WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016

Vidya Balan to star in ‘Tumhari Sulu’

MARKETPLACE | 7 FOOD | 8 BOLLYWOOD | 11A pantry staple

brightens this earthy winter soup

Email: dohatoday@pen.com.qa

MARKET 11

‘DAILY MILE’ CRAZE IN BRITAIN

P | 4-5

Kids across Britain run, jog or walk a mile every school day - in addition to regular physical education.

Abu Issa Holding signs partnership deal with INESING

CAMPUSWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 03

DeBakey reaches out to students with intellectual disabilities

DeBakey High School-Qatar has partnered with Best Buddies-Qatar for the past three years. This opportunity

gives students the opportunity to show a long-term commitment to their community, and reach out to students with intellectual disabili-ties who have traditionally been treated differently by society.

A social event was held at DeBakey High School-Qatar for DeBakey high school students to

interact with students having intel-lectual disabilities. The event was comprised of sports and art & crafts activities. The activities included fun relay games with obstacle courses, building an airplane, mak-ing a frame with portrait art work, football, basketball and other inter-active games. The Best Buddies participants interacted and dis-cussed their feelings about the day’s activities. The event was designed with the theme, “They are just like you & me,” in efforts to break away

the thought that children with dis-abilities want to be dealt with any differently than the next child.

DeBakey students were sur-prised with their own experiences, and shared a few reflections: “I felt like nothing was even wrong, we had so much fun together.” And

“The event was a wonderful learn-ing experience for me as I discovered what interacting with kids having disabilities is really like; I learned that disabilities sometimes aren’t so obvious.”

“Education includes ensuring a well-rounded experience that pro-motes character development and social responsibility,” stated by Linda Mabrie, DeBakey Executive Direc-tor. This year DeBakey students have joined the Promoter division of Best Buddies and are looking forward to holding their next event for the staff and faculty of DeBakey. Their aim will be to increase the awareness and sensitivity concerns revolved around interacting with students having disabilities.

TAMUQ lecture series features

president of Chilean university

World-renowned scholar Dr Jose Rodriguez Perez, the president of Chilean

university, gave the second talk in Texas A&M University at Qatar’s 2016-2017 Distinguished Lecture Series November 24 in Education City. In his talk, “Keys to do good research,” Rodriguez discussed tips on how to excel at research.

He said, “You don’t need to be a genius and you do not need a lot of money.” Rodriguez emphasised the importance of building a good team around you that you trust and are willing to empower through del-egation, “I hired you not to tell you what to do, but rather so that you can tell me what we should do.” Rodriguez said, “University students

can do anything. Really!”Other advice that Rodriguez

shared was to prepare for meetings and to ensure they start and end on time. He advised faculty to work for the benefit of your entire team and not to work just for self-benefit or self-promotion. And the research papers themselves should be sim-ple, clear and original.

The guidelines to do good research presented by Rodriguez deserve notice because of his accomplishments. He has more than 41,000 citations and in 2014 Rod-riguez was rated as the top-ranked researcher, out of more than 800,000 engineers, in all fields of engineering according to Microsoft Academic. Rodriguez closed by

stressing the importance of a posi-tive attitude and mentality. He said,

“If you think you can, you can.” An electrical engineer, Rodriguez Perez

is president (rector) of Universidad Andres Bello in Chile and a mem-ber of the Chilean Academy of Engineering.

COVER STORY WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 201604

Karla Adam

The Washington Post

Torriano primary school in north London doesn’t have lush green grounds or an outdoor running track or a leafy campus

quad. But on most days, its students do something that is being replicated in schools across the country: They put down their pencils, step into the great outdoors and run a mile. For one ruddy-faced 9-year-old who was breathing heavily after his run, the experience “makes me feel like I’m proud of myself” and means that

“during lessons, I can concentrate a bit more.”

On a recent day that looked like autumn but felt like winter, he joined his classmates in lapping the perim-eter of his Victorian school 12 times

before heading back inside to get on with his day.

Every day, tens of thousands of school children across Britain — in addition to regular physical-educa-tion classes — run, jog or walk a mile under a voluntary scheme dubbed the “daily mile.” They don’t change clothes. They don’t compete. They don’t know when their teacher will give the green light to rush outside. But at some point during the day, come (non-torrential) rain or shine, children complete a mile.

This running craze adopted by schools up and down the country comes amid an obesity crisis in Brit-ain. Simon Steven, NHS England’s chief executive, has called obesity

“the new smoking.” The British gov-ernment estimates that nearly a third of children ages 2 to 15 are over-weight or obese.

According to a 2015 report from the Organisation for Economic Coop-eration and Development — the latest available that compares all OECD countries — Greece, England and the United States rank the high-est for child obesity based on measured data. In a more recent OECD report, England ranks fourth in a comparison of European-only countries.

Obesity is, of course, an exceed-ingly complex, multifaceted issue that involves a number of factors including physical activity and nutri-tion. Diets have changed over the years — Britain plans to ratchet up its battle against sugar with a tax on sugary drinks — and so too have life-styles, with countless hours spent on computers, tablets and phones.

To be sure, sports programmes here are highly developed — Britain

came in second in the medals tables at the Rio Olympics. But changing levels of physical activity at a popu-lation level is “incredibly difficult,” said Franco Sassi, a health policy expert at Imperial College London. A recent study comparing the phys-ical activity of children in 38 countries placed Scottish kids among the least active in the world, despite acknowledging the region’s various policies for promoting it.

