political comfort zone to display solidarity with those in need this festive season. We wonder if Donald Trump is watching.

Trudeau is going the distance to make refugees feel comfortable, while Trump, the real estate Moghul, is going out of his way to make them feel insecure and unwelcome in the country next door, which calls itself a superpower. The Canadian PM is a charmer for a humanitarian cause, unlike the US Republican frontrunner for president, who has confirmed himself to be a rabble-

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rouser, who will do anything to suit his political agenda.

“First of all, thank you for being here. And thank you for the gorgeous smiles I see.

This is a wonderful night where we get to show not just to a planeload of new Canadians what Canada is all about, we get to show the world how to open our hearts and welcome in people who are fleeing extraordinarily difficult situations,’’ said Trudeau. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has welcomed the first plane of Syrian refugees as they arrived in Toronto. The country is pushing forward with a pledge to resettle 25,000 Syrians fleeing conflict by the end of February. In contrast, the United States plan to take in just 10,000 over the next year, and even that is provoking opposition. It comes as Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump caused a worldwide uproar with a proposal to temporarily block Muslims from entering the U.S. Protests erupted around the country against Donald Trump in the wake of his controversial remarks.

Meanwhile, Trudeau welcomed 163 refugees as they arrived on a military plane. The flight from Jordan arrived just before midnight carrying the first of two large groups of Syrian refugees to arrive in the country by government aircraft. Trudeau greeted some of the families to come through processing. The first family was Kevork Jamkossian, a gynecologist from Aleppo, his wife Georgina Zires, a lab technician, and their 16-month-old daughter Madeleine. “We really would like to thank you for all this hospitality and the warm welcome,” the father said to Trudeau through an interpreter. “We felt ourselves at home.”

“You are home. Welcome home,” Trudeau responded. “We suffered a lot. Now, we feel as if we got out of hell and we came to paradise,” Jamkossian said later.

Families were given teddy bears and winter clothing. Trudeau earlier thanked staff and volunteers who were processing the refugees.

Trudeau, the telegenic son of Pierre Trudeau, arguably Canada’s most popular prime minister of the 20th century, was made for the internet age. Young, handsome and to the official manor-born, he is backed by a top-flight team of political strategists who know how to maximize media - new, old, and social to sway public opinion and perceptions.

This would explain why the trending hashtag #WelcomeRefugees, coined by the government itself, now appears on its immigration and citizenship ministry website. Not surprisingly, that site has been radically overhauled since the refugee-hostile Stephen Harper Conservatives’ nine-year reign ended. And so heart-warming images of Trudeau zipping the new arrivals into bulky winter coats hit TV, tablet and telephone screens everywhere. They were splashed on the pages of the world’s newspapers, from the Times of India to Britain’s Independent.

They were tweeted and they were facebooked. They became the perfect Christmas story.

All 10 of Canada’s provincial premiers

SUNNY BAINS

support taking in the refugees and members of the opposition, including the Conservative party, attended the welcoming. Trudeau was also joined by the ministers of immigration, health and defense, as well as Ontario’s premier and Toronto’s mayor. In the U.S., several Republican governors have tried to stop the arrival of Syrian refugees in their states in the wake of the deadly attacks blamed on Islamic extremists in Paris and California. Protests erupted around the US against Donald Trump in the wake of his call to ban Muslims from entering the

United States. Chanting ‘Dump Trump’ and ‘refugees welcome,’ protesters gathered in the Big Apple’s Columbus Circle castigated Trump’s remarks and held placards saying they welcomed refugees. They stood right next to Trump’s hotel - one of his most recognizable landmarks in the city.

Some protesters said Trump’s comments, while more explicit, were not that far removed from statements by other politicians calling for restrictions on Syrian refugees who want to settle in the United States. Others warned that Trump’s divisive remarks were only intensifying a wave of Islamophobia. “ … Canada’s generosity - and Mr. Trudeau’s personal warmth and leadership - can serve as a beacon for others,” a New York Times editorial headlined Canada’s Warm Embrace of Refugees maintained. “It puts to shame the callous and irresponsible behavior of the American governors and presidential candidates who have argued that the United States, for the sake of its security, must shut its doors to all Syrian refugees.”

The first flight arrived in Toronto before midnight but two days later another planeload of 161 privately sponsored Syrian refugees landing in Montreal barely made national news, let alone international headlines. That was despite a personal welcome by Philippe Couillard, the Quebec premier, John McCallum, the federal immigration minister, and Denis Coderre, Montreal’s mayor. Right now, Trudeau’s approval ratings stand at 57 percent, higher than when his Liberal party swept to power on October 19. Nearly three-quarters of all Canadians believe he has the makings of a good leader. He clearly has an effect.

Canadian businesses have delivered millions in sponsorships, housing, furnishings and even mobile phones.

Church and community groups, as well as individuals, have pledged to sponsor and support one newcomer. One chief executive is personally committed to bringing in 50 families at a cost of more

than $1m. In mid-November, polls showed that opposition to Trudeau’s refugee resettlement plan was as high as 60 percent. Last week, two days before the first planeload, Canadians were split, with those saying they welcome refugees slightly outnumbering those who did not.

Canadians eager to show their support for the newcomers weren’t deterred by the fact that they couldn’t do so face-to-face as the refugees were processed in a secure area. A handful of people gathered at the international arrivals gate at Pearson airport bearing signs and gifts.

About 800 refugees destined for Canada are being screened by security and health officers each day in Lebanon and Jordan.

Canada’s commitment reflects the change in government after October’s election. The former Conservative government had declined to resettle more Syrian refugees, despite the haunting image of a drowned 3-year-old Syrian boy washed up on a Turkish beach. The boy had relatives in Canada, and the refugee crisis became a major campaign issue.

“They step off the plane as refugees, but they walk out of this terminal as permanent residents of Canada with social insurance numbers, with health cards and with an opportunity to become full Canadians,” Trudeau said. Canada has long prided itself on opening its doors to asylum-seekers.

In times of crisis, in the decades past, Canada resettled refugees quickly and in large numbers. For the record, Canada has been a safe haven for those seeking asylum since World War II. More than 5,000 people from Kosovo were airlifted in the late 1990s. During Idi Amin’s rule in the 1970s, it welcomed 5,000 migrants from Uganda. In the late seventies, it became home to 60,000 Vietnamese. Like the US, it is also a country of immigrants, and has become home to 1.2 million people fleeing conflict since the second Great War. The Canadian premier realizes there’s hard work ahead as these Syrians integrate into a diverse Canadian society. The government of the day is responsible for the welfare of all, particularly those crying out for help. Through his gesture of personally welcoming the Syrian refugees, Trudeau has sent out a message that “Canadians are not defined by language, religion or skin color. Human aspirations, hopes and dreams are shared, they are universal, is the message he has conveyed to the world.” A far cry from the American real estate baron, who simply distanced himself from the pain and sufferings of people in Syria. He didn’t deem it fit to utter a kind word, or attempt a thoughtful deed. Instead, he played the religion card to further his political interests by saying Muslims should be banned from entering the country temporarily. But what Trudeau is doing is what any Canadian leader would have done under the circumstances. It is a tradition in hospitality others must emulate. Trump the builder and developer can learn from the younger man, who is helping people rebuild their lives in Canada.

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Man held for ‘IS links’ in Jaipur a new father, a quiet man who was vocal online

Are we all time-travelers?

Well, we are all travelling through time. If that doesn’t seem as exciting as it does in the sciencefiction films, perhaps this is because we are only travelling in one direction, at one speed. Yet some of us, it seems, forget this. We feel, perhaps, that if we rush, hurry, struggle and worry, we can somehow get to the future faster - or speed up the pace of some process that really is best left to unfold organically. Take it easy and all that currently seems difficult will start to become easier - albeit in its own time. !!!

When we think the world of someone, we want nothing but the best for them. But isn’t that what we want for almost everyone? When do any of us really wish the worst on our fellow humans?

Happily, wishes are free.

We can make as many as we care to and mean them most sincerely. We won’t exceed our allocation or find we can’t bestow a blessing on one person because we have used up all the goodwill we could summon on someone else. Be as kind as you can be. You will yet find your generosity is justified. !!!

Deep emotional bonds develop slowly. They are often forged in the fire of adversity. A shared experience, from no matter how long ago, can count for far more than any superficial social affinity.

You now find yourself trying to understand your feelings about someone and wondering what, in turn, they feel about you.

The fact that much about all this makes little sense may not, in itself, be anything to worry about.

Since when has there been a requirement of the heart to make sense of anything that it feels? !!!

What else are you and I but expressions of energy? A spiritual fire burns within us all. It informs every thought that we have, every emotion we feel, every desire that we become overwhelmed by. We may try to understand ourselves or each other, yet if we paint a picture that is any more complicated than that, we are just creating confusion. Where there is natural potential for harmony and empathy now, it will reveal itself swiftly. Where there is conflict, don’t waste time resenting it. Just look for a way to resolve it. !!!

We are all obliged to make allowances for each other. None of us are perfect. All of us have at least a few questionable qualities. Just as there is no such thing as a normal person, there is no such thing as a normal process of interaction. We are all different. We relate differently. We should, therefore, avoid judging ourselves and each other too harshly. What’s happening in your life now may seem strange in one way, yet it has potential to bring you a most rewarding experience of camaraderie and comfort. !!!

We all like to feel as if the universe is our friend. It brought us here, didn’t it?

It must have been keen to have us participate in it, must it not? Surely then, it will always do what it can to help meet our day-to-day needs. Often though, we become a little frustrated, and we start to suspect that we are getting no such support or assistance.

Even if that is how you have lately begun to feel, some events may soon inspire and uplift you as they strike a chord of happiness in your heart.

It seems something up there loves you after all.

Till a month ago, Mohammad Sirajuddin’s life was looking up. After a series of pregnancy-related complications, his wife Yasmeen had delivered a baby boy the couple’s second child in Bengaluru.

Then, on Thursday, Sirajuddin was arrested by the Rajasthan ATS on charges of “working for the Islamic State”, publicising its ideology online and via social media, and “instigating youth to join IS”. Arrested under provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act 1967, he was presented before the Chief Judicial Magistrate on Friday, and remanded in police custody till December 21.

The 30-year-old, posted as a marketing manager at Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) in Jaipur, reportedly broke down inside the courtroom and told the judge that he was waylaid and made a mistake. He reportedly urged the judge to show leniency since he had just become a father.

ATS sources alleged Sirajuddin had been propagating “IS ideology” via his Facebook page, which had about one lakh followers and was blocked following his arrest.

“He was in touch with some youths from Maharashtra and a girl from Hyderabad. We tracked him after we got information about suspicious activities on his computer’s IP address,” sources said.

The ATS is likely to jointly interrogate Sirajuddin along with officials of

talk much but wasn’t suspicious in any way. He was very supportive of his wife, who had been going through a lot of pregnancyrelated complications,” said one of his neighbours.

“She went home a few months ago and gave birth to a baby boy. We liked him because he stood by his wife through all the

central agencies.

His colleagues at IOC remember him as a “quiet” man who kept to himself.

“They (marketing department employees) report to Delhi and are mostly out in the field, so we don’t see them around much. Sirajuddin had a reserved nature,” said a colleague who did not wish to be named. His neighbours at Jawahar Enclave apartment complex, where the IOC has flats for employees, said he was a “nice, young fellow”. “He didn’t really

complications. Never imagined he would do something like this,” she said. Sirajuddin had married Yasmeen, a computer application scientist from Bangalore, in April 2011. After finishing his BE from Gulbarga, Karnataka, Sirajuddin left town to study further. He went on to get a Masters in Engineering degree in Advanced Manufacturing Technology from Coimbatore Institute of Technology. “He was a loner in college. He kept to himself, so most of us

don’t really know him,” said a former CIT batchmate. “He was very studious. He already had work experience when he came to CIT. He came from Karnataka, so he could not speak Tamil and spoke only in Hindi and English to us. I have not been in touch with him for several years,” said another batchmate.

He worked with the IOC for three years in Bangalore before being transferred to Jaipur in June 2014.

Sirajuddin’s father, a retired agriculture department official, stays in Gulbarga with his mother and a younger brother, also an engineer. Sources in Gulbarga said Sirajuddin’s father and brother left for Jaipur Thursday. “He is from an educated, well-to-do family,” said an administrative official from Gulbarga.

“We have not received any information from anybody about the arrested person,” Gulbarga SP Amit Singh said. His online records reveal that Sirajuddin had forwarded images of alleged atrocities on women in Palestine on a college forum in 2009 long before the Islamic State gained prominence.

On way to join Islamic State, Chennai Around 350 ISIS fighters killed in youth deported from Sudan

A 23-year-old computer engineer from Chennai, who was trying to enter Syria to join the Islamic State (IS), was deported from Sudan

on Thursday, according to sources. The youth, identified as Mohammad Nasir, had reportedly travelled to Sudan to meet

an IS recruiter who was facilitating his journey to Syria. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has registered a case against Nasir, and is set to take him into custody.

According to sources, Nasir moved to Dubai in June this year and was working with a firm there. “It was after he moved to Dubai that he got indoctrinated by online IS propaganda. He came in contact with an IS recruiter who helped him plan his travel to Syria to join IS fighters there.

Dear Mr. K. Sandeep Singh, I read your editorial and agree with your viewpoint. It’s very well-written, with a helpful summary of the Middle East politics, religion, and the Iraq War from 2003.

You include Bush’s and Cheney’s roles and the old history of Saudi Arabia, Islam, the Muslim hardliners and their brutal treatment of their own people. You mention the Saud family history from 1755 to the present. It helps me to see the whole picture.

Also, you describe beautifully the West’s hunger for oil and how they play politics to keep the profit and comfort coming. How brutally and disrespectfully the Western armies treated the Abu Ghraib prisoners - even dancing on the dead! Of course that angered the Arab world, probably helping ISIS to take revenge against the Western world. You describe how, if the Western world had really wanted Saudi Arabia to become more civilized, it would have exacted changes many years ago.

I like how you end. You tell the Western world not to say they’re fighting against the Islamic State because that gives too much credit to the ISIS. You say that everything is going to “Dakar” us.

Humbly & Sincerely, HS Deol

Iraq: U.S

The recent airstrikes by the United States in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi have killed around 350 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) resulting in the loss of almost half of their defending force.

According to the Guardian, Colonel Steve Warren, spokesman for the US military command in Baghdad, told reporters at the Pentagon that around 600 to 1,000 ISIS fighters had been inside Ramadi.

But US officials remain reluctant to predict how long it will take to reclaim the city which is crucial to the Iraqi government’s hopes of restoring its borders. Speaking about Iraqi progress in retaking Ramadi, Defense secretary Ash Carter said that the process has been “disappointingly slow”.

Warren also announced that the US airstrikes in late November killed three senior ISIS leaders, including Abu Salah, who was allegedly the group’s financial minister.

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ISIS finance chief Abu Saleh confirmed killed in air strike: US WASHINGTON The Islamic State group’s finance chief has been confirmed killed in a coalition air strike last month, US officials said on Thursday.

Abu Saleh was killed in late November, US military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said in a videoconference from Baghdad, calling him “one of the most senior and experienced members” of the group’s financial network.

The US government’s envoy for the anti-IS fight, Brett McGurk, said on Twitter that Abu Saleh was killed along with two associates “as part of coalition campaign to destroy ISIL’s financial infrastructure,”

describing him as the group’s “finance minister.”

Abu Saleh’s real name is Muwaffaq Mustafa Muhammad al-Karmush, described in a State Department terrorist blacklist as a 42-year-old Iraqi.

“Killing him and his predecessors exhausts the knowledge and talent needed to coordinate funding within the organization,” Warren said.

The military spokesmen said two other figures in IS fundraising networks also were killed in coalition air strikes in late November.

They were identified as Abu Mariam, an enforcer and senior leader in IS extortion networks, and Abu Waqman al-Tunis, who Warren said coordinated IS’s

A third of Americans ‘favour’ Trump’s Muslim ban NEW YORK More than a third of Americans want to ban Muslims from entering the United States, a new poll has found.

Nearly half of the US nationals surveyed want to keep a database of all Muslims

a l r e a d y i n t h e c o u n t r y, according to the poll by television network CBS news published Friday.

The poll follows Republican presidential ticket frontrunner Donald Trump’s suggestion Monday that the US bar Muslims from entry in response to a deadly gun attack in San Bernardino, California that is believed to

have been inspired by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) armed group. Mr Trump’s comment has prompted outrage from international media and governments but recent polling data shows that more Republicans support the prospective presidential nomineee than ever.

American Muslims, meanwhile, have drawn parallels between Mr Trump’s comments and a rising Adolph Hitler.

Akbar Ahmed, the chair of Islamic Studies at American University, wrote on Thursday that the US is on “the road to Kristallnacht ... this time with Muslims instead of Jews.”

The CBS poll of more than 1,000 Republican, Democratic and independent voters released Friday found that the vast majority of Americans feel Washington “should not ban” Muslims from entering the US. Among Democrats, 73 per cent opposed a ban, compared with 38 per cent of Republicans.

transfer of people, weapons and information.

Abu Mariam appears on the State Department terrorist list as Mounir Ben Dhaou Ben Brahim Ben Helal, a 32-year-old Tunisian.

The US-led coalition has been targeting IS leaders in Syria and Iraq with air strikes to try to pick apart its command structure.

After the attacks in Paris last month, the United States said it is deploying a special operations unit in Iraq that will be able to mount raids into Syria to capture or kill IS leaders. “We want this expeditionary targeting force to make ISIL and its leaders wonder when they go to bed at night, who’s going to be coming

in the window,” US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

In London, the US Treasury’s acting under secretary for terrorism and financial crimes, Adam Szubin, said IS derives most of its funding from economic activity in the territory it controls. It has reaped more than $500 million in black market oil sales, looted bank vaults captured in Iraq and Syria, and raised millions more through

extortion.

But to run what amounts to a mini-state, it needs steady and renewable sources of funding, and to do that it needs access to the international financial system to move money and import supplies, according to Szubin. “We are targeting both of these dependencies -- ISIL’s ability to generate revenue, and its ability to use that revenue,” he said in a speech to the Chatham House think tank.

Wife’s role in California attack raises fear of jihad brides LOS ANGELES A Pakistani woman’s role as a shooter in the San Bernardino massacre is raising fears that foreign-born brides who support the Islamic State group could marry Americans to come to the U.S. to carry out extremist missions.

Experts in jihad, immigration lawyers and former U.S. diplomats say there’s no sign other foreign brides have sought Western marriages to launch attacks, and it’s still not clear if 29-year-old Tashfeen Malik did so. But, they warn, that could change, especially if IS militants begin actively encouraging women to join men in attacks in the West.

While the group currently bars women from taking up arms for combat or other attacks, its commanders are pragmatic and adaptable and could drop their ban at any time, security experts say.

“When they see an opportunity to do damage, and the best man for the job is a woman, they will use the woman,” said Sasha

Havlicek, a founder of the British-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue, whose work includes monitoring the flow of female extremist recruits.

“We will see women more active

in terror plots,” Havlicek predicted. “We already know they are radicalizing in unprecedented numbers.”

The flow of IS supporters can also go the other way. Up to 30 women have left America to try to join the Islamic State group since it rose to prominence, according to a recent estimate from the Department of Homeland Security.

The numbers are higher in Europe, where more than 600 women have left to join extremists over that same period, Havlicek said.

A religious conservative who lived previously in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, Malik joined her American-born husband of less than two years, Syed Farook, on Dec. 2 in donning tactical gear, grabbing assault weapons and slaughtering 14 people at his office holiday party in Southern California.

While women previously have served as suicide bombers for violent Islamist groups, experts describe Malik’s role as a breach of current IS limits on the role of women, and the group has been muted in its public responses to the killings.

Farook and his family, like many traditional families in South Asia and elsewhere, used regional matchmaking websites to search for a suitable bride, although it’s not clear if that’s how he met Malik.

US visa process missed California woman shooter’s online zealotry WASHINGTON Tashfeen Malik, who with her husband carried out the massacre in San Bernardino, California, passed three background checks by U.S. immigration officials as she moved to the United States from Pakistan. But none uncovered what Malik had made little effort to hide that she talked openly on social media about her views on violent jihad.

She said she supported it. And she said she wanted to be a part of it.

U.S. law enforcement officials said they recently discovered those old and previously unreported postings as they

pieced together the lives of Malik and her husband, Syed Rizwan Farook, trying to understand how they pulled off the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil since Sept. 11, 2001.

Had authorities found the posts years ago, they might have kept her out of the country. But immigration officials do not routinely review social media as part of their background checks, and there is a debate inside the Department of Homeland Security over whether it is even appropriate to do so.

The discovery of the old social media posts has exposed a

significant and perhaps inevitable shortcoming in how

foreigners are screened when they enter the United States, particularly as people everywhere disclose more about themselves online. Tens of millions of people are cleared

each year to come to this country to work, visit or live. It is impossible to conduct an exhaustive investigation and scour the social media accounts of each of them, law enforcement officials say.

In the aftermath of terrorist attacks in San Bernardino and Paris, this screening process has been singled out as a major vulnerability in the nation’s defense against terrorism. Lawmakers from both parties have endorsed making it harder for people to enter the United States if they have recently been in Iraq or Syria. Donald Trump, a Republican presidential

candidate, has said there should be a temporary ban on Muslims’ entering the country.

While President Barack Obama has cautioned against “a betrayal of our values” in the way the United States responds to threats, he has ordered a review of the K-1 visa program, which allows foreigners like Malik to move to the United States to marry Americans, putting them on a pathway to permanent residence and, ultimately, citizenship. The Obama administration is trying to determine whether those background checks can be expanded without causing major delays in the popular program.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Japanese monks karate chop, chant in funeral contest TOKYO Japanese Buddhist monks strutted their stuff Wednesday in a contest highlighting sutra chanting skills, giving funeral

demonstrating his technique in the Japanese martial art of karate by breaking a pile of 10 tiles with his bare right hand.

“Ha!” he shouted, followed

sermons &, surprisingly, loud karate chops.

The contest, held on the sidelines of Japan’s first ever expo on the business of death and dying, was aimed at winning back public interest in funeral services offered by priests and monks as more people seek alternatives to traditional burial customs.

Wearing pale gold, purple, or black and white robes, the eight monks walked calmly onto a stage one by one, bowing to an audience of about 100 people with their palms together.

They then proceeded to give short sermons and also chant solemn sutras and Buddhist songs, key requirements for conducting wakes and funerals according to the rites of the ancient religion.

But one of the contestants, Taigen Yokoyama, showed off a different talent,

by the cacophonous sound of tiles shattering. “I’m sorry to have frightened you,” he added calmly.

The event was held in conjunction with the Life Ending Industry Expo, which attracted more than 200 companies involved in the business of death and funerals.

It followed another unique competition the previous day that highlighted the work of the declining number of specialists who prepare the dead for Buddhist funerals and cremations.

Observers say an increasing number of people are cutting ties with traditional Buddhist temples and are not building new tombs in graveyards, citing growing individualism and shortage of younger family members who can take care of graves.

TOKYO Japan’s space agency said Wednesday its “Akatsuki” probe had successfully entered into orbit around Venus after an initial attempt at reaching the second planet from the sun failed five years ago.

The success marks the first time a Japanese space probe has entered into the orbit of another planet, according to Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

“The probe is functioning properly,” Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) project manager Masato Nakamura said during a press conference. “We’ll conduct an inital observation for three months... We’ll then shift to full observation in April,” he said. Akatsuki,

meaning dawn, blasted off in 2010 on a 25.2 billion yen ($205 million at current exchange rates) mission to observe the toxic atmosphere and super-hot volcanic surface

“It’s getting more and more difficult for monks to maintain their temples as a business as the temple memberships are declining, especially in the countryside,” said Mayumi Tominaga, a spokeswoman for the event.

“The number of people who die will peak in 2040 in Japan, but many elderly people are choosing to stop using their ancestral tombs,” she said.

The winner of the “Beautiful Bozu (monk) Contest” was Shouyo Takiyoshi from a temple in northern Hokkaido, who sang melancholic Buddhist songs.

He was selected the winner based on the votes of audience members as well as a five-judge panel of company managers, a monk and a pianist.

“It was interesting to see monks in a scene different from funerals” usually filled with a solemn atmosphere, said Sae Igarashi, 24, who works for a company offering ceremonial services.

Yokoyama, who performed the karate chop, said he is also pursuing a parallel career as a nurse.

“Priests often meet people for the first time after their death,” he said, stressing that he wanted to know and care for people fighting illness or other difficulties.

As an example, he mentioned an elderly woman who had forgotten her own name because of dementia but still cared for her children in her mind.

Japanese space probe goes into orbit around Venus

of Venus. But the boxshaped probe failed to enter the planet’s gravitational pull and shot past it, forcing JAXA technicians to make the second attempt.–AFP The successful Venus orbit came a week after another Japanese space probe, “Hayabusa 2”, passed by Earth to harness the planet’s gravitational pull to propel it toward a far away

asteroid in its quest to study the origin of the solar system.

