Jim Paull

The very best part of this dish might not be the actual pasta (although it's garlicky and lemony and oh so good), but the crispy, crunchy breadcrumbs that are sprinkled with abandon over the top. They're toasted with lemon zest and combined with Parmesan and chopped parsley to become a scene-stealing addition. The crumbs get caught in the nooks and crannies, waiting for you to discover their greatness when you gobble up a big forkful of noodles.

The pasta itself is extra tangy from the lemon and has a briny kick from the capers. It's a dish that's right for just about any moment, whether you have an almost-empty pantry and it's late and you're hungry on a Wednesday, or you're cooking for a few friends over the weekend.

READ MORE »

This is one of those recipes that originated as an off-the-cuff concept while speedily scanning the grocery store aisles a mere hour before dinner. I see hummus, we've got veggies at home, I'll grab some pita. The hummus bowls — basically a pile of juicy roasted veggies over creamy hummus — were so well-received that they now regularly appear on our meal planning list. This smoky, tangy edition is the version I love most.

READ MORE »

The official first day of spring has come and gone, but that doesn't mean we're saying goodbye completely to some of our favorite winter dishes. Take beef stew, for example — it's warm and comforting and will make you feel all sorts of cozy on a chilly spring evening.

But you probably don't have four hours to spare after work to create a rich, complex beef stew in the oven. Enter: the Instant Pot. With only six ingredients and 45 minutes, this is how you make beef stew on a weeknight.

READ MORE »

Homework got you down? If you're having trouble concentrating, you can learn to strategize properly to finish up your assignments the right way. Learn how to prepare for a homework session, stay focused on your work, and do your homework efficiently.

EditSteps

EditPreparing for Homework

1. Find a quiet place to work. If you need to focus, it can be pretty hard to do that in the living room while your brother plays Xbox at full volume. Try to find a quiet place where you'll be able to study in peace and focus on what you need to do. If needed make some changes in the room.
   
   • Your room is often the best bet, but anywhere can work. Try to set aside a specific spot to do your homework every night, like the kitchen table or a desk in the living room.
   • If you can't find a quiet place in your house, or you don't have your own room, try staying after school to finish your homework. Or head to the public library to study.
2. Get everything you'll need to complete your homework. Before you get started, make sure you gather all the right materials and utensils, gathering them neatly on your desk. If you have everything you'll need, you'll be able to concentrate on what you're doing, not where your protractor is, and where you need to find your notes. Tidiness is essential, so clean the clutter before you study.
   
   • Bring a glass of water, or a healthy snack, so you won't find a reason to leave your work when you get a little craving. Keep your butt in the chair.
3. Eliminate all distractions. Turn off the computer, Facebook, Twitter, or anything that will distract you. If you're trying to focus, get rid of everything except the assignment in front of you and anything directly related to that assignment. If you need your computer for finding information, then try concentrating on the information, not on anything else.
   
   • If you struggle with wanting to check your phone or your computer, put them in another room, or give them to your mom or roommate to watch over them. Only get them back when you're on break time.
   • Some recent studies suggest that listening to soft, instrumental music can actually improve concentration when you're doing homework. It doesn't work for everyone, but experiment with music and see if it works for you.^[1]
   • Also make sure the place where you are studying is at a comfortable temperature. If the place you are at cannot have the temperature changed, make sure you brought something warm to keep you nice and focused instead of being focused on being cold.
4. Write a to-do checklist for your homework. Before you start, write out everything that you need to do to finish your homework in a detailed list. Even if you have a school planner or something similar, it's good to have a clear list in front of you at home before you start, so you can check things off as you work.
   
   • Write down the subject name and a brief overview of what you have to do for the assignment. Write down the due date and a rough guess about how long it might take to finish each assignment. Take in consideration other assignments, if you have any.
   • Order your to-dos from hardest to easiest, so you can tackle the toughest stuff first. Or you can order them in order of how long you think they'll take, so you can focus on the most time-consuming tasks first. Both ways are effective.
5. Make a schedule. Without a plan, it can sometimes be pretty hard to stay on task. Try setting a certain block of time for each thing you need to get done. For example, science homework will be done from 4:00-5:00, then math work will be completed from 5:00-6:00. This will help you stay on track so you’re not straying from your work. The deadline for the work will help you complete tasks with some intensity, so that you’re not leaving it all to the last second.
   
