Strange but true: European rock ants tend to lean left at crossroads |
- Strange but true: European rock ants tend to lean left at crossroads
- Dear Isma, women weren’t made just to serve men
- Jets brush on New York taxiway as fog delays flights
- Bittersweet Christmas for Gazans after bloody summer war
- More romance, less sex: Turkish soap operas take Latin America by storm
- Asian stocks gain as US economy growth beats expectations
| Strange but true: European rock ants tend to lean left at crossroads Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:52 PM PST
Many creatures, including humans, show a preference for one side over the other in movement or the senses. 90 per cent of humans, for example, are right-handed, while the European honeybee relies predominantly on its right eye for detecting objects, said the study in the journal Biology Letters of the British Royal Society. When it comes to behaviour, the common American cockroach has a bias for turning right in a Y-shaped tube, and giant water bugs mainly opt left in underwater T mazes. In animals with spines, like humans, such asymmetry is thought to be linked to the different specialisation of the two lobes of the brain, and to allow them to carry out two tasks simultaneously. A team from the universities of Bristol and Oxford decided to test whether European rock ants (Temnothorax albipennis) showed any lateral bias. In one experiment, scouting ants from eight colonies were observed while exploring a brand new nest. Groups of scouts turned left in 35 cases after entering the nest, and right in 19. The second test involved a maze with lanes that branched out into two-pronged forks. From the second fork onwards, the ants opted left more often — 50 times compared with 30 right turns. "No scientific experiment is ever conclusive but we think this is good evidence for a left-turning bias by usual statistical standards," study co-author Edmund Hunt of the University of Bristol told AFP. And the observed bias was strong enough to be "significant at the population level", the study paper said. The authors theorised that such lateral preference would reduce the predation risk of individuals, resulting in most members of the colony herding together in the same place. "The ants may be using their left eye to detect predators and their right to navigate," Hunt added. "Also, their world is maze-like, and consistently turning one way is a very good strategy to search and exit mazes." — AFP  |
| Dear Isma, women weren’t made just to serve men Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:51 PM PST DECEMBER 24 ― Liberals, feminists and Christians are currently the biggest threats to Malays and Muslims in Malaysia. I think that's a neat summary of the year's headlines, don't you? While we all wish groups like Isma would go away, it is important that people respond to them. The response should ideally be, "You're being silly. That's not how life or feminism works." What bothers me the most about Isma? Well, tt makes me sad hearing about women demeaning women. I am wife first, mother second, and doctor third, crows one Isma spokesperson. Well, I am so glad you are not my doctor. The reality is that we all wear multiple hats at times. Women are mothers, sisters, lovers, teachers, mentors, bosses and sometimes all at the same time. I think we should stop pretending that one role is more important than another; it is just a matter of prioritising different things at different times. When you are a doctor, your patient should have your full attention ― you are, after all, literally holding a person's life in your hands. A wrong diagnosis, a badly considered prescription, a slip of the scalpel if you're a surgeon: it is no wonder doctors need so much training with the consequences they must live with in their profession. If you are thinking about your child when you are at work, that can be a problem. Of course, sometimes it can't be helped. Maybe you don't have a sitter; perhaps your child is ill. That management of time and priorities can be difficult but many women manage and do the best they can. To make your husband the centre of your universe, though... Isma's perception that a wife should put being a wife above everything else is problematic. To have your husband matter more than your kids or job ― if your husband leaves you, at least a job will keep you and your kids fed. Trusting a human being is one thing, but putting all your trust in one human being? Dangerous. As many an abandoned wife will attest. That's the problem with the patriarchal notions so entrenched within our society. Weddings are glamourised and it seems the pinnacle of a woman's achievement is to land a good husband. Why is it not important for men to take their roles as husbands as seriously as women are supposed to take their roles as wives? Why are women so pressured to "keep" their husbands by looking after their looks, pleasing him at home and trying to be the perfect partner? If it were up to Isma, women would just be the equivalent of maids and escorts. In that case, why not just replace women with blowup dolls and robot maids? These replacements wouldn't know how to complain ― they are built to serve and obey. Let women do and be where they want ― whether it be the boardroom or the living room. If bringing up children is what a woman wants, leave her to it. But don't demonise her for deciding she needs a life outside of making sure her husband sleeps well at night. Women deserve to live in a world where they are not considered any less valuable than men. Until we drum that into the heads of all men, we will one day have to look forward to a future where militants sell and trade women like cattle the way IS fighters. It is already a reality ― it is really up to us if we want to make that our reality. *This is the personal opinion of the columnist. |
| Jets brush on New York taxiway as fog delays flights Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:51 PM PST