The explorer conducted an “Earth swing-by” and came as close as 3,090 kilometres (1,900 miles) above the planet’s surface, before switching its orbit to continue towards the tiny Ryugu asteroid.

Hayabusa 2 was launched a year ago on a six-year mission to bring back mineral samples from the asteroid. It is expected to reach Ryugu, named after a mythical castle in a Japanese folk tale, in mid2018. If all goes well, soil samples will be returned to Earth in late 2020.

Analysing the extraterrestrial materials could help shed light on the birth of the solar system 4.6 billion years ago and offer clues about what gave rise to life on Earth, scientists have said.

Japan’s death specialists exhibit skills at expo TOKYO Specialists in the fading profession of preparing bodies for funeral and cremation in Japan gave a rare glimpse of their skills at the Tuesday opening of a Tokyo exhibition focused on the business of death and dying.

Practitioners of “nokan” translated as “encoffinment” - took part in what organisers said was Japan’s first ever contest to demonstrate their techniques, as a pianist and a guitarist played peaceful, relaxing music.

The contestants demonstrated their skill over the course of 15 minutes in dressing live models who laid still on Japanese-style futons, or floor mattresses. Sayuri Takahashi knelt gracefully before a motionless female figure on the floor, gently manoeuvring the arms and legs to dress her in a shirt, slacks and socks, the light of artificial candles flickering behind.

The partially clothed model was covered with a Japanese-style robe to hide exposed skin, the favoured way of dressing the dead to maintain modesty when family members are watching.

The competition was part of the inaugural Life Ending Industry Expo, which attracted more than 200 companies in the business of death.

The craft of the specialists,

who are known as “nokanshi”, is declining in Japan’s bigger cities but remains fairly common in the country’s rural areas.

The work overlaps somewhat with that of morticians in Western countries, though in Japan embalming of bodies is rare and wakes and funerals are still sometimes held in the family home.

It came to worldwide attention in 2009 when the Japanese film “Departures” won the Oscar for best foreign language film for its depiction of an out of work cellist who becomes a nokanshi in smalltown Japan. “We wanted the public to know more about nokanshi as there weren’t enough specialists after the 2011 disaster,” said competition organiser Koki

Kimura, referring to the devastating earthquake off Japan’s northeastern coast and subsequent tsunami on March 11 of that year in which more than 15,000 people died.

A panel of three judges examined not only how well the models were dressed but also how gracefully the nokanshi completed the whole process. “The kindness and politeness towards the family of the deceased combined with efficiency are key,” Shinji Kimura, one of the judges and a former advisor to the lead actor in “Departures”, told. “We want to do our best for the final departure of the deceased,” said Kimura, who has 30 years of experience as a nokanshi. “So it should not be mechanical.”

Takahashi, the 27-year-old winner who was awarded a trophy and an undisclosed sum, said she started her job three years ago after learning about the profession following a death in her own family where the body was attended to by a nokanshi. “My relative’s face looked peaceful,” she told AFP after the contest, adding that the Oscarwinning movie also inspired her choice.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Thai prince leads mass cycling event ‘for Dad’ BANGKOK Thailand’s crown prince led a mass cycle in Bangkok Friday at a symbolic event to honour his father King Bhumibol Adulyadej and highlight his role as heir apparent amid increasing anxiety over his dad’s health.Clad in lycra, a helmet and sunglasses, Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, 63, headed the cyclists at the “Bike for Dad” event - a rare public appearance for the prince - which follows a similar event in August for his elderly mother Queen Sirikit.

The mass cycles, broadcast live on every Thai television channel, have been billed as a chance to promote unity among Thais 18 months after a coup swept away the civilian government - the latest episode in a seemingly endless succession of elections and coups. They also give the twice-divorced prince a chance to bolster his image, promoting himself as a dutiful son, and crucially, that he has the strong backing of the armed forces, who joined him at the event.

“I am delighted that the Crown Prince graciously inaugurates the ‘Bike for Dad’ to honour the King on his 88th birthday,” coupmaking army chief turned premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha said. Prayut and top military and political leaders, all clad in yellow in a nod to the King’s official colour, followed the Prince among an expected 100,000

cyclists on a 29-kilometre (18mile) route through the capital.Nationwide, more than half a million people are expected to take part, topping the 136,411 people at the “Bike for Mom” cycle. “I am happy to stop work because I love the king. With all my heart I wish the king good health,” said Supab Jarupoom, a 68-year-old butcher from

Chinese customs officers seize 120k fake face masks

Bangkok, wearing a Thai flag headband and with a photo of the King on his bicycle.

The king is revered among many Thais but has been in hospital for much of the last two years and is rarely seen in public.

Vajiralongkorn has yet to attain such popularity and his ability to operate as a unifying force ostensibly above the political fray is untested. In recent years, the crown prince has spent much of his time away from the public eye.

But he has stepped in at some official ceremonies as his father’s health declines.

The cycling events have thrust Vajiralongkorn centre stage at a time of heightened concern over his father’s health and country’s future. “Though the activity intends to praise the king as father of the nation, some might interpret the activity as bestowing greater monarch-to-be legitimacy upon the crown prince,” Thai politics expert Paul Chambers told AFP.For much of the last decade Thailand has been rocked by political instability partially fuelled by jostling among the country’s elites for influence as the king’s reign enters its twilight years. Bhumibol and his family are protected by one of the world’s harshest lese majeste laws, making criticism of the monarchy or public debate about its role in society all but impossible.

Prosecutions have surged since last May’s coup, with a Thai man arrested this week for ‘liking’ a doctored photo of the King.

Sale of condoms shoots up in Beijing after smog red alert

Beijing The Chinese capital Beijing has been blanketed by smog so dense it led to the announcement of the first ever red alert and the warning will stay till the 10th of December.

The smog has brought the entire city to a city to a standstill. The city, which has a population of over 23 million people, witnessed roads which were half empty. The air is so impure that people have been forced to stay indoors.

Schools, construction sites and factories have been shut.

Beijing’s vehicle restriction of odd and even number plates will last until tomorrow afternoon.

In the midst of this hazardous scenario, the sale of face masks skyrocketed so much so that several outlets went completely out of stock. But the sale of air purifiers was overtaken by condoms and sportswear.

According to a study by

China’s largest online shopping platform, Taobao.com, the searches for condoms is associated with good child bearing and most try to avoid conceiving on smoggy days. Part of the reason could also be boredom from staying indoors.

The cities with greater problems of serious haze recorded higher search for sports wear as the people are keen on exercising outside once the air is clear.

Parents were not amused with the closure of schools as they had to stay back and look after their children. A resident said parents had raised funds to set up air purifiers in schools, she says children are safer in schools than at home. A major cause for the rise in smog in most areas is the widespread use of coal for heating in smog affected rural areas of the northern province.

Kentucky boy gets ‘bionic’ hand courtesy of 3-D printing BEIJING Customs officers in China’s commercial capital, Shanghai, have discovered 120,000 fake respiratory masks, supposedly made by US diversified manufacturer 3M Co, state media said on Wednesday.

News of the seizure came as air pollution has engulfed the capital, Beijing, with authorities declaring a “red alert” there because of dangerously high levels of smog. Many people in China wear face masks in the hope of preventing the breathing of pollution and airborne viruses, or to stop themselves spreading colds and coughs to others. The fake masks were discovered in two batches during inspections at a Shanghai customs site, the state-run China News Service said, adding that many people had been detained in the course of a broader investigation into fake masks. China has been trying to rein in counterfeiters who have copied everything from Apple iPhones to Louis Vuitton handbags, since it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, when it was required to adhere to global standards on intellectual property rights.

Officials at China’s 3M office were not available for comment.

The seizure of the fake masks has increased Shanghai’s tally of counterfeit cases to 30 this year, which involve more than 700,000 products, the news agency cited the Shanghai customs bureau as saying. It declined to comment to Reuters. Beijing and four other cities in northern China have issued pollution red alerts.

Beijing’s red alert is triggered when the government believes air quality will surpass a level of 200 on an air quality index that measures various pollutants for at least three days.

The US government deems a level of more than 200 “very unhealthy”. Rapid industrial growth and car ownership have led to surging levels of pollution in major urban areas and Chinese researchers have identified the problem as a major source of unrest. A red alert triggers restrictions on vehicles while schools are closed, businesses recommended to allow flexible hours and the government advises that all “large-scale, outdoor activity” be stopped.

LOUISVILLE A 6-year-old Kentucky boy born with a malformed right hand because of a rare disorder has received what he called his best Christmas gift ever - a “bionic” prosthetic made from 3-D printing technology. Lucas Abraham, who has wanted a working right hand since he was 2 years old, showed off the new prosthetic made by University of Louisville bioengineering students. “It’s better than every gift that I’ve ever had before,” Lucas told a news conference at the university on Wednesday. Gina Bertocci, a University of Louisville bioengineering professor, said Lucas’ hand was the first created by the school for a child and that more could be produced. The university described it as “bionic.” The printer technology greatly reduces the manufacturing cost and the plastics used are similar to those in Lego blocks, allowing the devices to be produced in various colors, Bertocci said.

Children like it because it makes them look like a

Transformer, she added, saying: “Everyone wants to show off their hardware.” The students received assistance

a ball. He wore the hand to school and was able to shake hands and give his classmates high fives. It also will let him

from e-NABLE, a global volunteer group that designs and prints prosthetics. Three hands composed of plastic, leather and wire were made to fit Lucas. He will keep two and the university will retain the third for accreditation purposes, the school said. Within minutes of receiving his new hand last week, Lucas was able to grasp

crash cymbals together in music class, Lucas said.

Lucas’ grandmother Julie Abraham said he had shown more confidence in himself since receiving the hand.

Abraham had written to the university in August asking if it could do something for him. “It’s a pretty good Christmas gift,” she said.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Can cleaner air lead How many of your Facebook to more hurricanes? friends do you REALLY know?

Global efforts to improve the quality of air could be resulting in more hurricanes as a sideeffect, according to a new study.

“Anthropogenic aerosols” tiny airborne particles emitted by vehicles, factories and households helped keep a lid on the number of tropical storms in the North Atlantic for most of the twentieth century, according to the study by the UK’s national weather service.

However, the frequency of storms increased after moves to fight pollution led to “sharp declines” in aerosol levels from 1990, ‘The Australian’ reported.

Researchers say their findings corroborate 2012 research which linked aerosols with hurricanes.

“Continued mitigation of aerosols may lead to further increases in tropical storm frequency,” the report said.“External factors,

particularly anthropogenic aerosols, could be the dominant cause of historical tropical storm variability,” said the report. Airborne particles can reduce the strength of storms by seeding clouds and encouraging rain.

But the research found that aerosols had also helped prevent hurricanes by reducing North Atlantic surface temperatures.

During the modelling, the researchers found that aerosols were responsible for a 0.2 degree Celsius decline in average sea surface temperatures between about 1880 and 1980.Scientists had been “uncertain” about the effect of airborne particles on tropical storms, said Johannes Quaas, a theoretical meteorologist at the University of Leipzig in Germany.

Woman travels the world in an attempt to photograph her 678 online pals - many of whom she has never met Maine-based photographer Tanja Hollander has amassed nearly 700 Facebook friends, but many of them she has never met in person, so she went on an epic quest in hopes of turning online relationships into something real.

Hollander got the idea for what eventually turned into her photo project titled ‘Are You Really My Friend?’ on New Year’s Eve of 2010 while she was sitting at home and hand-writing a letter to a friend serving in Afghanistan while talking on Facebook to another pal in Jakarta. This dichotomy in the means of communication got Hollander thinking about the relationships in her life both on and off line, and she came to the realization that some people whom she considered her friends she had never met in person.At the end of February 2011, Hollander set out to find an answer to the question she had posed to herself: ‘Am I really friends with all these people?’

Armed with a camera, the photographer hit the road, planning to visit every one of her Facebook friends, which at the time numbered 626, come into their homes and make their formal portraits. Over the course of two

years, Hollander has photographer nearly 300 of her now-678 Facebook friends in their homes across the U.S. and beyond. ‘What started as a personal documentary on friendship and environmental portraiture has turned into an exploration of American culture and community building both onand off-line,’ she told Features

had gone on her journey as a cynic but came back as a much more open-minded person willing to say ‘yes’ to anything.The project took Hollander to some unexpected places, from a bee sanctuary in Saint Louis to the West Wing in the White House, and gave her a chance to have experiences she otherwise would have never had, like admiring chickens and prize

Shoot. ‘I have found with a little bit of effort, a tenuous online relationship can turn into a close friendship.’Relying on the kindness of strangers, Hollander crowdfunded her trips to dozens of states and a number of foreign countries, traveling by plane, train, boat, truck, trolley, subway, commuter rail, bus, car and on foot.Hollander wrote on her site that through her ambitious photo project, she has learned a lot about herself, explaining that she

roosters, dancing on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum and sharing a bowl of gumbo in New Orleans. ‘Most importantly, I have learned about human kindness and compassion,’ she wrote. ‘I continue to be surprised by the number of people, especially (the real life) strangers, who have opened their homes to me-offering me a place to stay, sharing their lives, their stories, their food, and their families while allowing my camera to document it all.’

Stress of 9/11 attacks caused a Lebanon clashes MILLION former smokers to take rage overnight up the habit again in the U.S. 12 soldiers dead The 9/11 attacks on America caused around one million former smokers to take up the habit again in the U.S., according to a new report.The study is the first to look at the net costs to society of terrorism-induced smoking in the U.S. after 9/11 and the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.’This helps us better understand what the real costs of such disasters are in human and economic tolls, and it suggests ways that future stressful reactions that result in excess smoking might be avoided,’ said the study’s author, Dr Michael Pesko, of Weill Cornell Medical College’s Department of Public Health in New York.While the Oklahoma City bombing didn’t affect smoking rates in the U.S., Pesko suggested that 9/11 caused a significant 2.3 percent increase nationwide. The increase started after 9/11 and continued through to the end of 2003, when analysis of the data ended, he says.Stress was also found to

especially increase in communities with a higher concentration of active-duty and reserve members of the military, and among higher-educated groups. The increase in stress following 9/11 was found to

account for all of the increase in smoking.’This study provides the first unbiased estimate of the effect of stress on smoking, and the finding that there was such a big increase in smoking nationwide, seemingly due to one event, is extraordinary, and surprising,’ said Dr. Pesko. ‘It sheds light on a hidden cost of terrorism.’Dr. Pesko has long

been interested in the relationship between stress and substance abuse.

‘There is a consensus in the research community that stress is a very large motivator for individuals to use substances, but this has not really been studied very thoroughly,’ he explained.

To shed light on the relationship, Pesko chose two domestic terrorist attacks and examined data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which tracks annual rates of risky personal behaviour across the nation.

Health departments in every state conduct monthly phone surveys of residents, asking questions about seat-belt use, smoking and drinking habits, the last time they visited a doctor amongst others.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention then analyses the data to create a nationally representative report.

Lebanon’s military forces battling followers of a hard-line Sunni Muslim cleric closed in on Monday on the mosque where they are taking cover in a southern coastal city, the national news agency said. It said a total of 12 soldiers had been killed since fighting erupted a day earlier. The clashes in Sidon, 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Beirut, is the latest bout of violence in Lebanon linked to the conflict in neighboring Syria.

It is the bloodiest yet involving the army. At least three of those killed are officers. The National News Agency said the clashes also left fifty wounded.

The report said it was not clear how many gunmen were killed or wounded in the clashes, nor whether there were civilian casualties. The heavy fighting with machine guns and rocketpropelled grenades has caused panic among residents of Sidon, Lebanon’s third largest city, which until recently had been largely spared the violence hitting other areas. The city streets appeared largely deserted on Monday, and local

media reported many residents were asking for evacuation from the area of the fighting, a heavily populated neighborhood in the city.

The news agency said a government building was hit. The local municipality said that the city is "a war zone," appealing for a ceasefire to evacuate the civilians and wounded in the area.

Many people living on high floors came down or fled to safer areas, while others were seen running away from fighting areas carrying children. Others remained locked up in their homes or shops, fearing getting caught in the crossfire.

Gray smoke billowed over parts of the city. The fighting broke out on Sunday in the predominantly Sunni city. The army says supporters of Sheik Ahmad alAssir opened fire without provocation on an army checkpoint. It tied the attack to the war in neighboring Syria. AlAssir is a virulent critic of the powerful Shiite militant Hezbollah group, which along with its allies dominates Lebanon’s government.

Issue - 645 (10)

Well established Sikh Jatt parents seeking suitable match for beautiful 26 yrs. old daughter who is a doctor and U.S. Citizen.

Boy should be in the Medical, Engineering field or a Lawyer. He should also be tall between 2530 yrs. old and from a respectable Jatt Family, living in USA. Please send your bio-data and Photo to: jskaur555@gmail.com ***645*** Hindu Punjabi parents invite matrimonial alliance for their daughter, 35 yrs. old, 5’-1” tall, professionally qualified and employed in Toronto, never married, well versed in both cultures and family oriented. The boy should be professionally settled with family values and willing to relocate to Toronto.

Caste no bar. Please email recent picture & bio-data to :toronto108@gmail.com or call 905-781-6919 ***645*** Ramgarhia Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their son, 25 yrs. old, 5’-8” tall, Dental Surgeon in India at present in USA on visitor visa, belongs to a very well settled family. The girl should be American Citizen, beautiful and family oriented.

Please email recent picture and bio-data to: piarausa@hotmail.com Or Call: 1-662-347-9532 ***645*** Ravidasia parents seek a suitable match for their daughter, 32 yrs. old, 5’-3” tall, Canadian Citizen, professionally employed. Boy should be highly educated, professionally employed and Canadian Citizen. Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: san1622002@yahoo.com ***645*** Jat Sikh parents seeking a suitable match for their Canadian born daughter, 30 yrs. old, 5’-6” tall, Post graduate degree in Clinical Psychology, professionally employed, well versed in born cultures can speak Punjabi as well. The boy should be well educated., professionally settled, between 28-34 yrs. of age, lower Mainland area prefered. Please Call :1-604-3177576 ***645*** Jat Sikh parents seeking a suitable match for their daughter, born and raised in Canada, born in 1986, 5’-7” tall, Master’s degree in Physiotherapy, well settled in Job in Ontorio, well versed in both cultures. Thy boy should be Canadian well educated and professionally employed. G.T.A. preferred. Please email recent picture and bio-data to: sanjog60@hotmail.com Or Call : 1-204-881-7405 ***645*** Parents looking for Sikh Khatri match for their Canadian Citizen, educated daughter, Oct., 1986 born, 5’-3” tall, very well employed in Govt. Job. The boy should be professionally qualified and employed. Please email recent picture and bio-data. Early

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

marriage Email: jpsphull@gmail.com Or Call : 905-671-3411 Or 647-7193411 ***645*** Jat Sikh Dhaliwal parents seeking a suitable match for their only son, 37 yrs. old, 5’-10” tall, born and raised in Canada, Master’s degree in teaching and professionally employed. The girl should be born/raised in Canada or from India, professionally qualified. Divorced may also be considered. Girl on student visa/ visitor visa can contact to : Please Call : 1-250-477-4997 ***645*** Jat Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their daughter, 27 yrs. old, 5’-4” tall, Canadian Citizen, beautiful, very fair, slim, Dental Hygienist, family oriented and well versed in both cultures. The boy should be handsome, Jat Sikh, Clean Shaven, professionally qualified and employed, settled businessman with good family values, preferably from GTA (Toronto).

Respond with bio-data and recent picture to : Sarjeet_dhugge@hotmail.com Or Call : 647-502-4220 ***645*** Ramgarhia parents from Brampton, seek a match for their Canadian Citizen, graduate, 27, yrs, 5'-4'’ tall, beautiful daughter, professionally employed as Dental Assistant The boy should be , clean shaven, 5'-9'’ or taller,and well settled ,from a respectable family, from Canada only. please respond with details to gsinghb1953@ gmail.com, tel 647-677-5436 *** 645*** Well educated Jatt sikh family seeking a suitable match for their daughter. Slim, good looking, 86 born, 5'-2" tall, holds a degree from a Canadian University, working in managerial position with well reputed company (Vancouver). Canadian citizen.

Visitor, student visa, and work permit will also be considered.

Please send your biodata and recent pictures to:jal.alliance@hotmail.com or call: 1-604-581-1589 *** 645*** Jatt sikh family looking suitable match for their 33 year old, 5’2" daughter. Residing with family in USA with green card. Prefer someone of at least 30 years of age from USA, preferably California. Visitors and student visas are fine. Please send information and recent photo to: hardeepsingh1405@gmail.com or call: 1-510-551-4146 *** 645*** Ramgarhia sikh family looking a suitable match for their daughter, 25yrs. old, 5’- 8", Masters of Computer Applications (MCA) from India, Presently in New York for business purpose.caste no bar. The boy should be canadian/ US immigrant or citizen. Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: satnadar@yahoo.com or call: 1- 718-200-9852 *** 645***

Jat Sikh Saini US citizens seeking professional alliance for their 30 Yrs/5’8"/Greencard holder fair, slim and beautiful daughter. Licensed Physical Therapist presently working in New York. Boy residing and working in NewYork preferred.Higher caste no bar. Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: ts215saini@gmail.com or call: 1516-765-5004 *** 645*** Seeking professional match preferrably settled in USA or Canada, but well settled in India will be considered as well; for a beautiful very fair Rajput Sikh Girl, 38yrs, 5’4". Legally Divorced.

MSc, BEd, Govt. Teacher in Punjab. Highly educated family, settled in USA. Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: grathore@live.in or call: 1-408677-9046 *** 645*** Looking for suitable match from USA for a slim, beautiful Nai Sikh girl, 24 yr old, 5’4", B.Sc. Nursing Degree. Girl belongs to a Gursikh educated family. Brother is settled in USA. Contact: 1-805607-0737 *** 645*** US based sister seeks a beautiful and compatible match for her 25 yrs. old, clean shaved, 5’-11" tall, clean shaven, non-drinker, welleducated (MBA) brother, working in renowned company in Chandigarh. California girl will be given preference. Sister and Brother in law both well settled in CA.Serious inquiries only. Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: akaur0051@hotmail.com or call: 1- 415-309-8880 *** 645*** Tank Kashtriya parents seeking a suitable match for their Canadian Citizen daughter, 28 yrs. old, 5’-5” tall, CGA, B.Com, Working in Govt. Job. The boy should be well educated and professionally settled. Caste no bar. Toronto based family is prefered. Please send your biodata and recent picture to: singhjag_@hotmail.com Or Call : 416-722-9771 ***645*** Jat Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their well settled daughter, DOB 1981, 5’-6” tall, born and raised in Canada, well versed in both cultures, family oriented, chartered professional accountant designation and professionally employed in senior management position. The boy should be well educated, with family values. Please Call : 647298-9665 ***645*** Jat Sikh family seeks a suitable match for their son, 29 yrs. old, 5’-9” tall, born and raised in Canada, engineer, working in his field, studing further, non- drinker, non-smoker, well versed in both cultures. The girl should be Canadian/American born well educated and professionally employed. Please send your recent picture and bio-data to:

s.bhandal@hotmail.com Or Call: 1-604-805-7551 ***645*** Jat Sikh family seeks a suitable match for their Canadian Citizen daughter maglik, D.O.B. Nov. 12, 1983 at 3.05 AM, Jalandhar, 5’-2” tall, B.Sc. IT, M.B.A., M.Phil degree holder, employed as manager. The boy should be Jat Sikh, well educated, professional and clean shaven, Toronto preferred, serious inquiries only.

Please email recent picture and bio-data to: hb71979@gmail.com Or Call : 647-994-2764 ***645*** Professional Humble Jat Sikh family looking for a match for their fair, attractive, 35 yrs. old, 5’-8” daughter, Established Lawyer, graduate from prestigeous University in Canada, Born in U.K., raised with strong family values divorced short marriage, no children. The boy should be professional preferably in Medical field, atleast 5’-9” tall, Canadian Immigrant. Call: 905-334-6107 ***645*** Ramgarhia Chaggar parents invite marimonial alliance for their son, 24 yrs. old, 5’-8” tall, Canadian Citizen, School graduate, running his own successfull business in construction. The girl should be beautiful, educated and family oriented with strong family values.

Family is well settled in Canada.

Please email recent picture and bio-data to: tonychaggar40@yahoo.ca Or Call : 905-846-4826 ***645*** Jat Sikh parents looking for a suitable match for their son, born and raised in Canada, 35 yrs. old, 5’-10” tall, BCIT educated, never married, Clean shaven, nondrinker, only those families need to contact which can arrange a Canadian Immigrant/Citizen match for his sister, 28 yrs. old, 5’-8”, tall, Student in U.K. (MBA) Please send your bio-data and recent picture to : gillsingh13@hotmail.com Or Call : 1-604-374-7924 ***645*** Jat Sikh Gill parents invite matrimonial alliance for their Gursikh son, 28 yrs. old, 5'-8" tall, M. Tech. degree holder from Canadian University and working as an engineering professional.

