So FIFA world cup started in Qatar, November 20, 2022.
What do you know about Qatar, what do you know about the Environment?
Let’s tell you.
Qatar, officially State of Qatar, is in southwestern Asia. It juts out from the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula into the Persian Gulf.
Area: 4,489 Sq Mi
Population: (2022 Est.) 3,059,000
Capital: Doha.
Most of the population is Arab, with South Asian and Iranian minorities who are often migrant workers.
Languages: Arabic (Official), English
Currency: Qatar Rial
Qatar is mostly stony, sandy, and barren and consists of salt flats, dune desert and arid plains.
Largely because of petroleum and natural gas exports, its gross national product per capita is one of the highest in the world.
The government owns all of the agricultural land and generates most of the economic activity; the private sector participates in trade and contracting on a limited scale.
Oil was discovered in 1939, and Qatar rapidly modernized. It declared independence in 1971, when the British protectorate ended.
Most of Qatar’s area is flat, low-lying desert, which rises from the east to a central limestone plateau.
Hills rise to about 130 feet along the western and northern coasts, and Abū al-Bawl Hill is the country’s highest point.
Sand dunes and salt flats, or sabkhahs, are the chief topographical features of the southern and southeastern sectors.
Qatar has more than 350 miles of coastline; its border with Saudi Arabia is some 37 miles long. There are no permanent bodies of fresh water.
Snowfall of more than 6 feet in western New York state prompted officials to restrict road travel and forced airlines to cancel flights in the Buffalo area ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.
A historic snowstorm is slamming western New York state Saturday with more than 6 feet of snow in some places, closing roads, triggering driving bans and canceling flights the weekend before the Thanksgiving holiday.
Another round of heavy lake-effect snowfall is expected to return to the Buffalo area Saturday night, according to the National Weather Service.
With most of the heavy snow bands falling over Lake Ontario, north of metro Buffalo.
Winter weather alerts are still in effect for over 8 million people across six Great Lakes states Saturday evening: Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.
Forecasters and officials have been sounding the alarm on the life-threatening nature of this snowstorm, which is historic even for the Buffalo region where heavy snow is the norm during winter months.
Africa’s biggest cotton exporter, Benin, has built an industrial park to move the country away from raw exports to finished products.
Environmental activists say local manufacturing will also cut down on emissions.
According to government figures, Benin has in the last few years become Africa’s leading cotton producer, with annual production of 728,000 tonnes in 2020/21.
Cotton is grown in several West African countries including Mali, Togo, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast, but most is exported raw with little industrial processing across the region.
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe walks past a cake bearing the number '93' on its top during a private ceremony to celebrate his 93rd birthday on February 21, 2017 in Harare.
Mugabe, the world's oldest national ruler, turned 93, using a long and occasionally rambling interview to vow to remain in power despite growing signs of frailty. / AFP PHOTO / Jekesai NJIKIZANA
164 BC During Maccabbean revolt Judas Maccabaeus recaptures Jersusalem and rededicates the Second Temple, commemorated since as Jewish festival Hanukkah
1818 Russia’s Tsar Alexander I petitions for a Jewish state in Palestine
1906 China prohibits the opium trade
1970 General Hafez al-Assad becomes Prime Minister of Syria following a military coup
1971 Battle of Garibpur: Indian troops aided by the Mukti Bahini, Bengali guerrillas, defeat the army of Pakistan
2017 Robert Mugabe’s resignation after 37 years in power is read out in Zimbabwe’s parliaments during impeachment proceedings
Historical Events Today
Today In Film & Tv
1976 “Rocky” directed by John G. Avildsen and starring Sylvester Stallone premieres in New York (Best Picture 1977)
Today In Music
1937 Dmitri Shostakovich’s 5th Symphony premieres in Lenningrad, with the ovation lasting over an hour
Today In Sport
1905 1st match ever played in the Australian National Tennis Championships
More Facts….
1917 Maxim Gorky calls Vladimir Lenin a blind fanatic and unthinking adventurer
1837 Thomas Morris of Australia skips rope 22,806 times
Famous Weddings
1982 Canadian singer Joni Mitchell (39) weds American bassist Larry Klein (26) in Malibu, California; divorce in 1994
1983 Actor Ed Harris (33) weds actress Amy Madigan (33)
1983 NY Ranger Ron Greschner marries model Carol Alt
t’s no longer news that FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 starts this Sunday, November 20, with 32 teams, including host country Qatar, competing in the tournament.
