Tamil steals PCL auction
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Opener Tamim Iqbal created a sensation at the players’ auction for the first ever Port-city Cricket League when he was bagged for a whopping Tk 7.70 lakh per match by Chittagong Abahani on Saturday.
Abahani bid 25 times more than his base price of Tk 30,000 a match to win a four-way battle to rope in Tamim, who is now assured of at least Tk 23.10 lakh from the first three group matches.
If Abahani advance to semi-final and final and Tamim plays both the matches he will pocket Tk 38.50 lakh in less than week, something which will make him the highest paid Bangladeshi player in any domestic competition.
The price also is believed to be good enough to bury his frustration for not getting a team in the Indian Primer League. Tamim was one of the four Bangladeshi players auctioned for the IPL this year, but no team had shown any interest in him.
‘Yes, I was certainly disappointed for not getting a team in the IPL. But I never expected the people from Chittagong will come forward to compensate me in this way,’ said a surprised Tamim over phone after the auction.
At least four teams – Chittagong Abahani, Chittagong Mohammedan, Dada Warriors and Brothers Union – were in a race to sign Tamim, who lives yards away from tournament venue Chittagong MA Aziz Stadium.
Mohammedan withdrew themselves after bidding Tk 4.50 lakh but the other two teams fought till the end. His price rose so meteorically that it was not possible to determine who the nearest rivals of Abahani at the auction were.
‘We are champions of Chittagong Premier League for the last two years. Naturally we would love to win the first ever PCL also and that’s why we were desperate to get Tamim. He is the local hero, so we knew if we could sign him we will get the support of the entire city,’ said Chittagong Abahani official Syed Sirajul Islam.
Such was Abahani’s desperation to sign Tamim that they almost spent their entire budget on him. The other five players they have signed will get Tk 1 lakh collectively.
Former Under-19 captain Sohrawardi Shuvo surprisingly emerged as the second most expensive player at the auction with Pirates of Chittagong bagging him for Tk 1.70 lakh. Two other players – Junaed Siddique and Abdur Razzak – were also sold at more than six-digit figures.
Dada Sports roped in Junaed at the cost of Tk 1.31 lakh while Brothers Union got the signature of Razzak for Tk 1.10 lakh. Among the other national players, Naeem Islam was sold at Tk 70,000, Imrul Kayes Tk 68,000 and Merab Hossain Jr Tk 68,000.
Arafat Sunny and Elias Sunny, who never played for the national team, were each sold at Tk 75,000. Among the local players, who were put in the B category with a base price of Tk 8,000, Rezaul Karim got the highest price of Tk 62,000.
The auction, however, was not a pleasing experience for everyone. Former national opener Javed Omar did not find a team in the main auction and was later sold at his base price of Tk 8,000 to Chittagong Mohammedan.
Shamsur Rahman, the highest scorer in the just-concluded Dhaka Premier League, was also sold at his base price of Tk 15,000 to Ispahani, who spent less money than any other sides.
The Chittagong Divisional Commissioner, MAN Siddique, inaugurated the auction at the heavily decorated auditorium of Chittagong Club with journalists Munni Saha and JI Mamum conducting the proceedings.
The cash-rich Twenty20 competition, the first of its kind in Bangladesh, will be held in Chittagong from May 2 to 9.

Hosts face Cambodia today

Bangladesh skipper Aminul (R) shakes hands with Cambodian captain Kim Chanbunrith while Myamar skipper Myo Min Tun (L) and Macau skipper Geofredo De Sousa look on during the official press meet of the AFC Challenge Cup Group A qualifiers on Saturday.

Bangla-desh will be wary of any complacency when they take on Cambodia in the second match of the AFC Challenge Cup Group A qualifying round at the Bangabandhu National Stadium today at 6:00pm.
In their two previous meetings with Cambodia, Bangladesh had won 2-1 in the inaugural AFC Challenge Cup in 2006 and drawn 1-1 in Nehru Cup in 2007. Alfaz Ahmed and Zahid Hasan Emily scored for Bangladesh while Rithy Chan reduced the margin for the Cambodians on the first occasion. In the Nehru Cup match, Bangladesh were leading 1-0 until the 89th minute but Keo Kosal restored parity in the 90th minute taking the match away from Bangladesh’s grip.
Bangladesh coach Dido expressed dissatisfaction with his preparations at the official press conference on Saturday. ‘Frankly speaking, I could not make an ideal preparation, but I have to move ahead with what I have, the four weeks of preparation was too inadequate with a series of injuries to key players,’ said Dido.
The Brazilian urged the supporters to cheer on the team. ‘My message is, you stay behind the national team, it is very important for progress,’ opined Dido.
Dido said he has worked on the weakness of Bangladesh players assembling in the same place forgetting their positions. ‘Though the time was not enough but I have tried to work on it, and believe that improvement is there, I have also talked with the players about losing the rhythm in the dying minutes, it is a physical weakness and can be overcome with fitness, ’ said the Brazilian.
Dido ruled out any pressure on the team. ‘I don’t have any pressure and so are my players, I have tried to get rid of the word “pressure”, I believe in hard work and am not focussed on any opponents, I will try to win with the best performance,’ said Dido.
Dido clarified the position of forward Emily and midfielder Zahid. ‘The doctors have cleared them to play and it is up to me whether I play them or not, I hope that they will be playing as without them, I may not be able to do something that I was supposed to do,’ said the coach.
Dido was cautious about his tactics in the first match. ‘I have still to decide on my strategy, what I know is that attack is the best form of defence and I will to the same not only against Cambodia but also against all other opponents,’ Dido added.
Bangladesh skipper Aminul assured of giving more than hundred per cent. ‘The equation is very simple, we have to win all the three matches to win the group – the first is the quarter-final, the second is the semi-final and the third is the final. We will try our best to win all the three,’ said the reliable goalkeeper.
Bangladesh meet Myanmar on Tuesday and Macau on Thursday.