The girl should be Gursikh, family oriented & educated. Please send your bio-data & recent pictures to: 70singhkhalsa@gmail.com or call: 1-514-975-5351 *** 645*** Jat sikh parents seek a suitable match for their daughter, born and raised in Canada, 1986 born, 5'6'’ tall, medical health care professional, well versed in both cultures. Boy should be Canadian, well educated and professionally employed. GTA preferred. Please send your biodata & recent picture to: jotg1738@gmail.com or call: 416-564-0617 *** 645*** Professionally Qualified Match

for Canadian permanent resident, Handsome Hindu Khatri boy, 28 yrs. old, 5’-11” tall, M S (CAN), BTECH (IND), Network Engineer, Salary $90,000 Per Annum. Caste no bar. Please send your Bio-Data & recent Picture to:vikramjhatta825@gmail.com or call: 647-966-3924 *** 645*** Jat Sikh parents seeking a suitable match for their daughter, 35 yrs. old, 5’-2” tall, born and raised in Canada, Master’s degree in fine Arts, slim, family oriented and well versed in both cultures. The boy should be professionally qualified and employed from USA/Canada.

Please respond with latest picture and bio-data to: singhca2016@gmail.com ***645*** Ahluwalia Sikh parents seeking a suitable match for their daughter, Canadian Immigrant, D.O.B. 1982, 5’-3” tall, Registered Dentist, slim, beautiful, never married. Looking for a professionally qualified and settled match from Canada.

Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: narinderwalia48@gmail.com Or Call : 416-315-6420 ***645*** Doaba based Ad-dharmi (Ravidassia) Canadian parents seek a professionally qualified match for their daughter, 30 yrs. old, 5’-2” tall, Canadian Citizen, L.P.N. in Job, fair, beautiful. The boy should be professional, Canadian Immigrant or Citizen, settled in Job. Ramdasia, Kamboj or Tonk Kashtriya can also be considered. Please send your bio-data and recent picture to: paul_gaddu@hotmail.com Or Call: 1-604-588-5800 Or : 1778-714-4516 ***645*** Hindu Brahmin parents invite matrimonial alliance for their son, 22 yrs. old, 5’-8” tall, completed Diploma in Hospitality from Canada, now working as Kitchen Manager in Boston Pizza, handsome, smart belongs to a reputable family. The girl should be Canadian Immigrant/Citizen, family oriented. Uncle (Mama Ji) is well settled in Canada. Caste no bar.

Please Call : 647-727-2694 ***645*** Ramgarhia Sikh parents invite matrimonial alliance for their son, 29 yrs. old, 5’-6” tall, Canadian Immigrant, well settled, preferred well educated, beautiful, family oriented girl from India or Canada. Please call : 647-701-2265 ***645*** Jat sikh family in GTA seeks alliance for their Canadian born son, 25 yrs. old, 5'-10", fair, professional, engineer employed with government Looking for Canadian born girl, university graduate, slim, fair. Please send your bio-data & recent picture to: jatcanadian@hotmail.com or Call: 416-938-4195 *** 645***

Issue - 645 (11)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Gay Iranian poet flees persecution,

finds himself in Israel Payam Feili fled his native Iran last year because of the persecution he faced over his sexuality. Now, the gay poet has made a years-long dream come

his always supportive family remains in Iran, he said he hopes to stay in Israel permanently.

Feili has nurtured a fascination with Israel since

true -- he is visiting Israel, Iran’s archenemy and a country known for its tolerance toward gays.

But the 30-year-old Feili stands out not only because of his arrival in a country so at odds with his own, but because of his professed adoration for the state some Iranian leaders have dubbed a cancer and have called to be wiped off the map.

“I still can’t believe I am here,” the soft-spoken Feili said in Farsi, speaking through his translator and the friend who brought him to Israel, Adi Liberman.

“All the stupid and ridiculous threats the regime issues against Israel have never influenced me and will never influence me,” he said.

Feili, who has written nine books, many of them openly discussing homosexuality, escaped to Turkey last year when the Iranian government’s threats against him and his family became unbearable.

He is in Israel to see his latest novella, “I Will Grow, I Will Bear Fruit... Figs,” staged as a play in Hebrew in a Tel Aviv theatre. While

he was a youngster, when he began watching films about the Holocaust and started learning about the Torah. He has a coin-sized Star of David tattoo on his neck.

“I grew closer and closer to Israel and I fell in love with it,” he said.

While Israel and Iran once had close economic and cultural ties, those links crumbled after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and relations since then have grown increasingly hostile.

The two countries have no diplomatic ties and it is illegal for citizens of each country to visit the other, although Israel makes exceptions under certain circumstances.

Standing on the roof of Tel Aviv’s city hall with gleaming skyscrapers and the city’s signature Bauhaus buildings behind him, Feili brandished his Iranian passport, which declares “the holder of this passport is not entitled to travel to the occupied Palestine”.

Bringing him to Israel involved four months of jumping through bureaucratic hoops, dealing with various

government ministries and security issues, Liberman explained.

She said he was finally granted a three-month visa, but that he has begun a process to remain in Israel permanently on humanitarian grounds.

Feili’s novella, which is being produced in Israel by Ido Dagan, portrays the unrequited love of two Iranian soldiers fighting in the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s. Dagan said Feili is the first Iranian he has ever met.

“There are differences, big differences in terms of worldview, values, language and our background, but we connected because of his desire to taste freedom,” Dagan said. He said Feili’s Israeli friends have already come up with a nickname for him: Queen of Israel, a character from his latest book.

Feili said he was surprised by how boisterous Israelis can be and how much they honk their car horns, which reminded him of his Iranians.

Sporting dark shades, a white scarf and a large indigo ring, he appeared to feel at home in Tel Aviv as he confidently walked through the city center, greeting passers-by.

Israel’s economic and cultural hub, Tel Aviv is a popular gay-friendly destination. Israel accepts gays serving openly in its military, but homosexuality is shunned among the country’s conservative ultra-Orthodox community.

This year, an extremist ultra-Orthodox Jew stabbed a 15-year-old girl to death at a Jerusalem Pride parade.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau greeted 163 Syrian Refugees who arrived in Toronto late Thursday.

This is the largest group of Syrians to have arrived the country by a government aircraft and is part of the PM’s pledge to help resettle 25,000 refugees by the end of February.

Trudeau had already won the hearts of millions when he took office last month.

But with this gesture his charm and charisma has shot up to a whole new level. Canada’s openness to this issue stands in contrast to the US as they have been unenthusiastic about taking in refugees

into their country.

In a speech addressed to the government employees and the media gathered at the airport,

wonderful night where we get to show not just a planeload of new Canadians what Canada is all about, but we get to

Mr.Trudeau said, “Tonight they step off the plane as refugees, but they walk out of this terminal as permanent residents of Canada.” “This is a

show the world how to open our hearts and welcome people who are fleeing extraordinarily difficult straits,” the prime minister said.

Justin Trudeau gives a warm welcome to a planeload of Syrian Refugees

Wikileaks’ Julian Assange to be interrogated by Swedish authorities Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is expected to be questioned soon by Swedish authorities over alleged sexual offences after Ecuador indicated it had reached a bilateral deal with Sweden.

Assange has been wanted for questioning by Swedish authorities since 2010, but was granted asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London where he has been holed up for more than three years. In April, the activist had said he consented to the Swedish prosecutor’s conditions for the interrogation procedure to take place at the embassy in Kensington in central London.

Assange’s Swedish lawyer, Per Samuelson, told the Guardian that Sweden needed to formally approve the deal and he understood those discussions would take place on Thursday.

Negotiations began in June this year between Ecuador’s acting foreign minister Xavier Lasso, and

the Swedish justice ministry’s international affairs chief, Anna-Carin Svensson.

The Ecuadorean

been granted, according to previous statements from the Swedish prosecutor’s office.

Two women had levelled

government statement said, “The agreement, without any doubt, is a tool that strengthens bilateral relations and facilitates, for example, the execution of such legal actions as the questioning of Mr Assange, isolated in the Ecuadorean embassy in London”. The agreement would be the final step towards interviewing Assange in London, with a request to the UK for legal assistance having already

rape allegations against Assange five years ago in Stockholm, but no charges were brought because the prosecutor has been unable to interrogate him. Assange says he had no choice but to seek asylum as Sweden declined to guarantee that he would not be extradited to the US to face espionage charges related to WikiLeaks if he travelled to Stockholm.

Issue - 645 (12)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Satellites could test world’s climate vows PARIS Scientists from the United States, Japan and China are racing to perfect satellite technology that could one day measure greenhouse gas emissions from space, potentially transforming the winner into the world’s first climate cop.

Monitoring a single country’s net emissions from above could not only become an important tool to establish whether it had met its promises to slow global warming, a point of contention at climate talks in Paris, but also help emitters to pinpoint the sources of greenhouse gases more quickly and cheaply.

“The real success of a deal here fundamentally revolves around whether we can see emissions and their removals,” said JohnO Niles, director of the USbased Carbon Institute, which studies methods of carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement.

“We know satellite technology is evolving so that there is an increasing ability to actually tell whether countries are telling the truth.” Most estimates of greenhouse gas emissions are now based on calculations of energy use and other proxy data, rather than on-the-ground measurements, leaving a huge margin of error when nations submit their figures to the United

Nations.

While space-based measurement is unlikely to be mentioned in any deal agreed by the nearly 200 countries

according to experts. Earlier this year, new data showed that China had consumed substantially more coal in 2014 than earlier reported, causing

negotiating in Paris, the European Union is leading a push for a universal system of measuring, reporting and verifying emissions data.

European and Japanese satellites have been monitoring overall carbon concentrations in the atmosphere since 2002, but calculating emissions at a national or local level is far harder. For example, the margin of error for China, presumed to be the world’s top carbon polluter, is greater than the entire carbon footprint of Europe,

big revisions to carbon calculations. An earlier report showed its carbon output between 2000 and 2013 was about 3 billion tonnes less than previously estimated.

China announced plans ahead of the Paris talks to launch its first emissions-monitoring satellites next year. But it says trade restrictions are hampering cooperation. “NASA and Japan are sharing the best sensors, but not China,” said Yi Liu, a lead scientist in China’s effort. “This is a problem. We need to work

Moscow to launch wifi in cemeteries

MOSCOW Residents in Moscow already enjoy free wireless Internet in cafes and on the metro system but now authorities in the city have also decided to bring wifi to a more unusual setting some of its most storied cemeteries. The free services are set to start working next year for visitors of the Vagankovo, Troyekurovo and Novodevichy cemeteries, where the likes of author Anton Chekov, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and the first Russian president Boris Yeltsin are buried. “These cemeteries are like open air museums,” Lilya Lvovskaya, a spokeswoman from city-run funeral service Ritual, which runs Moscow’s graveyards, told

AFP.“People often come and find themselves standing in front of a grave and want to know more about the person lying there.” If the wireless Internet service proves popular then the authorities will look about expanding it to the rest of the sprawling capital’s 133 cemeteries.

According to the Moscow city website, every year some 120,000 people are buried in the city and there are some 8 million graves there.

The Novodevichy and Vagankovo cemeteries already have GPS systems installed to help visitors locate graves of famous individuals. The city in October launched an online system to auction off family plots in cemeteries.

together to make this work.”

The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), launched its first satellite to measure atmospheric CO2 in July last year. The challenge now is to convert the images - which pick up carbon concentrations in the form of yellow, orange, and red blobs - into emissions data, said Steven Pawson, chief of the Global Modelling and Assimilation Office at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

“What we can measure right now is the total column of CO2 in the atmosphere,” he said.

“The current technology is not strong enough to give absolute values, but if there were a gross misrepresentation (of one country’s emissions), it would be quite possible to see.”

NASA scientist Lesley Ott said that the satellite, named OCO2, also showed there was potential to zoom into urban areas to record carbon pollution.

A new device with that capability, OCO-3, has been developed for use on the International Space Station, but has been delayed by budget constraints, she said.

Scientists are also struggling to measure changes in forests that absorb CO2, a key part of the calculation for net emissions, from space. Trees bind carbon

while they are growing, but stop once they are mature.

Masanobu Shimada, a researcher at the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency JAXA, is working on distinguishing between the two on a global scale. “We can get an idea about biomass from the shading of its images,” he said.

But for now, the imagery is too fuzzy for certainty.

Back on earth, climate activists hope a Paris deal will include helping poor countries to measure their own net carbon emissions on the ground, a process that can be difficult and costly. Michael Gillenwater, of the not-for-profit Greenhouse Gas Management Institute, said that kind of monitoring was better suited than satellites to pinpointing the source of emissions. “We need to know where emissions are coming from - which factory, what process,” he said.

But calculating net emissions at a single poultry farm in China, for example, requires a 54-page, UN-certified rulebook that factors in everything from the amount of methane removed from the chicken manure to local temperatures and animal weight to come up with a figure. At some point, that kind of detailed analysis may also be possible from space.

Silver fern tops N Zealand flag referendum WELLINGTON New Zealanders have chosen a silver fern on a black-and-blue background as their preferred flag design if the South Pacific nation decides to dump Britain’s Union Jack from its national banner, officials said Friday. The design beat four other contenders in a nationwide referendum, according to preliminary results released by the New Zealand Electoral Commission. Simply titled “Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue)”, the design will go headto-head with the existing flag in a second referendum in March next year. “While this is a preliminary result, New Zealanders can now turn their attention to deciding whether to keep the current flag, or replace it,” Deputy Prime Minister Bill English said. Prime Minister John Key has led the push for reform, saying the existing ensign is a colonial relic that is too easily confused with Australia’s flag. He had previously nominated the winning design as his favourite, describing the silver fern as an instantly recognisable symbol of New Zealand. The flag and an almost identical banner from the same designer, Kyle Lockwood, were clear winners in the fiveway race, each receiving more than 550,000 first-choice votes of the 1.5 million ballots cast.

Lockwood’s second-placed design simply changes the colour of one section of the flag’s background from black to red.

They both feature four stars of the Southern Cross as well as

the fern. “My father represented New Zealand in underwater hockey and he always wore the silver fern on black - I always thought it would be on the flag one day,” the designer said earlier this year.

British colony, Canada, as an inspiration, saying the maple leaf adopted in 1965 is now a universally loved national symbol. Opponents of change say New Zealanders have fought under the existing banner and

“The Union Jack just doesn’t seem right for New Zealand these days.” However, polling indicates the current flag remains on track to beat any contender in next year’s run-off referendum. Formally adopted in 1902, it has a Union Jack in the upper-left corner with the Southern Cross on a dark blue background. Once part of the British Empire, New Zealand is now independent, although Queen Elizabeth II remains head of state.However, her power is seen as largely symbolic, and changing the flag is seen by some as helping cut lingering colonial ties. Key argues a silver fern flag will boost New Zealand’s global profile and will be “worth billions” to the nation of 4.5 million in the long term.

He has cited another former

also criticise the NZ$26 million ($17.5 million) cost of the referendum. In a rare show of civil disobedience, veterans’ group the Returned and Services’ Association (RSA) encouraged Kiwis to spoil their ballots.

The normally conservative association argues that to change the flag disrespects previous generations of soldiers who have died fighting under the banner.

“When they have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country, our flag has been draped over their casket at military funerals,” it says on its website. The often heated debate has also had its lighter moments, particularly when the original 10,000-plus submissions for new flags were publically released.

Issue - 645 (13)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

China dominates list of most expensive cities in Asia

Chinese cities dominate a list of the 20 most expensive in the Asia-Pacific region for expatriates, as the yuan strengthens against rival currencies, a cost of living survey

by ECA International shows.

Chinese cities including Hong Kong account for 11 of the 20 most expensive Asian cities, the London-based consultancy said. Shanghai jumped from third place in 2014 to become the most expensive city in Asia this year.

“In spite of the minor depreciation in the renminbi (yuan) against the dollar over the summer, it has strengthened against most other currencies leading to Shanghai becoming

the most expensive Asian city for international assignees,” said ECA’s Asia regional director, Lee Quane. “It is likely that major Chinese cities will remain expensive destinations for mobile executives for the foreseeable future.” Chinese cities also make up the biggest share of a list of the 30 most expensive worldwide for expatriates, with six of them beating cities in Switzerland and Japan. Chinese cities listed in the study jumped across the board in Asia. Beijing (2nd), Guangzhou (6th) and Shenzhen (7th) rose from fourth, 13th and 22nd. Macau saw the largest rank increase, moving up to 13th place from 34th last year.

Pak journalist Mir’s hacked account fires Sushma-Sharif missile In what could have an adverse impact on the India-Pakistan dialogue process, the Twitter handle of a popular Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir was allegedly hacked and a series of derogatory tweets, along with a controversial tweet related to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was sent from the account.

There were some strange tweets sent out from the hacked account. One of the tweet suggested that Swaraj and Sharif were having an affair and read, “According to my sources, sushma swaraj is having secret relationship with PM Nawaz Sharif and she is here to have some fun :)(sic) “ The tweet by famous anchor of Pakistan-based Geo News channel came at a time when Swaraj is in Islamabad to attend the Heart of Asia conference.

After the controversial tweet was shared over 500 times, Mir claimed that his verified Twitter account was hacked. The Pakistani journalist later claimed to have restored it and deleted the controversial tweets.

“I m sorry for the trouble caused by someone who hacked this

Turkey fines Twitter $50,700 over ‘pro-terror’ content

Turkey’s communications regulator has imposed an unprecedented fine on Twitter for allowing the publication of content deemed to justify terror, the state-run Anatolia news agency said Friday.

The Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) has fined Twitter 150,000 lira ($50,700), the first time it has issued such a penalty to the company.

Despite repeated warnings, Twitter failed to withdraw content “praising terrorism, targeting the security forces and inciting hatred and violence”, it said.There were no further details on the nature of the offending content but Turkish officials have repeatedly expressed irritation over the presence of material on social

media in favour of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The authorities have been waging a months-long crackdown on the PKK whose fighters have responded with deadly attacks on the Turkish security forces.

The authorities have repeatedly imposed temporary blocks on Twitter and other social media during times of crisis.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has a chequered relationship with Twitter, previously comparing social media to a “knife in the hand of a murderer” and saying “I don’t like to tweet, schmeet.”

But in February he started tweeting for the first time from his personal account @RT_Erdogan, which has now

become one of his main communication platforms.

Erdogan’s suspicion of social media dates back to the mass protests in June 2013 against his rule, which were largely mobilised by posts on Twitter and Facebook.

The government blocked Twitter and YouTube in March 2014 after they were used to spread a torrent of audio recordings implicating the prime minister and his inner circle in an alleged corruption scandal.

That ban on social media was later overturned by the country’s top constitutional court.In April this year, Turkey also blocked access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube over the publication of images of a Turkish prosecutor killed by leftist militants during a hostage standoff.

account and created inconvenience for my followers and friends (sic),” Mir tweeted after resetting his account. He also thanked Twitter for its support in getting his account back. “I have been receiving a

day visit, primarily to attend the ‘Heart of Asia’ 5th Ministerial Meeting on Afghanistan.

The fifth ‘Heart of Asia’ conference, an annual gathering of Asian and other countries, is aimed at enhancing cooperation

lot of Twitter password reset requests recently. Someone trying to hack me. I have changed my twitter email and recovered the password. Thank God,” he said in another tweet.

The handle also tweeted pictures of his purported email account as well as banking details.Swaraj arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday on a two-

for countering security threats and promoting connectivity in the region.

A similar controversy broke out after a provocative tweet emerged from Indian cricketer Suresh Raina’s Twitter account after Pakistan’s exit from the World Twenty20. However, he later clarified that the tweet was posted by his nephew.

A drone squad, designed to locate and - if necessary capture nuisance drones flown by members of the public, is to be launched by police in Tokyo.

The police unit will patrol important buildings such as the prime minister’s office. If a suspicious drone is detected, the operator will be warned via loudspeakers on the ground.

But if he or she fails to respond, police will launch drones equipped with nets to bring down the device.

“Terrorist attacks using drones carrying explosives are a possibility,” a senior member of the police department’s security bureau told the Asahi Shimbun website.

“We hope to defend the nation’s functions with the worst-case scenario in mind.” In April, a drone carrying a small amount of radioactive material landed on the roof of the prime minister’s office. No-one was injured and a man was subsequently arrested in connection with the

incident. A video posted online

by Japanese website Jijicom shows how Tokyo Police’s drones, complete with nets, might catch an unwanted airborne device in action.

“In Japan, it is illegal to pilot drones over certain areas such as airports and power plants, over roads, or above a height of 150m,” Paul Haswell, a partner at legal firm Pinsent Masons, told the BBC. “Some cities such as Tokyo and Osaka have also outlawed their use in parks.” Regulations on drones came into force in Japan this week, following an amendment to the country’s Aviation Act. “Japan’s new netcarrying, drone-disabling drone is certainly an interesting way to police those areas where drones are forbidden,” added Mr Haswell.

Rules over drone use are being tightened up in several countries.

In the US for example, authorities have called for a drone register which would list device owners across the nation.

Drone squad to be launched by Tokyo police

Issue - 645 (14)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Indian court rules that any couple who have sex are legally married...

Why you could be allergic to your bra Nickel in coins has caused a surge in eczema. But that’s just the start...

If an unmarried couple have sex they are considered husband and wife - and would have to ‘divorce’ if they split, an Indian court has ruled.When two people of legal age, 18 for a woman and 21 for a man, ‘indulge in sexual gratification’ this should be seen as a ‘an act of total commitment’ and marriage by law, a judge at Madras High Court said.The court said that the registering of a marriage as well as a wedding ceremony were only formalities to gain society’s approval.It also said that once two people have sex this ‘becomes a total commitment with adherence to all consequences that may follow’, including needing a decree of divorce should they want to sleep with someone else.In addition, should either of the two wish to register the ‘marriage’ they can have their marital status declared by a Family Court as long as they can supply proof of a sexual relatio-nship. Once declared

by the court, the person can be established as the other’s spouse - whether the other party approves or not.’Legal rights applicable to normal wedded couples will also be applicable to couples who have had sexual relation-ships which are established,’ the court declared in their ruling obtained by The Hindu. The verdict came in a spousal maintenance case where a lower court had ruled that a woman was not entitled to maintenance from the father of her two children as there was no proof of their marriage. Justice C.S. Karnan ruled that legal documents proving the couple’s life as spouses were more important than proof of marriage. In this case the man had signed the ‘live birth report’ for the couple’s second child and thereby officially declaring the woman as his wife.Judge Karnan said the couple ‘led their marital life under the same shelter and begot two children.

For nearly five years, the lesion on my stomach simply refused to heal.

What started as a ten pence-sized cluster of red bumps just above my belly button, developed within weeks into an angry red sore patch the size of my palm.

Impossibly itchy, it wouldn’t clear up, despite liberal applications of just about everything from antiseptic and anti-histamine creams to calamine lotion.

Scratching, naturally, only made the condition worse.

But what had caused this extreme reaction? A tropical insect bite? A rare skin infection?

No. When I eventually consulted a private dermatologist, it turned out a belt buckle and the button on the fly of my jeans were to blame.

Why? They both contained the everyday, silvery-white metal, nickel, which is found in everything from costume jewellery to small change. Despite never having had a problem before, suddenly in my mid-20s I’d become highly allergic to it.

Since then I’ve been caught out by bra clasps, chain straps on handbags and even sunglasses with metal arms, all of which left angry welts on my skin, sometimes within minutes of coming into contact with them.So when I read last week that there’s been a

Doctors draw up list of symptoms including ‘mood changes and a poor social life’ Do you stay up late into the night using the internet? Are you grumpy or anxious when you can’t log on? Do you need to use the internet more and more to feel satisfied?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be suffering from internet addiction, say experts.Researchers at the University of Kentucky, in the U.S., believe that somewhere between 0.3 per cent and 38 per cent of the population is addicted to the internet.

They say that the addiction is characterised by excessive use, and symptoms include changes in mood, preoccupation, inability to control the amount of time you spend on the internet, and diminishing social life.

They add that internet

addiction can be difficult to detect, with the problem much more widely diagnosed in Europe and Asia than it is in the U.S. The researchers claim that treatment of internet addiction is also much

excessive social media use can lead to attention problems, school difficulties, sleep and eating disorders, and obesity. It also encourages parents to help their children learn to use the

more advanced in Europe and Asia and that treatment tends to aim to teach people how to use the Internet in moderation, not how to abstain altogether.The American Academy of Paediatrics has also recently published guidelines regarding children using the internet.It says

internet in moderation by having rules including not allowing a computer in the bedroom, and only allowing a certain amount of ‘screen time’.The news comes after experts warned that parents who allow their children access to tablet computers risk encouraging the development of addictions.

