Pune: At least 13 deaths have been reported due to swine flu (H1N1) virus since the beginning of the year in western Maharashtra, according to medical authorities.Health officials said Pune recorded six deaths since January this year, Solapur recorded three, Aurangabad two and Nashik and Kolhapur one each.More than 50 cases have been recorded across the region, including the northern part of the State and Marathwada. More than half cases are said to be from Pune.At least six patients detected are in a ‘critical’ condition and have been put on ventilator at different city hospitals.In Kolhapur district, the administration has set up emergency cells at primary health centres (PHCs) after a 45-year-old patient in Karvir tehsil succumbed to the virus.In 2016, the State had recorded 82 cases and 25 deaths due to the virus.Dr. Kanchan Jagtap, Joint Director, State Health Department, said, “Among [the cases recorded last year], 41 cases and nine deaths were recorded between January and February. Despite a slight increase in the H1N1 toll this year in the same time period, this is the normal seasonal transmission pattern of the virus. Although people need to take precautionary measures.”Scientists from the city-based National Institute of Virology (NIV) said there has been no change in the genetic make-up of the virus.
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Virat Kohli wants Daniel Vettori as next India coach
Test captain Virat Kohli has recommended former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori for Team India coach’s job – a position which has been vacant ever since Zimbabwean Duncan Fletcher’s contract expired at the end of the 2015 World Cup.Vettori is currently the coach of Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore.According to a report in the Times of India, Kohli, who is leading the RCB, has suggested the New Zealander’s name for the coveted job.Will BCCI listen to Kohli? The report further mentioned that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was yet to confirm whether they were serious about Kohli’s suggestion.Kohli, who was given the baton of the Test team following Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s retirement from the longer format in 2014, has developed a strong camaraderie with Vettori at the RCB camp.The 37-year-old former left-arm spinner retired from international cricket following New Zealand’s loss to Australia in the final of the 2015 World Cup in Melbourne.During an illustrious career spanning 18 years, Vettori has taken 362 wickets in 113 Tests and 305 wickets in 295 ODIs. Vettori an experienced coach Apart from the RCB, Vettori is also the coach of Big Bash team Brisbane Heat.Following the exit of Fletcher, former India captain Ravi Shastri was handling affairs of the team as Team India director. However, Shastri’s stint too ended after the recently-concluded World Twenty20 in April.Since then the BCCI is on a lookout for a suitable candidate for one of the most lucrative jobs in world cricket and has even approached former skipper Rahul Dravid for the role.advertisementDravid the Dark Horse? BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur had said that the board is looking for a full-time coach instead of continuing with the team director’s position, and the Cricket Advisory Committee, comprising former India players Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, was given the task of picking a coach.Dravid, who is now the mentor of the Indian Premier League side Delhi daredevils, has drawn a lot of praise during his stint as the coach of India A and India Under-19 teams.However, Dravid has been non-committal about coaching the national team and had said he would take a decision on the matter after a lot of consideration.
Nobody knows everything about me: Sachin Tendulkar
Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar’s ins and outs may have been dissected as a subject and performer but the cricket icon believes there are still a lot of things the world has not yet seen or heard about. (Sachin: A Billion Dreams relives important moments of my life: Tendulkar)A lot of that and some never before seen footage would make ‘Sachin: A Billion Dreams’, the upcoming docu-drama of India’s biggest cricket star releasing on May 26.”You don’t know everything. That’s why this film. The footage is from my personal account at home that nobody had access to. It’s only family and we had to balance that out how much to share with fans and where to draw the line. We had to decide how far we could go. There are a lot of things you haven’t seen or heard about,” Sachin said at the launch of one of the film’s songs composed by AR Rahman.The film’s producer Ravi Bhagchandka claims to have seen about 1000 hours of this rare footage from which they used about 25 minutes.The song sung by Sukhwinder is based upon the ‘Sachin Sachin’ chants devised by cricket fans during his playing days at Sachin’s home turf Wankhede stadium. Watching him lord over the bowlers, the chants gradually became a regular feature in cricket grounds around the country. “My mom would first say Sachin Sachin wanting me to come back when I didn’t want to go back home,” Sachin said jokingly.The film is a biographical account of how a young boy Sachin who only dreamt to play for India one day went on to become the most celebrated Indian cricketer of all time.advertisement
HC restrains Maha govt from allowing bullock cart race sans
