CURRENT AFFAIRS: 08/25/11

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Anna Hazare's health updates

New Delhi: As Anna's fast enters the eleventh day and concerns over his health mount, here are the latest health updates:

Aug 26 10:00 am: "He has lost seven kgs till now. His blood pressure and heart beat are okay. He seems to be healthy. He is holding up," Dr Ravi R Kesliwal said.

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PRIME MINISTER: Honourable Speaker Madam, I am very happy that at long last, the House had a debate on the issue of corruption. I thank all the Members who participated in this debate.

Madam, that corruption is a major national issue is something a matter about which there is unanimity in the country. That we should collectively work to find credible approaches, credible solutions to deal with this scourge is also a matter, which unites all sections of thinking public opinion in our country.

New Delhi: The negotiations to end Anna Hazare's fast, which centres upon Parliament beginning a debate on his Jan Lokpal Bill, have lurched into a new danger zone. Anna has lost seven kilos; he has not eaten for 11 days. (Health update: Anna loses 7 kg, blood pressure ok)

New Delhi: As the government searches for a solution that will persuade Anna Hazare's hunger strike, Rahul Gandhi spoke on corruption and the Lokpal Bill in the Lok Sabha at noon. His sister, Priyanka, was seated in the visitors' gallery.

Alex Ferguson ends BBC boycott

London:

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has finally called a halt to his long-running feud with the BBC.

Ferguson has not spoken to the organization's television or radio outlets about United since 2004 following the broadcast of a TV documentary containing allegations about his son Jason.

Brighton. Just the name brings a smile to the face. It definitely put a big yahoo across the Indian squad, which arrived to this sun-drenched seaside town on Wednesday from the rainy, grey climes of London. The salubrious surroundings seemed to have had an instant positive effect on the visitors, who were perky and active throughout the three-and-a-half hour long optional training session at the tiny Hove ground.

Ricky Ponting has said that he encouraged Rahul Dravid to fight through his struggles and continue playing when their sides met in the two-Test series in India last October. Dravid was going through a lean patch at the time - his only century in 2010 up till then had been against Bangladesh and he managed just one half-century during the series against Australia - but Ponting said he urged Dravid to ignore critics who wrote him off. (Also see: The importance of being Rahul Dravid )

Indian senior players have too much say in team selection: Chappell

New Delhi:

Former Australian captain Ian Chappell slammed the Indian Board to letting its senior players have too much say and the selection committee led by Krish Srikkanth have been negligent which has led to this debacle in England.

UK University to confer Doctorate on Dhoni

London:

The tour of England might have been an on-field nightmare for him so far but off it, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has reason to smile as a University here has decided to confer an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws on the World Cup winning player.

Amir let go with warning by ICC for flouting ban

London:

Pakistan bowler Mohammad Amir has been let go with a warning from the International Cricket Council (ICC) for flouting his ban by playing in a Surrey League game.

The 19-year-old was slapped a five-year suspension from all forms of cricket for his involvement in last year's spot-fixing scandal. He received a formal letter from the ICC warning him.

Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt has said that he had asked the president of the ICC, Sharad Pawar, to do his bit in the revival of Indo-Pak bilateral series as soon as possible.

Butt confirmed that during his recent visit to New Delhi he had a meeting with Pawar who is also a former president of the BCCI.

Gambhir's vision still blurred, mystery over state of fitness

Sussex:

Gautam Gambhir's state of fitness remains a mystery as latest indications emerging from the dressing room are that all is not well with the opener, who is having trouble with his vision after suffering a concussion during the fourth and final Test against England.

Make way for the touchbook - Acer's new dual touchscreen laptop. The device has two touchscreens and no physical keyboard whatsoever. In fact, apart from the power button and the display keyboard button, there are no physical buttons on the device. Put simply, the device looks like two 14-inch tablets glued together on a hinge.

Hollywood filmmaker Stanley Kubrick designed the first ever iPad, and not Apple Inc, says rival company Samsung in a bizarre patent suit that cites the director's "2001: A Space Odyssey" as evidence, according to a media report.

Google Inc. has agreed to pay $500 million to settle a U.S. government investigation into the Internet search leader's distribution of online ads from Canadian pharmacies illegally selling prescription and non-prescription drugs to American consumers, a U.S. attorney in Rhode Island said on Wednesday.

US software giant Microsoft will team up with Renren to integrate their social-networking services in China, the companies announced on Wednesday.

Nokia on Wednesday unveiled three mass-market smartphones, as the troubled handset maker struggles against top-end competitors and cheaper producers in a market it once ruled as the innovative technology bellwether.

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is a living legend in Silicon Valley, the man who has changed modern culture with the iPod, iPhone, and iPad.

Jobs on Wednesday resigned as chief executive of the California company, turning the helm over to chief operating officer Tim Cook.

Apple fans and would-be customers seemed to agree that while Steve Jobs' charisma and innovative genius is one-of-a-kind, the company he built will survive without him.

On Wednesday night, after he resigned as CEO of the iconic gadget maker, Jobs was not the topic of conversation among shoppers, browsers or the blue-shirted employees at the Apple store on Manhattan's swanky Fifth Avenue across from Central Park.