Are YOU addicted to the internet?

massive surge in nickel allergies - one in ten Britons is now a fellow sufferer - I wasn’t surprised.

It’s an allergy that seems insignificant until you actually suffer from it yourself, and it is reported that one in five women, like me, does.

That’s because nickel is everywhere

2012 contain four times more of the metal than they used to. Cheaper to produce than the old coins, which were made from an alloy of around 70 per cent copper and 25 per cent nickel, the new slightly thicker coins are steel with a nickel coating. Experts have warned that handling

in places you’d never imagine. It’s used in over 300,000 items from batteries and cooking utensils, to pans and, yes, the proverbial kitchen sink.

It’s found in paper clips, toasters, zips, car keys, bath plugs, door handles, scissors and even in the metal trims and keypads of many mobile phones.

Earlier this month doctors deemed it a ‘public health concern’ after a study revealed that even loose change could be sparking severe allergic reactions.

Analysis has shown that the five and ten pence coins introduced since January

these coins regularly could trigger contact eczema or dermatitis, and cause painful cracked and sore skin.Lindsey McManus, of Allergy UK, says many nickel allergy sufferers already report having to wear rubber gloves when handling coins, and with the new 5p and 10p pieces she fears the problem may become even more prevalent, especially among workers such as shop cashiers and bus drivers who handle money all day. Nickel can even penetrate cloth, so men who put their loose change in their pockets can find it

aggravates the skin on their legs underneath.

Prevalent in the earth’s crust, nickel is easily available and cheap. It’s also hard-wearing and doesn’t corrode, which makes it a popular choice in manufacturing.

It can even get into our food from the equipment used to handle, cook or store it.

Tinned tuna, for example, contains nickel from the can. As a trace element, nickel occurs naturally in soil and, as it is absorbed through the roots of many plants, it is found in most vegetables, fruits and nuts.Cocoa, raspberries, peanuts and chickpeas are high in nickel, as are many of the products derived from them including chocolate and wine. Thankfully I’ve yet to suffer a reaction to either, but that’s not to say I won’t in the future. The allergy has a way of creeping up on sufferers. Consultant dermatologist Dr Tabi Leslie warns that a nickel allergy can strike anyone at any time. ‘Like most allergies, it can develop suddenly at any age due to changes in the body’s immune system and exposure to an irritant,’ she says.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Legend Directed by Brian Helgeland Legend Cast: Tom Hardy, Christopher Eccleston, Emily Browning, David Thewlis, Jane Wood Rating: 2 Stars In this “notorious true story of the Kray twins” the gangster brothers who briefly fancied themselves as kings of London in the ’60s the knockout punch isn’t dealt by Tom Hardy raised to the power 2. It is

to break way from the schizophrenic, unstable and dangerous Ronnie. It’s sad that Helgeland, the Oscar award-winning screenwriter of L A Confidential, doesn’t think of making more of the excellent Wood.

Instead, it falls on Hardy’s hardy shoulders to convey the ties that bind and will unravel the Kray brothers.

It’s a valiant effort no doubt, with Reggie and

the Kray mother (Jane Wood) in her bedraggled nightgown, mousey hair, wrinkled cleavage, and a firm grip passing along cups of tea.

Stroking the hair of Ronnie Kray (Hardy), who has just returned after killing someone, she tells twin Reggie (Hardy), sitting some distance away, with a steely smile, “He is your brother.”

That one scene establishes why the charismatic, smart and brutal Reggie will never be able

Ronnie two distinct people, even physically.

However, but for that one scene with Wood, we have no idea how and where that bond was forged.

The only other actor with a role in their lives in the film is Emily Browning, playing Reggie’s wife Frances. As also the narrator of this story, she assumes this air of distance that is in no way justified by her arc in the role. It’s a very unsatisfying performance, with the reasons

for her falling for Reggie clear but her growing disillusionment with him pretty forced.

Legend spends an inexplicable amount of time on that relationship, inter-cut by the Krays’ expanding business. Both Reggie’s growing love for Frances and his desire for acceptability as a legitimate businessman don’t go down well with Ronnie, who keeps repeating that all he wants to be is a “genuine gangster”.

The time spent on Frances drags Legend down, as does Helgeland’s determination to establish the genuine period nature of his film with his string of lovingly dressed men and women (none better than the hunky Hardy), sitting in clubs with great live music, and gloriously shot violence. The only signs of palpable tension as Reggie and Ronnie move from their second-rung gangster status in East End to the “greener pastures of West London” are, after all, between the brothers themselves. If there are not enough of those scenes, there are even lesser of Ronnie, the man perpetually on the cusp of madness even if it is just revealing his gay status to a stunned Ameri-

can counterpart (Chazz Palminteri), or talking about the Utopian town he

hopes to build in Nigeria.

An applause here for the young Taron Egerton too,

as Ronnie’s toy boy who plays no mean role in pushing him to the edge.

dinos talk about being “rid of unrealistic goals”. A few more of those, and Arlo and

The Good Dinosaur may have been well and truly home.

The Good Dinosaur Directed by Peter Sohn Voices of Raymond Ochoa, Jack Bright, Jeffrey Wright, Frances McDormand Rating: 2 Stars The idea is great, the animation is excellent from the great floods to the small water droplets dripping off a dinosaur and there is a clear, broad message thrown in all no surprises for Pixar. However, this offering from the animation powerhouse falls the shortest on one of its strongest suits, the story.

So if the meteor had passed Earth by, the dinosaurs had survived, men had come to be born, and a baby dino and a baby human had met and become friends, what would have ensued? Perhaps something more than this linear and predictable story

of the scared baby dino finding his way home, after a series of inconsequential encounters with fellow dinos.

It’s millions of years after that eventful meteor-miss, and a pack of Apatosaurus has learnt farming, logging, rearing pre-historic hens, and saving up for winter.

They are all cut out for the job but for the youngest Arlo (Ochoa), who is easily scared even by the hens he feeds. Father Poppa (Wright) decides to take him on a night walk to boost his confidence, during the course of which there is a sudden flood and he loses his life. Soon after that, Arlo finds himself swept away from home in the river, and must now find his way home to Momma (McDormand) and two siblings. A fearful Arlo, who

doesn’t know how to even feed himself, finds himself trailed by a human baby, who he assumes is one of the many critters eating up his family’s stored corn. All of the energy the film sorely needs is packed in the tiny frame of this baby, named Spot (voiced superbly as basically a bunch of squeals and grunts by Bright), who chomps, bites, snarls, gnarls and glowers his way in and out of situations.

It’s a beautiful reversal of roles, both in the way how Sohn (also the coscriptwriter, and the veteran of many Pixar animations) underlines the little realised fact that most of the large dinosaurs were vegetarians, and what it would be for humans to be dino pets. While it is

focused on Arlo and Spot’s growing admiration and friendship for each other, The Good Dinosaur blossoms and is genuinely pleasurable. However, since the obvious message has to be Arlo “growing up to his full potential”, dangers are thrown in his way in the form of other dinosaurs, none of whom has the personality to match Spot.

Without making a show of it, the film also notes the unpredictability of nature during those times, and how that dictated many of the animal migrations and behaviour patterns.

Some of those scenes are breathtakingly suspenseful, and yet the film can’t resist from having one of its

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Love to do more action films says Amy Jackson I can’t divulge much information but I’m really looking forward to the project Actress Amy Jackson, who was seen performing stunts in Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘Singh Is Bling’, says she’d love to do more action films. “I had so much fun working with Akshay, especially in the action scenes. I got trained in kick-boxing and mixed martial arts. I enjoyed the whole process so much and I’d love to do more action films,” Amy told IANS, adding that

she wouldn’t miss an opportunity to work with Akshay again. She will team up with Nawazuddin Siddiqui in her next Hindi outing, which will be directed by Sohail Khan.

Amy is looking forward to working with the ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan’ star. “I’m a huge fan of Nawazuddin. It’s going to be a very interesting combination.

I’m really excited about this project, which will go on floors next year in February,” she said.

Down south, Amy, who awaits the release of Dhanush-starrer Tamil film ‘Thanga Magan’, will next team up with superstar Rajinikanth. “I can’t divulge much information but I’m really looking forward to the project,” she said. In Tamil, she also has Vijay’s ‘Ther’ and Udhayanidhi Stalin’s ‘Gethu’.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Randeep Hooda’s Sarbjit goes on floors Sarbjit, director Omung Kumar’s biopic on slain Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh, kicked off on Monday (December 14).The filmmaker, who has earlier directed Priyanka Chopra’s Mary Kom, has roped in Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as Sarabjit Singh’s sister Daljit Kaur, whose perspective the film will be from.

Randeep Hooda has been signed on to play the role of Sarabjit in the film.

Richa Chadha, who has earlier worked with Randeep Hooda in Main Aur Charles, will also be seen in a pivotal role.

Sarbjit is based on Sarabjit Singh, an Indian farmer who was convicted of terrorism and spying in Pakistan and was sentenced to death there.

He was attacked by inmates at a prison in Lahore in April 2013 and died a few days later.

Before zeroing in on Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to play Sarbjit Singh’s sister Daljit, Omung Kumar had said in an interview, “I have not thought of any actress

yet. We also have been hearing about lot of actresses being finalised for this project, but it is not true. We are looking for strong, bold, powerful, bindaas, fiery ... Feisty (actress). We are not

focusing more on getting the physicality right ...

We are not looking to have a duplicate of Dalbir Kaur.”

Dalbir’s struggle is what had inspired the director to say a yes to the biopic. He had said, “The story of Sarabjit Singh, his sister ... Her struggle for 23 years to get her brother out of jail was something that interested me. I read the story, saw videos and it just shocked ... Surprised me.”

Getting Padma Vibhushan was a Shraddha Kapoor’s ‘Baaghi’ diaries tearful moment says Dilip Kumar Legendary actor Dilip Kumar says being honoured with Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award, was an emotional moment for him. The 93year-old thespian was presented the Padma

flew to Mumbai specially to present me with the #PadmaVibhushan.

Tearful moment when the award was in my hands.

How happy and proud my family was. Indeed Allah’s mercy and blessing,” Kumar posted on Twitter.

Vibhushan by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh at the actor’s residence in suburban Bandra in the presence of his wife Saira Banu.

“Overwhelmed today by the gesture of home minister @BJPRajnathSingh who

The announcement to honour Bollywood veterans Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan and a few others with the prestigious Padma Vibhushan award was made by the government on the eve of Republic Day on January 25, 2015. Kumar, due to

ill-health, could not attend the special function held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in April when other Padma awardees were honoured

by President Pranab Mukherjee. “Health did not allow me to travel to Delhi to receive the award from the President.

CM @Dev_Fadnavis n Gov. Vidyasagarji too came to wish me,” Kumar added.

Born as Muhammad Yousuf Khan in Peshawar, Kumar made his debut as an actor in the film “Jwar Bhata” in 1944 produced by Bombay Talkies. In a career spanned over six decades, he starred in films of a variety of genres such as the romantic “Andaz” (1949), the swashbuckling Aan (1952), the dramatic “Devdas” (1955), the comical “Azaad” (1955), the historical “Mughal-eAzam” (1960) and the social “Ganga Jamuna” (1961).

Clearly, Shraddha Kapoor is enjoying the shooting of ‘Baaghi’. The daughter of actor Shakti Kapoor posted a photograph with a tweet that read: “Making memories #Baaghi tigerjackieshroff”. In the

image, Shraddha can be seen in a boat in the middle of a water body with the film’s crew, including actor Tiger Shroff. Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and UTV Motion Pictures, ‘Baaghi’

is slated to release on April 29 next year. As far as the storyline of “Baaghi” is concerned, the plot is kept under wraps and the only thing known is that it is the story of a rebel.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Mandy Moore wants Ryan Adams to pay 37,000 dollars a month Singers Mandy Moore and Ryan Adams, who announced their divorce earlier this year, have not reached any settlement yet.

Court documents state that the former couple cannot decide what to do with their eight pets and how to handle their money, reports aceshowbiz.com.

According to the documents, Moore apparently earns only less than a quarter of Adams’ monthly earning, which is USD 151,000.

Moore shared in the papers that Adams paid half of their mortgage, property taxes and insurance on their home here, but her earnings cannot cover all the expenses.

“I feel as if I have no alternative,” Moore wrote in her petition.

She also requested help in taking care of the couple’s dogs and cats.

She claimed Adams offered to take two of the cats but did not.

“Although I love our pets, it is overwhelming for me to take care of eight of them all of the time,” Moore wrote.

She now wants Adams to pay her $37,000 per month and take four of their pets until they reach an agreement on divorce terms.

“Without Ryan’s help caring for the house and our pets, I have not been able to work as much as I would like,” she wrote.

Moore and Adams announced their divorce after six years of marriage in January.

“It is a respectful, amicable parting of ways,” representatives of the stars said in a statement at that time.

She filed for a divorce from him here, while he was in New York, asking for spousal support, reports aceshowbiz.com.

I feel comfortable in what I wear says Rita Ora Singer Rita Ora has lost count of the number of times she’s accidentally exposed her body. But she

to me lots so I am not paranoid about it anymore. You end up losing track of them. Whatever, you have

isn’t worried as she is comfortable in whatever she wears.

“It’s fun. It has happened

got to take some risks in fashion. That was a risk that I took and I am proud of it. From the start I have

always been the type to wear what I want. It is all about being an individual. I feel comfortable in what I wear,” Ora told The Sun newspaper, reports femalfirst.co.uk.

Ora has been wearing some particularly eye-catching ensembles during her stint as a judge on the British version of “The X Factor”, but says she’s made every effort to ensure she’s never over-exposed.

Recalling a risqué Versace Atelier dress she recently wore, Ora said: “I made sure everything was in place!”

Do you know why Brits do so well in Hollywood? Ask Kate Winslet

Kate Winslet has achieved many laurels throughout her Hollywood career, including a best actress Oscar trophy for her role in The Reader in 2009.

But it was only recently, during a special BAFTA event in London, that she revealed the true reason behind her success in Hollywood.

According to Winslet, it is her British accent which helped her to achieve success in Hollywood as an actor.

On Friday (December 4) night, the Titanic star discussed her acting career. The 40-year-old beauty believes that English actors have an accidental advantage in Hollywood because of their Brit accent. They

can easily make filmmakers believe that they know what they are doing, according to the Berkshire-born Kate Winslet.

“When you are an English actor and you go to another country, they automatically assume you are fully trained. Which I’ve played on, believe me,” the Independent reported Winslet as saying.

Since Charlie Chaplin and a certain Stanley Jefferson (later known as Stan Laurel) arrived on the same ship, as part of the same British music-hall troupe in 1910, time and again, British performers have been trying their luck in America.

Kendall Jenner’s haters encouraged her to become a model Model Kendall Jenner says her haters encouraged her to pursue a career in modelling because she wanted to prove them wrong.

“I think that’s how my career got started in a way -- like an ‘I wanted to prove them wrong’ kind of thing because no one ever thought I could do what I’m doing right now,” Kendall wrote on her blog, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The 20-year-old model likes to engage with her fans by reading

comments on social media but automatically

switches off as soon as she sees a negative one.

“I have to admit, I’ll randomly catch myself looking at comments on Instagram and Twitter, but the second I see a mean one, I literally just put my phone away and forget about it,” she said.

“So in reality, I know it’s not a bad photo, but someone’s going to say something mean anyway.

They’re just bored. You just have to remember that it’s them, not you,” Kendall added.

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Intelligence Bureau against relaxing travel ban on all pro-Khalistanis NEW DELHI A proposal to allow members of the Sikh diaspora, blacklisted for their proKhalistan leanings and activities, to travel to India has run into opposition from the Intelligence Bureau which wants such facilitation to be on a caseby-case basis rather than a “blanket withdrawal of the

blacklist”. Sources in the intelligence establishment told that the Sikh delegation which called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his UK visit last month proposed that blacklisted members of the community be made to take an oath of allegiance to the Indian Constitution

and sign an undertaking that they would not indulge in any anti-India activities, in lieu of being cleared for travel to India.

According to sources, there are currently 43 Sikhs on the government’s blacklist, while four have a lookout circular pending against them. The ‘negative list’ of pro-militancy

Sikh leaders maintained by the high commissions and embassies in countries like the UK, Germany and Canada has hundreds of names.The Intelligence Bureau, in its comments on the discussion paper regarding end to travel ban on pro-Khalistan sympathizers, has opposed a

‘blanket’ relaxation allowing all blacklisted Sikhs to make the journey to their country of origin, and instead batted for a case-bycase clearance. This is purportedly in view of the attempts by Pakistanbased jihadi groups to tie up with remnants of Khalistani outfits like Babbar Khalsa International to stoke militancy fires in Punjab.

Also, the confrontation between the Parkash Singh Badal government, on the one hand, and Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, and SGPC, on the other, has been keeping the agencies on the edge.

The constant attempts by radical elements among the Sikh diaspora to propagate pro-Khalistan views have also caught the attention of the Indian agencies.

They have been flagging the alleged use of gurudwaras and community congregations across countries like the UK, Canada, Germany and France to radicalize young Sikhs abroad.

Bodies of Mumbai painter and her lawyer found in Mumbai drain Mumbai Bodies of painter Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer were found in a sewage drain in Mumbai’s Kandivali suburb.

Police today questioned Chintan Upadhyay, besides her driver and domestic servants, Kulkarni said, clarifying nobody has been detained so far in the case.

“Police have not detained anybody yet and are only making inquiry.

Police are quizzing those people who were in touch with Hema and her lawyer,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Detection) Dhananjay Kulkarni said.

The Kandivali Police has registered a case of murder and destruction of evidence against unknown persons.

The bodies were recovered on Saturday evening from the cardboard boxes, which were found lying

near a drain in Morekar wadi-Dhanukarwadi close to the cremation ground behind Thakur International School in suburban Kandivali, Deputy Com-

found with their hands and legs tied with ropes inside the boxes, police said.

The lawyer, Harsh Bhambani, had repre-

missioner of Police (DCP) Detection Dhananjay Kulkarni said.

The bodies, identified as that of painter Hema Upadhyay and advocate Harish Bhambhani, were later sent for autopsy, said Chimaji Aadhav, senior inspector of Unit 11 of the Mumbai crime branch.

Both the bodies were

sented Hema in a harassment case that she had filed in 2013 against her husband, artist Chintan Upadhyay.

In her complaint, she had accused him of painting obscene sketches on the walls of her room.

The couple got married in 1998. They filed for divorce in 2010.

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Esa to grab moisture Lost tomb of Suleiman from Mars in 2018 unearthed in southern Hungary Pecs When Suleiman the Magnificent died, his heart and body were buried in separate locations.

His embalmed body was laid to rest at mosque in Istanbul and the rest was hidden in a secret location. Now, archaeologists believe they have unearthed the tomb that holds the heart and organs from the great ruler of the Ottoman Empire.

‘We have data which all points in the same direction,’said Norbet Pap head of the department of Political Geography, Regional and Development Studies at the University of Pecs in Hungary at a presentation of the latest findings.

‘That is why we say ‘in all certainty,’ because there is no sign pointing in another direction.’

‘But more confirmation is needed, as this is a very delicate topic.’ Pap, said objects suggesting it was Suleiman’s tomb were found during the dig, as well as other historical evidence, although more excavations are needed to confirm the find.

Archaeologists believe the tomb found is the exact place of Suleiman’s tent stood and where he died in 1566.

The team spent the past three

years surveying areas around the castle for any remnants of the tomb, using historical records as a guide. They then turned their attention on the top of a vineyard near the village of Turbékpuszta.

‘According to the local population, Turkish ruins used be located here, and they have reported Ottoman era ar-

chaeological artifacts on numerous occasions,’said Pap. As archaeologists started digging they found a large brick building with stone tile walls.

The central room was about 26 feet by 26 feet, and there was a trench dug through the middle by robbers around the 17th century.

However, many of the decorative elements were intact, some of which were very similar to the ones in Suleiman’s

mausoleum. Until his death at age 71, Suleiman was the Ottoman Empire’s longest-ruling sultan.

Following his father’s death in 1520, Suleiman took the throne as the tenth Ottoman Sultan and began a series of military conquests.

The Turks greatly expanded their dominance in the Balkans, the Middle East and northern Africa during his 46-year reign.

His death at Szigetvar was kept secret for 48 days to prevent his son, Selim II, from taking the throne while they were in battle. The siege was a pyrrhic victory for the Turks and delayed their ultimately unsuccessful advance toward Vienna for decades.

What is believed to be the sultan’s tomb is located in the former Ottoman settlement of Turbek, which was destroyed in the 1680s. ‘Currently everything suggests that this building could have been Suleiman’s tomb,’ said Pap. The central room was about 26 feet by 26 feet, and there was a trench dug through the middle by robbers around the 17th century. However, many of the decorative elements were intact, some of which were very similar to the ones in Suleiman’s mausoleum.

Colombia, Spain in diplo-row over treaSure trove BOGOTA Billions of dollars in gold and silver from an 18th century shipwreck have left Spain and former colony Colombia at odds over who rightfully owns the loot.

The disagreement is over the ‘San Jose,’ an treasure ship wreck that Colombia located recently off the coast of Cartagena de Indias, its old Caribbean port city.

The ‘San Jose’ sank in June 1708 near the Islas del Rosario, during combat with British ships attempting to take its cargo, as part of the War of Spanish Succession.

The Spanish galleon was the main ship in a treasure fleet carrying gold and silver - likely extracted from Spanish colonial mines in Peru and Bolivia - and other valuables to King Philip V. President Juan Manuel Santos announced in early December that experts had found the ‘San Jose’ on November 27 in a place never

searched before.

So who owns the estimated $2 billion in loot?

‘There are discrepancies on the issue of legal ownership,’ said Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo.

He met Saturday with his

Colombian counterpart María Angel Holguin in Cartagena.

Spain in part has based its arguments on UN Law of the Sea rules. But Colombia is not a signatory to the treaty, and as such not subject to those regulations.

The Spanish diplomat said that he was hoping a ‘roadmap for an understanding’ could be hammered out

given the countries’ excellent relations. ‘This is not going to become an issue that divides us,’ Holguin stressed, while acknowledging legal disagreements remained.

Only a handful of the ship’s crew of 600 survived when the ‘San Jose’ sank.

Treasure hunters had searched for the ship, described by some as the holy grail of wrecks, for decades. A team of Colombian and foreign researchers, including a veteran of the group that discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985, studied winds and currents of the Caribbean 307 years ago and delved into colonial archives in Spain and Colombia searching for clues.

The loot is estimated to be worth at least $2 billion, its value having dropped significantly due to the falling price of silver, according to USbased company Sea Search Armada.

London Earlier this year, scientists suggested that liquid water may pool beneath the surface of Mars at night and evaporate during the day.

If this is true, it could pave the way for building water farms on the red planet to provide resources for the first human colonies. Now the European Space Agency (Esa) says it will be launching a mission the red planet within three years to harvest some of this water – that is, if they can find it.

According to a report in the New Scientist, a device called Habit will be joining the Esa’s ExoMars exploration mission in 2018. The system was created by Javier Martin-Torres of Luleå University of Technology in Kiruna, Sweden. The device will measure the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere, changes that take place over time, and radiation in the region.

It will use salts to capture about 5ml of water day. The team believes that Habit will go through 50 litres of water during one Martian year. But scientists say it could eventually be scaled up into a ‘moisture farm’ to help sustain the first humans who step foot on Mars.

‘Habit can be easily adapted to ‘water-farms’ for in-situ resource production,’ Martin-Torres told New Scientist.

‘We will produce Martian liquid water on Mars, that could be used in the future exploration of Mars for astronauts and greenhouses.’

The ExoMars mission, planned for launch in May 2018, will be made up of a European-led rover that will

be the first to combine driving across the Martian surface with drilling two metres below the surface, and a stationary surface science platform. After landing on Mars in 2019, the rover will descend from the platform via a ramp.

Then both will begin their scientific operations.

The platform is expected to operate for at least one Earth year, im-

aging the landing site, monitoring the climate, investigating the atmosphere and analysing the radiation environment. ‘The surface science platform will serve as a longlived stationary laboratory to monitor the local environment, which could include passing dust storms, lightning, and space weather effects,’ says Jorge Vago, Esa’s ExoMars 2018 project scientist.

‘At the same time, the rover will travel several kilometres to search for traces of past life below the surface. It’s a very powerful combination of instruments.’ ExoMars will also have an instrument to capture atmospheric dust and measure its changes over the Martian seasons.

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Kashmir issue will bring Hurriyat to negotiation table, says Abdul Basit As India and Pakistan prepare to resume the composite dialogue process, Islamabad on Saturday insisted that there was no change in its stand on engaging separatist leaders on the Kashmir issue.

Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit, while speaking at Agenda Aaj Tak in New Delhi said, the Hurriyat represents a large section of Kashmiri people.