   • It’s pretty important to know when your assignment is due so you can budget your time properly. It can be pretty rough if you’re working on 4 different assignments the night before they are all due.
   • Try to keep your work area organized as well. Having math work in the middle of all your English notes isn’t the best way to stay focused on your work.

EditDoing Your Work

1. Take a minute to switch on your brain. It can be hard to go from regular life to studying with the flip of a switch. Give your brain a chance to change from TV-watching mode to reading and studying mode. Try flipping through your textbook before you start, so you can get into the mind set.
   
   • Re-copying your notes quickly can also be extremely effective. The notes you copied down Friday afternoon probably aren't imprinted on your mind yet. It's an easy way to study and get your thinking cap fitted properly.
2. Do the hardest tasks first. Lots of people find the most effective way to approach homework is to start with the toughest tasks and get them out of the way. If you absolutely hate math, but get a kick out of reading for English, do your math homework first and treat yourself afterward with the easier English reading. As you get more worn down over the homework hours, the work will get easier.
   
   • Alternatively, you might find it more effective to do the most time-consuming tasks first. These might be the same as the hardest, but not necessarily.
3. Try speaking aloud as you do your homework. If you struggle to focus while you're doing something repetitive, speaking your math problems out loud can help to keep your mind centered on what you're doing. This will help you keep from getting distracted.
   
   • If you feel silly, you don't have to speak them very loudly. Just whisper. When you're trying to puzzle out what to do with the problem, speak out loud as well. Hearing what you're thinking can help with creativity.^[2]
4. Finish one task before you move on to something else. Don't switch between assignments. Instead, finish one before you move on to the next. According recent studies, multitasking temporarily drops your IQ and your cognitive abilities on each task, making the work even tougher.^[3]
   
   • Check things off as you go. As soon as you have completed a task, put a check next to it-you can even have several check boxes for different parts of the task. Being able to put a tick next to something and think: I've done this, is a great feeling, and can encourage you to keep going.
   • If you really can't figure something out, put it aside for a while. Staring at something useless only gets you frustrated and it takes lots of time. Starting another task makes you feel a little better (a fresh start-feeling) and you'll probably feel a lot better when you begin some other time.
5. Know when to call it quits. Looking at a late night of homework? Try to never work longer than an hour or maybe two past your normal sleep time. Do as much as possible, and finish up in the morning if you've got some leftover. If you can't finish, plan better next time.
   
   • Your work will start to suffer as you get more tired, and you'll hurt your focus for the next day as well. Once you start mixing your work time and sleep time, you'll have trouble planning, budgeting time, and estimating your workload.

EditStaying Motivated

1. Take regular short breaks. Instead of one super long break, take a few short breaks in between different assignments. Maybe have a five minute break for a snack after 30-60 minutes of work.
   
   • Take five minutes to stretch, pop outside for a walk, or do something active, instead of just sitting and checking Facebook. It's important to make sure that you aren't sitting at a desk for hours and hours at a time.
   • When you don't take breaks, the work can seem kind of endless. Productivity and concentration suffer, because you end up wasting some time doing other things like going on social media, doodling, or just doing poor work.
2. Be careful with caffeine. Caffeine gives some students a much-needed jolt of concentration juice. For others, it's a fast-track to jittering around like a squirrel on speed. Don't drink more than the normal amount of coffee or caffeinated drink you usually consume. It will make concentrating harder.
   
   • Better than caffeine is just staying hydrated. Drink water or juice instead to make sure your brain is functioning on all levels.
3. Try working on homework with other people. It can be kind of hard to focus if you’re alone in a tiny room with just your books and papers. Sometimes it can be helpful to work out in the open where there are other people, or to study in a big group. They can be helpful in keeping you accountable. If you say that you’re working on an essay and they see you browsing Tumblr, they can point it out and keep you in check.
   
   • As long as you're not sharing answers, working on homework together isn't cheating. Really, it's just smart time management and study skills.
4. Give yourself a treat when you're done. It's important to give yourself a reward for the hard work you're doing, each time you finish a task. Working toward a fun activity, treat, or some leisure time helps to motivate you to finish your work quickly, which means you'll have to concentrate.
   