rulesEds: Adding high courts observationsMumbai, Aug 16 (PTI) The Bombay High Court today restrained the Maharashtra government from granting permission to bullock cart races in the state in the absence of rules to ensure that no cruelty is meted to the animals.A division bench of Chief Justice Manjulla Chellur and Justice N M Jamdar said when the government has till date not framed rules, as envisaged in the amendment to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, it cannot grant permission.The court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Pune resident Ajay Marathe, bringing to the courts notice a bullock cart race scheduled in his district tomorrow.The petition sought the court to stay the race. It also said that under the amended act, the state government is required to ensure that no cruelty is meted to the bullocks during races.”Till the rules are framed under the act, the state government cannot grant permission for bullock cart races. Even if and after the rules are framed, we would first go through the same and only after our nod the races would be permitted,” Chief Justice Chellur said.”The state is obligated to evolve a mechanism or a procedure on how it proposes to ensure that no harm or suffering is caused to the animals,” she said.Government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani told the court that the draft rules are ready and have been uploaded on the governments website for inviting suggestions and objections from persons concerned.advertisementThe bench directed the government to file its affidavit within two weeks in response to the petition.After perusing the order passed by the Supreme Court in the Jallikattu matter, Chief Justice Chellur said, “It is clear from the apex court order that bulls cannot be viewed as performing animals since they are not anatomically designed for that purpose. They are not horses.”The petitioner today informed the court that under the amended Act, anyone who is found to be harming the animals would face a sentence of maximum three years or fine of Rs 5 lakh.The Maharashtra Assembly had in April passed a legislation for resumption of bullock cart races across the state, after Tamil Nadu enacted a law to regularise its rural sport Jallikattu.The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill would regularise the bullock race, a popular sport in rural Maharashtra which had been banned in 2014 on the ground that it caused pain and suffering to bullocks.State Animal Husbandry Minister Mahadev Jankar had then said the amendment was being made to the central act, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, in view of the vital role of the bullock cart race in preserving and promoting tradition and culture.After the Tamil Nadu government enacted the law to regulate Jallikattu (taming of the bull), there was a demand to revive bullock races in Maharashtra. PTI SP GK ZMN
Lessons to be learnt from crowd troubles aka Eden Gardens 1996 and Pallekele 2017
Eden Gardens, 1996. A warm afternoon in Kolkata. India were favourites to go the distance in the World Cup, the second ever being played in the sub-continent. To spice things up further, India snuffed out to leave Sri Lanka reeling. The Kolkata crowd was in high spirits, celebrating with the players, cheering every dot ball. India was one: fan and player in unison as a historic spot in the final beckoned.Hours later, as India’s chase of 252 lay in tatters, Vinod Kambli walked out in tears. The same crowd which had reached a frenzied state of joy in the afternoon, ran riot at the iconic venue, throwing projectiles and creating mayhem. India were hurtling towards an embarrassing defeat in their own bastion. Sri Lanka were awarded the match and a few days later, stunned Australia in the final to lift the World Cup. India’s pain lingered for decades.Pallekele 2017. Another Indian middle-order jitters could not prevent Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni from essaying classy knocks as the tourists continued their domination over Sri Lanka . Three Test wins, three ODI victories. Sri Lanka’s mediocrity had upset the Kandy fans and they sprayed their players with bottles . On this occasion though, play was suspended for 35 minutes before the Indian duo got back to the field to complete the formalities.The two incidents occurred 21 years apart and plenty of water had flowed under the bridge in all that time. AP PhotoAfter the humiliation in the summer of 1996, India stuttered and struggled but they were up on their feet in a few years, building a formidable team. There were some more hiccups along the way. The 2007 World Cup was a nightmare but the triumph at home four years later against Sri Lanka eased the pain of ’96.advertisementSachin Tendulkar and Muttiah Muralitharan were the only common factors between 1996 and 2011 and it was ultimately the Little Master, who walked out the happier man. Murali would never play ODIs for Sri Lanka again.Sri Lanka, in the aftermath of their 1996 triumph, were world beaters. They showed everyone it was no fluke and they were a force to reckon with. With time, emerged the likes of Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Tillekaratne Dilshan and Lasith Malinga. The Sri Lankans were, in the course of time, one of the most feared teams in the world.Sri Lanka’s slide came with the imminent exodus of their new-age stars. In-fighting, corruption and a muddled up domestic system. As many as 24 teams play first-class cricket in Sri Lanka. Ten teams who played in the second division were accorded first-class status over the last one year alone. The standard of cricket was obviously compromised, possibly to appease the various factions of Sri Lankan cricket. Sri Lanka’s domestic players hardly play enough cricket and even when they do, the quality is nowhere close to the kind of domestic cricket their peers in India, England, Australia and South Africa are accustomed to.The response of the Kandy crowd to an abysmal Sri Lankan defeat was sad. It was appalling. But what was sadder was that it reminded observers of one of the darkest phases of cricket in the sub-continent. Will the response spur Sri Lankan cricket on from hereon?
