Sabtu, 8 Mac 2014

The Malaysian Insider :: Sports

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The Malaysian Insider :: Sports

Chong Wei has revenge in his sights in All-England finals

Posted: 08 Mar 2014 08:03 AM PST

March 09, 2014

World number one Lee Chong Wei (pic) earned himself a revenge attempt with All-England champion Chen Long after escaping from close defeat to achieve a breathtaking victory.

The Malaysian did that with a 14-21, 21-19, 21-15 win over Son Wan Ho, the in-form world number 11 from Korea, after being close to the exit at a game down and 15-17 and 17-18 down in the second.

In those difficult moments, Lee played his most controlled badminton, either deep to the back-line or tight to the net, and picked his moments perceptively to apply the sudden moments of pressure which took him to his sixth successive All-England Open final.

Son, by contrast, tended to over-press in the crises after playing a superb match in which he took advantage of Lee's error-tinged first game and also pushed on to an early four-point lead in the final game.

"Son played very well," admitted Lee. "I saw his match yesterday (when he beat the fifth-seeded Kenichi Tago) and I saw how well he was playing.

"But I am also playing well – playing well for myself, playing for my country, and also enjoying being at the All-England."

Lee was asked if his late-night match with Kento Momota of Japan, followed by a 1pm start today had affected his performance in the first half. when he lost 15 out of 20 points at one stage to relinquish the first game.

"It was okay," he said diplomatically, although his wide grin had suggested it might have been a problem. "And I hope I will be okay tomorrow."

Tomorrow's final will see him against Chen Long for the second successive year, and the world number two from China is likely to be at least as formidable as when he surprised Lee last time.

He was masterful in defence against compatriot Wang Zhengming, the rising world number nine, winning 21-17, 21-14 and was patient in working openings to attack.

Chen also responded well to danger situations, and when Wang produced an audacious backhand cross-court short angle to reach 17-19 Chen punished him with two of his best rallies.

It was a slightly bloodless match, as those between Chinese compatriots sometimes are, but it was a skilful one parading the abilities of two very fine players, which should have warned Lee supporters what to expect.

"I was aware of what was happening on the next court," said Chen, when asked whether Lee's struggle today might prove an advantage to him (Chen) tomorrow.

"But we will begin tomorrow on equal terms, and it will be a question of who performs better on the day."

Lee felt similarly. "I am very proud to be in the final again," he said. "And I believe I can win the title again this year." If he does it will be his third. – AFP, March 8, 2014.

Arsenal score four to beat Everton in FA Cup

Posted: 08 Mar 2014 07:06 AM PST

March 08, 2014

Two goals from late substitute Olivier Giroud and one apiece by Mesut Ozil and Mikel Arteta (pic) secured Arsenal's place in the FA Cup semi-finals with a 4-1 win against Everton at the Emirates Stadium today.

Ozil gave Arsenal a seventh minute lead, after a precise through ball from Santi Cazorla but Everton equalised after a surging run from Ross Barkely resulted in a Romelu Lukaku tap-in after 32 minutes.

Arsenal regained the lead in the 68th minute after Gareth Barry tripped Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the box and Arteta converted the penalty.

Striker Olivier Giroud then came off the bench to score twice in two minutes, in the 83rd and 85th minutes, to keep Arsenal on course for their first trophy for nine years. – Reuters, March 8, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz

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The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz

U2 rolls back next album to 2015, says report

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 07:39 PM PST

March 08, 2014

The Irish mega band fronted by Bono (pic) has scheduled additional sessions with producers Ryan Tedder and Paul Epworth, although Danger Mouse remains the project's central producer. – Reuters pic, March 8, 2014. U2 are pushing back the release of their 13th album to 2015 despite a new single and many high-profile media appearances, music industry journal Billboard said yesterday.

Citing anonymous sources, it said the Irish mega band fronted by Bono has scheduled additional sessions with producers Ryan Tedder and Paul Epworth, although Danger Mouse remains the project's central producer.

"It seems to be taking longer for them to finish an album as they get older, but the great thing about U2 is that the whole of a record is always better than the sum of its parts," Billboard quoted a source close to the project as saying.

"That magic that the band always seems to capture... they have yet to capture it."

Billboard also reported that a U2 tour that would have been announced this month, and would have kicked off in September, has also been rolled back to next year.

Since the start of this year, U2 has played at the Golden Globes as well as on "The Tonight Show" on the night Jimmy Fallon took over as its host on NBC.

