CHINA'S-TOP-GUNS

China's next top guns
Hong Kong (CNN)The search is on for China's teen top guns.

China said Monday it has selected 16 high schools to offer pilot training as the country's armed forces seek to attract better qualified recruits.

China shows off new stealth fighter jet
China shows off new stealth fighter jet 02:15
PLAY VIDEO
The schools, in 11 provinces across the country, will recruit 1,000 male junior high school students aged between 14 to 16, the China Daily reported.

Successful applicants will receive flight training and "military standard" physical training in addition to their regular high-school studies.

It's the latest attempt by the People's Liberation Army's air force to attract more talent.

Last year, it said it would require wannabe pilots to take psychological assessments and a flight simulation test.

China's military has traditionally been focused on winning land battles and is now making efforts to improve its air and naval power in the pursuit of what President Xi Jinping has called "balanced strength."

APPLE 6-AND-6PLUS

DIFFERNCE BETWEEN APPLE 6 AND APPLE 6PLUS

                                          APPLE 6                                                  APPLE6 PLUS

Finish                        Silver, Gold, Space Gray               Silver, Gold, Space Gray

Capacity                  16GB    64GB   128GB                   16GB     64GB    128GB

 PRICE              199$    299$   399$                   299$      399$      499$

 Dimensions        length*width*height                          length*width*height 

                             5.44*2.64*0.27inches                   6.22*3.06*0.28inches

                             138.1*67.0*0.27 mm                               158.1*77.8*0.28 mm

Weight:                       4.55 ounces (129 grams)                       6.07 ounces (172 grams)    

Display                     4.7″retina hd display                         5.5''retina hd display

Retina HD display  4.7-inch(diagonal)                                   5.5-inch(diagonal)

                              LED-backlit widscreen                          LED-backlite widescreen

                              Multiscreen-touch display                    Multiscreen-touch display

                              with IPS technology                              with IPS technology

                             1334-by-750-pixel resolution               1920-by-1080-pixel resolution

                             at 326 ppi 1400:1 constrast ratio           at 401 ppi 1300:1 constrast ratio

Chips              A8chip with 64-bit architecture            A8chip with 64-bit architecture

                       M8 motion coprocessor                         M8 motion coprocessor

            

       

          

CUBA

Cuba: Split in Dissident Group

The daughter of Laura Pollán, founder of the dissident group Ladies in White, has split from the organization, signaling divisions over the rapprochement between Cuba and the United States and, perhaps, the end of an era in which the white-clad women symbolized the fight for political freedom. Ms. Pollán’s daughter, Laura Maria Labrada, announced on Thursday that she would leave the group because of differences with its leader, Berta Soler. She said the Ladies in White could no longer use Ms. Pollán’s name or her house, which had been the group’s headquarters. Ms. Pollán died in 2011. Tensions within the group have sharpened since the Dec. 17 thaw between Cuba and the United States, which Ms. Soler opposes and Ms. Labrada supports. Members this month accused Ms. Soler of being autocratic and called for her to resign, leading to a vote on her leadership, which she won.

WHAT -HAPPEN- MALAYSIA AIRLINES

Malaysia Airlines

Founded 1 May 1946; 68 years ago (as Malayan Airways)
Commenced operations 1 October 1972; 42 years ago
Hubs
Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kota Kinabalu International Airport
Secondary hubs Kuching International Airport
Frequent-flyer program
Enrich
Airport lounge Golden Lounge

