Hadron collider restarted after two-year upgrade

SCIENCE
Hadron collider restarted after two-year upgrade

World's largest particle smasher set in motion as scientists seek answers as to how universe came into existence.

05 Apr 2015 18:39 GMT | Science, Science & Technology, Europe

The UPGRADE saw the Large Hadron Collider shut down for two years [AP]

The world's largest particle smasher has been restarted after a two-year upgrade that will allow physicists to explore uncharted corners of the matter that makes up the universe.

"After two years of intense maintenance and several months of preparation for restart, the Large Hadron Collider, the most powerful particle accelerator in the world, is back in operation," the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) said.

Experiments at the collider have been seeking to unlock clues as to how the universe came into existence by studying fundamental particles, the building blocks of all matter, and the forces that control them.

The upgrade - which saw the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) shut down in February 2013 - was intended to nearly double the collider's maximum collision capacity.

Its previous highest power was eight teraelectronvolts (TeV) reached in 2012, but after the two-year overhaul, it will first reach 13 TeV and can potentially be cranked up to a maximum 14 TeV.
CERN said earlier that if all went well with the start-up particle collisions "at an energy of 13 TeV" could start as early as June.

Dark matter

During the next phase of the LHC programme, researchers will probe a conceptual frontier called new physics, including antimatter and dark matter.

Dark matter is thought to make up some 96 percent of the stuff of the universe while being totally invisible, and super-symmetry, or SUSY, is under which all visible particles have unseen counterparts.

"If I had to BET on what we will find, I would go for SUSY," said Oliver Buchmueller, a scientist on one of the four machines around the ring that records each collision. "But we could also find something very, very unexpected," he added.

"This is what makes life on the energy frontier so exciting."

The latter is a theoretical type of matter that cannot be seen with telescopes but is thought to make up most of the universe.

Ordinary, visible matter comprises only about four percent of the known universe.

In 2012, the LHC was used to prove the existence of Higgs Boson, the particle that confers mass, EARNING the 2013 Nobel prize for two of the scientists who, back in 1964, had theorised the existence of the "God particle".

Source: Agencies

``புதிய அரசு``: Troops, Camps Remain in North - Army Commander

No military camps have been withdrawn to release land to the original owners. 

[UPDATED :: 2015-04-01 17:20:33 Hours || Home]
 

In his first newspaper interview with our sister paper Silumina, the newly-appointed Army Commander, Lieutenant General Crishanthe De Silva, said that the troops deployed in the North have not been withdrawn as well as the military camps.

Pledging to raise the professional standards of the Sri Lanka Army to new heights, the Commander said that safeguarding territorial sovereignty was of paramount importance and promised to to take all measures to prevent the resurgence of militancy in the North.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: What is your primary responsibility as the new Army chief?

A: My main responsibility as the Commander of the Army is to ensure national SECURITY. The President and myself are fully committed to achieving national SECURITY.

We will do our best to prevent any threats being posed to our national security and challenge our territorial integrity. The Army is maintained by public FUNDS and is duty-bound to protect the people and the country.

Q: What about the security in the North and the East, post war?

A: No military camps have been withdrawn to release land to the original owners. Neither troops nor camps will be withdrawn from the North. Private lands adjacent to various Army camps have been released from time to time, after the war ended in May 2009.

Q: There are apprehensions about the possibility of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) regrouping with the support of sections of the Tiger diaspora and the re-emergence of militancy in the North. What is your assessment?

A: We are extremely alert and watch the situation very carefully. Every step will be taken to ensure national security. There will be zero tolerance of any acts of terror.

Q: Are you happy with the current security arrangements in the North?

A: Yes, the Army is conscious of its responsibilities and the area is made quite secure.

Q: Questions have been raised about the strength of the Army. Are you going to downsize it?

A: The reason for the maintenance of troops is to ensure national security. The military hardware, troops and weaponry will be secured and maintained according to the requirements of the country.

Q: Can you explain if there is a link between the Army and the Avant Garde floating armoury?

A: The matter is sub judice. We have acted according to the instructions issued by the Defence Ministry.

I want the Army to be a well-disciplined, professional body. Reputation is extremely important to any army. A positive public perception of the Army depends on its professional COMPETENCE, sense of responsibility and the gallantry displayed in thwarting threats to national security.

Q: The government has halted an expensive Pentagon-style army headquarters project, initiated by the former government.What are your comments?
A: You should ask the Defence Ministry.

Q: Do you believe the criteria for being promoted within the military should be primarily seniority and merit?

A: I believe it is both. It is a prime requirement that there should be the ability to manage troops and operations.

Q: The media had recently reported that soldiers have been detailed to provide security to the children of former military top brass. Is this true?

A: No soldiers have been deployed in the manner described. I have not come across such a situation after I assumed duties.

Q: There were media reports that King Elara's golden cart was discovered when the foundation stone was laid for the construction of the Sandahiru Seya . Is this correct?

A: I have no knowledge about it and have not heard anything so far.

