Knowledge Update

​Tokyo, Dec 27 (IANS) The Japanese government has adopted a series of emergency measures to prevent deaths due to overwork, following the deaths of two employees of a prominent advertising agency that became public recently, officials said on Tuesday.

The measures, approved Monday by the Labour Ministry and published by financial daily Nikkei, aim to increase monitoring of companies to ensure compliance with overtime laws.

Besides conducting surprise inspections at companies, authorities will also publicly reveal the names of firms which have seen cases of "karoshi", or death caused by overwork, as also those which force their staff to work extra hours beyond the legally allowed limit of 80 hours overtime a month, Efe news reported.

In October, the government published a report in response to such cases, which showed nearly a fourth of the country's workforce could be exceeding this limit.

The new measures, which will come into effect in January 2017, also include steps to advise companies on labour laws and foster medical and psychological help for employees who may be suffering from fatigue or work-related stress.

Concern and debate over excess work has been revived in the archipelago after the suicide of a 24-year-old female employee of Dentsu - the leading advertising firm in Japan - was confirmed to be a case of "karoshi" in October.

She had reportedly worked 105 extra hours the month before her death, although the company records reflected overtime within the permissible limit.

Her family alleged the company had forced her to indicate lesser hours than those she had actually worked.

The young woman, who died in December 2015 and who had been hired only seven months earlier by the company, had previously tweeted about having worked up to 20 hours a day.

Days after the confirmation of her case as karoshi, the death of another Dentsu employee in 2013 was also established to have been caused by excessive work.

The Japanese government last year approved a law to address problems caused by excessive work, but the lack of rigor on recording of extra hours by firms, and the staff's willingness to extend their working hours to earn a bonus makes it difficult to control the practice.

​Washington, Dec 27 (IANS) The world's fastest land animal, the cheetah, is sprinting towards the edge of extinction, a new study warned, calling for urgent conservation actions to save these big cats.

The study published in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday, estimated that the cheetah's population has declined to just 7,100 globally, Xinhua news agency reports.

As a result, the researchers urged that the cheetah should be up-listed from "Vulnerable" to "Endangered" on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species.

Sarah Durant of the Zoological Society of London and lead author of the study said this study represents the most comprehensive analysis of cheetah status to date.

"Given the secretive nature of this elusive cat, it has been difficult to gather hard information on the species, leading to its plight being overlooked," Durant said in a statement.

According to the researchers, even within guarded parks and reserves, cheetahs still face threats of human-wildlife conflict, prey loss due to excessive hunting by people, habitat loss and the illegal trafficking of cheetah parts and trade as exotic pets.

To make matters worse, as one of the world's most wide-ranging carnivores, 77 per cent of the cheetah's habitat falls outside of protected areas, which makes the animal especially vulnerable to human pressures.

"The take-away from this pinnacle study is that securing protected areas alone is not enough," said Kim Young-Overton, cheetah program director of the wild cat conservation group Panthera. 

​New York, Dec 26 (IANS) Apple's next generation iPhone 8 is rumoured to sport a bold new design and would feature an OLED display without a bezel.

"Despite the fact that Apple's flagship iPhone lineup continues to be the best-selling smartphone series in the world, fans are anxious for something new -- and in 2017, they will

​Beijing, Dec 26 (IANS) The first law on traditional Chinese medicine was adopted, which allows doctors and hospitals to practice it without seeking government permission.

The new law, which clarifies the legal status of traditional Chinese medicine, takes effect on July 1, 2017, the National People's Congress (NPC) said on its official website on

London, Dec 26 (IANS) Banks and more than 100 UK companies are inquiring about relocating to Ireland after Britain's historic vote to leave the European Union (EU), a media report said.

Beijing, Dec 26 (IANS) Fast food restaurant chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) launched its first Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled cafe in Beijing, and said it plans to create more innovative and interesting dining experiences for customers. With the cooperation of Baidu Inc, China's largest search engine, KFC started its first smart restaurant in the Financial Street area in Beijing on Friday, the People's Daily reported on Sunday. At the cafe, customers are able to take pictures with a machine, which will recognise the diner's face, sex, age, mood and other features, then help to recommend suitable food and set meals and complete the ordering process. "If the consumer visits the store again and takes a picture with the machine, it will be able to recognize his or her face and show the previous purchase history, remember the customer's dining habits, and help to place an order faster," said Wu Zhongqin, Deputy Director of the Institute of Deep Learning of Baidu Inc, which helped to develop the technology. With another machine with an augmented reality, customers are able to interact with the machine, change facial expressions by shaking their heads in front of the machine, take photos, and save them to their phones. In April, KFC also started its first Chinese smart restaurant in Shanghai. The outlet is equipped with intelligent robot ordering, debuting the use of artificial intelligence in the chain restaurants.

​Dubai, Dec 26 (IANS/WAM) The United Arab Emirates is set to hold its first Honey Festival in Hatta Heritage Village here December 29-31.

The first of its kind festival will be a platform that brings together people related to honey industries worldwide.

The festival aims to raise the level of Municipality services in Hatta area and the development of recreation and tourism facilities and sites, said Director-General of Dubai Municipality Hussain Nasser Lootah. 

"This area is given focus due to its historical and cultural importance, and to convert Hatta area into a first-class tourist destination for Emiratis and foreigners," he said.

Lootah said that this festival brings together the elite of beekeepers in the UAE, the Gulf, and the world. 

Over 25 honey exhibitors from inside and outside the country are participating in the event.

The festival will also have a number of other events like tent shopping, gallery for honey product families, lectures by specialised lecturers from the UAE and the Arabian Gulf, and scientific sessions in the field of beekeeping.

