 The team in action on their 30,000 year old canoe – credit University of Tokyo A team of scientists who could only be described as ‘intrepid’ sailed several hundred miles across the East China Sea in an ancient replica canoe. The peopling of the Pacific islands has long been one of the great mysteries of anthropology, and the Japanese researchers wanted to do their own small part in unraveling it by answering a question: how did Paleolithic people get from Taiwan to Japan’s southernmost island of Yonaguni.  A map of the team’s canoe voyage from Taiwan to the Japanese island of Yonaguni credit – University of Tokyo While the distance of 140 miles isn’t mighty when compared to some of the voyages the Polynesians are known to have made, it crosses an area plied by one of the strongest currents in the world called the Kuroshio. In two new papers, researchers from Japan and Taiwan led by Professor Yousuke Kaifu from the University of Tokyo simulated methods ancient peoples would have needed to accomplish this journey, and they used period-accurate tools to create the canoes to make the journey themselves. Of the two newly published papers, one used numerical simulations. The simulation showed that a boat made using tools of the time, and the right know-how, could have navigated the Kuroshio. The other paper detailed the construction and testing of a real boat which the team successfully used to paddle between islands. “We initiated this project with simple questions: How did Paleolithic people arrive at such remote islands as Okinawa? How difficult was their journey? And what tools and strategies did they use?” said Kaifu in a press release from the University of Tokyo. “Archaeological evidence such as remains and artifacts can’t paint a full picture as the nature of the sea is that it washes such things away. So, we turned to the idea of experimental archaeology, in a similar vein to the Kon-Tiki expedition of 1947 by Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl.” The Kon-Tiki expedition was a fantastic exercise in getting out of the library, as Indiana Jones said. Seeking to confirm his theory that prehistoric humans may have sailed across the Pacific, Heyerdahl recruited an international team of sailors, craftsmen, explorers, and scientists, and built a raft of primitive materials called Kon-Tiki, which they used to sail from South America to the Tuamotus, across more than 3,000 miles of open ocean. In 2019, the Taiwanese-Japanese team constructed a 23-foot-long dugout canoe called Sugime, built from a single Japanese cedar trunk, using replicas of 30,000-year-old stone tools. They paddled it 140 miles from eastern Taiwan to Yonaguni Island in the Ryukyu group, which includes Okinawa, navigating only by the sun, stars, swells and their instincts. They paddled for over 45 hours across the open sea, mostly without any visibility of the island they were targeting. Several years later, the team is still unpicking some of the data they created during the experiment, and using what they find to inform or test models about various aspects of sea crossings in that region so long ago.  A single Japanese ceder tree was used to make the canoe – credit University of Tokyo Kaifu monologued about the team’s findings and revelations, a full 6 years after their expedition. “A dugout canoe was our last candidate among the possible Paleolithic seagoing crafts for the region. We first hypothesized that Paleolithic people used rafts, but after a series of experiments, we learned that these rafts are too slow to cross the Kuroshio and are not durable enough.” “We now know that these canoes are fast and durable enough to make the crossing, but that’s only half the story. Those male and female pioneers must have all been experienced paddlers with effective strategies and a strong will to explore the unknown.” “Like us today, they had to undertake strategic challenges to advance. For example, the ancient Polynesian people had no maps, but they could travel almost the entire Pacific. There are a variety of signs on the ocean to know the right direction, such as visible land masses, heavenly bodies, swells, and winds. We learned parts of such techniques ourselves along the way.”  GPS tracking and modeling of ocean currents toward the end of the experimental voyage – credit, Kaifu et al. CC ND-BY One interesting note was that the team felt any return journey would have been much more difficult, if not altogether impossible, in part because the Kurushio current is varied, and facing it in reverse would have been even tougher. According to the teams’ data, on a vessel launched off the eastern coast of Taiwan as theirs’ was, the Kuroshio runs hard northward along the coastline. Throughout their paddling, they had to compensate for a headwind, and the current seeking to pull them back north. Their GPS trail shows that they missed several zones of deep water where the Kuroshio changes and begins to tug eastward, as well as an area where the current forms something like an ocean gyrate that could have sent them in multiple directions. They navigated the hazardous current brilliantly, but to do so in reverse would have been extremely difficult. They would have been moving against the current in all periods, and from the start it would be trying to pull them out to open ocean.“Scientists try to reconstruct the processes of past human migrations, but it is often difficult to examine how challenging they really were. One important message from the whole project was that our Paleolithic ancestors were real challengers.” Scientists Use Stones to Build Canoe Like Their Ancestors and Sailed it 140 Miles Across Dangerous Waters |
Scientists Use Stones to Build Canoe Like Their Ancestors and Sailed it 140 Miles Across Dangerous Waters (2025-07-15T11:21:00+05:30)
CES 2025: AI-powered tech to dominate world's biggest electronics trade show (2025-06-14T11:38:00+05:30)
 |
More Than 90% of Schools in England Ban Smartphone Use, 13 US States Have Already Taken Action (2025-06-14T11:38:00+05:30)
