South Korean University Entrance Exam

Police escort some students to exam venue.  Anthony Wallace/AFP

Yesterday, more than half a million students took an important university entrance exam at 1395 sites across the nation.  The tremendous pressure on young students from South Korea’s ultra-competitive education system has been criticized for causing high rates of depression and suicide.

Alzheimer’s Breakthrough

 

The search for a drug that can stop or reverse the ravages of Alzheimer’s disease has been riddled with setbacks in recent years. But new research suggests a potential advance from an unexpected source: an already approved pill currently prescribed to treat fluid retention associated with heart failure, kidney disease and other common conditions.

In a study published this week in the journal Nature Aging, the diuretic bumetanide was shown to reverse signs of Alzheimer’s in mice that carried a genetic risk factor for the disease, as well as in human brain cells in the lab. What’s more, an analysis of health records revealed that older adults who took bumetanide were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those on a different diuretic……………….

https://www.aarp.org/health/dementia/info-2021/pill-may-prevent-alzheimers.html

 

Kyle Rittenhouse Trial

 

Kyle Rittenhouse looks on as the jury is led out of the room during a break at his trial at the Kenosha County Courthouse, Winsconsin. Sean Krajacic/Pool

Rolling Stones No Filter Tour

 

Detroit, US

Keith Richards, left, and Mick Jagger perform during the Rolling Stones’ No Filter tour

Photograph: Rob Grabowski/Invision/AP

Children for sale in 1948

 

This picture was taken August 4, 1948, and published in a Chicago newspaper.  It shows 4 young children: SueEllen (top left), Lana (top right), Milton (bottom left), and Rae (bottom right).

The mother, Lucille Chalifoux, was shielding her eyes from the camera, not sobbing as I first thought, according to the newspaper reports from the time, but then how do we really know. She was 24, married to an unemployed man 16 years older, and pregnant with her fifth child in six years at the time of the photo. Who’s to judge her true feelings?

After the picture appeared in papers throughout the US, offers of jobs, homes and financial assistance poured in for this family.

What Happened Next

No one knows how long the sign stood in the yard. Apparently shortly thereafter the father abandoned the family, and records show he had a criminal record. Lucille went on governmental assistance. A fifth child, David, was born in 1949.

The storyline is not complete, but David was either removed from the home or relinquished in July 1950. He was covered in bed bug bites and in rough shape. He was adopted by a loving but strict home and ran away at 16, spent 20 years in the military, and has been a truck driver ever since.

Rae says that she was “sold for $2 [in Aug. 1950] so her mother could have bingo money and because the man her mother was dating did not want anything to do with the children.” Milton was standing nearby crying, so that family took him too. Sadly, their new father was horribly abusive. Rae ran away at 17. Milton was removed from the home due to abuse (unclear at what age) and eventually ended up in a mental hospital diagnosed with “schizophrenia and having fits of rage”. He was released in 1967 at age 23. He eventually married, moved to Arizona, and is now divorced.

No one knows what happened to Lana, other than she died of cancer in 1998. SueEllen was adopted, but I’ve not been able to find out any additional information other than she had two sons. She told her children that she was sold by her mother.

Liverpool Hospital Bomber Emad Al Swealmeen - who went by the name Enzo Almeni

Almeni is a Syrian asylum seeker who converted to Christianity and was once arrested for carrying a knife. The motor racing enthusiast is said to have changed his first name to Enzo after Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari.  He made the name change to sound less Muslim and appear more Western, in the hope that it would help his asylum application.

 It’s understood he arrived in the UK several years ago and was being supported by Christian volunteers from a network of churches who help asylum seekers. He spent a large part of his life in Iraq, where his mother originated from.

 

Remembrance Day, Sydney 2021

 

Swedish warship Vasa

It sank in 1628 and was recovered from the sea floor after 333 years.

 

It was 4 p.m. on August 10th of 1628, and the Vasa ship had barely left the docks of Stockholm harbor on its maiden voyage. Only 1300m into its voyage, a light gust of wind toppled the ship over on its side. As water flooded through the gun portals of the ship, it sank in the shallow waters of Stockholm harbor and lay there at 32m, forgotten. In 1956, it was found by Anders Franzen, a Swedish marine technician, and amateur naval archaeologist. It was salvaged between 1959-61 and can be found today in the museum that was specially built for it.