Courtesy :- Sunday Observer

See Sinhala one :( www.army.lk/sinhala.php )

Houthi fighters set condition for peace talks

யேமன்:உலக மறுபங்கீட்டு அணிசேர்க்கை

Yemeni rebels 'ready for talks' if air strikes stop
Houthi fighters set condition for peace talks amid reports that they have gained ground in southern city of Aden.
05 Apr 2015 17:40 GMT |

Yemen's Shia rebels are open to peace talks if the Saudi-led coalition bombing their positions halts aerial attacks against them, a senior Houthi member said.

Saleh al-Sammad, who was an advisor to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, said that if the offer for talks is accepted, negotiations will be mediated by "non-aggressive" parties.

"We still stand by our position on dialogue and we demand its CONTINUATION despite everything that has happened, on the basis of respect and acknowledging the other," said al-Sammad, in answers emailed to the Reuters news agency.

"We have no conditions except a halt to the aggression and sitting on the dialogue table within a specific time period ... and any international or regional parties that have no aggressive positions towards the Yemeni people can oversee the dialogue," Sammad said, without specifying who they might be.

Al-Sammad also said that Yemenis reject the return of Hadi, who fled to Saudi Arabia after the rebels, known as Houthis, moved closer to his southern base of Aden last month.

Warplanes and ships from a Saudi-led coalition have been bombing the Iran-allied Houthi forces for 11 days in a bid to drive back the Houthis and restore Hadi. UN BROKERED peace talks in the preceding weeks between Hadi and the Houthis had failed.

Gains in Aden 
The comments came amid reports that the rebels, supported by army units, have gained ground in the southern city of Aden, despite CONTINUING air strikes.

The rebel forces reportedly edged close to the port of Mualla, which is defended by militiamen of "popular committees" loyal to Hadi. 

 Residents reported hearing sporadic gunfire and blasts of rocket-propelled grenades. Summer Nasser, a human rights activist and blogger, told Al Jazeera that she had to leave her home in Aden because of the fighting.

"Conditions are devastating actually, we've heard shelling by Houthis on homes, civilians killed. There's no electricity, water. I feel like the humanitarian crisis in Aden is actually getting
worse by the hour," she said.

Aden, the last foothold of supporters of Hadi, has been shaken by more than a week of fierce clashes between the Houthis and Hadi loyalists.

At least 185 dead and 1,282 wounded from the clashes have been counted in hospitals in Aden since March 26, the city's health department director al-Kheder Lassouar said on Saturday.

On Saturday, the International Committee of the Red Cross said that there was an urgent need for fighting to halt in the worst-affected areas, including Sanaa and Aden.

Russia also called on the United Nations SECURITY Council to push for pauses in Saudi-led air strikes.

Evacuations 
Ahmed Asiri, the coalition's spokesman, said on Sunday Saudi Arabia was “quite keen not to hit any civilians and keen for those who will do the evacuation to go in and do their job”.

Several foreign governments have stepped up evacuation operations to get their citizens and other expatriates out of Yemen.

India has successfully evacuated at least 1,800 of its nationals, according to Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson for the ministry of external affairs, who tweeted on Sunday that their forces also rescued at least 170 foreign nationals from 20 other countries to neighbouring Djibouti.
Algeria evacuated 160 of its citizens, the country's state news agency APS reported, adding that 40 Tunisians, 15 Mauritians, 8 Libyans, 3 Moroccans, and a Palestinian were also rescued by their forces.

France released footage of the evacuation of 44 foreigners from Yemen, including several French citizens.

China, Djibouti, Egypt and Sudan, along with two aid groups, were scheduled to carry out evacuations from Sunday while requests from others including Canada, Germany and Iraq were
being processed, the coalition has said.

Houthis make gains in Yemen's Aden, approach port

Houthis make gains in Yemen's Aden, approach port
World | Sun Apr 5, 2015 5:49am EDT Related: WORLD, YEMEN ADEN

(Reuters) - Yemen's Houthi militiamen, supported by army units, gained ground in the southern city of Aden on Sunday, pushing back loyalists of the Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Residents took refuge in their homes and reported hearing sporadic gunfire and blasts of rocket-propelled grenades, and one witness saw a Houthi tank in the downtown Mualla district, which sits astride Aden's main commercial port.

Houthi forces have inched forward in street-fighting in the city despite an 11-day nationwide bombing campaign by a Saudi-led coalition aimed at halting the Iran-allied group and protecting Hadi's last bastion of support in the country.

Saudi planes parachuted weapons to Hadi's armed supporters there on Friday, helping them temporarily beat back Houthi advances.

The crates of light weapons, telecommunications equipment and rocket-propelled grenades were parachuted into Aden's Tawahi district, on the far end of the Aden peninsula which is still
held by Hadi loyalists, fighters told Reuters.

Saudi Arabia has said defending Aden's government is a "main objective" of its mission and Hadi's administration has called for a foreign ground intervention into the beleaguered city.