But there is a growing grass-roots effort by some schools here to get kids moving. Over 1,000 schools across the country have adopted the

“daily mile” scheme, including a small village school in Scotland that invites the local community to join in. A number of schools around the world have also jumped on board, too, including about 100 in the Nether-lands and 500 in Belgium.

‘Daily mile’ craze in Britain hopes to tackle national obesity crisis

COVER STORYWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 05

Scotland’s devolved govern-ment, which has encouraged primary schools to adopt the idea, has gone a step further, saying it wants the region to become the world’s first “daily-mile nation” with “rollout to nurseries, schools, colleges, universities and work-places across the country.”

The scheme is the brainchild of Elaine Wyllie, the former principal of St Ninian’s, a primary school in Stirling, Scotland. Four years ago, a volunteer told her that her students were unfit. Taken aback, she asked a class of mostly 11-year-olds to run around a field and was surprised to see what a struggle it was.

But after a month of daily run-ning, most of the students could finish the route, which was roughly a mile and took about 15 minutes.

Educators do not have infinite time, and schools cannot be expected to do everything — some argue that parents should be the ones to get children moving more. Plus, 15 minutes a day is an hour and 15 minutes a week that is not being spent on studying math, Eng-lish or history. But when Wyllie was a principal — she retired last year

—she found that interest in running the mile swept quickly across her

school and then to others, as well.“It’s not PE, it’s not sport, it’s not

competitive. There is no kit, no cool or uncool clothes, no body-image issues, no equipment, no staff train-ing. The children just go out, and they are expected to run if they can, or walk,” she said.

The idea is manifestly simple and inexpensive, which is perhaps part of the reason it has spread so rapidly. But Wyllie insists the real key to its success is that children enjoy it because it is a social activ-ity in the fresh air.

Parents and teachers also have

reported a raft of benefits —increased fitness, improved concentration, reduced weight, enhanced well-being — and researchers are currently testing to see if there is evidence that links the reported benefits to the daily mile.

Colin Moran, an academic from the University of Stirling, is leading such a study. Obesity levels at St Ninian’s are below national norms, he said, and there are anecdotal reports of the children becoming more attentive in class. But his research team is comparing schools in the Stirling area to see if the reported benefits can be linked to the daily mile.

While they are still analyzing data, he cautioned that 15 minutes of exercise alone is unlikely to deliver all of the health benefits being discussed. The World Health Organisation recommends that children get at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity a day. But perhaps the data could, Moran said, confirm anec-dotal reports that students who do the daily mile are “more willing to run for a bus or run around to their friend’s house than asking for a lift, and so in effect are doing more than 15 minutes.”

Jack Holmes, a teacher at Tor-riano primary, said he does not think the daily mile is a “stand-alone” solution to the country’s obesity and physical activity woes but rather something to be done “in conjunction” with other forms of exercise and diet.

Supported by the school’s prin-cipal, Holmes helped to launch the routine this year and says the ben-efits for students include enhanced enthusiasm for physical activity and for some, immediately after the run, an improved ability to concentrate. While some teachers may see the daily mile as “yet another thing to do” in an already time-stretched day, he said that once children are exposed to it, they become the its biggest champions.

“They love it,” he said as he watched a group of students lap the school — some walking, some run-ning hard, some punching the air as they sped by. “They are always asking: ‘When can I go? When can I go?’ “

MARKETPLACE/ COMMUNITY WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 201606

QNB Capital hosts QLC to discuss economic development

QNB Capital, the investment banking division of QNB Group, the leading finan-cial institution in the Middle East and Africa,

recently hosted participants of Qatar Leadership Centre’s (QLC) Govern-ment Leaders Program.

During the visit, they learned more about how QNB Capital con-tributes to Qatar’s economic development by helping companies thrive and invest in the local and international market.

The QLC Government Leaders met with senior officials from QNB Capital, including the Chairman and the Chief Executive Officer of the firm. In multiple sessions, they dis-cussed various topics, such as equity and debt as well as mergers and acquisitions and listings. This visit focused on the importance of the financial sector in contributing to economic development, one of the four pillars of Qatar National Vision 2030.

“Constant engagement across industries has the cumulative effect of enhancing the leadership skills of our participants,” noted Dr Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani, Managing Director and Member of the Board of Direc-tors of QLC. “The financial sphere is one of the keys to economic diver-sification and the continued successful growth of Qatar. QNB Capital enhances our participants’

understanding of investment bank-ing and its critical contribution to our country’s goals.”

QNB Capital, as the investment arm of QNB Group, specialises in providing advisory services to cli-ents on mergers and acquisitions; capital markets transactions like list-ings; private and public offerings; owner’s equities; debt capital includ-ing bonds; raising capital for infrastructure projects or govern-ment strategic assets and providing strategic consulting including restructuring, recapitalisation and optimising the management of companies.

The high-level visit is part of QLC’s practical curriculum, which aims to expose participants to prom-inent Qatari and international institutions that are known for excellence in their respective fields. QLC’s Government Leaders are Qatar is who hold leading positions in the public and semi-governmen-tal sectors. “As professionals in the government and semi-government sectors, we have an obligation to maintain and increase prosperity for our country,” remarked Noora Alkahtani, HR Consultant at Exxon-Mobil Qatar. “Deepening our knowledge of investment banking and the financial sector will help us approach our work with a more enlightened point of view. The par-ticipants benefit tremendously from

QLC’s well-rounded leadership development program because it combines theoretical learning with practical experiences like this one.”

