PAS unmoved by Umno’s comical episode — Harakah Daily |
- PAS unmoved by Umno’s comical episode — Harakah Daily
- Can Invisivision kick start a cinematic revolution? (VIDEO)
- Blatter repeats he is ready to stand for a fifth term
- AFP Video: Can Invisivision kick start a cinematic revolution?
- A matter of discipline — Tay Tian Yan
- Drug helps breast cancer patients preserve fertility
| PAS unmoved by Umno’s comical episode — Harakah Daily Posted: 30 May 2014 06:07 PM PDT
It is hoped that this episode will open the eyes of the still Umno-mesmerised Malays and in particular those in Terengganu and galvanise them to reject it in all coming polls whether by-elections or the general election. From day one when the "clownish" MB declared that he had quit Umno after being forcibly removed by his president, we in PAS knew that this was all drama. So dramatic it all was that over social media we had — after the unceremonious return of the "hero" to the fold — a picture of him holding a placard declaring him "best actor for drama 2014" standing beside his boss, Najib. Jokes aside, the man and his two followers just show how much a "struggle" that Umno members and leaders stand for. If just by being shoved off the Menteri Besar's post is reason enough to abandon Umno, just where is the "struggle" that Umno prides itself in? By the way, the rakyat at large are fully aware too of what was really going on behind the scenes. The people say that Umno leaders have a way of getting what they want. Nobody joins Umno for "struggling for the Malays" these days. If they did, they would be deemed fools. Over the past decade or so have we not witnessed how many scandals involving Umno personages have surfaced? And in all, it would be about money or position. So similarly people are talking about what the quantum would have been to "resolve" the "crisis" that unfolded on May 13th. Of course, money does not always have to come into play. One would recall how the former autocrat brought 22 Kedah state assemblymen into line when they objected to his choice of a new MB for Kedah way back in the 1990s. A similar situation could have happened in the Ahmad Said case. The chief just has to open some files to get the belligerent to toe the line. Whatever it was, the best part of the episode was of course PAS' maturity in handling the situation. Deputy president Mohamad Sabu had declared at the outset that PAS would never do another Perak (the action taken by Umno in 2009 by buying over 3 independent reps and bringing down the Pakatan government there) but instead would go for a motion of no confidence in the new MB at the next Assembly sitting. But events moved so fast that this became unnecessary. The rakyat can now judge the quality of the Umno-BN leadership following the Terengganu debacle. What is needed is boldness — to remove BN from power once and for all at all coming elections. And Terengganu provides such an opportunity with the BN's wafer-thin majority of 2 seats in the State Assembly. — harakahdaily.net * This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.  |
| Can Invisivision kick start a cinematic revolution? (VIDEO) Posted: 30 May 2014 06:05 PM PDT SAN FRANCISCO, May 31 — At first glance, they might look like the 3D glasses that ushers hand out at the local multiplex every time the latest instalment of a superhero franchise hits the big screen, but they could revolutionise everything from traditional visual storytelling to gaming and advertising. It's a big boast, and to prove that it's one being made in all seriousness, PipeDream Interactive, the company behind the glasses, has turned to crowdfunding not just to build an aesthetically pleasing production version but also to fund the making of a film that will showcase the technology's capabilities. Invisivision uses interchangeable filters that can be raised or lowered over the eye to reveal or to hide extra visual information. Rather than pioneering a new technology, the glasses have found a new use for stereoscopic 3D — where two slightly offset images of the same scene are broadcast together to create the illusion of depth for any viewer sporting 3D glasses. It's how 3D TVs work and it's how blockbuster movies are screened. The idea behind Invisivision is to use stereoscopic 3D to stream two completely different or complementing images that can be revealed or hidden by raising or lowering one of the headset's filters. A second layer of visual information So the second stream could contain subtitles or show the action from a completely different perspective or offer annotations and other 'Easter eggs.' All of which would offer a new way of seeing and potentially a new way of telling stories, of revealing plot devices or keeping them hidden, or of providing exposition.