The LaGuardia incident didn't disrupt operations, and the US Federal Aviation Administration is investigating why the aircraft brushed on a taxiway. A Denver-bound Southwest Airlines flight suffered winglet damage in the collision with a recently arrived American Airlines jet. No one was injured. The events punctuated the last full travel day before traffic starts to taper on Christmas Eve, one of the lightest periods in the Dec. 17-Jan. 4 holiday season tracked by the Airlines for America trade group. The Washington-based A4A predicts 45 million people will fly during the period. US delays exceeded 4,900 by 6:30pm New York time, according to industry data tracker FlightAware, with Houston's Bush Intercontinental logging the most tardy trips. Dallas-Fort Worth, Philadelphia, and LaGuardia also were among the hub airports crimped by low visibility. Damage to wingtips and tails is a common outcome when planes touch while taxiing, and that was the case in the LaGuardia episode. The Southwest plane was carrying 148 people including crew and the American flight carried 149 total. Stabiliser, Winglet American Flight 1104 was rolling to its gate after touching down from Dallas when its left horizontal stabiliser struck the winglet of the departing Southwest jet, according to e-mailed statements from the carriers and US officials. The two Boeing Co 737 jets brushed at 10:49am New York time on the taxiway running around LaGuardia's main terminals. There was no immediate indication that weather was involved, and visibility at the time was at about 2 miles in mist, according to weather data compiled by FlightAware. An overcast layer at 400 feet may have complicated landings, but not ground movements. The Southwest plane was taken out of service, and American was assessing its aircraft, according to the companies' statements. At the end of the day, most people will make it to their final destination. There were only 500 cancellations reported by FlightAware, compared with some peak days last winter at 10 or more times that many. FlightAware showed 111 cancellations so far for Christmas Eve. Mild weather in much of the US gave fliers a break from the frigid conditions typically associated with late-December travel in the northern parts of the country. LaGuardia was at 7º Celsius at about 3pm New York time, and the National Weather Service forecast that tomorrow's high will top out near 14º Celsius in New York's Central Park. — Bloomberg |
| Bittersweet Christmas for Gazans after bloody summer war Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:45 PM PST
Her family applied for Israeli permits to leave the Gaza Strip and travel to Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas in the not-so-little town in the West Bank where Jesus was born. Although her parents received them, she and her older brother and sister did not. This year, Israel granted around 500 permits to Palestinian Christians, allowing them to travel from Gaza to the West Bank so they can visit Bethlehem's Nativity church and attend the traditional midnight mass. "Christmas is a happy time but it's also a bit sad because I didn't get the permit to go with my parents," Sara admits. Her mother, Abeer Mussad, spoke of a "joy tinged with sadness" as she and her husband celebrate Christmas Day in Bethlehem without their children who will tomorrow be "meeting Santa at church in Gaza". "He will give us our presents," says Sara who will stay with her older sister and celebrate Christmas at St Porphyrius Greek Orthodox church in Gaza City. In Gaza, the adults have done everything they can to ensure the holiday is not spoilt, but nobody can forget the deadly 50-day summer war which killed nearly 2,200 Palestinians and left the densely populated territory in ruins. "We're going to celebrate Christmas in order to forget the suffering of the war," says 60-year-old Umm George, who lost her sister in the conflict and will be one of those travelling to Bethlehem. In streets which still bear the scars of war, shops are spruced up with Christmas decorations and ornamented trees covered in sweets take pride of place in front windows. Heart not in it For most of Gaza's tiny community of some 3,500 Christians, 85 per cent of whom are Greek Orthodox, they must make do with celebrating at home after failing to obtain the small slip of paper issued by Israel which would have allowed them to leave the enclave and travel the 70 kilometres (43 miles) to Bethlehem. Abdullah Jakhan is one of them. He and his fiancee Janet applied to celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem, but they were both turned down. Now they will have to make do in Gaza. Just four months after the end of the war, it would be inappropriate to engage in too much celebration, Jakhan says. "We want a joyful celebration, but the blood of the martyrs which flowed during the war is still fresh. Because of this we can't be completely happy," he tells AFP. "We will celebrate mass and have a small, simple party with family and friends in light of the circumstances in Gaza." Tony al-Masri, 60, has also just put up a tree at home but his heart isn't really in it. "Inside, I feel sad for my people who have suffered a war," he says. "The war affected all of us here, Christians and Muslims, so today I am praying for peace and unity." But other concerns also feature at the top of their prayer list. George, 38, who prefers not to give his family name, is praying for an end to Islamic extremism and attacks on Christians. "Even if there aren't many of them, like those in the Islamic State movement, they don't want us to celebrate our Christian feasts," he says. "And they wouldn't hesitate to attack us, as they have already done," he adds, referring to an incident in February when unidentified attackers left an explosive device inside the compound of the Church of the Latin Convent in Gaza City. — AFP |
| More romance, less sex: Turkish soap operas take Latin America by storm Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:44 PM PST