 – Getty Images for Unsplash+Without a government body to legislate the result, UK education authorities have discovered that over 90% of national schools have instituted smartphone bans, a measure still being debated by industry members and scientists. Representing a triumph of distributed sovereignty, a survey of more than 15,000 schools found that 99.8% of elementary schools and 90% of middle schools had instituted some form of ban, the Guardian reports. The paper further claimed that education leaders in the UK have largely supported school autonomy and guidance rather than government regulation on the question of smartphones, and the schools seem to have used that autonomy quite decisively. Current Education Secretary Bridget Philipson said that the results of the survey represents “comprehensive evidence,” that “shows our approach of backing headteachers to implement bans in their schools is working.” Individual school action has showed before that prohibiting smartphone use in schools, or at least while classes are in session, can improve student performance. Some classes used tablets and phones as teaching materials, and such usage wasn’t included in the survey findings of device usage. “A lot of this is about a battle for attention, a battle for focus and concentration. It’s not just about having your phone out and using it, it’s the mere presence of the phone,” Tom Rees, chief executive of the Ormiston academies trust, one of the largest private school businesses in the country, told the Guardian. “There’s evidence that tells us that even if your phone is in the same room, it could be in your bag or pocket, your brain is leaking attention, still thinking about it and being drawn to it, wondering if there has been a notification on it and what it might be.” Ormiston was the first academy chain to go smartphone-free, Justine Elbourne-Cload, co-chair of the St Albans primary schools consortium, the first institution in the country to implement a total smartphone ban for under-14 age groups, said that parents’ reactions had been “phenomenal.” “They are really onboard. Parents are crying out for that support.” In the United States, policies on phone usage are being left up to the states, and several have already implemented some forms of restrictions. In Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Arkansas, governments have allocated grant money to any school district that wants to begin controlling smartphone and device usage by closing them away in secure pouches or boxes at the beginning of lessons. Florida and California have passed prohibitions already, with the latter mandating its effect by the end of the next school year (July 1st). Ohio, Virginia, Minnesota, Indiana, and Louisiana have all passed measures that compel schools to come up with their own programs and methods for reducing, controlling, or eliminating smartphone and device usage during school hours or in classrooms. Several other states, including Washington and Alabama, have taken a lighter touch, passing non-binding measures that encourage schools to take action, rather than mandating it.“The research is clear: Reducing the use of cellphones in class improves concentration and learning, improves mental and physical health, and reduces pressures caused by social media,” said Washington schools superintendent Chris Reykdal in an official guidance document. More Than 90% of Schools in England Ban Smartphone Use, 13 US States Have Already Taken Action |
Six psychiatric concepts that have mutated: for better or worse (2025-01-16T12:16:00+05:30)
Nick Haslam, The University of MelbourneLike spilled drinks, psychiatry’s concepts are sticky and have a tendency to spread. Over the past century several of the field’s ideas have undergone large changes in meaning and adhered to new phenomena. Sometimes these changes have originated within the profession. Other times, new meanings emerged when psychiatric ideas entered everyday language. Let’s consider six psychiatric concepts whose meanings have shifted. Each is widely used in ways that deviate from its original medical sense. AddictionAddiction was once a physical dependency on an ingested psychoactive substance. Addicts developed physiological tolerance for their preferred drug, requiring increasing quantities to achieve the desired result. They also experienced strong withdrawal symptoms when deprived of it. More recently the concept of addiction has broadened to include “behavioural addictions”. In these cases no substance enters the body but the person may feel a sense of compulsion and powerlessness. Addictions to sex, gambling and the internet are often proposed, as well as to exercise, work, tanning and, of course, love. Encouraged by this loosening of definitions within the mental health field, the concept of addiction among the general public has expanded. It now includes almost any compulsive behaviour, however mild. The line between a pathological dependency and a bad habit has been smudged and then crossed. HysteriaTo the ancient Greeks, hysteria was caused when the uterus became dislodged from its usual resting place and roamed the body. The diverse physical symptoms hysterical women suffered were due to its wandering mischief. Although the “wicked womb” theory of hysteria had long been abandoned, the term survived in psychiatry well into the 20th century. By the 1980s it was no longer used in respectable professional circles. The diagnosis itself had fractured into several distinct conditions involving medically unexplained physical symptoms and absences and other dissociative states. Meanwhile “hysterical” took on a new meaning, coming to refer to apparently uncontrolled emotional reactions such as laughter. By association, very funny jokes became hysterical as well. The word “hysteria” is now dead within psychiatry, but it lives on riotously in everyday speech. PhobiaPhobias are intense fears that interfere with everyday life. People are often troubled by excessive and pathological fears of animals, heights and public speaking, for example. However in the last few decades the concept of phobia has been extended in questionable ways. In particular, antipathies to social groups are now often referred to as phobias. Homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia and the like apply a clinical language of fear to social attitudes. Words such as these discredit undesirable attitudes by likening them to pathologies, arguably using one stigma to battle another. The attitudes in question are troubling, but there is little or no evidence they are in any meaningful sense phobias. They are generally rooted in simple aversion, not fear, and do not impair their holder’s daily functioning. To call them phobias is to stretch the concept close to breaking point. PsychopathySome psychiatric concepts have stretched, but psychopathy is an example of one that has shrunk. The term originated in 19th century German psychiatry, where some writers used it as a synonym for mental disorder. Others used it to refer to a wide assortment of pathological personality styles, including paranoid, obsessive and depressive varieties. More recently psychopathy has contracted back to the callous and unempathic personality that attracts so much attention today. So much that the public is once again expanding the concept’s reach beyond killers and career criminals to include office tyrants and ex-spouses. Schizophrenia“Schizophrenia” was coined a little over 100 years ago by Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler. The word’s derivation refers to a split