Girl from red-light area in Mumbai flies to the US for studies

Mumbai: For 18-year-old Shweta Katti, who grew up as the daughter of a devdasi in the infamous red-light area of Kamathipura in the city, getting scholarship to study in the US is a dream coming true.

Shweta, who once studied in a civic school, flew to New York on Thursday to pursue a course in psychology at Bard University.


"Shweta has got the opportunity to study in the US. I don't know what she would be studying there. But I feel proud of her," her mother Vandana, a dev

dasi, told PTI here on Sunday.

Devdasis are girls who are 'dedicated' to a life of sex work in the name of religion.

"Since childhood Shweta had been good at studies. Earlier, she studied in the municipality school. From class VIII, she started going a private school in south Mumbai," she added.

After Shweta completed her higher secondary school (HSC), she approached 'Apne Aap', an organisation in Kamathipura to which she was associated since her class IV.

'Apne Aap' then took her to 'Kranti'--an NGO--which educates and empowers trafficked girls, to help her in pursuing further education.

Knowing well about her field of interest, the organisation then cleared the deck for Shweta to get further education in the US.

When asked about the funding part of Shweta's education abroad, Robin from 'Kranti' said, "Around 200 people from all over the world have contributed to towards her education in the US. She would be studying psychology over there. She had told us about her dream and we promised that we will make it happen."

Her mother says that Shweta would come back only after four years. "I am missing her. But I have to make myself strong," she said.

PTI 

World's first trip to Moon's south pole planned for 2016

WASHINGTON: The world's first mission to the south pole of the moon to install a permanent telescope on the lunar surface, to aid professional and amateur researchers, has been announced.

The private enterprise mission, announced by the International Lunar Observatory Association and Moon Express, will be both scientific and commercial, and plans to deliver the International Lunar Observatory (ILO) aboard a Moon Express robotic lander.

Moon Express will also utilise the mission to explore the moon's south pole for mineral resources and water. Lunar probes have provided compelling evidence of mineral and volatile deposits in the Moon's southern polar region where energy and resources may be abundant, Phys.org reported.

The ILO, with its 2-meter dish antenna, will be the world's first instrument to conduct international astrophysical observations and communications from the lunar surface, providing scientific research, commercial broadcasting and enabling Galaxy 21st Century education and "citizen science" on the Moon.

The announcement was made during a NASA Lunar Science Institute conference at Nasa Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California.

"The ILO will demonstrate the value of the Moon for scientific study of the galaxy, moon, earth, sun and stars," said Steve Durst, founder and director of the ILOA and Space Age Publishing Company.

"We are a global consortium of scientists, educators, entrepreneurs and visionaries who seek to establish a scientific presence on the Moon followed by human exploration and eventual settlement."

Space Age Publishing Company, ILOA's commercial affiliate, intends to broadcast its Space Calendar weekly and Lunar Enterprise Daily via the ILO. ILOA expects that the south pole mission could take place as early as 2016 and contribute to humanity's growth as a multi-world species.

Moon Express will send a series of robotic missions to the Moon in support of science, commerce and exploration starting in 2015.

"We are very excited to our announce that our second Moon mission will be to the lunar South Pole to deliver the International Lunar Observatory and to prospect for resources," said Moon Express CEO Dr Robert Richards.

"The mission will provide a historic landing in an unexplored region of the moon that may harbour some of the greatest resource deposits in the solar system," said Richards.

The ILO and its precursor will have an internet-based access and control system and will be the first private space telescope to operate from the lunar surface.

US adds better-than-expected 195,000 jobs in June

Washington: The US unemployment rate in June has remained unchanged at 7.6 percent as more than 195,000 jobs were added to the economy this month, latest official figures said Friday.

"Non farm payroll employment increased by 195,000 in June and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 7.6 percent. Over the prior 12 months, job gains averaged 182,000 per month," said Erica L Groshen, Commissioner of Bureau of Labour Statistics.

"In June, employment increased in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, retail trade, health care, and financial activities," Groshen said.

The number of unemployed persons remained steady at 11.8 million, while the number of part-time workers increased by 322,000, Groshen said.

PTI

24 Indian fishermen released by Sri Lanka

RAMESWARAM (TN): Twenty-four fishermen, who were arrested by Sri Lankan naval personnel on June 5 when they were fishing near Katchathivu islet, arrived here today after a court in the island nation ordered their release.

Coast Guard officials, who received them at the International Maritime Boundary line, later handed them over to Indian authorities, officials said.

The fishermen arrived here along with their five boats. The court in Mannar ordered their release on July 3, officials said.

World`s first `human liver` created from stem cells

London: Scientists in Japan have used stem cells to grow tiny functioning livers in the laboratory.

The team at the Yokohama City University is hoping that liver failure could be reversed by transplanting thousands of liver buds.

