NEW DELHI — A femto-satellite designed by an 18-year-old engineering student in India has been selected by NASA to be used in one of its space missions this year. Riyasdeen Samsudeen, a second-year mechatronics student at Sastra University in Tamil Nadu state, won last year’s Cubes in Space global competition for students ages 11 to 18 to design and propose experiments to launch into space. A femto-satellite is low cost, with a mass lower than 100 grams. Riyasdeen’s Femto-satellites. (Riyasdeen S)“Riyasdeen’s satellites are named VISION SAT v1 and VISION SAT v2. Both are 37 mm in size and each weighs…
Author: zenger.news
NEW DELHI — A much-awaited eponymous word-to-screen adaptation of writer Aravind Adiga’s, Man Booker Prize-winning novel “The White Tiger,” has emerged as the talk of the film town, earning a mix of brickbats and bouquets for zooming the lens on the underbelly of India’s caste and class struggles. There’s a unanimous word of praise, however, for lead actor Adarsh Gourav, who is being tagged as a new “breakout star” from the South Asian subcontinent. “The White Tiger,” directed by Iranian-American filmmaker Ramin Bahrani, began streaming across over 190 countries through Netflix on January 22, just a few days after having…
WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice is bringing sedition and conspiracy charges against paramilitary and militia group leaders, members and participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. Three people associated with the Oath Keepers, an extremist paramilitary organization that heavily recruits from military, law enforcement and first-responder personnel or veterans, were formally indicted for conspiring to obstruct Congress on Wednesday. Jessica Marie Watkins, 38, and Donovan Ray Crowl, 50, of Ohio and Thomas Caldwell, 65, of Virginia face charges of “conspiracy, obstructing an official proceeding, destruction of government property, and unlawful entry on restricted building or grounds,” the Department of…
ALGIERS, Algeria — Police have arrested the husband of Algerian television journalist Tinhinane Laceb for her murder after she was found dead a few yards from her former family home in Ouled Khed near Algiers on Jan. 26. The arrest was confirmed by officer Kamel Lamri of the Reghaia police station. “The victim’s husband was directly arrested by the police, the investigation is still ongoing,” said officer Lamri. Those closest to Laceb, 39, were not surprised by the arrest The victim’s father, Djafer Laceb, said his daughter died as a result of an argument with her husband, who insisted she…
PUNE, India — Violence erupted, yet again, between protesting farmers and a group of men who identified themselves as “locals” on Jan 28 at Singhu, a village on the border of Indian capital New Delhi and neighboring state, Haryana. Farmers have been camping at New Delhi borders since late-November, demanding the repeal of new farm laws that they claim will affect their livelihood. When the farmers entered New Delhi on Jan. 26 — India’s Republic Day — violence erupted, with protesters clashing with the police. The situation in and around New Delhi has been tensed since then. On Jan 28,…
KOSTROMA OBLAST, Russia – A tank and more than 650 Russian paratroopers were dropped during Air Force War Games in the western region of Russia, Kostroma Oblast. The video shared by the Russian Ministry of Defense on Jan 26 shows members of the Ivanovo Airborne Forces practicing parachute jumps and strategic landing at a military training base. A BMD-4M amphibious infantry fighting vehicle was the first to be dropped, followed by the paratroopers. It is seen landing safely and according to the protocol. “The tracked BMD-4M vehicle Sadovnitsa [“Gardener”] is an upgraded version of the BMD-4, boasting a new hull,…
PIATRA NEAMT, Romania — A video footage reveals a bear despite being released in the wild has been circling an imaginary cage for the past seven years. The bear named ‘Ina’ was kept in a tiny cage at a zoo in the Romanian city of Piatra Neamț for 20 years before being rescued and relocated to a reserve in Zarnesti. The action was carried out by the AMP Libearty bear sanctuary. “She is free, but her mind is captive even now, and there are days when she turns endlessly in a circle penned in by an imaginary cage created by…
ANKARA, Turkey — The Turkish Ministry of National Defense shared the training video of an F-16 fighter jet aircraft flying into the targeting pod of another aircraft behind on their official Twitter account on Jan 24. “An unforgettable image from the heroic pilots of our Air Force,” wrote ministry officials. “During a night flight around Lake Tuz, a magnificent full moon image was captured by the Sniper Pod on our F-16 aircraft.” Targeting pods fitted to a fighter jet are also known as sniper pods. They are used for identifying targets before guiding precision munitions to hit those targets. Fortunately,…
COSTA RICA – A wooden cargo ship is being built to export goods from Latin America to North America. The old-fashioned vessel is the brainchild of Sail Cargo Inc. The project “is estimated to cost $.2 million”, which is “significantly less” than what it would cost to build a modern cargo ship, said Jeremy Starn, the company’s media manager. “There are not many examples to compare it to,” said Starn. “Ceiba [the boat] is an unprecedented cargo ship. Because no wooden vessel of this scale has been constructed in the 21st century and never in the history of Costa Rica.”…
FLEVOPOLDER, The Netherlands – A leek field, on the world’s largest artificial island, was turned into a piece of glowing art by a Dutch artist. Daan Roosegaarde, an innovator, along with his team of designers and engineers from Rotterdam-based Studio Roosegaarde, intended as an homage to farmers and to inspire them to experiment with artificial light in outdoor farming. “I want to design things which make people curious about the future, not sad or mad,” said Roosegaarde. “Light is my language. Light is not decoration, it’s activation and it’s communication. It’s very futuristic and also very romantic, in a way.”…