Home Blog Page 785

Deadly Tornado Strikes Small Texas Town Of Matador

0

A powerful storm struck the northern Texas town of Matador on Wednesday night, killing at least four people, damaging about a dozen buildings and prompting a search for residents who might have been injured or trapped by debris, the authorities said. At least nine people were hurt.

The storm swept through the small town of about 600 residents as thousands of people across the region were sweltering in a triple-digit heat wave that may not ease until the Fourth of July, and as other storms earlier in the week spawned deadly tornadoes and punishing hail across the South.

A tornado warning was issued for Matador, roughly 300 miles northwest of Dallas, as the storm barreled through around 8 p.m., said William Iwasko, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

He said the damage suggested there was “most likely” a tornado, but that had not been confirmed as of early Thursday morning.

James Webb Telescope: Icy Moon Enceladus Emits Massive Water Plume

0

Astronomers have detected a huge plume of water vapour spurting out into space from Enceladus, an icy moon of Saturn.

The 504km-wide (313 miles) moon is well known for its geysers, but this is a particularly big one.

The water stream spans some 9,600km – a distance equivalent to that of flying from the UK to Japan.

Scientists are fascinated by Enceladus because its sub-surface salty ocean – the source of the water – could hold the basic conditions to support life.

Nasa’s Cassini mission (2004-2017) gathered tantalising evidence of the necessary chemistry by regularly flying through the geysers and sampling the water with its instruments – although it made no direct detection of biology.

The new super-plume was spied by the James Webb Space Telescope. Previous observations had tracked vapour emissions extending for hundreds of kilometres, but this geyser is on a different scale.

The European Space Agency (Esa) calculated the rate at which the water was gushing out at about 300 litres per second. This would be sufficient to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool in just a few hours, Esa said.

Webb was able to map the plume’s properties using its extremely sensitive Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) instrument.

The instrument showed how much of the ejected vapour (about 30%) feeds a fuzzy torus of water co-located with one of Saturn’s famous rings – its so-called E-ring.

Update On Missing Submersible

0

A debris field has been found on the seabed near the Titanic wreck and experts are evaluating the area, the US Coast Guard has announced.

The US Coast Guard will hold a press conference at 15:00 local time (20:00bst) with more information about the debris.

Deep underwater drone subs have been searching the sea floor for the missing Titan sub.

The area being scoured by aircraft, ships, and other equipment has been expanded to cover about 10,000 sq miles of ocean.

Contact with the sub – which has five people on board – was lost on Sunday as it made a descent to the Titanic wreck

Exploring World’s Highest Paved International Road, Karakoram Highway, Pakistan And China 

0

Karakoram Highway, often abbreviated as KKH, is the highest paved international road in the world that connects Giglit-Baltistan in Islamic Republic of Pakistan and he Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of People’s Republic of China.

The highest point of the highway at an elevation of 4,693 meters (15,397 feet), the highway was built by the governments of Pakistan and China. Construction began in 1959, and opened for public use in 1979, it is around 1,300 kilometers (810 miles) long.

The highway’s name is derived from the Mongolian for Black Range, when the Mongolians had their great empire, and was adopted later by their successor dynasty, the Mughals, who ruled India for many centuries.

It is a real challenging road and a true test of your vehicle and your stamina because the road abounds in twists and turns with wheels sometimes hanging above the precipice.

The road is extremely treacherous and requires a vehicle that can hold its own against some of the most unforgiving terrain in the world.

Sometimes the highway can be blocked from the avalanches, heavy snowfalls and landslides, which can occur frequently in the area, but the incredible views it offers of K2, it makes it more like a nightmare for people who have altitude sickness.

On one side of the highway, there is no barrier, but on the other is the sheer rock wall, and one small mistake can cost the lives of everyone in the vehicle.

The border crossing between China and Pakistan at Khunjerab Pass is only open between May and December, but the highway can be closed if it is not cleared of snow. Traveling here isn’t for the fainthearted, although transportation has improved significantly in the past decades.