They were trying to reproduce the earliest stages of liver development, which is similar to that in an embryo and for that they mixed 3 types of cells - two types of stem cells and material taken from the umbilical cord.

However, to their surprise the cells started to organise themselves and started curling to form a liver bud.

And when these buds were transplanted into mice, they hooked themselves up with the blood supply and began functioning as little livers, the BBC reported.

The transplants raided the lifespan of mice with liver failure.

However, turning this process into a treatment is still a distant thought, as the buds are 4-5mm long, however, researchers say that they will need to develop buds which are much minuscule and could be injected into the blood.

Though the buds will not grow into a whole new liver, but will embed themselves in the one which is failing and help restore it.

The findings have been published in Nature.

ANI

Pierre Borghi: How I gave the Taliban the slip

BBC News

French aid worker and amateur photograph

er Pierre Borghi spent four months in shackles, imprisoned by the Taliban in a hole in the ground. But an opportunity to escape eventually came his way, thanks in part to the weight he had lost on the "Taliban diet".

I was abducted by the Taliban on the evening of Tuesday 27 November.

It had been an ordinary, relaxed day in Kabul - no bombs or gunfire or stress. I had been to the supermarket, bought Chinese noodles for dinner and planned a quiet night in watching a zombie movie.

This was my second week in Afghanistan on my second visit to the country. I was looking for work in the humanitarian or urban planning sectors while I tried to make it as a photographer.

I was walking back from a bar, where I had been debating with other freelancers and friends the safest way was to get around Kabul. Security was on my mind, but the bar was in pretty much the safest area in the city and I was staying a mere 500m away. I didn't think being outside for five or 10 minutes would be such a risk.

That was a miscalculation.

A white Toyota Corolla stopped just a few metres ahead of me. Four guys got out, bearded, dressed in salwar kameez - the traditional Afghan dress - and headed straight for me.

They tried to grab me and take me to the car. When I fought back, one of them took out a gun and told me to stop resisting. I did.

They shoved me into the middle of the back seat, squashing me between their knees, and started driving. We went through all the supposed safety checkpoints. After a while they pulled over, blindfolded me, bound my hands behind my back and put me in the boot of the car, along with one of the kidnappers.

They made it clear that any attempt to make a noise or move would be severely repressed.

Scared as I was, I was switching to a strange survival mode. It's a very conscious process. You start thinking "Oh no - this is actually happening." And then you begin to detach yourself from everything and you try not to panic and to be as rational as possible.

After another few hours of driving, they put me in the first of the two holes in the ground I was to be kept in. It turned out to be the nicer of the two - I had a bit of space and light.

They said they were al-Qaeda, they were Taliban. They told me that they had no problem with me personally, they had a problem with my country. They said they had taken me because I was a Westerner and my country was at war with Afghanistan.

I was given a piece of paper to write down information about myself, to be passed onto a Taliban "cabinet" for background checking. They needed to check I wasn't a member of the special forces or a spy or a diplomat - all of which would have meant my immediate execution. After the background checks, this piece of paper was to be passed to the French authorities as proof I was alive.

Afterwards, I managed to hang on to one sheet of paper and the pen. I used it to write down a wish list for my life after I was freed, which I kept throughout my detention.


I also made a paper chessboard, and killed time constructing chess problems.

After about 10 days, they said they were going to take me to Kabul and give me back my life.

They got me out of the hole, bound my hands behind my back and blindfolded me again. I was put on a motorbike. But instead of taking me back to the city, I was taken down bumpy trails, over rivers and into the mountains. I've had some interesting rides on motorbikes before but never one like that.

They were taking me to my next hole.

But before that, I had 10 very strange days living with an Afghan family, assisted by two Taliban fighters who kept guard over me (these were new guards - I changed hands a number of times throughout my incarceration).

It was surreal - we ate together, slept together, watched videos on their cellphone together. I even taught them some card games that we played for hours and hours. It's utterly frustrating to play cards with a guy that could put a bullet in your head at any moment, especially when he is cheating.

But the fighters either got tired of watching over me, or had to go and fight in the mountains, or a trade agreement had been made and they had to leave.

So I was moved to a more convenient place for them to keep me - a very small hole under a trapdoor in the floor of a barn, in which I couldn't lay flat or sit up. I had one three-litre bucket to use as a toilet. There was no light, none at all. I was kept there for the next three-and-a-half months. I was only allowed out three or four times, to shoot ransom videos. My hands and my feet were chained together. The only sense of time passing came from the occasional noise outside. A farmer chopping wood, a helicopter flying overhead. But the Afghan winter is horribly silent.

I was really bored. So what did I do?


With no communication for days on end and a complete loss of contact with the outside world, hostages and prisoners sometimes wonder whether they still exist.