Ojha puts Mumbai in a spin

Cheerleaders entertain during a match between Deccan Chargers and Mumbai Indians in the IPL Twenty20 at The Kingsmead Cricket Stadium in Durban on Saturday.

A spinning masterclass from Pragyan Ojha and disciplined back-up from Venugopal Rao ensured Deccan Chargers consolidated their position at the top of the Indian Premier League table with a 12-run victory over Mumbai Indians here on Saturday.
Chasing 169, Mumbai looked destined for victory when they entered the final 10 overs of their innings needing 85 to win with nine wickets in hand and star batsmen Sachin Tendulkar and JP Duminy at the crease.
But Ojha’s 3-21 swung the match as he had Tendulkar caught at short extra cover by Herschelle Gibbs for 36, then removed Shikhar Dhawan and Duminy (47) in consecutive overs.
‘I was nervous coming into the match, but I know that if I work hard I can do it, and at the end of the day I did it for my team,’ said Ojha.
Fellow spinner Rao squeezed the batsmen at the other end, allowing just 21 runs from his first three overs as Mumbai managed a meagre 24 runs in the five overs after the ‘strategy break’.
Dwayne Bravo and Harbhajan Singh led spirited resistance, but when Fidel Edwards removed fellow West Indian Bravo for 21, Mumbai’s fate was sealed and they ended their innings on 156-7.
An opening stand of 63 between Adam Gilchrist and Gibbs set Chargers up for a big total after they won the toss and elected to bat under sunny Kingsmead skies.
Even after Gilchrist had fallen for 35 to the bowling of Bravo, Gibbs continued the assault on Mumbai’s bowlers with Dwayne Smith as Deccan reached 124-1 in the 13th over. But when Smith was bowled by Sanath Jayasuriya for 35, his dismissal instigated a collapse and none of the batsmen who followed reached double figures.
Top scorer Gibbs was run out for a feisty 58 as Deccan made 168-8 in 20 overs.

Iran urges US to change
‘domineering methods’
Iran called on the United States on Saturday to change its ‘domineering methods’ after the secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, warned of ‘very tough’ sanctions if dialogue on Iran’s nuclear drive fails.
‘The era of threats and political pressure is over and we believe in resolving issues through dialogue and interaction,’ government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham told reporters.
‘What we are talking about is a real change in their behaviour and they should change their domineering methods,’ he added.
In testimony to Congress on Wednesday, Hillary said Washington supported efforts by world powers to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue diplomatically.
‘But we are also laying the groundwork for the kind of very tough, I think you said crippling, sanctions that might be necessary in the event that our offers are either rejected or the process is inconclusive or unsuccessful.’
On Friday, Iran’s influential former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani warned Hillary that she risked undermining the new prospects for dialogue between Tehran and Washington.
‘Hillary says ‘we are ready for talks but beside that we prepare for paralysing sanctions against Iran’,’ Rafsanjani said.
‘What can they expect of us when such things are said?... They’d better not repeat these comments so the atmosphere existing in Iran today for talks is not ruined.’
Hillary’s comments came the same day that chief nuclear negotiator Said Jalili said that Iran was ready for a ‘‘constructive dialogue’ with world powers.
The five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States — plus Germany have been seeking to persuade Iran to accept a package of political and economic incentives in return for ending its efforts to master the nuclear fuel cycle.
Western governments fear that Iran’s nuclear programme is cover for a drive for a bomb, something Tehran strongly denies.

Khamenei accuses US, Israel over Iraq bombings
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blamed Israel and the United States on Saturday for persistent violence in Iraq after two suicide attacks left scores of Iranian pilgrims dead.
‘The American and Israeli intelligence apparatuses are the number-one accused... for the spread of the poisonous seeds of terrorism in Iraq,’ Khamenei said in a message of condolence to the victims’ families broadcast on state television.
‘Those evil brains and sinful hands that established this blind, unbridled terrorism in Iraq should know that this fire will end up burning them,’ the Iranian leader added.
Twenty Iranian pilgrims were among at least 58 people killed when two women suicide bombers attacked a Shia shrine in Baghdad on Friday. Some 80 Iranians were among the 125 people wounded.
Another 52 Iranian pilgrims were among at least 56 people killed in a suicide attack on a roadside restaurant in Muqdadiyah, northeast of Baghdad, the previous day.

People set to suffer more

with no chances of rain Two women cross the parched and cracked riverbed at Gabtali in Dhaka on Saturday to fetch water from afar as drinking water becomes scarce amid frequent power outages and in the absence of rain.