in the mind, by which Bleuler meant a lack of integration of mental functions such as perception and memory. Regrettably the idea of schizophrenia as split mind soon became conflated with Jekyll-and-Hyde split personality. This misunderstanding confuses schizophrenia with a different condition that is now called “dissociative identity disorder”. As a result of it, “schizophrenic” is commonly used metaphorically to refer to any apparent contradiction or ambivalence. This inaccurate usage has been tenacious. A recent study found 74% of references to “schizophrenia” in the Italian print media invoked this error, although an Australian study found a more encouraging 13%. However, this use of “schizophrenic” remains common in everyday speech, arguably contributing to the perception that people with the condition are dangerous. TraumaIn early 20th century psychiatry “trauma” only appears in the sense of a physical insult to the brain. The first edition of the famous Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published in 1952, used the term only in relation to brain trauma caused by gross force and electricity. “Trauma” enlarged its meaning to include psychological injuries inflicted by life events only in 1980. Since then, what counts as a traumatic experience has progressively broadened. Mental health professionals have increasingly identified less severe and more indirect or vicarious experiences as traumatic. The general public has taken its cue from this expansion, using the word “trauma” to describe experiences as innocuous as a bad hair day. Our six concepts have all shifted their meanings over time. How mental health professionals understand them has evolved. In some cases the public has picked them up and taken them further. We should not expect concepts to stand still or object mindlessly when they move. Instead we should be mindful of these changes in meaning and recognise that some may be problematic. Sometimes, as with “trauma”, they dilute or trivialise something that should not be trivialised. Sometimes, as with “schizophrenic”, they spread misconceptions. And sometimes, as with “addictions” and attitudinal “phobias”, they erase distinctions that may be worth preserving. Nick Haslam, Professor of Psychology, The University of Melbourne This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
Diagnostic labels may increase our empathy for people in distress. But there are downsides too (2024-09-11T13:09:00+05:30)
Nick Haslam, The University of MelbourneThe language of mental ill health is inescapable. Diagnostic terms, such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pervade popular culture and saturate the online world. They are the currency of countless news stories and awareness campaigns. The rise of diagnostic labels could be celebrated. It suggests the public’s mental health literacy is increasing and the stigma attached to mental illness is in decline. As the shame associated with it diminishes, mental illness comes out of the shadows. But the rise of diagnostic language may also have downsides. Some critics argue it reflects the medicalisation of distress and may contribute to over-medication. And just as naming conditions may reduce stigma, it could also increase it. Labels can be sticky, having lasting effects on how others judge people with mental illness, and how they see themselves. In a new study, my colleagues and I examined how labelling a person’s relatively mild or marginal mental health problems affects how others perceive them. We found the presence of labels increases empathy and concern for those affected, but also pessimism about their capacity to recover. Essentially, diagnostic labels appear to be a mixed blessing when used at the less severe end of the distress spectrum. Concept creepWhen we talk about the rise of diagnostic labels, a particular concern is that concepts of mental illness have been expanding in recent years. They now encompass a wider range of experiences than they did previously. This so-called “concept creep” implies people may be using diagnostic terms to refer to phenomena that are relatively mild or marginal. British psychologist Lucy Foulkes has argued people may be increasingly over-identifying mental illness. This means they are applying diagnostic labels to experiences that fall below the diagnostic threshold. Recent studies (including those from my research group) support this possibility. This research has found people who hold expansive concepts of mental illness are more likely to diagnose themselves than those with narrower concepts. The implications of applying diagnostic terms loosely are unclear. Using them to label relatively mild distress might have positive effects, such as encouraging people to take that suffering seriously and seek professional help. But it might equally have negative effects, stigmatising the labelled person or leading them to be defined and constrained by their illness. It might even lead people to diagnose themselves inappropriately. Our study We wanted to understand the impact of these broadened concepts of mental illness by examining how diagnostic labelling influences the perception of people experiencing relatively mild problems. Across two experiments, we presented almost 1,000 American adults with short descriptions of a hypothetical person experiencing a marginal, non-severe mental health problem. Each description was carefully tested to fall near the diagnostic threshold. Participants were randomly assigned to read otherwise identical descriptions either with or without a diagnostic label (major depressive disorder, generalised anxiety disorder and bipolar disorder in experiment one, and PTSD, obsessive compulsive disorder and binge-eating disorder in experiment two). After reading each description, we asked participants to report how much empathy they felt towards the person, how appropriate they were for professional treatment, and how much they should receive accommodations at school or work, such as extra time on assignments or special leave. We also asked how likely they thought the person would be to recover fully (both experiments) and how much control they had over their problems (experiment two). We then compared these judgments between the label and no‑label conditions. Labels had an impactParticipants who read descriptions preceded by a diagnostic label tended to report greater empathy toward the person and more support for efforts to accommodate their problems. They also saw the person as more appropriate for treatment than those who read the same descriptions unlabelled. At the same time, the presence of labels led participants to see the person’s problems as more lasting and their recovery as less under their control. Many of these judgments varied between disorders. There was some