What strategies can they adopt to prevent themselves from going mad?

How do people survive solitary confinement?
I mentally drafted thesis projects, books and the blueprints for houses and towns (I was trained as an urban planner).

When I was hungry, I thought about food. I prepared dream recipes that I am still planning to try out when I have some friends over.

I also started talking to myself and singing songs. I thought to myself: "Don't worry, you're talking aloud, but you need it and are conscious of it."

I also talked to the people I loved - or imagined I talked to them - and prayed a bit.

You could say that I remained as French as I could - humour and self-deprecation were key tools in keeping me sane.

The chains restraining me were loose enough for me to get a foot and a hand free. The trapdoor was not locked and I began to explore the barn, sometimes spending whole hours - at night - out of the hole. I started to nurture a hope that I might escape.

But the Afghan winter is not only silent, it's also very cold. My experience of the country told me that if I broke free at night wearing the sandals and summer clothes I had been allowed to keep, I would end up a frosted corpse.

So I waited.


An image from Borghi's 2012 trip to the central highlands of Afghanistan
I had to do the videos, to prove I was alive. They told me what to say. "Tell your country that you're sick, you're tired, you want to go home. Tell them to give us what we want. Say hello and pass on a message to your family and country and religion."

For your family's sake, you try to keep yourself together, to be positive, to be kind with your words, so they don't freak out.

On the morning of 28 March, I was taken out of my hole, to shoot another of these videos.

In the space of 10 minutes, I was told I would be killed in the next few days as France was not meeting the Taliban's demands. I was given some letters my family had written and sent through the secret services, and then put back in the hole.

This was my very lowest point.

In an attempt to remain rational, I calculated how long it would take for this last video to be passed to the French authorities, and for them to make a decision about the ransom demands. I spent 10 days in torment, trying to weigh the risk of staying against that of escaping.


Then I made up my mind. I thought I couldn't afford to wait one more day - that at any moment, some executioner would show up to cut away what was becoming an embarrassing loose end for the Taliban.

There was a tiny window in the barn, about 3m above the ground.

On the night of 7 April, I wrapped my chains - still attached to one arm and one leg - in some rags to keep them quiet. Then I got out of my hole and climbed up to the window on some discarded furniture.

Outside, I saw lights shimmering away on the right-hand side, in the far distance. There's not much street lighting in Afghanistan, so I figured this was a military base of some sort.

I dropped some food, sugar and tea that I had saved over the last few days through the window, and then tried to squeeze through.

When I reached my hips, I got stuck. I freaked out. But after a few twists I fell in a heap on the outside. I would never have been able to do that without the 25lb (11kg) I'd lost over the last four months. You might call it the Taliban diet.

I started walking towards the lights, stumbling and falling in the freshly ploughed fields. I was talking to myself: "Ha, so you like coming home stumbling at night? It's your time man, make this the walk of your life!"

I passed near some checkpoints on a nearby road. There was no way of knowing if they were run by the army or the Taliban. So I went down to a crawl, hiding behind rocks and pressing myself against the hillside.

Later on that night I found myself enmeshed in razor wire, and I had to change direction when some dogs started to bark at me.

I walked all night - eight, nine, 10 hours. By the early hours, as the morning prayers echoed all around, my aching legs struggled to keep moving, but I was getting closer to what seemed to be a large city.

I reached a medium-height building, with an enclosed courtyard and watchtowers. I went to the gate, and as I was looking puzzled at the signs by the entrance, the military policeman on watch shouted to me.

"Kudja meri?" - Where are you going?

"Inshallah be Kabul merim" - If God allows, I'm going to Kabul.

He pointed his AK-47 at me, not really knowing what to do with this insane-looking guy in a salwar kameez with a huge beard, who was pretending to be French and making wild claims about being locked up by the Taliban in very sketchy Dari. So he called the commandant, who called the general, who called interpreters, who asked me questions. Another background check.

A few hours later, I was taken to Kabul in a military convoy with the general. While I was sitting in the car I thought about how, at that very moment, my keepers would be coming to check on me. I couldn't help smiling to myself as I thought of their faces as they lifted the trap-door to my hole, which I had been so careful to close again after I got out.

It wasn't till the end of that day that I was handed over to the French authorities in Kabul. They took me to the military hospital, where the chief surgeon welcomed me with a nice big pair of bolt cutters.

My legs ached from the night-time walk that had followed such a long period of inactivity, but physically and mentally I was in a pretty good way. Everyone was surprised, including me.

I took my first shower in 131 days and I was finally able to call home.

"Hi mum," I said. She said it was the happiest day of her life. Very rarely had I cried during my time with the Taliban, but I did cry when I made that call.

Indian-owned football club qualifies for Danish Superliga

PTI

New Delhi: Denmark's Indian-owned football club,

F C Vestsjælland, has qualified for the Danish Superliga, the country's top-tier and one of Europe's well-known leagues.

