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Rapid bone growth and underwater breathing: Putting the science of Harry Potter’s universe to the test

In the world of Harry Potter the young wizard undergoes two magical biological transformations: eating Gillyweed to grow gills in order to breathe underwater and drinking Skele-Gro to repair broken bones. Natural Sciences students from the University of Leicester have put these arcane medical practices to the test — and have concluded that a little magic might indeed be required in both situations to make them scientifically […]

Iranian Students Lashed 99 Times Over Coed Party

By THOMAS ERDBRINK May 27, 2016 TEHRAN — More than 30 college students were arrested, interrogated and within 24 hours were each given 99 lashes for attending a graduation party that included men and women, Iran’s judiciary has announced. The punishments, which were believed to be part of a wider crackdown by a judiciary dominated by hard-liners, were meted out in Qazvin, about 90 miles northwest of the capital, […]

Iranian Students Lashed 99 Times Over Party That Included Men and Women

By THOMAS ERDBRINK May 27, 2016 TEHRAN — More than 30 college students were arrested, interrogated and within 24 hours were each given 99 lashes for attending a graduation party that included men and women, Iran’s judiciary has announced. The punishments, which were believed to be part of a wider crackdown by a judiciary dominated by hard-liners, were meted out in Qazvin, about 90 miles northwest of the capital, […]

Brent crude above US$50, is it sustainable?

UAE. Brent crude pushed above key psychological level to trade above $50 for the first time since November 2015. The 85% rally since Brent hit a 12-years low in Jan was supported by multiple factors, mainly oil disruption from major exporters and production cut back by U.S. shale. Meanwhile the double than expected drop in U.S. inventories supported bulls to keep holding their long positions. According to […]

Lack of accurate data threatens to undermine performance of global business' talent and mobility programs

INTERNATIONAL. Inadequate data on workforce mobility is placing firms under increasing pressure as they struggle to deploy global human resource strategies, contain costs and comply with the demands of cross-border regulatory obligations. This is according to EY’s 2015-16 Global Mobility Effectiveness Survey, which provides insights from more than 200 professionals across 35 jurisdictions and 13 industry sectors. The report finds that poor data capture and poor analytics […]

Pakistan Finally Confirms Taliban Leader’s Death in U.S. Strike

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan officially confirmed the death of the former Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour for the first time on Thursday, five days after the American drone strike that killed him on Pakistani soil, raising diplomatic tensions. The official announcement came from Sartaj Aziz, the chief foreign affairs adviser to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, at a news conference in Islamabad. “All indicators confirm that the […]

Shiraz Journal: End of an Art Form? The Persian Rug May Not Be Long for This World

SHIRAZ, Iran — For centuries, Iran’s famed carpets have been produced by hand along the nomad trail in this region of high plains around the ancient city of Shiraz. Sheep grazed in high mountain pastures and shorn only once a year produce a thick, long wool ideal for the tough thread used in carpet making. But high-quality production of hand-woven carpets is no longer sustainable on the […]

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid opens Burj Al Arab Terrace – in pictures

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, is briefed on the construction phases, design, building technologies and the methods used to transport the ‘artificial island’ from Finland to Dubai. Wam Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said the project reflected Dubai’s vision to achieve global leadership in innovation and excellence. Wam Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of […]

Germany and the coming Greek default

|By Matein Khalid| In retrospect, 2016 will go down in German political and economic history as a significant game changer, on the scale of 1989 (fall of the Berlin Wall), 1990 (reunification) and 1999 (the Euro), even 1945 (launch of Deutschemark), 1945 (Third Reich surrenders), 1943 (Stalingrad) and 1933 (Hitler elected). Chancellor Merkel, renamed Mutti Multi kulti, allowed a million migrants to settle in Germany. The far right […]

India says Apple must sell locally-sourced goods to set up stores – source

A pedestrian walks past an Apple iPhone 6 advertisement at an electronics store in Mumbai, India, July 24, 2015. Reuters/Shailesh Andrade/File Photo NEW DELHI India has said Apple Inc must meet a rule obliging foreign retailers to sell at least 30 percent locally-sourced goods if it wishes to open stores in the country, a senior government official told Reuters. Apple is hoping to expand its retail presence […]

Toyota, Uber latest to join forces in ride-hailing rush

The interior of the office of ride-hailing service Uber is seen in this picture in Gurugram, previously known as Gurgaon, on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, April 19, 2016. Reuters/Anindito Mukherjee SAN FRANCISCO Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) said on Tuesday it would invest in on-demand ride-hailing company Uber, the latest in a wave of high-profile moves by automakers to embrace their potential upstart rivals as partners, […]