evidence that labelling effects were strongest for less familiar disorders such as binge-eating and bipolar disorders. Mixed blessings When diagnostic labels are applied to marginal cases of mental illness, the implications seem to be mixed. On the one hand, labels legitimise help-seeking, promote flexible support and boost empathy. These positives contradict suggestions that labelling promotes stigma. However, diagnostic labels also seem to encourage the view that mental health problems are persistent and that people have limited capacity to overcome them. In other words, diagnostic labels may lead people to see mental illness as an enduring identity rather than a transient state. These perceptions may erode expectations of recovery for people experiencing problems and undermine efforts to achieve it. Even the apparent benefits of labelling could have a downside in the context of relatively mild distress. It might encourage unnecessary and ineffective treatment or entrench a “sick” role by offering special accommodations to people with marginal impairments. Our findings shed light on the possible consequences of the ongoing expansion of diagnostic concepts. As these concepts spread to less severe forms of distress and impairment, and diagnostic labels are used more loosely, we must be alert to the probable costs as well as benefits. Nick Haslam, Professor of Psychology, The University of Melbourne This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Rorschach, Switzerland – September 2024 – HORISEN is proud to announce its collaboration with Vodafone Germany and DIMOCO Payments in supporting the first-ever public transportation ticketing concept via RCS (Rich Communication Services) and DCB (Direct Carrier Billing) in Germany. Powered by HORISEN’s Business Messenger Platform, this innovative solution allows users to book public transportation tickets and pay directly through their phone bill – all this inside an RCS dialogue. The process is quite simple: just scan the QR code at the bus stop, choose a tariff, select carrier billing, and enjoy the ride – making public transport more accessible and convenient than ever. This solution was showcased at the prestigious Future of Tech event, part of Germany’s largest B2B Startup Expo and Conference, highlighting HORISEN’s role in driving digital innovation in public services. The initiative is part of Vodafone Germany’s UPLIFT project, dedicated to exploring new innovation partnerships. By focusing on future topics like sustainability, data analytics, and AI, Vodafone UPLIFT connects innovators with the resources and expertise needed to bring market-ready solutions to life. Like HORISEN, Vodafone is committed to creating future-oriented solutions that deliver tangible value and sustainability. About HORISEN:HORISEN, the home of omnichannel technology, is the ultimate one-stop shop for wholesale and retail messaging businesses. With over two decades of experience, we push the boundaries of technological innovation to empower Messaging Technologists in establishing, operating, and expanding successful messaging businesses. Our commitment to advancing the industry is evident in our pioneering projects that will drive the next wave of digital transformation. HORISEN Partners with Vodafone Germany for Groundbreaking Public Transportation Ticketing Concept | Total Telecom |
Investigating social media harm is a good idea, but parliament is about to see how complicated it is to fix (2024-05-24T12:53:00+05:30)
Rob Nicholls, University of Sydney and Terry Flew, University of Sydney Barely a day has gone by this month without politicians or commentators talking about online harms. There have been multiple high-profile examples spurring on the conversation. There was the circulation of videos of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel being stabbed in the Sydney church attack. The normalisation of violent content online has also been central to the discussion of the domestic violence crisis. Then, of course, there’s the expressions of disdain for the Australian legal system by X (formerly Twitter) owner Elon Musk. Inevitably, there are calls to “do something” and broad public appetite for changes in regulations. A new parliamentary committee will explore what that change should look like, but will have to contend with a range of legal, practical and ethical obstacles along the way. Ten busy days On May 1 and May 10, the government made two major announcements. The first was a Commonwealth response to some of the online harms identified by National Cabinet. At the May 1 meeting, the Commonwealth promised to deliver new measures to address violent online pornography and misogynistic content targeting children and young people. This included promised new legislation to ban deepfake pornography and to fund a pilot project on age-assurance technologies. The second was an announcement establishing a Joint Parliamentary Select Committee to look into the influence and impacts of social media on Australian society. The government wants the committee to examine and report on four major issues: The decision of Meta to abandon deals under the News Media and Digital Platforms Bargaining Code the important role of Australian journalism, news and public-interest media in countering misinformation and disinformation on digital platforms the algorithms, systems and corporate decision-making of digital platforms in influencing what Australians see, and the impacts of this on mental health other issues in relation to harmful or illegal content disseminated over social media, including scams, age-restricted content, child sexual abuse and violent extremist material. However, the final terms of reference will be drafted after consultation with both the Senate crossbench and the opposition, so they may change a bit. Why would they do this? Asking the committee to review the Meta decision is an odd move. In practice, Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones can “designate” Meta without a referral to the parliament. That is, the minister can decide all of the obligations of the News Media Bargaining Code apply to Meta. However, a sounding by the committee may help to ensure Meta keeps concentrating on the issue. It also provides the opportunity to restate the underlying principles behind the code and the parlous state of much of the Australian news media. In relation to harmful or illegal content disseminated over social media, there is already a review of the Online Safety Act underway. The terms of reference seem to ask the committee to provide input into the review. The issue of misinformation and disinformation has also been the subject of review. The government released a draft of a proposed bill to combat misinformation and disinformation in June 2023. It would give