It is the first time the club has made it to the Danish top division.

Anglian Holdings, an NRI-owned multi-national corporation with diverse global investments, had acquired a strategic stake in FC Vestsjælland, and had simultaneously invested in I-League club Shillong Lajong FC, with the intent of creating a pipeline for bi-directional exchange of talent, knowledge and expertise between the two clubs.

Post the promotion of FC Vestsjælland (also known as FC Vikings), the corporation aims to intensify its efforts towards bringing European footballing knowhow to Shillong Lajong FC and the rest of India.

It has already begun using the experience to help Indian clubs and players.

Anglian-supported player, Netan Sansara, is the first PIO to make it to the Danish Superliga.

F C Vestsjælland, a club based in Slagelse, Denmark, has capped off a remarkable season by qualifying for the Superliga.

F C Vestsjælland was established in 2008 as an offshoot of the Slagelse Football Club & Sports Association (SB&I) – and makes it to the premier football division in Denmark within 5 years of its formation.

Commenting on the promotion, Kurt Andersen, President, FC Vestsjælland, said, "We are thrilled to be a part of the Superliga next season and are extremely proud of what the team has been able to achieve. I think it is nothing short of amazing that within 5 years of being formed, we have climbed our way to the top-most football league of Denmark."

Dhruv Ratra, CEO – Sports & Marketing, Anglian Holdings, said, "We are delighted for FC Vestsjælland's players, staff and fans. It really is a remarkable achievement for the club to ascend so rapidly. We are also extremely happy that our player Netan Sansara has become the first PIO to reach the highest level of Danish football."

Kevin Rudd appoints record number of women in cabinet

Melbourne: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Monday unveiled his new cabinet, including a record number of six women, along with the first ever Muslim in the country's parliament.

Governor-General Quentin Bryce swore in the ministers this afternoon before a first cabinet meeting in Canberra.

Rudd named six women to his cabinet, the largest number in Australian parliamentary history.

Days after he dramatically ousted the country's first woman premier Julia Gillard, the 55-year-old Rudd named 11 women ministers out of the 30 all up on the frontbench - and six in cabinet.

In another first, 43-year-old Ed Husic was elevated to a senior role and named parliament secretary to the Prime Minister as he become the first ever Muslim to be sworn on to a federal government frontbench.

Rudd staged a remarkable comeback by winning a caucus vote by 57 to 45 last week, three years after Gillard toppled him in a similar showdown to become the first woman premier.

Rudd said he wanted the "best players on the field" and his new ministry has been chosen on merit and it outpoints the opposition on quality and experience, local media reported.

He pledged to work for a "stronger, fairer Australia... and never ever, ever allow the fair-go to be thrown out the backdoor."

The women ministers include newcomers Jacinta Collins as minister of Mental Health and Ageing, Tasmanian MP Julie Collins as minister for housing, Homelessnes and status of Women and Catherine King as minister for Regional Australia.

Following the appointment of the women, Rudd today said women in his ministry were there based on their talents, not their gender.

"I'm a guy who believes in meritocracy, and when you find people of merit, they should be promoted," he said.

Some of his key supporters Joel Fitzgibbon and Kim Carr have returned as Agriculture Minister and Industry and Innovation Minister respectively whereas some supporters of Gillard continue to remain in Cabinet with different roles.

The 20-member cabinet includes finance minister Penny Wong, health minister Tanya Plibersek and families minister Jenny Macklin.

Meanwhile, a new poll, the first since Rudd's return as Prime Minister, has ranked him in a significant lead as the country's preferred leader.

Galaxy poll published in News Limited papers says 51 per cent of respondents believe Rudd would make the best prime minister, compared to 34 per cent for rival Tony Abbott.

Fifteen per cent of those surveyed were uncommitted.

Rudd's position shows an 18 per cent jump from Gillard's position in March. Rudd has said he was heartened by the boost Labor has received. In a statement, he said it was encouraging to see voters already responding to his brand of "positive, policy-driven" politics.

However, the poll shows the opposition Coalition still leads Labor 51 per cent to 49 per cent, on a two-party preferred basis.

PTI

Saina Nehwal jumps to third spot in badminton rankings

New Delhi: A quarterfinal finish at the Singapore Super Series helped ace India shuttler Saina Nehwal climb a place to the third position at the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF) women's singles ranking released today.

The London bronze medallist had dropped to the fourth place after failing to defend her title at the Indonesian Super Series Premier but a last eight finish at Singapore last week enabled her to achieve 73510 points and reach the third spot.

The 23-year-old Indian had been enjoying her career-best ranking of world number two since March this year but her failure to defend her titles in Thailand and Indonesia saw her slip to the fourth place.