Participants learned how QNB Capital helps set the foundation for a reliable and sustainable business environment, which is a crucial ele-ment for economic growth. Government Leaders discussed the financial context of local and inter-national projects that generate important revenue across sectors.

“The visit to QNB Capital was fruitful, and featured very useful engagement with officials from QNB Capital and QNB,” noted Wasam Mohamed Alhajri, Head of Procure-ment Department at Aspire Zone.

“Today’s event was a wonderful

opportunity to learn how leading Qatari institutions that work both locally and globally are managed. QLC’s curriculum as a whole has added significant value to my pro-fessional and personal life.

“As a Government Leaders par-ticipant I am committed to help achieve our country’s goals. To be able to do so, I am keen to broaden my horizon and approach policy making and good governance from different perspectives,” said Nour-Khalifah Al Maslmani, Senior Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The visit to QNB Capital was important in reminding us of the key role that investment plays in diver-sifying the country’s sources of wealth.”

MARKETPLACEWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 07

Abu Issa Holding signs partnership deal with INESING

In the presence of Italian Ambassador to Qatar, Guido De Santis, a partnership agreement was signed between Abu Issa Holding Inc,

and INESING, an internationally renowned Italian, electrical equip-ment and renewable energy jaggernaut.

Nabil Abu Issa, Vice-Chairman of the Board of Abu Issa Holding, and Sami Sadjadaj, Chairman of the board and Chief Executive Officer at INESING, were both present at a press conference held at Blue Salon, to sign the partnership agreement.

On this occasion, Nabil Abu Issa said, “INESING is one of the most leading international companies in the field of electrical equipment and renewable energy. The company itself has always been at the fore-front and has dedicated all its efforts and operations towards the inno-vation of design and provision of full industrial systems specialising in the generation, transmission and distribution of electric power and we are pleased to be in partnership with them.”

For his part, Sami Sajaddaj said INESING has matured in more than 10 years of experience, knowledge and professionalism at the highest level, consolidating its presence in the market of construction and installation of electrical systems.

“INESING is strongly committed to research and technological inno-vation, and we are able to deliver projects and products up to our cli-ents’ needs: from industrial and civil plant to MV and LV panels, from switchboards to the production of hydroelectric power and wind power, from security to the main-tenance of any installation carried out. INESING knows always how to provide ready and targeted answers, with the aim to solve the most spe-cific problems of each customer.” said Sajaddaj. He added, “For this

reason, the company avails itself of technicians and highly qualified experts able to provide projects and solutions.” INESING supports cus-tomers at every stage of approach to working: from design to instal-lation, from the supply of electrical equipment to after-sales service.

INESING is also a wholesale warehouse of electrical equipment, able to always guarantee a com-plete and integrated offer of installation products at 3,000 sqm of assortment, the insiders can rely on a wide and diversified range of

products: from the molded case cir-cuit breakers to modular equipment, from cable solution to lighting sys-tems to the lighting fixtures, etc. Sami shed some light on some of the company’s latest achievements

, saying: “We have accomplished so much in the last five years by imple-menting works and projects in the UAE, Jordan, Nigeria, Russia, Iraq, Yemen, Lipa, Ethiopia and the Bal-kans, with a total amount of over 30 million euros in revenue, thus taking on a leading role in the field of electric power distribution.”

IEI holds seminar on fire

& safety technologies

The Institution of Engineers (India) — Qatar Chapter in association with Al Majed

Technologies (AMT), had organised a technical seminar on, “Latest Trends and Practices in Fire & Safety Technologies” on Novem-ber 19 at Hotel Radisson Blu.

Dipak Dahake, Honorary Sec-retary, briefed about the Qatar Chapter’s professional services to the community in Qatar. Vineet-Nambiar, talked about role and services of Al Majed Technologies

as a partner of Siemens in building technologies in Qatar. Aniruddha Kulkarni, Honorary Chairman, wel-comed the speakers who hailed from Siemens-Dubai.

Stefan Herget, Senior Executive Vice President - Siemens Building Technologies, Qatar introduced Sie-mens capabilities in building technologies and eminent Speaker, Malav Bhatt, Head- Fire Safety, Sie-mens LLC - UAE delivered an in-depth presentation on latest technology in fire detection and fire

suppression systems. Excom mem-bers Abdul Sathar, compered the event and Sanjay Jain, proposed the vote of thanks. IEI-QC is offering

free annual membership to grad-uate engineers for 2016-17 and invited engineers of all nationali-ties to join the professional body.

FOOD WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 201608

Joe Yonan

The Washington Post

I have a dried-fruit problem.

The problem is that I love it so much, I can’t have much around or I’ll start nib-bling, and a snack becomes a mini-meal.

Not the end of the world. But dried fruit is a pretty great ingredient in lots of dishes, from smoothies, salads and rice pilafs to dips, sauces and stews (especially tagines, the Moroccan slow-cooked dish that often includes prunes or dried apricots). And if I’ve already snacked it to obliv-ion, I won’t have it around when I need it.