The Narendra Modi government in August had called off foreign secretary and national security advisor-level talks while expressing strong objections to the Pakistan high commissioner hosting Kashmiri separatists on the eve of talks.

India and Pakistan came out with a joint statement earlier this week during External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's visit to Islamabad and decided to resume the stalled dialogue process while agreeing to cooperate with each other on various issues like terror, narcotics, culture and Kashmir.

On being asked if talks will continue if there was a terror attack in India, Basit said it's in the interest for both the countries for the dialogue to sustain. When asked if handing over underworld Dawood Ibrahim, who is believed to be in Pakistan and 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed and Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi would be a game changer in the dialogue process, the Pakistan high commissioner said solving the Kashmir problem will be the biggest breakthrough in the peace process. "The root cause of distrust between the two countries is Kashmir and not anything else. Trust will automatically be built up if the issue is solved," Basit said while adding that the two countries must now ensure that there are no hurdles in the dialogue.

"Unfortunately we lost an opportunity in the last two years. Now we have entered a new phase.

œ.$6+0,5 ,6 5($/ ,668( 127 '$:22' $1' +$),=¡ Forces in Pakistan and in India don't want our relations to improve but we cannot be a hostage to them," the Pakistani diplomat said.

Talking about expediting the Mumbai attack trial in Pakistan, he said that there is a judicial process which is taking place. When questioned over the delay in the trial, in an apparent reference to the Samjhauta Express attack in which many Pakistani nationals were killed, he said there are cases in India too that have go on for years.

Speaking on terrorism, Basit said Pakistan is also a victim of terrorism. "After the tension in Afghanistan, there have been many attacks in our country (Pakistan) too.

We understand the pain. We should not be linked to terror attacks," he said.

On the question whether India and Pakistan will resume cricketing ties within the next 15 days, Basit said Pakistan was always ready to play with India. "It is now up to the Indian government to decide.

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1DWLRQDO +HUDOG FDVH &RQJUHVV FDXJKW LQ LWV RZQ FKDNUDY\XK VD\V $UXQ -DLWOH\ Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday attacked Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of holding Parliament and democracy at ransom over the National Herald case. Speaking at Agenda Aaj Tak, Jaitley said the BJP-led government had no role to play in the legal battle the principal Opposition party is mired in.

Jaitley said those following 'dynastic politics' felt that it was their right to run the government.

"Congress leaders have got trapped in a chakravyuh that they created and they are now obstructing Parliament," said the finance minister.

The government, he said, would wait for the outcome of court proceedings. "If there is a tax angle, taxation authorities will ask questions for which there is a due process."

If anyone had an issue with the tax authorities, they could appeal, he added.

"That action has so far not been taken.

Enforcement Directorate has not issued any notice. Tax authorities have not passed any assessment order," Jaitley said.

Jaitley rejected that there was any bitterness or enmity between the government and the opposition party, despite the growing animosity that has led to the constant stalling of Parliament. There are issues on which Parliament functions that are

unanimous and on others it differs, he said.

"In this case, what step has the government of India taken for which Parliament can be obstructed?" Jaitley asked.?

Attacking the Congress and the Gandhi

"Congress' lawyers are not able to help them and finding themselves in difficulty, they are holding the country at ransom," he said. Jaitley said he would not like to comment on the matter any further

family, the finance minister said when some private complaint is filed, a magistrate issues a notice, and then one moves the high court and high court grants stay.

"After a hearing, the high court dismissed it. Now, one either goes to the trial court or they can challenge it in Supreme Court.

The government does not interfere," he said.

because it was under investigation.

Earlier in the day, Congress leader Kapil Sibal, also speaking at Agenda Aaj Tak, alleged that the National Herald case was a living example of political vendetta. The senior lawyer and former Union Minister also spoke about the 2G scam.

Sibal rejected all charges of alleged cheating and siphoning of money by the

Congress in the name of reviving the National Herald newspaper founded by former PM Jawaharlal Nehru. "Your finance minister in his blogs and on Facebook says that this is an offence under the Income Tax Act. He is the finance minister of this country.

Does he have the right to make statements like that? He is giving a sort of indication to the IT department that they need to send notice. And what has stopping of Parliament got to do with the National Herald case?

It is nothing to do with it," said Sibal.

Asked why notice has been not sent to share holders, he said people who were claiming to be shareholders of National Herald were not real shareholders. He also added that Markandey Katju had not applied to become a shareholder.

On the Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation, Sibal said the Congress wanted passage of the GST bill in the Parliament but first the government should accept its three suggestions on the proposed legislation.

"We want Parliament to function. One of the very senior BJP leaders had set a democratic principle that obstruction was part of parliamentary strategy," said Sibal.

Issue 645 (22)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Sikhs feel vulnerable, band with Muslims to combat hate crimes Pardeep Kaleka spent several days after 9/11 at his father’s Milwaukee gas station, fearing that his family would be targeted by people who assumed they were Muslim. No Kaleka explained on behalf of his father, who wore a turban and beard and spoke only in broken English, the family was Sikh, a southeast Asian religion unrelated to Islam.

But amid a new wave of anti-Islamic sentiment since the terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Kaleka is vowing to take an entirely different approach.

“For us it does not matter who they’re targeting,” said Kaleka, a former Milwaukee police officer and teacher whose father was one of six people killed in 2012 when a white supremacist opened fire at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. “This time we cannot differentiate ourselves; when hate rhetoric is being spewed we cannot be on the sidelines.”

Across the US, Sikhs and Muslims are banding together to defend their

respective religions.

Someone bent on harming Muslims wouldn’t understand -- or care -- about the distinction between the two faiths, they say, and both also deserve to live in peace.

So they plan educational sessions and rallies. They successfully pushed the FBI to track hate crimes against Sikhs. They speak to lawmakers and support each other’s legal action, including a lawsuit filed over a New York City Police surveillance program targeting New Jersey Muslims.

“We are in this fight together,” said Gurjot Kaur, a senior staff attorney at The Sikh Coalition, founded the night of September 11.

Sikhism, a monotheistic faith, was founded more than 500 years ago in southeast Asia and has roughly 27 million followers worldwide, most of them in India.

There are more than 500,000 Sikhs in the US. Male followers often cover their heads with turbans -which are considered sacred -- and refrain from shaving their beards.

Reports of bullying, ha-

rassment and vandalism against Sikhs have risen in recent weeks.

Last week, a Sikh temple in Orange County, California, was vandalised, as was a truck in the parking lot by someone who misspelled the word “Islam” and made an obscene reference to Islamic State.

A Sikh woman said she recently was forced to show her breast pump before taking her seat on an airplane in Minneapolis because another passenger thought she might be a terrorist. Several Sikh football fans said they were initially not allowed into Qualcomm Stadium to watch the San Diego Chargers game against the Denver Broncos last Sunday because several of them were wearing turbans. Schoolchildren say they’ve been bullied.

For most Sikhs, much of the backlash has been frequent stares or comments and occasional online insults.

Former NCAA basketball player Darsh Singh said he has heard insults throughout his life, including recently when someone recently yelled “Osama!” at

him while he was crossing a street in Phoenix.

Then last week, a photo making the rounds on Facebook showed the former Trinity University basketball player -- the first turbaned Sikh to play in the NCAA -- with the caption: “Nobody wants to guard Muhammad, he’s too explosive.” A friend came to his defense with a lengthy post, saying, “Do the world a favour and educate yourself” -- which got tens of thousands of likes.

“A lot of people act out of fear or ignorance,” said Singh. “I don’t know who started it, but whoever they are, I forgive them.”

Rajinder Singh Mago, community outreach director at the Sikh Religious Society of Chicago, said it’s more

difficult for Sikh schoolchildren who sometimes are bullied. “Ninety-nine percent of Americans are good... then that one person who just came out of a tavern after a few beers, you don’t know what he’s thinking at that point,” Mago said.

Madihha Ahussain, a staff attorney at the national group Muslim Advocates, said people who are misinformed about both religions not only are “blaming entire faith communities, now they’re blaming multiple groups for the acts of a couple individuals”.

As a result, some Sikhs have encountered violence.

A Chicago-area teenager was charged with a hate crime after a September road rage incident in which

he called 53-year-old Sikh taxi driver Inderjit Mukker “Bin Laden” and repeatedly hit him in the face, breaking his cheekbone.

In 2013, a Green Bay, Wisconsin, man was charged with a hate crime for allegedly setting fire to a convenience store owned by a SikhAmerican. That was less than a year after white supremacist Wade Michael Page killed six people and wounded four others at the Oak Creek temple. Kaleka said his father, Satwant Singh Kaleka, was the last person killed inside the temple, after Page broke into an office where the elder Kaleka was calling police.

Issue 645 (23)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

The Netherlands: safest delta in the world THE HAGUE Anti-storm barriers, 17,500 kilometres (10,800 miles) of dykes and dunes and a spirit of constant innovation to hold back the seas.

These are some of the key ingredients which allow the Netherlands to boast that it is the ‘world’s safest delta’.

GEOGRAPHY The Netherlands is essentially a large delta traversed by three major rivers - the Rhine, the Schelde and the Maas - which all flow out into the North Sea. Some 26 percent of country lies below sea-level, including Schipol airport - Europe’s fifth busiest air hub. And about 60 percent of the territory is classified as at risk from flooding.

More than half of the nation’s 17 million people live in these at-risk low-lying areas, where 70 percent of the country’s gross

domestic product is produced.

In the battle to keep the tides at bay, Holland is dotted with hundreds of artificial earth mounds, called terps, on which the Dutch have built homes, farms and even whole villages.

Some of these terps date back as far as 500 BC, and are the among the first traces of man’s attempt to conquer the seas.

About 18 percent of the country’s territory also stretches across polders - swathes of reclaimed land encased and protected from the waves by a series of dykes. After a catastrophic flood in 1953 left almost 2,000 people dead, the Netherlands put in place the so-called ‘Delta Plan’ to secure

those areas most at risk.

Back then, sea defences were overwhelmed and dykes crumbled in the face of heavy storms, deluging

The most impressive of these is the famous Eastern Scheldt storm surge barrier, opened in 1986 and which this year served as

large swathes of the southern province of Zeeland.

Several storm surge barriers were built and are used to seal off estuary mouths during heavy weather.

the finish line for the Tour de France’s first stage.

Almost nine kilometres (five miles) in length, this barrier has 64 metal ‘doors’ - each around 42

Oxford, Cambridge colleges not admitting poorer students to be shamed

London A UK government advisory body will name and shame leading colleges from Ox-

leges to accept even half of their intake from statefunded schools in favour of more privileged privately

ford and Cambridge University for failing to be inclusive of students from poorer backgrounds.

Collectively referred to as Oxbridge, the world’s most well-known educational institutions are to be criticised in a hard-hitting annual report by the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission. The report will highlight the failure of some major Oxbridge col-

educated students, the ‘Observer’ newspaper reported.

According to the newspaper, the commission will say in its report out on Thursday that while attainment of top A-level grades by those from the least wealthy backgrounds is poor, with just 2.2% of the most deprived gaining good grades, these statistics offer no excuse for

Oxbridge’s intake figures.

“Large discrepancies between Oxbridge colleges in the number of offers to made to applicants from the state sector illustrate that many should be doing much more,” the report prepared by Labour cabinet minister Alan Milburn and former Conservative cabinet minister Gillian Shephard.

Some of the worst performers expected to be highlighted include University College (Oxford), Robinson (Cambridge), St Peter’s (Oxford), Trinity (Oxford) and Christ Church (Oxford). The commission will, however, welcome Oxbridge’s increasing use of contextual measures as a means of addressing the under-representation of lower-income and stateeducated students, but demand greater and better use of it.

You know the Australians are partying hard when they have a ‘hangover clinic’ For people who binge drink in general and especially during festive seasons, Australia has come with

Clinic’ which has opened up in Sydney the clinic has invented a modern day cure for the dreaded hang-

the perfect cure for the morning after.

Aptly called the ‘Hangover

over. The ‘cures’ include IV drip, vitamin cocktail and anti-nausea medicine.

The flipside of this clinic is that it can drive a whole through the pocket.

The prices start from a whopping 140 dollars (9,400 Rupees), this is just for the IV hydration and vitamin drink. For a one hour complete package the total cost sums up to 200 dollars (13,429 Rupees) So, one will have to think twice before shelling out such a heavy amount for a mere hangover cure. Also, in the opinion of health experts and critics the clinic encourages people to drink irresponsibly.

metres wide - which can be closed when the land is threatened by rising tides or storm surges.

Completed in 1932 and still regarded as a remarkable feat of civil engineering, the Afsluitdijk (literally the ‘close-off’ dyke) spans 32 kilometres of water over a gulf.

This dyke secures hundreds of kilometres (miles) of inland coastline inside its boundaries, creating the vast but shallow IJsselmeer which quickly turned to fresh water.

Across the dyke stretches a multilane highway providing a shortcut between North Holland and Friesland, allowing travellers to cut almost 300 kilometres from their journey. As in many areas,

the Dutch are front-runners in the field of wave research and finding ways to protect against rising waters. The latest weapon in the anti-water arsenal is a giant machine able to create a five-metre high wave - the world’s largest. The wave is used to test realscale dykes and sand dunes.

Four powerful pistons behind a seven-metre high metal plaque push water down a channel. Next to the channel is a reservoir with nine million litres of water - equivalent of four Olympic swimming pools - which can be pumped into the channel at 1,000 litres a second. The aim of the 26-million euro ($29-million) project is to simulate the power of the oceans, and recreate tsunami conditions to help build better, stronger flood defences.

Vast desert sun farm to help light up Morocco OUARZAZATE On the edge of the Sahara desert, engineers make final checks to a sea of metal mirrors turned towards the sun, preparing for the launch of Morocco’s first solar power plant.

The ambitious project is part of the North African country’s goal of boosting its clean energy output with what it says will eventually be the world’s largest solar power production facility. Morocco has scarce oil and gas reserves, and is the biggest importer of energy in the Middle East and North Africa.

The plant is part of a vision to move beyond this heavy dependency and raise renewable energy production to 42 percent of its total power needs by 2020.

About 20 kilometres (12 miles) outside Ouarzazate, half a million U-shaped mirrors - called ‘parabolic troughs’ - stretch out in 800 rows, slowly following the sun as it moves across the sky.

Spread over an area equivalent to more than 600 football pitches, they store thermal energy from the sun’s rays and use it to activate steam turbines that produce electricity.

King Mohamed VI launched construction of the plant, called Noor 1, in 2013, at a cost of 600 million euros ($660 million) and involving roughly 1,000 workers. Its start of opera-

tions by the end of this month was set to coincide with the conclusion of highstakes COP21 global climate talks in Paris.

‘Construction work has finished,’ said Obaid Amran, a board member of Morocco’s solar power agency. ‘We are testing

The energy ministry estimates that its first solar power plant will allow the country to reduce CO2 emissions by 240,000 tonnes per year initially, and by 522,000 tonnes with the second two phases.

That is equivalent to nearly

components of the production units with a view to connecting them to the national grid at the end of the year.’ The project’s next phases - Noor 2 and Noor 3 - are to follow in 2016 and 2017, and a call for tenders is open for Noor 4.

Once all phases are complete, Noor will be ‘the largest solar power production facility in the world’, its developers say, covering an area of 30 square kilometres (11.6 square miles). It will generate 580 megawatts and provide electricity to a million homes.

The solar power project will also help reduce the country’s greenhouse gas emissions.

one percent of Morocco’s CO2 emissions of around 56.5 million tonnes in 2011, according to World Bank figures.

The so-called ‘greenhouse effect’ is a natural phenomenon - an invisible blanket of gases including small amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) - that has made Earth warm enough for humans to survive on it comfortably. But human activities such as burning coal and oil inject additional CO2 into the atmosphere, leading to global warming.

Humanity’s annual output of greenhouse gases is higher than ever, totalling just under 53 billion tonnes of CO2 in 2014, according to the UN.

Issue 645 (24)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

You'll need to navigate through what could be a tricky week. Mercury's retrograde phase from Monday could cause delays, which means your best-laid plans could come to nothing. Rather than fret and fume, use this opportunity to research your options and get more information. Avoid manipulative and pushy people on Thursday and Friday.

Money matters could be subject to delays. You may have to roll with the punches, particularly if unexpected expenses show up or a payment doesn't materialize. Even so, this might set you thinking about ways to improve matters and get your money working harder for you.

On Thursday a rather intense influence might mean you see a side of someone you've never noticed before.

Restlessness and a desire to flee the real world may be stirring within you. Yet, because of Mercury's retrograde phase starting Monday, quick decisions could likely cause trouble. If in doubt, a chat with a good friend can help you make the best choice. Some people may seem more aloof or distant than usual. Try not to take this personally, as it could be a different matter in a few days.

News may arrive out of the blue involving a friend or relative who needs your help and support. A focus on your spiritual sector suggests you may be called upon to sacrifice time and energy in order to boost another's spirits. There could be further obstacles to overcome on Thursday and Friday this week. A patient approach can help you avoid strain and struggle.

The relationship planets are mainly feisty but fun, encouraging you to relax in good company. But Saturn's presence in your pleasure and romance sector suggests a tendency to conserve your time and energy. This is just as well, as Mercury enters its retrograde phase on Monday, which could coincide with a lull in your social life.

Regarding goals and personal ambitions, Mercury's retrograde phase, along with other stubborn influences, suggests progress could come to a halt. However, this can bring just the chance you need to rethink your plans. Such delays can expose weaknesses that might not otherwise show up. Regarding romance, someone with a jealous streak could try to jeopardize a new relationship.

If you can iron out a family disagreement or handle a difference of opinion, then the week ahead has much to offer. There may be one or two issues to circumnavigate, and these are likely to involve other people's stubborn mindset.

There will be more than enough to keep you happily occupied once the Sun dances into Gemini on Thursday.

Don't let anyone rush you into making a decision or commitment before you're ready. As Mercury turns retrograde it's essential to read the fine print of a contract or legal document before you sign.

Someone may be feeling extra sensitive, making you feel like you're walking on eggshells. In this situation it pays to be honest rather than tolerate someone.

Cultivating a taste for the novel or exotic in people and ideas can open you up to wonderful new experiences. Explore opportunities that can help further your interests and expand your horizons.

Mercury turns retrograde on Monday, for about three weeks, leading to delays and mixed messages. Think twice before signing important documents.

With wit, charm, and a cheerful outlook you somehow manage to say the most difficult things and get away with it. With Venus happily ensconced in your relationship sector, it's a good time to convince someone that you're the right candidate for a job or new relationship.

However, it might not be all clear sailing this week.

A surprise may be in store this week and it could be due to Mercury's retrograde influence. There's a chance you'll bump into someone you once knew or hear from an old college or work pal. It might also be wise to check on those you haven't seen in a while and offer support should they need it. Romantic opportunities seem plentiful.

Someone may share a secret that alters how you view a situation. In this instance it affects you in a good way.

As Mercury turns retrograde from Monday, for about three weeks, expect disruptions and delays at home. A guest may cancel or a party may not proceed as planned. You might have to contend with obstacles.

Issue 645 (25)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Technology don’t halt programmeS that help ConneCt people: FaCebook Defending its ‘Free Basics’ initiative, Facebook Thursday said programmes that help people connect should not be halted or limited.

The reaction of Facebook comes against the backdrop of sectoral regulator Trai coming out with a consultation paper on differential pricing for data services, through which telecom operators offer free or discounted tariffs to access certain websites.

Earlier called ‘Internet.Org’, Facebook had launched the ‘Free Basics’ initiative in India with RCom to offer free access to certain applications and websites.

“We hope those involved in this discussion consider

the broader consequences of halting or limiting programmes that help people connect and improve their lives,” Facebook

cess for India in a fair and consistent manner.

“Free Basics works and is bringing more people online by serving as a bridge to

Vice President (Mobile and Global Access Policy) Kevin Martin said in a statement.

The social networking giant said it is committed to working with Trai to uphold the principles of affordable and innovative internet ac-

the full, paid internet. Second, we listened to the initial concerns and changed Free Basics so the programme is non-discriminatory, non-exclusive and open to all developers.

Finally, there is no doubt that Free Basics is already

Pinterest lacks “depression-coping” messages

Depressed Pinteresters suffer from lack of positive messages, according to a new study.

Despite the large number of posts on visual social media platforms that suggest and fuel depressing or suicidal thoughts, there aren`t many for users to read and share that would help them cope with their mental state more proactively, the University of Georgia study finds.

Co-author Yan Jin is hoping health professionals can fill the gap with positive mes-

sages and images related to depression coping strategies.

The research focused on Pinterest posts, a popular social media site with more than 100 million monthly active users where participants are able to “pin,” “like” or “repin” photos and text that relate to them.

The study found that many on Pinterest are using the site to display their depressed thoughts and feelings.

The researchers found that when depression is being communicated or portrayed on Pinterest via images or text, there

is a lack of more proactive coping approaches also being portrayed on Pinterest, Jin said.

When analyzing these posts, Jin said there was a lack of specific coping strategies to balance out pins that suggest depressing thoughts.

The study also found few health professionals and health public relations practitioners addressing the issue of depression on Pinterest.

The study is published in Public Relations Review.

helping people,” the company said.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has asked stakeholders as to what steps should be taken to ensure that principles of non-discrimination, transparency, affordable Internet access, competition, market entry and innovation are adhered to, in case differential pricing is allowed.

Trai said some plans introduced in the recent past amount to differential pricing that offer zero or discounted tariffs to certain content of select websites or applications or platforms.

The principle of Net neutrality is against any priority being accorded to an entity in Internet traffic flow on account of payments to service providers like telecom companies.

In the past too, Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg has defended the programme, stating that Free Basics and Facebook are 100 per cent supportive of net neutrality.

Twitter to tap people without accounts for money

Twitter will start showing ads to its people who visit Twitter every month but who don’t have active user accounts, the company has announced.

The number of such “logged out” users is somewhere around 500 million.

The change means that if you click on a tweet that appears in a Google search, for instance, you may see ads on that tweet page or on the tweet creator’s profile, re/code

reported.

Many advertisers think Twitter does not have enough registered users -especially compared to Facebook -- to matter.

But the company has argued for years now that its audience is much bigger than the 320 million people who log in each month, and it has been telling Wall Street that it can make money off people without Twitter accounts.

Now it’s finally doing that.

Adorable! Mark Zuckerberg reads ‘physics’ to baby Max

Google Play Music rolling out family plan

Popular social networking site Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg is on a twomonth paternity leave to spend time with his baby girl Max. Earlier, he shared an adorable photo of him and little Max lying together on a floor.

Recently, Mark posted a beautiful photo of himself and wife Priscilla Chan reading a quantum physics children’s book to their daughter Max. My next book for A Year of

Books is Quantum Physics for Babies!

Just kidding. It’s actually World Order by Henry Kissinger -- about foreign relations and how we can build peaceful relationships throughout the world. This is important for creating the world we all want for our children, and that’s what I’m thinking about these days.

I am loving reading to Max. Next year looks like it’s going to be A Year of Children’s Books!

Google Play Music has taken the wraps off its family plan after announcing the deal this fall.

Users can now sign up to get a subscription for Google Play Music that is good for them and up to five family members, all for $14.99 per month.

Features remains the same, including ad-free, unlimited access to more than 35 million songs.

Each family will also be able to stream simultaneously on any device, says Google.

In the US, a family plan on Google Play will also grant access to YouTube Red for the whole family.

The plan will be out in the coming days on Android devices in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, France and Germany, with more countries to follow.

Issue 645 (26)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Build Indian war memorials in Australia, Turkey: Australian historian NEW DELHI Whenever a pre-1947 conflict involving Indians is commemorated in India, many people insist that India should have nothing to do with it as it was not a free country then and those Indians who took part in them were “traitors”, “mercenaries” and “colonial dogs”.

Last year, when centenary commemorations of the First World War began, such adverse opinions came to the fore, courtesy opinion pieces, TV debates and the cacophony on social media. Historians, of course, argue that history is complex and shouldn’t be reduced to easy binaries.

One of them is Australian military historian Professor Peter Stanley. “It doesn’t matter if India was free or not. The fact is India and Indians had been shaping world events all throughout. Even in the First World War, over a million Indians had participated,” Professor Stanley told TOI in an exclusive interaction post the launch of his book, ‘Die in Battle, Do Not Despair’, at the Australian

High Commission recently.

He consulted archives in different countries to piece together a narrative of the Indian contribution at Gallipoli. He says Indians and Australians shared a

close and warm relationship during the campaign, which even found mention in Australian newspapers of the time.

Yet this was by no means an equal relationship.

“Australians, though friendly, were patronising towards the Indians. They addressed every Indian as ‘Johnny’. The Indians, on the other hand, addressed all as ‘sahib’. There’s one

incident where a Gurkha soldier returned home with all his buttons missing. The Anzacs had taken them as souvenirs. Nobody bothered to seek the poor man’s permission; he couldn’t object because

they were sahibs,” Stanley said. But by the time the Second World War broke out, this relationship had clearly changed for the better. Australians had rescued many Indian PoWs from Japanese captivity.