 

From Wiki

The use of different measuring systems on either side of the vessel caused its mass to be distributed asymmetrically, heavier to port. During construction both Swedish feet and Amsterdam feet were in use by different teams. Archaeologists have found four rulers used by the workmen who built the ship. Two were calibrated in Swedish feet, which had 12 inches, while the other two measured Amsterdam feet, which had 11 inches

State funeral for Bert Newton

 

One of the funniest and most loved men in Australian history

Remembrance Day, Lloyds of London

 

Lloyd’s of London employees observe a minute’s silence in commemoration of Remembrance Day

Photograph: Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images

Liam Scarlett Inquest

 

A former Royal Ballet choreographer killed himself after feeling “humiliation” over allegations of sexual misconduct against him, an inquest heard,  The court heard a brief statement that read:  "Liam Scarlett was admitted to Ipswich hospital on 12 April 2021 due to cardiac arrest following an attempted hanging. 

Scarlett enjoyed a rapid rise to dance stardom, winning the Ursula Moreton and Kenneth MacMillan awards for choreography whilst at the Royal Ballet School before joining the prestigious Royal Ballet company in 2005. He was promoted to the role of first artist three years later, before retiring as a dancer in 2012 to focus on choreography.

Afghanistan near economic collapse

 

A child makes clay bricks with a mould at a brick kiln in Kandahar on November 11, 2021. Photo: AFP

Afghanistan is “at the brink of economic collapse” and the international community must urgently resume funding and provide humanitarian assistance, Pakistan’s foreign minister warned Thursday at a meeting with US, Chinese, Russian and Taliban diplomats in Islamabad.

 

Sydney, Australia

 

Joanne Beavis, left, with Megan Rull attend the Remembrance Day service at the Cenotaph. Rull’s partner killed himself last year after serving in Afghanistan

Photograph: Mick Tsikas/EPA

Sir Elton John's new royal award

 

Sir Elton John is made a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour by the Prince of Wales during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle.

House of Gucci Premiere

 

 

Lady Gaga poses for photographers upon arrival at the World premiere of the film ‘House of Gucci’ in London. 9 November 2021

Jeremy Irons, who plays Rodolfo Gucci.  Photograph: Henry Nicholls/Reuters

House of Gucci is released in the US on 24 November and in the UK two days later

Photograph: Anthony Harvey/Rex/Shutterstock

 

Taylor Wessing photographic portrait prize 2021

 

Merna Beasley, Murtijar Woman from the series Tribute to Indigenous Stock Woman by David Prichard Taylor (Winner)

‘Any level of investigation into Australian history reveals the years of trauma that indigenous people have suffered’ Prichard says.  ‘One can only imagine what stock women endured, living in remote areas, in a world dominated by white colonial culture and law.  I wanted to produce portraits that were dignified, strong and beautiful and worthy to represent these women today and into the future.’

 

Dean Stockwell dies aged 85

 

Anchors Aweigh, 1945

Dean Stockwell with Frank Sinatra in the shore-leave musical.

Photograph: Getty Images

 

Princess Charlene of Monaco comes home

 

Princess Charlene returned from South Africa to be greeted by her husband, Prince Albert, and their twins, Jacques and Gabriella

Princess Charlene of Monaco was reunited with her husband and two children today when she returned to the principality after an eight-month absence that fed speculation about the state of their ten-year marriage.

 

Pistorius eligible for release

 

After serving half of his 13-year sentence for murdering Steenkamp, Pistorius, 34, could soon be eligible for release. He was found guilty of killing Reeve Steenkamp 29 in the early hours of Valentine’s Day in 2013 when he fired four times through the door of his bathroom. He claimed he thought he had been firing at an intruder.

Famine genocide of Ukraine

A photo taken by Austrian chemical engineer Alexander Wienerberger during Holodomor (Famine genocide) in the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine, in the spring or summer of 1933. His handwritten caption on the picture states: "Mother with her starving children"

Migrant caravan heading to Mexico City

 

Arriaga, Mexico

Migrants take part in a caravan heading for Mexico City

Photograph: Raquel Cunha/Reuters

Emptiness Sculpture by Albert Gyorgy

 

Melancolie was created by Albert György, a Romanian born sculptor and can be found in a small park on the promenade along the shore of Lake Geneva. Switzerland. 

 

This work of art displays the true desolation and loneliness associated with grief. It’s gaping hole is the toll of grief — making the individual nothing more than an empty, physical shell.

Jane Goodall is 87

 

She lives in her childhood home in Bournemouth with her sister, Judy, her niece, Pip, two great nephews and her whippet, Bean.  “I’m up by eight every day, however I often find myself awake until 4am because there’s so much to worry about; so much that I haven’t done — like the 2,000 unread emails in my inbox.”

 

 

 

Makkala Rose Tattoo

 

Tattoo by New Zealand artist Makkala Rose -- 122 hours of work.