I’ve discovered a coping strategy. Rather than buy the beautiful, vibrantly colored sulfur-treated fruits, I stick with the unsulfured versions, which taste fine but, particularly in the case of apricots, don’t look nearly as appealing.

That leaves them free to be used in such rec-ipes as a terrific Armenian soup that caught my eye in the wonderful “Samarkand: Recipes & Stories from Central Asia & the Caucasus” by Caroline Eden and Eleanor Ford. The two tell

how apricots feature in so many dishes of the region, including this soup, which uses them to brighten up the earthy flavors of lentils.

I was a little skeptical that a mere half-cup of dried apricots could add that much flavor to what becomes 8 cups of soup, but boy, was I wrong, and happy about it. The almost-floral tang of the fruit - enhanced with a generous squeeze of lemon - is unmistakable, and it lib-erates the soup from winter heaviness and turns it into something I can imagine cooking and eat-ing year-round.

The brown color of those unsulfured apri-cots, by the way, doesn’t hurt the soup’s look one bit; red lentils and carrots more than make up for it. If you’re stronger than I, though, and have some of the bright orange specimens on hand, it’ll be even prettier.

Apricot and Red Lentil Soup

Dried apricots give a wonderfully bright fla-vour to this simple, surprising soup, which has

roots in Armenia.Ingredients (4 to 6 servings (makes 8 cups)

4 medium tomatoes (1 1/4 pounds)3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil1 large onion, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (2 1/2 cups)2 medium carrots, scrubbed and cut into 1/4-

inch pieces (1 1/2 cups)3 cloves garlic, finely chopped1/2 cup dried apricots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces1 teaspoon cumin seed2/3 cup dried split red lentils4 cups no-salt-added vegetable broth,

warmed2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or more as needed1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or

more as needed1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf pars-

ley, for serving

MethodHull and halve the tomatoes. Use the large-

holed side of a box grater to grate the tomato halves, cut sides down, over a bowl until noth-ing is left but the skins. Discard the skins.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the onion and car-rots; cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and turn sweet, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the garlic, apricots and cumin seed; cook until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato pulp and cook for a few minutes.

Add the lentils, pour in the broth and increase the heat to medium-high. Once the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low so the liquid is barely bubbling. Cover and cook until the lentils are tender, 20 minutes.

Stir in the thyme leaves and lemon juice, then remove from the heat. Use an immersion (stick) blender to blend about half the soup in the pot, leaving the rest to give the soup texture. (Alter-natively, you can transfer half the soup to a blender, puree, and return it to the pot.) Add the salt and pepper, taste, and add more as needed.

Divide the soup among bowls, top with the parsley and serve hot.

Nutrition: Per serving (based on 6): 240 cal-ories, 8 g protein, 37 g carbohydrates, 8 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 150 mg sodium, 7 g dietary fiber, 16 g sugar.

A pantry staple brightens this earthy winter soup

HEALTHWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 09

Casey Seidenberg

The Washington Post

My oldest son’s bas-ketball tryouts are looming this week. He cares deeply about making the

team and asked me what he should do to prepare. I suggested he sleep and eat well before the tryouts, which may not have been the novel or life-changing answer he was seeking. I gather he was hoping for a magic bullet, some-thing that would make his muscles strong and flexible, deliver him energy, render him well rested, and keep stress at bay.

Now that I think of it, buddy, there just may be a magic mineral that does all of these things. Mag-nesium helps with energy, muscle strength, flexibility, sleep and stress management - everything you need.

Basketball tryouts are no joke on the body. They involve hours of running, pivoting, head-to-toe muscle use and quick reflexes. Magnesium contributes to flexi-bility and helps to prevent injury by loosening tight muscles. With-out enough magnesium, muscles can’t properly relax, possibly caus-ing cramps. Low magnesium can create a buildup of lactic acid, known to cause post-workout pain and tightness. Also, much of the body’s energy comes from ATP, a molecule that captures chemical energy from food and uses it to fuel other processes in the body. ATP production depends on magnesium.

Magnesium obviously won’t build my son’s arm muscles in time

for tryouts, but it does help the body produce more insulin-like growth factor, an essential part of long-term muscle growth and strength.

Magnesium helps to balance and control stress hormones. Spe-cifically, magnesium is essential for the production of serotonin, which is responsible for relaxing the nervous system and lifting moods. Serotonin also contributes to healthy sleep. A lack of magne-sium upends sleep not only because of its role in serotonin production but also because it top-ples the sleep regulating hormone melatonin.

Magnesium is one of the essen-tial electrolytes needed for efficient hydration. Sorry to dis-appoint you kids that were hoping I’d recommend a Gatorade for your tryouts; instead, you need to eat real magnesium and potas-sium-rich foods, and drink lots of water. A few magnesium stars include leafy green vegetables, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, almonds, cashews, pecans, wal-nuts, brown rice, avocado, beans, raw cacao, edamame and seaweed.

A winning smile won’t com-mand my son a spot on the basketball team, but perhaps it will reveal him as a positive, eager player. Low magnesium leaves saliva with excess calcium and phosphorous, which can damage teeth and harm that winning smile.

Magnesium also builds strong bones, maintains heart health, helps to prevent diabetes by reg-ulating blood sugar, prevents inflammation and strokes, boosts immunity, preserves a proper PH

balance in the body, and relieves constipation. Phew. Magnesium might really be that magic bullet as it performs an essential role in every almost bodily function.