People are likely to suffer more in the sweltering heat as meteorologists on Saturday said the heat wave now sweeping over a half of the country might continue for a couple of days.
In the absence of rain, a draught-like situation coupled with a decline in the groundwater level has also put farmers in trouble as they could not irrigate the cropland.
A moderate heat wave is sweeping over Dhaka and other districts and a mild-to-moderate wave is blowing over Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions and the regions of Mymensingh and other districts, meteorologist Farah Deeba told New Age on Saturday.
‘The heat wave may continue for a few more days as there are very little chances of rain,’ she said.
Ainun Nishat, country director of the IUCN-The World Conservation Union, said the frequency of heat wave is likely to increase for lack of rainfall resulting from climate change.
‘A number of thunderstorms are likely to blow over the country during the period,’ he said.
Ekabbar Ali, a farmer at Naohata of Paba in Rajshahi, said jute plants on his 12 bighas of land and maize on six bighas were dying, according to a Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha report.
‘We have become helpless as other crops are also dying,’ said another farmer, Bodiuzzaman, of Dadpur.
Shah Mohammad Ullah, a professor of the soil, water and environment department in Dhaka University, also said the heat wave might damage the crops.
‘The country’s soil usually keeps 33 per cent of water. The ongoing heat wave may reduce the moisture in the ground for paddy could become waste,’ he said.
Vegetables require a huge amount of water and if the farmers fail irrigate the land, the plants will not survive, he said.
He feared farmers might fall into a serious financial crisis if such a weather would continue for some more days.
Physicians, meanwhile, warned that people might suffer from high blood pressure and heart ailments because of the heat wave.
The day’s highest temperature, 41.6 degree Celsius, was recorded in Jessore.
Physicians and hospitals sources said extreme summer heat was causing not only diarrhoea, but also heat stroke, cramps, dehydration, itching and jaundice.
Thousands of people, especially children and the aged, have contracted diarrhoea, pneumonia and other viral diseases, according to the disease control room of the Directorate General of Health Services.
About 2,000 diarrhoeal patients are admitted to hospital on an average every day with a mortality rate ranging between one and five, according to the data provided by the control room.
The control room, however, has no data on pneumonia, jaundice and other viral diseases although medical experts have noticed an increased prevalence of such heat-related ailments across the country in a week.
Attendance in schools dropped significantly with some of the schools having nearly 50 per cent of the students absent because of illness.
According to the health services control room and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases Research, Bangladesh, at least 18 people died and more than 62,148 diarrhoea patients were admitted to hospital across the country in a month.
Eight hundred and ninety-seven people in and around Dhaka were admitted to the ICDDR,B hospital at Mohakhali with diarrhoea till 8:00am Saturday and the number is feared to cross a thousand by the end of the day, said doctors at the short stay unit of the ICDDR,B.

Half of the 74 privatised

SoEs closed down

A closed state-owned jute mills.

Almost half of the 74 state-owned enterprises divested in the past were closed down that raised question about the quality of ‘so called privatisation’.
A total of 74 state-owned enterprises belong to textiles, jute, manufacturing, chemicals, food, leather and banking sector were sold out since the establishment of the Privatisation Board in 1993 and thereafter the Privatization Commission in 2000.
Of them, 54 were divested through outright sale and 20 through off-loading of shares by suggestion of the lending agencies especially the World Bank.
Among the privatised enterprises, which are still in business limp badly, they said.
Serious questions can be raised about the privatisation process itself, said Bangladesh Enterprise Institute president Farooq Sobhan. He suggested changes to the existing privatisation process.
Industries minister Dilip Barua, has, however, favoured a provision to halt privatisation of the state-run entities.
He made his intention clear while unveiling the draft of the new industrial policy on Saturday at local hotel.
’Many privatised factories remain inoperative or non-functional under new ownership. In some cases, land is sold off after take-over,’ he said.
Apart from 74 SOEs, some 24 SoEs have already been listed by the commissions to get them disposed off under a World Bank’s multi million ‘bank modernisation and enterprise growth’ project.
Tenders have already been called for three SoEs.
Around 305 state owned enterprises comprising industrial, commercial and financial institutions were put under public ownership in 1974-75.
The size of the public sector enterprises have reduced considerably after the paradigm shift in the government’s economic policy towards privatisation.
However, in name of privatisation successive governments sold out many viable SoEs at very cheap rate, said an official of the Bangladesh Forest Industries and Development Corporation.
He said Wood Treating Plant at Daulatpur in Khulna was divested to private entrepreneur although the organisation was running on break event and employed more than 200 workers.
A relative of the than privatisation commission chairman purchase the plant and curtailed more than 150 workers.
The abortive attempt to privatise Rupali Bank, country’s fourth largest commercial bank, has added further burden on the government exchequer, said the finance ministry officials.
The three-year long unsuccessful bargaining with A Saudi prince deteriorated the financial position of the loss making bank that was put on sale in 2005.

Cricket (insect)










An Australian Brown Field Cricket

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Suborder: Ensifera
Family: Gryllidae
Bolívar, 1878



Crickets, family Gryllidae (also known as "true crickets"), are insects related to grasshoppers and katydids (order Orthoptera). They have somewhat flattened bodies and long antennae.