   • Try this: Cut some colored paper into strips or squares and write all of your assignments you have for that day. Put these in one pile. Create another pile with an equal number of rewards. Put checking your phone or Facebook page on one, playing a game for 10 minutes, watching the new episode on TV, or anything that you want to do or would do in your free time.
   • When you finish one task, pick a treat from the pile of rewards. This is a great way to get work done and enjoy the things you like to do. Don't get too carried away with the rewards. Only one episode TV, not the rest of the season.

EditTips

• Amazingly, you will have more free time if you do it now instead of later.
• Whatever you do, don't put it off. It'll make you want to do it less.
• If you're in a mood where you don't want to do your homework, think about all the fun you will have when you are done.
• Don't sit next to an annoying sibling.
• Concentrate on your work, not your friends. If you get called, tell them you will call them back.
• Make sure to be in a clean room so that you won't make the excuse of "tidying up" instead of your work.
• Don't work where there is any TV, cooking, or nasty smells.
• Before sitting down to do your work, consider doing some exercise, such as running or jumping. Do this for a few minutes to get your blood flowing.
• Some studies have shown that a view of nature can increase your productivity and concentration. Try to get a view of your backyard through a window, but make sure there is nothing distracting outside. A few pictures on the wall or a flower in a vase will also help a little.
• Change into something comfortable. This helps because you won't being scratching while doing work
• Don't waste time looking for more and more ways to concentrate on homework, just get it done.
• Make sure that you are provided with all the stationary that you need.
• Make a homework schedule. For example, you get 15 minutes of television time if you finish all your math and science.
• Reward yourself for a work done.
• Some people claim that music helps them work faster whereas others say that it distracts them even more. It depends mostly on the learning type of person.
• Don't procrastinate by doing something that doesn't help you. Get to the point and finish your studies as soon as possible!
• Turn off notifications on your phone and/or mute a group text. This will stop you from checking your phone constantly. You can mute it if you want.
• Before you start your homework, remove any distractions (ex. phone, computer) to help you focus only on your work.
• Close your door to avoid outside noise.
• Whenever you need to take a break, take one. Don't become stressed about noise or interruptions. Take deep breaths and block out other thoughts until your homework is done.
• Listen to some instrumental music to help you concentrate.
• Get it done with as early as possible. Take a minute to make a minute.

EditWarnings

• Force yourself to concentrate and focus. If you don't concentrate and do your homework, chances are you'll get a bad score on the chapter test!
• Don't procrastinate; all it will do is stress you out and make you want to do your homework even less! The consequences will be bad, and you will get mad at yourself by not doing your homework when you had the time. Plus you're just creating more work for yourself because now you have current homework that's due as well as the homework that is now late.

EditRelated wikiHows

• Plan a Homework Schedule
• Find Motivation to Do Homework
• Focus on Studying
• Avoid Distractions While Studying
• Get Your Homework Done Fast
• Focus on Homework
• Do Homework Without Getting Distracted
• Help Your Sibling with Homework

EditSources and Citations

Cite error: <ref> tags exist, but no <references/> tag was found

If you've been bringing the same sandwich or salad to lunch every day for the last five years, it's time to branch out a bit. I know throwing together a quick PB&J in the morning makes your life easier, but this burrito can be just as easy — as long as you employ a little make-ahead magic.

READ MORE »

The most popular smoothie recipe on Pinterest is a blend of berries and kiwis and has been pinned over 300,000 times. So there must be something good about it, right? I tried it out to see if this smoothie tastes as good as it looks.

Read more...

You know that awkward moment in your fridge, when it still has food in it, but it’s all 1/2-cup portions of various leftovers and like, one carrot? That moment is annoying, because you still have food that can and should be eaten, just nothing that fits together in a cohesive meal. Luckily, I have a dish for just this…

Read more...

What these veggie tacos lack in meat, they make up for in big, bold flavors. Bite after bite your tastebuds are treated to a medley of textures and tastes that hit all the high points you expect. From the lightly charred and spiced cauliflower florets to the crispy, tangy pickled cabbage, to the cool avocado-yogurt crema, this is how to tackle Taco Tuesday, veggie-style.

READ MORE »

If you forgot to meal plan this week and are looking for a last-minute dinner to throw together tonight, allow me to suggest this chicken enchilada baked ravioli. Yes, I did say enchilada and ravioli in the same breath. Why should you have to choose between the two?