In fact, in the emergency room, magnesium is considered a criti-cal medication for emergency heart, asthma, pregnancy preec-lampsia and other life-threatening conditions because it has a relax-ing effect and is found in every tissue.

Modern life conspires to steal our magnesium. Caffeine, phos-phoric acid in soda, too much salt, extreme sweating, alcohol, pro-longed stress, antibiotics and other medications drain our bodies of the much-needed mineral.

So how can a teenage boy, try-ing out for a basketball team, or not, obtain the recommended daily intake of 410 mg of magnesium? He can eat meals such as oatmeal

for breakfast; a brown rice, black bean and avocado burrito for lunch; a banana with almond but-ter as a snack; and roasted chicken, sesame noodles and a spinach salad for dinner. One of the most relaxing ways to absorb magne-sium is to take a bath with magnesium or Epsom salts. Our skin is our largest organ for inges-tion into the blood system so magnesium baths can both relax us and contribute to our magne-sium intake.

Ensuring my son has healthy levels of this magic mineral is not going to secure his spot on the eighth-grade basketball team, but it will help him sleep well, boost his mood and lower his stress; make it less likely that his muscles cramp; and more likely that he is flexible and energetic. These are good outcomes any week of the year.

There are no magic bullets for fitness, but magnesium comes close

A few magnesium stars include leafy green vegetables, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, brown rice, avocado, beans, raw cacao, edamame and seaweed.

ART WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 201610

AFP

A sculpture of a black swan -- a financial market term for a highly unlikely but powerful event -- was removed only hours after it was installed opposite China’s securities regulator, reports and

social media showed.The spray-painted bronze sculpture, by Chi-

nese artist Guo Jian, was put up in a shopping mall opposite the Beijing offices of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on Monday.

Later the same day mall staff covered it with a black cloth and took it away, Beijing’s Fazhi Wanbao newspaper reported.

One online commentator said: “Not only does the CSRC dislike the black swan, the world’s whole financial industry hates the phenomenon.”

A “black swan” is a highly unlikely and unpredictable event with significant conse-quences. The term was popularised by the writer and statistician Nassim Nicholas Taleb, and it is widely associated with the global financial cri-sis of 2008-9.

China’s own stock market slumped last year, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index losing more 40 percent of its value in little over three months.

Guo said Tuesday that he did not intend any comment about financial mayhem. “I don’t know who was offended by my sculpture,” he told AFP.

“I have no financial knowledge and do not invest in the stock market either.”

The work was part of a series inspired by ori-gami, the art of paper folding, he said. “I wanted to show the mysteriousness and fragility of the bird.

“As an artist I try to express my thoughts on human lives, from womb to tomb, in my work.”

He has no idea where the sculpture has been

taken, he added.It was previously displayed at an exhibition

in Beijing in 2014 and small versions of it are advertised online for $9,900.

No-one from the CSRC could be reached for comment by AFP.

It is not the first time artworks with finan-cial associations have fallen foul of Chinese sensitivities.

Earlier this year, the same shopping mall dis-played sculptures of two bears from a Chinese cartoon series. A “bear market” refers to one where prices are falling, and the figures were quickly replaced.

On a verified social media account Guo said: “I didn’t know that a piece of my artwork could bring such a huge impact and pressure on the economy and stock market.”

He joked that the piece could join the vast flow of assets leaving China as the yuan currency declines: “I will take my artwork to the United States.”

Fooled by Art: Black swan sculpture moved from Beijing financial district

Subhash K Jha

IANS

Film: “Chutney”; Directed by Jyothi Kapoor Das; Starring: Tisca Arora, Adil Hussain, Rasika Duggal; Rating: *** 1/2 (3 and a half stars)

The enormously talented actress Tisca Arora has turned producer with a short story that left me panting for more. The economy of expression compounded by

an austerity of emotional leverage gives to “Chut-ney”, the short story with a long content-drive, a kind of reined-in heft that feature films should emulate.

You don’t need two hours to establish char-acters or build a momentum in the plot. Just a look, a gesture or a swipe would suffice pro-vided the emotions underlining the narrative are worked out in detail in the script. In brief, the blueprint is cut before the camera gets into action.

Almost all of the very disturbing plot of “Chutney” unfolds through a conversation between a housewife from Ghaziabad (Tisca in a very convincing frumpy makeup) and a woman who is a threat to her marriage (played with saucy relish - in more ways than one - by Rasika). Tisca plays the wife with compelling but casual candour. She looks different, yes. But that’s just a part, a very small part of what she does with her part. She gives to the wife a kind of ‘don’t-mess-with-my-marriage’ finality and

‘I-won’t-let-you-cheat’ closure that I found dis-arming and disturbing. If Tisca’s wifely concerns were not so tragic, they’d actually be fodder for a black comedy.

Adultery and unfaithful husbands run

through the plot scampering across the hazily hectic horizon of the plot redolent with threats of toxification and death. There are two domes-tic servants in the plot, one is killed after he discovers his wife cheating on him, the other one spits into the glasses of cold beverage before serving them to his employee and her guest.Maybe we should just go for self-help.

“Chutney” is a small slight and fragile on the top but very assured sturdy and self-composed underneath. It is held together by the smaller performers who flit in and out with an energetic anxiety helping the director to create a sense of

imminent doom. But it’s Tisca Arora’s central performance that really holds the plot at the hinges and prevents it from coming undone in spite its over-ambitious overtures that threaten to over-run the adulterous drama.