Once Upon A Time – June 22 – 1847 – First Ring Doughnut Supposedly Created By Hanson Gregory

0

1633 Galileo Galilei recants his “heretical” position that the Earth orbiting the Sun was at odds with the Bible and church teaching (Vatican apologizes in Oct 1992 for how it handled the case)

1675 Royal Greenwich Observatory established in England by Charles II

1772 Somerset v Stewart court case finds slavery unsupported by English common law, encouraging the abolitionist movement

1848 Beginning of the June Days uprising in Paris by French workers

1865 The CSS Shenandoah fires the last shot of the American Civil War in the Bering Strait to indicate surrender

1941 operation barbarossa: Nazi Germany and its allies invade the Soviet Union during WWII, the largest military operation in history

Historical Events Today Events in 2023

Today in Film & TV

1977 Walt Disney’s “Rescuers” released, first Disney film to get a sequel

Today in Music

1963 “Little” Stevie Wonder aged 13 releases his first single “Fingertips” (first live non-studio recording to go to No. 1 on Billboard)

Today in Sport

1937 Challenger Joe Louis KOs James J Braddock in the 8th round at Chicago’s Comiskey Park for the world heavyweight boxing title

1934 John Dillinger is informally named America’s first Public Enemy Number One

1847 First ring doughnut supposedly created by Hanson Gregory

Famous Weddings

1894 Harry Houdini marries Bessie Rahner

1958 NBA forward Elgin Baylor (23) weds Ruby Saunder at Mt Olive Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.

1962 American actress-singer Jane Froman (54) weds college friend Rowland Smith

For centuries mankind had sought the fabled Northern Passage – a new route for shipping from Europe to Asia. Explorer Henry Hudson’s attempt did not go well – June 22, 1611

Painter Benjamin Haydon, who died on this day, spent his life beating on the door of London’s exclusive art ‘club’, the Royal Academy. They never let him in – June 22, 1846

Edinburgh University Students Plan Graduation Protests Over Delayed Results

0

Students at the University of Edinburgh are planning peaceful protests at graduations after being told their results will be delayed.

The university said the decision was in response to a UK-wide marking boycott.

It could mean up to 2,000 of its students will graduate without knowing their final mark.

Some students said they may refuse to shake hands with the principal or wear gowns at their graduation ceremonies in protest.

Read Also: Kano Donates Education Materials To School Students

Laura Brady, who studied French and Italian at Edinburgh, said the ceremonies next month would be an opportunity for students’ voices to be heard.

The marking boycott is part of industrial action being taken by members of the University and College Union (UCU) at 145 UK institutions in a dispute over pay and working conditions.

Universities are taking independent decisions about how to minimise the impact of the marking boycott at each institution, so the effect on students will vary.

The University of Cambridge, for example, has confirmed students will not be able to graduate until all their work has been marked.

However the University of Edinburgh emailed students in certain schools saying a decision on the outcome of their degree had been delayed.

ASUU Urges Govt To Implement Agreement With Union

0

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) says it will give President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu time to implement its agreement with the federal government.

National president of the union, Emmanuel Osodeke, stated this while fielding questions from journalists during a colloquium organized by the Nasarawa State University Keffi branch of ASUU in Keffi, Nasarawa State.

He expressed optimism that President Tinubu will implement the agreement on revitalization of public universities in the country, and other welfare issues for union members.

Read Also: ASUU, Others, Express Doubts Over Student Loans

He called on the federal government to urgently pay the salary arrears of his members withheld by the last administration for embarking on strike to push for their demands for improved package.

He reiterated the commitment of ASSU in the fight for improved infrastructure, better funding and independence of public universities in the country.

Speaking at the colloquium, Professors Nasir Fagge and Biodun Ogunyemi, both former presidents of ASUU, advocated stiffer penalties for lecturers who engaged in unethical conducts.

They decried the growing cases of “sex for marks” syndrome, noting that the anomaly is unhealthy.

They called on university administrations to evolve mechanisms to deal with the situation.

The vice chancellor of Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Professor Suleiman Bala, called on ASUU to imbibe the virtues of patriotism and selflessness in their quest for a better university system.