The group also rolled out their latest single "Invisible" during American football's Super Bowl, in a tie-in with Bank of America to raise funds for the AIDS charity Red. – AFP, March 8, 2014.

Anderson’s whimsical ‘Grand Budapest Hotel’ evokes a bygone Europe

Posted: 06 Mar 2014 07:27 PM PST

March 07, 2014

Old rich dames, angry henchmen and one very punctilious hotel concierge make up the fantasy world at the centre of Wes Anderson's whimsical caper that evokes a bygone era of aristocratic hierarchy and opulence.

"The Grand Budapest Hotel," out on limited US release today, is in part inspired by Anderson's own experiences of living in Europe, the works of Austrian author Stefan Zweig, and paying homage to an era where tradition reigned supreme.

"Each year I spend a pretty good part of the year in Europe for the last 10 years or maybe more, so this is for me a chance to do a story that relates to my own," Anderson said in his soft hybrid accent that masks any hint of a Texas drawl.

"It's related to my own adventure of being abroad, of being a foreigner abroad in a world, and my own sense of discovering new things," he added, reclining on a sofa in a Beverly Hills hotel, in one of his trademark light brown suits.

Texas-native Anderson, 44, has become synonymous with his quirky, dark comedies such as 1998's "Rushmore," 2001's "The Royal Tenenbaums," 2004's "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou," and his 2009 adaptation of Roald Dahl's "Fantastic Mr. Fox" that have drawn a cult audience.

For his devoted fans, "Grand Budapest Hotel" offers up all of his trademarks – satirical comedy, eccentric characters, an odd-ball love story and visually detailed settings.

British actor Ralph Fiennes leads a star-studded cast that reunites some of Anderson's frequent collaborators, such as Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Bill Murray.

Fiennes makes his Anderson film debut as Monsieur Gustave, the meticulous, impatient, flamboyant concierge of the hotel with a penchant for seducing old, rich widows.

"The reason I wanted him is because I thought he is the person who can take this character and not just do a turn with it. He can make this a real person," Anderson said.

The film spans different time periods, flitting between the 1960s and the 1930s, in order to shape a narrative based on a "story within a story within a story," Anderson said.

When one particular old, rich dame, played by a heavily transformed Tilda Swinton, bites the dust, Gustave and his trusted new lobby boy Zero – played by newcomer Tony Revolori – find themselves in a caper involving the heist of a priceless painting, ruthless henchmen, a stint in prison, pastries and the intriguingly mysterious Society of the Crossed Keys.

Hearkening the past

At the centre of the film is the pink 19th century Grand Budapest Hotel, of which an intricate miniature model was built for many of the landscape and exterior shots.

The rest was filmed in a turn-of-the-century gothic-style department store located in the German city of Goerlitz, on the Polish border.

"My sources for all the visual stuff is old photographs, these old images and it's really gathering ideas from research," the filmmaker said. "It's usually a surprise to me, what happens when you mix these chemicals together."

The aesthetic of the Grand Budapest Hotel, located in the fictional Republic of Zubrowka, hearkens to the decadence of a bygone era, where old money and culture reigned supreme.

Monsieur Gustave is an extension of the hotel himself, embodying its traditional beliefs, and both are challenged by a world changing quickly around them.

"That's a reality that existed; wars came and ways of life changed, and in that part of the world, there were political changes that altered everything. That's what the movie's about a little bit. That's the backdrop," Anderson said.

Last year, Anderson found his biggest hit with "Moonrise Kingdom," which earned him his third Oscar nomination for best original screenplay, and made more than $68 million at the worldwide box office.

With his next, yet-to-be-titled project already in the works, (Anderson declined details, saying it's too early to describe yet), the director said he's finding himself drawn to conjuring up earlier eras.

"Each movie I do, I feel like is in some way, a bit picking off where I left off in the last movie, and so I have a feeling it might have some connection to the past," he teased of his next project. – Reuters, March 7, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Features

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The Malaysian Insider :: Features

Shakira opens charity school in Colombia shanty

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 07:50 PM PST

March 08, 2014

A girl kisses Colombian singer Shakira during the inauguration of a school funded by her foundation in the neighbourhood of Loma del Peye in Cartagena on February 24, 2014. – AFP pic, March 8, 2014.Lomas de Peye residents used to fear that a strong gust of wind from the Caribbean would be enough to knock down their school. Then Shakira came to their aid.