Compare and contrast AI APIs at ESC Silicon Valley 2017
November 28, 2017 at 5:20 pm “”I think I’m going to spend the entire time running from one session to another…”nnWell, that should make it easy to spot you LOL Make sure you come to my two sessions (check the ESC Engineering Theater in the conference schedule)” Leave a Reply Cancel reply You must Register or Login to post a comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. “I think I’m going to spend the entire time running from one session to another to try to take it all in!” Continue Reading Previous How embedded hardware development has changed over the past 20 yearsNext How embedded software development has evolved over 20 years Log in to Reply 2 thoughts on “Compare and contrast AI APIs at ESC Silicon Valley 2017” Log in to Reply I sat in on some very interesting sessions while I was attending the Embedded Systems Conference (ESC) in Minneapolis a couple of weeks ago.One of these talks Cognitive Computing Evaluation & Comparison , was given by Mak Agashe, who is the CEO of Pifocal. The reason I mention this here is that this is an on-going evaluation, and Mak will be presenting an updated version of this session at the forthcoming ESC Silicon Valley (click here for more details), which will take place December 5-7, 2017, at the San Jose Convention Center, San Jose, California.There was so much in Mak’s talk that either I hadn’t thought of before or I hadn’t considered the nitty-gritty details. Let’s start with the fact that, as reported in the 2017 Embedded Markets Study, a lot of embedded designers are looking to build advanced technologies into their next generation devices, where these technologies include embedded speech, embedded vision, artificial intelligence (AI), deep learning, and cognitive (thinking, reasoning) capabilities.The problem is that things like mathematics, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning are specialized fields. Building one’s own version of the aforementioned technologies would be extremely time-consuming and expensive. In order to address this, companies like Amazon, Google, IBM, and Microsoft have developed APIs for vision, speech, and language.Let’s say you need to analyze a series of images to detect human faces, for example. For each face, you might want to infer information such as gender and age. You might also be interested in understanding the emotions of the people involved (happy, angry, disgusted…). So, what you can do is to make an API call, which hands your image over to an AI in the cloud, which responds with the data you’ve requested.But which API and associated cloud service should you use? Are you working with images containing individuals, small groups of people, or crowds? What about images containing artistic renderings of faces (paintings, sculptures, abstract pieces)? Would you be surprised to discover that one API might be better when working with small groups of people, while another API may shine when working with larger crowds?
(Source: pixabay.com) What Mak and his colleagues have done is to create a cognitive capability framework that can be used to compare and contrast different APIs. As a starting point, they focused on still images containing one or more faces. They took an open dataset comprising 1,000 images containing 2,500+ faces, then they analyzed and annotated these images by hand. Next, they fed these images to the APIs from Amazon, Google, IBM, and Microsoft to see how well they performed.The results may surprise you — they certainly surprised me. One analysis that was missing from the Minneapolis presentation was how well the APIs did at inferring the ages of the faces in the images. After his talk, Mak told me that they were planning on adding these results to the Silicon Valley session.I’ve been thinking about this quite a lot. What I would like to see would be a comparison of the actual ages of the people in the images, the age range for each face as guestimated by a team of human observers, and the inferred age range for each face as evaluated by the various AIs. It will be interesting to see how Mak presents his age-related results.Will you be attending ESC Silicon Valley? If so, be sure to stop me and say “Hi.” I’ll be the one in the Hawaiian shirt. As always, all you have to do is shout “Max, Beer!” or “Max, Bacon!” to be assured of my undivided attention. 