READ MORE »

A layered lasagna is a true labor of love that requires slow cooking a sauce, boiling noodles, and layering the ingredients all before it even goes in the oven. While I appreciate a well-constructed lasagna, it's not feasible for weeknight dinners.

Here's how you can skip the oven entirely and still have a lasagna that's loaded with a savory sausage and mushroom red sauce, tender noodles that are cooked right in the sauce, and, of course, three kinds of cheese to meld and hold everything together. Cooked in just one skillet on the stovetop, this is truly a weeknight lasagna that you can add to your dinner rotation.

READ MORE »

From Apartment Therapy → 9 Ways To Use IKEA's Bekvam Spice Racks All Over the House

READ MORE »

Monarch, a British low-cost carrier based out of Luton Airport (LTN), is going to start offering a maximum of 10 free upgrades a week to certain customers, including special perks like priority check-in and extra-legroom seats.

So, how can you be one of the lucky few? Just make sure you’re extra polite to the airline’s call center staff. In order to qualify for a free upgrade, Monarch customers must purchase their ticket by phone — which will cost you about $9 more than regular fares on the website — or have a legitimate issue they can resolve through the airline’s call center.

According to an article by The Independent, the move was inspired by Pret a Manger, a store that hands out 20,000 free drinks each week to customers as random acts of kindness. While rewarding polite behavior is always a good thing, it does seem the airline is already running into a bit of trouble with customers being unable to get through to the call center. Some have already expressed dismay, tweeting about how annoying the process was after being asked to private message the company on Twitter to resolve an issue — perhaps they won’t be receiving a free upgrade this week.

H/T: The Independent

Amtrak commuters got to experience their own mini-blizzard when an Amtrak train blasted through fresh snow covering the train tracks at the Rhinecliff-Kingston station outside of New York City.

One commuter captured video of the whole episode unfolding on his phone and later added it to YouTube with a slow motion effect — making the whole situation more dramatic (and hilarious). In the video, other commuters can be seen taking similar videos with their phones. Apparently, the videos were more important than taking cover, as many commuters remained close to the edge of the tracks until the last minute.

As the train races into the station, the commuters get pummeled by the flying snow. Hopefully, the videos were worth it. Check out the video below to judge for yourself:

If you are in love with The Great British Bake Off, you're not alone. The incredibly popular British show features home cooks and amateur bakers competing to win a — wait for it — bouquet and engraved cake plate?

Well, despite the lack of prize money or flashy cars, the show is a runaway success both in the UK and abroad, and has run for seven seasons. This next season, however, promises to bring considerable changes.

READ MORE »

Pizza is a perfect food. It's there for you when you're sad, when you're happy, and when you're kinda bored. It's there when you're hungry and just want that sweet, sweet taste of bread, cheese, and perfect sauce. It is also endlessly adaptable. You can top your pizza with just about anything you want (even pineapple!) and you can still call it pizza.

Looking for a new recipe to inspire your pizza night? The internet has spoken. Here's the most popular pizza recipe on Pinterest right now.

READ MORE »

Here are six of the best photos that readers added to the Consumerist Flickr Pool in the last week, picked for usability in a Consumerist post or for just plain neatness.

Want to see your pictures on our site? Our Flickr pool is the place where Consumerist readers upload photos for possible use in future Consumerist posts. Just be a registered Flickr user, go here, and click “Join Group?” up on the top right. Choose your best photos, then click “send to group” on the individual images you want to add to the pool.

From Apartment Therapy → 10 Little Ways You're Robbing from Yourself Without Realizing It

READ MORE »

Especially if you’re new to photography, you might not know what to expect from different lenses. This online tool lets you compare lenses according to actual pictures photographers have taken with that lens.

Read more...

Beer is made for drinking, and I would never suggest you don’t drink beer, but there’s no reason you can’t have a Guiness and cook with it too. Below you will find several delicious dishes designed to get the iconic stout into your stomach, all of which should be made with a cold one in hand.

Read more...

PETALING JAYA: Selangor assemblywoman Yeo Bee Yin says an aide to Prime Minister Najib Razak has missed the point of her statement yesterday on asking Rosmah Mansor to step down as patron of Permata.

Yeo said there was never any questioning of Rosmah’s qualification nor credentials.

“The aide, Rizal Mansor, had said that Rosmah’s academic qualifications made her suitable to be the patron of Permata. In fact, the question of who should be the patron of Permata should not arise in the first place.