“This time, Indian PoWs were treated as Allied troops. Australians knew that Indian independence was just a matter of time so they treated the res-

cued Indians as equals,” Stanley said. The British, on the other hand, were suspicious of the rescued Indians, who, they thought, could have been JIFs (Japanese-inspired fifth columnists or Japanese Indian forces)—a term that’s not found in Australian sources. “That was the unfortunate part. These Indian troops were the most loyal, as they had resisted every Japanese effort to suborn them. Australians were amazed and overwhelmed to see their discipline and conduct even though they were weak, sick and even emaciated,” Stanley said. Despite fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with the Indians, the Aussies and Kiwis, over the years, forgot about the Indian role. “But now is the time to revive those memories. A good way to do this would be to build an Indian war memorial in Canberra and also at Gallipoli. India built a memorial in Ypres (the Indian Forces Memorial). Today, anyone who goes there instantly recognizes the Indian memorial and becomes aware that there were Indians too.

Homesick and desperate Captured Pak militant longs to speak to kin Homesick and desperate to speak to his family and friends in Pakistan’s Faisalabad, captured Lashkar-e-Taiba militant Mohammad Naveed Yakub

constantly blurts out phone numbers but none of the calls go through as these are either switched off or unavailable.

A National Investigation Agency (NIA) official said Naveed had submitted an application to the special court hearing his case in Jammu, giving two new phone numbers and requesting the judge to allow him to speak to his family.

“The court has marked the application to the Jammu jail administration for action,” the official said.

The 20-something Naveed

is lodged in a Jammu jail since he was captured on August 5 in Jammu and Kashmir’s Udhampur where he and a fellow militant ambushed a BSF convoy. He and his partner, who was killed in retaliatory fire by security personnel, were allegedly sent by his Lashkar handlers for a fidayeen or suicide attack.

Hindustan Times accessed Naveed’s application and tried the two phone numbers given by him. But they were switched off. “It is highly unlikely that any of the numbers provided by Naveed would be active as the Pakistani spy agency has mounted a huge effort to wipe out his Faisalabad connection,” the official said. Pakistani intelligence agency ISI had reportedly thrown a security net and blocked all possible access to Naveed’s family immediately after his arrest. But even if one of the calls go through, Naveed cannot speak directly to anyone in Pakistan from the jail he is currently in.

Issue - 645 (27)

15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Machine ‘learns’ like a human WASHINGTON Scientists have invented a machine that imitates the way the human brain learns new information, a step forward for artificial intelligence, researchers reported Thursday.

The system described in the journal Science is a computer model “that captures humans’ unique ability to learn new concepts from a single example,” the study said.

“Though the model is only capable of learning handwritten characters from alphabets, the approach underlying it could be broadened to have applications for other symbol-based systems, like gestures, dance moves, and the words of spoken and signed languages.”

Joshua Tenenbaum, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT), said he wanted to build a machine that could mimic the mental abilities of young children. “Before they get to kindergarten, children learn to recognize new concepts from just a single example, and can even imagine new examples they haven’t seen,” said Tenenbaum. “We are still far from building machines as smart as a human child, but this is the first time we have had a machine able to learn and use a large class of real-world concepts even simple visual concepts

such as handwritten characters - in ways that are hard to tell

those from the television series Futurama,” said the study.

apart from humans.” The system is a called a “Bayesian Program Learning” (BPL) framework, where concepts are represented as simple computer programs.

Researchers showed that the model could use “knowledge from previous concepts to speed learning on new concepts,” such as building on knowledge of the Latin alphabet to learn letters in the Greek alphabet.

“The authors applied their model to over 1,600 types of handwritten characters in 50 of the world’s writing systems, including Sanskrit, Tibetan, Gujarati, Glagolitic - and even invented characters such as

Since humans require very little data to learn a new concept, the research could lead to new advances in artificial intelligence, the study authors said. “It has been very difficult to build machines that require as little data as humans when learning a new concept,” said Ruslan Salakhutdinov, an assistant professor of computer science at the University of Toronto. “Replicating these abilities is an exciting area of research connecting machine learning, statistics, computer vision, and cognitive science.”

NEW YORK Up to $10 million in diamonds have been reported stolen from a New York jeweller who left them in an unlocked safe, police said on Friday. The jeweller, Jonathan Birnbaum, reported the diamonds missing from his Manhattan business on Thursday, according to police.

Birnbaum kept the safe unlocked to allow easier access to other gems. The diamonds are worth between $5 million and $10 million.

The diamonds could have been taken anytime between Nov. 24,

when he put the precious stones inside the safe, and Tuesday, when he first noticed them missing, police said.

Investigators were interviewing five employees with access to the safe, as well as contractors who were working in the office at the time.

J Birnbaum Inc is located on 47th Street in Manhattan, the heart of the city’s diamond district. It specializes in highend diamonds and has created jewelry worn on red carpets from the Oscars to the Emmys, according to its website.

Silicon Valley Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting Apple devices and 2016 will see a rise in attacks on its operating systems, security experts suggest.

According to security firm

Last year, it was seeing a monthly average of between 10,000 and 70,000 Mac computers infected with malware. “This is far fewer than Windows desktops and we don’t want to scaremonger. Apple

Symantec, the amount of malware aimed at Apple’s mobile operating system (iOS) has more than doubled this year, while threats to Mac computers also rose. Security firm FireEye also expects 2016 to be a bumper year for Apple malware.

Systems such as Apple Pay could be targeted, it predicts.

Apple is an obvious target for cybercriminals because its products are so popular, said Dick O’Brien, a researcher at Symantec. While the total number of threats targeting Apple devices remains low compared with Windows and Android, Symantec is seeing the range of threats multiply.

remains a relatively safe platform but Apple users can no longer be complacent about security, as the number of infections and new threats rise,” said Mr O’Brien. The number of unique OS X computers infected with malware in the first nine months of 2015 was seven times higher than in all of 2014, its research found. A significant amount of this spike is accounted for by so-called greyware - applications that may not have malware attached but can still be annoying to users, by serving up unwanted ads or tracking their web-browsing habits. Symantec also found seven new threats aimed at

Apple’s mobile iOS platform, with jailbroken devices - those that have been unlocked - being particularly vulnerable.

And hackers are also increasingly targeting corporations, where Mac use is now more prevalent. A corporate espionage group known as Butterfly which attacked multibillion dollar companies in 2015 developed malware tools that attacked both Windows and Apple computers.

Traditionally iOS has been seen as a more secure platform than Android because of the more closed community that Apple runs for its apps but that is changing, according to FireEye. While it found that the vast majority - 96% - of mobile malware is targeted at Android devices, iOS is no longer immune.According to Bryce Boland, chief technology officer at FireEye, attackers are increasingly “finding ways into Apple’s walled garden, and that will ramp up next year.

The attack was thought to be the first large-scale attack on Apple’s app store. The introduction of new payment systems, such as Apple Pay, will add a financial incentive for hackers, making it worth their “time and effort” to develop new malware, FireEye said. Mr O’Brien said: “We haven’t yet seen any threats targeting Apple Pay but anything that involves a financial transaction will be of interest to hackers.”

Zuckerberg speaks out against Muslim discrimination

WASHINGTON Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg wants to protect the rights of Muslims, saying they should not fear being “persecuted for the actions of others.”

Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post that the Muslim community should not face discrimination following attacks in Paris and elsewhere linked to extremists.

His comments appeared aimed at countering the call by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to ban Muslims from entering the United States. “After the Paris attacks and hate this week, I can only imagine the fear Muslims feel that they will be persecuted for the actions of others,” he wrote.

“As a Jew, my parents taught me that we must stand up

$10m in diamonds robbed from NY jeweller

against attacks on all communities. Even if an attack isn’t against you today, in time attacks on freedom for anyone will hurt everyone.” Trump caused international outrage Monday, when he demanded a ban on Muslims traveling to the United States.

He currently leads Republican polls by double digit margins over his nearest rivals. Fellow GOP candidates were among those condemning his plan, but senior party figures have refused to throw Trump under the bus, or even rule out voting for him.

“If you’re a Muslim in this community, as the leader of Facebook I want you to know that you are always welcome here and that we will fight to protect your rights and create a peaceful and safe environment for you,” Zuckerberg wrote.

Cybercriminals will target Apple in 2016

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First litter of IVF puppies born in US Legend Muhammad Ali slams Trump

WASHINGTON The first litter of puppies conceived through in vitro fertilisation has been born, in a scientific breakthrough

are from two Beagle pairs.

“Since the mid-1970s, people have been trying to do this in a dog and have been unsuccessful, said Alex Travis,

decades in the making, US researchers announced. As puppies tend to be cute, news outlets were positively panting and wagging their tails over these playful canine pioneers.

“This is probably the most adorable scientific breakthrough of all time,” a headline on Buzzfeed said.The nitty gritty: A female dog into which 19 embryos were transferred gave birth in July to seven healthy puppies, according to the researchers from Cornell University.

The announcement was made Wednesday. Two of the puppies are from a Beagle mother and a Cocker Spaniel father, and the remaining five

associate professor of reproductive biology at Cornell University’s Baker Institute for Animal Health. The findings were published in the Public Library of Science ONE journal. The researchers said the success has major ramifications for wildlife conservation.

“We can freeze and bank sperm, and use it for artificial insemination. We can also freeze oocytes (female egg cell), but in the absence of in vitro fertilization, we couldn’t use them,” Travis said. “Now we can use this technique to conserve the genetics of endangered species.” Margret Casal of the University

US to develop machines to destroy CWs

WASHINGTON The Pentagon is going to develop two prototypes of machines that can destroy chemical weapons on the spot and avoid the complex logistics of transporting such arsenals. Most of the 1,300 cubic meters (46,000 cubic feet) of chemical weapons that the Syrian regime handed to the international community were neutralized in 2014 on a US Navy ship, then transformed into waste that was treated in different sites around the world. The devices now envisioned by the Pentagon will allow for such weapons to be destroyed in situ, according to a statement from DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which has awarded

contracts to build the prototypes.

Such chemical agents will be able to be transformed into “safe output,” the statement said.Current methods like incineration or hydrolysis breaking a molecule’s bonds though the use of water require a lot of water and create hazardous waste that requires further processing, it added. Two companies - SRI International based in Menlo Park, California and Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas, won the contracts. Syria agreed to give up its chemical arsenal in 2013 under the terms of an international agreement after outrage over use of such arms in attacks that killed hundreds of civilians.

Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine told CBS that “the reason for doing things like this is that it will lead to the preservation of species that are almost lost.”

She cited “canid types - wolves, foxes - certain sub-species.

There are many different types.

They may not be facing extinction just yet but some are running into a crisis.” It also could help eradicate heritable diseases in dogs, according to researchers.

“With a combination of gene editing techniques and IVF, we can potentially prevent genetic disease before it starts,” Travis said.

Successful in vitro fertilization requires fertilizing a mature egg with a sperm to produce an embryo, which is then inserted at just the right time into a female. With multiple factors at play, the researchers faced several hurdles along the way, including collecting mature eggs from the female oviduct, simulating how the female tract prepares sperm for fertilization in the lab and freezing the embryos.

It was in 1978 that the first human “test tube” baby was born in Britain, where the technique was developed.

Cornell spokeswoman Melissa Mae Osgood told The Huffington Post all the puppies have been adopted. “In fact, the lead researcher, Alex Travis, has adopted two that his kids absolutely adore,” she said.

The puppies, who were named after different colors, turn five months old this week.

WASHINGTON Legendary boxer Muhammad Ali aimed a powerful and impassioned message at Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Wednesday, saying that the recent global terrorism crisis has “perverted people’s views on what Islam really is.”

The three-time world heavyweight champion, 73, is a cultural icon and one of the world’s most famous Muslims.

His message came in a statement following a week in which Trump cast doubt on President Barack Obama’s assertion that several American “sporting heroes” practiced Islam.“I am a Muslim, and there is nothing Islamic about killing innocent people in Paris, San Bernardino, or anywhere else in the world,” Ali said. “True Muslims know the ruthless violence of so-called Islamic

Jihadists goes against the very tenets of our religion. “We, as Muslims, have to stand up to those who use Islam to advance their own personal agenda. They have alienated many from learning about Islam. True Muslims know or should know that it goes against our religion to try and force Islam on anybody.” One of the main principles of Trump’s campaign has been taking a hard line on immigration. In the wake of the San Bernardino mass shooting that killed 14 people last week, Trump called for the establishment of a national Muslim database and for restrictions on Muslims wishing to travel to the United States.

Ali’s political views did not endear him to the establishment in the 1960s, and his affiliation with the Nation of Islam ignited controversy during his reign as world heavyweight champion.

flavored e-cigarettes, researchers focused on testing 51 types “sold by leading brands for the presence of diacetyl, acetoin and 2,3-pentanedione, two related

to the report. “Diacetyl was detected above the laboratory limit of detection in 39 of the flavors tested,” it said.Acetoin was detected in 46 flavors, and

flavoring compounds that are listed as ‘high priority,’” because they may pose a respiratory hazard in the workplace, the study said.

In a lab testing environment, each e-cigarette was attached to a device that drew air through the e-cigarette for eight seconds at a time, with a resting period of 15 or 30 seconds, to mimic the action of a human smoker.

The air stream was analyzed, and at least one of the three chemicals was detected in 47 of the 51 flavors tested, according

2,3-pentanedione was found in 23 of the flavors.“Since most of the health concerns about ecigarettes have focused on nicotine, there is still much we do not know about e-cigarettes,” said study co-author David Christiani, a professor of environmental genetics.“In addition to containing varying levels of the addictive substance nicotine, they also contain other cancer-causing chemicals, such as formaldehyde, and as our study shows, flavoring chemicals that can cause lung damage.”

E-cigarettes contain dangerous ‘popcorn lung’ chemicals

WASHINGTON Three in four e-cigarettes were found to use a flavored liquid that has been linked to severe respiratory disease, US researchers said Tuesday.

Electronic cigarettes are batterypowered devices that heat a nicotine-containing liquid, which is inhaled much like a cigarette.

Unlike traditional cigarettes, the devices are not regulated by US authorities, leading to concern among some experts that they may be harmful to health - and that their candy and fruit flavors may appeal to youths and put them at risk of addiction. For the study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, scientists at Harvard University tested flavors that may appeal to young people such as Cotton Candy, Fruit Squirts and Cupcake. They found that 75 percent of tested samples contained diacetyl, which when inhaled has been linked to the respiratory disease bronchiolitis obliterans sometimes called “popcorn lung” because over 10 years ago it was discovered in workers who inhaled artificial butter flavor in microwave popcorn processing facilities.Of the 7,000 varieties of

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Do absent dads make for promiscuous daughters?

Study finds lack of father figure triggers risky sexual behavior among young girls Girls whose dads are absent during childhood are more likely be sexually promiscuous later in life, according to a new study.

Researchers from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth quizzed 64 female students on their father-daughter bond and prompted them to answer various questions on sex, including condom use and frequency.

They found those who had unstable or non-existent paternal relationships were more likely to lose their virginity at an earlier age and display risky sexual behaviors.

Lead author, Danielle DelPriore said the findings support an ‘abundance of research’ that points to the same trend.

Half of the participants involved in the study were asked to write about a time that their biological father was absent for an important life event.

The other group were told to

detail an occasion when their father was physically or psychologically present.

Following the writing exercise, some of the women were

asked to complete word stem tasks to assess activation of sexual concepts.

This required them to fill in blanks in 14 incomplete series of letters to make words (e.g., S_X, _AK_D).

Others were given a list of statements about sexual permissiveness (e.g., ‘Sex

Grooves on Mars ‘caused by sledding blocks of dry ice’ Grooves on Mars may have been caused by frozen carbon dioxide rolling down Martian sand dunes, according to NASA research. Pictures of giant tracks on the surface of the planet show grooves - or linear gullies - up to 1.5miles long. NASA said they may have formed as dry ice glided along on cushions of gas similar to miniature hovercraft. Serina Diniega, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said: ‘I have always dreamed of going to Mars. Now I dream of snowboarding down a Martian sand dune on a block of dry ice.’ Diniega’s research was published by the journal Icarus.

Researchers examined images taken from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and then tested their theories by experimenting on sand dunes in Utah and California. They said the linear gullies had banks along the sides and unlike tracks caused by water flows on Earth and possibly Mars, they do not have aprons of debris at the bottom. ‘In debris flows, you have water carrying sediment downhill, and the material eroded from the top is carried to the bottom and deposited as a fan-shaped

apron,’ said Diniega.’In the linear gullies, you’re not transporting material. You’re carving out a groove, pushing material to the sides.’

The tracks, captured by the orbiter’s high resolution

camera, were on sand dunes covered in carbon-dioxide frost during the Martian winter. By comparing before-and-after images from different seasons, researchers determined that the grooves are formed during early spring.

Some images have even caught bright objects in the gullies.Scientists believe pits seen at the bottom of the gullies were caused by the blocks of dry ice turning into gas after they stopped travelling.

‘Linear gullies don’t look like gullies on Earth or other gullies on Mars, and this process wouldn’t happen on Earth,’ said Diniega. ‘You don’t get blocks of dry ice on Earth unless you go buy them.’ Co-author of the report, Candice Hansen, of the Planetary Science Institute in Tucson.

without love is OK’) and asked to rate their agreement or disagreement with the statement on a scale of one to nine.

Researchers found that students primed to think about paternal disappointment were more likely to complete the word stems in a sexualized way (SEX for S_X, NAKED for _AK_D) than those who were conditioned to think about fatherly support They also revealed more sexually permissive attitudes on the questionnaire.

Miss DelPriore and her team write that their ‘results provide the first true experimental evidence supporting a causal relationship between paternal disengagement and changes in women’s psychology that promote risky sexual behavior.’

The study is set to be published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 24 million children in the U.S. - one out of three - live in biological father-absent homes.

Woman gets a miniscule 16 inch waist by sleeping in a corset for THREE years

And she still wants to get smaller For most of us, a slender waist is the product of a careful diet and plenty of exercise. But not for Michele Kobke, 24.

The Berliner has shrunk her waist from 64cm (25 inches) to just 40cm (16 inches) by wearing a corset every day for three years - even while sleeping.

And despite now having a waist smaller than most catwalk model’s, the German slimmer says she hopes to whittle her waist down to a shocking 38cm or 14 inches wide.Tiny though

Kobke’s waist is, the record for the world’s tiniest midriff is held by another - American Cathie Jung, whose waist measures just 38cm.By comparison, the average British woman has a waist that measures 84.9cm (33.43 inches) - equivalent to a dress size 14. However, doctors say that a waist bigger than 80cm (31.49in) could lead to serious problems, including heart disease.

Recent figures show that nearly 57 per cent of British women have waists bigger than the healthy limit set by experts.

The world’s oldest bird WASN’T black ‘Dinobird’ had patterned, light-coloured feathers, new X-rays reveal Scientists have created the clearest image yet of what the world’s earliest bird could have looked like.Using complex new chemical tests, a team of experts at Manchester University revealed the 150 million-year-old animal’s incredible plumage.The first complete chemical analysis of feathers from Archaeopteryx - a famous fossil that shows the incredible link between dinosaurs and birds reveals its feathers are a completely different shade than previously thought. The new research has found they were patterned light in colour, with a dark edge and tip to the feather - rather than all black, as ha been believed. The findings came from X-ray experiments by a team from The University of Manchester, working with colleagues at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The scientists were able to find chemical traces of the original ‘dinobird’ and dilute traces of plumage pigments in the 150 million-year-old fossil.

‘This is a big leap forward in our understanding of the evolution of plumage and also

the preservation of feathers,’ said Dr Phil Manning, a palaeontologist at The University of Manchester and lead author of the report in the June 13 issue of the Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry (Royal Society of Chemistry).

The new chemical tests have

allowed scientists to peer into the past and given them an insight into what the ancient species would have looked like - a feat previously thought impossible.Only 11 specimens of Archaeopteryx have been found, the first one consisting of a single feather.Until a few years ago, researchers thought minerals would have replaced all the bones and tissues of the original animal during fossilisation, leaving no chemical traces behind, but two recently developed methods have turned up more information about the dinobird and its plumage.

The first is the discovery of melanosomes - microscopic ‘biological paint pot’ structures

in which pigment was once made, but are still visible in some rare fossil feathers. A team led by researchers at Brown University announced last year that an analysis of melanosomes in the single Archaeopteryx feather indicated it was black. They identified the feather as a covert - a type of feather that covers the primary and secondary wing feathers - and said its heavy pigmentation may have strengthened it against the wear and tear of flight, as it does in modern birds. Over the past three years, the team used this method to discover chemical traces locked in the dinobird’s bones, feathers and in the surrounding rock, as well as pigments from the fossilised feathers of two specimens of another species of early bird. This allowed the team to recreate the plumage pattern of an extinct bird for the very first time.In the latest study, the team scanned the entire fossil of the first Archaeopteryx feather with the SSRL X-ray beam. They found trace-metals that have been shown to be associated with pigment and organic sulphur compounds that could only have come from the animal’s original feathers.’

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US ready to help bring Mumbai attackers to justice WASHINGTON Reiterating that it wants the perpetrators of the November 2008 Mumbai terror attack

any case “that’s not an issue here for the State Department.”

When told that Headley, USborn son of a Pakistani father

brought to justice, the US has offered to do anything it can to support Indian authorities in that task. “We’ve long said just writ large that we want to see the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack brought to justice,” Sate Department spokesman John Kirby said Friday when asked about David Headley turning approver after being pardoned by a Mumbai court. The US “obviously continue to want to do anything we can to support Indian authorities in that task,” he said while declining to say “anything specific” regarding the Pakistani origin convicted key plotter serving a 35 year sentence in the US. It “would be inappropriate for me to comment on an ongoing court case like that anyway,” Kirby said and in

and an American mother, may provide a great deal of information about the attack, Kirby repeated that the US “share an interest in seeing the Mumbai attackers being brought to justice - a terrible, dastardly terrorist attack.” “But it would be completely inappropriate for me to comment specifically about that ongoing case.” Asked if the State Department was playing any role in intelligence and information sharing on terrorists as mentioned by Indian defence minister Manohar Parikkar after his meeting with US Defence Secretary Ash Carter, Kirby again declined comment. “ Obviously, India is a very close friend and partner, and I think it’s self-evident in recent years that

Washington Linguistic experts on Friday named “refugees” the most

word (“Fluechtlinge”) from 2,500 expressions deemed as having “significantly influenced public discourse this year and which has also accompanied political, social and economic life in a particular way.” Second place went to “Je Suis Charlie” (I am Charlie), a slogan used worldwide as a sign of solidarity with France following the deadly attack in January that decimated the editorial team of Paris-based satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. In third place was “Grexit”, a word coined over the possibility that Greece would be forced to leave the eurozone because of its debt woes.

Germany names refugees word of year

important word in Germany in 2015, as it has dominated debate in a year when the country is expected to record a million requests for asylum. A panel of experts from the Society for German Language picked the

both our countries have fallen victim to terrorist attacks and continue to need to be vigilant about terrorism perpetrated against our citizens,” he said.

“So it makes perfect sense that we would look for ways to cooperate more closely and to improve the flow of information between our two countries.”

The perpetrators of Mumbai needs to be brought to justice at all cost & ASAP!!

However, had it not been death of... Read MoreMaheshkumar Agrawal “So I can’t speak for the Defense Department,” Kirby said. “As for the State Department, we maintain good, strong relations with our counterparts in the Indian Government. “I won’t speak about intelligence matters, but I can tell you that that relationship remains strong, remains vibrant,” he said. And Secretary of State John Kerry’s “interest is very clear in making sure that the relationship continues to strengthen and grow going forward across a wide range of issues, not just security issues.”

NEW YORK A father-son duo in the United States has been charged for stealing chicken wings worth more than $40,000 from a New York restaurant where they worked.

Paul Rojek, 56, and Joshua Rojek, 33, were both employed as cooks at the Twin Trees Too Restaurant in Syracuse, New York. Now, the restaurant has accused the cooks of reselling the chicken wings on the street at a discount price.

Sheriff’s office spokesman Jon Seeber said Paul and Joshua billed approximately $41,000 of chicken-wing orders to the Twin Trees Two restaurant’s business account between February and late November.The pair had placed orders to the establishment’s wholesaler before destroying the receipts. free birds have become jail birdsseham The pair would pick up the orders and re-sell them on the street or to other local establishments for a reduced price. They would

later destroy and withhold the sales transactions receipts for those orders, Seeber said.They’re facing charges including grand larceny in the third degree and falsifying business records in the first degree. They have appeared in court where a judge set their bail at $2,500 cash or bond.This is not the first time the two have been accused of stealing chicken wings. The Onondaga County Sheriffs’ Office said that they were also arrested back in 2014 for allegedly stealing wings from another restaurant, media reports said.