Renouvellement de lentente sur les services sociaux durgence
Lorsqu’un incendie s’est déclaré dans un immeuble résidentiel en juin, entraînant l’évacuation de 100 personnes, le ministère des Services communautaires et la Croix-Rouge canadienne ont assuré les services sociaux d’urgence tels que l’hébergement, la nourriture et les vêtements. Ces services sont offerts dans le cadre d’une entente conclue il y a dix ans visant à réunir les deux organismes pour aider les Néo-Écossais en situation d’urgence. Cette entente a été renouvelée, aujourd’hui 5 janvier, par Denise Peterson-Rafuse, ministre des Services communautaires, et John Byrne, directeur général, zone de l’Atlantique, Croix-Rouge canadienne. « Aider les Néo-Écossais qui en ont besoin, particulièrement dans une situation d’urgence, est une responsabilité que nous prenons très au sérieux. Il est important que les personnes touchées reçoivent le meilleur service possible, a dit Mme Peterson-Rafuse. Je suis ravie de renouveler notre entente avec la Croix-Rouge canadienne et de célébrer les dix premières années fructueuses de ce partenariat. » M. Byrne a souligné que les gens de toutes les régions de la province qui ont été évacués dans des situations d’urgence ont bénéficié de cette entente. « Le renouvellement de cette entente donne à la Croix-Rouge une base solide pour la planification et l’approvisionnement efficaces, a dit M. Byrne. L’entente nous permet de recruter des bénévoles et de leur offrir une formation spécialisée. Nos bénévoles constituent la clé du succès des services sociaux d’urgence que nous offrons. » En vertu de l’entente, signée pour la première fois en avril 2000, le gouvernement provincial engage la Croix-Rouge canadienne pour offrir six services sociaux d’urgence aux Néo-Écossais en situation de catastrophe ou d’urgence qui touche plus de 10 unités résidentielles ou plus de 25 personnes. L’entente permet d’offrir aux personnes évacuées un accès à un hébergement d’urgence, de la nourriture, des vêtements, des services d’accueil et d’information, des services de soutien pour la réunification des familles et une gamme d’autres services personnels. Au cours des derniers mois, l’entente a été mise en application lors de feux de forêt majeurs, d’inondations et d’autres évacuations. Par exemple, en juin dernier, un incendie a causé d’importants dommages à un grand immeuble résidentiel à Dartmouth, empêchant certains locataires de retourner chez eux pendant près d’une semaine et obligeant d’autres locataires à se trouver un autre logement pendant plusieurs mois ou même de façon permanente. « La Croix-Rouge a vraiment aidé nos locataires en établissant un abri, en les aidant à obtenir des vêtements, des médicaments et d’autres éléments essentiels, a dit A.J. Clarke, directeur des locations immobilières, Compass Commercial Realty. Certains ont tout perdu. La Croix-Rouge, en partenariat avec le personnel des Services communautaires et d’autres, nous ont donné le temps nécessaire afin de trouver un logement pour nos locataires dans d’autres immeubles ou pour les aider à trouver un logement à plus long terme. » En vertu de l’entente, le ministère rembourse la Croix-Rouge pour toute dépense directe liée à une intervention, et contribue 100 000 $ par année à la préparation. Ces coûts incluent la formation des bénévoles et du personnel, ainsi que l’achat et l’entretien d’équipement et de fournitures dans huit collectivités à l’échelle de la province en cas d’intervention en situation de catastrophe ou d’urgence.
Traffic Advisory Englishtown Ferry Out of Service
VICTORIA COUNTY: Englishtown Ferry The Englishtown Ferry is out of service until further notice.Check 511 for updates. -30-
Minister of Human Rights Mostafa Ramid Speculated to Resign from Govt
Rabat – The Minister of Human Rights, Mostafa Ramid, has verbally informed Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani of his decision to resign from the government no later than October, during the beginning of the political return, according to Akhbar Alyaoum.After rumors about the resignation of El Othmani, the Moroccan daily announced in its August 16 edition that Ramid could also leave the government very soon.In an interview with the daily, the minister said, “Since you’ve asked such question, I want express all my solidarity with Saad Eddine El Othmani and his Government and those who are committed to the stability and development of our country.” Ramid did not explicitly deny the speculations, saying that “to be part of the government or not is only a detail.”For Ramid, what is important is that officials respect their commitments and resign from their positions if they can no longer carry out their tasks effectively.“Today, as a minister, I perform my tasks with a clear conscience. No one but God could know what might happen in the future,” said Ramid.This is not the first time Ramid has been speculated to leave the government. The former lawyer allegedly threatened to leave Abdelilah Benkirane’s government three times while Minister of Justice.Ramid’s announcement came almost 20 days after King Mohammed VI’s Throne Day speech, in which he recognized that many of the ties between the state to its citizens are fragile, particularly when the government goes out of its way to keep the public in the dark.
