News

IndianExpress: IRKED by Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) failure to take action against the encroachment on Shri Sant Gadge Maharaj school’s playground at Kondhawa by Brahma builders to facilitate a shortcut for the residents of Brahma Avenue, the Kondhawa Bachao Kriti Samiti on Tuesday blocked the road.

School students and local residents had two truckloads of stones brought in and offloaded on the road and also damaged the pavement. Samiti leader Narayan Lonkar also threatened that residents would launch a major agitation if the road was not closed down by the civic body.
 
The protestors were led by local Shiv Sena leader Rajendra Lonkar, Nationalist Congress Party leader Rahul Lonkar and NCP youth wing leader Ajit Lonkar.

IndianExpress: AFTER dengue, falciparum malaria, the most dangerous type of malaria, is worrying health officials in Pune. Three deaths two days ago and four deaths in October due to falciparum malaria at Sassoon General Hospital has made health officials hold a series of meetings to tackle the menace.

In just 48 hours, 35-year-old Dattatreya Pise from Jaiprakash Nagar, Yerawada, 52-year-old Suresh Sonawane from Gawliwada naka, Shriramnagar died on Sunday at Sassoon Hospital, while 35-year-old Paigambar Shaikh from Phaltan, Satara died of falciparum malaria at the hospital where he was undergoing treatment.

IndianExpress: THE twin industrial township of Pimpri-Chinchwad is all set to outsmart other cities in the country on the green field. The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, which has set up 108 gardens, has decided to set up 100 more in the next three years.

PCMC garden superintendent Suresh Salunkhe said currently 50 gardens are being developed in various parts of the town and soon work on constructing 42 more would be taken up. “We hope to inaugurate 22 gardens in the next few months. The work on 42 gardens will also start soon as the procedure for acquiring land or clearing them of encroachments has been completed.”

IndianExpress: PAUCITY of funds has led to the postponement of the 33rd Jawaharlal Nehru National Science Exhibition, which was to be held at the Shiv Chattrapati Sports Ground at Balewadi from November 13 to 19.

Organised by the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT) in collaboration with the government’s Department of School Education and Sports, the exhibition was to be inaugurated by President APJ Abdul Kalam, and was expected to attract 10,000 students, teachers and parents, with nearly 150 scientific innovations on display.

Although authorities claim the date has been pushed forward due to change in the President’s schedule, sources state it is because of the inability to raise sufficient funds.

BBCNews: A machine has been invented to encourage children to work out while they are playing computer games.
The Step2Play step exercise machine links directly to a child’s computer games console.

The game’s controller will only work if the child keeps up a constant pre-set rate of exercise.

Dr Ian Campbell, medical director of Weight Concern said the device would be “useful” but that it was “a terrible indictment on society”.

Because the system only controls the game’s controller, and not the game itself, it can be used with any Playstation game. The game pauses while the controller is inactive.

Two players can use different steppers and controllers to play two-player games. The machine also has a parental over-ride and is aimed at youngsters under the age of 12.

TechTree: AMD has announced the ATI Radeon X1900 G5 Mac Edition that combines workstation-class creative productivity and cutting-edge 3D game performance.

The next generation card is a high-performance PCI Express graphics upgrade card for the Power Mac G5 Quad and Power Mac G5 Dual. According to the company, it will help users maximize their creative potential.

Talking about the card, Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager - graphics products group, AMD, said, “The ATI Radeon X1900 G5 Mac is the fastest graphics processor upgrade available for Power Mac G5 Quad and Power Mac G5 Dual systems. ATI was one of the longest-running continuous supporters of gamers and prosumers on the Mac platform, and we expect our focus on their needs to continue now that ATI is a part of AMD.”

BetaNews: Microsoft late Monday announced a major new initiative to offer television shows and movie downloads via its Xbox Live service, further transitioning the Xbox 360 from video game console to consumer home entertainment device.

The new service, dubbed Xbox Live Video, will launch on November 22 - the one year anniversary of the Xbox 360’s launch. Initial content partners include CBS, MTV Networks, Paramount Pictures, TBS, UFC, and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.