the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) power to enforce an industry code, or to make one if the industry cannot. That draft was criticised by the opposition at the time. However, there have been shifts since then and the committee might be a vehicle for the introduction of an amended version of the bill. An age-old issue: Online age verification is a simple idea that is hard to implement unless there are significant consequences for non-compliance on a service provider. Work in this area by the UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, and the UK Information Commissioner’s Office are often cited as leading practice. However, the commissioner’s website notes “age assurance is a complex area with technology developing rapidly” One approach is for the minor to identify themselves to a platform by uploading a video or to send a photograph of their ID. This is entirely contrary to the eSafety Commissioner’s messaging on online safety. The Commissioner advises parents to make sure children do not share images or videos of themselves and to never share their ID. In practice, the most effective age identification for minors requires parents to intervene. This can be done by using software to limit access or by supervising screentime. If children and teenagers can get around the rules simply by borrowing a device from a school friend, age verification might not do much. As the International Association of Privacy Professionals has found, age verification and data protection are far harder than they look. It is particularly difficult if the age barrier is not one already in place – such as the adult rights that those over the age of 18 possess – but rather a seemingly arbitrary point in the mid-teens. Other than online, the most important age to verify is 18 for things such as alcohol sales and credit. It is also the age at which contracts can be enforced. Countries vs companies: One issue that is often raised about social media platforms is how Australia can deal with a global business. Here, the European approach in the Digital Markets Act provides some ideas. The act defines companies with a strong market position as “gatekeepers” and sets out rules they must follow. Under the act, important data must be shared as directed by the user to make the internet fairer and to ensure different sites and software can communicate with each other. It also calls for algorithms to be made more transparent, though these rules are a bit more limited. In doing so, it limits the power of gatekeeper companies, including Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Apple, ByteDance (TikTok), Meta and Microsoft. Obviously, Australia can’t harness the collective power of a group of nations in the same way the European Union does, but that doesn’t preclude some of the measures from being useful here.There is considerable public support for governments to “do something” about online content and social media access, but there are both legal and practical obstacles to imposing new laws. There is also the difficulty of getting political consensus on such measures, as seen with the debate surrounding the misinformation bill. But it’s clear in Australia, both citizens and governments have been losing patience with letting tech companies regulate themselves and shifting responsibility to parents.  Rob Nicholls, Senior research associate, University of Sydney and Terry Flew, Professor of Digital Communications and Culture, The University of Sydney, University of SydneyThis article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
Culture as sweet as sugar (2023-02-17T14:05:00+05:30)
 Traditional myths provide inspiration for culinary delights as cakes take on a legendary status. At traditional Chinese markets, tangren (sugar people) are a popular draw, as they make for an entertaining treat for children and adults alike. Name practically any animal or famous fictional character and, with great ease, the folk artisans will mold maltose syrup into a figure that can be easily held and eaten off a stick. With deft handiwork, vendors seem to bring the molten bronze liquid to life, as they shape it into a mouthwatering piece of art. In the past five years, however, patissier Zhou Yi has been taking the concept to the next level, combining fondant cake-making skills with Chinese dough-sculpting techniques to create elaborate edible figurines of the country's historical or mythical characters. One of his latest creations — combining the likeness of a flying apsara (a fairy, or feitian in Chinese) with a mythological beast that is half fish and half bird, from the ancient text Classic of Mountains and Seas, and whose appearance bodes well for a good harvest — took him four months to complete. The cake presents a scene found in a mural at Gansu province's Mogao Caves, where the flying apsara is shown to be playing pipa (a Chinese plucked string instrument) in an unusual reversed posture, with the instrument raised high in the air at the back of her head. Apart from fondant, Zhou also used the traditional pulled sugar technique in parts of the work, such as the pipa, to give the instrument a translucent effect that matches the ethereal quality of the goddess. "I don't think cakes are just for eating. They are also a medium that is able to carry many creative ideas. The cultural heritage of Chinese civilization over the millennia can take on new and vibrant forms on a small piece of cake," Zhou says. The 40-year-old learned Chinese cooking techniques at the Sichuan Tourism University in Chengdu, Sichuan province. There he got to know about the country's food history and culture, in particular the techniques used in folk cuisine, as well as mastering food science, which allows him to develop new recipes. Wishing to master an area of expertise in order to support himself after graduation, he chose to focus on the folk skill of dough sculpture — the making of vivid three-dimensional models of plants, animals and human figures using dough as a raw material. As pictures of his figurines attracted followers online, a client commissioned him to make a figurine of her favorite character, but requested that it be made using fondant, a material he had never worked with before. With an innate curiosity for anything related to food science, Zhou started researching the features of fondant, as well as its history, and found it peculiar that there were no original Chinese designs or cultural elements in fondant cakes. "I felt that although fondant is a Western technique, sugar is something that is enjoyed by people of all nationalities. Since I was considerably skilled in dough sculpting, I thought I could also make fondant cakes that present Chinese culture," Zhou says. In 2017, he took his fondant team to Cake International, an annual cake