Played every four years, except in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II, the tournament has become one of the world’s favourite and most-watched games since its inception in 1930.
Here are five fun facts we think you should know about the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022:
• First-Ever World Cup in the Middle East
Qatar 2022 will be the first Middle-Eastern country and the second Asian country to host the games after South Korea/Japan in 2002.
Also, while Qatar has been a regular participant in the continental AFC Asian Cup, this is the first time the country will qualify for any FIFA World Cup game since its Independence in 1971.
• FIFA Winter is Coming
In the famous words of one of our favourite series of all time, Game of Thrones, “Winter is coming,” but in Qatar this time.
To avoid the intense Qatar summer heat that can be as high as 42 degrees, the tournament will be held in the winter season and from November to mid-December for the first time in the games’ history. Previous World Cup games were typically held in June and July.
• The Last World Cup Appearance of Our GOATs (Messi and Ronaldo)?
This might be the last World Cup two of football’s GOATs will ever play the game, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
For over a decade, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated men’s football, winning 12 Ballon D’or out of 14 winners from 2008 to 2022. After a combination of 21 World Cup appearances between both footballers, Qatar 20222 is expected to be the last World Cup appearance for the GOATs.
• Semi-Automated Offside Technology
FIFA has approved a semi-automated offside technology that will reduce VAR offline decisions from 70 to 25 seconds. Twelve multi-tracking cameras will be mounted on the roof of each Stadium to track the ball and each player.
• Most Expensive World Cup Ever
Adding up the money spent on infrastructure, building new stadiums, and renovating old ones, it costs Qatar around $220 billion to host the Winter World Cup, making it the most expensive ever.
This is about 14.6 times the amount Brazil spent to host the 2014 World Cup. (Side note: this is what happens when you are one of the richest countries in the world).
Five governors elected on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, and some aggrieved party leaders, on Sunday, announced the formation of the Integrity Group saying it will soon take a position on the crisis rocking the party.
The G5 governors and some party leaders are currently having a strategic meeting in Lagos. Addressing newsmen before going into a closed door meeting, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State said the Integrity Group is the face behind the struggle within the PDP.
Makinde said: “We are here this morning to hold a meeting of the Integrity Group within our party, the PDP. You’ve seen the G5 that is the five PDP governor’s. The G5 is all about the Integrity Group. You can see us, five serving governors, as the face of this struggle but the leaders and elders of the party that you see here are the people behind those faces.
“We are this morning in the South west to review the situation within our party, to review where we are and to also look at what is going to happen in the coming elections. At the end of our deliberations, you will be fully briefed on where we stand on those burning issues. On behalf of our leaders and elders in the South west, I want to welcome members of the Integrity Group.”
Those present at the meeting include Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State and Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State.
Others at the meeting are former governor of Ondo State, Dr Olusegun Mimiko, former Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayo Fayose, former Cross River State Governor, Mr Donald Duke, former Plateau State Governor, Mr Jonah Jang and former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Bode George.
Also present are former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Bello Adoke; Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Mr Taoferk Arapaja; Senator Nasif Suleiman, Mr Nnena Ukeje, Senator S. O. Onor and Senator Mao Ohabunwa.
Recall that the Presidential Candidate of the PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Governor Wike have been at daggers drawn over removal of Ayu and the need for the South to produce the party’s National Chairman.
President Muhammadu Buhari will, on Tuesday, supervise the first oil drill in oil fields located in Bauchi and Gombe States.
The ground-breaking ceremony of the Kolmani Oil Prospecting Lease (OPL) 809 and 810 at the Kolmani field site will be the first oil drilling in Northern Nigeria.
Oil was discovered in commercial volume in the region about two years ago.
While Nigeria is already explore crude oil the southern Niger Delta, this exploration up north will be the first after an attempt in the Borno region was halted by insecurity.
NNPC Limited since 2016, launched a search for oil in some Northern states which led to the discovery of the oil in commercial quantity in Bauchi, Gombe, Borno and Niger States.
According to officials at NNPC Ltd, the oil field in Bauchi and Gombe axis will developed by Sterling Global Oil, New Nigeria Development Commission (NNDC) and NNPC Limited.
“The ceremony will be held on Tuesday, 22nd November and will be attended by Mr. President himself together with most of his cabinet members including the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva,” an official told Daily Trust.
NNPC Ltd has continually spent on frontier exploration as captured in its FAAC report.
With the new Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2022, funding for frontier exploration has risen to 30 per cent, which means the reformer NNPC Ltd would have more fund to develop oil fields in Nigeria.