Adel al-Jubeir, Saudi ambassador to the United States, said sending ground troops remained "on the table" and the operation's spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri declined to comment on media reports of Saudi special forces there.

In six months of fighting, the Shi'ite Muslim Houthis have seized much of Yemen's north and center but have faced stiff resistance in the country's Sunni south, raising fears of a sectarian civil war.

In the city of Lawdar about 200km east of Aden, 10 Houthi fighters and allied soldiers were killed in clashes which also killed four local tribesmen on Sunday, residents said.

(Reporting By Mohammed Mukhashaf; Writing by Noah Browning; Editing by Jon Boyle)

பா.ஜ.க.அரசின் நில அபகரிப்பை எதிர்த்து கழகம் பிரச்சார இயக்கம்!

பிரிட்டிஷ் அரசு கொண்டுவந்த 1894 சட்டத்தில் கூட நியாயம் கேட்க நீதிமன்றத்தை அணுகமுடியும். ஆனால் பா.ஜ.க. அரசு கொண்டு வந்துள்ள இந்த சட்டத்தில் அதற்கு வழியேயில்லை. காங்கிரஸ் அரசின் சட்டம்
கார்ப்பரேட் நலன்களை ‘பொதுநலன்’ என்று கருதுவதைப் போலவே, பா.ஜ.க. அரசு கொண்டுவந்த இந்தச் சட்டமும் கார்ப்பரேட் நலன்களை ‘பொது நலன்’ என்று கருதினாலும், காங்கிரஸ் அரசு கொண்டுவந்த சட்டத்தில் விவசாயிகளுக்கு அளிக்கப்பட்டுள்ள சில சலுகைகள் கூட இச்சட்டத்தில் கைவிடப்படுகிறன.
* தற்போது பா.ஜ.க. அரசு கொண்டுவந்துள்ள சட்டத்தில் முப்போகம் விளையும் நிலங்களைக் கூட கையகப்படுத்தலாம்.
 * தற்போது பா.ஜ.க. அரசு கொண்டுவந்துள்ளச் சட்டம், 13 துறைகளுக்கு காங்கிரஸ் அரசு அளித்திருந்த விதிவிலக்குகளைக் கைவிட்டுள்ள அதே நேரத்தில், ரியல் எஸ்டேட் உள்ளிட்ட பல்வேறு துறைகளை விதிவிலக்கு பட்டியலில் கொண்டு வந்துள்ளது.
* பா.ஜ.க. அரசின் சட்டப்படி, அரசுத் துறைகளுக்கு மட்டுமின்றி, எந்த ஒரு தனியார் முதலாளிகளுக்காக நிலத்தைக் கையகப்படுத்துவதாக இருந்தாலும் விவசாயிகளின் ஒப்புதலை அரசு கேட்கத் தேவையில்லை.
 * அப்பகுதியைச் சேர்ந்த நிலமற்ற கூலி விவசாயிகள், கைவினைஞர்கள் போன்றோருக்கு நிவாரணம் தரத் தேவையில்லை.
* சுற்றுச் சூழல் பாதிப்பு குறித்துப் பரிசீலிக்கத் தேவையில்லை.
 *  கையகப்படுத்திய நிலம் 20 ஆண்டுகளுக்குப் பயன்படுத்தாமல் இருந்தாலும் அதைத் திருப்பித்தர வேண்டியதில்லை.
*  ‘தனியார்’ என்பதை ஒரு தொழில் நிறுவனம் என்று காங்கிரஸ் கட்சியின் 2013ஆம் ஆண்டு சட்டம் வரையறுத்திருந்தது. ஆனால் பா.ஜ.க. அரசின் சட்டப்படி ‘தனியார்’ என்பது நபராகவோ தன்னார்வ நிறுவனமாகவோக் கூட இருக்கலாம்.
 * அதுமட்டுமல்ல, தனியார் சுயநிதிக் கல்வி நிறுவனங்கள், தனியார் மருத்துவ மனைகள் ஆகியவற்றையும் ‘பொதுச்சேவை’ என்று வரையறுத்துள்ளது. அவற்றிற்கு விளை நிலத்தைக் கையகப்படுத்தித் தரும் பொறுப்பை அரசு ஏற்றுக்கொள்கிறது.
* நிலத்தின் சந்தை விலையைத் தீர்மானிப்பது உள்ளிட்டு, இந்தச் சட்டத்தை அமலாக்கும் அரசதிகாரம் பெற்ற மத்திய, மாநில அரசு அதிகாரிகள் முறைகேட்டில் ஈடுபட்டாலும் அவர்களுக்கு எதிராக பாதிக்கப்பட்டோர் வழக்குத் தொடுக்க முடியாது. அரசின் அனுமதி பெறாதபட்சத்தில் அதை நீதிமன்றமும் விசாரிக்கக் கூடாது.

இவைதான் பா.ஜ.க. அரசு கொண்டுவந்துள்ள நிலத்தைக் கையகப்படுத்தும் சட்டத்தின் மிக முக்கியமான அம்சங்களாகும்.

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