show and competition that is held in the United Kingdom, and won three gold awards and two bronze awards. His own fondant creation, a piece depicting Wu Zetian, an empress from the Tang Dynasty (618-907), won a gold award and was named the "international best in show". "I was doing fairly well in China, but I didn't know much about the international scene. I really just hoped to learn something from other patissiers," Zhou says. Despite the casual tone with which he recalls the experience, he faced a grueling schedule when preparing for the competition. Aside from making his two entries within seven days, he also had to supervise the work of his other team members. Grabbing only a few hours of sleep each night was the norm. He tells one anecdote about his entry that portrayed a girl dressed in hanfu (a traditional style of Chinese attire), leaning on a piece of rock in a lake. For the piece, he used pulled sugar to portray the water, which was too thick to cut through, disqualifying it from the category it was initially submitted to. However, the judges thought the cake was a wonderful piece and made an exception, transferring the entry to the "decorative exhibit" category, where it won Zhou a bronze. Zhou and his team returned to Cake International in 2019, breaking their previous record and claiming a total of four gold awards. Over the years, he has continued to hone his fondant-shaping skills while tapping Chinese cultural elements for inspiration, creating works ranging from fondant replicas of archaeological artifacts to elaborate scenes that depict cultural traditions. His most popular works, though, are the detailed and exquisite portraiture of fictional characters that allow him to exert his imagination and creativity. "I am fascinated by traditional Chinese culture, such as hanfu, ornaments, artifacts and stories. We have so many original characters and stories, but not enough people to elaborate on these characters to make them vivid and memorable," Zhou says. "This is a passion of mine and something I'll keep working on, with the hope of introducing these Chinese cultural elements to more people through aesthetically pleasing works." He recently collaborated with MGM China Holdings Ltd on presenting an exhibition at MGM Cotai resort in Macao, for which he created five fondant sculptures over 2 meters tall that highlight the culture of South China, or Lingnan, such as lion dancing and morning tea. " (This exhibition) rejuvenates Chinese traditional culture by presenting traditional festivity, etiquette and livelihood in a contemporary manner and infusing the influence of guochao (a Chinese consumer trend that modernizes traditional culture), to merge art with life," says Pansy Ho, co-chairperson and executive director of MGM China Holdings Ltd. Zhou continues to refine his skills and perfect his recipes, producing fondant cakes that are both exquisite and appetizing. When looking back at the works he produced several years ago, even the award-winning ones, he feels like he has made progress in terms of his skill and representation of Chinese culture."Innovation is a process of constantly learning. I plan to keep a close eye on Chinese history and culture, and also to exchange with the cultures of other countries and regions, so as to present Chinese traditional culture in the most innovative ways I can," Zhou adds. Source: China.org.cn |
Here's Why Crypto Firm Vauld, Promoted By YouTubers Is In Deep Trouble (2022-07-21T12:30:00+05:30)
 Vauld has announced that it has halted the withdrawal of funds following cash crunch, also stopped accepting fresh funds By: Mohammed Kudrati: A popular cryptocurrency exchange called Vauld, promoted or featured in several videos by Indian YouTube channels, often with more than a million subscribers during the 2021 cryptocurrency price bull run, is now in deep trouble. The crypto exchange announced that it has halted the withdrawal of funds after facing a cash crunch and has stopped accepting fresh funds as well, while it continues to consult with financial and legal organisations on how to return to normalcy. This situation has prompted it to be a potential acquisition target by Nexo, a British exchange, to enter the Asian market using Vauld as a gateway. On Tuesday, Nexo signed an agreement with Vauld, that gives them a 60-day exclusive exploratory period to acquire it. In its statement announcing the curbs on July 4, Vauld attributed it to the current downturn in the cryptocurrency market, catalysed by adverse events like the collapse of the 'stablecoin' USDT, the liquidation of crypto hedge fund Three Arrow Capital, and similar curbs on crypto exchange Celsius. This is Vauld's second indication that it was facing problems, after Darshan Bathija, its CEO, wrote a blog announcing job cuts - to the tune of 30% - in June. Both Vauld and Nexo are exchanges, or rather crypto-fintech companies, who offer similar services: mimicking banks. These exchanges offered the core services that banks did - term loans and interest-bearing term deposits (like fixed deposits) - but all denominated in cryptocurrency instead of fiat currency like dollars or rupees. Vauld's customers could start something called an 'automatic investment plan' (AIP) to invest in cryptocurrencies on Vauld, starkly resembling the systematic investment plans commonly offered to invest in Indian equity or mutual funds. Nexo even offers a credit line through plastic-based cards, which lets users spend in real currency, but is secured by crypto assets in their account. Further, despite Vauld being based in Singapore, Indian clients could make deposits and withdraw in Indian rupees. The pandemic year 2021 saw stocks and cryptocurrencies rally, as global monetary systems remained flush with liquidity to combat the ill effects of the economic fallout that the pandemic unleashed. However, the receding pandemic, heightened inflation and rising global interest rates have led to a rout in financial markets, including cryptocurrencies, with several advanced economies in the world being on the brink of a recession, which is likely to set in in the next 12 months, according to Nomura. Watch: Cryptocurrencies In Free Fall: What Is Going On? The YouTube connection: Vauld's popularity in India also soared due to promotions done by influencers who featured them on their YouTube channels. Akshat Srivastava, a YouTuber creator, has a video portfolio explaining cryptocurrencies, and related concepts like tokens, stablecoins and equity. His channel has 1.1 million subscribers. Further, he has also made several videos for Vauld's own YouTube page. At the time of writing this story, Srivastava was addressing the curbs on Vauld through a YouTube live stream. Ankur Warikoo, a digital influencer who discusses entrepreneurship, finance and