After watching “Chutney”, we are unlikely to dip into a bowl of ‘dhaniya’ chutney without feeling our stomach churn, or be tempted to cheat on our spouses without wondering what sort of nemesis awaits at the end.

This is a a short film that serves up quite a dish for Tisca Arora to nibble on. She chews up the scenes, and kills it, in unexpected ways.

BOLLYWOODWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 11

Chutney: Tisca Arora kills it in her new short story

Vidya Balan to star in ‘Tumhari Sulu’

Actress Vidya Balan will be seen as a radio jockey (RJ) named Sulochana, fondly

known as Sulu, in the upcom-ing film “Tumhari Sulu”.

“Sulu is like that nimbu (lemon)... you add nimbu for taste or then add it to balance taste; zesty and versatile! I think she will unleash my naughty side,” Vidya said in a statement.

Co-produced by T-Series, “Tumhari Sulu” is a “lovely heart-warming story made for Vidya”, said Bhushan Kumar, T-Series honcho.

Sulu lands herself an unexpected job of an RJ, who anchors a late-night show, known for its

voyeuristic quality and semi-adult shenanigans.

“The character of Sulu is fun, happy-g o - l u c k y a n d grounded, everything that Vidya is even in real life,” said joint producers Tanuj Garg, Atul Kasbekar and Shanti Sivaram Maini of Ellipsis

Entertainment. The film’s director Suresh Triveni says he feels

honoured to have Vidya as the lead actress. “’Tumhari Sulu’ has been handcrafted for Vidya

and to have her as a lead in my first feature is an honour. I look forward to seeing the story come alive as I have lived with it for almost a year now,” he said.

‘Bareilly Ki Barfi’ to release on July 21, 2017

Director Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari’s upcoming film “Bareilly Ki Barfi” is all set to hit the screens on July

21 next year.The film is a quirky romantic com-

edy rooted in the subculture of the north Indian city Bareilly, starring Ayushmann Khurrana, Kriti Sanon, and Rajkummar Rao, read a statement.

The film will feature Ayushmann as the owner of a printing press. Rajkum-mar will be seen as an author and Kriti as a straight-forward and liberated girl.

The shooting had kicked off in Luc-know in October and the team has wrapped up their first schedule.

HOLLYWOOD WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 201612

‘I Am Bolt’ movie offers glimpse into sprinter’s racing lifeReuters

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt swaps the race track for the red carpet on Monday for the premiere of a new film looking at his record-breaking career.

“I Am Bolt” follows the nine-times Olym-pic gold medallist in his gruelling training and competing as well as relaxing at home, giving fans a glimpse into the life of the man nicknamed

“Lightning Bolt”.“Most people’s concept of me is that ‘Oh Usain,

it’s easy for Usain, there’s no stress’ ... but it’s not,” Bolt told a news conference in London on Mon-day ahead of the film’s world premiere in the British capital.

“I wanted to make people see what I went through to get to where I’m at today.”

The documentary, which includes location footage from the Beijing World Championships, Rio Olympics and London Olympics, also has video from Bolt’s youth and interviews with fam-ily members, friends and coach.

Bolt, who became the first person to win three consecutive 100 and 200 metres Olympic golds in Rio de Janeiro last summer and is a world record holder in the two disciplines, can also be seen talking about his nerves and fears ahead of a race.

“I could feel all emotions throughout every-thing, like I was reliving my life again when I was watching that,” he said of the film.

“That’s what I wanted people to see, the strug-gles, the pain, the triumph, the stress that I’ve been through and then have more insight also on my life.”

The 30-year-old has said he plans to retire from the sport after the August world champion-ships in London. He told reporters he wanted to do more charity work afterwards.

IANS

Actor John Travolta was told to accept the role in

“American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simp-

son” by filmmaker Steven Spielberg and actor Tom Hanks.

The 62-year-old, who played the role of O.J. Simpson’s attor-ney Robert Schapiro in the TV series, has admitted that he spent four months mulling whether to star in the 10-part series or not. But the advice of Hanks swayed his decision, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“It was Steven Spielberg. It was Oprah Winfrey. It was Rita Wil-son Hanks and Tom Hanks. And

it was former Disney magnate Michael Eisner. They all thought it was completely the right move.

“Spielberg and Eisner were the most enthusiastic,” Travolta told GQ.com about the show, which

follows the 1994 murder trial of the former American football player’s partner Nicole Brown Simpson.

Travolta, who has worked in the entertainment industry for over four decades, says there are high points in everyone’s career, although actors are not “guaran-teed” to be involved in every

“high quality” project.

The “Forger” actor, whose eldest son Jett died in 2009, has son Benjamin as well as daugh-ter Ella with wife Kelly Preston. Travolta said: “You have these points in your career when you are associated with high quality, with depth, communication, and things that matter on a social level.

“And when you hit those notes -- whether it be ‘Primary Colors’, or on the cover of ‘Time’ maga-zine, or ‘Pulp Fiction’, or ‘Saturday Night Fever’, or ‘Urban Cowboy’

-- where you’re affecting the soci-ety on a global level, then you feel a different kind of pride. It’s beyond the pride of success. It’s the pride of... integrity, I guess?