Migrant caravan headed to Mexico City

 

Tonalá, Mexico
A migrant caravan continues along the coast of Chiapas and will rest in Tonalá before heading towards Arriaga and on to Mexico City

Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty

Neurath, Germany

 

Activists chain themselves to the rail tracks to block trains supporting the coal power plant near Cologne

Photograph: Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters

Herat, Afghanistan

 

A Taliban fighter guards the Herat Grand Mosque. The Taliban regained control of Afghanistan and its capital Kabul in mid-August, almost 20 years after they were ousted from power by a US-led coalition in 2001

Photograph: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

Heat Pumps

 

House for sale

Nayland, Suffolk, UK

The government is offering a grant to help 90,000 households switch from traditional boilers to energy-efficient heat pumps. For those who would rather inherit one than fit it, this Grade II-listed cottage already has an air source pump installed – made by Mitsubishi, no less. More glamorous still is the basement cinema. There are two to three bedrooms and a courtyard garden. The 18th century property is just up the road from the Anchor Inn pub, which has an “eco” ice rink and puts on a popular “skate and dine” night. £550,000. 

Photograph: Winkworth

 

Around 31% of a household’s carbon dioxide emissions come from space and water heating. To meet the governments target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 new technologies such as heat pumps will be needed to reduce these emissions while providing comfortable living conditions.

A heat pump is a device that can replace traditional heating systems such as boilers to provide space and water heating within both domestic and commercial settings. Rather than burning a fuel to produce heat, they move heat from a low-temperature heat source and ‘pump’ it to a higher temperature where it can be used to provide space heating or produce hot water. The source is normally heat in the ground or the outside air. 

Big Potato

 

A large potato sits on a trolly in a garden at Donna and Colin Craig-Browns home near Hamilton, New Zealand, Wednesday, Nov 3, 2021. The New Zealand couple dug up a potato the size of a small dog in their backyard and have applied for recognition from Guinness World Records. They say it weighed in at 7.9 kilograms (17 pounds), well above the current record of  just under 5 kg. They've named the potato Doug, because they dug it up. AP

Tiny gold bible discovered in Yorkshire, UK

 

Buffy Bailey, an NHS nurse from Lancaster, was searching farmland near Sheriff Hutton Castle in North Yorkshire with husband Ian when her detector picked up a strong signal close to a footpath.  It was a solid gold Bible which has left scholars stunned. The small object, that is just 1.5cm long, weighs around 5g and is either 22-carat or 24-carat gold, dates back to the 15th century and is believed to have belonged to a relative of King Richard III.

Women protest at Western Wall, Jerusalem

 

A member of the Women of the Wall group clutches a Torah scroll as Israeli security forces hold back protesters

MAYA ALLERUZZO/AP

 

Violent clashes broke out by the Western Wall in Jerusalem yesterday over the right of women to hold prayers at the Western Wall.  Dozens of police officers created a barrier between about a hundred members of the Women of the Wall group and 2,000 ultra-Orthodox protesters, mainly young men, who were trying to block them.

Trouble in Northern Ireland

 

Belfast, Northern Ireland
Loyalists clash with police during a protest against the Northern Ireland Protocol

Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty

 

A senior police leader has pleaded for calm over the Northern Ireland protocol as a 12-year-old boy was arrested after a hundred rioters attacked officers at a rally.  Chief Superintendent Darrin Jones said he was “saddened” after police were attacked with missiles and fireworks close to a peace line in Belfast on Wednesday evening.

What is the Northern Island Protocol?

During Brexit negotiations, all sides agreed that protecting the 1998 Northern Ireland peace deal (the Good Friday agreement) was an absolute priority.

That meant keeping the land border open and avoiding new infrastructure such as cameras and border posts.  This was easy to do when both Ireland and Northern Ireland were part of the EU. Both sides automatically shared the same EU rules on trade and no checks were needed on goods travelling between them.

 

Pfizer jab for children underway in US

 

Emma Ingle 7, sitting on her mother Kim Obert’s lap, receives her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine in Storrs, Connecticut, 3 November 2021

Chislaine Maxwell trial set to begin

Ghislaine Maxwell in court in Manhattan on Monday for a hearing. Opening arguments in her case are scheduled to begin on 29 November. Photograph: Elizabeth Williams/AP

 

The British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is subjected to such invasive surveillance in jail that it “rivals scenes of Dr Hannibal Lecter’s incarceration” from The Silence of the Lambs, her lawyer has argued in making yet another request for bail pending her trial.

Cleo Smith's alleged abductor Terence Darrell Kelly

 

Cleo Smith’s alleged abductor Terence Darrell Kelly collects Bratz dolls and is pictured on social media wearing a shirt with cartoons on it. Credit: supplied/Supplied

Cleo Smith’s alleged abductor collects Bratz dolls and is pictured on social media wearing a shirt with cartoons on it.  Terence Darrell Kelly, 36, was arrested in the early hours of Wednesday morning, after the four-year-old girl was allegedly found locked away at his house.  Mr Kelly’s identity was revealed later on Wednesday as the alleged abductor spent time in hospital for medical treatment.  It is understood he injured himself in his cell again overnight and was returned to hospital yesterday.

