How sniffer dogs are trained

Heavy fighting was reported on Tuesday in frontline towns near the eastern city of Donetsk, where Ukrainian officials said Russian troops were launching waves of attacks as they tried to seize control of the industrialised Donbas region. - A + A KYIV (Aug 9): Russia unleashed ground forces, air strikes and artillery as it pressed ahead with a grinding offensive designed to complete its capture of eastern Ukraine, but Kyiv said its troops were putting up fierce resistance and holding the line. Heavy fighting was reported on Tuesday in frontline towns near the eastern city of Donetsk, where Ukrainian officials said Russian troops were launching waves of attacks as they tried to seize control of the industrialised Donbas region. "The situation in the region is tense — shelling is constant throughout the front line ... The enemy is also using air strikes a great deal," Pavlo Kyrylenko, governor of the Donetsk region, one of two that makes up Donbas, told Ukrainian … [Read more...] about Moscow steps up assault in eastern Ukraine as Kyiv calls for ‘ban’ on Russians

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 9): Malaysia and Indonesia deepened their defence cooperation with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Tuesday (Aug 9), encompassing five main scopes. Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the MOU involves the sharing of information on defence issues, as well as cooperation between the two armed forces at various levels including exchange of officers, military training and education. “Apart from that, it also covered bilateral dialogue and negotiations on strategic defence and military issues based on joint interest in defence science and technology, as well as defence industry,” he said in a statement. Earlier, Hishammuddin and Republic of Indonesia Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto chaired the 42nd General Border Committee meeting between Malaysia and Indonesia at Wisma Perwira here. Hishammuddin said the meeting focused on efforts to bolster defence cooperation and socio-economic … [Read more...] about Malaysia, Indonesia sign MOU to enhance defence cooperation

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 9): Leong Hup International Bhd's unit Leong Hup Feedmill Malaysia Sdn Bhd (LFM), one of the five feed millers recently issued with a proposed decision by the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC), said that MyCC has proposed to impose a financial penalty of RM157.47 million in the event LFM is found to have infringed the Competition Act 2010. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Tuesday (Aug 9), Leong Hup said that it provided the additional information for the purpose of clarity. Besides the RM157.47 million fine, Leong Hup also said that if LFM is found to have infringed the Act, MyCC proposed to direct LFM to undertake the following: i) to cease and desist from participating and engaging in the alleged anti-competitive horizontal agreement in relation to any discussion on price-related matters pertaining to chicken feed; ii) to submit monthly price-related matters to MyCC including the announcement of price adjustment to customers, a … [Read more...] about Leong Hup’s unit to be fined RM157.47 mil if found to have infringed Competition Act 2010

Congress has spent the last few weeks hammering out next year’s authorizations and funding decisions. advertisement advertisement On the policy side, CHIPS and Science passed in both the House and Senate last week.  On the funding side, policymakers have been reviewing and amending next year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which will provide funding for military space programs. CHIPS and Science The finalized Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act included an authorization bill for NASA–the first new authorization the agency has received in more than five years. Authorization vs. budget: The authorization bill under the CHIPS act is a policy bill, meaning that it didn’t provide or recommend any new funding to the agency. NASA’s funding is determined through the President’s federal budget request , which was released in late March for FY23. advertisement Instead, the authorization … [Read more...] about Congress is busy considering space funding and authorizations

US Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (left) with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen. (Image: AP) As tension rises in the Taiwan Strait following China’s threatening live-fire drills in the wake of Nancy Pelosi’s visit, a tussle between Taiwan and the mainland to influence the world through Mandarin learning centres has come back in focus. Mandarin is spoken widely on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. But as Sino-American relations became strained over trade and technology in the past few years, Washington made a conscious effort to curb Chinese cultural activities in the United States and encouraged Taiwan to fill that space, especially for learning Mandarin. Under Donald Trump’s presidency, the US Congress in 2018 passed a bill to cut funding for Chinese language and culture programmes offered by Confucius institutes at universities that host them. The US State Department labelled the institutes `foreign missions’ of the People’s Republic of China, and part … [Read more...] about China, Taipei battle over projecting soft-power through Mandarin