investment, made a YouTube video in October 2021 discussing how he uses Vauld for bitcoin-based fixed deposits. In the video's description, he states that he would not have otherwise invested in a fixed deposit because, but did so through Vauld as it was crypto-denominated. Warikoo too has posted what he has received from Vauld, stating that he has capital stuck with them. At 8:21am on July 4th 2022, I received an email from Darshan, the CEO of Vauld. Due to the volatile nature of the crypto market, Vauld has decided to pause all withdrawals, trading and deposits. Which means our monies are stuck for now. This is extremely unfortunate and not something I would have wished for, when I worked with Vauld. As all of us (that includes me - Even my money is with Vauld) wait to see what happens next, I hope you all invested wisely In crypto to no More than 5-10% of your total portfolio, as I have mentioned always. Ankur Warikoo on YouTube: PR Sundar, who has a YouTube channel with 9.45 lakh subscribers, did a video with Bathija, where the latter outlined Vauld's services, especially its fixed deposit services. Sundar largely discussed the market, with Bhatija discussing the platform and features. The video has more than 1.9 lakh views. Booming Bulls, a YouTube channel with 1.07 million subscribers, made a walkthrough on how to make AIPs using Vauld. He explains that the payment could be made using dollars or USDT (which is pegged to the dollar at a one-to-one exchange rate) in either one cryptocurrency or a basket of them. After Vauld halted withdrawals, the creator said in a separate video that his funds too are stuck with the company, and he hoped for a speedy resolution. This article is republished from BOOM under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
Working from home: Will it stand the test of time? (2020-12-10T15:58:00+05:30)
 When the world was attacked by COVID-19 and with no proven drug/vaccine available for treating the virus-infected people, social distancing between individuals was advocated as an immediate solution to solve the problem. Even as the unending debate continued on the causes and effect of COVID-19, the lockdown was imposed to enforce social distancing, which has now proved to be very costly for the economy of the countries around the world. To lessen the burden on the economy and to keep the productive operations to continue to a possible extent, working from home was suggested as a solution to reduce the adverse impact on the economy. With the working from home concept being adopted by several government departments and companies around the world, the debate started about the merits and demerits of working from home. Till today, the last word has not been said about the merits and demerits and the appropriateness of this concept. The ground reality is that the types of functions where work from home can be carried out and the potential number of people who could work from home in various functions are very limited. Most of the operations are carried out on the shop floor and in commercial enterprises, so here work from home is not possible at all. Therefore, obviously, working from home is not a major solution to keep the economy moving. At best, work from home is suitable only for some operations and organisations like software, consultancy, etc. with the aid of modern communication facilities and technology. Even in such cases, where working from home can be possibly practiced, there are serious limitations and bottlenecks in ensuring efficiency and productivity of those working from home. Many believe that efficiency of working from home may be less than 50 percent in most cases, since the requisite guidance from the superior authorities cannot be provided to the desired level in carrying out the task. Often, such instructions and guidance call for face-to-face meetings and with continuous interactions. Further, in working from home, there cannot be discipline of time-bound working hours and inevitably people will relax or get disturbed or their attention will be directed from the tasks and duties due to a variety of reasons. The most important factor is that it is possible that quite a number of people who work from home may not have the commitment and duty consciousness to the level required and they may need strict supervision to ensure their output. While systematic detailed study is yet to be conducted to ascertain the efficiency level of working from home, many senior executives seem to be under the impression that employees working from home are not an ideal or desirable method of running an organization. They seem to think that large scale levels of people working from home will impact the overall performance of the organisations very severely and this practice will not stand the test of time. Of course, the employees in the organisations “who enjoy the pleasure of working from home” seem to feel extremely happy, as they do not have to commute to the office, can have flexible working hours and can relax whenever they need, even as they do not lose their salary and perks. In most of the functions, the output is not measurable on a day to day basis and therefore, those working from home may even be able to escape from the scrutiny of their output. The concept of working from home may work in the case of self-employed people, who set the target for themselves and may put forward the best of efforts to achieve the target set for themselves whether they ”work from home or outside the home.” The concept of working from home is not new and is known for long. In the COVID-19 period, the option of working from home has been adopted as a measure of least choice with no other option open. Some software companies have come out with vague claims that they can ask a large number of employees to work from home in the post-COVID-19 period too, as it would benefit the organisation by having to have less working space, less power consumption, etc. However, from the point of view of cost-benefit analysis, working from home will not be found advantageous in the short or long run. The organisations which opt for employees working from home as permanent practice in the post virus period will realise their mistake and will learn at a cost and would give up this practice very soon. (The writer is a Trustee, NGO Nandini Voice for the Deprived, Chennai. He can be contacted at nsvenkatchennai@gmail.com) Source: https://southasiamonitor.org/
|
Meet the man with the golden mask (2020-08-09T14:24:00+05:30)
 A Pune businessman and connoisseur of the yellow metal has got himself a gold mask in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic raging across Maharashtra. The man with the golden mask is Shankar Kurade of adjoining Pimpri-Chinchwad town who got the mask made costing around Rs 2.90 lakh.