Alliance Oneworld

The company's headquarters are located on the grounds of Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Selangor, Greater Kuala Lumpur. In August 2014, the Malaysian government's sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional—which then owned 69.37% of the airline—announced its intention to purchase remaining ownership from minority shareholders and de-list the airline from Malaysia's stock exchange, thereby renationalising the airlinE
Malaysia Airlines owns two subsidiary airlines: Firefly and MASwings. The airline focuses on tertiary cities. MASwings focuses on inter-Borneo flights. Malaysia Airlines has a freighter fleet operated by MASkargo, which manages freighter flights and aircraft cargo-hold capacity for all Malaysia Airlines' passenger flights. Malaysia Airlines also provides aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), and aircraft handling services to other companies.
Despite numerous awards from aviation industry, such as the five-star rating from Skytrax (2005-7, 2009, 2012–13; one of just seven airlines in the world with this rating in 2013) and recognition from the World Travel Awards as the leading airline in and to Asia (2010–11, 2013), the airline struggled to cut costs to compete with new, low-cost carriers in the region since the early 2000s.In 2013, the airline initiated a turnaround plan after large losses beginning in 2011 and cut routes to prominent, but unprofitable, long-haul destinations, such as the Americas (Los Angeles and Buenos Aires) and South Africa. Malaysia Airlines also began an internal restructuring and intended to sell units such as engineering and pilot training.

In 2014, Malaysia Airlines lost two aircraft—Flight 370 and Flight 17—in 131 days with a combined 537 passengers, exacerbating the airline's financial troubles and leading to the renationalisation of the airline. Prior to 2014, MAS had one of the world's best safety records—just two fatal accidents in 68 years of operation,including the hijacking in 1977 of Flight 653 that resulted in 100 casualties.

2014 aircraft losses(BIG TRADGEGY)

In 2014, Malaysia Airlines lost two Boeing 777 aircraft within 131 days, with a total of 537 passengers and crew lost. Flight 370 disappeared in an unknown location (most likely in the Southern Indian Ocean) on 8 March with 239 persons aboard, leaving little evidence behind; no debris from the plane has been found. Flight 17 crashed near Donetsk in eastern Ukraine on 17 July with 298 passengers and crew, after it was believed to have been hit with a surface-to-air missile.

Malaysia Airlines was struggling to cut costs to compete with a wave of new, low-cost carriers in the region when Flight 370 vanished on 8 March 2014 without a distress signal. Malaysia Airlines lost RM443.4 million (US$137.4 million) in the first quarter of 2014 The second quarter—the first in the aftermath of Flight 370's disappearance—saw a loss of RM307.04 million (US$97.6 million), which represented a 75% increase over losses from the second-quarter of 2013. Malaysian Airlines has not made a profit since 2010.In the previous three years, Malaysia Airlines had booked losses of: RM1.17 billion (US$356 million) in 2013, RM433 million in 2012, and RM2.5 billion in 2011.Industry analysts expect Malaysia Airlines to lose further market share and face a challenging environment to stand out from competitors while addressing their financial plight.The company's stock, down as much as 20% following the disappearance of Flight 370, had fallen 80% over the previous five years, which contrasts with a rise in the Malaysian stock market of about 80% over the same period.

A month after the disappearance, Malaysia Airlines' chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya acknowledged that ticket sales had declined but failed to provide specific details. This may partially result from the suspension of the airline's advertisement campaigns following the disappearance. In China, where the majority of passengers were from, bookings on Malaysia Airlines were down 60% in March. Mr. Ahmad stated in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that the airline's "primary focus...is that we do take care of the families in terms of their emotional needs and also their financial needs. It is important that we provide answers for them. It is important that the world has answers, as well." In further remarks, Mr. Ahmad said he wasn't sure when the airline could start repairing its image, but that the airline was adequately insured to cover the financial loss stemming from Flight 370's disappearance. In August, the airline warned of poor second-half earnings, citing a 33% decline in average weekly bookings following the loss of Flight 17. Media reported that some flights were largely empty and that the airline had slashed prices well below competitors on several important routes.