UAE to allocate 15 per cent of budget to humanitarian aid over four years

The UAE on Tuesday announced that it would allocate 15 per cent of its projected budget to humanitarian contributions over the next four years. Dr Maytha Al Shamsi, Minister of State, made the pledge while addressing a session of the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, highlighting the directives of President Sheikh Khalifa, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, […]

Extreme sports deal with Red Bull sends GoPro flying

A GoPro Hero 3+ camera is seen at the Nasdaq Market Site before before GoPro Inc’s IPO in New York City, June 26, 2014. Reuters/Mike Segar SAN FRANCISCO Shares of GoPro Inc (GPRO.O) got a lift on Tuesday after the struggling action camera maker said it was partnering with extreme sports sponsor Red Bull in a marketing and promotion deal. Briefly a Wall Street favorite following an […]

Methane-producing microbes in California rocks

Deep in vents on the ocean floor, methane-producing microbes feed off chemical reactions between water and rock. Now evidence of this process has been found on land in a freshwater spring in California. A team of scientists report in a new study that they have found evidence of hardy, methane-producing microbes in water that surfaces from deep underground at The Cedars, a set of freshwater springs in […]

OtterBox Rolls Out iPhone Case With Expansion Capabilities

In addition to protecting your iPhone, the new uniVerse Case System from Otterbox also promises to let you expand its battery life, improve its sound quality, and add other functions. The new system, designed for the Apple iPhone 6 and 6s and the iPhone 6 Plus and 6s Plus, allows a user to attach an additional battery, camera lens, or other peripheral to a phone, while still […]

The No. 1 Stock In The World (Revisited)

Microsoft Grants Aid Delivery of Affordable Internet Access Worldwide

Tech giant Microsoft said today that it has awarded grants to entrepreneurs who want to expand Internet access across the world, especially in less prosperous areas that lack affordable access. The company’s Affordable Access Initiative awards grants to startup companies that are developing new technologies to improve Internet access to communities. The goal of the initiative is to “democratize access to the Internet through grants, commercial partnerships, […]

Facebook changes policies on ‘Trending Topics’ after criticism

Reuters/Regis Duvignau/Illustration   SAN FRANCISCO Facebook Inc (FB.O) said on Monday that it had changed some of the procedures for its “Trending Topics” section after a news report alleging it suppressed conservative news prompted a U.S. Congressional demand for more transparency.   The company said an internal probe showed no evidence of political bias in the selection of news stories for Trending Topics, a feature that is […]

Bangladesh Bank heist trail goes cold in Manila as probes falter

MANILA More than three months have passed since $81 million was stolen in a brazen cyber-heist from Bangladesh’s central bank and sent to Manila – yet authorities in the Philippines appear no closer to nabbing those who laundered most of the money through a bank and casinos here. Nobody has been arrested, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) – the nation’s equivalent of the FBI – has […]

World’s first 3D Printed building in Dubai

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, inaugurates the world’s first fully functional 3D-printed building in Dubai on Monday. Dubai: The world’s first fully functional 3D printed building was inaugurated in Dubai by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Monday. […]

Books of The Times: Review: ‘The Morning They Came for Us’ Reports on the Hell of Syria

Books of The Times By MICHIKO KAKUTANI The title of Janine di Giovanni’s devastating new book, “The Morning They Came for Us,” refers to those terrible moments in ordinary Syrians’ lives when the war in their country becomes personal. Those moments when there is a knock on the door and the police or intelligence services take a family member away. Those moments when a government-delivered barrel bomb […]

Jury Hears Closing Arguments in Oracle-Google Copyright Case

A long-standing lawsuit that claims Google’s Android operating system infringes on Oracle’s Java copyright is heading to a jury today for a final decision. Previous court decisions have ruled in Google’s favor, but were partially reversed two years ago by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The complaint, which centers on whether Google’s use of some Java application programming interfaces (APIs) in Android constitutes […]

England’s Ben Stokes out of second Test

England’s Ben Stokes holds his knee before going off injured during day two of the first Test at Headingley. Leeds: England all-rounder Ben Stokes is facing several weeks on the sidelines after being ruled out of the second Test against Sri Lanka with a knee injury. Stokes has been replaced in England’s 12-man squad by Warwickshire all-rounder Chris Woakes. […]

Update: In Egypt, a Setback for Tourism Amid Signs of Hope

By PATRICK SCOTT May 23, 2016 LUXOR, Egypt — After five and a half years of misery, the people in Egypt’s depressed tourism industry had reason for a bit of hope. The United Nations World Tourism Organization on May 11 chose Luxor to host two of its major gatherings later this year, potentially drawing 400 to 600 people and plenty of attention to this ancient city along the Nile […]