Crickets are known for their chirp (which only male crickets can do; male wings have ridges that act like a "comb and file" instrument). They chirp by rubbing their wings or legs over each other, and the song is species-specific. There are two types of cricket songs: a calling song and a courting song. The calling song attracts females and repels other males, and is fairly loud. The courting song is used when a female cricket is near, and is a very quiet song. Female crickets have a long needlelike egg-laying organ ( ovipositor).

Crickets chirp at different rates depending both on their species and the temperature of their environment. Most species chirp at higher rates the higher the temperature is (approx. 60 chirps a minute at 13ºC).

There are about 900 known species of crickets, worldwide. The cricket tends to be nocturnal and is often confused with grasshoppers (which are related, but not the same), because they have a similar body structure including jumping hind legs.

In 1970, Dr. William H. Cade discovered that the parasitic fly Ormia ochracea is attracted to the song of the male cricket, and uses it to locate the male in order to deposit her young on him. It was the first example of a natural enemy that locates its host or prey using the mating signal. Since then, many species of crickets have been found to be carrying the same parasitic fly.

Taxonomy

A True Cricket

Subfamilies of the family Gryllidae:

• Acheta domesticus — House crickets
• E neopterinae — Bush crickets
• Gryllinae — Common or field crickets; brown or black; despite the name, some of them enter houses.
• Mogoplistinae — Scaly crickets
• Myrmecophilinae — Ant crickets
• Nemobiinae — Ground crickets
• Oecan thinae — Tree crickets; usually green with broad, transparent wings; frequent trees and shrubs.
• Pentacentrinae — Anomalous crickets
• Trigonidiinae — Sword-tail crickets

In addition to the above subfamilies in the family Gryllidae, several other orthopteran groups outside of this family also may be called "crickets":

• Mole crickets
• Kat ydids
• Cave Crickets (also called camel crickets)
• Sand crickets
• Mormon crickets
• Weta crickets
• Jerusalem crickets
• Parktown prawns

Hot air balloon




A hot air balloon is partially inflated with cold air from a petrol-driven fan, before the propane burners are used for final inflation






Hot air balloons are the oldest successful human flight technology, dating back to the Montgolfier brothers' invention in Annonay, France in 1783. The first flight carrying humans was made on November 21, 1783, in Paris by Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes. Balloons that can be propelled through the air rather than just being carried along by the wind are known as airships.

Attractive aspects of ballooning include the exceptional quiet (except when the propane burners are firing), the lack of any perceptible feeling of movement and the birds-eye view. Since the balloon moves with the wind, the passengers feel absolutely no wind, except for brief periods during the flight when the balloon climbs or descends into air currents of different direction or speed. Recently, balloons have been made in fantastic shapes, such as hot dogs, rocket ships, and the shapes of commercial products.

History

A hot air balloon is inflated by its propane burners, just before dawn

Unmanned hot air balloons are mentioned in Chinese history. Zhuge Liang in the Three Kingdoms era used airborne lanterns for military signalling. These lanterns, known as Kongming lanterns (孔明灯) nowadays, are still being flown in China, despite the risk of causing a fire upon landing.

There is also some speculation that hot air balloons were used by the Nazca Indians of Peru some 1500 years ago as a tool for design vast drawings on the Nazca plain.

The first clearly recorded instances of balloons capable of carrying passengers used hot air to obtain buoyancy and were built by the brothers Josef and Etienne Montgolfier in Annonay, France. They were from a family of paper manufacturers who had noticed the ash rising in fires. After experimenting with uncrewed balloons and flights with animals, the first balloon flight with humans on board took place on 21 November 1783. King Louis XVI had originally decreed that condemned criminals would be the first pilots, but a young physicist named Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis Francois d'Arlandes successfully petitioned for the honor. Hot air balloons were basically paper bags with a smoky fire built on a grill attached to the bottom, so they had a tendency to catch fire and be destroyed on landing.

The first hot air balloon flight in the United States took place on January 9, 1793. The 45 minute flight started in Philadelphia and ended in Gloucester County, New Jersey. The flight was witnessed byGeorge Washington.

Balloons were the first manifestation of air power. Hot air balloons such as The Enterprise were used by the North for artillery observation in the American Civil War and were used for communication during the Siege of Paris in 1871. They were also used for observation of trench warfare in World War I. However, as the development of balloons that used unheated gases (such as hydrogen) became more refined, hot air for ballooning receded to obscurity for most of the 1800's and the first half of the 1900's. Only with advances in material and fuel technology did hot air ballooing return to the fore.

A hot air balloon takes off

The first modern hot air balloon was designed and built in 1960 by Ed Yost. Yost used a modified propane powered "weed burner" to heat the air and lightweight nylon fabric for the envelope material. He made the first free flight of such an aircraft in Bruning, Nebraska on 22 October 1960.

Today, hot air balloons are used primarily for recreation. There are some 7,000 hot air balloons operating in the United States.

Hot air balloons are able to fly to extremely high altitudes. On November 26, 2005, Vijaypat Singhania set the world altitude record for highest hot air balloon flight, reaching 69,852 feet (20.29 km). He took off from downtown Bombay, India and landed 150 miles south in Panchale. The previous record of 19,811 meters (64,980 ft) had been set by Per Lindstrand of Sweden on June 6, 1988 in Plano, Texas.