At the moment, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) said crude oil reserve is at 37 billion barrels.
Reports said the Kolmani fields holds over a billion crude oil reserve, which could significantly raise Nigeria’s oil reserve that has not grown in 10 years.
The oil discovery in the north is coming at a time when crude oil production in the south has dropped to about 1.2 million barrels per day mainly due to oil theft and vandalism.
Oil production in the north could be a backup to shore up revenue for Nigeria as it witnesses huge budget deficit so far, experts say.
An Italian design studio is planning to build a yacht like the world has never seen before in Saudi Arabia, called Pangeos and shaped like a giant turtle.
It’s going to have its own villas, beach clubs, a mall, and can fit an astounding 60,000 people.
The Pangeos dwarfs the yachts of yore and breaks boundaries, equipped with a rooftop garden, mall, beach club, and enough housing units to be inhabited by 60,000 people.
The floating city is an unprecedented feat of engineering, of course assuming the concept ever comes into fruition.
If it does, the vessel would make use of a 4,198,000 square foot shipyard located in Saudi Arabia. Pangeos would remain globetrotting the oceans with no set destination.
The concept would stretch 1,800 feet long and even has an opening allowing smaller vessels to enter Pangeos.
The construction of the lavish project is estimated to cost approximately $5 billion, if the Pangeos ever comes into material existence, there will surely be some exuberant yachters and terrified fishermen greeting it on the water.
The yacht will stretch 1,800 feet in length and has a beam of 2,000 feet, which will allow the ceilings in the rooms to be much higher than standard.
Terayacht Pangeos is powered by nine HTS fully electric engines that keep the vessel at a constant speed of 5 knots.
This innovation will also generate renewable energy from the breaking of the waves on the ship’s wings, and it has a rooftop is lined with solar panels to help power it.
In the lower part of the vessel, the design team also included 30,000 cells, or cluster compartments, and provided an unsinkable floating solution for the basement.
The Saudi yacht also comes with a portico located on the stern of the ship, which will allow vessels to enter the city.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi as Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc beat the Dutchman’s team-mate Sergio Perez to secure second in the championship.
Leclerc, who was Verstappen’s title rival earlier this year before Ferrari’s season imploded in a flood of errors and reliability failures, held off Perez on divergent strategies to take second place.
Sebastian Vettel’s final race ended in disappointment, the four-time champion bemoaning what he felt was a poor strategy from Aston Martin.
Vettel took the final point for 10th place after Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes retired from fourth place with three laps to go.
Hamilton’s result means he has finished a season without a win for the first time in his career – ending a record only he held.
Verstappen’s win was his 15th of 2022, extending the new record he has set this year for wins in a single season.
“It was a good race,” said Verstappen. “It was all about tyre management. I think we looked after the mediums quite well and then on the hard tyres managing until the end.
“A 15th win of the season is unbelievable. It’s been really enjoyable to work with the whole team and to be able to achieve something like this. I know it is going to be hard to replicate but it is also very good motivation to try and do well again next year.”
Vettel’s 299th and final race fittingly ended in the points, although it could and should have been so much better for the German after qualifying five places ahead of team-mate Lance Stroll but finishing two places behind the Canadian in the race.
The 53-time race winner’s one-stop strategy worked against him, but the point was at least some reward at the end of a weekend strewn with tributes for the retiring 35-year-old.
“You know how it is. I wish I could have got a couple more points. I enjoyed the race. Bit of a different warm up to get to the race but when the lights went off, it was just the race,” Vettel said
“It’s a big day, a big thank you to everyone. Lots of smiley faces which is nice. I’m sure I will miss it more than I feel right now.”
Verstappen dominates as Leclerc earns runner-up consolation
Max Verstappen finishes the year with a single-season record 454 points
Verstappen dominated the race and his victory was never in doubt but the fight between Leclerc and Perez made for a tense finish to the race.
Ferrari chose a one-stop strategy for Leclerc, the same as Red Bull with Verstappen, while Perez stopped twice.
That left the Mexican to come back from a 23-second deficit in the final 24 laps if he was to beat Leclerc in a fight that would be decided on whoever finished ahead, as they went into the race tied on points.
Perez closed on the Ferrari at a second or so a lap and more for a while, but Leclerc measured his tyres with skill to cross the line 1.3 seconds ahead.
Many will feel he deserves second in the championship, as he has driven an outstanding season, winning three races to Perez’s two, and has had an inferior car to Perez for the vast majority of the year.