Following the loss of Flight 17, there was a spike in resignations from flight crew. In a statement regarding the issue, Malaysia Airlines stated, "Following the MH17 incident, there was a spike in crew resignations, but the number [by late August had] decreased to routinely expected levels. Many cited family pressure as the reason for their resignation due to the MH17 and MH370 tragedies." While there have been claims that as many as 500 cabin crew have resigned,Malaysia Airlines has stated that only 186 cabin crew had resigned between January and July 2014, which is less than 5% and below industry norms.
GOOD NEWS FOR "PASSANGERS"
E-Cigarettes to Be Confined to Carry-On Baggage

 Passengers flying with Malaysia Airlines will now be required to carry their Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in their carry-on baggage. This however does not alter the no-smoking rule in the cabin.

Following recent fire incidents involving e-cigarettes, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a safety alert recommending all airline operators to ensure e-cigarettes (also called personal vaporizers or electronic nicotine delivery) be carried by passengers exclusively in the cabin of the aircraft and not in checked baggage.

Carriage of e-cigarettes in the passenger cabin addresses this safety risk by ensuring that if an incident does occur, it can be immediately identified and mitigated

.

WHAT -IS- EBOLA

Ebola virus disease is a serious illness that originated in Africa, where there is currently an outbreak. But for people living in countries outside Africa, it continues to be a very low threat.
The current outbreak of the Ebola virus mainly affects three countries in West Africa: Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Around 24,282 cases and more than 9,976 deaths have been reported by the World Health Organization. This is the largest known outbreak of Ebola.

Two imported cases, including one death, and two locally acquired cases in healthcare workers were reported in the United States. CDC and its partners are taking precautions to prevent additional Ebola cases in the United States. CDC is working with other U.S. government agencies, the World Health Organization (WHO), and other domestic and international partners and has activated its Emergency Operations Center to help coordinate technical assistance and control activities with partners. CDC has also deployed teams of public health experts to West Africa and will continue to send experts to the affected countries.

What are the symptoms, of ebola and what should I do if I think I'm infected?

A person infected with Ebola virus will typically develop a fever, headache, joint and muscle pain, a sore throat, and intense muscle weakness.

These symptoms start suddenly, between two and 21 days after becoming infected.

If you feel unwell with the above symptoms within 21 days of coming back from Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone, you should stay at home and immediately telephone 111 or 999 and explain that you have recently visited West Africa.

"Over time, symptoms become increasingly severe" and may include:

• "Nausea and vomiting"".
• "Diarrhea" (may be bloody)
• "Red eyes."
• "Raised rash".
• Chest pain and cough.
• Stomach pain.
• Severe weight loss.
• Bleeding, usually from the eyes, and bruising (people near death may bleed from other orifices, such as ears, nose and rectum)

How does Ebola spread among people?

People can become infected with the Ebola virus if they come into contact with the blood, body fluids or organs of an infected person.

Most people are infected by giving care to other infected people, either by directly touching the victim's body or by cleaning up body fluids (stools, urine or vomit) that carry infectious blood.

Read more information about how Ebola spreads, and how the outbreak started.

However, the study does raise the possibility that pigs are a host for Ebola. If this proves to be true in the wild, there are direct ramifications for prevention and control measures. It is still unclear what role pigs play in the chain of transmission. To continue work on answering this question, the team plans to take samples from pigs in areas known to have recently  Ebola outbreaks. 

TOMBS-OF-221BC

"Tombs of 221 BC filled with ancient treasures unearthed in China"

 "A series of tombs built thousands of  years ago, some filled with ancient  treasures, have been discovered by  archaeologists at a construction site  in China's central Henan Province.
 The archaeological site in Zhoukou  City's county-level Xiangcheng city,  consists of 21 tombs built thousands  of years ago, spanning from Warring  States Period (475-221 BC) and East  Han Dynasty (25-220), said Han  Yanzhen, a scholar at cultural  heritage institute of Zhoukou City.
Among them, 19 tombs are earth pit in shape and another two are brick-chambered tombs. Archaeologists said all but five tombs were damaged by robbers.
Lots of funeral paraphernalia including pottery, bronze wares and jewelry were found in the tombs, state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.
A well-preserved bronze sword was one of the rarer discoveries, said Han, adding that that it was well preserved due to the local soil conditions.
Archaeologists said the treasures in the tombs can help researchers to better study the shape and structure of tombs, culture and customs between Warring States Period and East Han Dynasty".