Aircraft
An aircraft is any machine capable of flight. atmospheric

Categories and classification

A Japan Airlines Boeing 747-400. This is a wide-bodied long-haul aircraft

Heavier than air

• Heavier than air aerodynes, including autogyros, helicopters and variants, and conventional fixed-wing aircraft: aeroplanes in Commonwealth English (excluding Canada), airplanes in North American English. Fixed-wing aircraft generally use an internal-combustion engine in the form of a piston engine (with a propeller) or a turbine engine ( jet or turboprop), to provide thrust that moves the craft forward through the air. The movement of air over the airfoil produces lift that causes the aircraft to fly. Exceptions are gliders which have no engines and gain their thrust, initially, from winches or tugs and then from gravity and thermal currents. For a glider to maintain its forward speed it must descend in rela tion to the air (but not necessarily in relation to the ground). Helicopters and autogyros use a spinning rotor (a rotary wing) to provide lift; helicopters also use the rotor to provide thrust. The abbreviation VTOL is applied to aircraft other than helicopters that can take off or land vertically. STOL stands for Short Take Off and Landing. Mainly used internationally.

Air Design

A first division by design among aircraft is between lighter-than-air, aerostat, and heavier-than-air aircraft, aerodyne.

A size Comparation of some of the largest airplanes in the world. The Airbus A380-800, the Boeing 747-400 (largest airliner to date) The Antonov An-225 (aircraft with the greatest payload) and the Hughes H-4 "Spruce Goose" (largest airplane in the world) designed by the famous Howard Hughes

Examples of lighter-than-air aircraft include non-steerable balloons, such as hot air ballons and gas balloons, and steerable air-ships (sometimes called dirigible balloons) such as blimps (that have non-rigid construction) and rigid airships that have an internal frame. The most successful type of rigid airship was the Zeppelin. Several accidents, such as the Hindenburg fire at Lakehurst, NJ, in 1937 led to the demise of large rigid airships.

In heavier-than-air aircraft, there are two ways to produce lift: aerodynamic lift and engine lift. In the case of aerodynamic lift, the aircraft is kept in the air by wings or rotors (see aerodynamics). With engine lift, the aircraft defeats gravity by use of vertical Examples of engine lift aircraft are rockets, and VTOL aircraft such as the Hawker-Siddeley Harrier.

Among aerodynamically lifted aircraft, most fall in the category of fixed-wing aircraft, where horizontal airfoils produce lift, by profiting from airflow patterns determined by Bernoulli's equation and, to some extent, the Coanda effect.

The forerunner of these type of aircraft is the kite. Kites depend upon the tension between the cord which anchors it to the ground and the force of the wind currents. Much aerodynamic work was done with kites until test aircraft, wind tunnels and now computer modelling programs became available.

In a "conventional" configuration, the lift surfaces are placed in front of a control surface or tailplane. The other configuration is the canard where small horizontal control surfaces are placed forward of the wings, near the nose of the aircraft. Canards are becoming more common as supersonic aerodynamics grows more mature and because the forward surface contributes lift during straight-and-level flight.

The number of lift surfaces varied in the pre- 1950 period, as biplanes (two wings) and triplanes (three wings) were numerous in the early days of aviation. Subsequently most aircraft are monoplanes. This is principally an improvement in structures and not aerodynamics.

Other possibilities include the delta-wing, where lift and horizontal control surfaces are often combined, and the flying wing, where there is no separate vertical control surface (e.g. the B-2 Spirit).

A variable geometry ('swing-wing') has also been employed in a few examples of combat aircraft (the F-111, Panavia Tornado, F-14 Tomcat and B-1 Lancer, among others).

The lifting body configuration is where the body itself produce lift. So far the only significant practical application of the lifting body is in the Space Shuttle, but many aircraft generate lift from nothing other than wings alone.

A second category of aerodynamically lifted aircraft are the rotary-wing aircraft. Here, the lift is provided by rotating aerofoils or rotors. The best-known examples are the helicopter, the autogyro and the tiltrotor aircraft (such as the V-22 Osprey). Some craft have reaction-powered rotors with gas jets at the tips but most have one or more lift rotors powered from engine-driven shafts.

A further category might encompass the wing-in-ground-effect types, for example the Russian ekranoplan also nicknamed the "Caspian Sea Monster" and hovercraft; most of the latter employing a skirt and achieving limited ground or water clearance to reduce friction and achieve speeds above those achieved by boats of similar weight.

A recent innovation is a completely new class of aircraft, the fan wing. This uses a fixed wing with a forced airflow produced by cylindrical fans mounted above. It is (2005) in development in the United-Kingdom.

And finally the flapping-wing ornithopter is a category of its own. These designs may have potential but are not yet practical.

AIDS

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
(AIDS)

ICD-10 B24
ICD-9 042

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome (or acronym AIDS or Aids), is a collection of symptoms and infections resulting from the specific damage to the immune system caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It results from the latter stages of advanced HIV infection in humans, thereby leaving compromised individuals prone to opportunistic infections and tumors. Although treatments for both AIDS and HIV exist to slow the virus' progression in a human patient, there is no known cure.