Malaysia Open winner P V Sindhu, who missed three back-to-back tournaments in June because of an knee injury, was steady at the 12th position, while rising shuttler Arundhati Pantawane gained 10 places to reach the 49th spot.

Chinese duo of Li Xuerui (87713.42) and Yihan Wang (74655.77) holds the first and second position in the ranking.

In men's singles, a dip in performance reflected in Parupalli Kashyap's ranking as he slipped two places to the 13th spot. The Indian lost in the first round in Indonesia and Singapore.

RMV Gurusaidutt and Ajay Jayaram improved one place each to reach the 22nd and 24th positions in the men's singles ranking. B Sai Praneeth gained five places to reach a career-best ranking of 40, while Thailand Grand Prix Gold champion K Srikanth also jumped a place to the 41st spot. Sourabh Verma was static at 37th place.

Women's doubles pair of Pradnya Gadre and Ashwini Ponnappa jumped four places to reach the 28th spot.

Doctor claims breakthrough in race for spinal 'cure'

HONG KONG: A leading researcher into severe spinal cord injuries today said trials for stem-cell therapy showed groundbreaking results in giving immobile patients the ability to walk again.


After progress in a second round of tests using stem cells to regrow nerve fibres, the China Spinal Cord Injury Network (ChinaSCINet) has applied for regulatory approval in China for a third and final phase, which it hopes to start in the autumn.

Nasa to partner Isro in India's Mars mission

MUMBAI: The US would support India in its much-awaited Rs 450-crore Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) slated for lift off from Sriharikota in October-November 2013.

"Nasa is providing the deep space navigation and tracking support to this mission during the non-visible period of the Indian Deep Space Network," said a US state department announcement.

The decision to cooperate was taken at the fourth meeting of the US-India joint working group on civil space co-operation held in Washington on March 21. But the details of the meeting were made public on Monday through the US-India joint fact sheet. Its release coincided with the Indo-US Strategic dialogue, and the talks between Isro chairman K Radhakrishnan and Nasa administrator Charles Bolden in New Delhi.

Nasa will provide support from its facilities at Goldstone in the US, Madrid in Spain and Canberra in Australia.

The teaming up for the Mars mission assumes significance in the context of Bolden calling for strengthened co-operation in this programme, when he addressed Isro staffers nationwide on Tuesday afternoon from the Ahmedabad-based Space Applications Centre.

The American state department document also stated that both countries have "agreed to co-operate in potential future missions to the moon and Mars".

Isro officials have not ruled out a second mission to Mars, which they said will have more scientific content. TOI has also learnt that Nasa was keen on participating with Isro in the analysis of data from the Methane Sensor For Mars, which is one of the five instruments on board the present Indian Mars orbiter.

But Isro has not given any firm response so far.

Nasa discovers ten thousandth near-Earth object in space

WASHINGTON: Nasa has discovered the 10,000th near-Earth object (NEO) that could pass close to our planet in the future.

The 10,000th near-Earth object, asteroid 2013 MZ5, was first detected on the night of June 18, 2013, using Pan-Starrs-1 telescope in Hawaii, located on the 3,000-meter summit of the Haleakala crater.

Ninety-eight per cent of all near-Earth objects discovered were first detected by Nasa-supported surveys, the US space agency claimed.

"Finding 10,000 near-Earth objects is a significant milestone," said Lindley Johnson, programme executive for Nasa's near-Earth Object Observations Programme at Nasa Headquarters, Washington.

"But there are at least 10 times that many more to be found before we can be assured we will have found any and all that could impact and do significant harm to the citizens of Earth," Johnson said.

Near-Earth objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets that can approach the Earth's orbital distance to within about 45 million kilometres.

They range in size from as small as a few feet to as large as 41 kilometres for the largest near-Earth asteroid, 1036 Ganymed.

Asteroid 2013 MZ5 is approximately 300 meters across. Its orbit is well understood and will not approach close enough to Earth to be considered potentially hazardous.

"The first near-Earth object was discovered in 1898," said Don Yeomans, long-time manager of Nasa's near-Earth Object Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

Of the 10,000 discoveries, roughly 10 per cent are larger than six-tenths of one kilometre in size - roughly the size that could produce global consequences should one impact the Earth.

However, the Nasa's NEOO programme has found that none of these larger NEOs currently pose an impact threat and probably only a few dozen more of these large NEOs remain undiscovered.

The vast majority of NEOs are smaller than one kilometre, with the number of objects of a particular size increasing as their sizes decrease, Nasa said.

A NEO hitting Earth would need to be about 30 meters or larger to cause significant devastation in populated areas. Almost 30 per cent of the 460-foot-sized NEOs have been found, but less than one per cent of the 100-foot-sized NEOs have been detected.