​Dubai, Dec 26 (IANS) Dubai's new 13.2 billion Parks and Resorts' has come up with 'Bollywood' and 'Hollywood'-themed parks that will bring world class entertainment to tourists and boost business in the Arabian desert.

Spread across 30.6 million square feet, the Motiongate-themed parks -- two of the three separate theme parks and a waterpark, including, Legoland and Riverland -- were formally opened on December 18.

The entire destination, connected by a one km river front with a host of dining and retail offerings at Riverland Dubai and 500-room Lapita Hotel, could turn out to be the breakout hit.

Following the first ever collaboration between Columbia Pictures, Dreamworks and Lionsgate at Motiongate park, the Dubai themed park now trails only the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for the most themed parks in one resort.

It's tough to judge among other theme parks (those completed), but Bollywood and Motiongate parks offer refreshing alternatives of a unique theme of music, dance and other activities for tourists from India and abroad.

Krrish, a Bollywood science fiction franchise, will give you a 4D ride. While the Lagaan simulated roller coaster is a cricket-themed carnival ride. 

Sholay, a 3D interactive allows the hunt for Gabber Singh and offers the rare element of actually allowing you to shoot at people. These are just some of the excitement awaiting the tourists.

While Motiongate features 27 rides and attractions including five roller-coasters.

"Dubai Parks and Resorts aims to attract 1,000 UAE nationals, through its emiratisation programme and strategies, to work in the theme park industry. 

"At least 6.7 million ticketed visits are projected for 2017, the first full year of operation," CEO DXB Entertainments PJSC, the owner of Dubai Parks and Resorts, Raed Kajoor Al Nuaimi said at the event.

Nuaimi said that it was his honour to deliver the theme park to the people of Dubai, the UAE and the entire Middle East after three years.

"It is the first of its kind integrated entertainment destination in the region, as it consists of three different theme parks and one waterpark and intertainment zone all in the same location," Nuaimi said.

With slogan of 'Experience Amazing', the organisers claim that "Dubai has just become home to the largest theme park destination in the Middle East and region's largest integrated theme park destination".

Asked if the Bollywood-themed park is only for attracting Indian visitors, one of the organisers said: "Our aim is to attract all the visitor. 

"Bollywood is really themed specially for Indians as they know it very well but its not necessary that it is only for the Indian nationals."

General Manager of Bollywood parks, Thomas Jellum told IANS: "India is one of the key market for us. Tourism is actually increasing. Dubai Parks and Resorts aims to attract 20 million visitors."

Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum officially inaugurated Dubai Parks and Resorts site located on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai -- close to the Expo 2020 site -- in the presence of over 1,000 invited guests.

Accompanying Shaikh Mohammad were Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and other officials.

The event started with the theme song "All the Wonders of the Universe" written by Academy Award winning composer and Disney Legend Alan Menken, who performed it accompanied by his daughter Anna Menken, recording artist.

The event showcased its theme parks in a special show involving the dancers and actors from Dubai Parks and Resorts' live entertainment team, who perform in shows such as the Bollywood musical, Jaan-e-Jigar and Step Up All In, inspired by the Step Up film franchise.

​Melbourne, Dec 26 (IANS) An international team of astronomers has found a massive supercluster of galaxies that had previously gone undetected as it was hidden by stars and dust in the Milky Way.

The Vela supercluster is a huge mass that influenced the motion of our galaxy, said Professor Matthew Colless from Australian National University.

"This is one of the biggest concentrations of galaxies in the Universe -- possibly the biggest in the neighbourhood of our Galaxy, but that will need to be confirmed by further study," Colless added.

"The gravity of the Vela supercluster may explain the difference between the measured motion of the Milky Way through space and the motion predicted from the distribution of previously mapped galaxies," Colless, who used the Anglo-Australian telescope to measure distances for many galaxies, explained.

The research -- published in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society -- involved astronomers based in South Africa, Australia and Europe. 

Two new Australian surveys starting in 2017 will confirm the size of the Vela supercluster, according to the researchers.

"The Taipan optical survey will measure galaxy distances over a bigger area around Vela, while the WALLABY radio survey will be able to peer through the densest parts of the Milky Way into the supercluster's heart," Colless pointed out.

​New York, Dec 26 (IANS) Researchers have developed a synthetic version of a cardiac stem cell that could offer therapeutic benefits comparable to those from natural stem cells and could reduce some of the risks associated with stem cell therapies.

Stem cell therapies aid damaged tissue in repairing itself by secreting "paracrine factors," including proteins and genetic materials.

While stem cell therapies can be effective, they are also associated with some risks of both tumour growth and immune rejection. 

Also, the cells themselves are very fragile, requiring careful storage and a multi-step process of typing and characterisation before they can be used.

"The synthetic cells operate much the same way a deactivated vaccine works," said Ke Cheng, Associate Professor at North Carolina State University in the US.

"Their membranes allow them to bypass the immune response, bind to cardiac tissue, release the growth factors and generate repair, but they cannot amplify by themselves. So you get the benefits of stem cell therapy without risks," Cheng explained.

In this study, reported in the journal Nature Communications, the researchers created the synthetic version of a cardiac stem cell that could be used in off-the-shelf applications. 

When tested in vitro, it was found to promote the growth of cardiac muscle cells. 

The synthetic stem cells are much more durable than human stem cells, and could tolerate harsh freezing and thawing. 

They also do not have to be derived from the patient's own cells and the manufacturing process can be used with any type of stem cell, said the study.

"We are hoping that this may be a first step toward a truly off-the-shelf stem cell product that would enable people to receive beneficial stem cell therapies when they're needed, without costly delays," Cheng said.