Most researchers believe that HIV originated in sub-Sahara

n Africa during the twentieth century; it is now a global epidemic. UNAIDS and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimate that AIDS has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized on December 1, 1981, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in recorded history. In 2005 alone, AIDS claimed between an estimated 2.8 and 3.6 million, of which more than 570,000 were children. In countries where there is access to antiretroviral treatment, both mortality and morbidity of HIV infection have been reduced . However, side-effects of these antiretrovirals have also caused problems such as lipodystrophy, dyslipidaemia, insulin resistance and an increase in cardiovascular risks . T

he difficulty of consistently taking the medicines has also contributed to the rise of viral escape and resistance to the medicines .

Infection by HIV

The Red Ribbon is the global symbol for solidarity with HIV-positive people and those living with AIDS

AIDS is the most severe manifestation of infection with HIV. HIV is a retrovirus that primarily infects vital components of the human immune system such as CD4+ T cells, macrophages and dendritic cells. It also directly and indirectly destroys CD4+ T cells. As CD4+ T cells are required for the proper functioning of the immune syste

m, when enough CD4+ cells have been destroyed by HIV, the immune system barely works, leading to AIDS. Acute HIV infection progresses over time to clinical

latent HIV infection and then to early symptomatic HIV infection and later, to AIDS, which is identified on the basis of the amount of CD4 positive cells in the blood and the presence of certain infections.

In the absence of antiretroviral therapy, progression from HIV infection to AIDS occurs at a median of between nin

e to ten years and the median survival time after developing AIDS is only 9.2 months . However, the rate of clinical disease progression varies widely between individuals, from two weeks up to 20 years. Many factors affect the rate of progression. These include factors that influence the body's ability to defend against HIV, including the infected person's genetic inheritance, general immune function , access to health care, age and other coexisting infections . Differen

t strains of HIV may also cause different rates of clinical disease progression.

Diagnosis

Scanning electron micrograph of HIV-1 budding from cultured lymphocyte

AIDS and HIV case definitions

Since 1981, many different definitions have been developed for epidemiological surveillance such as the Bangui definition and the 1994 expanded World Health Organization AIDS case definition. However, these were never intended to be used for clinical staging of patients, for which they are neither sensitive nor specific. The World H

ealth Organizations (WHO) staging system for HIV infection and disease, using clinical and laboratory data, can be used in developing countries and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Classification System can be used in developed nations.

WHO Disease Staging System for HIV Infection and Disease

In 1990, the World Health Organization (WHO) grouped these infections and conditions together by introducing a staging system for patients infected with HIV-1 . This was updated in September 2005. Most of these conditions are opportunistic infections that can be easily treated in healthy people.

• Stage I: HIV disease is asymptomatic and not categorized as AIDS
• Stage II: include minor mucocutaneous manifestations and recurrent upper respiratory tract infections
• Stage III: includes unexplained chronic diarrhea for longer than a month, severe bacterial infections and pulmonary tuberculosis or
• Stage IV includes toxoplasmosis of the brain, candidiasis of the esophagus, trachea, bronchi or lungs and Kaposi's sarcoma; these diseases are used as indicators of AIDS.

CDC Classification System for HIV Infection

In the USA, the definition of AIDS is governed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 1993, the CDC expanded their definition of AIDS to include healthy HIV positive people with a CD4 positive T cell coun

t of less than 200 per µl of blood. The majority of new AIDS cases in the United States are reported on the basis of a low T cell count in the presence of HIV infection

HIV test

Approximately half of those infected with HIV don't know that they are infected until they are diagnosed with AIDS. HIV test kits are used to screen donor blood and blood products, and to diagnose HIV in individuals. Typical HIV tests, including the HIV enzyme immunoassay and the Western blot assay, detect HIV antibodies in serum, plasma, oral fluid, dried blood spot or urine of patients. Other tests to look for HIV antigens, HIV-RNA, and HIV-DNA are also commercially available and can be used to detect HIV infection prior to the development of detectable antibodies. However, these assays are not specifically approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the diagnosis of HIV infection.

Prevention strategies

Condoms in many colors





During a sexual act, only condoms, be they male or female, can reduce the chances of infection with HIV and other STIs and the chances of becoming pregnant. They must be used during all penetrative sexual intercourse with a partner who is HIV positive or whose status is unknown . The effective use of condoms and s creening of blood transfusion in North America, Western and Central Europe is credited with the low rates of AIDS in these regions.

Promoting condom use, however, has often proved controversial and difficult. Many religious groups, most visibly the Roman Catholic Church, have opposed the use of condoms on religious grounds, and have sometimes seen condom promotion as an affront to the promotion of marriage, monogamy and sexual morality. Other religious groups have argued that preventing HIV infection is a moral task in itself and that condoms are therefore acceptable or even praiseworthy from a religious point of view.

• The male latex condom is the single most efficient available technology to reduce the sexual transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. In order to be effective, they must be used correctly during each sexual act. Lubricants containing oil, such as petroleum jelly, or butter, must not be used as they weaken latex condoms and make them porous. If necessary, lubricants made from water are recommended. However, it is not recommended to use a lubricant for fellatio. Also, condoms have standards and expiration dates. It is essential to check the expiration date and if it conforms to European (EC 600) or American (D3492) standards before use.

• The female condom is an alternative to the male condom and is made from polyurethane, which allows it to be used in the presence of oil-based lubricants. They are larger than male condoms and have a stiffened ring-shaped opening, and are designed to be inserted into the vagina. The female condom also contains an inner ring which keeps the condom in place inside the vagina - inserting the female condom requires squeezing this ring.