Alan Jones contract cancelled with Sky News

 

Alan Jones has sensationally accused Sky News Australia of 'cancelling' him after bosses refused to renew his contract. 

'I write in my regular Thursday column to advise you that the management at Sky News have indicated to me that they will not renew my contract, which ends on November 30,' he wrote. 

Kabul, Afghanistan

 

At the Azizi Bank in Kabul, men wait in line to withdraw money from their bank accounts. On top of an embargo imposed by the U.S., the IMF has cut off loans to Afghanistan, triggering a financial crisis. The shortage of money has led banks to limit cash withdrawals. (Photo by Paula Bronstein)Limits on dollar withdrawals means long lines every day as customers must keep coming back.

Link https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/The-Big-Story/Afghanistan-nightmare-a-humanitarian-crisis-that-threatens-to-dwarf-all-others

Glenn Youngkin wins Virginia

Glenn Youngkin declares victory in Chantilly on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

For the first time in more than a decade, Virginia - a state that was comfortably Democratic in last year's presidential election - will have a Republican governor.

Coalition split over Religious Discrimination Bill

 

Attorney General Michaelia Cash is attempting to overcome division among Coalition MPs over a new religious discrimination bill. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Cash, who took over the bill’s progress from Christian Porter when she became attorney general in March, is now consulting on a third iteration of the draft legislation in an attempt to overcome internal resistance and fulfil an election promise.

Three issues are understood to face some resistance within the party room: the inclusion of a “Folau clause” that would give legal protection to someone expressing a statement of belief; conscientious objection provisions that would allow health practitioners to refuse to provide certain treatment; and the ability for religious institutions to discriminate against staff on the basis of religion to maintain a “faith-based ethos”.

The Australian Christian Lobby has boasted it successfully pressured the government into including a Folau clause – a provision that would legally protect an individual from having their employment terminated as a result of them expressing their religious views. The issue gained prominence after footballer Israel Folau was sacked by Rugby Australia for social media posts suggesting homosexuals, adulterers, atheists and other “sinners” would go to hell.

Source:  Guardian Australia

 

Cleo Smith found alive and well

 

Missing four-year-old girl Cleo Smith has been found safe and well in a locked house in Carnarvon.  Police broke into the house about 1am and found her in one of the rooms.  One of the officers picked her up and asked her, 'What's your name?"  “My name is Cleo” she said."  

She has been reunited with her parents.

Macron and Morrison's war of words

 

Less than 24 hours after the French President publicly accused the Prime Minister of lying, private text correspondence promptly emerged undermining Mr Macron’s account.

The text messages, published in The Daily Telegraph on Monday night at 6pm, were provided as evidence by an unnamed source to prove that Macron knew long ago the subs deal was in trouble.

The leaked text messages, which were designed to challenge the French President’s claim that the Prime Minister is a liar, were also published by The Australian Financial Review on Monday night.

 

Sydney airport opens to the fully vaccinated

 

Sydney, Australia

An international traveller is embraced as she arrives at Sydney airport after Covid restrictions eased.  Fully vaccinated Australians are allowed into Sydney from overseas, without quarantine for the first time since March 2020.  Photograph: Jaimi Joy/Reuters

 

 

Christian Porter to face Parliamentary Committee

 

Liberal MP Christian Porter will be formally asked by a powerful parliamentary committee to explain his declaration that legal fees for his defamation case were part-paid by a trust with funds from unknown sources.

Guardian Australia understands the privileges committee decided last week to write to Porter offering him a right of reply to a complaint from shadow attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, that the former attorney general’s failure to declare the ultimate source of funds breached disclosure rules.

Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel

Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel signing the Instrument of Surrender of the German Wehrmacht at the Soviet headquarters in Karlshorst, Berlin, May 1945. After trial, he was sentenced to death and executed in Nuremberg Prison by hanging in 1946.

Tasmanian Aboriginal War Hero

 

In Tasmania’s “Black War” of 1823–31, Tongerlongeter led a stunning resistance campaign against invading British soldiers and colonists. Leader of the Oyster Bay nation, he inspired dread throughout the island’s southeast. Convicts refused to work alone or unarmed, terrified settlers abandoned their farms, the economy faltered and the government seemed powerless to suppress the violence……

https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-tongerlongeter-the-tasmanian-resistance-fighter-we-should-remember-as-a-war-hero-165308