“We got it,” Leclerc said over the radio, obviously delighted. “Good job, guys.”
It was small consolation for Leclerc in a season in which he was 46 points ahead of Verstappen after just three races only to see his hopes evaporate in the following few events as Ferrari suffered a series of strategic errors and engine failures.
Charles Leclerc ended with three race wins from a 2022 season that promised so much more
But Ferrari for once got their strategy right in Abu Dhabi.
They resisted the temptation to pit straight after Perez suffered a delay at his first stop and then traffic when he re-emerged – which would have given Leclerc a chance to stop the next time around and take second place.
Instead, they stuck to their pre-race plan of a one-stop strategy, and even dummied a pit stop to draw Perez, and made the one-stop work.
It was nail-biting for a while for Leclerc, especially as Perez took chunks out of his lead for several laps after his second pit stop, but he stayed calm and held on.
“It felt good, I was 100% sure we could do it,” said Leclerc. “We had a perfect race for us. I knew the only way to beat Checo was with tyre management and strategy we had a one stop and it really worked.
“I really hope next year we can do a step forward in the championship – we will push on in the winter break to catch Red Bull.”
A difficult end for Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton managed nine podium finishes this season but victory proved elusive
Hamilton had a dramatic start to the race. He passed Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari off the line, only for the Spaniard to pass him back at the chicane at the end of the first long straight.
Hamilton then bounced over the kerbs at the corner – launching the car a metre or so into the air before crashing back. Hamilton felt the car had suffered damage, but Mercedes could not initially see any.
Hamilton cut the chicane and returned to the track in front of Sainz, only to be told he had to give the position back a couple of laps later.
Hamilton began to complain of a loss of power, and in tandem with over-working his tyres in his attacking first couple of laps, he lost pace and started to drop back and lost a place to team-mate George Russell.
Russell himself then had dramas, suffering a pit-stop delay, which led to an unsafe release in which he came close to colliding with McLaren’s Lando Norris, and for which he was given a five-second penalty.
Despite his early problems, Hamilton was on course to finish fourth on a one-stop strategy like Verstappen and Leclerc until he suffered a hydraulic failure in the closing stages.
That promoted Sainz and Russell to fourth and fifth ahead of Norris and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, which meant Alpine’s fourth place in the constructors’ championship was confirmed, ahead of McLaren and behind Mercedes.
Indonesia is auctioning off one of its best-preserved atolls, in an attempt to boost tourism to the Widi Reserve.
This presents a rare opportunity for investors to sustainably develop an untouched tropical ecosystem.
The atoll features more than 100 uninhabited tropical islands fringed by 150km of white sand beaches, coral reefs and deep, nutrient-rich waters.
It is located to the north-east of Bali, in the heart of the Coral Triangle in the far east of Indonesia.
Widi Reserve is set within a 315,654-hectare Marine Protected Area and includes rainforests, mangroves, turquoise lagoons, lakes and beaches.
The sale is being handled by Sotheby’s Concierge Auctions, in co-operation with JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group. It will open on December 8 and conclude on December 14. No reserve price has been set.
This island chain is one of the most intact coral atoll ecosystems left on the planet.
It is home to hundreds of rare and endangered species, including blue whales, whale sharks and 600 documented species of marine mammals, fish, birds, insects and lizards.
The atoll is home to 600 documented species of marine mammals, fish, birds, insects and lizards.
The waters around the Widi Reserve have not been subject to any human interference, such as deep-sea drilling or busy fishing lanes. As a result, it is still a thriving birthing, mating and resting place for countless species.
While Indonesian law does not allow for the direct private ownership of its islands, there is the opportunity for investors to acquire a stake in PT Leadership Islands Indonesia.
The entity has spent several years master-planning, designing and licensing one of the most environmentally sensitive low-density luxury resort and residential developments in the world.
There are currently more than 10,000 hectares available for eco-conscious development. The maximum capacity has been set at 500 keys, spread across 17 islands, including eco-lodges and private island estates.
Design studio Bensley has already designed three potential eco-resorts for the reserve. While these designs may be used by the future buyer, the option also exists to start a new design vision from scratch.
“The Widi Reserve is truly one of the most beautiful sights in all of Asia. It has been an honour to work with this team to create a unique vision of eco-resorts specifically for Widi,” said Bill Bensley, founder of Bensley. “We look forward to the future of what the Reserve becomes and the opportunity to participate in the process.”
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