“I reiterate, early childhood education development should not be under the prime minister’s department. It should be under the education ministry and the women, family and community development ministry, as they are better equipped and have more expertise and experience in this field,” Yeo said, adding that there was also no need for a patron for any government agency.

In a statement released late yesterday, Rizal had taken Yeo to task for asking the prime minister’s wife to step down as patron of Permata.

“Rosmah has a Bachelors degree in Sociology and Anthropology and a Masters in Sociology. Her specialisation therefore, reflects her ability to take Permata to greater heights,” Rizal said, before reminding Yeo that as patron, Rosmah had no executive powers whatsoever.

He also said that Permata needed to be under the prime minister’s department as there are tighter controls pertaining to the disbursement of funds.

Yeo, who is also DAP social media strategist, said that being the patron has nothing do with qualifications.

“If academic qualification is the measure of whether a person is qualified to be the patron, is he saying that among all civil servants in the two relevant ministries, there is no one more qualified than Rosmah for the position? This is a huge insult to the civil service in Malaysia.

“The only reason that Rosmah Mansor is the patron of Permata is that she is the wife of the prime minister. If one goes to the website of Permata, it is not difficult to spot that the centre of attention on the website is Rosmah Mansor instead of the children,” Yeo said.

In her statement yesterday, Yeo, who is Damansara Utara assemblywoman, had said that Rosmah should leave early childhood development to the ministries that have more expertise running it.

While supporting programmes to develop early childhood education, Yeo said the only question was on the need for a separate agency and the need to place it under the prime minister’s department.

“Why do we need a separate agency under the Prime Minister’s Department (PMD) and with the prime minister’s wife, who is not elected by the people, to have such a big role in government?

“Early childhood education development programmes should be parked under the relevant full ministries as they are better equipped and have more experience,” Yeo said, giving the example of childcare being under the purview of the women, family and community development ministry.

Let relevant ministry take over Permata, DAP tells Rosmah

Rosmah: I never pocketed Permata’s funds

KUALA LUMPUR: UMW Oil & Gas Corp Bhd (UWM-OG), whose net loss swelled to RM1.19bil last year partly due to idling assets, has secured a letter of award from Petrofac (Malaysia-PM304) Ltd for the provision of drilling rig services.

Today is National Chicken Noodle Soup Day! This seems fitting, as chicken noodle soup is one of the most — if not the most — comforting dishes to eat in the winter. While this soup is not fancy or complicated by any means, there's a way to make it even easier to get on your dinner table. (Hint: It involves your slow cooker, of course.) After a little prep, you simply toss everything in the slow cooker and let it do the hard work for you.

READ MORE »

This hearty grain salad is a celebration of spring radishes and all their flavors, textures, and forms. First, grab the most colorful bunch of radishes you can get your hands on; the array of pinks, purples, and reds will make you smile. Half of the radishes are quickly sautéed to bring out their natural sweetness, while the other half are left raw and thinly sliced to showcase their sharp crunch. Both join forces with chewy whole-grain farro, spicy arugula, and soft and creamy goat cheese before being tossed with a lemony mustard and garlic vinaigrette that ties everything together.

You're already seeing how good this is going to be for lunch all week, aren't you?

Us too.

READ MORE »

Singapore Changi Airport will likely complete construction and open the new Terminal 4 at the end of the year and according to news reports will feature full Biometric Data Collection facilities at immigration.

Currently Singapore only collects fingerprints from people during entry/exit and even that just got introduced fairly recently (and has also slowed down the immigration process significantly).

The facilities in the new Terminal 4 will also include facial recognition as you might know it from certain middle east countries such as the UAE.

Singapore’s State Media Newspaper The Straits Times (access here) reported on the progress today.

Travellers at Changi Airport Terminal 4 will experience a full suite of biometric technology for fingerprint, iris and facial scanning – as part of plans to beef up border security at checkpoints across the island.

T4, which will open towards the end of the year, will be Singapore’s first checkpoint with multiple biometric capabilities, though they will not all be immediately activated.

Currently, such checks at immigration counters islandwide are focused on fingerprint verification. …

Mr Desmond Lee, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs, had said in Parliament last November that it would take about two years for all checkpoints to be equipped with the capabilities.