But because a pair of dark glasses with hinged lenses alone aren't usually enough to get Hollywood excited, no matter how cool they look, Invisivision wants to make an innovative film in order to showcase the potential. The short, entitled "Propose-Coloured Glasses," has already been written and the services of director Glenn Forbes and actors Aaron Ashmore and J.P. Manoux have been secured. PipeDream Interactive has even managed to reach agreements with cinemas in Canada and the US to screen the finished film. All that's missing from the puzzle is the US$200,000 (RM643,200) budget to make it happen, hence turning to Kickstarter. For a pledge of US$15, a backer can get a line of dialogue in the finished film and for just US$25 can snap up a pair of the glasses which, when not being used to their full multi-layered storytelling potential, will still work perfectly well as standard 3D glasses for going to the movies. However, with just 19 days left for the campaign to run, Invisivision has so far managed to raise just 10 percent of its target, suggesting that a site like Kickstarter might not be the best approach to getting the technology into the hands of Hollywood executives, as intriguing an idea as it is. — AFP-Relaxnews |
| Blatter repeats he is ready to stand for a fifth term Posted: 30 May 2014 05:59 PM PDT
"During 32 days, the world actuality (news) will be with football and I hope during this time all belligerent activities in the different corners of the world shall stop and then I would say King Football shall reign," he said. The tournament kicks off on June 12 with the final taking place on July 13 at the Maracana Stadium. Blatter, who originally said his current mandate would be his last after being re-elected for a fourth term in 2011, said he would tell the FIFA Congress in Sao Paulo next month that he was willing to stand again if wanted. "I'm not a candidate for the time being," he said in an interview on FIFA's website (www.fifa.com). "My mandate will come to an end in 2015 but my mission is still going on. "A mission is never finished, and I am available to go on with the mission and I will announce that I'm available, but the Congress must say yes or no. "I'm not going there to say: 'I'm yours!' No." "But, in this context, we must have the unity of FIFA and if the unity is going well with the same person, then they may express it during this Congress." The 78-year-old also talked about his suitcase-packing habits. "It will be easy for me because I'm used to travelling and this will not be a problem. I always do my luggage myself." "It will be the tenth (World Cup) in a row, my fifth as president, but I have the same feeling as an actor going on the stage and it will be a great World Cup. "It's something very special, because we are back in the country where the real football is played, big football is played." — Reuters |
| AFP Video: Can Invisivision kick start a cinematic revolution? Posted: 30 May 2014 05:58 PM PDT At first glance, they might look like the 3D glasses that ushers hand out at the local multiplex every time the latest installment of a superhero franchise hits the big screen, but they could revolutionise everything from traditional visual storytelling to gaming and advertising. ― AFP-Relaxnews Related Articles |
| A matter of discipline — Tay Tian Yan Posted: 30 May 2014 05:57 PM PDT
He cited the examples of China, South Korea and Japan, adding that people from those countries are generally more self disciplined and confident, and they have stronger and more versatile personalities to face the crisis. On that evening of Thomas Cup finals, I watched the entire program like many fellow Malaysians, and indeed I had the same feeling as Ng. Before the game even started, we could see the difference between the players from Japan and Malaysia. The Japanese looked confident and proud while our players lacked that confidence. I am not an expert in the badminton game, and only played it occasionally when I was much younger. I wouldn't say my opinion has been objective and unbiased, but after watching the whole program, I personally had a very powerful feeling that technically we were never inferior to the Japs although our boys did make a lot of mistakes and were less adaptable than their Japanese opponents. We were defeated in the end largely because we paled in our psychological build-up. Ng talked about "spoiled kid" factor during his recent interview with Sin Chew Daily. As a matter of fact, this same issue is encountered by all nations, in particular China, largely because of the country's one-child policy. Many young people are the only kids in their respective families and were therefore spoiled by their parents when they were young. But then why China produced so many world champions? Talking about this, I have no choice but to touch on the differences in