CHINA WORLD'S THIRD-ARMS- EXPORTER

"

"China now world's third-biggest arms exporter" 

SIPRI

"China has overtaken Germany to become the world's third-biggest arms exporter, although its 5 per cent of the market remains small compared to the combined 58 per cent of exports from the US and Russia, a new study says.
China's share of the global arms market rose 143 per cent during the years from 2010-2014, a period during which the total volume of global arms transfers rose by 16 per cent over the previous five years, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said in a report released Monday".
Its share of the world market was up from 3 per cent in the 2009-2014 period, when China was ranked ninth among exporters of warplanes, ships, side arms and other weaponry, said the institute, known as SIPRI.

For Jokes

The data show the growing strength of "China's domestic arms industry, now producing fourth-generation fighter jets, navy frigates and a wide-range of relatively cheap, simple and reliable smaller weapons used in conflicts around the globe".
China had long been a major importer of weapons, mainly from Russia and Ukraine, but its soaring economy and the copying of foreign technology has largely reversed the trend, except for the most cutting-edge designs and sophisticated parts such as aircraft engines.
China supplies weapons to 35 countries, led by Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar, SIPRI said.
Chinese sales included those of armored vehicles and transport and trainer aircraft to Venezuela, three frigates to Algeria, anti-ship missiles to Indonesia and unmanned combat aerial vehicles, or drones, to Nigeria, which is battling the Boko Haram insurgency in its north.
China's comparative advantages include its low prices, easy financing and friendliness toward authoritarian governments, said Philip Saunders, director of the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the US National Defense University.
"Generally speaking, China offers medium quality weapons systems at affordable prices, a combination attractive to cash-strapped militaries in South Asia, Africa and Latin America," Saunders said.
Notable successes include a co-production deal with Pakistan to produce the JF-17 fighter, widespread sales of the basic but effective C-802 anti-ship cruise missile, and an agreement to sell the HQ-9 air defense missile system to Turkey that has run into controversy over its incompatibility with NATO weapons systems.
China also has exploited niche markets such as North Korea and Iran that the West won't sell to, emphasizing its attractiveness to impoverished countries and pariah states, said Ian Easton, research fellow at The Project 2049 Institute, an Arlington, Virginia-based Asian security think tank.
Both those US foes appear to have received satellite jamming and cyber warfare capabilities from China, along with technologies to break into private communications and spy on government opponents, Easton said.
"All of these sales should be very disconcerting to American policymakers and military leaders," he said, calling China's rise to the third-place spot among exporters a "disturbing development" that could threaten the security of the US and its allies.
China also offers leading-edge drone technology at competitive prices. One model, known variously as the Yilong, Wing Loong or Pterodactyl, has become especially popular with foreign buyers, although Chinese secrecy surrounding such sales makes it difficult to know how many are in service and where.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV quoted retired People's Liberation Army Gen. Xu Guangyu saying at an air show two years ago that the unmanned aircraft, which can be armed with two guided missiles, would cost only about $1 million each. That is about 10 to 20 per cent of the price of a comparable US model such as the MQ-1 Predator. Rumored buyers include the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia.
However, China's incremental growth and the yawning gap with industry leaders America and Russia show the limitations of its aspirations.
The US retained a 31 per cent share of the global arms market, exporting to at least 94 recipients, SIPRI said. Countries in Asia and Oceania took 48 per cent of US exports, followed by the Middle East with 32 per cent and Europe at 11 per cent, it said.
Russia was second with a 27 per cent global share, 39 per cent of which went to India — the world's largest arms importer overall. China took 11 per cent of Russia's exports, followed by Algeria.
SIPRI uses a five-year moving average to account for fluctuations in the volume of arms deliveries from year-to-year and doesn't provide monetary values, which are often distorted by governments providing weapons as gifts or at below-market prices.