UN human rights commission extends mandate of expert on indigenous rights
The position has been held by Mr. Rodolfo Stavenhagen since 2001 when it was created. In his report last November, he said he had decided to focus on the implementation of recent national legislation on the rights of indigenous peoples and to review best practices for combining indigenous customary systems with the national legal system.The Commission asked the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to make it possible for the Special Rapporteur to attend the third annual session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at UN headquarters next month.The panel also approved resolutions on tackling violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms worldwide, condemning Myanmar’s persistent violations of the rights of opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her followers, protecting human rights defenders and promoting human rights education. It also called on all governments to reduce the number of offences for which the death penalty could be imposed and to remove the penalty altogether from their legislation if they no longer applied it.
Flagship drill changes the game in the Pilbara
Enerflow Mining Services, a progressive and innovative company specialising in fabrication, maintenance, labour hire and specialist services to the mining industry in Western Australia reports its latest achievement is the commissioning and hire of a flagship Terex SKF Infinity Drill. After delivery of the original rig to the Wangara premises back on March 1 this year, working under the leadership of the Mechanical and Drill Director Gareth Moody, the SKF Infinity has been transformed into a reliable performer that has been quickly snapped up by one of the biggest producers in the Pilbara.The transformation took 68 days and nearly 3,000-man hours and has seen testing, certification of registered components, a rebuilt carousel, upgraded to 7-in rods, rebuilt feed cylinder, refurbed cab and controls, refurb of rotatory head and motor, rebuilt deck and gangplank, extensive lineboring to mast pivot weldments and modified deck mounts with bushes, rebuilt mast lock system, upgraded mast raise cylinder keepers, rebuilt raise cylinders, hydraulic motor overhauls, upgraded sealed electrical connections throughout, air system valving changes and repairs and a full host of safety features including state of the art visual and lighting instruments. Weighing in at over 80 t the full support of the Enerflow team was required to coordinate the transformation and the 2,000km trip ahead of schedule into the centre of the iron ore heart of WA.Moody had this to say: “The SKF Infinity is capable of a 12 m single pass hole which provides some of the fastest drilling times seen in the Pilbara returning the client not only exceptional return on investment, but the ongoing prevision of the service kits and labour further cements Enerflow as an emerging and leading provider to the industry.“The open nature of the drill provides the onsite service team easy access and reduced downtime which will result in more drill meters, more processing, more returns and most importantly more jobs for West Australians”The SKF Infinity as pictured with the iconic Enerflow green back spider has some impressive statistics chalked up already. 20,000 litres of fluids, driven by a 900 hp diesel motor, producing 80 t of drill head pressure and capable of drilling rotary and hammer drilling with four onboard drill rods. This drill is the biggest diversification of the Enerflow business, demonstrating innovation, quality and safety.
Brookstone offers projected keyboard on a keychain
You have to love stores like Brookstone. It is the champion of selling products you never heard about before and now suddenly can’t see yourself living without. Enter the pocket-sized “Virtual Keyboard,” the latest addition to the retailer’s already expansive line of Bluetooth keyboards.The problem the Virtual Keyboard tries to solve is giving you access to a full size keyboard anywhere. For example, you might be toiling away on your smartphone or tablet and realize you need to send a lengthy email to someone, or you just really have an urge to work on that graduate thesis you’ve been putting off. With the new Virtual Keyboard, you need only pull out your keychain.The tiny device projects a laser that creates a keyboard instantly on any flat surface. Your keystrokes are recorded via “advanced optics” that can track the exact position on the keyboard where your fingers make contact with the surface. How accurate this system is we do not know, but it could prove rather frustrating or absolutely great as a quick, full size portable keyboard solution.The unit is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and reachrged using the included USB cable. As mentioned, Brookstone has already made the market of Bluetooth keyboards one of its cornerstones, so this will fit in nicely in its product catalog.The new device is manufactured by a company called CTX Virtual Technologies, which also specializes in multi-touch and embedded products for tablets and phones. The Virtual Keyboard will be available on October 1 and carries a retail price of $99.99.More at Brookstone, via Urban LOL