New York's Times Square becomes yoga's Om Sweet Om

WASHINGTON: If yoga is the practice of quieting the mind, as Patanjali, chronicler of the spiritual quest said, its practitioners couldn't have picked a better place than New York City's Times' Square to put the aphorism to test.

Some 16,000 yoga aficionados turned up at what is arguably the world's glitziest - if not busiest - crossroads to stretch America's acceptance of the great Indian export, amid continued misgivings in conservative circles about its religious content.

The hum of Om rose above the everyday wailing of police sirens and honking of rude taxis as New Yorkers ushered in summer solstice with open-air yogabhyas from sunrise to sundown on the longest day of the year.

It wasn't exactly a flash mob. What began as a three-person exercise a decade ago has now grown into a thousands-strong annual event that celebrates ''mind over madness.'' The organizers, led by Times Square Alliance, say it is a pushback against the hectic lifestyle in the world's most vibrant city.

It is also the world's most diverse and multicultural city that embraces universal values with such ease that no one raised a peep about the iconic square being shut down to traffic for the yoga gig. Curious foreign tourists milled around to see thousands of Americans stretch to instructions from professional teachers, the entire spectacle flanked by anachronistic eateries such as McDonald's and Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, with neon signs of Spiderman and Buzz Lightyear flashing down.

Coming on the heels of the Obama White House also encouraging yoga with its annual Yoga Garden event during Easter, the growing acceptance and popularity of the ancient Indian practice is marred only by occasional bouts of pique by conservatives who think it is fronting for Hinduism sneaking into America through the back door.

In California, there is an ongoing court case against a school district that established a yoga program with a $ 500,000 grant from the K Pattabhi Jois Foundation, aimed at helping elementary schools students focus on studies, keep calm, and contain aggressive behavior.

But some parents have gone to court, maintaining that the program has a religious connection and violates the line between church and state. Attorneys for the parents have charged that students have been made ''spiritual guinea pigs'' and were encouraged to greet each other with ''Namaste, a religiously laden Hinduism greeting.''

Court proceedings last month included testimony from an Indiana University professor of religious study who agreed that the yoga program was filled with religious elements and can serve as an introduction to Hinduism, and a live demonstration in court by the instructor of the poses she taught, during which she maintained there was no religious content to what she taught. It also turned out the that judge hearing the case himself practiced Bikram yoga, which he likened to simple stretching exercises.

"If you think there's something spiritual about what I do, that's news to me," he told the attorneys, as they argued about terms such as yama and niyama, samadhi and samskruthi.

No such doubts attended the enthusiasts at Times Square, which on Friday became Yoga's Om Sweet Om.

11-yr-old genius makes it to Harvard University

Mexico City: Armed with an IQ comparable to that of Alberto Einstein, 11-year-old Luis Roberto Ramírez of Zamora, Mexico, is headed to Harvard University to study quantum physics and engineering, the Huffington Post reported.

“My dream is to start a company and sell my devices,” Ramírez was quoted as saying by Spain’s El Mundo.

The multitalented Ramírez also has an ease for languages. He taught himself English at age 5, and he’s since moved on to learning French and Chinese, according to Terra. “His learning level progresses in giant leaps,” his proud father Roberto Ramírez told Mexican newspaper Milenio.

“It’s incredible how he retains information and the way he expresses himself, not to mention the goals and the vision he has.”

However, a Harvard representative was quoted as saying by the Huff Post that no school records of the boy was found even though media claims that the boy is going to attend classes at Harvard.

2 supercomputers from Pune in world's fastest 100

PUNE: Two of the four supercomputers in the country that feature in the top 100 in the list of 500 fastest supercomputers in the world, are from Pune. While the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) supercomputer stands 36th in the list, ParamYuva II, developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced computing (C-DAC) has bagged the 69th position.

The IITM supercomputer is yet to be installed while the Param Yuva II became operational from February 8 this year.

The list of top 500 supercomputers in the world was announced on Tuesday during the launch of the opening session of the International Supercomputing Conference in Leipzig, Germany.

Rajat Moona, director general, C-DAC said, "This is a major step for the country (for two of its supercomputers) to figure in the top 100 fastest supercomputers in the world. Over the years, India was losing its position in the supercomputer area in the world. In 2008, India had 10 machines in the top 500, but after that there was a bit of a downfall. In contrast, in 2004, China was nowhere on the scene but in the latest list, its supercomputer has taken the top ranking."

Moona said that India has taken a major step in the latest rankings and has more potential to move up as there is a huge demand for supercomputing in the country. He said that the union government is also looking at making an investment of Rs 5,000 crore in this area over the next five years.

Moona said, "There is a so much of high-end work being done in the area of weather forecasting, fluid dynamics, air borne bodies, ship movement, disaster management, design of earthquake prone structures that need massive supercomputing infrastructure. As a result of this need, the supercomputing infrastructure is also improving and has led to an improvement in world rankings for the country."