CHINESE-GOVT-ACCUSED-INDIA

Chinese government backed think thank has accused India of interfering in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka when Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently visited the Tamil dominated Jafna area. It has also said India was trying to counter Beijing's influence by encouraging Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bangladesh to avoid the China's Silk Road program. 

"Modi included in his Sri Lanka trip the city of Jaffna in the Tamil-majority Northern Province, which in fact shows India's interference in the country's internal affairs," an article by Liu Zongyi, a researcher at the state-backed Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, said. 

Incidentally, Sri Lankan leaders, who accompanied Modi on his Jafna visit, has no such suspicion about Indian interference. 

Modi's recent visit to three Indian Ocean countries was aimed at making India a dominant power in the region, the article published in Global Times, a Communist Party organ, said. 

"Now that Modi has reached out to the Indian Ocean island states, it seems India is determined to gain a dominant position in the region by enhancing military and security cooperation with them," the researcher said. But he predicted that India and Sri Lanka would not be able to develop rapport because of differences over affairs relating to Tamils and fishing rights. 

Sore about Sri Lanka's decision to stall a Chinese contract for port city development in Colombo, the writer cites media reports that suggest that "New Delhi has gained the upper hand when Colombo halted the China-invested project". 

"Many overseas media outlets reckoned that Modi travelled to these island countries mainly to counterbalance China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean," the article said. 

India is suspicious about China's Silk Road program because it thinks Beijing has some ulterior motives, the researcher said

.

"New Delhi" doesn't want countries in South Asia and the Indian Ocean to participate in the program, but it is unable to propose a substitute," it said. "And Modi rushed through a hollow Project Mausam to counter the 21st century maritime Silk Road before Xi kicked off his visit to India in September 2014".

REUTERS-WEBSITES-BECOMEINACCESSIBLE

"Reuters websites become inaccessible in China"

 The news websites of Reuters, including those in English and Chinese, were inaccessible in China on Friday, after users first experienced difficulties accessing them late on Thursday.

The websites of Bloomberg News, the New York Times and News Corp's Wall Street Journal have all been inaccessible in China for some time.

It was not immediately clear why users were hindered from using the Reuters sites.

The websites of some major news organisations, including Reuters, have at times become inaccessible in China in whole or part, often after the publication of stories on issues about which the Chinese government is sensitive.

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), the country's Internet regulator, did not immediately respond to a written request for comment.

"Reuters is committed to practicing fair and accurate journalism worldwide. We recognise the great importance of news about China to all our customers, and we hope that our sites will be restored in China soon," a Reuters spokeswoman said in an emailed statement.

Reuters is the news division of Thomson Reuters Corp. Thomson Reuters also sells financial news and data services to clients in China. These services remained available.

RUPERT-MURDOCH'S-UK

Rupert Murdoch's UK journalists cleared of illegal payments to officials
: Four senior journalists at Rupert Murdoch's British tabloid Sun were cleared on Friday of making illegal payments to public officials, the latest reporters to be exonerated after a massive police investigation.

The journalists - the paper's executive editor, deputy editor, chief reporter and royal editor - were found not guilty of paying military figures for information, including details about Queen Elizabeth's grandsons, Princes William and Harry.

However, one former ministry of defence employee who was paid 100,000 pounds ($149,000) by the paper for passing on stories was jailed for one year.

The issue of whether journalists should face criminal action for paying for stories they deem to be in the public interest has been controversial. Critics argue that such cases should never be brought to court.

"There is no celebration whilst this witch hunt continues against my colleagues who are still facing the nightmare that I hopefully one day will wake up from," Duncan Larcombe, the paper's royal editor, told reporters after the verdict.