ICA will collect iris images from Singapore citizens and permanent residents progressively when they apply for and collect their identity cards and passports.

For foreign visitors, there are other security initiatives, SAC Zuraidah said. Since last April, for instance, fingerprints have been scanned upon arrival and departure so these can be verified against ICA records.

It also allows those whose fingerprints are scanned when they arrive to use automated immigration lanes when they depart.

Using automated lanes when exiting saves a little bit of time as long as you use the general Immigration Counters and not the priority counter for First Class/Suites/Solitaire customers at Terminal 3.

My best experience so far is Hong Kong after registering for their Frequent Visitor Program. Scan your passport (formerly a code on the back of the passport), then scan your fingerprint, done.

Singapore’s automated lanes are only available for citizens, permanent residents and long term pass holders which sort of sucks but then again I don’t visit the place that often anymore. Yet I’m curious to see the new terminal and there is also an Andaz hotel opening later this year so I might just swing by for a few nights.

Conclusion

It’s hard these days to pair security with efficiency. More sophisticated entry procedures also mean longer time to process each passenger. A couple weeks ago in Doha the immigration officer took 7 Minutes to deal with everything and not just with me but everybody else. Ok, he was distracted chewing gum and playing candy crush on the side but anyway…

Considering the successful rollout of Global Entry in the U.S. and the installation of electronic entry barrier throughout the E.U. for passengers with E.U. passports shows that such installations are clearly the future even if it means to register beforehand.

SHAH ALAM: Newly registered voters are puzzled as to why they were summoned by the Election Commission (EC) to attend a hearing after their home addresses had been called into question.

Biology student Tan Kai Ren, 22, said he did not understand how it was possible for a total stranger to object to his registration on the electoral roll.

“It is a waste of time coming here and spending less than a minute explaining my home address at the hearing,” he said

“I was asked meaningless questions about the address on my identity card – whose house it was, what I am doing in the house and what I am studying,” he said at the EC office here.

Tan said that after the questioning, the EC officer rejected the objection filed against him today because the objector, Hairul Othman was not present.

Another college student, Hew Jun Neng said he underwent the same experience at the EC office today.

“I registered sometime in September last year and received a letter early this year informing me that my registration could not be processed because my home address could not be found,” he said.

At the hearing, Hew said, all the EC officers asked of him was whether he knew where the voting areas in his neighbourhood were located. The affair took under a minute to conclude, he added.

Hew said he was puzzled by the need to publish the names of newly registered voters under the new system and added, “This can be open to abuse. People can use the system to object if they think the registration is dubious.”

Poh Pang Min and Teo Sin Huei were two other voters who had trouble with their registrations when they moved from their old constituency to another in Sepang.

They said they both received letters informing them that their new addresses were unknown.

Teo said that during the objection hearing, the EC officer asked her objector if she had known that Teo’s address was in dispute.

“My objector said she knew where I stayed and even the cars I owned. I find it creepy that a stranger had come to my house and taken pictures,” Teo said.

Bersih 2.0 steering committee member Jay Jay Denis, who was present as an observer at the hearing, said it was illogical to cite “unknown address” as the reason for the objections.

“If their addresses are unknown, how then did the EC manage to send them letters telling them to come to its office?

He also claimed that three out of five objectors on the new voter registration system were members of political parties.

“Are the political parties in cahoots with the EC?” Jay Jay asked.

Last Wednesday, Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah claimed that certain parties were trying to prevent new voters from registering ahead of the 14th general election and that the Elections (Registration of Electors) Regulations 2002 were being abused.

She said a Bersih 2.0 monitoring team had the Monday before witnessed several dubious filings of objections by a group apparently working under the direction of an “agency”.

“They witnessed a suspicious looking group filing objections according to instructions given by an agency.”

Maria said once an objection was filed against a newly registered voter, the voter would be summoned to the EC office for an inquiry where the voter had to show proof that he or she was a legitimate voter.

The person who filed the objection is obliged to compensate the new voter RM100 for the trouble if the registration was found to be genuine.

Human rights activist Ivy Josiah, who was at the scene with the Bersih team, had her phone snatched away by a man when she attempted to take pictures at the hearings.

Due to the events last Monday, police were stationed at the EC office today to monitor the objection hearings.

Action to prevent voter registration stuns Bersih

 

The company joins a short list of designers and apparel purveyors now making clothing expressly for Muslims, who comprise a quarter of the global population.