The Param Yuva II has a capacity of 524 teraflops and within three weeks of launching it was already running with a load of 70% of its capacity. Precise weather forecasting, faster tapping of natural resources in the sea and designing of customised drugs for individuals are some of the applications possible using Param Yuva II. It also promises to be energy efficient with 35% reduction in energy consumption as compared to other supercomputers.

The IITM supercomputer will start functioning in the next two to three months, Suryachandra Rao, chief programme scientist, department of high performance computing, IITM said. Rao said, "The supercomputer, once installed, will boost research in weather and climate forecasting as well as air pollution." Rao said that the process of installing the supercomputer was in progress and within one week of installation, it will be running. All the institutes under the union ministry of earth sciences will be using the IITM supercomputer facility.

Pride of place

Four supercomputers from India make it to fastest 100, of which two are from Pune

Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) supercomputer stands 36th

Param Yuva II of Centre for Development of Advanced computing (C-DAC), gets 69th position

In 2008, India had 10 machines in the top 500, but had lost its position over the years

China, which was nowhere until 2004, got the top ranking this year

Sai Praneeth stuns second seed Yun in Singapore

SINGAPORE: Rising Indian shuttler Sai Praneeth B notched up a stunning straight-game victory over world number four Yun Hu of Hong Kong in the men's singles opening round in the Singapore Super Series on Wednesday.

The world number 61 Indian brushed aside the second seeded shuttler 21-9, 21-10 in a match that lasted 30 minutes at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

The 20-year-old from Hyderabad, who had spoilt former world and Olympics champion Taufik Hidayat's farewell in Indonesia, will next take on the winner between RMV Gurusaidutt and Wei Feng Chong in the second round.

Praneeth had lost to Yun in straight games at the Vietnam International Challenge in 2009.

However, all other Indians suffered defeats in the opening round to crash out of the tournament.

Ajay Jayaram went down fighting 19-21, 21-18, 17-21 against fourth seed Kenichi Tago of Japan, while top seed Pengyu Du sent Anand Pawar packing 21-16, 21-13 in another men's singles match.

Another rising shuttler Sourabh Varma was defeated 17-21, 17-21 by Wing Ki Wong in another men's singles opening round match which lasted for 37 minutes.

In women's singles, Arundhati Pantawane lost to world number 26 Bulgarian Petya Nedelcheva 18-21, 18-21, while PC Thulasi put up a gallant fight against world number 14 Indonesian Lindaweni Faetri before going down 23-21, 16-21, 16-21 in an energy-sapping 66-minute match.

In mixed doubles competition, Indian pair of Tarun Kona and Ashwini Ponnappa lost to third seeds Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir 6-21, 10-21, while Arun Vishnu and Aparna Balan suffered a 17-21, 21-19, 12-21 loss to Thai combo of Songphon Anugritayawon and Kunchala Voravichitchaikul.

Soon, a car that makes stopping at traffic lights history

Wellington: A car maker from Germany is developing a technology that calculates the amount of time before an upcoming set of traffic lights turn red, and tell driver the ideal speed needed to navigate roads and intersections.

Audi in Germany has joined forces with Berlin authorities in a trial that taps into the city's central traffic management system, Stuff.co.nz reported.

Audi Germany technology and innovation spokesman, Tim Frozek , said that their car is linked wirelessly to the central computer of the city of Berlin, and every second they get a ping from the computer telling them about the status of the traffic lig

hts.

He said that they transfer that info into graphics on the driver information display giving them two options, on one hand they have the possibility to let them know how long the red phase of the traffic light will last, and in the other they tell them about the speed they should use to reach next green light.

Audi has received strong interest in the technology from the US and other countries abroad, meanwhile, BMW is also trialling a similar program for its new vehicles.

ANI 

Man survives 15th floor fall in New Zealand

PTI

Melbourne: In a miraculous save, a young British man, who was slightly "tipsy", has survived a fall from the 15th floor of a building in New Zealand. Twenty-year-old

Tom Stilwell fell from his neighbours' balcony in his apartment block in Auckland yesterday, while trying to lower himself onto his balcony, which was directly below his neighbours'.

According to his friends, Stilwell had bone fractures and internal injuries, but was "fine" and "a very lucky man". Stilwell is said to be in New Zealand on a working holiday. Stilwell found himself locked out of his flat early yesterday, and asked a neighbour if he could climb from her balcony into his flat, his friends said.

The neighbour, Geraldine Bautista, told the New Zealand Herald that Stilwell was "a little tipsy" but polite. "I wasn't scared of him - he just requested 'Can you please let me jump off from the balcony? I will not bother you, just let me use your balcony,'" said Bautista.