The multi-million pound police investigation into illegal payments arose out of an inquiry into phone hacking by journalists on The Sun's sister paper, the News of the World, which led to the jailing of ex-editor Andy Coulson and a number of other senior staff last June.

News UK, the British newspaper arm of Murdoch's News Corp. , handed over a huge trove of emails to detectives investigating the hacking offences, resulting in the arrest of dozens of Sun journalists for payments to officials.

So far only two former News of the World reporters have been found guilty for such payments. Former police officers and prison officers have also been convicted and are serving jail terms.

The Sun's Larcombe, chief reporter John Kay, executive editor Fergus Shanahan and deputy editor Geoff Webster had argued that payments made to soldiers and Ministry of Defence officials had been for stories which were in the public interest.

The four men were found not guilty by a jury at London's Old Bailey criminal court after 10 days of deliberations

After the verdict, reporting restrictions were lifted on the jailing of MoD official Bettina Jordan-Barber, who was sentenced to a year in prison in January. She had admitted passing information to Kay, who called her his "number one military source", between 2004 and 2012.

UK-NEWS

For 6-month stay in UK, pay health surcharge
With less than two months to go for the general election in the UK, the government has clamped down on migrant benefits. From April 6, nationals from outside the European Economic Area (EEA), including those from India, coming to live in the UK for longer than six months will be required to pay a 'health surcharge' to gain access to the National Health Service (NHS).

So, Indians will have to pay an additional £200 per year (Rs 19,000) as health surcharge as a fresh fee. Students will have to pay £150 (Rs 14,000). The new fee is bound to hit the already dipping market of Indian students visiting Britain for higher education. Indians coming on an intra-company transfer (ICT Tier 2 visa) will, however, be exempt from the charge. Visa applicants will need to pay upfront for the total period of their UK visa.

Till now, non-EEA nationals coming to work, study or join family members have received free medical treatment under the UK's NHS in the same way as a permanent resident.

Immigration has become a major topic for the upcoming general election, with most political parties promising either to cut down on the number of foreigners allowed to come into the UK to work or curbing the benefits they receive. "International students cost the NHS around £430 million per year and over £700 per head," the Foreign & Commonwealth Office said in a statement. "The surcharge for students will be just £150 per year, a fraction of their true cost to the NHS. It is 1% of the cost of studying in the UK and is well below the price students pay for private health insurance in competitor countries, such as Australia and the USA."

British immigration and security minister James Brokenshire said: "The health surcharge will play a vital role in ensuring Britain's most cherished public service is provided on a basis that is fair to all. For generations, the British public have paid their taxes to help make the NHS what it is today — the surcharge will mean temporary migrants will also pay their way."

UK's visas and immigration department has made it clear that visas will not be granted to applicants if the health surcharge is not paid. When an application is refused, rejected or withdrawn, the charge will be refunded. The changes, however, will not affect visitors coming to the UK on a standard visit visa, regardless of its length.

Indians staying longer than six months will have to pay an additional £200 per year as health surcharge as a fresh fee.

SCIENTISTS-DISCOVERED-QUASAR

Scientists discovered quasar SDSS J0 100+2802 with central black hole mass of 12 billion solar mass
The international team of scientists led by astronomers from Peking University in China and from the University of Arizona discovered the brightest quasar SDSS J0 100+2802 with the most massive black hole of 12 billion solar-mass.
The findings were published in the journal Nature on 26 February 2015 and Prof. Xue-Bing Wu at Peking University is the lead author of the study.

Findings of the Study
• The quasar named SDSS J0100+2802 with the luminosity of 420 trillion suns is at a distance of 12.8 billion light-years from Earth.
• The quasar is seven times brighter than the most distant quasar known which is 13 billion years away
• The quasar dates back to the end of an important cosmic event that is referred as the epoch of reionization. Re-ionization epoch is the cosmic dawn when light from the earliest generations of galaxies and quasars is thought to have ended the cosmic dark ages and transformed the universe into how we see it today.