As pictures of him went viral on social media, he admitted that though it had minute holes to breathe and was comfortable to wear, he was unsure if it provided any safety against the deadly virus.
The mask is made of thin gold leaf along with golden threads to tie it and the cost is roughly equivalent to the cost of over 175,000 ordinary disposable masks or more than 700 PPEs in the market.
Kurade's golden mask is another addition to a handful of men in Maharashtra who are passionate about gold, including Pankaj Parakh of Nashik who owns a 4.10 kg pure gold shirt costing over Rs 1.30 crore which earned him a place in the Guinness World Records. (IANS)
|
UK to get more electric scooters to fight congestion (2016-11-22T08:41:00+05:30)
UK's Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) plans to allocate more money towards getting more electric scooters on the roads.
Starting summer 2015 through 2020, i uld make available £7.5 million would to provide subsidies of up to £1,500 per vehicle that would benefit least 5,000 riders.
The scheme would help reduce CO2, as also congestion.
Getting people to cycle rather than drive was one way to address the problem of congestion. But many people did not, due to lack of practicality and comfort. After all, given the fact that the UK had long winters, it was understandable people did not want to face the biting cold on a daily basis.
According to Steve Kenward, the CEO of The Motorcycle Industry Association which has represented the motorcycle industry for over 100 years', "This was a significant development as it recognised the part motorcycles and scooters will play in a low carbon future. Subsidy will encourage more people to opt for electric motorcycles and scooters, which will help solve the UK's appalling congestion problem.
'We also hope it will give manufacturers who already have electric models for sale in mainland Europe the confidence to launch in the UK."
The move would make qualifying vehicles up to 20 per cent cheaper, establishing motorcycles and scooters as the most affordable electric vehicles on the market and therefore within the reach of more people.
According to a major traffic report published on FleetPoint, congestion had worsened considerably over the past year, with journeys now taking 29 per cent longer during peak times than they would under free flowing traffic conditions.
Further, as per EU research, powered two-wheelers helped reduce congestion for all road users. Traffic flow modeled for one of the most congested roads in Europe, showed that when just 10 per cent of car drivers swapped to a motorcycle, scooter or moped, congestion was reduced for all road users by 40 per cent. Source: domain-b.com
|
UK to get more electric scooters to fight congestion (2016-11-19T08:36:00+05:30)
UK's Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) plans to allocate more money towards getting more electric scooters on the roads.
Starting summer 2015 through 2020, i uld make available £7.5 million would to provide subsidies of up to £1,500 per vehicle that would benefit least 5,000 riders.
The scheme would help reduce CO2, as also congestion.
Getting people to cycle rather than drive was one way to address the problem of congestion. But many people did not, due to lack of practicality and comfort. After all, given the fact that the UK had long winters, it was understandable people did not want to face the biting cold on a daily basis.
According to Steve Kenward, the CEO of The Motorcycle Industry Association which has represented the motorcycle industry for over 100 years', "This was a significant development as it recognised the part motorcycles and scooters will play in a low carbon future. Subsidy will encourage more people to opt for electric motorcycles and scooters, which will help solve the UK's appalling congestion problem.
'We also hope it will give manufacturers who already have electric models for sale in mainland Europe the confidence to launch in the UK."
The move would make qualifying vehicles up to 20 per cent cheaper, establishing motorcycles and scooters as the most affordable electric vehicles on the market and therefore within the reach of more people.
According to a major traffic report published on FleetPoint, congestion had worsened considerably over the past year, with journeys now taking 29 per cent longer during peak times than they would under free flowing traffic conditions.
Further, as per EU research, powered two-wheelers helped reduce congestion for all road users. Traffic flow modeled for one of the most congested roads in Europe, showed that when just 10 per cent of car drivers swapped to a motorcycle, scooter or moped, congestion was reduced for all road users by 40 per cent. Source: domain-b.com
|