A crowd at an election rally in Uttar Pradesh. (Image Source: AP/File photo) The prime minister has set the cat among the pigeons, with his fusillade against election freebies while inaugurating the Bundelkhand expressway. He said the culture of garnering votes by promising freebies harms the country’s economic development and warned the youth, ‘Your present will be lost and your future pushed into darkness.’ Those who believe in distributing freebies, he said, would never build infrastructure, sorely needed for securing the country’s future. That little speech succinctly lays out the rationale against populism---it promises instant gratification, at the cost of future penury. Predictably, the speech drew the ire of AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, who defended his trademark policy of giving away free power. His promise of giving 300 units of free power to each household if his party wins the Gujarat elections is estimated to cost the state Rs 8700 crore a year. It is policies such as … [Read more...] about The hidden cost of free lunches

GAS LINES IN AMERICA… Four Governors Declare States Of Emergency Due To Gasoline Shortage Four governors declared states of emergency in response to gas shortages brought on by the Colonial Pipeline hack. Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency on Monday due to his state’s gas shortage. Republicans Govs. Brian Kemp of Georgia and Ron DeSantis of Florida, and Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared states of emergency on Tuesday. Republican South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced that he would not declare a new state of emergency because the state was already in one due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kemp suspended Georgia’s gas taxes, while Cooper eliminated transportation regulations. McMaster instituted anti-price gouging laws. Virginia Republicans called on Northam to suspend the state’s gas tax. CBS NEWS… The South was being hit hardest. Late Monday, almost 6.5% of gas stations in Virginia were out of fuel, … [Read more...] about Editor Daily Rundown: Governors Declare States Of Emergency In Response To Gas Shortages

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin It hides in plain sight in a Seattle neighborhood. A building that would not attract even a hint of curiosity. Inside it’s a bit of a different story as this seemingly bare-bones structure serves as the fulfillment center for Blue Nile , the world’s largest Internet retailer of diamond jewelry. It’s easy to view Blue Nile solely as an early eCommerce success story but perhaps its greatest feat is the ability to produce and ship jewels in a highly efficient manner  based on the individual requirements of an online order. This efficiency is one of the ways it earns the trusts of customers making a highly emotional purchase. The nondescript nature of the facility is due to security concerns. The merchandise is highly valuable, consisting of diamonds, colored gems and precious metals. Inside, multiple doors are used to enter and leave certain areas for security purposes. Workers were not identified in the story for the same … [Read more...] about How Blue Nile Delivered A Million Pieces Of Bridal Jewelry

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The site of this year's Super Bowl was within walking distance of many hotels and all of downtown ... [+] Indy. Sunday’s Super Bowl was the most watched television event in American history, tuned into by nearly half of all households and at peak time, more than 117,000,000 viewers. Ad rates were $3.5 million per 30 second spot, and while viewers debated who was better, an overweight Volkswagen obsessed dog or Clint Eastwood, the real beneficiary of all that airtime and all those viewers was the city of Indianapolis. “Ten years from now, I think we will look back on this one single day as the tipping point in tourism and perception for the city,” said Chris Gahl, Vice President of Marketing for the Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association. Several years ago when the city decided to go for the 2011 Game (it ended up with 2012), the bid process required $25 million in non-taxpayer funds, and several … [Read more...] about Super Bowl XLVI’s Real Winner? Indianapolis!

A fire broke out last night at the US Security Assistance Organisation, or JUSMAGTHAI, on Sathorn Tai Road in Bangkok. The building is located near the German Embassy, but the office was reported to be safe from the blaze. Firefighters from Bonkai Fire and Rescue and Tung Mahamek Fire Station rushed to the scene at 7.35pm to suppress the blaze and had it under control by 7.58pm. The firefighters couldn’t get into the building because it was locked, but it is believed no one was inside. The firefighters had to tackle the fire from the outside. The JUSTMAGTHAI office is a two-story building located near some other three-story buildings belonging to the Royal Thai Army Headquarters. No one was working or living in the area at the time of the fire. The cause of the fire and the damage to the building is under investigation. The media reported that the Embassy of Germany, which is located nearby, was untouched and there were no reports of damage or injuries there. According to … [Read more...] about Blaze at US office near German Embassy in Bangkok