How it was discovered?
The quasar was first discovered by 2.4-meter Lijiang Telescope in Yunnan, China, making it the only quasar ever discovered by a 2-meter telescope at such distance.

Following the initial discovery, two telescopes 8.4-meter Large Binocular Telescope and 6.5-meter Multiple Mirror Telescope in southern Arizona did the heavy lifting in determining the distance and mass of the black hole.

Additional observations with the 6.5-meter Magellan Telescope in Las Campanas Observatory, Chile, and the 8.2-meter Gemini North Telescope in Mauna Kea, Hawaii, confirmed the results.

Importance of the discovery

    The quasar with its super-massive black hole provides a unique laboratory to the study of the mass assembly and galaxy formation around the most massive black holes in the early universe.
    Further, it will allow the scientists to make unprecedented measurements of the temperature, ionization state and metal content of the intergalactic medium at the epoch of reionization.
    The discovery of this quasar marks an important step in understanding how quasars have evolved only 900 million years after the Big Bang which is thought to have happened 13.7 billion years ago.

About Quasars

    Discovered in 1963, quasars are the most powerful objects beyond the Milky Way galaxy.
    They beam vast amounts of energy across space as the super-massive black hole in their centre sucks in matter from its surroundings.
    Till now, astronomers have discovered more than 200000 quasars, with ages ranging from 0.7 billion years after the Big Bang till today.

WORLD'S-FIRST -3D-PRINTED-JET-ENGINE

Researchers from Australia unveiled world's first 3D printed jet engine
Australian researchers on 26 February 2015 unveiled the world's first 3D-printed jet engine. This is the first of its kind 3D printed engine.
It was developed by a team of researchers from Monash Centre for Additive Manufacturing of Monash University in partnership with Amaero Engineering, the private company set up by Monash University to commercialize the product.

According to Amaero, these printed engines will flight tested within the next 12 months and will be certified for commercial use within the next two to three years.

Characteristic Features of the Jet Engine
• The jet engine was created using innovative additive manufacturing technique.
• In this additive manufacturing, the 3D printing machine uses a high-powered laser to fuse powdered nickel, titanium or aluminium into the shape of object.
• The engine will help engineers in making and testing parts of jet engines in days instead of months. It will also help engineers to manufacture cheaper, lighter and more fuel-efficient jet engines.

Significance of this development
The development of 3D printed jet engines is of great significance to the manufacturing sector of Australia, especially 3D printing market.

Australia has one of only three of the necessary large-format 3D metal printers in the world. France and Germany are the other two countries to have such printers.

Further, Australia is the only place that makes the materials for use in the machine and is also the world leader in terms of intellectual property (IP) regarding 3D printing for manufacturing.

Moreover, it is believed that Amaero is in talks with Boeing Co, Airbus Group NV, Raytheon Co and Safran to pay in part for the building of further large format printers, at a cost of around 3.5 million Australian dollars each (2.75 million US dollars), to ramp up the production of 3D jet engine components.

About 3D printing technology

    3D printing is a process of making three dimensional solid objects from a digital file with extreme precision. 3D printing makes products by layering material until a three-dimensional object is created.
    This technology is also termed additive manufacturing as the 3D printed object is created using additive processes.
    Although 3D printing has been around since the 1980s, in recent years it has developed to produce a wide array of items including guns, houses and models of unborn children.

SOLAR-POWERED-PLANE

Solar powered plane Solar Impulse-2 took off to round-the-world odyssey from Abu Dhabi
The solar-powered plane named Solar Impulse-2 on 8 March 2015 took off to round-the-world odyssey from Abu Dhabi. This will be the first round-the-world flight powered by solar power.

The aim of this round-the-world voyage is to create awareness about replacing old polluting technologies with clean and efficient technologies.