The pop superstar recently traveled to this shanty town in Cartagena, on Colombia's northern coastline, to inaugurate a new 8,000 square metre brick school paid for through her charity foundation.

The US$10 million (RM32.6 million) school, built with funds from local and international donors Shakira's own money, includes a football field and enough classrooms for 1,700 students.

"Besides being a school, it is a centre for community development, where we dream that at least 5,000 people can come for informal programmes, sports, art, or just a gathering space," said Patricia Sierra, director of Shakira's charity the Shoeless Foundation.

Shakira, born Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll in 1977 in the Caribbean city of Barranquilla, now lives abroad with Spanish football star Gerard Pique and rarely visits Colombia.

The new school is the sixth built by Shakira's foundation in Colombia, a country wracked by drug violence and a lengthy civil war.

Children lined the neighbourhood's unpaved roads and stood in front of their humble wooden homes as they welcomed the singer, who arrived with her year-old son Milan in her arms.

"It gives me great joy to know that in this space you will have the necessary tools to become good citizens," Shakira told the future students.

Then, in a nod to the government officials at the event, she said: "Education is not a luxury, it's a right that society should protect and the state has a definite obligation to protect."

Wearing the school uniform, 14 year-old Jorge Eliecer Garrido welcoming the singer and thanked her for the new school.

"Now that she's made it big, she has the heart of a child because she feels what we feel," he said.

Lady Zuniga, an elderly woman deeply tanned from years working in the blasting Caribbean sun, told AFP locals worried about the children's safety in the old school, where her grandchildren studied.

"A strong wind would hit it, and we were afraid that it would knock over the building," Zuniga said.

Shakira has long been interested in helping young people.

"At the age of six she told her mother, 'I know that I came into the world for a mission,'" Shakira's father William Mebarak told AFP.

"Two, three, four years went by and then she said: 'I know what my mission is: the children'," Mebarak said.

In 1997 Shakira began the Shoeless Foundation charity, and she has since taken a hands-on role in the group.

"She is proposing projects every day," said Sierra.

For some residents, the new school not only represents hope for social improvement, but also an urban renewal project that will help cut down on crime.

"This neighbourhood used to have a bad reputation. Very few people would dare to visit," said Eduis Coneo Vergara, who lives in front of the new school.

"The access routes have been improved. There is now an increase in people who come here because they see that it's easier to come up and is a lot safer," Vergara said. – AFP, March 8, 2014.

Regular family routines boost kids’ social-emotional health

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 07:00 PM PST

March 08, 2014

Researchers believe a nurturing environment that begins in early life helps children feel secure and loved. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, March 8, 2014. New research shows the many benefits children enjoy from regular family routines, such as family dinners and storytimes.

Investigators at The Children's Evaluation and Rehabilitation Center (CERC) at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in New York found children who regularly engage in family routines exhibit higher social-emotional health (SEH), meaning they are better able to understand emotions, enjoy positive relationships with adults and other children, demonstrate empathy and otherwise control themselves as needed. Such abilities help children perform well in school and bode well for a child's "long-term outcomes".

The study was published in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

Researchers analysed data from a large, nationally representative sample of preschool-aged children – the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort from the National Center for Education Statistics. They reviewed 8,550 parental responses to questions such as how many times families ate dinner together each week and how often they played together, sang together and told stories.

Results showed 16.6% of children studied had high SEH, and 57% of those said they participated in three or more family routines. The study also found that for each additional routine that a parent and child did together, there was an almost 50% greater likelihood of having high SEH.

The researchers believe a nurturing environment that begins in early life and features regular family routines indicates "greater family organisation" and helps children feel secure and loved.

The study supports previous research regarding family routines, such as a 2013 survey conducted by the UK's National Literacy Trust that found mealtime chatter can boost a child's communication skills and confidence. – AFP/Relaxnews, March 8, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Books

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The Malaysian Insider :: Books

Anne Frank House makes donations to Japanese libraries

Posted: 07 Mar 2014 11:01 PM PST

March 08, 2014

Ripped pages of Anne Frank's 'Diary of a Young Girl' are pictured at a library in Tokyo in this February 22, 2014 picture provided by Kyodo. – Reuters pic, March 8, 2014.The Anne Frank House, a museum dedicated to the Jewish girl who died in a Nazi concentration camp, today donated 3,400 copies of its catalogue to Japanese libraries after hundreds of copies of Anne Frank's diary were damaged.