Baby born with drug addiction after mother consumed drugs during pregnancy Washington Pregnancy involves a number of cautionary steps and the most important is to stay away drugs and alcohol.

Unfortunately this is not the case in the United States.

This phenomenon is spread across the US with more than 27,000 cases that were reported in 2013 alone.

Women who ingest drugs during pregnancy not just harm themselves but also jeopardize the life of their babies.

The video shows a heartbreaking visual of a baby shivering uncontrollably. This indicates withdrawal symptom termed as Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, where the baby is born with opiod drug dependency.

According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse , “Every

White House doubts North Korea developed hydrogen bomb Sydney The White House has expressed doubts over North Korean leader Kim Jong-un‘s claim that the country had developed hydrogen bomb.

According to News.com.au, White House spokesperson Josh Earnest said that they are concerned about North Korea’s “destabilising actions” but added that available information “calls into serious question” on claims that Pyongyang has a thermonuclear device.

During a recent inspection tour of a historical military site, Kim mentioned that North Korea was already a “powerful nuclear weapons state ready to detonate self-reliant A-bomb and Hbomb to reliably defend its sovereignty.”

Earlier, North Korea has tested three atom bombs, which rely on nuclear fission.

Father, son duo steals chicken wings worth $40,000 in US

Kim said in a speech marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the ruling communist Workers’ Party on October 10, that he is prepared to wage war against the US if necessary.

25 minutes in America a baby is born with opiod withdrawal.

“This is directly inherited from

addicted to heroin. Clorissa shockingly reveals, ‘“I was in labour, in the bathroom

mothers who ingested drugs during pregnancy.The withdrawal symptoms in the babies include, wailing, seizure, breathlessness and muscular twitching. 130,000 babies were are born hooked to drugs in the past decade in US, six-month-old Braxton being one of them. He is addicted to methadone.

In the video, baby Braxton goes through a seizure owing to his withdrawal symptoms. His tiny delicate feet shakes violently while the mother, Clorissa, looks on helplessly.

Clorrisa Jones, a drug addict, was prescribed methadone to help decrease her heroin addiction. She is part of a rehabilitation program organized by the hospital for mothers battling addiction in Baltimore.

Her older son Jacoby was born

shooting heroin about to give birth to my child.” Paediatrician Dr.Lauren Jansson said, “It is [an] epidemic. The opioid crisis in this country is continuing to expand exponentially.” She said there are many women who do not have access to substance abuse treatment during the time of pregnancy which has led to a large number of drug-dependent new born cases.

In an investigation carried out

by Reuters, 110 infant death took place in 2010, and it could have been very well avoided, but for the lack of assistance to many unfortunate drug addicted mothers.

The US law stipulates that the hospitals must inform social services if a baby is born with a drug dependency disorder, unfortunately many cases go unreported.

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Mouthwash can actually make bad breath even WORSE You’ve brushed your teeth, used your floss - now for a nice swig of mouthwash. With people enticed by the idea of minty fresh breath and the promise of a clean mouth, sales of mouthwash have boomed in recent years.Around 55 per cent of the public use a mouthwash, compared with just over 40??per cent in 2006, according to figures from researchers Mintel.

But while mouthwash is often marketed as a way to keep your mouth really clean and prevent gum disease, do we actually need it - and could it even undermine your dental hygiene?

Gum disease begins with plaque. This is a film of sticky bacteria on the teeth which, if not removed by brushing, irritates the gums, which then bleed and start to recede.So can a mouthwash help? A study in the Journal of Clinical Dentistry earlier this year found swigging with an antiseptic mouthwash twice a day reduced the build-up of plaque and reduced gingivitis (inflamed gums) over six months. The study group consisted of 139 people - half of whom were given mouthwash and the other half were given a placebo to swill with. The mouthwash group had substantially better results.

Yet opinions about the benefits of mouthwash vary.

‘There is some evidence that using mouthwashes does have

some clinical benefit in reducing levels of plaque - but only by a bit,’ says Professor Damien Walmsley, scientific adviser to the British Dental Association.

‘So I’d say although, yes, they are helpful, they are never going to be a replacement for the mechanical action of a toothbrush for getting teeth and gums clean.’ Others argue that spending around £4 a bottle on mouthwash is just not necessary to keep your teeth clean.’If you have good oral hygiene - you brush your teeth well and floss you have a low level of dental decay and don’t suffer from gum disease or bad breath, then you are probably wasting your money,’ says dentist Dr Phil Stemmer, of the Fresh Breath Centre in London.The problem is some people think they can swill mouthwash rather than clean their teeth properly. ‘Nothing could be further from the truth,’ says Sally Goss, a dental hygienist at the Harley Street Dental Studio, London.’I get a lot of new patients who think they are doing a fabulous job because they are using a mouthwash, but when I look in their mouth I see a different story - there is still tartar (hardened plaque) and signs of gum disease. ‘Plaque is really sticky - you are only ever going to budge it from the teeth by using a brush or by pulling at it with dental floss. Mouthwash

Guatemalans ‘burn the devil’ in annual holiday tradition ANTIGUA GUATEMALA Guatemalan Catholics gathered across the country Monday as part of a centuriesold tradition to “burn the devil,” lighting bonfires in the street to mark the beginning of the

holiday season.

The celebration sees Guatemalans set effigies of Satan in flames on the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the unofficial start of the Christmas holiday season. In Guatemala’s colonial-era city of Antigua, thousands gathered in the neighborhood of La Concepcion to watch flames consume a paper and metal devil towering some two meters (6.5 feet) tall. Several local artisans in Guatemala City seized the moment to make effigies of former President Otto Perez and

former Vice President Roxana Baldetti, who have been imprisoned for corruption.

“These people are pure devils,” one artisan said in the newspaper Prensa Libre.

Perez is accused of masterminding a corrupt network of politicians and customs officials who took bribes from businesses in exchange for illegal discounts on import duties.

Prosecutors and United Nations investigators say the network collected $3.8 million in bribes between May 2014 and April 2015 - including $800,000 each to Perez and Baldetti.

The tradition of “burning of the devil” dates to Spanish colonialism and signifies purification before the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, according to historians. Fires were lit in towns across the country beginning at 6:00 pm (0001 GMT Tuesday). Civil protection authorities recommended that people avoid burning tires, plastics and other materials that could have harmful effects on the environment or health.

is never going to be a replacement for good brushing.’And, if used incorrectly, mouthwash can even reduce the benefits of your

toothpaste. ‘Sometimes there can be an interaction between the chemicals in the toothpaste and chemicals in the mouthwash and this means they cancel out the benefits of each other,’ says Dr Stemmer.

‘That’s why people should leave a least half an hour between brushing and using mouthwash.’That’s not the only reason to leave a gap between your brushing and mouthwash routine. ‘We encourage people to spit out excess toothpaste when they have finished brushing, but not to rinse,’ says Sally Goss.’This is because toothpaste contains fluoride which strengthens the teeth, so

leaving the residue of toothpaste means this fluoride stays around the teeth for longer and so helps make them stronger. ‘If you then have only a brief gargle with a mouthwash straight after brushing, as many people do, you counter the benefits of the toothpaste and you don’t get the full benefits of the mouthwash.

‘Some mouthwashes do contain fluoride - and having both is great - but using a toothpaste is a more effective mode of delivery as you are applying it directly onto the tooth rather than swilling it round the mouth.’

She suggests using the mouthwash in the middle of the day when it will not interfere with the toothpaste.

Swilling out the debris of lunch can reduce decay.Another mistake people make when they use mouthwash is that they don’t use it for long enough.’Virtually every mouthwash comes with a recommendation that people swill it in their mouth for a minute,’ says Sally Goss.

‘That’s because it takes that amount of time for the ingredients to work - otherwise it’s just like swilling and spitting it all out.

‘A minute is a long time to swill your cheeks should be aching after you’ve done that for a minute. However when you watch people, few do it for that long. ‘If you find that it stings if you do it this long, I’d suggest it’s not the right mouthwash for

you - everyone has different sensitivities. But if you don’t find the time to use it properly, you really are wasting your money.’ Mouthwashes now come in many different forms.

Most contain alcohol (between 21 and 26 per cent). ‘Alcohol is often included, as it helps make the active ingredients effective - so without alcohol, the anti-bacterial action would not work, for example,’ says Professor Walmsley. However, a study in 2009 linked this to mouth cancer, although subsequent research has not managed to back up those findings. ‘There has been no evidence for that,’ adds Professor Walmsley. Some brands, such as Dentyl pH, contain no alcohol, but instead use other antibacterial agents such as cetylpyridinium chloride which don’t need alcohol in order to work, together with essential oils to help bind to debris. ‘Personally I prefer the alcohol-free options,’ says Dr Stemmer.

‘Alcohol may have a drying effect on the mouth and this can make bad breath worse, because it encourages the build-up of bacteria that causes bad breath.’

For bad breath, look for mouthwash containing ingredients such as chlorine dioxide, which is supposed to kill the volatile sulphur compounds in the mouth that cause it.

Tanzanian president sweeps streets on I-Day DAR ES SALAAM Tanzanian President John Magufuli surprised onlookers Wednesday when he walked out of State House to collect rubbish off the streets, after cancelling independence day celebrations for a national cleanup.

Magufuli, who took power last month after winning October 25 elections, has introduced a swathe of austerity cuts and crackdowns on public corruption.

Dozens of fishermen joined in the clean up with their president, who shovelled leaves and plastic rubbish close to a fish market near the presidential palace as a crowd of hundreds looked on, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

“Let us work together to keep our country, cities, homes and workplaces clean, safe and healthy,” the smiling Magufuli said, as he picked up litter with his hands.Street cleaning took place across the economic capital Dar es Salaam, with plumes of smoke rising into the sky as residents burned piles of litter.Tanzania is also struggling to stem a major cholera outbreak, which health officials said last month had infected nearly 10,000 people

and killed 150. The Citizen newspaper carried a cartoon showing Tanzania’s national flag waving on a sweeping brush as the flag pole. “Tanzania has changed - this is a new Tanzania, “ said Anyitike

with his successor, who is from the same political party.

“I am very happy with measures he is taking to curb inefficiency, tax evasion and other malpractices in public offices, I am very proud of him,” Kikwete

Mwakitalima, a resident of Dar es Salaam, as he took a break cleaning a stretch of beach.

Former president Jakaya Kikwete, who stepped down in November after serving his twoterm limit, took part in cleaning in his home town of Chalinze sweeping and gathering rubbish.“I am happy with his exercise. Let us give our president full support in his campaign to fight cholera and other communicable diseases,” Kikwete told national television, adding that he was impressed

said.

Since Magufuli took office, some officials have been jailed for lateness, the head of the tax authority has been suspended and the use of public funds to pay for Christmas and New Year greeting cards banned.

Annual independence celebrations usually see military parades, choirs and traditional dances at the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam. Tanzania, then Tanganyika, won independence from Britain on December 9, 1961.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

Lions made famous on television poisoned in Kenya

NAIROBI Eight members of a pride of lions that featured in a popular wildlife documentary series have been poisoned in Kenya’s Masai Mara reserve. Two of the Marsh Pride lions - stars of the BBC’s long-running Big Cat Diary series - died after eating a poisoned cow carcass on Saturday night, while one more is missing and at least five are being treated by vets. Jonathan Scott, a zoologist and one of the

show’s original presenters who has been following the Marsh Pride for nearly 40 years, lamented the “end of an era”.

Among the dead lions was 17year old female Bibi, who had become something of a celebrity during the TV series’ long and hugely popular run from 1996-2008. A BBC wildlife crew at the scene said Bibi was found “lying on her side, foaming at the mouth, fitting and panting” before she died.

Netanyahu’s dog bites two guests A dog recently adopted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bit a lawmaker and a minister’s husband during an event to mark the Hanukkah religious holiday, Israeli media reported Thursday. Kaiya, adopted by Netanyahu in July, bit lawmaker Sharren Haskel from

the prime minister’s Likud party as well as the husband of deputy foreign minister Tzipi Hotovely during a candle-lighting ceremony on Wednesday night. It turns out however that Kaiya may be more bark than bite as neither was seriously hurt during the event at the prime minister’s residence.

Tunisia’s guardians of democracy pick up Nobel Prize OSLO The Nobel Peace Prize was on Thursday presented to a group of four organisations that saved Tunisia’s transition to democracy through dialogue, a method the laureates are keen to see applied in Syria and Libya.

“This year’s prize is truly a prize for peace, awarded against a backdrop of unrest and war,” the head of the Norwegian Nobel Committee Kaci Kullmann Five said at the formal award ceremony in Oslo, held in the presence of Norway’s King Harald and under tight security amid the threat of a jihadist attack.

“We live in turbulent times. In North Africa, the Middle East and Europe, millions of people are fleeing from war, oppression, suffering and terror,” she said.

“If every country had done as Tunisia has done, and paved the way for dialogue, tolerance, democracy and equal rights, far fewer people would have been forced to flee,” she said.

The National Dialogue Quartet, made up of four civil society groups, helped save Tunisia’s transition to democracy at a sensitive moment in 2013 when

Hidden portrait found under Mona Lisa Paris An image of a portrait underneath the Mona Lisa has been found beneath the existing painting using reflective light technology, according to a French scientist.

Pascal Cotte said he has spent more than 10 years using the technology to analyse the

painting. He claims the earlier portrait lies hidden underneath the surface of Leonardo’s most celebrated artwork.

A reconstruction shows another image of a sitter looking off to the side.The Louvre Museum has declined to comment on his claims because it “was not part of the scientific team”. I’m sceptical. It’s perfectly common for an artist to overpaint an image as it is for a client who’s commissioned that artist to ask for changes. So it’s not surprising that there are those underpaintings on the Mona Lisa. The data that the

technology generates is open to interpretation, which needs to be analysed and corroborated by the academic and curatorial community, and not just an individual. I think the Louvre’s decision not to make a comment is telling.

This is the world’s most famous painting which, like a celebrity,

always makes for a good story.

But in this case I think caution is required. The scientist, who is the co-founder of Lumiere Technology in Paris, was given access to the painting in 2004 by the Louvre. He has pioneered a technique called Layer Amplification Method (LAM), which he used to analyse the Mona Lisa.

The Mona Lisa has been the subject of several scientific examinations over more than half a century. More recent techniques include infrared inspections and multi-spectral scanning. But Mr Cotte has

claimed his technique is able to penetrate more deeply into the painting.

He said: “We can now analyse exactly what is happening inside the layers of the paint and we can peel like an onion all the layers of the painting. We can reconstruct all the chronology of the creation of the painting.”

But Mr Cotte has claimed his discoveries challenge that theory. He believes the image he has reconstructed underneath the surface of the painting is Leonardo’s original Lisa, and that the portrait named Mona Lisa for more than 500 years is, in fact, a different woman. He said: “The results shatter many myths and alter our vision of Leonardo’s masterpiece forever.

“When I finished the reconstruction of Lisa Gherardini, I was in front of the portrait and she is totally different to Mona Lisa today.

This is not the same woman.”

He also claims to have found two more images under the surface of the painting - a shadowy outline of a portrait with a larger head and nose, bigger hands but smaller lips. And he says he has found another Madonna-style image with Leonardo’s etchings of a pearl headdress.

But Martin Kemp, Emeritus Professor of the History of Art at the University of Oxford, is not convinced. Professor Kemp said: “They [Cotte’s images] are ingenious in showing what Leonardo may have been thinking about.

the process was in danger of collapsing because of widespread social unrest. The group orchestrated a lengthy and thorny “national dialogue” between the Islamists of the Ennahda party and their

General Labour Union (UGTT), the Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts (UTICA), and the Order of Lawyers.

“Arms, in the end, only lead to destruction,” Abdessatar Ben Moussa, head of Tunisia’s

opponents.“Its work has led to a better platform for peace and non-violent resolution of conflicts. This is a story about building strong institutions to ensure justice and stability, and demonstrating the will to engage in dialogue and cooperation,” Kullmann Five said. The Quartet is made up of the Human Rights League,

Human Rights League, told AFP in an interview just hours before the award ceremony.

“In Libya for example, there is now a certain dialogue (The situations) in the neighbouring countries need to be resolved through dialogue with civil society, with political society, and of course putting aside the terrorist factions,” he said.

UK police campaign targets hackers as young as 12

LONDON Britain’s National Crime Agency on Tuesday launched a campaign to discourage youngsters from becoming hackers after it found the average age of suspects had plummeted to 17. The NCA’s #CyberChoices campaign targets parents of boys aged 1215 who may be involved in cyber-crime without their knowledge. The advertisement features a teenage boy, his mother and his father sitting on the family sofa, with the parents boasting about how intelligent their son is and his IT expertise.

It is only when they mention that he joked about robbing a bank that the parents realise their son is actually a hacker, and the advertisement ends with all three being quizzed by officers from the NCA, Britain’s main agency fighting organised crime, trafficking and cyber-crime.

“Over the past few years the NCA has seen the people engaging in cyber crime becoming younger and younger,” said Richard Jones, head of the National Cyber Crime Unit’s Prevent team. The

average age of suspected cyber criminals featured in investigations involving the NCA this year was 17, compared to 24 last year, said the agency.

“We know that simply criminalising young people cannot be the solution to this and so the campaign seeks to help motivate children to use their skills more positively,” said Jones. “These individuals are really bright and have real potential to go on to exciting and fulfilling jobs. But by choosing the criminal path they can move from low level ‘pranking’ to higher level cyber crime quite quickly,” he added.

The campaign aims to educate parents on common forms of cyber-crime such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks that can knock out websites by flooding them with data. Younger hackers have also increasingly used software called Remote Access Trojans (RATs) that allow people to remotely monitor and take full control of another computer. The youngest purchaser of such software was just 12 years old, the NCA revealed.

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15 Dec. - 21 Dec. 2015

‘Where’s Iron Man?’ Robert Downey Jr leaves confused toddler in tears after turning up without his superhero suit Robert Downey Jr. made a toddler cry because he wasn’t the ‘real’ Iron Man.The actor - best known for playing the superhero and his billionaire alter ego Tony Stark left 18-month-old superfan Jaxson Denno in floods of tears because he wasn’t wearing his character’s trademark red and gold suit in public.Heather Denno, Jaxson’s mother, was left to console her sobbing son, who was devastated to discover his favourite Marvel comics hero was a work of fiction.

She told People magazine: ‘He was fine as soon as he talked to him. [He] was so confused because I kept telling him it was Iron Man and he knew it wasn’t.

Well, not Iron Man in the suit. ’The 48-year-old star - who appeared visibly worried about having dashed Jaxson’s dreams - ran into the mother and son while out for a walk in their neighbourhood of Sunderland and Shelburne Falls where he is shooting his new drama, The

Judge.Heather says the charming Hollywood star managed to cheer up the boy.

She told Celebuzz: ‘He was there for 10 minutes just to get a good picture and make Jaxson smile. And his people kept telling him he had to leave and was late for shooting, so I can’t believe he stayed.’He was

amazing. You could tell he was a dad with a young son.’His young admirer needn’t worry too much, however, as his beloved hero will shortly be returning to the big screen. Riding high off the success of Iron Man 3, which has become one of the top five highest-grossing films of all time following its release last month, Robert is allegedly set to sign a guaranteed $100 million deal for him to reprise the part in two sequels to superhero team-up film The Avengers.

Size matters most in the changing room Men care more what their mates think of their manhood than their partner Most men are more concerned about how they measure up against their male friends than what their girlfriends think of their penis size, a new study has found. While most men insisted it’s not size that counts in the bedroom department, many admitted to still feeling insecure about how they compared to their male friends.Victoria University Doctorate of Clinical Psychology graduate Dr Annabel Chan Feng Yi carried out an online study of 738 men about their body image.

She found most of the men, aged between 18 and 76, were insecure about their weight, build and even their penis size.

But instead of being concerned over what their girlfriend’s may think of their physique, many admitted it mattered most what their friends thought. Dr Chan said: ‘Men’s pre-occupation with size was rarely to do with pleasing sexual partners or even appearing as a better sexual partner.

‘It was often more about competition with other men.

‘This hooker’s ugly’ Nuisance 999 caller phoned police to complain about a prostitute’s looks after meeting her in the flesh

A man has received a warning from police after calling 999 to complain that a prostitute he met outside a hotel was not as attractive as she had promised.

The nuisance caller claimed that the woman had ‘breached the Sale of Goods Act’ by misrepresenting her looks in a newspaper advert.

However, officers in Solihull told him that the prostitute had not committed an offence - and reminded him that he may have broken the law against soliciting for sex.

West Midlands Police have now tracked the man down and sent him a letter warning him about wasting police time with frivolous complaints.

A spokesman for the service said: ‘A 999 call was received by police at around 7.30pm on Tuesday evening from a man wishing to complain about a sex worker he had met on a hotel car park. ‘The caller claimed that the woman had made out she was better looking than she actually was, and he wished to report her for breaching the Sale of Goods Act.’When he raised this issue with the woman concerned, she allegedly took his car keys, ran away from the car and threw them back at him, prompting him to call police.

‘An officer in the Solihull contact centre advised the caller that no offences had been committed

by the woman and that soliciting for sex was in fact illegal.’

It is believed that the man had contacted the prostitute himself after she placed an advert in the paper, but it is not known whether any transaction ultimately took place.

The police statement added:

‘Despite the man refusing to give his details, police have been able to identify him and have sent him a letter warning him about his actions.’Wasting police time is a serious offence and carries a maximum sentence of six months imprisonment.’

Police released a recording of the 999 call, in which the man complains: ‘I arranged to meet with her. But beforehand I have asked for a description of her give me an honest description, otherwise when I get there I’m

not going to use your services.

‘She’s mis-described and misrepresented herself totally.

She was angry - she thinks I owe her a living or something.’

After the operator terminated the call to free up the line for genuine emergencies, Sergeant Jerome Moran called him back to offer advice on the bizarre

situation.’It was unbelievable he genuinely believed he had done nothing wrong and that the woman should have been investigated by police for misrepresentation,’ Sgt Moran said later. ‘I told him that she’d not committed any offences and that it was his actions, in soliciting for sex, that were in fact illegal.

‘Unhappy with the response, he then insisted on coming down to the police station to debate the matter.’

Many felt most insecure about their size in environments where other men might see them, such as gym change rooms.’

She said those who suffered

from ‘locker room syndrome’ were actually content with their size when it came to sexual matters with their partner.

But a desire to compete against other males led to an obsession with body building and being muscular - especially among homosexual men who were surveyed. She continued: ‘The research demonstrates that societal pressures on body image are certainly not unique to women and that while men share similar body image concerns they often

don’t have the appropriate forum to discuss them or adequate professional support to deal with them.

‘There is clearly a need to provide more research-based training for clinicians working in this field and public awareness to de-mystify and de-stigmatising the topic of male body image.’

The research also highlighted an urgent need to incorporate the experience of men facing obesity issues and its implications in further research, instead of the current one-sided focus on men’s drive for muscularity, she said.

But while men don’t seem to put too much emphasis on what their partners think of penis size, recent research shows it is still very important to the 21st Century woman. Women were shown several images of the male form with varying combinations of height, shoulder-to-body ratio and, of course, penis length.Women were then asked to rate the attractiveness of each man - with penis size ending up the most influential factor, according to the research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) earlier this year.

The skyscraper with a twist Dubai's Cayan Tower, which bends 90 degrees It took eight years to build, is 310m tall and will surely drive buyers round the bend to nab an apartment here.This is Cayan Tower, the world’s tallest twisted building - and has finally opened with much fanfare in Dubai.Built at a cost of around Rs. 1578 crores, the 80-storey residential Cayan Tower is twisted at 90 degrees from top to bottom and boasts 570 plush apartments.And it look slike the appeal of living in a recordbreaking property has already lured in buyers - 80 per cent of its residential units have already been sold, NDTV reported.

The twisting tower is the creation of Skidmore Owings and Merrill, the same team behind the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa. It spirals in a smooth curve by 90 degrees to give every apartment a stunning view of the sea or marina.The architects used open-space architectural concepts to ensure that there are no pillars anywhere in the building.

The team also designed Trump Tower in Chicago and Jin Mao in Shanghai.The Cayan Tower website boasts about the property’s location - it was built at the mouth of Dubai Marina -

and boasts views across the marina, sea and The Palm.

It offers a pool, whirlpool, spa, massage rooms, nursery and gym.On a secondary market

property website, a onebedroom apartment carries a price tag of $435,000, CNN reported.

But it is dwarfed by the Burj Khalifa, which at over 828 metres (2,716.5 feet) and more than 160 stories is the tallest skyscraper and tallest freestanding structure in the world.

Other soaring structures to dwarf the Cayan are the 553mtall CN Tower in Toronto, Canada and the Taipei 101 tower in Taiwan, which measures 501m high.