“You’re not always guaranteed to be involved with projects that will hit those notes. When you are, you really do register it,” he added.

Travolta advised by Tom Hanks to accept role

TECHNOLOGYWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 13

Karen Turner

The Washington Post

Just how dirty is the typical smartphone? Dirty enough that a sample swab from the surface of a phone can accurately pre-dict people’s lifestyle choices, all

the way down to how much beer they drink, a new study suggests.

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Cal-ifornia at San Diego School of Medicine and the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sci-ences, uses chemical analysis from molecules lingering on phones to determine basic lifestyle choices of the owner. Personal routine clues such as diet, cosmetic or makeup use, clothing, and medication could be gleaned from the wide-reaching analysis, as well as environmental clues such as ocean and sunscreen molecules that could point toward locations the owner recently visited.

The method draws on an under-standing that the outermost layer of human skin carries chemical com-ponents drastically affected by the body’s inner chemistry and exter-nal, environmental factors. Researchers were able to capture the skin molecules present on these personal items and match them to a vast array of environmental and biological factors, quickly process-ing and crosschecking databases using a supercomputer.

Some of the molecules found on phone surfaces had lingered for some time. Researchers found traces of DEET on one participant’s phone even though that person had applied the mosquito repellent nearly five

months before the study.Study co-authors Pieter Dorrest-

ein and Amina Bouslimani used phones to collect samples because of their widespread use.

“We thought about what objects that we most frequently interact with that has the highest chance of demonstrating our proof of princi-ple, that so much could be determined from a sample of these molecules,” Dorrestein said. “The phone is very obvious. Most of us spend so much time on our phones, so there are lots of molecules from

your hands being transferred to the object itself at all times.”

Dorrestein and Bouslimani say the applications of this type of broad chemical analysis are vast. They cited possible medical applications that monitor the effect of medica-tion on a patient. The effects of using cosmetics and skin-care products can also be monitored. They also mentioned potential law enforce-ment uses, where officials could analyze samples from phones, car keys, handbags or other personal items left at a crime scene to deter-

mine the profile of a suspect.But just how different is this

method from other means of col-lecting chemical data? For example, medication effectiveness can be measured through blood samples. On the law enforcement side, police officers already have access to forensic analysis tools that can determine the presence of illegal drugs or explosives on objects found at crime scenes, and the addition of lifestyle information might not be particularly useful to narrowing down a subject.

“The problem is [these lifestyle profiles] are not very discriminat-ing things -- if you were to find a particular brand of cosmetic it is not really going to narrow down for you who you would be looking for,” said John Bond, an associate professor in criminology at the University of Leicester in an interview with the Guardian.

But Dorrestein claims that the full profile of information gleaned from these samples, rather than tar-geted analysis of traces of illegal drugs, for example, makes the meth-odology useful to law enforcement.

“The hardware that is used are not any different than what the FBI uses,” Dorrestein said. “It’s the thought process of the data that comes out. We can learn more from this swab than just an illicit molecule from this information. We can actually learn about the lifestyle of an individual.”

Your smartphone can tell scientists all about you

Steven Overly

The Washington Post

Japan has not been home to the world’s fast-est supercomputer in five years, and now its government wants to reclaim the crown.

The country’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has allocated the equivalent of $173 million to a project aimed at building a supercomputer capable of processing 130 peta-flops, or 130 quadrillion calculations per second,

according to Reuters. That kind of processing speed could allow Japan to make strides in emerging areas of technology, such as artifi-cial intelligence and robotics.

Companies have until Dec. 8 to bid on the project, which is being called AI Bridging Cloud Infrastructure, or ABCI. It could be completed as early as next year, Reuters reported.

Once a global technology powerhouse, Japan has gradually slipped behind other coun-tries in the innovation game. The country’s

leading supercomputer has not ranked first in the world since November 2011 and currently finishes outside the top five, according to Top500.org, which standardizes and ranks glo-bal superpowers.

China now owns and operates the world’s two fastest supercomputers, including the No. 1-ranked Sunway Taihulight, which can han-dle 93 petaflops. The United States has the third, fourth and fifth fastest supercomputers, accord-ing to Top500.org.

The race to build the fastest supercomputer just sped up

BABY BLUES

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE

Kaira is a budding cinematographer in search of a perfect life. Her encounter with Jug, an unconventional thinker, helps her gain a new perspective on life. She discovers that happiness is all about finding comfort in life’s imperfections.

Note: Programme is subject to change without prior notice.

DEAR ZINDAGI

NOVO ROYAL PLAZA

AL KHOR

ASIAN TOWN

MALL

LANDMARK

Allied (2D/Action) 10:30, 11:00, 11:30am, 1:00, 1:30, 2:00, 3:30, 4:00, 4:30, 6:00, 6:30, 7:00, 8:30, 9:00, 9:30, 11:30pm & 12:00midnightFantastic Beast And Where To Find Them (2D/Adventure) 11:00am, 2:00, 5:00, 8:00 & 11:00pmDear Zindagi (2D/Hindi) 11:00am, 2:00, 5:00, 8:00 & 11:00pmTrolls (2D/Animation) 10:00am, 12:00noon, 2:00, 4:00 & 6:00pmHavenhurst (2D/Horror) 8:00, 10:00pm & 12:00midnightDoctor Strange (2D/Adventure) 11:30am, 4:30 & 9:305pm Bleed For This (2D/Action) 2:00, 7:00 & 11:55pm Operation Chromite (2D/Action) 10:00am, 2:40, 7:20pm & 12:00midnightThe Accountant (2D/Action) 12:10, 4:50 & 9:30pmArrival (2D/Drama) 11:30am, 2:00, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30pm & 12:00midnightFantastic Beast And Where To Find Them (3DIMAX/Adventure) 10:00am, 12:45, 3:30, 6:15, 9:00 & 11:45pm