In exchange for the money she desperately needs to treat her son's leukemia, Sehrazat, a widowed architect, reluctantly agrees to spend the night with Onur, her powerful boss, who falls hopelessly in love with her, setting off a torrid chain reaction that has captivated Chileans for months. Dubbed in Spanish by Chilean actors, "Thousand and One Nights" has achieved an audience share not seen in years in the South American country, reversing the sinking fortunes of the channel airing it. The phenomenon has caused TV executives across Latin America to start importing Turkish series to a region more used to exporting its own telenovelas ― prime-time soap operas such as "Ugly Betty" ― around the world. Chilean channel Mega was a struggling network when it bought "Thousand and One Nights" after the program was turned down by Canal 13, one of the country's leading broadcasters. The series began airing in March and soon became the most-viewed show of the year, pulling the rest of Mega's programming by its coattails. The channel now has the top news show and morning program, as well, and is the only Chilean network on track to turn a profit in 2014. That success has sent other Chilean broadcasters scrambling to buy their own Turkish series, including Canal 13. Mega has meanwhile signed up two more Turkish shows, "What is Fatmagul's Fault?" and "Ezel." Breaking into the Americas Other Latin American networks have taken note. Sehrazat and Onur are now playing out their burning romance in Colombia and set to premier in Uruguay, Brazil, Ecuador and Peru. The series has also been sold in Argentina and Bolivia. That represents a coup for Turkish television, whose soaps have faithful audiences in dozens of countries across Europe and the Middle East but had never cracked the Americas. "We took a long time to break into the Latin American market," said Izzet Pinto, head of Turkish distributor Global Agency. "But we managed to enter the region this year. We were lucky to have a lot of success in Chile, and that opened up other markets," he told television industry website TodoTV News. Francisco Villanueva, vice president at Miami-based distributor Somos Distribution, said his firm had sold "about 10" Turkish series ― either adaptation rights or complete productions ― in five Latin American countries. "Interest is growing and we're getting a lot of business proposals," he told AFP. "Turkish soap operas are excellent from the point of view of the stories, narrative and artistic and technical elements," he said. "The casting is very much in sync with our region and very attractive, with exotic exteriors that place a high value on production and extraordinary directing and camera work." More romance, less sex The Turkish soaps are classic melodramas with lots of romance and minimal sex. "People like the old, traditional format, the classic script, the love triangle, where the baddies are really bad and the hero suffers throughout," said Francisco Cortes, head of telenovelas at Chilean broadcaster TVN. Sociologist Manuela Gumucio, head of the Chilean media observatory, said the Turkish soaps "have a very traditional romantic element, which are ultimately these universal formats that never get old." The Turkish invasion comes at a time when Latin America's own soaps have turned toward erotically charged dramas and "narco-telenovelas" that revolve around drug trafficking. TV critic Rene Naranjo said Turkey's soaps appealed to an audience weary of that trend. "Latin American series have drifted toward more violent plots with a more visible sexual element, abandoning their main audience: women over 45," he said. In Chile, Mega's success has forced other networks to overhaul their own programming. Last week Canal 13 premiered "The Magnificent Century," a period drama starring Halit Ergenc, the actor who plays Onur in "Thousand and One Nights" ― now a celebrity in Chile. Based on the life of 16th-century Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, the series was a smash hit in Turkey, where fast food chain Burger King even launched an "Ottoman" hamburger topped with hummus. "There's a seasonal effect in television. Whatever is successful sells," said Naranjo. "And that creates a multiplier effect." ― AFP |
| Asian stocks gain as US economy growth beats expectations Posted: 23 Dec 2014 04:42 PM PST
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.4 per cent to 137.36 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.2 per cent yesterday to a record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed above 18,000 for the first time. US gross domestic product expanded at a 5 per cent annual rate from July through September, surpassing the previous government estimate of 3.9 per cent and the median forecast of 4.3 per cent from 75 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. "The market is taking some comfort from the power of the US economy," Michael McCarthy, a chief strategist at CMC Markets in Sydney, said by phone today, adding that stocks may keep gaining through year-end. "The calm from the Federal Reserve statement last week has been a major contributor to this rally, combined with the US GDP data overnight." Fed Chair Janet Yellen said last week the central bank will likely hold key rates near zero at least through the first quarter. The Topix index rallied 1.1 per cent as Japanese markets resumed trading following yesterday's holiday. The yen weakened against the greenback for a fifth day yesterday. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will be confirmed as prime minister by lawmakers again today after last week's sweeping victory in elections. South Korea's Kospi index was little changed. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped 0.2 per cent. New Zealand's NZX 50 Index added 0.1 per cent. Trading shuts early today in Sydney, Wellington, Hong Kong and Singapore. Markets in China and Japan are open tomorrow, with most of the rest of the region closed for Christmas holidays. Futures on Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index were little changed in their most recent trading session. The Shanghai Composite Index yesterday declined 3 per cent, retreating from a four-year high, amid concern a world-beating rally over the past month was excessive relative to the outlook for the economy. — Bloomberg |
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