Solar Impulse -2 during its 12-leg journey of round-the-world will cover 35000 kilometer and will stop at Muscat, Oman; Ahmedabad and Varanasi, India; Mandalay, Myanmar and Chongqing and Nanjing, China.

After crossing the Pacific Ocean via Hawaii, it will fly across the US stopping in three locations namely Phoenix, and New York City at John F Kennedy airport.
In the final leg, after crossing the Atlantic Ocean, it will make a stop-over in Southern Europe or North Africa before arriving back in Abu Dhabi.

Solar Impulse is expected to complete its journey of 350000 km in five months and it will be piloted by Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg.

Pilot Bertrand Piccard belongs to a family of adventure’s father Jacques Piccard was among the two people who for the first time reached the deepest place in the Ocean. Jacques achieved the feat with Don Walsh in the Trieste bathyscaphe in 1960. His grandfather, Auguste Piccard, in 1931 was the first person to take a balloon into Stratosphere.

About Solar Impulse-2
Solar Impulse is the only airplane of perpetual endurance, able to fly day and night on solar power, without a drop of fuel.

Solar Impulse-2 is a 2.3 tonne plane with top sped of 87 miles per hour (mph) and can carry just one passenger and emits precisely zero Carbon Dioxide (CO2).

Its wingspan is 72 meters and 3.5 meter wide. This length allows it to sport 17000 solar panels that help it to produce enough electricity to power the flight and to charge 633 Kilogram lithium batteries.

TO-LURE-RECRUITS

To lure recruits, ISIS uses pics to glamorize group
Much attention is paid to the extreme, distressing and sadistic propaganda disseminated by ISIS, who go to great lengths to circulate images and videos of the atrocities it commits. Yet little attention is paid to what could arguably be considered the most dangerous propaganda emerging from the group — the pictures and videos that attempt to normalize and even glamorize life within ISIS — and are used as a recruiting tool for the extremist group.

This week, a Western 'jihadi bride' found herself being chastised by fellow ISIS supporters for going off message with a picture of women posing around a luxury BMW. The same woman also posted a picture of a group brandishing guns in a similar pose often struck by their male counterparts.

This image suggests power and a sense of parity with male militants, but it is undermined by the recent ISIS document unearthed and translated by the counter-extremism think tank Quilliam telling women their position would be confined solely to the home and the service of their militant husbands.

Charlie Winter, a researcher at Quilliam, said propaganda attempting to normalize militants plays an important role in constructing an image of ISIS as a way of life as opposed to just a group. "It's all pretty clear what they are trying to get across — that ISIS is not just a jihadi group fighting, it is setting up a state. It's no longer a group even, it's a political machinery."

NYU-ANNOUNCED PRISION

NYU announced Prison Education Programme to Educate US Prisoners
New York University (NYU) on 19 March 2015 announced Prison Education Programme (PEP) to Educate US Prisoners.

 Indian-American New York University (NYU) Professor Nikhil Pal Singh will heads programme. The programme is a new initiative of New York University to bring college education to the inmates of a medium-security prison in New York State.

The programme offers credit-bearing, university courses that will enable students to earn an Associate of Arts (AA) degree from the university.

The programme was backed by a 500000 US dollar grant from the Ford Foundation. The NYU programme aims to help redress inequities that result from the fact that the United States incarcerates more people than any other nation in the world.

The course will begin in the spring 2015 semester. Classes will be taught by NYU faculty and offer both intensive liberal arts study and introductory courses from NYU's professional schools.

36 men will take one of two NYU classes taught at the Wallkill Correctional Facility in New York State's Ulster County, with up to three additional courses offered during the summer of 2015.

The programme will expand access to a university education to incarcerated students. This initiative will also include providing educational and employment counselling, community support for families, and other services such as legal assistance to address human rights, housing, and employment issues.

Once released from prison, students enrolled in programme may seek to continue their college education at NYU or by transferring credits to another institution.