the badminton systems in different countries. This invariably brings me back to BAM's reform joke last year and the ensuing disciplinary issues in relation to not just the players but also coaches. BAM was having a re-election last July. The newly elected president Tan Sri Mahaleel Tengku Ariff soon announced the hiring of Tan Aik Mong as the talent management group director while implementing a series of major reforms. Unfortunately such actions backfired. First, the resignation of men singles coach Rashid Sidek, and then Tan himself resigned after only 18 days in office and Rashid dramatically returned to the national team. I'm sure many badminton enthusiasts in this country can still recall this incident. What I would like to say is that if a coach can come and go this easily, where is the credibility of the BAM? And how do we expect our players to be disciplined and build up a formidable team spirit? Ng said both China and South Korea are very particular about team discipline, and that their players are only allowed home once every two weeks after training. But in Malaysia, some of our players just skip training after only two days. If this is true, I wont' be surprised at all why all the youth champions we have produced could not last long and grow into Lee Chong Wei number two. Celebrated Chinese badminton coach Li Mao has coached the players from China, South Korea and Malaysia, and he has a perfect understanding of the badminton ecosystem in these three countries. In a recent interview, Li highlighted the differences between Korean and Chinese players. He said, "The Korean coach is like a father, the Korean badminton association the grandfather, while the players are like the children. In China, the kids have listen to the father, but in Korea, they have to listen to the grandpa, while the coach is only responsible for the training and has no say in the trainees' life." Then how about between Malaysia and Korea? You must wonder how Li would reply. He said, "In Korea, the coach has the absolute power to determine whether a player should go or leave, but in Malaysia, a really good layer can act like boss!" After so many years we are still having a very near brush with the Cup. I doubt what Li Mao has to say about our new generation players this time, and whether he agrees to what Ng Chin Chai has to say, that our players are still that "bossy." It is our hope that Malaysian players will buck up a little and prove with their actions and performances that the BAM secretary has been wrong. — mysinchew.com * This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.
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| Drug helps breast cancer patients preserve fertility Posted: 30 May 2014 05:54 PM PDT CHICAGO, May 31 — Young women undergoing chemotherapy for certain types of breast cancer may be able to preserve their fertility by adding the drug goserelin to their treatment, researchers said yesterday. The cancer drug also appeared to improve survival, according to the results of a phase III clinical trial unveiled at the American Society for Clinical Oncology annual meeting. Early menopause can be triggered by breast cancer chemotherapy. Some women resume menstruating after chemo and can have children, but many cannot. "I think these findings are going to change our clinical practice," said senior study author Kathy Albain of Loyola University Medical Center. Some 49,000 women under 50 are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the United States, making up about a quarter of all breast cancer cases. About 15 per cent of young women have cancers that are hormone receptor negative, and these are the women who could benefit from taking goserelin to essentially put the ovaries at rest during chemo, researchers said. The study randomly assigned 131 patients to receive standard chemotherapy and 126 to receive chemotherapy plus goserelin by injection once every four weeks.
Nearly half (45 per cent) of the women on standard chemo stopped menstruating after two years. Only 20 per cent of the women receiving goserelin had stopped menstruating. Pregnancies were twice as common in the goserelin group — 21 per cent compared to 11 per cent. And 89 per cent of the women taking goserelin had no signs or symptoms of cancer four years later, compared to 78 per cent of those receiving standard chemotherapy. Survival was higher too — 92 per cent in the goserelin group and 82 per cent in the standard chemo group. Albain said women who need to undergo chemo for early breast cancer should consider taking goserelin to prevent premature ovarian failure. Goserelin, known by the brand name Zoladex, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for prostate cancer, certain benign gynaecological disorders and certain breast cancers. — AFP |
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