Les dauphins victimes de la marée noire dans le Golfe du Mexique
Les dauphins victimes de la marée noire dans le Golfe du MexiqueSelon les autorités environnementales américaines, en Louisiane, l’état de santé des grands dauphins, dont les populations connaissent une mortalité accrue, s’est dégradé depuis la marée noire survenue dans le Golfe du Mexique en 2010. Depuis février 2010, plus de 675 grands dauphins se sont échoués dans le nord du Golfe du Mexique (de la Floride à la frontière Louisiane / Texas) : un taux beaucoup plus élevé que la moyenne habituelle de 74 échouages par an. Une tendance qui a, depuis l’été 2011, incité la National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) à enquêter.À lire aussiMaladie de Charcot : symptômes, causes, traitement, où en est on ?Dans la baie de Barataria, en Louisiane, soumise à une exposition massive et prolongée aux hydrocarbures lors de l’accident de la plateforme Deepwater Horizon au printemps 2010, 32 dauphins vivants ont été examinés durant l’été 2011. Parmi ceux-ci, la plupart souffrent d’insuffisance pondérale, d’anémie, d’hypoglycémie ou de symptômes hépatiques ou pulmonaires, la moitié présentant en outre des niveaux anormalement bas d’hormones anti-stress et de défenses immunitaires. Les chercheurs craignent que certains ne survivent pas, et l’un d’eux, observé pour la dernière fois fin 2011, a été retrouvé mort en janvier 2012.Ces eaux du bassin de Barataria restent fermées à la pêche commerciale, les résidus de pétrole étant toujours visibles le long du rivage. Les biologistes de la NOAA et leurs partenaires locaux sont à la recherche des multiples façons dont les dauphins pourraient avoir été exposés : ingestion, inhalation, consommation de poissons contaminés… La NOAA partage les résultats de cette étude avec les intervenants sur les sites d’échouage et les vétérinaires, afin d’améliorer les soins portés aux cétacés en détresse. Le 27 mars 2012 à 20:11 • Maxime Lambert
EC to consider taking video or photograph of voting rooms as offence
Election commission building. File PhotoTaking video or photograph of voting rooms in the upcoming general elections would be considered as criminal offences, an official of election commission (EC) said on Friday.EC joint secretary Md Qamrul Hasan told a function for trainees on parliamentary election at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital’s Agargaon area.“At first voters have to mention their identities after entering voting rooms. Presiding and other officials concerned will conduct voting process as per the electoral code of conduct for ensuring free, fair and neutral election,” he said.Qamrul said presiding officers would prevent any unfair practices in the voting rooms of the upcoming national election.The presiding officers in the polling centre would hand over the fake voters to the law enforcement personnel, he said adding fake voters will be given punishment through mobile courts.Highlighting electoral of code of conduct, he said, “Election observers would not stay in a polling centre for a long time. Presiding officers cannot give interview to the observers.”
Police Find Body of Teen Wanted in Stabbing Girls Death
GLEN BURNIE, Md. (AP) — Authorities say they’ve found the body of an 18-year-old Maryland man accused of fatally stabbing his 10-year-old sister and wounding his 13-year-old brother.In this undated photo provided by the Anne Arundel County police Andres Rafael Quintana Garcia is shown. Authorities in Maryland found the body of Garcia, whom they say stabbed two young relatives at a Glen Burnie, Md., home, killing a young girl and wounding a teenage boy. Both children were taken to area hospitals. Police said the girl died and the boy is being treated for injuries that aren’t life-threatening. (Anne Arundel County police via AP)Anne Arundel County Police spokesman Lt. Ryan Frashure said by telephone and in a news release that searchers found the body of Andres Rafael Quintana Garcia about 11 a.m. Friday in an area with trees and brush near the family’s Glen Burnie home. He says the body has been taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to determine the cause and manner of death.Frashure has said the younger siblings were stabbed Monday when a family dispute escalated. He says the girl died and her brother was released from a hospital Thursday.Police obtained an arrest warrant for Garcia, but couldn’t find him for days.