Thoppil Joppan (2D/Malayalam) 2:00 & 9:00pmTrolls (2D/Animation) 2:15 & 4:30pmEchoes of War (2D/Drama) 2:30pmFantastic Beast And Where To Find Them (2D/Adventure) 4:00pm Arrival (2D/Drama) 6:15 & 8:30pm Kavalai Vendam (2D/Tamil) 6:30pm Havenhurst (2D/Horror) 11:30pm Dear Zindagi (2D/Hindi) 6:30 & 10:45pm Dobara Phir Se (2D/Urdu) 4:15pmAllied (2D/Action) 9:15 & 11:30pm

Dear Zindagi (2D/Hindi) 2:30 & 10:30pm Fantastic Beast And Where To Find Them (2D/Adventure) 2:30pm Trolls (2D/Animation) 3:00pmArrival (2D/Drama) 5:00 & 9:30pm Havenhurst (2D/Horror) 5:00 & 9:00pm Thoppil Joppan (2D/Malayalam) 5:30 & 8:00pmEchoes of War (2D/Drama) 7:00 & 11:00pmAllied (2D/Action) 7:15 & 11:30pm

Thoppil Joppan (2D/Malayalam) 2:30 & 11:00pmDear Zindagi (2D/Hindi) 2:30, 5:00 & 8:00pm Trolls (2D/Animation) 3:00pmHavenhurst (2D/Horror) 5:00 & 7:30pm Echoes of War (2D/Drama) 5:30pmAllied (2D/Action) 9:00 & 11:15pm Arrival (2D/Drama) 9:00 & 11:15pm

Dear Zindagi (Hindi) 11:00am, 2:00, 5:00, 8:00 & 11:00pm

Trolls (Animation) 11:00am & 1:00pmFantastic Beast And Where To Find Them (2D/Adventure) 5:45 & 8:30pm Thoppil Joppan (Malayalam) 10:45am, 1:15, 3:45, 6:15, 8:45 & 11:15pm Kavalai Vendam (Tamil) 3:00 & 11:15pm

Kavalai Vendam (Tamil) 8:30 & 11:15pmForce 2 (Hindi) 6:00pm Thoppil Joppan (Malayalam) 6:00, 8:30 & 11:00pmDear Zindagi (Hindi) 7:00 & 10:00pmPuli Murugan (Malayalam) 6:00pm

WEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016

VILLAGGIO & CITY CENTER

CINEMA PLUS14

CROSSWORD CONCEPTIS SUDOKU

ALL IN THE MIND

08:00 News08:30 The Listening

Post09:00 Al Jazeera

Correspondent 10:30 Inside Story11:00 News11:30 The Stream12:00 News12:30 Fault Lines14:00 News14:30 Inside Story15:00 Al Jazeera World16:00 NEWSHOUR17:00 News17:30 The Stream18:00 newsgrid19:00 News19:30 Witness20:00 News20:30 Inside Story21:00 NEWSHOUR22:00 News22:30 The Stream23:00 Witness

13:05 Ax Men13:55 Mountain

Men14:45 Forged

In Fire15:35 Pawn

Stars16:00 American

Pickers16:50 Storage

Wars19:20 American

Pickers20:10 Pawn

Stars21:00 Counting

Cars21:50 Ice Road

Truckers22:40 Time Team23:55 Counting

Cars

13:50 Lone Star Law

14:45 Gator Boys15:40 Weird

Creatures With Nick Baker

16:35 Tanked17:30 Wildest

Africa18:25 Monster

Hammer-head

19:20 The Vet Life20:15 Tanked21:10 Wildest

Africa22:05 Mutant

Planet23:00 The Vet Life23:55 Gator Boys

13:30 Storage Hunters

13:55 What’s In The Barn?

14:20 Alaskan Bush People

17:40 Wheeler Dealers

18:30 How It’s Made: Dream Cars

20:10 Storage Hunters

20:35 What’s In The Barn?

21:00 You Have Been Warned

23:05 Magic Of Science

23:30 Fast N’ Loud: Demolition Theatre

King Features Syndicate, Inc.

BRAIN TEASERSWEDNESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2016 15

Yesterday’s answer

Conceptis Sudoku: Conceptis Sudoku is

a number-placing puzzle based on a

9×9 grid. The object is to place the

numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so

that each row, each column and each

3×3 box contains the same number only

once.

ARCADIAN, BARN, BUCOLIC,

CATTLE, CHICKENS,

COUNTRYSIDE, CULTIVATE,

DAIRY, DUCKS, ESTATE, FARM,

FIELD, FODDER, GEESE, GOAT,

HARVEST, HOMESTEAD,

HORSES, LIVESTOCK, MEADOW,

MILL, PASTORAL, PASTURE,

PROVINCIAL, RANCH, RURAL,

RUSTIC, SHEEP, SILAGE, SILO,

STABLE, TRACTOR.