"I never thought he would really do that. In my mind I thought 'Okay, I'll just let you see that it's really impossible. I didn't think he'd jump, because it's really scary," she said. However, he quickly pulled himself over the balcony railing before she could stop him, Bautista said.

Stilwell's fall was broken by the roof of an adjacent building some 13 floors below. Tony Smith, a medical director at St John, an emergency health-care organisation, said that a person's chances of survival were increased if they were able to break their fall on something. Smith, however, said that "survival from falls of that height are extraordinarily unusual".

India beat Pakistan by eight wickets, surge to top of table

BIRMINGHAM: This tournament had turned out to be bad for Pakistan, but Messrs Duckworth and Lewis made it worse on Saturday. Their big-ticket clash against India was supposed to be a last chance at redemption but the match was marred by unrelenting bursts of shower and a painfully prolonged end. India, however, still prevailed with ease.

The 50-over match was first cut down to 40 overs a side. That was curtailed further when India began their chase of a revised target of 168 after Pakistan had scored 165 all out in 39.4 overs batting first. Subsequently, another heavy burst of shower further reduced the target to just 39 runs off 63 balls, and India chased it down with 17 balls and eight wickets remaining.

The match, meant to be a dead rubber, was played like a final - the way fans had expected and the occasion was built-up. But in the end, Pakistan's misery only continued while India bagged another win to top the table. They will head to the semifinal in Cardiff riding on greater confidence.

It was a toss any captain would've desperately wanted to win. With clouds constantly hovering over Edgbaston and the possibility of a shower always around, the idea of batting second on a flat wicket, in conditions where sun tends to come out later in the day, always looked a better choice. But Misbah-ul Haq, who'll have many questions to answer when he gets home, lost the toss of the coin to his Indian counterpart MS Dhoni.

It was a shaky start for Pakistan with Bhuvneshwar Kumar seizing the early initiative to have opener Nasir Jamshed caught at second slip. The ball had moved off the pitch, but not so blatantly as to shock the batsmen.

Scoring freely seemed a possibility when Mohammad Hafeez and Kamran Akmal worked on a 46-run stand for the second wicket and the middle-order - consisting of Asad Shafiq, Misbah and Umar Amin - kept adding to their tally.

In fact, such was the strokeplay between these batsmen that from being on the mat as early as in the third over, Pakistan posted a 100 runs in the next 145 balls and from there kept accelerating at almost six runs an over.

Twice, rain marred their innings but not to the extent that conditions changed or the overs got further reduced.

Barring Ravindra Jadeja, once again the pick of India's attack, R Ashwin and an improved Umesh Yadav, India plucked wickets at regular intervals and an amazing set of fielders made the proceedings more difficult for Pakistan.

Dhoni once again made impressive use of the DRS system, serving another reminder to the Indian board of the manner in which it has helped the team here. Meanwhile, only the grass turned greener for Pakistan as rains twice lashed the outfield just when Misbah's men began facing the pressure against an in-form India.

When the chase began, the target - after calculating Pakistan's scoring rate - was set at 168 and openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma appeared to continue from where they'd left off against the West Indies. Scores of Pakistan supporters who had walked in on Saturday morning began filing out early, sensing a lost cause. The aggressive Dhawan pulled and cut with immaculate timing and ease as the Pak attack got blown apart.

Indira Gandhi International airport in Delhi gets world's second best airport award

PTI

New Delhi: Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport has been named the world's second best airport in the 25-40 million passengers category by the Airport Council International. The best airport in this category is the Seoul Incheon in South Korea.

The airport also has been adjudged as the fourth best in the world among 199 airports across all categories.

A nine-member team, comprising representatives from airport operator Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), Central Industrial Security Force, Airport Operations Control and Air India received the 'ACI ASQ Award' at an award ceremony organised by the Airport Council International (ACI) in Istanbul, Turkey on Thursday.

"This recognition is testimony to the efforts of all our employees and partners who have consistently met the expectations of the industry," DIAL CEO I Prabhakar Rao said.

IGI airport scored 4.83 out of 5 on the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) scale.

IGI has managed to retain its position of second best airport in the 25-40 million passengers per annum category for 2012 year.

The airport had an ASQ score of 3.02 in 20

07 and ranked last among the 101 participating airports of the world.

The airport has an annual capacity of over 60 million passengers, but in 2012, around 34.2 million passengers passed through it.

IGI handled around 550,000 tonnes of cargo and over 300,000 aircraft movements during the same period.

Since its inception in 2006, the ASQ Awards have become the world's leading airport passenger satisfaction benchmark with over 275 airports participating in it.

The ASQ Awards recognise and reward the best airports in the world based on ACI's ASQ passenger satisfaction survey done on uniform format worldwide and represent an opportunity to celebrate the commitment of airports worldwide to continually improve passenger experience.