With consistent and correct use of condoms, there is a very low risk of HIV infection. Studies on couples where one partner is infected show that with consistent condom use, HIV infection rates for the uninfected partner are below 1% per year .

Crab




Callinectes sapidus








Scientific classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Suborder: Pleocyemata

Sections

• Dromiacea
• Raninoida
• Heterotremata
• Thoracotremata

The term crab is often applied to several different groups of short (nose to tail) decapod crustaceans with thick exoskeletons, but only members of the Brachyura are true crabs; other taxa, such as hermit crabs, porcelain crabs, king crabs, and horseshoe crabs are, despite superficial similarities, not crabs at all. Hermit crabs, king crabs and porcelain crabs belong to the Anomura and can be distinguished from true crabs by counting the legs - in Anomura, the last pair of pereiopods (walking legs) is hidden inside the carapace and so only four pairs are visible (counting the claws), whereas uninjured true crabs always have five visible pairs.

The term crab is often applied to several different groups of short (nose to tail) decapod crustaceans with thick exoskeletons, but only members of the Brachyura are true crabs; other taxa, such as hermit crabs, porcelain crabs, king crabs, and horseshoe crabs are, despite superficial similarities, not crabs at all. Hermit crabs, king crabs and porcelain crabs belong to the Anomura and can be distinguished from true crabs by counting the legs - in Anomura, the last pair of pereiopods (walking legs) is hidden inside the carapace and so only four pairs are visible (counting the claws), whereas uninjured true crabs always have five visible pairs.

The Qur'an

The first surah in a handwritten copy of the Qur'an

The Qur'an is the sacred book of Islam. It has also been called, in English, "the Koran" and (archaically) "the Alcoran". Qur'an is the currently preferred English transliteration of the Arabic original (قرآن); it means “recitation”. Although the Qur'an is referred to as a "book", when a Muslim refers to the Qur'an, they are referring to the actual text, the words, rather than the printed work itself.

Muslims believe that the Qur'an was revealed to the prophet Muhammad by God through the Angel Gabriel on numerous occasions between the years 610 and up till his death in 632. In addition to memorizing his revelations, his followers are said to have written them down on parchments, stones, and leaves.

Muslims hold that the Qur'an available today is the same as that revealed to the Prophet Muhammad and by him to his followers, who memorized and wrote down his words. Scholars generally accept that the version of the Qur'an used today was first compiled in writing by the third Caliph, Uthman ibn Affan, sometime between 650 and 656. He sent copies of his version to the various provinces of the new Muslim empire, and directed that all variant copies be destroyed. However, some skeptics doubt the recorded oral traditions ( hadith) on which this account is based, and will concede only that the Qur'an must have been compiled before 750.

There are numerous traditions, and many conflicting academic theories, as to the provenance of the Qur'anic verses that were eventually assembled into a single volume. (This is covered in greater detail in Qur'an). Most Muslims accept the account recorded in several hadith, which state that Abu Bakr, The First Caliph, ordered his personal secretary Zayd ibn Thabit to collect and record all the authentic verses of the Qur'an, as preserved in written form or oral tradition. Zayd's written collection, privately treasured by Prophet Muhammad's wife Hafsa bint Umar, was, according to Muslim sources, later used by Uthman and is thus the basis of today's Qur'an.

Uthman's version, organized the suras roughly in order of length (excepting the brief opening surah Al-Fatiha), with the longest suras at the start of the Qur'an and the shortest ones at the end. More conservative views state that the order of most suras was divinely set. Later scholars have struggled to put the suras in chronological order, and among Muslim commentators, at least, there is a rough consensus as to which suras were revealed in Mecca and which at Medina, with distinctive characteristics observed within these two subgroups. Some suras (e.g. surat Iqra) are thought to have been revealed in parts at separate times.

To understand the notion of "variants" within the received Qur'anic text, one must understand that Arabic had not yet fully developed as a written language. The Qur'an was first recorded in written form (date uncertain) in the Hijazi, Mashq, Ma'il, and Kufic scripts; these scripts write consonants only and do not supply vowels. (Imagine an English text that wrote the word 'bed' as "BD," and required the reader to infer, from context, that the reference was to "bed" - and not to 'bad" or "bide.") Because there were differing oral traditions of recitation as non-native Arabic speakers converted to Islam, there was some disagreement as to the exact reading of many (vowel-free) verses. Eventually, scripts were developed that used diacritical markings (known as points) to indicate the vowels. For hundreds of years after Uthman's recension, Muslim scholars argued as to the correct pointing and reading of Uthman's (unpointed) official text.^{[ citation needed]} Eventually, most commentators accepted seven variant readings ( qira'at) of the Qur'an as canonical, while agreeing that the differences among the seven are minor and do not affect the meaning of the text.

The form of the Qur'an most used today is the Al-Azhar text of 1923, prepared by a committee at the prestigious Cario university of Al-Azhar.

The Qur'an early became a focus of Muslim devotion and eventually a subject of theological controversy among skeptics. In the 8th century, the Mu'tazilis claimed that the Qur'an was created in time and was not eternal. Their opponents, of various schools, claimed that the Qur'an was eternal and perfect, existing in heaven before it was revealed to Muhammad. The Ashari theology (which ultimately became predominant) held that the Qur'an was uncreated.