Bens Chili Bowl Unveils New Mural
Ben’s Chili Bowl is revamping its well-known mural wall.Like the old mural, the new mural honors various heroes and influences of Black history. Ben’s Chili Bowl teamed up with artist and Washingtonian Aniekan Udofia, and accompanied by his Art Director Mia DuVall, unveiled the newest and — what is intended to be the last — mural on June 21.The new mural on D.C. institution Ben’s Chili Bowl features Barack Obama, Chuck Brown and Harriet Tubman, among others. (Photo by Lindi Vilakazi)Udofia created his first Ben’s Chili Bowl mural in 2012, which featured portraits of Bill Cosby, Barack Obama, Chuck Brown, and Donnie Simpson. This year, the mural will showcase 16 portraits, including Harriett Tubman, Prince, Taraji P. Henson, Donnie Simpson, Chuck Brown, Wale, Barack Obama and others.“I’ve heard a lot of mixed feelings, like most people are like claiming, oh well Prince is not from D.C. It’s not a D.C. wall. It’s a wall that starts with Harriet Tubman and shows you where we’ve come from and where we’re headed and what we’ve achieved. So, I kind of see it like the hero’s journey in a way. Because these people are my heroes,” Udofia told the AFRO.As a native of D.C., Udofia, who has Nigerian roots, said he grew up with a genuine knowledge and understanding of the District’s culture and influences.The new mural on D.C. institution Ben’s Chili Bowl features Barack Obama, Chuck Brown and Harriet Tubman, among others. (Photo by Lindi Vilakazi)“So with this particular piece, I think to date this has probably been the most challenging project,” DuVall said. “Only because they’re 16 portraits, and I think whether the folks on the wall are living or are not with us anymore, there are many, many, many, many people who are invested in their images. So, you know it’s like you want to create something, especially when you just get a list of names, you want to create something that resonates with the people who are actually here. But at the same time with the people who care about the people that are here and the people who have passed on.”While Udofia and his team worked on the mural for two weeks. They made the final touches to the artwork called “The Torch.”“As you can see the flag is kind of breaking off of Harriet Tubman’s cape and wrapping around Obama, who happens to be the first Black president. So, her carrying the torch and you see like the whole thing resonating. There is a frequency connecting these people to those people over there,” Udofia said.Pedestrians and Ben’s Chili Bowl customers have constantly stopped to view the mural and take pictures throughout the process.“I like it. I think it encompasses African American culture. You have artist like Chuck Brown, Taraji, Wale. I think it’s a good representation of what D.C. is in terms of current artists, but at the same time it reflects our history,” D.C. resident Tamika Gittens told the AFRO.
Syrians on hajj bring tears for their homeland
Now living in Saudi Arabia, he was happy to perform the hajj for the second time, but thoughts of his homeland pained him.“There’s been too much blood spilled. It’s enough,” he said. “We are praying for stability and for God to calm things down.”(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) Mary Coyle ice cream to reopen in central Phoenix Get a lawn your neighbor will be jealous of 5 treatments for adult scoliosis Ahead of hundreds of thousands arriving to the spot, the entrepreneur, who closed a Syrian branch of his information technology business seven months ago, had a chance to pray in quiet for those in his war-ravaged homeland, especially a cousin kidnapped earlier this year. After the family paid some $20,000 dollars in ransom to what they believe were pro-government forces known as shabiha, only a burnt corpse was returned.“Tears came down my face thinking about kids, refugees and all those killed,” Mohammed said, asking, like others interviewed, that his last name be withheld for fear of retaliation against family in Syria. “These people had cars and homes and lives.”“I prayed for God to free Syria from the unjust regime that had us living under fear and panic for 40 years,” he added, referring to the Assad family’s rule over Syria, which began over four decades ago with President Bashar Assad’s late father. “We want the downfall of the regime and in its place a modern country built on equality.”No exact figures exist for the number of Syrians among this year’s 3.4 million hajj pilgrims _ most of those performing the rite were either Saudi residents or held a second citizenship. Unlike groups from other nations, who fly flags atop buses and tents, Syria’s banner was nowhere in sight. Comments Share Top Stories Construction begins on Chandler hospital expansion project The country’s official news agency has blamed Saudi Arabia for not facilitating visa requests for would-be pilgrims. The kingdom denies this, saying Damascus did not fulfill the usual requirements to ensure its quota of some 20,000 visas. Like many nations opposed to Assad’s regime, the Saudis have closed their embassy in Syria and cut off communications with officials.The 19 months of turmoil in Syria have claimed more than 35,000 lives, activists say. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says more than 340,000 people have fled the country, with a total 710,000 expected by the end of the year.Top clerics from the Gulf region have advised people in Syria to disburse the thousands of dollars that would have been spent on the pilgrimage for humanitarian assistance instead.Far from the fighting, on Saudi Arabia’s Mount Arafat, all that Tareq el-Issa could think of was his family in Deir al-Zour province _ an opposition stronghold near Iraq that has seen some of the heaviest clashes between Syrian government troops and rebels.