Nike this week released a video showing female athletes wearing the hijab, which bears a big “swoosh” — the company logo — prominently on the side.

The single layer, pull-on elasticized garment made of polyester was highlighted in an ad on the company’s Facebook page in which it was worn by prominent Muslim athletes.

News reports said the hijab has been tested by athletes including Zahra Lari, the first figure skater from the United Arab Emirates to compete internationally; Manal Rostom, a runner and triathlete living in Dubai; and Amna Al Haddad, an Olympic weight lifter from the United Arab Emirates.

Nike’s Facebook page showed a variety of reactions to the announcement, including effusive praise from some posters like Azra Baig.

“Thank you Nike for the Nike Pro Hijab!! As a Woman, a Muslim, a mother of two daughters, a Marathoner and fitness supporter I so appreciate this athletic wear!” she wrote.

“Millions of Muslim Woman around the World say Thank You Nike!!”

PETALING JAYA: Sarawak Chief Minister Abang Johari Tun Openg says the level of English proficiency among the new generation of Malaysians is laughable, Borneo Post reported.

Calling for the national education system to be reformed to ensure Malaysians don’t fall behind their English-speaking counterparts across the globe, Abang Johari said the country’s education system must be “liberalised” so its people could learn to be multi-lingual.

“Our education system must be reformed. You keep changing the education minister but the policy remains more or less the same. But when we promote English, they say we are not patriotic,” he was quoted as saying by the Sarawak-based daily.

Saying that promoting English had nothing to do with patriotism, Abang Johari said the same status could also be given to the national language Bahasa Malaysia (BM).

“It is compulsory for all to know the national language. Now, (that) China has the economic power, you will need to learn Mandarin. Say ‘wo ai ni’ (‘I love you’ in Mandarin) even if you don’t speak it.”

Abang Johari related a hilarious incident in a showroom, where a foreigner approached a Malaysian in search of a restroom.

“The foreigner asked ‘Can you show me the way to your restroom?’, to which the Malaysian gamely pointed at a sofa and said ‘There you are’ (blinkered by the word ‘rest’).

“Restbah, so you can have your rest there lah. There was a lack of understanding in English. That poor foreigner really had to hold on due to the misunderstanding,” Abang Johari told the audience during the National Transformation 2050 (TN50) Dialogue held at the DeTAR Putra Hall, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak yesterday.

He questioned how the country was going to promote tourism if “English is not there”, adding however that he was delighted that the standard of English among Sarawakians was considerably good.

“Nowadays, all user manuals are printed in English, so how are people going to follow it if they do not have a command of the language in the first place,” The Borneo Post quoted Abang Johari as saying.

For the decades to come, in light of TN50, he said Sarawakians or Malaysians in general would have to look at the whole world as their market, given the borderless digital society of today.

“I attended a conference in Seattle in 1992. Bill Gates invited us to see the ‘House of the Future’. When we entered the house, we were greeted ‘Good morning, welcome to the house’.

“But when some Japanese tried to speak to the one who greeted us, they were told ‘I’m sorry, your pronunciation is wrong’. Only then did we realise it’s a robot with no human relationship,” he was quoted as saying by the daily.

Abang Johari said they were also led to the kitchen where items were delivered by the press of a button.

“That is the future and you will see how our lives will be changed. I’ve seen it, the AI (artificial intelligence), that is going to happen in the future. You have to figure out how you’re going to manage that sort of life.”

Hello sous-vide friends, and welcome to a fairly sanguine installment of Will It Sous Vide?, the weekly column where I make whatever you want me to with my immersion circulator.

Read more...

I recently had to go through the heartbreaking process of saying goodbye to a pet. My cat, Rudy, was old and in pain. It was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make, but it was time to let her go. Although it was a sad experience, I was grateful she was able to stay at home for the process and that I was able to…

Read more...

Here are six of the best photos that readers added to the Consumerist Flickr Pool in the last week, picked for usability in a Consumerist post or for just plain neatness.

Want to see your pictures on our site? Our Flickr pool is the place where Consumerist readers upload photos for possible use in future Consumerist posts. Just be a registered Flickr user, go here, and click “Join Group?” up on the top right. Choose your best photos, then click “send to group” on the individual images you want to add to the pool.