The delegation from the museum in Amsterdam visited the office of Tokyo's Suginami ward, donating the catalogue showing its exhibits and a miniature of the Anne Frank House where her family hid during World War II.

The museum will donate 3,400 copies of the catalogue to libraries throughout Japan, a local official said.

More than 300 copies of the diary, or publications containing biographies of Anne Frank, Nazi persecution of Jews and related material have been torn at many public libraries in Japan, news of which sparked alarm amid a rightward shift in the country's politics.

Suginami ward found at least 121 damaged books at 11 of its 13 public libraries, the local office said.

Jan Erik Dubbelman, head of the museum's international department, handed the catalogue to Suginami mayor Ryo Tanaka.

"I also trust that by strengthening and expanding the friendship between Japan and the Anne Frank House and the people in Japan who strive for harmony, this incident will be soon forgotten," he said.

Tanaka said since the news was reported the ward had received dozens of related publications given by donors.

The Israeli embassy in Japan has also donated 300 copies of the diary to Tokyo libraries.

Anne Frank, a German Jew born in Frankfurt in 1929, documented her family's experiences hiding in concealed rooms during the German occupation of the Netherlands where they settled in 1933.

They were caught and sent to Nazi concentration camps. Anne and her sister died of typhus in 1945.

Anne's "Diary of a Young Girl" was added to the UN Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation's Memory of the World Register in 2009.

The vandalism spree comes amid criticism of a rightwards shift in Japanese politics under nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with a recent volley of provocative comments about Japan's wartime past that have sparked accusations of revisionism by China and South Korea. – AFP, March 8, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa

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The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa

Ahli perniagaan batal perjalanan terkejut berita pesawat MAS hilang

Posted: 08 Mar 2014 02:48 AM PST

March 08, 2014

Seorang ahli perniagaan yang membatalkan penerbangannya dari Kuala Lumpur ke Beijing dengan Malaysia Airlines (MAS) terkejut dengan berita pesawat MAS dilapor hilang hari ini.

Beliau yang hanya mahu dikenali sebagai Woo berkata, mengikut perancangan awal, beliau sepatutnya menyertai dua rakannya menaiki pesawat itu untuk ke Beijing atas urusan perniagaan.

Bagaimanapun beliau terpaksa membatalkan hasratnya ke Beijing pada saat-saat akhir kerana dia perlu ke Singapura atas urusan yang lebih penting.

"Saya masih terkejut dengan berita ini. Tapi saya tidak pasti sama ada dua orang rakan saya itu ke Beijing atau Shanghai. Jika mereka ke Shanghai, saya yakin mereka selamat," katanya di Kuala Lumpur.

Woo berkata, beliau masih menunggu perkembangan terkini mengenai nasib dua rakannya itu kerana mereka masih belum dapat dihubungi sehingga sekarang. – Bernama, 8 Mac, 2014.

JKM sedia 10 kaunselor tenteram keluarga waris pesawat hilang di KLIA

Posted: 08 Mar 2014 02:43 AM PST

March 08, 2014

Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat (JKM) menyediakan 10 kaunselor bagi mententeramkan waris anggota keluarga mangsa yang terlibat dalam insiden pesawat MH370 yang dilaporkan hilang ketika dalam penerbangan ke Beijing, China sejak pagi tadi.

Timbalan Ketua Pengarah (Operasi) JKM Zulkiply Ramli berkata perkhidmatan itu akan disediakan selama 24 jam sehingga situasi kembali pulih.

"Kaunselor-Kaunselor ini pakar dalam memberikan khidmat kaunseling terutama kepada mereka yang berada dalam keadaan trauma," katanya kepada pemberita di Anjung Tinjau, Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur (KLIA) hari ini.

Seorang daripada kaunselor berkenaan Norazura Ahmad berkata mereka perlu bersedia memberi sokongan emosi kepada keluarga mangsa.

"Ini supaya mereka boleh menerima kenyataan. Ada keluarga yang tidak akan dapat terima kenyataan dan hanya menangis," katanya.

Beliau berkata kaunselor akan membiarkan anggota keluarga bertenang terlebih dahulu sebelum mengemukakan sebarang soalan.

"Kita kena beri tempoh masa kepada mereka yang trauma dan kaunselor akan bersedia untuk mendengar," katanya. – Bernama, 8 Mac, 2014.

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Sabtu, 8 Mac 2014