Most Muslims regard paper copies of the Qur'an with extreme veneration, wrapping them in a clean cloth, keeping them on a high shelf, and washing as for prayers before reading the Qur'an. Old Qur'ans are not destroyed as wastepaper, but burned.

Most Muslims memorize for personal contact at least some portion of the Qur'an in the original language. Those who have memorized the entire Qur'an are known as hafiz. This is not a rare achievement; it is believed that there are millions of huffaz (plural) alive today.

From the beginning of the faith, most Muslims believed that the Qur'an was perfect only as revealed in Arabic. Translations were the result of human effort and human fallibility, as well as lacking the inspired poetry believers find in the Qur'an. Translations are therefore only commentaries on the Qur'an, or "translations of its meaning", not the Qur'an itself. Many modern, printed versions of the Qur'an feature the Arabic text on one page, and a vernacular translation on the facing page.

Islam

Islam ( Arabic: الإسلام; al-islām ( listen ( help· info)), "submission (to the will of God)") is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the world's second-largest religion. Followers of Islam are known as Muslims. Muslims believe that God revealed his divine word directly to mankind through many prophets and that Muhammad was the final prophet of Islam.

Etymology

In Arabic, Islām derives from the three-letter root Sīn- Lām- Mīm (س-ل-م), which means "submission; to surrender; to obey; peace". Islām is a verbal abstract to this root, and literally means "submission/obedience," referring to submission to Allah. Compare that root with the cognate word in Hebrew, shalom, which derives from the root shin-lamedh-mem (ש-ל-ם), which has cognates in many Semitic languages, and means completeness, fulfillment, wellbeing, a concept usually encapsulated by translation in the word peace.

Other Arabic words derived from س-ل-م:

• Salām, meaning "peace", which is also part of a common salutation, As-Salāmu alaykum (Peace be upon you).
• As-Salām (The Peace) is one of the 99 names of God found in the Qur'an.
• Muslim, a follower of Islam, an agentive noun meaning "one who surrenders" or "submits" to God.
• Salāmah, meaning "safety," which is used in saying "goodbye" with "ma' as-salāmah" ([go] with safety).

Beliefs

The basis of Islamic belief is found in the shahādatān ("two testimonies", Arabic: لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله ): lā ilāhā illā-llāhu; muhammadur-rasūlu-llāh—"There is no god but The God and Muhammad is the messenger of God." In order to become a Muslim, one needs to recite and believe in these statements under witness. One who wishes to convert must be truly willing and must have given thought to the meaning of the shahāda before reciting the words and becoming a Muslim.

Muslims believe that God (or, in Arabic, Allāh; also in Aramaic Alaha) revealed his direct word for mankind to Muhammad (c. 570– 632) and other prophets, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Muslims believe that Muhammad is the Last or the seal of the prophets. Thus, his preachings for humankind will last until Qiyamah (The Day of the Resurrection). Muslims assert that the main written record of revelation to humankind is the Qur'an (see below), which they believe to be flawless, immutable, and the final revelation of God to humanity. Muslims believe that parts of the Gospels, Torah and Jewish prophetic books have been forgotten, misinterpreted, incorrectly edited by humans, or distorted by their followers and thus their original message has been corrupted over time. With that perspective, Muslims view the Qur'an as a correction of Jewish and Christian scriptures, and a final revelation.

Muslims hold that Islam is essentially the same belief as that of all the messengers sent by God to mankind since Adam, with the Qur'an (the text used by all sects of the Muslim faith) codifying the final revelation of God. Islamic texts depict Judaism and Christianity as derivations of the teachings of the prophet Abraham and thus acknowledge common Abrahamic roots. The Qur'an calls Jews and Christians (and sometimes people of other faiths) " People of the Book." Historically, the second Caliph Umar ibn Khattab created what came to be known as "the Pact of Umar" in establishing that any people of the book who submitted to Muslim authority as dhimmis during the wars of Muslim expansion retained their freedom of religion and their existing churches.

Islām is described as a dīn, meaning "way of life" and/or "guidance".

Six articles of belief

Kaaba , the holiest site in Islam

There are six basic beliefs shared by all Muslims:

1. Belief in God (Allah), the one and only one worthy of all worship ( tawhid).
2. Belief in all the prophets (nabi) and messengers ( rasul) sent by God. (See Prophets of Islam)
3. Belief in the books ( kutub) sent by God:

   The Suhuf-i-Ibrahim (Scrolls of Abraham)

   The Tawrat sent to Musa (Moses)

   The Zabur sent to Daud (David)

   The Injil sent to Isa (Jesus)

   The Qur'an sent to Muhammad

4. Belief in the Angels ( mala'ika).
5. Belief in the Day of Judgement ( qiyama) and in the life after death (heaven and hell). (Note: Sometimes these articles are listed separately, thus resulting in 7 articles of faith.)
6. Belief in Fate ( predestination) ( qadar).

The Muslim creed in English:

"I testify that there is no god but Allah Almighty; and I testify that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), is His Messenger."

"I believe in Allah; and in His Angels; and in His Scriptures; and in His Messengers; and in The Final Day; and in Fate, that All things are from Allah, and Resurrection after death be Truth.