Another twisting tower is the HSB Turning Torso in Malmo, Sweden. It is the tallest skyscraper in Sweden the tallest building in Scandinavia.

It holds the accolade of being the the third tallest residential building in Europe, reaching 190 metres and boasting 54 storeys containing 147 apartments.

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8 Dec. - 14 Dec. 2015

Indian Premier League: MS Dhoni, R Ashwin up for grabs in Players’ draft India’s limited-overs skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, along with his teammates Ravindra Jadeja, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina and Ravichandran Ashwin, among others, will be up for grabs for the two new IPL teams in the draft to be held here on Tuesday.

Sanjeev Goenka’s New Rising

won the bid for the Pune franchise while Intex won the bid for Rajkot after a reverse bidding process held in Delhi on Decmber 8 to replace sus-

pended teams Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals for the next two editions to be held in 2016 and 2017.

Also available for picking by the Twenty20 League’s two new franchises are other top international stars such as New Zealander Brendon McCullum, Australia’s Shane Watson, now retired from international cricket, and current captain Steven Smith, and West Indian all-rounder Dwayne Bravo from a total of 50 cricketers, who played for suspended IPL teams CSK and RR in the last edition earlier this year.

Pune will be given the choice to pick the players first because they were the lowest bidders (negative bids) to buy the new team for two years in the draft to be held at the Mumbai Cricket Association’s recereation centre at the Bandra Kurla Complex.

The bidding process for the two

Mitchell Johnson bats for banned Marlon Samuels West Indian all-rounder Marlon Samuels, who has been facing criticism from many quarters for his supposed lack of commitment towards the country, has got the backing from recently retired Australian speedster Mitchell Johnson.

Johnson asserted that the perception about the veteran West Indies batsman was not correct and said that he was a really nice guy to talk to, News.com.au reported.

The left-hander added that it was unfair to criticize Samuels when he decided to stay and fight it out in Test cricket unlike his fel-

a threat as a fielding unit. However, the scene today is quite different with Indian fielders throwing themselves around, sliding, and stopping what - not

Cup winning skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni still commands the sort of appeal that he generated when CSK gunned for him and won with a stunning million-dollar bid, unheard of in cricket then, in the first-ever players auction held in eight years ago.

Dhoni, who led the Super Kings for eight seasons, is expected to be in the first list and the franchises, choosing the first two players in the draft in which one player each will be put up to be chosen alternately, would have to shell out Rs 12.5 crore.

It would also be interesting to note whether Rajkot guns for its home player Jadeja whose stocks have risen after he made

his comeback into the Indian squad in the Test series against South Africa and shone with both ball and bat.

Other leading players who would be in the draft are CSK’s Suresh Raina, Ravichandran Ashwin, Dwayne Bravo and Brendon McCullum and RR s Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith and Shane Watson.

As per the tender for the two new teams, the first capped player would be paid 12.5 crore while the remaining four capped players are to get Rs 9.5 crore, Rs 7.5 crore, Rs 5.5 crore, and Rs 4 crore respectively. Uncapped players can be picked for a stipulated fee of Rs 4 crore.

Lahiri best in Asia, 4th Indian to achieve the feat

low senior guys like Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo, who prefer money-driven global Twenty20 tournaments over their country.

Virat Kohli keeps a tab on each player’s drills: Fielding coach

Over the years, barring a few standout players, the Indian cricket team never really posed

new franchises was necessitated by the suspension of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals for the involvement of some of their officials and co-owners in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal, which was probed by the Supreme Court-appointed Justice (retd) R M Lodha committee.

However, both the CSK and RR will be allowed back in the league after serving out their suspension.

The cricketers from the two suspended franchises will be divided into two groups of capped and uncapped and the top names will be sold through the draft system. The two new teams will have a minimum of Rs 40 crore and a maximum of Rs 66 crore to buy players.

“The two new franchises have the option to pick a maximum of five players from the draft. Those players who are unsold will be put up for being chosen at the players’ auction to be held in next February,” a BCCI source told PTI ahead of the draft.

“The trading window (for buying players left free by other franchises) also commences on December 15 and ends on December 31,” the source added.

It would be interesting to see whether India’s T20 and World

too long ago - would have been a certain boundary.

The last two Test series - against Sri Lanka and South Africa have showcased the extent to which Indian fielding has evolved. The visual of Ajinkya Rahane - air-bound and diving to his left to take a screamer off Kumar Sangakkara in the opening Test at Galle - still endures.

According to India’s fielding coach R Sridhar, the on-field success can be attributed to the way team director Ravi Shastri and the players view fielding as a primary skill.

Anirban Lahiri was today presented the 2015 Asian Tour’s Order of Merit crown on Monday as the 28-year-old became only the fourth Indian golfer to win the coveted award.

With only one tournament left this season, world No. 41 Lahiri with earnings of $1,139,084 enjoys a huge lead over secondplaced Scott Hend of Australia, who has accumulated $491,631.

Lahiri enjoyed a stellar campaign this season, twice winning on the Asian Tour, breaking into the world’s top-50, posting a top-five finish in a Major (PGA Championship), making his maiden appearance at the Presidents Cup and earning his PGA Tour card.

Lahiri said he was honoured to join Asian golf legends such as Thongchai Jaidee and Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand and countrymen Jeev Milkha Singh (2006, 2008), Arjun Atwal (2003) and Jyoti Randhawa (2002) as a winner of the award.

“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to win,” said Lahiri, who

finished third and second on the list in 2013 and 2014, respectively.

“I feel really happy and it makes me really proud to be in the same league as players like Thongchai, Jeev, Arjun, Thaworn

and Jyoti as they are all legends of the game and have won the Order of Merit. It’s nice to be in the same bracket and have something in common. It’s something that is really special.”

Lahiri won the Malaysian Open and the Indian Open within a span of three weeks in February

and went on to record five other top-10 finishes around the world.

“Winning in Malaysia and then the Indian Open will always be my cherished moments. Those wins got me into the Masters and playing the British Open at St Andrews for the first time; it’s been a year filled with highlights for sure,” he said.

“Finishing joint fifth at the PGA Championship; it’s been fantastic. There was so much that I took away from the week. The confidence and self-belief that I gained and earning the respect of the best players in the world... that’s not easily done,” added Lahiri.

Lahiri said he would focus primarily on the PGA Tour next year.

“Obviously, now I’m looking onwards and upwards. Hopefully, playing on the PGA Tour, I’d love to get a win in America. Ultimately, I want to try and win a Major. I can’t put a timeline on that goal, but if I can put myself in contention at least once next year, that would be a great start. The long term goal is to win a Major.”

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8 Dec. - 14 Dec. 2015

Christian females in Syria are 17 women clinch seats in all set to battle against ISIS historic Saudi Arabia poll London Females of the Syriac Christian minority have come up together to form a female militia that is battling against the Islamic State

People’s Protection Units or YPG. The new force although is small and consists of only 50 graduates till now from its training camp in the

(IS) group in Syria.

The recently created battalion of these Christian women in Hasakeh province consists of many women hailing from the northeast of the country who have left their families and jobs to ensure a secured future for their families.

The unit is just like the other female forces-the women of the YPJ, the female counterpart to the Kurdish

town of Al Qahtaniyeh but the “Female Protection Forces of the Land Between the Two Rivers” is collaborating with women eager to fight out the battle against IS. The unit’s first major action was alongside the newly created Syrian Democratic Forces, a coalition of Kurdish, Arab and Christian fighters. They have successfully recap-

tured the town of Al Hol, that is a key route between territory controlled by IS in Syria and Iraq.

They captured nearly 200 villagers in the region and have received air support and American weapons from the US-led coalition fighting IS. The husbands of many women are the ones who have encouraged them to join these militias to ”fight against the idea that the Syriac woman is good for nothing except housekeeping and make-up”. This militia consists of females from various age groups, from those who have left their studies to mothers who have left their children in order to give them a safe future. Syriac Christians belong to the eastern Christian tradition and consist of both Orthodox and Catholic branches. They constitute around 15 per cent of Syria’s 1.2 million Christians.

Riyadh Saudi Arabians voted 17 women into public office in municipal elections in the conservative Islamic kingdom on Saturday, the first to allow female participation, a state-aligned news site reported on Sunday.

The election was the first in which women could vote and run as candidates, a landmark step in a country where women are barred from driving and are legally dependent on a male relative to approve almost all their major life decisions.

Sabq.org, a news website affiliated with the autocratic monarchy’s interior ministry, reported that a total of 17 women had been elected in various parts of the country. Some results had been announced on the official Saudi Press Agency, including the victories of four women. However, the election was for only two thirds of seats in municipal coun-

cils that have no lawmaking or national powers, and follows men-only polls in 2005 and 2011.

Under King Abdullah, who died in January and who announced in 2011 that women would be able to vote in this election, steps

mocracy and continued social conservatism.

Before Abdullah announced women would take part in this year’s elections, the country’s Grand Mufti, its most senior religious figure, described women’s involve-

were taken for women to have a bigger public role, sending more of them to university and encouraging female employment.

However, while women’s suffrage has in many other countries been a transformative moment in the quest for gender equality, its impact in Saudi Arabia is likely to be more limited due to a wider lack of de-

ment in politics as “opening the door to evil”.

Huda al-Jeraisy, who as the daughter of a former head of the chamber of commerce in the conservative central part of the kingdom was seen by some Saudis as imparting an official stamp of approval on women’s candidature, won a seat in Riyadh.

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8 Dec. - 14 Dec. 2015

Health Poor semen quality causing infertility in industrialised countries The birth rate is declining in all industrialised countries, and socio-economic factors and women’s age are not solely to blame.

Male reproductive health and environmental factors are also significant, says a new scientific review article.

Researchers from Denmark, the US and Finland studied a number of factors related to fertility, and one of the main conclusions of their study was that poor semen quality contributed to increases in infertility and the use of assisted reproductive technology, a University of Copenhagen statement

said.

The researchers observed lower levels of testosterone in average men.

“I was surprised that we found such poor semen quality among young men aged 20 to 25. The average man had up to 90 percent of abnormal sperm.

Normally, there would be so many sperms that a few abnormal ones would not affect fertility,” said first author of the article, professor Niels E. Skakkebaek from the department of growth and reproduction at Rigshospitalet and the University of Copenhagen.

“However, it appears that

we are at a tipping point in industrialised countries where poor semen quality is so widespread that we must suspect that it results in low pregnancy rates,” Skakkebaek added.

Many of the male reproductive problems could be due to damage to the testes during embryonic development. While the reproductive problems could arise from genetic changes, “recent evidence suggests that most often they are related to environmental exposures of the fetal testes,” the researcher team wrote.

“Since the disorders in

Pear eaters less likely to be obese The old saying goes, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away,” but a different fruit may provide the same, if not more, benefits: the pear, the Medical Daily has reported. Research has shown eating just one can fills us with high levels of vitamin C and fiber at just under 100 calories. Eating a pear or drinking its juice may also help stave off a hangover and reduce risk of stroke. Now, a study from Louisiana State University has found people

and Nutrition Examination Survey, which involved 24,808 participants aged 19 and up, the researchers found on top of lower body weight and less obesity risk, pear consumers were generally older, consumed less alcohol, and smoked fewer cigarettes than those who didn’t eat pears. Pear eaters also had a higher quality diet, characterized by higher levels

who eat pears are less likely to be obese. The study, published in Nutrition and Food Science, revealed people who ate pears had a lower body weight and were 35 percent less likely to be obese than their pear-abstaining counterparts. The researchers also investigated the effects eating fresh pears had on nutrient intake, diet quality, cardiovascular risk factors.

Using nine years of data from the National Health

of fiber and overall vitamins, and less fat and added sugar.

This was despite both pear eaters and non-eaters consuming the same amount of calories.

To determine what specifically the pear eaters were doing to maintain a healthy diet, the researchers looked at the Healthy Eating Index, “a measure of diet quality that assesses conformance to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” according to the Center for

Nutrition Policy and Promotion. They found pear eaters consumed more whole fruits and grains, and plant and seafoodbased proteins, while limiting their sodium and empty calorie intake.

“The association between pears and lower body weight is very exciting,” lead author Dr. Carol O’Neil, of the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, said in a press release. “We believe fiber intake may have driven the lower body weights that were seen in this study because there was no difference in energy intake or level of physical activity found between the fresh pear consumers and non-consumers.”

Fiber is important to our daily diets for a number of reasons - it helps with digestion and keeps us feeling fuller longer. This in turn helps to stave off food cravings, which helps with weight loss.

Studies have also shown fiber may help reduce risk of heart disease, type 2diabetes, and cancer.

male genitals have increased over a relatively short period of time, genetics alone cannot explain this development. There is no doubt that environmental factors are playing a role and that endocrine-disrupting chemicals, which have the same effect on animals, are under great suspicion,” Skakkebaek said.

“The exposure that young people are subjected to today can determine not only their own, but also

their children’s, ability to procreate,” the professor added.

According to Skakkebaek, the study has significant public health implications as there is much focus on the age of delivering women as the only biological factor behind the low birth rates in industrialised countries.

“Age does indeed play a role. However, we found in our analysis that the average age of a delivering

woman in Denmark in 1901 was the same as today, suggesting that delayed childbearing alone cannot explain the current trends,” he said.

More research in reproductive medicine needs to be done to understand and address the declining fertility rates, according to researchers.

The article was recently published in the American journal Physiological Reviews.

Obesity biggest threat to women’s health Obesity is the biggest threat to women’s health and the health of future generations, warns England’s chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies.

Her annual report, which focuses on women this year, said tackling obesity should be a national priority to avert a “growing health catastrophe”. She said the food industry needed to do more or it should face a sugar tax.

Dame Sally is also calling for better treatment of ovarian cancer and more open discussion on incontinence. England’s top doctor said obesity was so serious it should be a priority for the whole population, but particularly for women because too often it shortened their lives.

In England in 2013, 56.4% of women aged 34-44 and 62% of women aged 45-54 were classified as overweight or obese. Obesity increases the risk of many diseases including breast cancer, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Dame Sally warned that if

the food industry did not clean up its act then new taxes may be the only option. She told the BBC: “I think it is inevitable that manufacturing has to reformulate and resize, that supermarkets and others need to stop cheap promo-

riage and premature birth.

A woman’s overall health during pregnancy also has an impact on the health of the child in later life, the report said. A pregnant woman’s health affects the conditions inside the womb which in turn can

tions on unhealthy food and putting unhealthy food at the check-out, and limit advertising dramatically. “I think we’re at a tipping point. If industry won’t deliver then we’ll have to look at a sugar tax.”

If a woman is obese during pregnancy, research indicates there is an increased chance of miscar-

have life-long consequences for the health of the child including the risk of obesity or type 2 diabetes.

Dame Sally said she wanted to “bust the myth” that women should eat for two when pregnant, adding a healthy diet with fruit and vegetables and avoiding alcohol was important.

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Stress precursor to pre-Alzheimer’s condition in elderly Feeling stressed out increases the chances of elderly people developing mild cognitive impairment - often a prelude to fullblown Alzheimer’s disease, a study found.

Scientists found that highly stressed participants were more than twice as likely to become impaired than those who were not.

Because stress is treatable, the results suggest

that detecting and treating stress in older people might help delay or even prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s.

The study looked at the connection between chronic stress and amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), the most common type of MCI, which is primarily characterized by memory loss.

“Our study provides strong evidence that perceived

stress increases the likelihood that an older person will develop aMCI,” said senior study author Richard Lipton from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

“Fortunately, perceived stress is a modifiable risk factor for cognitive impairment, making it a potential target for treatment,” Lipton said.

Many Alzheimer’s patients first experience mild cog-

Being unhappy or stressed will not kill

Being miserable or stressed will not increase your risk of dying, according to the UK’s Million Women Study.

It had been thought that being unhappy was bad for health - particularly for the heart. But the decade-long analysis, published in the Lancet, said previous studies had just confused cause and effect.

However, experts argued that unhappiness in childhood may still have a lasting impact. A series of studies had shown that how happy people are, strongly predicts how long they are going to live.

Ideas included detrimental changes in stress hormones or the immune system resulting in a higher risk of death. But the research team in the UK and Australia said those studies failed to deal with reverse causality - namely, that people who are ill are not very happy.

Participants in the Million Women Study were asked to regularly rate their health, happiness and levels of stress. The results

showed that whether people were “never”, “usually” or “mostly” happy had no impact on their odds of dying during the duration of the study once other factors such as health or whether they smoked were taken into account.

Dr Bette Liu, one of the researchers at the Univer-

For new parents, the word diaper and its usage is certainly a task to learn.

Though parents try there best that their babies don’t get these painful nasty diaper rashes, but sometimes it is unavoidable.

And, before choosing any product to treat diaper rashes, it is very important to see that it is gentle for the baby skin.

Here are a few home remedies to treat diaper rashes naturally: Vaseline: Using vaseline petroleum jelly is another

good way to treat diaper rashes as it locks the skin moisture.

Coconut oil: Massaging a little coconut oil in the affected area also helps a lot. It helps in reducing the redness and itching caused by diaper rashes thereby healing them.

Fresh air: Let your baby go diaper-free for sometime so that fresh air can help soothe rashes a little.

Cloth diapers: Using soft cloth diapers is the best for your baby and is also cheap and eco-friendly method.

sity of New South Wales in Australia, said: “Illness makes you unhappy, but unhappiness itself doesn’t make you ill. “We found no direct effect of unhappiness or stress on mortality, even in a 10-year study of a million women.”

Co-author Prof Sir Richard Peto, from the University of Oxford, said light smokers had double the risk of an early death and regular smokers had three times the risk of dying during the study period, but that happiness was “irrelevant”.

Baby care: mom-tested tips to treat diaper rashes naturally!

He said it could have indirect effects if people started consuming large amounts of alcohol or massively overeating, but happiness itself “does not have any material, direct, effect on mortality”. But he warned the myth may be too entrenched to shake off: “People will still believe stress causes heart attacks after this story has been and gone. “It isn’t true, but it suits people to believe it.”

In a commentary, Dr Philipe de Souto Barreto and professor Yves Rolland from the University Hospital of Toulouse in France, said: “Further research from a lifecourse perspective is needed since happiness during critical periods, such as childhood, could have important consequences on health in adulthood.”

nitive impairment - a predementia condition that significantly increases the risk of developing Alzheimer’s in the following months or years.

“Perceived stress reflects the daily hassles we all experience, as well as the way we appraise and cope with these events,” said study first author, Mindy Katz.

“Perceived stress can be altered by mindfulness-

based stress reduction, cognitive-behavioural therapies and stress-reducing drugs. These interventions may postpone or even prevent an individual’s cognitive decline,” Katz added. The researchers studied data collected

from 507 people enrolled in the Einstein Ageing Study (EAS), a communitybased cohort of older adults.

The findings were published online in Alzheimer Disease & Associated Disorders.

Five natural ways to deal with dandruff, hair fall!

The cold winter weather can wreak havoc on your skin, hair and other parts of your delicate body.

While there are different hair problems in every season, the most common ones during winter season include dry hair, rough hair, dandruff, dry scalp and split ends.

But, worry not for there are simple, yet easy ways to reduce the harm, and here’s a list of some amazing herbs that will help an individual in dealing with various hair problems: Neem leaves: Neem has been used for treating hair loss and dandruff due to its antiseptic, anti bacterial and antiviral properties. It can be used in different ways. Make a paste of neem leavesand water, apply it on your

scalp and leave for half an hour before you wash you hair.

Coriander leaves: Prepare a paste of coriander

leaves or apply its juice on the scalp. Lleave it for an hour and wash it off with warm water.

Beetroot leaves: Beetroot leaves in combination with henna is an excellent way

to treat hair loss. Make a paste of beetroot leaves, turmeric powder and water and apply it on your scalp. Yo can use make and use this paste on a daily basis.

Curry leaves: Curry leaves, also called, ‘kadi patta’ make an excellent home remedy for the hair growth as well as for darkening the grey hair. Add a bowl of curry leaves to 100ml of coconut oil.

Heat it up and let it boil for 15 minutes. Apply on your scalp once the paste is cool enough.

Aloe vera gel: Applying natural aloe vera gel on scalp and hair is one of the best methods to prevent hair loss and promote hair growth naturally.

‘Suicide’ gene therapy kills cancer cells A new gene therapy technique is able to modify prostate cancer cells so that a patient’s body attacks and kills them, US scientists have discovered.

The technique causes the tumour cells in the body to self-destruct, giving it the name ‘suicide gene therapy’. Their research found a 20 percent improvement in survival in patients with prostate cancer five years after treatment. A cancer expert said more research was needed to judge its effectiveness.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK with more than 41,000 diagnosed each year. The study, led by researchers from Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, appears to show that this ‘suicide gene

therapy’, when combined with radiotherapy, could be a promising treatment for prostate cancer in the future. The technique in-

cells as the enemy because they have evolved from normal healthy cells.

Unlike an infection, which the body reacts against,

volves the cancer cells being genetically modified so that they signal a patient’s immune system to attack them. Usually, the body does not recognise cancer

the immune system does not react to kill off the offending cancer cells.

Using a virus to carry the gene therapy into the tumour cells, the result is

that the cells self-destruct, alerting the patient’s immune system that it is time to launch a massive attack. In two groups of 62 patients, one group received the gene therapy twice and the other group - who all had more aggressive prostate cancer - received the treatment three times. Both groups also received radiotherapy. Survival rates after five years were 97 percent and 94 percent. Although there was no control group in this study, the researchers said the results showed a five to 20% improvement on previous studies of prostate cancer treatment.

And cancer biopsy tests performed two years after the trial were found to be negative in 83% and 79% of the patients in the two groups.

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Pepper Steak

Haw7aiian CHiCken kabobs Ingredients: 3 tablespoons soy sauce 3 tablespoons brown sugar 2 tablespoons sherry 1 tablespoon sesame oil 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 2 inch pieces 1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks, drained skewers Directions: In a shallow glass dish, mix the soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, sesame oil, ginger, and garlic powder. Stir the chicken pieces and pineapple into the marinade until well coated. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 2 hours.

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken and pineapple alternately onto skewers.

Grill 15 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally, or until chicken juices run clear.

Grilled Salmon Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds salmon fillets lemon pepper to taste garlic powder to taste salt to taste 1/3 cup soy sauce 1/3 cup brown sugar 1/3 cup water 1/4 cup vegetable oil Directions: Season salmon fillets with lemon pepper, garlic powder, and salt.

In a small bowl, stir together soy sauce, brown sugar, water, and vegetable oil until sugar is dissolved. Place fish in a large resealable plastic bag with the soy sauce mixture, seal, and turn to coat. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat grill for medium heat.

Lightly oil grill grate. Place salmon on the preheated grill, and discard marinade. Cook salmon for 6 to 8 minutes per side, or until the fish flakes easily with a fork.

Honeyed Pork Chops Ingredients: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 6 boneless pork chops 3 tablespoons honey 1/2 cup water 1/4 cup soy sauce 1 small onion, chopped 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper Directions: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and brown the pork chops about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer to a baking dish.

In a bowl, mix the honey, water, soy sauce, onion, ginger, and pepper. Pour over the pork chops in the baking dish.

Bake pork chops 1 hour in the preheated oven, to an internal temperature of 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).

Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 medium onion, chopped 2 large bell peppers, sliced into thin strips 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/3 cup soy sauce 1/3 cup honey 1/3 cup red wine vinegar 1 1/2 pounds flank steak, cut into thin strips Directions: Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.

Cook onion, bell peppers, and garlic in oil until tender-crisp, stirring frequently. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Pour soy sauce, honey, and red wine vinegar in pan, then add beef. Cook beef, stirring frequently, until done, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in cooked vegetables, and cook another 10 to 15 minutes.

Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo Ingredients: 1 pound fettuccini pasta 1 tablespoon butter 1 pound cooked shrimp - peeled and deveined 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup half-and-half 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley salt to taste Directions: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

In a large skillet, cook and stir shrimp and garlic in the butter for about one minute. Pour in half and half; stir.

Sprinkle Parmesan cheese in one table-

spoon at a time, stirring constantly. After all Parmesan is added, mix in parsley and salt. Stir frequently making sure it does not boil. Sauce will take a while to thicken.

When sauce has thickened, combine with cooked pasta noodles; serve hot.

Chili Rellenos Casserole Ingredients: 2 (7 ounce) cans whole green chile peppers, drained 8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded, 8 ounces Longhorn or Cheddar cheese, shredded 2 eggs, beaten 1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1/2 cup milk 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Lay half of the chilies evenly in bottom of baking dish. Sprinkle with half of the Jack and Cheddar cheeses, and cover with remaining chilies. In a bowl, mix together

the eggs, milk, and flour, and pour over the top of the chilies.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove from oven, pour tomato sauce evenly over the top, and continue baking another 15 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining Jack and Cheddar cheeses, and serve.

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