Since Steve Jobs' return to Apple Inc. in 1997 as CEO, the company has been on an unparalleled upswing, highlighted by the immense popularity of the iPad and iPhone.

Now, with Jobs no longer leading, Apple will have to prove it can keep its momentum. If the recent past is any indication, the company will continue to move forward.

Steve Jobs' resignation as chief executive of Apple Wednesday sent the company's shares tumbling 5.3 percent in after hours trade.

The shares of the maker of the iconic iPhone and iPad fell to $356.10 after closing normal trade at $376.18, following the announcement that the long-ailing company founder would step down.

Timothy D. Cook was named chief executive of Apple, the technology company, on Aug. 24, 2011, succeeding Steven P. Jobs, who has been battling cancer. Mr. Cook, previously chief operating officer, had been in charge of day-to-day operations since Mr. Jobs began a medical leave in January, his third.

Apple released this letter from Steven P. Jobs on Wednesday as it announced that he was stepping down from the post of chief executive.
To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:

JBL has always had an affinity for unique high fidelity audio gear (remember Sound Sticks II) so be rest assured something interesting is in store for you. This time around we have wrapped our picky ears around the JBL ONBEAT, which is an ultra portable iPod/iPad Dock. High quality iPod/iPad docks are a rarity in themselves and finding one sub Rs. 10,000 gets even harder, so the ONBEAT is a rare breed. So lets see if this one can appease our sonic sensibilities.

There seems to be no end in sight for the Tablet frenzy. After the iPad 2 and the Android Honeycomb armada, here is Reliance's latest 7-inch, 3G tablet which runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread and comes bundled with a multitude of 3G plans. At the outset we have to say that for a change this one does not follow the monotonous similarity of all the other Android tablets. Lets see if this one breaks the ice with the Indian masses.

When Steve Jobs resigned as the chief executive of Apple on Wednesday, his note to the public and the Apple board was short and classy. The gist was this: "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's C.E.O., I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come."

Steven P. Jobs, one of the most successful chief executives in corporate history, once said he never thought of himself as a manager, but as a leader. And his notion of leadership revolved around choosing the best people possible, encouraging them and creating an environment in which they could do great work.

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New York: Apple said on Wednesday that Steven P. Jobs, its co-founder and CEO, would step down. Tim Cook, the chief operating officer, will take over the position.

In a letter sent to Apple's board of directors and "the Apple community," Mr. Jobs said he would like to remain as chairman of the board and an Apple employee. (Text of the resignation letter)

Rob Malda also known as "CmdrTaco", Editor-in-Chief of Slashdot.org has decided to say goodbye to his post after 14 years and 15,000 stories posted (the website overall has poster over 1,14,000 stories so far). Rob Malda started Slashdot when he was still in college and today it has grown to become one of the largest website providing "news for nerds and stuff that matters".

A French publisher who had battled in court to stop Google from publishing books online without permission said on Thursday it had come to terms and entered a partnership with the US-based Internet giant.

While saving Apple, Steve Jobs changed the world.

Jobs guided Apple from the brink of financial ruin to a lofty place among the world's most valuable companies before stepping down as chief executive this week, apparently due to health woes.

But thinking of Jobs merely as the man behind Apple's resurrection would be on par with thinking of The Beatles as just a band that made cool music.

Should you buy or sell Apple?

After the announcement that Steve Jobs is stepping down as CEO, investors pushed Apple's stock down 0.7 percent on Thursday. By contrast, Wall Street analysts reacted with predictable optimism: Buy - a lot.

So who is right? The pros or the investors?

The short answer may be the pros, though the stock is probably not the bargain that many of them assume.

Chip maker Advanced Micro Devices Inc. has named an executive from PC maker Lenovo Group as its new CEO Thursday, giving him a mission to improve the struggling company's finances and turn the rise of smartphones and tablets into an opportunity rather than a threat.

Taco Master, the creation of Mexican company Kaxan Games, is the world's most downloaded iPad application and among the most purchased software for use on other Apple devices at the iTunes store.

Players take on the role of street vendors and try to make the highest-quality taco they can in the least amount of time, the president of Kaxan Media Group, Ricardo Gomez, told EFE.

Warren Buffett comes to the rescue again. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. announced Thursday that it would invest $5 billion in Bank of America Corp., a much-needed vote of confidence that sent the beleaguered bank's stock soaring 9 percent.

Should you buy or sell Apple?

After the announcement that Steve Jobs is stepping down as CEO, investors pushed Apple's stock down 0.7 percent on Thursday. By contrast, Wall Street analysts reacted with predictable optimism: Buy — a lot.

So who is right? The pros or the investors?

The country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank on Thursday said its recently launched fixed-rate home loan scheme will not attract higher provisioning mandated by the central bank for teaser loans.

"Additional provisioning is not required on this product because the fixed rate offered is similar to the current floating rate on our other home loans," a bank spokesperson told on the sidelines of a Ficci-IBA banking summit.

Asian markets were mixed Friday as investors waited to see if the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke unveils new steps to help the U.S. economy ward off another recession.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

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