“There is only killing and destruction,” he said, turning his face to the side to fight back tears. Aside from the simple, terry cloth robe worn by pilgrims, he carried the flag of Syria’s rebels draped over his shoulders. Former Arizona Rep. Don Shooter shows health improvement “May God punish all those leaders who are quiet and seeing what’s happening and not doing anything,” he added from the site, where Muslims believe all sincere prayers and worship will be answered. “May God punish you Bashar, wherever you are.”El-Issa has been in Saudi Arabia for around three years, and his friend Laurence Jeljasim fled his home earlier this year. Both and are now residing in Saudi Arabia.“The Syrian flag is not here, so we wanted to raise (the rebel flag) and remind people that there are people being killed, raped, massacred, their corpses desecrated,” Jeljasim said, adding that this would be the fourth Muslim feast to pass in which his countrymen are killing one another.The flag was not the only sign of support for the uprising against Assad at the pilgrimage _ some female pilgrims were seen wearing discreet bracelets bearing the rebel colors under their long robes.Back in Mecca, another Mohammed from the Syrian city of Deraa said his holiday season was bittersweet. The 25-year-old office administrator left the country five years ago in search of work, facing unemployment and stagnation in his hometown _ where the torture of schoolboys by the government led to mass protests that sparked the country’s uprising. Associated PressMINA, Saudi Arabia (AP) – Fortunate enough to squeeze his way through crowds into what Muslims consider one of the most sacred places on earth, Mohammed knelt in worship, put his head on the cold white marble, and wept for Syria.Only a few feet away from the Kaaba, the cube shaped structure in Mecca, Saudi Arabia that observant Muslims pray toward five times a day, the Syrian-born pilgrim had traveled from his home in the Washington, D.C. area to perform the hajj, an elaborate and exhausting set of purification rites able-bodied Muslims must perform once in their lives. Sponsored Stories Bottoms up! Enjoy a cold one for International Beer Day How do cataracts affect your vision?
Qantas ownership rules eased
Qantas Airways should now be able to change its ownership structure through more foreign investment but the airline will remain Australian, after Australia’s major political parties agreed to compromise on changing the Qantas Sales Act.The Abbott government and Labor opposition have agreed to repeal the requirement that Qantas be only have 35 per cent foreign ownership by a single airline as well the 25 per cent ownership cap on a single foreign owner.Previously, the Abbott government had attempted to completely remove Part 3 of the Qantas Sales Act, which requires that 51 per cent of the airline remains Australian owned, two thirds of directors are Australian and that maintenance and catering for international flights be done in Australia.The government’s change of heart came up after they realised that they did not Senate numbers to completely repeal Part 3.The government still wants to repeal Part 3 because it says such a repeal is needed to put Qantas on “an even playing field” with other airlines, particularly Virgin Australia.Source = ETB News: Tom Neale
The 71 magnitude earthquake that shook Mexico Cit
The 7.1 magnitude earthquake that shook Mexico City to its core and has so far claimed the lives of at least 200 people across Puebla, Morelos and Mexico City, has devastated the nation and left soldiers, citizens and authorities to frantically, yet carefully, search under steel, concrete and timber debris from collapsed building, for the dead and injured, trapped since the quake struck in Puebla state, about 120km from Mexico City, on Tuesday [local time].DFAT has confirmed it is working with authorities in Mexico to determine if any Australians are affected. Some structural damage was reported at Mexico City International Airport, forcing its closure for several hours for assessment. The airport has now reopened but travellers are still advised to double-check with their airline for flight changes. IMAGE: Thousands of people flood into the main streets of Mexico City in panic, fleeing collapsing buildings, amid burst gas and water mains, and with no electricity across at least half of the city, after Tuesday’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake. earthquakemexicoMexico City
PHOENIX — The Arizona Cardinals announced Thursday
PHOENIX — The Arizona Cardinals announced Thursday they have sold out their game against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Nov. 24, at University of Phoenix Stadium.Arizona heads into the game at 6-4 after winning its road game 27-14 against the Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday. The Cardinals have won three in a row. The Colts stand at the top of the AFC South with a record of 7-3 after winning in Tennessee 30-27 last Thursday. Derrick Hall satisfied with D-backs’ buying and selling The Cardinals have sold out 81 consecutive games — counting preseason and postseason contests — at University of Phoenix Stadium, dating back to 2006.The Cardinals-Colts game will be broadcast live on KPHO-TV (CBS 5) as well on KTAR 92.3 FM. Kickoff is at 2:05 p.m. MST.Despite the sellout, the team said a limited supply of tickets is available, most coming from returns from the visiting team’s allotment. Fans can purchase tickets through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com) or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets are also available in person at the University of Phoenix Stadium box office or at the Cardinals training facility box office in Tempe, Ariz. Top Stories Grace expects Greinke trade to have emotional impact
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