The colloquium was aimed at finding solutions to unethical conducts in Nigerian Universities as well as updating the lecturers on the principles and workings of ASUU.

Librarians Registration Council Starts Accreditation Across Nigerian Schools

0

Librarians Registration Council of Nigeria, LRCN, has commenced accreditation of library school programmes across the country.

It said the accreditation exercise is for quality assurance purposes and to ensure that libraries adopt standards set by it.

In the pilot scheme, the council said it carried out accreditation at the Umaru Musa Yar’adua University, Katsina, and the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

Read Also: ULCHS Gets Accreditation to Offer Bsc in Midwifery

The Council’s Registrar, Jaáfaru Abdullahi, disclosed this during the opening ceremony of the National Workshop on Application of New Technological Trends in Libraries held at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The Deputy Director of Public Relations at the LRCN, Ngozi Oboh, in a statement, quoted Abdullahi as saying the accreditation of library schools programme is part of the council’s mandate.

He said the accreditation exercise is for quality assurance purposes and to ensure that libraries adopt standards set by the Council for academic libraries in terms of content, facilities and staffing, as well as assessing their use of the curriculum and benchmarks set for different categories of libraries.

The statement added that LRCN plans to accredit two more tertiary institutions next month.

The Librarian of the University of Port Harcourt, Helen Emasealu said the accreditation exercise will help create awareness about the rules needed to be followed.

The Vice Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Onwunari Georgewill, in his remarks at the ceremony, commended LRCN for its activities and stated that a university without the library is not a university at all and that libraries occupy key positions in the life of every university.

TRCN, JAMB Deepen Collaboration To Boost Service Delivery

0

The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) and the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) say they are exploring ways of strengthening collaborations to boost service delivery to Nigerians.

In a statement issued to newsmen in Abuja, the Registrar, Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria, Prof. Josiah Ajiboye said that the move is in the spirit of inter-agency partnership in the Federal Ministry of Education.

Prof. Ajiboye who alongside the Registrar of JAMB, inspected the new Computer Based Test (CBT) facilities built by JAMB in Kaduna metropolis, noted that the initiative was aimed at forging stronger partnership between TRCN and JAMB, with TRCN using the new facilities for its professional qualifying examinations and digital training programmes.

He revealed that each of the CBT hall has a withholding room that can seat 250 candidates at a time, stressing that the centre also have a parking lot capable of accommodating hundreds of cars.

The new 1000 seater CBT Centre was recently commissioned by the immediate past Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El Rufai.

Kano Donates Education Materials To School Students

0

A Kano State Federal lawmaker on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, Abubakar Abubakar has donated laptop and desktop computers, printers, textbooks and school bags to 4,274 secondary school students in his immediate constituency.

The lawmaker, representing the Bichi Federal Constituency of the state, donated the items to the beneficiaries in Bichi.

He said the gesture is to complement the government’s efforts toward the provision of basic educational materials to schools in the state.

Read Also: UNICEF Commend Kano State Government For Enacting Child Protection Law

He said the gesture would further enhance the quality of teaching and learning in schools, noting that it would also make education affordable.

He disclosed that he built and furnished 200 blocks of classrooms in 11 schools in the constituency adding that plans were underway to grant scholarships to graduates in the constituency, who wish to further their education abroad.

He advised parents in the constituency to priorities the education of their children adding that such a move would enable them to become useful not only to themselves but the society at large.

Receiving the items on behalf of the students, the Chairman of Bichi Local Government Area, Yusuf Sabo, thanked the lawmaker for the gesture, adding that the huge donation was the first of its kind in the history of the council.

Earlier, a member representing the Bichi constituency in the Kano State House Assembly, Alhaji Lawan Shehu described the gesture, as a giant stride aimed at investing in the future of the younger generation within the constituency.

In a remark, the Coordinator of the Education Committee of the constituency, Murtala Namowa called on other government officials, spirited individuals, and groups in the constituency to emulate the lawmaker toward improving residents of the constituents.